Hello, hello! Okay, so it is Friday night, and I hate to post on weekends, but I'm gonna do it anyway. How daring and risky of me, huh?
I am posting this chapter as a stand-alone, but originally it was written as one segment of a much, much longer chapter. I know, I know, what a shocker from me, huh? Long chapters...I must be crazy. I was itching to post, though, and thought this could do okay on its own. I may go back and lump it with its fellow segments after the story is complete. If you have any thoughts on the matter once you have finished reading this chapter, please, write me a review and let me know.
Okay, I feel like I'm rambling bit, so I'll cut to the chase. On with the story!
Disclaimer: Me no own Sailor Moon. Me own gym membership, me own twinkle lights, me own shoes, but me no own Sailor Moon.
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In the last chapter, which I like to call, "Meanwhile, back on the Moon..." Serenity's absence from the Moon was finally noticed. Only Sailor Mercury and Sailor Jupiter were sent to find our roving princess, which, Rei argued, is baaaaad. (not baaaaad like the noise a sheep makes, but "bad" with a lot more "a's" in it)
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Light of Love: Red Moon
Chapter 16: Moonshadow
Endymion handed the blacksmith a handful of glittering coins. The grimy man lifted one coin to his eye and stared at each side.
"What game are you playing at, stranger?" the blacksmith said, peering suspiciously at the prince.
Endymion sighed. Serenity winced at the sound he made. The princess knew that Endymion was tired of using her antique coins. She noted the ring of frustration when he spoke.
"The coins are old," the Terran prince admitted. "But, as you can see, they are real gold. Please, sir, my sister and I would like to purchase that horse."
He pointed to a four-legged beast lashed to a nearby post. Serenity stood in the animal's shadow. The princess was barely as tall as the mare's legs. The small girl tentatively reached a hand out to touch the horse's silky silver coat. She winced when the beast reared its head back and neighed. When it again lowered its head, the animal stared at Serenity with its wide brown eyes. The Moon princess stepped back.
"Thank you, sir!" Serenity overheard an enthusiastic Endymion say to the blacksmith. She twisted her head in time to see the boy shake hands with the soiled man. The lanky prince walked toward the princess and the horse. He paused and turned back to face the blacksmith.
"What is she called?" the Terran prince questioned.
The man smiled. "Moonshadow."
"Moonshadow'," Endymion echoed flatly. He tried to smile, but his face was already turned into a frown. The conflicting responses twisted Endymion's expression so that he looked like he had just swallowed a mouthful of sour milk.
"Yep," the blacksmith said proudly. "Perty, ain't it? My daughter came up with that 'cause of the color of its coat."
The prince nodded, turned, and pretended to admire how accurate the name was for the animal. Secretly, he thought the appellation was silly and common-sounding—for a horse, anyway. He muttered, "Um, yeah, it's very pretty."
He didn't bother to look back at the blacksmith. Instead, he rolled his eyes and approached Serenity.
"Usa," he said, motioning his right hand toward the silver horse. "Meet Moonshadow."
Again, he made the sour milk face as he said the animal's name. Serenity wondered why. Silently, she agreed with the blacksmith; Moonshadow as a perfectly fine moniker.
Endymion took Serenity by the hand and led her closer to the horse.
"I'll help you into the saddle," he said. He paused slightly before he grasped her beneath each arm. The princess' energy electrified Endymion's fingertips; he closed his eyes as he absorbed the sensation. Power sung through his arms and slammed into his core. The surge made him feel alive.
The princess gasped when Endymion hoisted her into the air. Once she was seated on top of Moonshadow, Serenity let out a squeak of horror. She might have been more excited about her tall perch on Moonshadow if the mare hadn't chosen at that particular moment to step in place and rear its head. The princess' blue eyes widened with fear. Her body stiffened.
"What's it doing?" Serenity demanded.
"It's fine, Usa," Endymion tried to reassure her. "Please, try to relax. She can sense your unease."
Serenity nodded. She attempted to follow the prince's instruction.
Endymion untied Moonshadow from the post. He led the horse to the road before he also mounted the animal. He took the reigns in each hand. His arms caged Serenity close to him. Her body felt rigid against his.
"Usa, you're stiff as a board," he observed from his place behind her. "What's wrong?"
"Is this safe?" Serenity questioned through her clenched teeth. "Riding this...beast?"
"Huh?" Endymion grunted. His twilight eyes squinted with amusement as he questioned her. "You've ridden a horse before, right?"
"I've seen pictures of them," Serenity offered.
The prince chuckled. Serenity felt the blood warm her cheeks and ears.
"What's wrong with that?" she demanded.
"Nothing," Endymion said. He attempted to stifle his laugh. "It's just that I assumed that you had ridden before."
"Well," the princess huffed. She would have defiantly crossed her arms over her chest if she wasn't already using her hands to clutch Moonshadow's mane for dear life. "They don't have horses on the moo..."
Serenity covered her right hand over her mouth before she said more. She had almost mentioned the Moon. She kept her mouth covered with her palm. She was relieved not to be facing the prince; her face felt hot with embarrassment. The princess paused to see if Endymion had noticed her slip-up.
"Moo?" repeated the prince. He smiled with amusement.
Serenity cleared her throat. "What I meant to say," she said, slightly annoyed from the mocking tone in Endymion's voice, "Is that we that we don't have horses, like Moonshadow here, where I come from."
Endymion frowned at her explanation. He really did not understand why she sounded so irritated with him.
"Oh, well, don't worry, Usa," Endymion proclaimed proudly. "I'm the best rider in the kingdom. Everyone says so."
He failed to mention to her that, with the exception of Zoicite, Jedite, Nephrite and Kunzite, Endymion had very few critics. As a general rule, people weren't prone to criticize the Terran prince. They seemed to fear lifetime imprisonment for saying anything adverse about the royal family. No one had ever suffered from such a fate, but even the possibility kept commoners from giving their honest opinion about the Terran royals.
Endymion eventually urged Moonshadow into a cantor and then into a gallop. Within moments, Alendoor was far behind them. They were in a thick forest of naked trees. The horse carried the prince and princess with great ease; the mare seemed just as eager as they were to be as far from Alendoor as possible.
Serenity clamped her eyes tightly, preferring to stare at the purplish dark of her lids than to see her body zoom past tree trunks at what felt like break-neck speed. Occasionally, Serenity opened her eyes and peered through the gaps between her body and Endymion's arms to the blur of ground beneath her; each time, she felt as though she were standing on a rug that had been pulled out from under her feet. The sensation made the princess sick to her stomach. She groaned and again shut her eyes. Earlier, Endymion had described the sensation of riding a horse as "exhilarating" and "refreshing."
The sensation in Serenity's stomach was a far cry from exhilarating.
Once he thought they had put enough distance between themselves and the town of Alendoor, Endymion pulled back on the reins and again urged Moonshadow into a cantor. The horse easily obliged. She stepped proudly along the trodden road with her head held high in the air, almost as though she knew that she carried both a prince and princess on her back.
Moonshadow's prances stirred up a different sensation in Serenity's body. The princess' small frame bobbed up and down while the large beast maneuvered through the forest.
Serenity swallowed and gulped the air. The feeling of nausea had subsided, but now a more urgent sensation overcame her. She silently regretted drinking too much water at the tavern in place of a proper breakfast. Her face twisted uncomfortably.
"Mah-mo!" Serenity squeaked. "Mah-mo, pl-ease stop!"
Endymion, assuming that the strange noises emanating from the girl seated in front of him were squeals of delight, laughed heartily.
"See, what did I tell you?" he said proudly. "Isn't the journey much faster and enjoyable on the back of a horse? It's hard to believe we've only been traveling for an hour, and look at how much ground we covered."
"Mmmmn," grunted Serenity. Inwardly, she reeled. They had really been on top of this beast for an entire hour? No wonder her insides felt like jelly! The princess opened her eyes in time to see the horse dodge a tree trunk. Serenity yelped in surprise. She grabbed Endymion by the left wrist and squeezed hard. The prince fumbled. The reins slipped from his hand.
"Ouch!" Endymion grumbled behind her. He moved his arm. "What was that for?"
"I have to go," Serenity tried to explain.
Endymion frowned.
"Go where?" demanded the prince.
"I just have to," Serenity said, flustered, "Go. Now."
"Go?" echoed Endymion. "What do you...?" His eyes widened as he finally understood. "Oh, you need to do that."
Serenity nodded with relief. She knew that Endymion couldn't see her face, but she smiled anyway.
The prince again took hold of the reins with both hands and steered Moonshadow away from the main road. He led them a little deeper into the woods before he pulled back on the reins and urged Moonshadow to stop. He helped Serenity down from the mare's back. The princess wobbled on her feet as she stepped to the ground. Endymion grabbed her by the shoulders to steady her.
"Are you okay?" he asked her. The princess lowered her head and nodded.
"Just a little," she said, taking a shaky step away from him. She raised her head as she muttered, "A little unsteady."
Endymion grinned. His midnight eyes locked with Serenity's bright blue gaze. The connection, though brief, sent a wave of emotion through both the prince and princess.
Serenity blinked and smiled; the princess, still staring into his eyes, realized that Endymion would stop at nothing to keep her safe. For the past couple of days, Serenity had depended on Endymion to protect her from danger. Physically, he stood an arm's length from the princess, but she felt like she was always enveloped in his strong, protective embrace. A blush crept into her cheeks as she recalled waking up in his arms that morning. She liked the feeling of safety; at the same time, however, a slight tingle of fright fluttered in her heart. She hoped he wouldn't have to do terrible things on her behalf.
Endymion's face warmed slightly while he took in the features of the small girl in front of him. Stray strands of gold hair had fallen from Serenity's braid. The right side of her pointed nose was smudged with grime. She looked terrible, and yet Endymion could not take his eyes off of her. Serenity glowed; there was no mistaking her aura. When she smiled at him, Endymion felt elated and euphoric. A huge surge of pride swelled inside his chest. He still did not understand why he was drawn to the girl, but Endymion knew that their connection with each other was strong.
Serenity stumbled forward. She fell into Endymion's chest. The sudden physical touch broke their emotional connection. Serenity stepped away, embarrassed. Endymion took a step backward. He nervously raked his hands through his hair and laughed.
"Uh, careful there." Jokingly, he added, "You certainly are a klutz."
The princess shot an evil glare at Endymion. She twisted her face into a frown. She wasn't sure of what "klutz" meant, but judging from Endymion's tone, Serenity was certain it wasn't intended as a compliment.
The Moon princess opened her mouth to respond; however, she remembered suddenly why they had stopped to begin with. She snapped her mouth shut. The blood flowed into her cheeks and ears, turning her normally pale pallor bright red. She turned on the ball of her foot and walked toward the bank of trees on her left. Endymion chuckled as he watched her stalk off.
"Don't go too far away," he ordered.
"Don't worry!" Serenity cried over her shoulder. She pushed some spindly branches from her path and disappeared from the prince's sight.
The princess had intended to follow Endymion's instructions. She planned to dash behind a nearby tree trunk, do her business, and then return back to Endymion's side. Unfortunately, Serenity was not accustomed to relieving herself in the outdoors, and she had a challenging time locating an appropriate place for such a task. Just when she thought she had found the perfect spot behind one of the wider trees, Serenity craned her head around the trunk and realized that Endymion was still very close by. The princess bit her lower lip and shook her head. No, she silently determined, this place would not do. She'd just have to go a little further away.
Moments later, she discovered a cluster of half-bare waist-high bushes. This spot was a much greater distance from the prince. The princess twisted her head around to make sure Endymion was nowhere to be seen. Determining that the prince was far from her position, Serenity smiled gratefully. It was a perfect place. The princess began pulling up her skirts; her face twisted with mortification when she heard Endymion cough in the distance. Serenity dropped the hem of her dress. She'd die of embarrassment if Endymion heard her. Serenity weaved her way through more of the woods.
When she found a third place, Serenity paused to listen for Endymion's voice. She peered though the thicket of trees she had just passed, making sure the prince was not visible through any gaps. Satisfied that this place was far enough from both Endymion's eyes and ears, Serenity hastily lifted her skirts, undid the fastenings of her underclothes, squatted down, and relieved herself.
A sigh escaped from her lips.
Once she was finished, the princess stood and proceeded with refastening her Terran clothes. She pursed her lips together into a frown as she fumbled with the buttons. Serenity now officially hated her Terran costume. The princess missed her delicate flowing gowns. She missed the sensation of feeling the breeze tickle her skin through the thin fabric of her royal dresses. She wondered how Earth people were able to wear such bulky layers of fabric.
The princess sucked in a deep breath of cold air. She exhaled a white cloud through her lips. She adjusted the hood of her red cloak; it had fallen during the tumultuous ride on Moonshadow. Dread filled her insides as she thought of the horse. Serenity did not want to climb back on top of that beast. She wondered if Endymion would be too terribly offended if she just walked beside the mare.
The moon princess shook her head and giggled quietly to herself. There was no way that Endymion would allow her to walk. He'd already boasted about how much faster their journey now was, thanks to the horse. He'd probably stare at her incredulously with his dark twilight eyes before erupting into a huge fit of laughter at her suggestion. He'd say something terribly dismissive like, "Don't be ridiculous, Usa."
Serenity's frown deepened. Her eyelids narrowed as she scowled at her imagined vision of Endymion's response.
Well, she didn't care if he thought she was ridiculous. She'd march right back to him and give him a piece of her mind. What right did he have, ordering her around and teasing her, anyway? She was a princess after all, and he was just a common Terran boy!
A large puff of air steamed out of Serenity's nostrils as she exhaled loudly—determinedly, she thought to herself. The princess pivoted grandly on her right foot to turn herself around. She stomped through the forest in the same direction she had come from. Serenity, in her regal mindset, would have normally carried herself like a true Moon princess was supposed to, with her head held high, eyes focused on what was in front of her, shoulders almost painfully jutted back—and chest almost painfully jutted forward—but she was too busy imagining the equestrian conversation she was about to have with Endymion to pay attention to formal decorum. Instead, her head was dropped forward, her eyes were focused on the ground immediately in front of her feet, her shoulders were slumped toward her ears, and her chest—what little she had, at her age—had caved as if it were attempting to merge with her spine.
Surprisingly, she still found that she was able to dodge the branches and random woodsy bric-a-brac with much ease. Not surprisingly, she failed to notice that she had just entered a part of the wood in which she was no longer a lone wanderer.
The first hint of company was the nasty, putrid stench that overtook her olfactory nerves. The foul odor made Serenity stop in her tracks. The smell was unlike anything she had ever experienced in her life. She gagged. She wrinkled her nose and clamped her eyes shut as she held her gloved hand over her nose and mouth.
The second hint of company was the pair of dirty bare feet that suddenly stepped into Serenity's line of sight when she finally reopened her eyes. The princess squinted upon noticing them. A frown spread from the corners of her mouth to crease her entire face with confusion. Her eyes trailed up to legs, torso, and finally the head of the person who stood in her path. She rested her gaze on the face that belonged to the feet; her eyes widened with horror. Serenity instantly observed the gnarled, tangled long hair, the jagged, razor-like teeth, the dirt-smeared skin, and the crazed, wild look of the person in front of her. The princess' bright blue eyes locked with the stranger's orange-colored orbs.
The princess dropped her hand from her face. She opened her mouth to scream. The sound caught in her throat.
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End of Chapter 16
Okay, so I received some really fabuloso reviews for the last chapter!
FushigiYugiFan80: I'm sorry to keep you in suspense, and I am afraid this most recent chapter will keep you in more suspense. Sorry!
Mely's the name: Thank you so much for the compliments! I write in layers, where I heap on more and more descriptors and detail each time I go over each chapter, which seems like a very silly way to write. I'm glad to hear it's effective, though, and that you enjoy what I've written. I think it's easy, with fan fiction in general, to assume that everyone is on the same page, character-wise and—well, in a very basic sense—plot-wise. While certain things will always be consistent with all SM fics, I'm glad that my work on each character supports the entire story. Your review made me beam with pride—probably the closest I will ever come to having a maternal glow. My stories are my kids.
Masquerade Ice Princess: Glad you loved it. Hope to post more chapters.
Jess: Your review made my day! I'm glad that, despite my dismal updating practices, you have bookmarked the story. Wow! I always intend to post more regularly, but it just never seems to work out like I want. That, and I am so meticulous about each and every chapter, that I go over it many times before I am content enough to send them out into the world.
Kuni-chan! You need some furniture! If you didn't live far away (which, really, isn't that far), I would insist on giving you the horrid couches that now occupy my living room. I don't think we'll ever get rid of them, since they were free and they are—I admit grudgingly—comfortable. I still strongly dislike the regurgitated flower garden theme of the couch covers, though.
Well, I should probably go, so I can finish the next chapter. My upcoming week will be busy with a wedding, plays, movie excursions, vintage clothing run, and a rockabilly ball to attend, but I do hope to work on the story this week. And you all wonder why my posts are so slow...hee hee
Hollie