Disclaimer: Sailor Moon belongs to Kodansha, Naoko Takeuchi, Toei, Cloverway, etc.
"Shadows of the Past" by Tess: Chapter 6
Posted: 7-20-04
Princess Serenity cooed at her parents from her spot in her crib. Her blue eyes sparkling with delight, she playfully wiggled her hands and kicked her feet. "Oh Hematite," Queen Serenity breathed, looking down at their baby daughter. "She's beautiful." The King of the Moon smiled and pulled his wife close to him.
"She's just as beautiful as you are," he whispered into her ear. "Just as beautiful as the love of my life is." Queen Serenity giggled as her husband leaned closer to her and sealed the gap between them with a loving kiss.
Inside of the manor, Hematite's head shot up from his desk. The dream had felt so real, as if he were living it all over again. He lifted a finger to his cheek and found it wet. Had he been crying? In a kind of daze, he walked out of his study and headed towards the room where he was keeping Serenity. Entering silently, he found her asleep on the bed, tightly clutching a pillow. Her face was contorted into a frightened expression, as if she were having a terrible nightmare. Without realizing what he was doing, Hematite lifted a hand and gently brushed some of her tears away.
"Serenity," he sighed sadly. "You look so much like your mother."
'You know, you did this to her,' a voice inside of his head taunted him. 'It's your fault she's in such pain!" Suddenly, Hematite looked at the hand that was caressing Serenity and his eyes filled with disgust. He snatched it away and left the room almost as quickly as he had come.
"Weakness," he hissed to himself as he stormed through the dark hallways and back into his study. "I must not show any weakness!" He poured himself some whiskey and took a deep swig from the glass. "I can't give up now. Not after I've waited for so long." Images of a beautiful young woman with violet eyes swarmed through his head as he finished his whiskey in one gulp.
'Revenge,' he thought savagely, breathing hard and wiping his mouth with his sleeve. He glanced at the glass in his other hand, then angrily threw it against the wall, watching it shatter into a thousand pieces. "Revenge!" he snarled aloud as he reached for another glass.
Later that night, Prince Endymion silently entered Princess Serenity's room, his head throbbing dully. He shut the door behind him, and inhaled the room's scent. It smelled of sweet vanilla, just like Serenity. Endymion gingerly sat down on Serenity's bed and closed his eyes as memories of the previous night came flooding back to him.
"I love you, my princess. May I please kiss you?"
"Endy...this has been the most marvelous night of my life."
"Basic rules of warrior training, Endymion. Never turn your back on your enemy until you're completely sure he's fallen."
A tear slid down Endymion's cheek as images of Serenity's terrified face swarmed through his head. He couldn't remember the last time he'd cried. He didn't know how, but he could feel that she was in pain. And it was all his fault. Terror filled him as he remembered the way Theronious had been staring at her at the ball. What was he doing to her? Another tear slipped down his cheek. If only he had gone to speak to Queen Serenity about him. Everything was his fault.
"I'm going to rescue you, Serenity," he vowed. "And I'm going to do it alone." He glanced outside into the darkness. He would have to leave early in the morning. "Hang on, Sere," he said determinedly, getting up from the bed. "I'll find my way to you. I promise!"
Princess Serenity woke with a start. She had cried herself to sleep, and just now, she was sure that she had heard Prince Endymion's voice. "Endy?" she asked breathlessly. She was met with no response. "No...that's impossible. It was just my imagination." She closed her eyes and remembered the feel of his soft lips upon hers. She gingerly placed a finger to her mouth and sighed. Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by the clicking of the lock. She looked towards the door and gasped fearfully when the tall form of Theronious entered the room and closed the door behind him.
"Evening, Princess," he said lowly. Serenity got up from the bed and held her head high. She was determined to not show the man how afraid she truly was. Her eyes narrowed as he approached her.
"What do you want?" she asked, moving away from him.
"Now, now, Serenity, is that the proper way to greet the man you're going to marry?"
"I'd rather die than marry you!" Theronious laughed and continued moving closer to her.
"Mind your tongue, Princess. If that's what you wish, we could always arrange for it." Serenity's eyes widened in terror as her back ran into the wall. Theronious stood in front of her, a smug expression on his face. "There's no escape." Suddenly, Serenity remembered what she'd overheard earlier.
"You have orders not to touch me!"
"What daddy doesn't know isn't going to hurt him," Theronious replied, a hungry look in his eyes. Serenity cried out as he swiftly grabbed her waist. "Don't worry dear," he hissed, his face inches from hers. "You'll soon learn to love me."
"Never!" Serenity shouted, kicking him in the groin right before his lips would have touched hers. "I will never love you!" Theronious let go of Serenity and fell to the floor, doubled over in pain and gasping for breath. Serenity rushed to the door and out of the room. Her heart pounding wildly, she ran through the halls until she found a door that led outside and wrenched it open. She gasped sharply as a blast of frigid air hit her, but she continued running through the snow towards the surrounding forest.
About twenty minutes later, when she was deep into the forest, Serenity stopped to catch her breath. She sat down on a large rock, panting and shivering violently. Even though she was still wearing the cloak that Theronious had put on her the night before, her clothes didn't sufficiently protect her against the icy wind. Rubbing her palms together, she glanced towards the way she had come. She smiled weakly as she realized that she could no longer see the manor. It would be a long and difficult journey home, but all that mattered to her was that she was no longer trapped inside that horrible prison. She was free.
End Chapter 6
Well, how was it? I know it's kind of short, but I need to start the next chapter with a specific scene, so I thought this was a good place
to end. Please let me know what you think.
-Tess