Chapter Five
Lord Zoisite!
The second she heard the ice start to crack, Hermione sprung into action, but she was too late. Zoisite plunged into the water below as Prince Endymion shouted his name.
"I'm going after him," the prince said, already shedding his cape.
"No, you stay here, Your Highness," Hermione said, holding out her arm to block him from moving any closer to the hole. After Zoisite had risked his life to defeat the monster, the last thing she knew he would want was Endymion dying in an attempt to save him in return. It made more sense for her to go after Zoisite – she was a strong swimmer, and as a Mercurian, she possessed the ability to hold her breath underwater for a longer period of time than an Earthian. "I'll rescue him."
"Oh, do be careful, Hermione," Serenity said as Hermione quickly unlaced her skates and took them off, the ice freezing underneath her feet.
"I will, Your Highness," she promised. "Now you two need to get back on land. I don't know how much longer the ice will stay solid."
"Yes, of course. Come, Endymion."
As Serenity guided a reluctant Endymion back toward the shore, Hermione drew in a large breath and dove headfirst into the hole.
The water was warmer than she expected – possibly an after-effect of her geyser attack – but still cold enough to be considered unpleasant. Hermione opened her eyes, unable to see anything more than darkness surrounding her. She tapped the jewel in the center of her tiara, the stone letting off a soft blue glow. It wasn't much, but at least she could make out vague shapes and shadows.
One of those shapes was that of an adult human male. Hermione had to stop herself from gasping, covering her mouth with her hands to prevent any air from being released. He wasn't moving at all, a trail of blood flowing from the cut on his arm. Hermione swam faster than she ever remembered swimming before, wrapping an arm around his chest from behind when she reached him and immediately kicking her legs to swim back to the surface.
Every second counted.
It still seemed too long when she broke through, her lungs burning as she gasped and inhaled fresh air. Using every bit of physical strength she possessed, Hermione pulled herself and Zoisite's unconscious body out of the water.
The ice was still unstable, but fearing it would be too late if she waited to administer first aid until they reached land, Hermione laid Zoisite on his back and tilted up his chin, bringing her ear next to his mouth. As she suspected, he wasn't breathing. Forcing herself to stay calm, Hermione pinched his nose and covered his mouth with her own, puffing five times before beginning chest compressions.
"Please, Lord Zoisite," she begged. "Come on, keep fighting! You have to keep fighting."
She alternated between breathing into his mouth and performing chest compressions, her hopes beginning to fade the longer it took him to respond. Tears began to burn in her eyes, but Hermione ignored them, refusing to give up even as she realized the odds of him regaining consciousness were becoming lower and lower with every compression.
It was near the end of the third round of compressions that Zoisite's eyes finally opened. He violently coughed up some of the water he had inhaled, Hermione moving quickly to roll him onto his left side to allow him to expel whatever else was left. She tried wiping away a few tears that managed to escape, but as her gloves were still soaking wet, it was a pointless exercise.
"Her...mione?" His voice was small and weak as he tried to crane his neck to look back at her.
"You're going to be okay, Lord Zoisite," she said, rubbing his back.
Hermione looked around. They really did need to leave the ice, but Zoisite was in no condition to walk and she wasn't sure if she had the strength to carry him a hundred feet to the shore without the extra burst of adrenaline to assist her like before. Noticing that Endymion and Serenity were standing right on the edge of the frozen lake, she first used her powers to refreeze the ice in the general vicinity, then waved for the Earthian prince.
"How is Zacharias?" Endymion asked as soon he skated his way over, kneeling down beside her.
Hermione, who had taken the opportunity to transform out of her wet uniform and back into her dress, managed what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'd like to give him a full examination back at the infirmary to be certain, but I think he'll be fine after some rest, Your Highness," she said, the prince visibly relieved. "I hate asking someone of your standing, but if you would –"
"Carry him?" Endymion once again took off his cape, using it to wrap around Zoisite's shoulders before lifting him up, one arm under his back while the other went underneath his knees. "Princess Hermione?"
Hermione blinked. It was only for a brief moment, but she could have sworn she saw a golden light emanating from Endymion's hands when he picked Zoisite up.
"Princess Hermione?" he repeated again when she made no move to follow him.
"Oh, sorry." Hermione shook her head. She probably had only imagined it. After all, the prince wasn't even transformed. "Forgive me, Your Highness. Let's go."
Zoisite was in no condition to ride back to the palace on his own, so it was decided they would ride in pairs on the stallions she and Serenity had ridden to the lake, leaving behind the two horses Zoisite and Prince Endymion had borrowed to be brought back later by some stablehands. After Hermione mounted her horse, Asklepios, Endymion assisted Zoisite as he climbed up behind her, Zoisite wrapping his arms securely around her waist.
"Will you be okay back there?" she asked as she steered Asklepios to follow after Serenity and Endymion, riding together on Moonbeam, the princess's favorite steed. Hermione's cheeks warmed, keenly aware of his chest pressing against her back, their bodies closer than they had ever been before.
"Yes, yes, I'll be fine," he assured her. "I'm feeling much better. Really, you all don't have to make such a fuss over me."
"I'll be the judge of that. I intend to give you a thorough examination when we return to the palace."
"Oh? If you wanted to see me naked again, all you needed to do was ask."
"I-I... That's not what –"
Zoisite let out a weak chuckle. He was teasing her again, yet it was rather half-hearted, not as flirtatious as his usual innuendos.
Perhaps that was to be expected after the ordeal he had just gone through.
They didn't speak much after that; the rest of the ride back to the palace was spent in silence. Even Serenity and Endymion were quiet, though Hermione occasionally caught them sneaking kisses and tender caresses when they thought she wasn't paying attention. It was a shame that their final night together had been ruined. When she and Serenity came up with the plan to go skating, neither one of them had ever expected something like this to happen.
Where had that ice demon come from, anyway? It had been months since a monster managed to breach the barrier surrounding the kingdom. Perhaps Bellona could divine some answers in her sacred fire. Hermione made a mental note to ask her when they returned.
As luck would have it, Bellona was already at the stables when they arrived, visiting her prized black stallion, Agni. She ran over when she spotted them, a confused look on her face as one of the stablehands helped a weakened Zoisite dismount Asklepios.
"Hermione, what happened?" she demanded to know, hand on her hip. "Where have you been?"
Hermione climbed down, giving Asklepios a couple of firm pets before handing off the reins to another stablehand. She then pulled Bellona aside, lowering her voice so that none of the stablehands could overhear and possibly start rumors.
"We've just returned from Lake Serenitatis. Some sort of ice monster attacked us while we were there, and Lord Zoisite was injured while we fought it."
"A mon–" Bellona clapped a hand over her mouth, realizing she was speaking too loud. "A monster?" she whispered.
"Have you sensed anything recently? Received any visions?" Usually Bellona was able to predict when an attack was imminent.
"No, nothing." Her brow furrowed. "To be honest, though, I've been having a difficult time performing fire readings as of late, ever since those strange sunspots appeared."
"Has that ever happened before?"
"Every once in a while, I will have an off-day, but I've never gone this long without being able to do a reading before. I can try again tonight, though."
"Please do," Hermione said, reaching for Bellona's arm. "Also, may I ask a favor? I need to attend to Lord Zoisite's injury. Would you mind walking Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity back to their rooms and asking one of the prince's guards to take over Lord Zoisite's post for the rest of his shift?"
"Yes, of course."
After leaving Bellona to escort Serenity and Endymion back to their respective bedchambers, Hermione took Zoisite to the infirmary, her arm wrapped around his waist as they made their way through the palace. He could still walk under his own power, for the most part, but his skin was pale from the loss of blood, and his body shivered underneath his soaking clothes. The sooner she could get him dry and patched up, the better.
"It's so...clean," he commented when they entered the deserted infirmary. "And white."
Hermione guided him toward an empty bed closest to the fire. Though a part of her wanted to ask what Earthian hospitals were like, that something as essential and necessary as cleanliness was considered surprising, she had more important matters to attend to. "Sit down and take off your shirt and jacket," she said. "I'll prepare the supplies."
She began boiling a pot of water over the fire as Zoisite stripped off his torn and bloody wet clothes. While her surgical tools sterilized, Hermione sat down beside him and began carefully cleaning the cut on his arm with a damp washcloth and mild soap.
"Hmm. It's not as deep as I thought it was," she said, surprised, yet relieved. The blood loss had made it look far worse than it was. "It's a fairly clean cut, too. Still, it is best to suture it to be on the safe side."
Zoisite sighed, holding out his left hand. "Fine, give me the booze."
"Pardon?"
"I'm not going to let you sew my skin back together without something to dull the pain."
She blinked. "You mean, you use alcohol for pain relief?"
"Yes, of course," he said, giving her a quizzical look. "What else?"
Hermione smiled, standing back up after instructing him to hold the washcloth to the cut. "We have something much more effective than that."
She thoroughly washed her hands, then pulled a jar of her best numbing agent from off the shelf on the far wall. Returning to the bed, she gathered a small amount of the numbing agent on the tip of her finger and began dabbing it around the immediate area of the wound, careful not to get any inside the cut itself.
"What is that?" Zoisite asked, watching her work.
"It's called eiduravkdik. It's made with the extract of the maersocaoa tree, a plant native to Mars."
"Yes, I think I read about it in your book."
"Ingested internally, it can be fatal to humans, but as a topical analgesic, it is one of the best ways to relieve pain. See?" To demonstrate its effectiveness, Hermione lightly pinched his skin where she had applied the cream. "Did that hurt?"
His eyes widened. "No, not at all. I barely felt anything," he said. "Amazing..."
Pleased, Hermione once again washed her hands, then retrieved her tools from the boiling pot. After drying them off with a clean towel, she returned to the bed and expertly threaded the needle before suturing Zoisite's wound.
"You're good at that. I've never seen such even stitching."
"I'm hoping it won't leave a scar," she said. "It would be a shame if it did."
"Because I'm so beautiful?"
Hermione paused, her cheeks warm as she glanced up from her work. "Something like that," she admitted with a soft smile.
Zoisite, surprisingly bashful, glanced away and cleared his throat. "What do you know about the monster who attacked us?" he asked. "Have you ever fought one like that?"
She shook her head, turning her attention back to the stitches. "No, I've never seen that type before. I know nothing about it," she said. "Forgive us for inviting you two so far from the city. Queen Serenity's protective shield is weaker further away from the palace, although it is still rare for monsters to make their way through the shield at all."
"Did anyone else know of your plans besides us four and Jadeite?"
"No, not to my knowledge." Hermione frowned. "Do you believe it was sent to purposely attack us?" That, too, was unusual. The monsters she and the other Sailor Guardians fought were typically of low intelligence, acting on instinct rather than logic, yet the creature they had faced today had been focused and cunning in its attacks.
"I don't know," Zoisite said after a long pause. "Possibly."
He went quiet after that, not revealing anything more.
Hermione finished stitching him up, then began wrapping his arm with a gauze bandage. "Thank you for helping to keep the monster in place long enough for me to attack, by the way," she said. "It was reckless of you to go after it like that, though. If you hadn't managed to block its blade, it likely would have slit your throat."
"It's fine," he said with a bitter chuckle. "I wouldn't have minded dying."
His words took her aback. As a Sailor Guardian, Hermione was prepared to sacrifice her life to protect the royal family and the kingdom, but Zoisite spoke almost as if he wanted to die. Uncertain how to respond, she chose to say nothing, completing her wrapping in silence.
"There. That isn't too tight, is it?"
He moved his arm around. "No, it feels fine."
"Keep it wrapped and dry for the first day, but after that, clean it with mild soap at least once a day and dab some of this over the wound." She walked back over to the shelf and pulled down another small jar, handing it to him. "It will prevent the cut from getting infected. You should be able to have the stitches taken out in about ten days."
"Thanks. I appreciate it," Zoisite said, standing up from his spot on the bed. "Not just for the medical assistance and rescuing me when I fell into the lake, but for...you know, everything. For helping me protect Prince Endymion and saving me when...when I was out of sorts."
With everything that had happened, Hermione had almost forgotten that odd moment near the beginning of the battle when Zoisite had gone almost catatonic at the sight of one of the monster's icicles flying toward him. "Do you often...go out of sorts?" she asked, using his turn of phrase.
"What?" He laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "No, of course not," he said, though he avoided meeting her eyes. "I skipped lunch and dinner today. That's probably why. It's nothing to be concerned about."
Yet she was. If something like that happened again in the middle of battle... She shuddered to think what might happen to him, what almost did happen to him if she hadn't managed to melt the icicle in time.
"Lord Zoisite, if you do suffer from the occasional...episode, it –"
His eyes narrowed. "What? Do you have some sort of cure for that, too?" Zoisite asked, no longer even trying to hide the bitterness in his voice.
"No." She had read old accounts of soldiers experiencing symptoms of severe trauma after engaging in battle, but there was very little research in how to treat it, seeing as wars were rarely fought nowadays among the planets that made up the empire of Silver Millennium. "No, but..."
But...what? Maybe she was overstepping. Losing concentration because of hunger wasn't unheard of. Perhaps Zoisite's explanation was the truth. She had only known him for a couple of days – hardly enough time to know what he was going through.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. "I shouldn't have made such assumptions."
"No, it's fine. I..." Sighing, he brought a hand to Hermione's cheek. "Why do you concern yourself so much with me, Your Highness?" he asked, his voice soft. "We barely know each other."
That was true. Hermione was tempted to brush it off as merely a doctor's concern for her patient, but it went much deeper than that. When she saw him fall into the lake...
No, it was too illogical. She believed in love, knew it existed, but no one truly fell in love after knowing someone for little over a day. It made no sense. Hadn't she just that morning scolded Serenity about that very thing when she had been under the mistaken impression that the princess had fallen in love with a near stranger?
Yet…
"But I want to know you," Hermione admitted, looking upwards into his beautiful green eyes. She inched closer. "Lord Zoisite, I –"
Before she could finish her sentence, the door to the infirmary swung open, Ishtar entering without knocking.
"Hermione, what is this I hear about a mons–"
She stopped in her tracks, Hermione and Zoisite quickly separating.
Zoisite cleared his throat. "I was just leaving." He grabbed his bloodied shirt from the bed and pulled it back on, leaving it unbuttoned as he folded his jacket over his uninjured arm. "Thank you again, Princess Hermione," he said, bowing to her and giving Ishtar a nod of acknowledgement before leaving.
Ishtar closed the door behind him, arching an eyebrow when she turned back around to face Hermione, who suddenly became very interested in putting away her tools. "I wasn't interrupting anything, was I?"
"N-No, of course not. Lord Zoisite was injured during the battle. I was only tending to his wound."
Ishtar hummed, taking a seat on the bed Zoisite had vacated, but to Hermione's relief, she didn't pry any further into her relationship with the Earthian general, turning her attention back to more pressing matters. "Yes, the battle. Bellona told me Princess Serenity was attacked by a monster?"
"Along with Prince Endymion, yes," Hermione said. "Lord Zoisite and I were able to exterminate it before any harm fell to either of them."
"I'm glad to hear that, but what were you four even doing at Lake Serenitatis? You know the queen dislikes Serenity wandering too far from the palace without her full guard in attendance."
"Yet it was fine for you to help her sneak off to Earth to meet with her forbidden love?" Hermione retorted, immediately bringing a hand to her mouth.
The accusation had slipped out without thought. Ishtar was the leader of Princess Serenity's guardians. To speak to her so insolently... Hermione took a moment to compose herself, returning the jar of the numbing agent to its proper place on the shelf.
The expected reprimand never came, however, Ishtar letting out a heavy sigh. "So, Serenity confided in you about that."
"Yes. She also told me that she's in love with Prince Endymion and wants to marry him." Hermione walked back over to the bed. "Ishtar, I don't understand. Why would you encourage their relationship by helping her continue to see him? Why did you risk Serenity's life by allowing her to sneak down to Earth?"
"I was with her the entire time. She wasn't in any dan–" Ishtar shook her head. "No, you're right," she said, fiddling with one of the rings on her slender fingers – a beautiful cushion-cut pale pink stone set in gold. "It was stupid and dangerous, I know, I know. I tried to reason with her when I caught her sneaking off to Earth the first time, but she wouldn't listen. You know how stubborn Serenity can be when she has her heart set on something. If I didn't offer to help her see Endymion, I was afraid she would continue going off on her own. It seemed like the best idea at the time, and it also gave me –"
"What?" Hermione prodded when Ishtar stopped in the middle of her sentence, no longer playing with her ring.
"No, nothing. It's nothing." Ishtar mournfully smiled. "Besides, they truly are in love, Hermione. It's the real deal. How could I possibly get in the way of that?"
Remembering how happy the two of them had seemed until the monster appeared and ruined the rest of their skating date, Hermione sighed. It wasn't as if she didn't understand the reasoning behind Ishtar's actions. They all wanted their beloved princess to find everlasting happiness with the person she loved, but Hermione failed to see how that would be possible under the current laws.
"Be that as it may, the two of them will not be allowed to marry when Earth joins the alliance as expected," Hermione said. "Princess Serenity has come to terms with it. She's agreed to end her romantic relationship with Prince Endymion."
"She has?"
"That's why we were at the lake. It was meant to be a chance for her to say her final farewell to him, but then the monster attacked..."
"Tell me more about this monster," Ishtar said, eyes narrowing. "I want to know everything. Don't leave anything out."
Hermione briefed her on the monster's appearance and attacks and gave her a short summary of their battle, including how Prince Endymion had protected Princess Serenity while she and Zoisite fought and how Zoisite got injured while attacking the monster in a risky move from behind. When she finished, Ishtar frowned, rubbing her chin in deep thought.
"The monster's apparent intelligence concerns me," Ishtar said, "but not quite as much as how it broke through the shield in the first place."
"It's not an unknown occurrence, especially in the farther reaches of the kingdom."
"Yes, but you also said it seemed to be targeting Princess Serenity."
"And Prince Endymion," Hermione reminded her.
"Are you certain about that?"
"Yes, of cour–"
Hermione paused mid-word, doubt planted in her mind by Ishtar's question. When she thought back to the battle, the majority of the monster's early attacks had been aimed in the direction of the prince and princess, but with the two of them sticking so close together, it was difficult to say with absolute certainty who the intended target was: Serenity, Endymion, or both of them.
"Actually, I'm not sure," she admitted.
Ishtar slid off the bed and began pacing around the infirmary, muttering to herself as if Hermione wasn't even there. Hermione only caught a word here and there whenever Ishtar walked past her, frowning when she heard Zoisite's name.
"You don't suspect the Earthians of having something to do with the attack, do you?" Hermione asked, Ishtar stopping her pacing.
"I... I don't know." Ishtar wrapped her arms around herself. "I don't want to think that they're behind it, that he would do something –" She shook her head. "We cannot rule out the possibility," she said. "After all, what do we really know about the Earthians? We don't even know what kind of powers Prince Endymion possesses. Did you see him use them at any point during the battle?"
"No." As the carrier of a Sailor Crystal, Endymion theoretically should have been able to transform and attack, yet he had left the fighting to a normal human like Zoisite while shielding Serenity from the monster's attacks. Hermione hadn't thought much of it at the time, too focused on fighting, but she had to admit it was somewhat suspicious.
However, there was that mysterious glow of golden light she saw when Endymion touched Zoisite...
Hermione decided not to mention that part, still uncertain if it was only a figment of her imagination.
"I've heard rumors that the Golden Crystal may be equal in strength to Queen Serenity's Silver Crystal," Ishtar said. "If that's true, then the Earthians may have plans to take over Silver Millennium."
"But, Ishtar, you said it yourself that Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity are in love," Hermione pointed out. "Why would he put Serenity and himself in danger by summoning a monster to attack them? And Bellona didn't sense any evil intentions from any of the Earthians when they arrived." As a highly-tuned spiritualist, the Martian princess was capable of "reading" people in a way Hermione would have considered absurd if it wasn't so accurate.
"I don't know." Ishtar groaned, rubbing at her forehead. "Nothing about this makes any sense." She walked back over to Hermione and placed her hands on Hermione's upper arms. "Listen, Hermione, I won't order you to stop...associating with Lord Zoisite, but I do think it best to be on guard when you are around him," she said. "Watch what you say, and let me know if you notice anything suspicious about him or any of the other members of the Earth delegation."
"You have the wrong idea. Lord Zoisite and I –"
"Please. Just be careful, okay? Even if Lord Zoisite is innocent of having anything to do with the attack, he... Well, I don't think he's necessarily a bad person, but he's not someone a girl like you should fall in love with. I don't want to see you hurt."
What was that supposed to mean? Ishtar barely knew Zoisite...unless she had discovered something about him from one of her secret visits to Earth with Serenity. Hermione wanted to ask more, but Ishtar released her hold on her arms, glancing at the clock on the fireplace mantle.
"I need to go," Ishtar said. "It is almost time for my shift as Princess Serenity's guard." She squeezed one of Hermione's hands. "Think about what I said, okay?"
"I-I will," Hermione promised.
DISCLAIMER: "Sailor Moon" doesn't belong to me.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: I hope you enjoyed! Next chapter will be up tomorrow.
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