The usual disclaimer goes here ---> I don't own Sailor Moon or any of the characters. I'm manipulating them
for Naoko Takeuchi-sensei *big grin* The story is mine...all mine *insert cackles here*
A/N: The following few chapters are inspired by something told to me by a friend, and I've changed some events for the sake of the
storyline. If anything like this has ever happened to you and you haven't told anyone, please get help; the effects of something like
this can be more devastating than the assault itself. Call your local Rape Crisis Centre or a health professional. Keeping this in mind
the events in this story are fictionalised, not canon and not actually pivotal to the end story, and thus won't be dealt with as in
real life. The rating of the story goes up from here. You have been warned. Any flames will be used to heat my house.
Chapter 6 - Evil Foreshadowing
Endymion looked around carefully. He hadn't really believed Beryl's threats were as hollow as he made out
to Serenity and he didn't think she believed him either. He sighed. He'd have to make Beryl see that there
was nothing she could do to make him change his mind about her. They'd grown up together and until recently,
he'd only thought of her as a sister, if he thought of her at all. Now, he wished he hadn't let her tag along
so much, or that he'd noticed sooner the obsessive fixation she'd had for him.
So far the coast was clear. Straightening his dark blue uniform jacket, he began to knock on the door of
Beryl's suite when he nearly knocked on General Jadeite's face. Jadeite had been in the process of putting on his
trousers and flushed a bright red when he saw to whom it was he'd opened the door.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realise..." Endymion blushed as well, and to Jadeite's relief, looked away.
He knew full well his young General's escapades with any woman he fancied though he'd never actually caught him
at any of his dalliances. He figured, with a rare moment of clarity, that perhaps this could be a good thing. Maybe
Jadeite could keep Beryl's attentions away from himself and Serenity for a while. If their affair proved something more,
all to the better.
Jadeite was surprised to see his prince knocking at Beryl's door.
"That's all right sir, I was just leaving," and with a meaningful look back at Beryl, he took his leave hastily, still
limping from his earlier injury.
Beryl looked defiant.
"I'm not going to stop seeing him, if that's what you're here for," she said to him with anger twisting her pretty
features. "Who I see is none of your business!"
The young prince looked at her mildly.
That's not why I'm here actually," he told her calmly. "I just wanted to warn you again to stay away from Serenity
and I. I don't see that MY relationship is anything to do with you, much less what you do is any business of mine. I'm
not going to say anything if that's what you're worried about."
Beryl raged. The nerve of him! How dare he warn HER to stay away from him. Suddenly, a plan formulated itself into
her brain. She began to scream obscenities at him. She didn't care who heard her, for all she was concerned, the whole
palace should hear her.
"How dare you, get out of my rooms. I don't have to listen to your accusations or be slandered by you. As a matter
of fact, why don't you just leave," she screamed and slapped him, making sure to scratch him with her blood-red painted
nails.
Endymion looked shocked as he put his hand to his face. Whatever he'd expected her to do or say, this wasn't it. He
grabbed her arms to shake some sense into her. This seemed to have the opposite effect to that which he'd intended
however. She began to scream even louder at him.
"Don't you touch me!" she screamed at him. "Get your hands off me! I'm not one of your little whores you can do with
as you please," she shouted, hearing footsteps in the hallway. "Leave me alone," her screams reached a crescendo.
Suddenly she began to cry huge tears, reached out and grabbed his trousers, wrenching them down to his knees.
The humiliated young man pulled his trousers up and left the room, his composure finally gone. Not noticing the
servants outside the door, he yelled back at the crying and screaming lady-in-waiting.
"I hope you get what's coming to you," he yelled and slammed the door, nearly running into one of the wide-eyed
servant entering the suite in his haste to leave.
Beryl's eyes widened with barely concealed glee; the servant mistaking her look for fright, tried to calm her down.
He'd fallen neatly for the trap. Now it was time to reel in the little fishie, she thought with malicious pleasure,
allowing the servant to lead her to her bed, and call for the healers.
Serenity found the still-enraged Endymion outside in the gardens a few hours later. Turning away from her, he didn't
answer her whispered questions and finally she left him in the gardens to calm down. She'd noticed what Endymion hadn't;
a long angry scratch mark on his face which bore the fading handprint of an unmistakeably feminine hand. Pursing her
lips, she wondered if he'd been to see that Beryl. Serenity knew that woman was dangerous, and she hoped that Endymion
hadn't angered her past the point of return. She'd go and see the Lady-General Zoicite. She'd know what was going on.
Zoicite stood at the window of her small cell-like room in the barracks, her back to Serenity.
"I can only tell you what I heard," she told the Lunar Princess solemnly, all the while wondering if it was actually
true. She'd seen for herself the ruins Beryl had made of any man or woman's lives who crossed her over the past few
years.
Serenity's hands shot up to her mouth in frantic disbelief. It couldn't be true she thought to herself. It just
couldn't! She'd seen the marks Beryl's hands had made on Endymion's face though and shook her head in denial.
"No, I won't believe it, I won't. He's not like that at all, he wouldn't assault anyone, let alone someone that
everyone knows he doesn't like..." she trailed off, seeing the flaw in her argument.
Shaking her head again, she sank down on the bed in the sparsely appointed barracks room.
"What are we going to do?" she asked Zoicite in a tiny voice. "I refuse to believe he'd do anything like this. He
just wouldn't."
"Why don't we see if Kunzite has any solutions to this very puzzling problem," Zoicite suggested gently.
She knew that Jadeite had just come from Beryl's suite at the same time Endymion had been there as he'd been lording
it around that he had a conquest in the palace and that he'd seen the prince going into the lady-in-waiting's rooms. It
didn't take a genius to put 2 and 2 together. Any excuse to see the object of HER affections was welcomed as well,
though she wasn't going to let on that that thought had entered her mind until she saw Serenity looking at her with a
speculative gleam in her eyes. She gave a nervous laugh.
"All right, I'd love to see Kunzite even if there wasn't this situation hanging above the prince as well," she grinned,
in a faint attempt at lightening the atmosphere.
She was rewarded with a small smile and chuckle from Serenity and suddenly things didn't seem quite so dire. Zoicite
put her arm around the young princess and gave her a gentle hug.
"Everything will work out just fine, you'll see. The truth will come out, sooner or later, I know it will. People
like Beryl always get their comeuppance sooner or later."
Serenity gave her a small smile and nodded slowly.
"I'm sure it will, I just hope you're right. I know he would never do what she's accused him of, I know it in my
heart, Zoicite," she said, pointing to the centre of her chest. "I'm not very familiar with your laws on such things.
On the Moon, anyone accused of rape is castrated on the first offense and forever shunned."
Zoicite looked grim.
"Here, things are a little different, Your Highness," she said, her voice suddenly hard. "Anyone proven to have
committed such a heinous crime is put to death. We have no time for such niceties, with all due respect. We have too
many people here on Earth to warrant a mild punishment such as that. The punishment is the same, should the perpetrator
be peasant, noble, or royalty."
Shaking her head again, she sank down on the bed in the sparsely appointed barracks room. Her complexion was paler
than normal at the thought of losing her beloved, and at this moment, Serenity's stature seemed even more delicate. Zoicite
put her arms around Serenity in comfort and after she'd recovered her composure, they went in search of Kunzite to present
the problem to the wise General.
They found him in the prince's quarters, talking to one of the prince's valets. They both stopped talking as soon as the
women entered the room. The valet made his excuses and left the room. Kunzite looked grim.
"I see you've heard the bad news. Why is it that bad news often travels faster than good news?" he asked rhetorically.
The women had no answer for him and looked equally grim.
"It seems that despite the fact that he's supposed to be on duty here, Jadeite has disappeared without notice or trace," the
General told them darkly. "It sounds like something Beryl would do, send her only witness to the contrary out on some
errand so the prince is immediately suspected and can't be cleared."
Serenity gasped. Despite what Endymion had said, she knew Beryl was dangerous, not only to herself it seemed, but to the
prince as well. She sank down into a nearby chair. She had to be strong she knew, but she was only a foreigner here, she
no real power to affect the outcome of this matter. The moon princess sighed.
"Well, then I guess our next task is to find Jadeite and find out what REALLY happened," she said with a calmness she
did not feel.
The other two nodded. That was their feeling as well, though they had no idea where to look. Jadeite kept himself
to himself, his womanising notwithstanding. They were in the midst of brainstorming when a messenger arrived at the door,
knocking discreetly.
They all looked up as one.
"Yes?" Kunzite asked sharply.
The messenger cleared his throat nervously.
"The Lady Serenity is asked to attend the Queen, your lord- and ladyships," he said meekly.
They looked at one another. It seemed that Serenity's true rank was being kept a secret for the time being. They played
along with the Queen's wishes.
"I'll be along presently," Serenity told the messenger, who bowed and left the room.
"I guess you'd better see what the Queen wants," Zoicite said. "Kunzite and I can take it from here. After all, we know
Jadeite and I'm sure we can find him soon," she told the indecisive princess.
Serenity eventually nodded and called for a servant to take her to see the Queen; as she was still fairly new to the
palace, she didn't know her way around very well and didn't want to chance getting lost. She also knew it gave Zoicite a
chance to be with Kunzite, which she didn't begrudge her. Once the servant arrived, she left with him and was taken to see
the Queen.
Thanks to Krysia and Seiya for having a read and giving their constructive comments/advice on this chapter.
