Crystal Tokyo prepares to celebrate the 30,000th Anniversary of the Golden Kingdom. Everyone in the palace is bright and abuzz with activity and excitement. Everyone except the King Himself. Manga canon, but functionally this can also (mostly) count as Crystal canon too. Post-Stars.
Rated: T - Drama/Angst/Friendship/Hurt/Comfort/Family - Words: 2,504 - Mamoru C./Darien S./Tuxedo Kamen, Setsuna M./Sailor Pluto, Ittou A., King Endymion, Shitennou/Generals, Neo_Queen Serenity, Helios, Sailor Quartet, Michiru K./Sailor Neptune, Usagi T./Serena/Bunny/Sailor Moon, Diana, Jadeite/Jedite, Kunzite/Malachite, Nephrite/Neflite, Zoicite/Zoycite, Haruka T./Sailor Uranus, Queen Beryl, Galaxia, Wiseman, Black Lady/Wicked Lady, Prince Endymion, Inner Senshi/Inner Scouts, Minako A./Mina/Sailor Venus, Ami M./Amy/Sailor Mercury, Rei H./Raye/Sailor Mars, Makoto K./Lita/Sailor Jupiter
A/N: Just a heads up, I'm basing a lot of the dialogue and translation choices in this fic upon the latest English translation of the manga from the Eternal Editions, which began in 2018.
A big thank you to Lin Lamont for betaing this fic for me. Find her on FFN, AO3 and tumblr under the same username.
This story is a gift for Yagi, AReptileDysfunction, La Smoking Bomber, and Caelenath.
Prince Endymion raced across the shattered Moon Castle promenade. Against the marble and alabaster tiles, Beryl's red hair stood out stark, like a bleeding wound.
She cracked a cruel smile and, with claw like fingers, beckoned him closer in a twisted parody of a lover. Her demeanor changed, however, when she saw a glint of silver and gold. In one fluid motion, the Prince had unsheathed his sword, swung up, and parted the witch's head from her neck!
Beryl's body crumpled to the ground before disintegrating to ash. What remained of her was carried up by a strong wind that seemed to swirl around the Prince, forcing him to shield his face behind his cape as he pivoted around. Peeking above the hem, his eyes were fouled by a proverbial nightmare.
Two figures flanked a steel cage, its prisoners veiled by the utter darkness within the bars. One of the figures levitated above the ground, as did the orb he was practically caressing. Aside from his bizarre hands, his body was totally concealed beneath a black hood. The other figure was the polar opposite, standing proud in gleaming gold armour. Her bracelets glinted as malevolently as her cruel eyes. Behind them and the cage loomed a living shadow, an ugly crimson jewel upon its forehead, and a grotesque smile emanating from it's jagged maw.
Endymion strode forward, the weight of his armour lifting off of him. His vision narrowed, focussing upon the terrible trio. It was a task made easier by the confines of the mask now framing his eyes. With a flourish of his cape, he thrust his hands out before him and took aim.
"Tuxedo la Smoking Bomber!"
Tuxedo Mask's hat was knocked off his head by the sheer force of the blast! Nevertheless, it fared better than Metalia and her two companions. With a shriek, all three were dissipated into something less than dust.
Tuxedo Mask let out a heavy, yet satisfied sigh before running over to the now unguarded cage. Despite the bright alabaster surroundings of the palace, the interior of the cage remained pitch black; though he could just make out five people concealed within.
Tuxedo Mask took a knee, getting eye level with the cage's lock. He smirked at its simplicity. Had his foes truly believed something as rudimentary as this would keep out Jûban's most notorious jewel thief? Mere moments later, the lock gave a small click and the cage door creaked open.
One of the prisoners walked forwards and, as they approached the cage's threshold, was half illuminated by the surrounding light. She was a tall woman, garbed in an elegant black dress slit at the leg. Her chest was covered by orandies, as were her arms, which also supported a flowing pink shawl of a darker shade than her long, bun-topped hair. She was admittedly beautiful… and yet terrible for Tuxedo Mask to behold, with a wicked gleam behind her crimson eyes.
She moved closer, extending her arms out to embrace him, her lips primed for a kiss. The sight repulsed him–that was until the wicked lady finally crossed beyond the cage's threshold and fully entered the light. In a flash, Mamoru bent down again, this time to receive the affectionate hug of the decidedly smaller lady who had taken the darker woman's place. He hugged her back before taking her head into his hands and planting a kiss upon her forehead, where once an ebony crescent moon had adorned.
Taking his daughter by the hand, Mamoru stood up and turned his gaze back to the dark cage. "It's alright. You're free now. All of you."
The remaining four occupants of the cage said nothing.
"You don't have to stay there anymore," Mamoru reaffirmed. "We can be together again."
Though the cage was still too dark for him to clearly see the prisoners, one of them stood out a little more than the others; chiefly because of his shock of white hair. From the back of the cage, he moved to face Mamoru and slowly, sadly, shook his head.
"We will always be here to serve you, master." He said. "But we will forever remain beyond your help."
With a flourish of his white cape, he turned back around, the door slamming shut again of its own accord; the sound shattering Mamoru's heart.
"My King?"
Mamoru let out a small gasp and spun around, the Moon Castle grounds transforming around him into a smaller, yet still proud, marble white temple amidst a field of roses. Looking out through the temple pillars, he was half blinded by golden light rippling off a crystal clear lake. Squinting, he drank in green fern trees and majestic mountains dancing upon the water. The mirror that was the lake reflected something else, however. Averting his eyes skywards, Mamoru gazed upon a handsome, young, silver haired boy in regal robes as white as the stunning winged stallion he sat upon.
"I am sorry I cannot make this dream of yours as beautiful as it could be," said Helios.
Mamoru bowed his head. "I'm sorry, too," he whispered. Gathering himself, he straightened up, trying to look composed. "Is anything the matter? It is a little rude to intrude on someone's dreams like this."
"Apologies, my King." Helios said, respectfully inclining his torso forwards, as if to half bow from upon his mount. "It is nothing serious, but I was given strict instructions to wake you up at this time no matter what."
Mamoru cocked an eyebrow. "On whose authority?"
"Well…" Helios's eyes darted over to the pink haired girl still holding Mamoru's hand.
Mamoru rolled his eyes. "Helios, she might be the Princess, but that doesn't give her the authority to let you barge into my dreams."
"I know, Your Highness, but I… um… often find it difficult to say no to her…"
Mamoru huffed out a tiny laugh. "She gets that from her Mother." He let out an exasperated sigh. "Alright, alright, I'll…"
"... wake up," groaned King Endymion.
Somewhat groggily, he extended his arm, his heart sinking when he felt nothing but the cold pillow next to his own. With his other arm, he retrieved his gold pocket watch from the nightstand. He'd barely registered that it was eight o'clock when he heard a pitter patter of tiny paws growing closer. A second later, a gray cat had leapt onto the bed.
"Good morning, Your Majesty," the kitten said, tilting her chin deferentially. "Apologies for barging into your bedroom like this, but in her and the Queen's absence, Small Lady insisted that-"
"You wake me up at this time, right Diana?" Endymion interrupted.
The kitten's already large, red eyes grew yet wider. "Why, yes? How did you know?"
"My daughter is very persistent," he replied to the obvious confusion of the petite feline.
"The Queen says she inherited that from you."
Endymion rolled his eyes. "Serenity is the only person alive who can't see that Small Lady is her mother's daughter."
"In any case, Your Highness," Diana pressed on, "the Queen also made it clear that you were integral to organizing the final plans for the upcoming celebrations. Rest assured, the palace staff have already gotten to work for the day."
Finally getting out of bed, Endymion shook his head disapprovingly. "Is that really necessary? I've been asked about every little thing for a week now, surely they don't need my input at this late a stage?"
"The Queen said, since it is your kingdom, it is only right you be involved. She said it was your responsibility as Earth's King and as father to the Princess."
Endymion scowled. "Between you and me, Diana, I don't think these celebrations are even necessary."
"But Your Highness! It is the 30,000th anniversary of the Golden Kingdom's founding! Such an event is a once in a lifetime opportunity."
Something twisted in Endymion's stomach as he slipped into a robe. "Diana, the Golden Kingdom didn't even exist for most of that time." It twisted again as he made his way across the large bedroom towards the wardrobe. "These celebrations are only happening because Helios happened to bring up just how long ago the kingdom was founded and Usa was looking for an excuse to have another party."
Endymion opened the ornate, white wardrobe and eyed up the clothes within. Before she had left for 'official Moon Castle business', Serenity had taken it upon herself to reorganize their chambers for the umpteenth time. As such, Endymion began scouring for suitable attire for the day.
"But my King!" implored Diana. "Surely, we should nevertheless mark the occasion? For a kingdom to fall only to return once again is miraculous."
Endymion chuckled with barely concealed derision. "We do mark the occasion, Diana, every jubilee."
Distracted as he was by the search and conversation, Endymion failed to realize Serenity had apparently shoved a lot of their older clothes into this section of the cavernous wardrobe.
"That is for the Moon Kingdom and Silver Millennium in its entirety; the Golden Kingdom deserves to be singled out. It is special, precious!"
Diana's words took root, further distracting Endymion, compounding his frustration, and making him lose concentration. Not by much, but it was, nevertheless, enough…
"So you're Usagi-chan?"
Cold fingers moved towards a face fixed in disbelief and heartbreak. How easy it would be to lower his hand to her throat and see the life fade from those big, blue eyes.
But he didn't. Instead his hand journeyed up to pat soft balls of blonde hair.
"Sailor Moon… has buns just like these…"
Mamoru dropped the cow-print vest as if it had burned him. He was sweating slightly and he was consumed by an intense wave of guilt and shame. He grimaced at the garment, his shame compounded by loathing.
Gritting his teeth, he tore his eyes away from the vest and returned to the wardrobe, snatching up an old, somewhat worn pair of gloves. Like Serenity, the Senshi, and even his daughter, Endymion's powers had increased over the years, demanding ever more training to control them. Typically blocking his psychometry was second nature to him, even first thing in the morning. But recently, he had found his mornings a tad more challenging. And as he stared into a dark corner of the wardrobe, he was all too aware of exactly why.
His hands now covered, he continued his rummaging, albeit far less delicately than before, tossing the vest clear across the room. Evidently, he had forgotten to throw that wretched thing away and it had lingered amongst their belongings like a repugnant scar. Or more likely, Usa had saved it; she was too sentimental to throw most things away. Of course… he had his own sentimental side, too… A shaking head of white hair flashed in his mind.
He shook his own head, forcing his mind back on track, which unfortunately meant remembering the ugly vest. Sentimental though he could be, he was most certainly not when it came to that time of his life. He hated the vest. He hated the scarf to his left and the checkered shirt to its right. He loathed almost everything that reminded him of 'Endô', and right now this entire section of the wardrobe was doing… just… that…
He stared at the polka dot dress on the hanger.
Looking at it calmed him slightly. And a little voice reminded him that the effect could be more than slightly; if he wanted.
Slowly, Endymion removed one of his gloves and caressed the garment with the tips of his fingers.
As she laid her head on his shoulder, his cheek was pleasantly tickled by her golden tresses.
"Stay here with me. Never go away. I'll do everything I can do to protect you… Mamo-chan."
His chest lit up with a gentle warmth that was much more than her soft body pressing against his. It lingered even as he moved her away from him.
He drew his hand up her back, over her shoulder, down her left arm before finally taking her own hand in his and raising her palm to his lips.
"Me too…"
Then, her arms wrapped around his neck and shoulders, they lowered themselves to the kitchen floor…
A while later, Endymion withdrew his hand, though the gentle warmth of the vision remained within him.
"Diana, could you go tell the staff I'll be ready in a little while?"
"Of course, Your Highness. Oh, the Princess also wanted me to inform you that she won't be coming back to Earth with the Queen tonight. After training with Her Majesty this week, she wishes to spend some quality time with the Quartet in the Moon Palace."
"Alright," Endymion replied, not really paying much attention. Thanks to the vision, he was calm and collected once again, certain his abilities wouldn't run away with him now. As such, he experienced no visions upon discovering the old, but only slightly tattered, rabbit adorned handkerchief. All the same, the sight of it brought a pleasant smile to his face. It was wiped, however, when he returned to the night stand.
Endymion had figured his duties for the day warranted formal attire, so he had dressed in his regal, white tuxedo and lavender cape; his traditional sword seemingly the final touch. It had been a month or two since he'd worn the outfit and, as such, he had been halfway to the door when he realized he had forgotten his mask and medals. From experience, he knew how easily the masks were lost within the cavernous wardrobe, so he had long ago decided to keep them (and other smaller items) in his night stand drawers. Drawers that Serenity had also decided to rearrange on a whim.
That was something else he had forgotten about until he opened the first one. Where he had been expecting to see his medals and masks, he was instead greeted by four small stones. They might have sparkled, if not for the shadow Endymion was casting over them. The sight of them made Endymion's heart sink. Defeatedly, he put his gloves back on then gently, firmly, shut the drawer again. Unfortunately, neither action made him feel any better. Nor did they help him forget the dream that had haunted him these past nights…