Author's note: It's always a good feeling when I find my pen name or a story of mine on someone's favorites list. But it's almost a strange feeling when I see that someone has more than one of my pen names on his/her favorites list, and may not even know that that other authoress and I are one and the same.
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The Forgotten Princess – Chapter 2
"Your wife!" Kunzite's indignant bellow echoed through the drafty halls of the surrounding corridors.
"There's no need to shout, Kunzite." Endymion's calm response infuriated Kunzite more.
"Your wife, Endymion! Don't you think, just perhaps, it might've been a good idea to inform your guardians, your advisors, and your friends that you'd taken it upon yourself to take a wife!"
"Remember to whom you are speaking, Kunzite." Endymion's low warning did not go unheeded, and Kunzite forced himself to rein in his shock and anger. He dropped heavily into a chair, leaning forward with his elbows resting on his thighs.
"You are my valued friend, Kunzite, but I will not tolerate being treated as a child. You will address me with the respect and courtesy due to me. Is that clear?" Endymion's tone brooked no argument.
"Very clear, sire." Kunzite decided it would be wiser to placate the miffed monarch and soothe the feathers he'd ruffled until Endymion was in a better mood.
"Now, please tell me what we can do about Serenity. She cannot be allowed to run wild as she is. If word of this situation is spread throughout the kingdom, as I imagine it will be, it will cause a panic. When my court discovers their queen is pillaging the kingdom like a common thief, they'll do everything in their power to see me off the throne. The monarchy has passed from son to son in my family for generations. I am not about to hand over my title now. Serenity must be apprehended." Endymion stared pensively out the window, to the place in the woods through which Serenity had made her escape.
"If I may say, sire, I don't believe a reward will be effective. Serenity is well-liked by the populace. If she weren't as beloved by them, we might have some chance of capturing her with the lure of a reward. I believe we shall have to find alternative means of apprehending Serenity," Kunzite said.
"I'm afraid you're right, Kunzite." Endymion leaned back with a sigh. "How could Serenity have come here unassisted? She must have had some accomplices. I'll have to inform her mother, Queen Selenity, that we now know the whereabouts of her daughter. She's been missing for nearly three years, now. She was still just a child when she disappeared."
"If I may ask, sire…how did you come to be married to Serenity without our knowledge?" Kunzite asked hesitantly.
"We were both just children when we married. Do you remember, Kunzite, when my father died? I was just fourteen. You and the others had only been summoned to court a year earlier to begin your training.
My mother took me to the moon with her, to work out trade negotiations. She had wanted me to be betrothed to the princess Serenity while my father still lived, but he said our people would never stand for a Lunarian queen. We hadn't quite worked out our differences yet, you see, and the people had only just begun to accept Lunarian immigrants. On our trip to the moon, my mother and Queen Selenity decided they could seal the peace and trade negotiations and unite their planets and kingdoms by marrying their children. The princess and I were wed in a very private ceremony, in complete secrecy, during that trip. She had just turned seven years old. The ceremony was the first and last time I have seen her, until now.
When we returned to Earth, it was to discover that a Lunarian immigrant had slaughtered a prominent Earthling merchant family. The tension and hatred between our two races was stronger than ever, and it would have been foolish to announce our marriage at that point. Mother decided it would be best to wait until our people had become acclimated to the merge of cultures. By the time that had happened, Mother had passed away as well, and I was king already. It was decided that Queen Selenity would send her daughter to me when she had reached sixteen years of age, and could legally become queen.
However, I received a missive three years ago, informing me that the princess Serenity had disappeared. Over time, when no ransom was demanded, and no trace of the missing princess was found, we assumed she had run away, and if nothing was heard of her, we would have declared her dead on the date of her twentieth birthday, and I would be free to marry again. No one would ever have had to know about my previous marriage."
Kunzite leapt up from his chair and began to pace the marbled floors.
"Well, sire, it seems there is only one thing we can do to flush out Serenity," he said slowly.
"What would that be?" Endymion asked.
Kunzite stopped his pacing, turning to look his sovereign square in the eyes, a pleased grin on the verge of destroying his composed look.
"Why, announce your marriage, of course."
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"This is absurd!" Serenity's infuriated cry caused the man seated at the desk to wince.
"Please, Serenity, Diana's having her nap," he said, rising from his chair to embrace a very irritated Serenity. She hugged him in return, offering only a token resistance when he tugged the crumpled parchment from her grasp. He unfolded it, glancing at Serenity curiously when he noted the King's seal. He held the letter to the light, reading aloud the flowing script it contained.
"His Majesty, King Endymion, cordially invites Lord Artemis White and his family to a ball and celebration in honor of His Royal Majesty's marriage to the Princess Serenity, known through the kingdom as the Lady Serenity. Their Royal Majesties will be hosting this blessed celebration on Saturday the Twentieth of May."
"Do you see, Artemis? The absurdity of it all! His foolish pride and arrogance will cost me everything! I could not stand being princess, and now that idiot would have me become queen!" Serenity tossed the missive into the fire, well pleased at the burst of flame, watching the fine paper blacken and curl with obvious pleasure.
"Will you go, then? It's little more than a week away; you've some time to select the appropriate attire. I daresay His Majesty would even pay for it," Artemis said with obvious amusement, his silver eyes sparkling with mirth.
"Go to his wretched ball? Surely you're joking. I've had more than my fill of such things." Serenity spit upon the blackened invitation, striding furiously from the room.
A dark-haired woman entered the room, carrying a small child. The little girl stretched her arms out towards Artemis.
"A loud noise woke me up, papa," the child said as Artemis lifted her into his arms.
"Is that so, Diana? Would it please you to know that Serenity has returned?" Artemis smiled as his daughter gasped in delight.
"Oh, yes, papa! May I go play with her?" Diana wriggled out of her father's arms, stopping briefly to hug her mother.
"If she'll have you, but don't bother her if she's too tired," Artemis called after the child, who had already disappeared from the room.
"She becomes more and more like Serenity with each passing day," Artemis' wife, Luna, observed.
"That she does. Do you know, only yesterday she challenged me to a swordfight? I think Serenity's been instructing her with those wooden swords I found in the back of Diana's wardrobe a few days ago. My daughter, the warrior." Artemis released a heavy sigh, sinking into his armchair.
"She means well, Artemis. God knows how much a difference Serenity has made in the lives of the people in the kingdom. She takes too much on her shoulders for one so young." Luna handed Artemis a glass of spiced wine, and kissed his cheek.
"She was born to privilege, Luna. She must accept her place sooner or later. Frankly, I think Endymion will be good for her, likewise will she be good for him. He's not a bad man, Luna. Rather, he's done his duty all his life and has never known what life is outside of his palace. Serenity can show him that. Serenity has a wonderful passion to help those in need. We managed to allow her a few years' freedom from her responsibilities, but it can't continue like this for all her life. She will find she can do just as much good as a queen as she can as a thief," Artemis said.
"I know it, as well. When Serenity is queen, she will change the things she doesn't like. She grew up sheltered from everything, living in a cage for her first fifteen years. She's finally free from the life she hated, and understandably, she won't walk right back into what she sees as a cage. I hope Endymion doesn't think to curb her spirit. She would not be our beloved Serenity were she not strong-willed and stubborn. I should hope Endymion doesn't wish for a meek, biddable wife," Luna worried aloud.
"I'm certain he doesn't. Endymion has had his share of women. He is old enough to know that the fancy ladies of the court are pretty enough to look at, but a queen should have strength of character and be a woman strong enough to affect change, should change be necessary. I'm certain he is wise enough to recognize that a woman such as Serenity would be an asset to him. She is well-liked by his people, and would secure his claim to the throne, should any contest it. And unless he is a great fool, I'm certain he doesn't find her appearance wanting," Artemis finished.
"Serenity is a lovely girl; anyone can see that. I do hope that Endymion will be able to see past her appearance to her heart. Serenity, more than anyone else, deserves happiness. She's sacrificed everything that is rightfully hers to help others." Luna observed quietly.
"She sacrificed her family and friends on the moon, but she willingly gave up her birthright. Serenity was stifled as a princess. She was protected and cosseted until she couldn't stand it anymore. She's made for more than looking the part of the perfect china doll who obeys her elders and allows her chosen husband to rule her lands. Serenity is a strong woman. She will make her own way in the universe."
Artemis stirred the embers with an iron poker, watching the flickering flames silently, pensively.
"I must find a way to get Serenity to go to that ball. Endymion and Serenity are just alike, and I'm afraid that they are both terribly strong-willed. It will be a battle for them until they realize that marriage is a compromise, not a struggle for dominance." Artemis said. Luna placed a loving hand on his shoulder, squeezing reassuringly.
"Of course you're right, Artemis. But I'm afraid that their marriage will be unhappy unless they should love each other," Luna said softly.
Artemis met her eyes, smiling tenderly.
"My apologies, my dear. I forget you were not raised on the moon as I was. Their marriage was prophesied, you see. They were born to love each other. It will be as fate has decreed. Unfortunately, it seems their road to happiness is destined to be long and hard." Artemis stroked Luna's cheek, settling her across his lap, and gazed out the window at the moon shining brightly in the night sky.
---
As it turned out, it was unnecessary for Artemis to find a way to entice Serenity to go to the ball, for Serenity went to Endymion of her own accord. Under cover of night, she slipped unseen into the palace. For a woman of Serenity's talents, the locks proved feeble and the security far too lax. Far from challenging, she was almost surprised by the ease with which she made it through the winding corridors of what should have been the most secure household in the kingdom.
She got a little lost around the third floor corridors, but eventually she made it to what was obviously Endymion's room. The large double doors were a dark, rich wood etched with gold designs and the words "Chambers of His Majesty The King". Scoffing at the foolishness of such an advertisement, she tried the heavy door, but, predictably enough, it was locked. Removing her lock pick from the satchel she carried, she worked at the lock as quietly as possible. Curiously enough, no guards passed the King's chambers, and the lock gave quickly under Serenity's careful ministrations.
She slowly pulled the heavy door open, listening tensely for any creaking of the hinges. She slipped through the narrow opening, aware that Endymion might awaken if even a bit of the muted light fell upon him. Softly, she closed the door behind her. Even in the darkness, she could see that the room was created with every luxury imaginable. It was plush carpeting under her feet, not the tile of the hallways. An enormous four-poster bed was cloaked in shadows towards the corner of the bedroom, pale moonlight spilling through the window just shy of the foot of the bed.
Serenity approached silently. As she drew near the bed, she drew a dagger from its sheath at her waist. She raised it in a ready position, ready to strike as necessary, and she quickly flung back the heavy coverlet of the bed. She started in surprise as she realized that it was not Endymion's form she had seen beneath the covers, but a few pillows arranged to look like a sleeping body.
Before she could act, a strong hand closed upon her wrist, forcing the dagger from her grasp. She was yanked up against a hard, masculine body, and a husky voice said in her ear,
"I have been waiting for you, Serenity."