Lord of Darkness
Chapter Six
Battle
________________
Sixth part of Lord of Darkness.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm so happy to receive
your reviews. *wipes away tears of happiness*. I've so
many ideas about what I should do to this story and too
little time to write. I shudder to think how all those
ideas will cause my brain to malfunction during my totally
dreadful and stressing Senior Year. I'll probably go into
apoplexy or have a heart attack. *sighs*. I shall forgo
my selfish wishes to pour out my heart and release you from
my pre-story ramble to continue your (hopefully) pleasant
pursuit of my story.
I use the Roman names in relation to their families, Greek
names when praying.
This part will be mainly about how hard and difficult it
may be for a girl, no matter how talented, beautiful, or
alert, to establish her authority in a screwed-up, male-dominated
world. (A.N. If this male domination continues, I'll just
have to kiss the Earth goodbye)
Hope you enjoy it *smiles* (No matter how morbid I sound, I'm
still an over-excited, sweet, little 16 year-old, though I know
more than what's good for me, but see, that's how I create, and
I'm sure my readers love me for that, otherwise you'd be
sitting here reading the most boring story ever *heh heh*)
________________
Lord of Darkness
Chapter Six
Battle
________________
Minako nervously followed Endymion toward the training grounds
of the palace, her anxiety mounting with each step. It would not be an
easy task training the soldiers, with or without the power transfer.
The first impression was up to her, since Rei, though not a general, still
had to mix her magic with Jadeite's to be a commander. She gestured
with her right hand, and a shower of golden sparks diminished to form
her sword. A flash of red light told her Rei had also called upon her
weapons. She gently ran a hand over the hilt, surprised as words quickly
flashed across it.
"Gwendell, Aphrodite's desire."
Minako frowned. Gwendell was obviously the crystal sword's name,
but what in the name of all the gods and goddesses ever created did it
mean by 'Aphrodite's desire'? The letters vanished as quickly as it had
come, and she heard Rei's voice mutter
"Dwindylle, Apollo Shootafar."
It was obvious that the bow that revealed its name to her.
A gentle voice to Minako's right caused her to look up. Ami, the
blue-haired healer girl, had walked up to them. Minako heard her
speak (she had shouted at Emerald earlier) for the first time, the
voice as sweet as a nightingale's.
"It's dangerous to say their names, for with a name
comes power. The weapons only reveal themselves to the true owner,
and others cannot control them. But should one know their names,
the weapons would be helplessly under their might."
Ami's face turned sad for a moment, and she stared off into
space.
"A few years ago, Sir Gregory, a knight of this land, fell
in love with a girl from another place. He told her the name of his
spiked whip, and she turned on him. He was killed by his own means."
Her light blue locks flew as she shook herself from her musings,
smiling again.
"Don't frown, Princess, it mares your complexion. Good luck,
I'll be there to patch Jadeite up after the fight."
She hurried off, and Minako stared after her in amazement,
startled by the girl's quick change of expression. But there was no
time to dwell on that, for the sun's bright glare announced her
destination. She stared at the sea of grim-faced man, each in a
black uniform, their swords held at ready. Her eyes scanned their
faces, estimating the range of age from ten to forty. She silently
groaned, not at all happy to be teaching men older than herself.
"General Topaz!"
A sharp voice barked, and she turned automatically. Slashing
her blade in a warrior's salute, she bowed, her voice carrying to all
present.
"General Jadeite."
Nephrite stepped toward them, ignoring the soldiers.
"The first person to disarm their opponent wins."
Minako raised an eyebrow, baring her white teeth in a
predator's smile.
"Disarm, General Nephrite? I was hoping I could hurt him to
make the lesson stick."
"I won't be beaten by a girl!"
"Never underestimate your opponent just because of her gender!"
Nephrite broke their verbal spar.
"Attack!"
Minako's body grew taut, her muscles ready to jump, her eyes never
leaving Jadeite.
*If Gwendell breaks, I'll take its maker's head off.*
She thought grimly as he lunged at her. She fended him off easily.
He insulted her name, her looks, her mother, her people. She kept her
temper, choosing to remark coldly as he drew a breath
"You're wasting your lung energy."
Jadeite ignored her, attacking everything from her manner to her
tastes. But as he started shouting rude comments about Ruby, Minako had
had enough. Nobody, absolutely nobody, insulted her friends and got away
with it. She sprang at him, her temper tightly under control as
their swords met with a resounding clang. Her sword never stopped
moving, always seeking for an opening. Despite her earilier comment, she
wanted no bloodshed; she had only been trying to scare Jadeite. A
swift figure eight caught him off guard as he struggled to keep
up with her movements. A backward butterfly sweep and two sideways
'Z' slashes later, she found the opening. She dove forward, Gwendell
twisting itself like a snake around Jadeite's sword, effectively
yanking it out of his hand and into the air. Before the startled
general had registered what happened, Minako had already caught
the flying sword in her left hand, both blades pressed against Jadeite's
throat, neatly sandwiching his neck between them. She smiled sweetly
at him.
"You lose, General Jadeite."
He glared at her, his hand inching toward his belt. She applied
pressure on the swords as Ruby voiced Minako's thoughts.
"One wrong move, General, and she will slit your throat. You heard
Prince Endymion yourself, 'my joint third general is expendable'."
Minako lowered her arms, tossing her opponent's sword back toward
its owner.
"May I remind you of our bet, General?"
He sighed, waves of humiliation washing over him. He knelt before
her, muttering
"I apologize for my insulting words toward you, milady."
"I didn't hear you, General."
Minako twittered sweetly as Rei smirked. Jadeite sent her a scathing
glance. She just had to make it hard for him, didn't she? Being humiliated before
the soldiers was bad enough, but to lose to the golden Princess in front of
Rei made him want to commit suicide.
"I APOLOGIZE FOR MY INSLULTING WORDS TOWARD YOU, MILADY."
Rei snickered as she watched her friend fake a look of great surprise
on her face.
"There was no need to shout, General. The amount of air you expanded
rushed by my ears so strongly that it was impossible for me to understand your
words."
Jadeite lowered his voice, whispering so softly that only Minako and
Rei could hear
"I would love to put my hands around that little tempting neck of yours."
"You lost, General."
Rei reminded him brightly, not at all abashed by that ominous statement.
He grudgingly repeated the words again, loud and clear this time.
"I apologize for my insulting words toward you, milady."
Minako curtsied
"Thank you, General Jadeite, you're most kind."
Rei spoke at the same time.
"My, such humble words from a member of the male specimen."
Jadeite gave her another death glare, muttering under his breath
"Milady, your high opinion of my gender is flattering."
"It's always good to try to lift the spirits of the inferior gender."
The blonde general growled, walking stiffly toward the sidelines, as
Kunzite stepped forward to introduce the Princess, who was standing in the
middle of the battle field, looking a bit unsure.
"This is your new leader, joint fourth commander, General Topaz, Princess
Minako Aino, daughter of Phyathreron III and Andromeda VI, niece of King Ithias,
and grandchild of the Goddess Venus herself. Her second-in-command, Lady Rei,
daughter of Duke Theseus, descendant of the War God Mars, companion and protector
of Princess Minako."
There was a great deal of muttering among the soldiers concerning their
new commander's birth and lineage. Minako shot Kunzite a withering look.
"Did you have to take so long?"
Kunzite internally sweat dropped, but kept the emotion out of his face.
"It is the common procedure, General Topaz."
He turned to the men, and barked in a voice that could easily carry across
the battle plane.
"Stand at attention."
The sounds died away abruptly, and two burly men who had been standing at
the sidelines stepped forward.
"General Topaz, I am Captain Firenze and this is Captain Icenio. Please
demonstrate your skills."
They rushed at her, her swords poised in kill position. Minako stood quietly
in the middle, not moving until they were within five feet of her. She twisted at
inhumanly complex angles, her body supple and flexible, as the Captains found themselves
fighting each other every time they tried to slash at her. After toying with them
for quite some time, Minako leapt away in one fluid motion, sword at their necks.
"So kind of you to create a straight line for me."
The captains bowed, accepting her authority.
"Pair up, men, and start your morning exercise drills."
Kunzite bellowed, and there was suddenly numerous sounds of metal hitting metal.
Minako straightened up, her eyes scanning over the soldiers. Over the entire morning, she
watched the men as the sun steadily rose higher and higher, only allowing for a break when
the sun had reached the peak of its daily route, telling them to go get some lunch. She
turned to the First General
"Please tell me there are no more training in the afternoon. I don't think I can
stand much of more of this noise."
Kunzite shook his head, no emotion showing on his face.
"No, afternoon is training time for the Generals."
Minako groaned, her eyes rolling heavenward in a gesture of mock prayer.
"Train the generals? I thought that they were already trained!"
Kunzite raised an eyebrow.
"They? Us, darling, us. You're one of the generals now."
Minako threw her hands up into the air in frustration at his nick-picking.
"Whatever! Now tell me, why the generals still have to train?"
"Because it's an extremely bad idea for us to get out of shape. What happens when
we get stuck in a difficult battle?"
"You'll die fighting, and the rest of us will be using your body as a shield
to advance to the enemy ranks. After all, you won't feel the pain if you're dead."
Kunzite dove forward, catching both small wrists in his large hand as
she turned to go.
"You little minx!"
Minako grinned, leaving him breathless. He unconsciously loosened his grip on her,
and she twisted out of his range with a crystalline laugh.
"Catch me if you can!"
She put on a mocking smile.
"I believe it is my job to make sure you are ready!"
She cocked her head slightly, waiting for him.
"I'll save my energy if were I you. This is your first day, so you'll have to have a
mock battle with the rest of us."
He yelled at her.
"Mock battle? Does that mean you'll be mock dead?"
"No!"
"I'll be ready, *Kunz*!"
"Oh, you're so dead, Minako!"
She pouted prettily, falsely.
"But, Kunz, you didn't take off Jadeite's head when he called you that. Why
can't I?"
"Because if I did, he'd be dead a couple zillion times over!"
Minako caused fake tears to well up in her eyes, sliding down her cheeks, as she
stamped her foot and threw a temper tantrum like a three-year-old.
"That's not fair!"
Kunzite was about to reach out to comfort a Minako that suddenly wasn't Minako.
Well, she still looked like the princess, but sure wasn't acting like the girl he'd come
to know in the past few days. Rei's sudden motherly voice however made him realize that
the two women were acting.
"Now, Mina-chan, we have to make allowances for these little boys."
"But, Rei-chan, he's not being fair! He allows Jed, but not me."
"Mina-chan, that's because you're special."
"But I don't want to be special!"
"Come on, Mina-chan, you don't have to get so worked up about it."
Kunzite stared at them, stunned that two 16-year-olds' personality could so
dramatically change, even in acting. Until now, Minako also had been the more reasonable
of the two: cool, calm, and collected. Rei was almost the entire opposite. She was a
dangerously beautiful, hot-tempered, and sarcastic goddess. Now, however, the first one had
acquired a personality befitting of a three-year-old, while the second one appeared
to be a mother hen.
"But, Rei-chan, he, he..."
Minako suddenly burst into loud, uncontrolled tears. Kunzite was starting
to almost believe that he'd read the signs wrong and that they really weren't acting
at all, and he hastily pulled Minako into an embrace, running his hands through her
long blond hair and patting her back.
Rei suddenly bent over as if in pain. He was about to call out to Jadeite when
he realized that the raven-haired was holding her stomach as she screamed like a hyena, and
Minako's sobbing noises were in reality laughter, tears flowing at her mirth.
"That's was priceless."
Kunzite furrowed his brow, clearly annoyed that he had been so easily duped.
"Drama queens."
Rei took a dramatic bow.
"Thank you, my Lord. It is most kind of you to address us a queens."
Still giggling, she strode ahead, her walk lithe and athletic. Minako abruptly
straightened as she heard Kunzite mutter under his breath as soon as Rei was out of
their ear shot:
"Nasty little vixen."
"Don't."
The silver-haired young man stared down at the girl insistently tugging on
his sleeve, her flawless face troubled.
"What?!"
"Don't call her that. We were just releasing some pent up energy. Your
abduction has been really hard on her. She's also a little worried about Yuuchirro,
her fiancé. They were so much in love. She's tried to keep her anxiety hidden for
my sake, but I can always tell what she's feeling. She's left everything and everyone
she's ever loved, and she hates Jadeite. It's better for me, since I had a reason
for wanting to get away from home for a while, but she doesn't. Make some allowance
for her, and try to lift her spirits, please. I've never seen her so melancholy
before. She's usually quite a lovely person."
Kunzite sighed, ignoring her question.
"Why did you want to get away from home?"
Minako clasped her hand over her mouth, realizing that she had said to much.
Her blue eyes had turned a shade darker, haunted and sad. A look that spoke of
painful memories and heartbreak flashed quickly across her face, before being submerged
by cold indifference again. She shook her head slightly, and quickly followed Rei toward
the palace.
Kunzite glanced after her, his voice surprisingly gentle as he whispered.
"I promise you, Minako, that somehow I'll fix that scarred soul of yours."
*********************
Rei gently flopped down on her bed, releasing a soft sigh of contentment. An
extra bed and a vanity had been added to Minako's room, along with some clothes, for
Rei. A small wooden chest engraved with a black panther had been placed on her pillow,
the golden key next to it. Rei had curiously opened it, before throwing out a vile
curse. The chest turned to be out a small jewelry box, a gift from Jadeite. Minako had
hastily snatched the box out of Rei's hand before her friend could do serious damage
to the contents inside.
"You can have it."
The raven-haired girl had snapped, but Minako had just shook her head, her voice bitter.
"No, I've my own. I guess the jewelry changes owners every time our Lords
get tired of their present female companionship and decide to exchange them for
newer models. Keep it, Rei. It might come in useful, sometime. I don't see myself
walking back home."
And with that, Minako had thrust the box into a drawer, locking it.
Now, Rei was smiling slightly as she bounced on the bed.
"You have no idea how appealing a real bed looks like after spending a night on the
kitchen floor."
Minako hugged her friend gently.
"I'm sorry, Rei. I had no idea."
Rei laughed softly.
"It's okay, just don't bother me for a while."
She yawned.
"Wake me up for the afternoon session. I don't want to miss seeing you beat these
generals into bloody pulps."
The dark-haired girl closed her eyes as Minako agreed, falling asleep within seconds.
Minako stared at her friend and the peaceful smile of Rei's features, quietly dreading her
reaction when learning of tonight's plan. She just prayed that Rei wouldn't take out her
temper of Jadeite, for she quite sure he wouldn't live to see another day.
********************************
Chapter 6, finally finished. Well, Rei's temper will definitely be tested in the next
chapter. Leave me a note, okay? Serenity is coming in around Chapter 8 or 9. Geez, change
my entire storyline for rabid Serenity/Endymion fans. But I still love you guys.
Well, I hope You liked it so far.
Chapter Six
Battle
________________
Sixth part of Lord of Darkness.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm so happy to receive
your reviews. *wipes away tears of happiness*. I've so
many ideas about what I should do to this story and too
little time to write. I shudder to think how all those
ideas will cause my brain to malfunction during my totally
dreadful and stressing Senior Year. I'll probably go into
apoplexy or have a heart attack. *sighs*. I shall forgo
my selfish wishes to pour out my heart and release you from
my pre-story ramble to continue your (hopefully) pleasant
pursuit of my story.
I use the Roman names in relation to their families, Greek
names when praying.
This part will be mainly about how hard and difficult it
may be for a girl, no matter how talented, beautiful, or
alert, to establish her authority in a screwed-up, male-dominated
world. (A.N. If this male domination continues, I'll just
have to kiss the Earth goodbye)
Hope you enjoy it *smiles* (No matter how morbid I sound, I'm
still an over-excited, sweet, little 16 year-old, though I know
more than what's good for me, but see, that's how I create, and
I'm sure my readers love me for that, otherwise you'd be
sitting here reading the most boring story ever *heh heh*)
________________
Lord of Darkness
Chapter Six
Battle
________________
Minako nervously followed Endymion toward the training grounds
of the palace, her anxiety mounting with each step. It would not be an
easy task training the soldiers, with or without the power transfer.
The first impression was up to her, since Rei, though not a general, still
had to mix her magic with Jadeite's to be a commander. She gestured
with her right hand, and a shower of golden sparks diminished to form
her sword. A flash of red light told her Rei had also called upon her
weapons. She gently ran a hand over the hilt, surprised as words quickly
flashed across it.
"Gwendell, Aphrodite's desire."
Minako frowned. Gwendell was obviously the crystal sword's name,
but what in the name of all the gods and goddesses ever created did it
mean by 'Aphrodite's desire'? The letters vanished as quickly as it had
come, and she heard Rei's voice mutter
"Dwindylle, Apollo Shootafar."
It was obvious that the bow that revealed its name to her.
A gentle voice to Minako's right caused her to look up. Ami, the
blue-haired healer girl, had walked up to them. Minako heard her
speak (she had shouted at Emerald earlier) for the first time, the
voice as sweet as a nightingale's.
"It's dangerous to say their names, for with a name
comes power. The weapons only reveal themselves to the true owner,
and others cannot control them. But should one know their names,
the weapons would be helplessly under their might."
Ami's face turned sad for a moment, and she stared off into
space.
"A few years ago, Sir Gregory, a knight of this land, fell
in love with a girl from another place. He told her the name of his
spiked whip, and she turned on him. He was killed by his own means."
Her light blue locks flew as she shook herself from her musings,
smiling again.
"Don't frown, Princess, it mares your complexion. Good luck,
I'll be there to patch Jadeite up after the fight."
She hurried off, and Minako stared after her in amazement,
startled by the girl's quick change of expression. But there was no
time to dwell on that, for the sun's bright glare announced her
destination. She stared at the sea of grim-faced man, each in a
black uniform, their swords held at ready. Her eyes scanned their
faces, estimating the range of age from ten to forty. She silently
groaned, not at all happy to be teaching men older than herself.
"General Topaz!"
A sharp voice barked, and she turned automatically. Slashing
her blade in a warrior's salute, she bowed, her voice carrying to all
present.
"General Jadeite."
Nephrite stepped toward them, ignoring the soldiers.
"The first person to disarm their opponent wins."
Minako raised an eyebrow, baring her white teeth in a
predator's smile.
"Disarm, General Nephrite? I was hoping I could hurt him to
make the lesson stick."
"I won't be beaten by a girl!"
"Never underestimate your opponent just because of her gender!"
Nephrite broke their verbal spar.
"Attack!"
Minako's body grew taut, her muscles ready to jump, her eyes never
leaving Jadeite.
*If Gwendell breaks, I'll take its maker's head off.*
She thought grimly as he lunged at her. She fended him off easily.
He insulted her name, her looks, her mother, her people. She kept her
temper, choosing to remark coldly as he drew a breath
"You're wasting your lung energy."
Jadeite ignored her, attacking everything from her manner to her
tastes. But as he started shouting rude comments about Ruby, Minako had
had enough. Nobody, absolutely nobody, insulted her friends and got away
with it. She sprang at him, her temper tightly under control as
their swords met with a resounding clang. Her sword never stopped
moving, always seeking for an opening. Despite her earilier comment, she
wanted no bloodshed; she had only been trying to scare Jadeite. A
swift figure eight caught him off guard as he struggled to keep
up with her movements. A backward butterfly sweep and two sideways
'Z' slashes later, she found the opening. She dove forward, Gwendell
twisting itself like a snake around Jadeite's sword, effectively
yanking it out of his hand and into the air. Before the startled
general had registered what happened, Minako had already caught
the flying sword in her left hand, both blades pressed against Jadeite's
throat, neatly sandwiching his neck between them. She smiled sweetly
at him.
"You lose, General Jadeite."
He glared at her, his hand inching toward his belt. She applied
pressure on the swords as Ruby voiced Minako's thoughts.
"One wrong move, General, and she will slit your throat. You heard
Prince Endymion yourself, 'my joint third general is expendable'."
Minako lowered her arms, tossing her opponent's sword back toward
its owner.
"May I remind you of our bet, General?"
He sighed, waves of humiliation washing over him. He knelt before
her, muttering
"I apologize for my insulting words toward you, milady."
"I didn't hear you, General."
Minako twittered sweetly as Rei smirked. Jadeite sent her a scathing
glance. She just had to make it hard for him, didn't she? Being humiliated before
the soldiers was bad enough, but to lose to the golden Princess in front of
Rei made him want to commit suicide.
"I APOLOGIZE FOR MY INSLULTING WORDS TOWARD YOU, MILADY."
Rei snickered as she watched her friend fake a look of great surprise
on her face.
"There was no need to shout, General. The amount of air you expanded
rushed by my ears so strongly that it was impossible for me to understand your
words."
Jadeite lowered his voice, whispering so softly that only Minako and
Rei could hear
"I would love to put my hands around that little tempting neck of yours."
"You lost, General."
Rei reminded him brightly, not at all abashed by that ominous statement.
He grudgingly repeated the words again, loud and clear this time.
"I apologize for my insulting words toward you, milady."
Minako curtsied
"Thank you, General Jadeite, you're most kind."
Rei spoke at the same time.
"My, such humble words from a member of the male specimen."
Jadeite gave her another death glare, muttering under his breath
"Milady, your high opinion of my gender is flattering."
"It's always good to try to lift the spirits of the inferior gender."
The blonde general growled, walking stiffly toward the sidelines, as
Kunzite stepped forward to introduce the Princess, who was standing in the
middle of the battle field, looking a bit unsure.
"This is your new leader, joint fourth commander, General Topaz, Princess
Minako Aino, daughter of Phyathreron III and Andromeda VI, niece of King Ithias,
and grandchild of the Goddess Venus herself. Her second-in-command, Lady Rei,
daughter of Duke Theseus, descendant of the War God Mars, companion and protector
of Princess Minako."
There was a great deal of muttering among the soldiers concerning their
new commander's birth and lineage. Minako shot Kunzite a withering look.
"Did you have to take so long?"
Kunzite internally sweat dropped, but kept the emotion out of his face.
"It is the common procedure, General Topaz."
He turned to the men, and barked in a voice that could easily carry across
the battle plane.
"Stand at attention."
The sounds died away abruptly, and two burly men who had been standing at
the sidelines stepped forward.
"General Topaz, I am Captain Firenze and this is Captain Icenio. Please
demonstrate your skills."
They rushed at her, her swords poised in kill position. Minako stood quietly
in the middle, not moving until they were within five feet of her. She twisted at
inhumanly complex angles, her body supple and flexible, as the Captains found themselves
fighting each other every time they tried to slash at her. After toying with them
for quite some time, Minako leapt away in one fluid motion, sword at their necks.
"So kind of you to create a straight line for me."
The captains bowed, accepting her authority.
"Pair up, men, and start your morning exercise drills."
Kunzite bellowed, and there was suddenly numerous sounds of metal hitting metal.
Minako straightened up, her eyes scanning over the soldiers. Over the entire morning, she
watched the men as the sun steadily rose higher and higher, only allowing for a break when
the sun had reached the peak of its daily route, telling them to go get some lunch. She
turned to the First General
"Please tell me there are no more training in the afternoon. I don't think I can
stand much of more of this noise."
Kunzite shook his head, no emotion showing on his face.
"No, afternoon is training time for the Generals."
Minako groaned, her eyes rolling heavenward in a gesture of mock prayer.
"Train the generals? I thought that they were already trained!"
Kunzite raised an eyebrow.
"They? Us, darling, us. You're one of the generals now."
Minako threw her hands up into the air in frustration at his nick-picking.
"Whatever! Now tell me, why the generals still have to train?"
"Because it's an extremely bad idea for us to get out of shape. What happens when
we get stuck in a difficult battle?"
"You'll die fighting, and the rest of us will be using your body as a shield
to advance to the enemy ranks. After all, you won't feel the pain if you're dead."
Kunzite dove forward, catching both small wrists in his large hand as
she turned to go.
"You little minx!"
Minako grinned, leaving him breathless. He unconsciously loosened his grip on her,
and she twisted out of his range with a crystalline laugh.
"Catch me if you can!"
She put on a mocking smile.
"I believe it is my job to make sure you are ready!"
She cocked her head slightly, waiting for him.
"I'll save my energy if were I you. This is your first day, so you'll have to have a
mock battle with the rest of us."
He yelled at her.
"Mock battle? Does that mean you'll be mock dead?"
"No!"
"I'll be ready, *Kunz*!"
"Oh, you're so dead, Minako!"
She pouted prettily, falsely.
"But, Kunz, you didn't take off Jadeite's head when he called you that. Why
can't I?"
"Because if I did, he'd be dead a couple zillion times over!"
Minako caused fake tears to well up in her eyes, sliding down her cheeks, as she
stamped her foot and threw a temper tantrum like a three-year-old.
"That's not fair!"
Kunzite was about to reach out to comfort a Minako that suddenly wasn't Minako.
Well, she still looked like the princess, but sure wasn't acting like the girl he'd come
to know in the past few days. Rei's sudden motherly voice however made him realize that
the two women were acting.
"Now, Mina-chan, we have to make allowances for these little boys."
"But, Rei-chan, he's not being fair! He allows Jed, but not me."
"Mina-chan, that's because you're special."
"But I don't want to be special!"
"Come on, Mina-chan, you don't have to get so worked up about it."
Kunzite stared at them, stunned that two 16-year-olds' personality could so
dramatically change, even in acting. Until now, Minako also had been the more reasonable
of the two: cool, calm, and collected. Rei was almost the entire opposite. She was a
dangerously beautiful, hot-tempered, and sarcastic goddess. Now, however, the first one had
acquired a personality befitting of a three-year-old, while the second one appeared
to be a mother hen.
"But, Rei-chan, he, he..."
Minako suddenly burst into loud, uncontrolled tears. Kunzite was starting
to almost believe that he'd read the signs wrong and that they really weren't acting
at all, and he hastily pulled Minako into an embrace, running his hands through her
long blond hair and patting her back.
Rei suddenly bent over as if in pain. He was about to call out to Jadeite when
he realized that the raven-haired was holding her stomach as she screamed like a hyena, and
Minako's sobbing noises were in reality laughter, tears flowing at her mirth.
"That's was priceless."
Kunzite furrowed his brow, clearly annoyed that he had been so easily duped.
"Drama queens."
Rei took a dramatic bow.
"Thank you, my Lord. It is most kind of you to address us a queens."
Still giggling, she strode ahead, her walk lithe and athletic. Minako abruptly
straightened as she heard Kunzite mutter under his breath as soon as Rei was out of
their ear shot:
"Nasty little vixen."
"Don't."
The silver-haired young man stared down at the girl insistently tugging on
his sleeve, her flawless face troubled.
"What?!"
"Don't call her that. We were just releasing some pent up energy. Your
abduction has been really hard on her. She's also a little worried about Yuuchirro,
her fiancé. They were so much in love. She's tried to keep her anxiety hidden for
my sake, but I can always tell what she's feeling. She's left everything and everyone
she's ever loved, and she hates Jadeite. It's better for me, since I had a reason
for wanting to get away from home for a while, but she doesn't. Make some allowance
for her, and try to lift her spirits, please. I've never seen her so melancholy
before. She's usually quite a lovely person."
Kunzite sighed, ignoring her question.
"Why did you want to get away from home?"
Minako clasped her hand over her mouth, realizing that she had said to much.
Her blue eyes had turned a shade darker, haunted and sad. A look that spoke of
painful memories and heartbreak flashed quickly across her face, before being submerged
by cold indifference again. She shook her head slightly, and quickly followed Rei toward
the palace.
Kunzite glanced after her, his voice surprisingly gentle as he whispered.
"I promise you, Minako, that somehow I'll fix that scarred soul of yours."
*********************
Rei gently flopped down on her bed, releasing a soft sigh of contentment. An
extra bed and a vanity had been added to Minako's room, along with some clothes, for
Rei. A small wooden chest engraved with a black panther had been placed on her pillow,
the golden key next to it. Rei had curiously opened it, before throwing out a vile
curse. The chest turned to be out a small jewelry box, a gift from Jadeite. Minako had
hastily snatched the box out of Rei's hand before her friend could do serious damage
to the contents inside.
"You can have it."
The raven-haired girl had snapped, but Minako had just shook her head, her voice bitter.
"No, I've my own. I guess the jewelry changes owners every time our Lords
get tired of their present female companionship and decide to exchange them for
newer models. Keep it, Rei. It might come in useful, sometime. I don't see myself
walking back home."
And with that, Minako had thrust the box into a drawer, locking it.
Now, Rei was smiling slightly as she bounced on the bed.
"You have no idea how appealing a real bed looks like after spending a night on the
kitchen floor."
Minako hugged her friend gently.
"I'm sorry, Rei. I had no idea."
Rei laughed softly.
"It's okay, just don't bother me for a while."
She yawned.
"Wake me up for the afternoon session. I don't want to miss seeing you beat these
generals into bloody pulps."
The dark-haired girl closed her eyes as Minako agreed, falling asleep within seconds.
Minako stared at her friend and the peaceful smile of Rei's features, quietly dreading her
reaction when learning of tonight's plan. She just prayed that Rei wouldn't take out her
temper of Jadeite, for she quite sure he wouldn't live to see another day.
********************************
Chapter 6, finally finished. Well, Rei's temper will definitely be tested in the next
chapter. Leave me a note, okay? Serenity is coming in around Chapter 8 or 9. Geez, change
my entire storyline for rabid Serenity/Endymion fans. But I still love you guys.
Well, I hope You liked it so far.