XI

Ever so carefully, Princess Serenity rested the coins over her mother's eyes and quickly took her place back in the procession. She was grateful for the quiet that surrounded her; not one of the soldiers that stood on either side of her mother's palanquin had looked at her.

Her mother…Her Royal Majesty Queen Serenity I of the Moon Kingdom's Silver Millennium was dead. She had finally succumbed to the mysterious illness that had eaten at her in the way the physician had predicted—right over her heart.

The princess had almost missed the last breath she had taken in the early morning. If it had not been for Luna waking her up in time, she would have lost the opportunity to say goodbye, to whisper words of love…and to see her mother's smile one last time as she told her of Endymion's proposal.

The kingdom mourned and the princess helped prepare her mother's body for the ceremonial funeral pyre. She washed her body free of the smells of death; gave color to her eyelids, cheeks, and lips; styled her silver-white hair in its familiar pigtails; and she dressed and wrapped her in the finest of clothing and fabrics: muslim and black gossamer to hide the blemish of her sickness on her skin. The crown her mother had worn during life now rested atop her abdomen, and the porcelain, unblemished fingers of her right hand curled around the gaps in its design. The gold coins only served to remind her of what she could not pretend: the things she loved most about her mother—her grace and smile; her tinkling laughter; the power and love that shone in her eyes—were now to be memories.

Tears slipped from her eyes. She wanted to be alone, to not have to do this.

"I am ready." She said in a voice that was raspy after days spent sobbing and crying. "Please: let us begin."

The front doors of the palace parted and the light of the early morning poured in. Serenity's gaze went downward to avoid the glare of the sun. The gold on her mother's face gleamed and twinkled as it met her eye.

The torch she gripped was lit by unseen hands; the warmth of its flames lapped at her wan, tired face.

The outside world met her face-to-face: Moon noblemen, dressed in all white and adorned with gold, stood on either side of the converging bridge that connected the capital city to the outskirts. Their collective opalescence was the complete opposite to the plain, shapeless dress she wore. A collective sound of sadness escaped the lips of the first that saw their deceased monarch laid out before them. A few waved ornate bells in the tradition of mourning the dead; others crumpled to the ground and wailed, pulling at their clothing and hair; and others touched her mother's cold, porcelain skin.

For a moment, a feeling of foreboding went down her spine and seized her heart, but she could not dwell on it.

She stepped forward.

"…It seems like just yesterday we were all in our primary school classes coloring in picture drawings of the royal family—although with the princess here, 'yesterday' doesn't seem like the right word we should use. Centuries maybe, but not yesterday." The speaker's words brought on a chuckle amongst the politicians and more flashes from the photographers' cameras. "Princess, I hope you aren't staring out at all of us and wondering if there was ever a time when we were young. I promise you: it was longer than yesterday, but shorter than a century." More laughter.

Serena gave a wide, good-natured grin. It was as if she was being debuted again in this onion-domed room with its mahogany benches with green leather cushions, gold-trimmed walls, and low-hanging chandeliers—the stares of the men and women that she'd been learning about; the champagne-white satin dress and roses in her hair buns; and the mark on her forehead that had been painted gold. But so many things had changed from that evening all those months ago.

Parliament had accepted her request. Artemis had snuck back into the Moon Palace in the dead of night—long after the elders had given up on their mission to halt word upon his return. She had read over the line, "We of Parliament are in the belief that Serena Tsukino shares in our endeavors to be the guiding light and voice of the Moon and its people in our Solar System," before starting at its beginning. And then she had counted and deciphered the signatures of every politician who had signed the second page. And then she had made the white-haired man recount everything that had happened. It was close to daylight when she had finally gone to sleep.

The Elders of the Moon were still having meetings—only this time no one knew what they were talking about. Guards weren't allowed to stand outside the door of the room where they met, and apparently, all talks stopped when the kitchen staff came in with meals. The calls and requests from the other royals for her company had also stopped: none of them wanted to fall out of their—Aglecta's—favor.

She really was an outsider now. Like Endymion…

Endymion…

…If there was anything she now knew, it was that her feelings towards the Prince of Earth weren't entirely her own. And those feelings were stronger than any other she had ever had, almost desperate—they needed him near; they needed her to find him. To be with him. All her thoughts came back to him.

And she thought about him a lot because…because she liked him. She wondered about the things he was doing at any given moment; she wanted to talk to him; her mind replayed her standing beside him in the rose garden over and over again; she daydreamed about kissing him. Just thinking about him brought on a type of warmth that started in the center of her forehead and spread throughout the rest of her body; she even felt it in her toes.

Luna brought sealed letters to her on his behalf. The first one he'd given her had come when she was in the meeting room with the princess' larger-than-life portrait. Reading the Politics section of the newspaper on Artemis' suggestion seemed less important when she saw her own name on the envelope. She had felt herself blush as she read the words

'I, Prince Enydmion of the Planet Earth, pledge my support to you, Serena Tsukino, ascending ruler of the Moon Kingdom. It is my hope and endeavor to be a source of aid to you as you continue your eventual undertaking as monarch. I am available whenever you are in need.'

in his voice.

Another followed soon after:

'I must be honest: I have not forgotten your telling me of the memory-dream you had of Her Royal Majesty. Have you always had these visions?'

And when she had replied:

'It is interesting that the headaches you used to have so often have lessened since that night. I think that their recent alleviation and your more detailed memories are related. …Have you tried to bring them up on your own since then?'

She hadn't, but now she sat up in her bed in the early moments of the morning, before Luna came to wake her up, trying to think. But she seemed to only be good at was closing her eyes and remembering the memory-dream of him declaring his love to Princess Serenity.

It frustrated her. If only she could talk to him…

If only I could see him…

…He had been at the docks when she was boarding the navel ship taking her to the mainland. He stood under the palace arches, handsome in a black suit with red trim and a black-and-red bowtie, and watching her watch him. He had rested his hand over his heart and smiled at her in that way he did. Her face had turned hot. Artemis' call was the only reason why she turned away from him; she just kept wishing that she could go to him, take his hand in hers, and bring him with her.

"Is there anything you would like to say before we begin?"

She blinked away her thoughts and formed a smile. "…Yes. I want to say that I am honored by your kindness, and I will work hard to reach your expectations of me as ruler.

"Thank you."

"Your Royal Highness' presence is requested in the palace."

Endymion had only just returned from the docks and come back to his suite before the two royal guardsmen standing on the other side had rapped their knuckles on the door. Now, he stared at the grip both men had on the handles of their swords and…the dull, lifeless and faraway look in their gazes.

The words were repeated to him in the same firm, no-nonsense tone.

And he acquiesced.

I have been waiting for this, he reminded himself. I have needed to do this. No other solution has presented itself.

Endymion could no longer dwell on his memory. Diamond's eyes, that strange image of them, were now a constant presence in his recollections. It was as if the image of the Moon-born royal's eyes had branded themselves in his mind to hide the truth from him and endeavored to thwart his attempts. The physical pain of his headaches now left him kneeling on the ground of his suite with clenched teeth and his fingers pressed against his forehead. Serenity's words,

"…You are learning the answer…"

always echoed through his mind in those moments, but despite them, he felt the answers he sought were no longer his to find.

"…Promise me you will take care of Serena…"

The prince had given his word to protect her, and his only recourse in doing so was to help her find the memories she needed. He had not wished to do so from afar; each letter he had written had brought the familiar thrum in his chest, a…desire for her laugh, for her smile, for the look in her eyes… But it was better for him to be in the shadows. He did not want to be the reason the elders further spurred to action against her. And Diamond was always watching…

Until today. He could no longer stand his emotions and so stood out on the docks to see her off from afar. He had watched her turn to face him. The pulse of his beating heart had thundered in his ears and reverberated through his veins; it echoed the sureness that he could not act on: that he was to be next to her and help her make things right again…that he would be right again with her.

…He was unsurprised to be standing before Diamond's suite. The men accompanied him through the mirrored hallway; unlike him, they remained unaffected by their infinite reflections. They separated only when they all entered into the drawing room: the one that had walked on his right took a position beside the three back windows; the other stood sentry at the corridor's opening.

Diamond, dressed in all white as always, stood in the very center of the room…and beside him was Aglecta in a dress that reminded him of the shed skin of a snake. The elderly woman did not raise her head as the prince approached; her eyes remained fixed on an indeterminate spot on the floor.

"…You both have finally reappeared out of thin air."

Diamond's mouth curled into a smile, but his eyes held no traces of mirth. "The meetings and talks are now over, and I am happy to say they reached a decision on how to respond to the girl's—"

"Serena."

"…Her actions and her alliance with Parliament. I thought you would like to hear of it firsthand: it would be…foolish of them to start a rift with an entity comprised of the kingdom's very subjects, but their authority cannot afford any more youthful rebellions."

"She has made fools out of us all," Aglecta said suddenly. Her voice was airy and detached, lacking its usual belligerent tone. She made a motion with her arms, as if to slam her palms against a table and craned her neck from side to side. "How can we, the elders of the Moon Kingdom," she rapped her long nails against her bony chest, "who have served the kingdom since the age of Queen Serenity allow this girl to command us?" She lapsed into eerie silence, and Endymion's brow furrowed at her erratic behavior and words, at her mention of the other missing elders.

Diamond remained unbothered. "They have decided that she is to be married. To me."

Endymion felt his heart skip a beat. "…To you…"

"I was to be ruler before her appearance. With the remaining question of her lineage and the gaze of Parliament now upon us, it is thought that I would be best suited to—"

"Control her better than the elders could do themselves." A headache was forming behind his eyes. This feels…familiar…

A chuckle. "Call it whatever you like; just know that she is no longer your worry."

"Promise me you will take care of Serena..."

"She will be my worry so long as I am here."

Diamond smirked. "You truly believe yourself to be here for much longer? …Have you never wondered why I entreated the Elders of the Moon to allow you to stay after the attack in the first place?"

"…You are learning the answer…"

He tried to hold his gaze to the Moon-born royal, but a sharp pain pulsed through his mind. He was fighting against the compulsion to utter the familiar answer. "It is," warmth pulsed within his chest and up his throat, "…not because we are friends."

"No," Diamond said seriously. "It is not."

"Can you not…hear the idle talk swirling around us?!" Aglecta's arm rose as if it were pulled on a string and stirred the air in a slow circle. "The blatant disrespect the prince continues to show us? He has done exactly as—"

"Be silent," the Moon royal said to the elderly woman. "It is because you served a purpose, Endymion…a higher purpose. I knew that out of all the reasons why Serenity would return, she would come back for you. …Somehow, some way, she would return to you, and with her would come the Silver Millennium Crystal."

The crystal… His headache worsened; the warmth was beginning to spread through his torso. "The crystal…it disappeared a century ago."

"The crystal exists, and the girl is all the proof I need."

"You must say that the girl is all the proof I need," Aglecta murmured dreamily.

Diamond turned to the woman, anger flashing in his eyes. "I told you to be silent."

"…Say it again, Aglecta—repeat it to me: 'The girl is all the proof I need.' …Good, good…" Her brow furrowed and her lips curled into a snarl. "…The girl is all the proof I need, and I will not wait for the rest of you to come to that realization! She is what we have been waiting for. And if you would rather be enamored with her pretty face and not undertake our collective duty, I—I will take the initiative to find…" She sighed, as if exhausted. "…We…we promised the crystal."

"…the answer…"

Endymion stared at her, at the anger he knew so well. "…To whom did you promise the crystal?"

She clasped her hands together. "…the voice..."

"What voice?"

For the first time since he had arrived, The Elder of the Moon lifted her head towards him. Her dark eyes were dull and unfocused. "The voice," she emphasized like a child.

"What voice?!"

Diamond whirled the woman around and pressed his fingers into the hollows of her cheeks. "Is defiance truly in your nature? I have commanded you to be silent, parrot! Do not make me repeat myself."

Endymion stepped forward and grabbed the sleeve of the woman's dress for her attention. A small, brief flash of pain pulsed through his mind as the Moon royal glared at him. "Let. Her. Go."

The crystal…a long thrum of warmth spread from his head and body and through his nerves…the crystal…the answer… "Aglecta…who is the voice?"

"…You will let her go, Endymion!"

Another violent pang in his mind made him let go. He stumbled backwards, but he would not be stopped. "Who is the voice, Aglecta?!"

"The voice…" she said.

"…Who is the voice?!"

"The voice is…the one who desires the crystal—"

Diamond's other hand pressed against the back of the woman's head and he twisted her head.

There was the quiet snap of her neck, and her body fell to the carpet with a thud.

As much as he had hated and despised her, Endymion fell to his knees before the woman. His fingers searched for a pulse, but felt nothing. "…Dead."

"Good riddance."

The prince grit his teeth.

Diamond scoffed. "You so easily forget the nature of the woman you kneel beside… In a way, her death occurred long before this moment. It is only now that she outlives her usefulness."

"…She has been dead before now?" Endymion repeated. The war within him…the pain he had felt for so long was…waning at the feeling of warmth that coursed through his body. His hands pressed to the carpet; he was barely able to keep his eyes open.

The tips of Diamond's white shoes appeared mere inches from his hands. "…'Hypnosis' may be a better-suited term… She simply appeared at my door one night, and she was mine to command: To be in the places I could not be; say the things I could not say… Aglecta was merely a catalyst…"

The warmth concentrated on the middle of his forehead.

"Make no mistake: the old hag has always been unpleasant—always." Diamond continued. "…Ramblings used to empty out of that puckered mouth of hers from time to time. She both revered and envied the queen's bond with the crystal… She may have very well turned against the kingdom on her own accord if it had proven fruitful to being able to even touch the crystal."

"…the answer…"

The answer to why…the crystal disappeared the night of the attack…

His eyes closed.

There was the imprint of Diamond's glare behind his eyes—and a glowing, white light. Light the color of which he had seen before in the Mare Serenitias with Serena hovering above him; in her eyes when he first laid eyes on her all those months ago. It burned the edges of those eyes, stripped it away in bits and pieces…

And then those eyes were gone, as if they had never really existed.

…He was seeing something different…he was seeing the memory he dreaded above all others: the day he had died…

The Moon's smoky sky…the strewn bodies of the senshi and the guardsmen of the Moon…the knight he had suddenly engaged with, the one dressed in all silver with violet eyes…the pierce of the sword that sliced through his skin and bones and organs… The feeling of his body meeting the ground, his hands pressing against the wound on his abdomen, trying to keep his life from slipping through his fingers… Serenity kneeling over his body to do the same…the pearls of tears that fell from her eyes…the way they felt on his brow…

…And then the sudden image of Diamond from that night a century ago. The Moon royal he had grown to mistrust and hate more than the rest, more than Aglecta herself, kneeing before him and uttering two words: "…My friend..."

The prince's eyes opened.

Diamond stood before him, his stare fixed upon him in surprise. "…The imprint is gone."

Hatred. As strong as it was the first time felt it towards this man ran through the Earth-born prince's veins.

Endymion's fist connected with the royal's face. Again. And again. Diamond stumbled, and the prince grabbed him by his shirt's collar. "You are the reason for everything that happened! Aglecta calling for the act of regency; the control and intimidation she exerted over the other elders—over Serenity—was done at your command." He wished for his grip to be tightened. "…You are the reason for the attack against the Moon Kingdom a century ago. The kingdom was destroyed because of you… Serenity sacrificed herself because of you!

"You took her away." The words he uttered were too much for him to bear. "You are the reason why she is not here! You are the reason she is gone!"

It was only the sound of metal slicing the air and the feel of something sharp poking against his spine and heavy, even breathing that stopped him from going further. The guard that had stood at the corridor had moved from his place, sword in hand.

Despite the bruises already beginning to appear on his pale skin and the blood running from his nose, the Moon royal's face was still smug. He freed himself. "You are a hundred years too late, prince, to again try striking the blow to kill me."

"It would be worth it to see you dead and gone."

A scoff. "…And you are wrong: Serenity died because of you."

"Because of your jealousy towards me."

The self-satisfied expression turned to loathing. "Because of the ball and chain you were prepared to bind her to!"

"The only so-called prison she would have been placed in would have been made of your design. If only she had let you, if only she had not been so fearful of you!"

The royal laughed bitterly. "If only she had not been so naïve as to be enamored with you." He swiped at the blood dripping down his lip. "A prison I would have put her in? Why would I have done that?! Everything about Serenity's life had been about the crystal: her guardians protected her solely for the sake of protecting the crystal; the elders were willing to agree with Aglecta's tirades and viciousness for the sake of controlling of the crystal; and the queen herself was willing to tie her daughter's life to it. The queen served as a reminder of the life Serenity would have from the day she possessed the crystal!

"I…I wanted to free her. To unshackle her from her…predetermined fate… The power I used was for that purpose only." He stared at his hands and rubbed his fingertips. "The purpose of making tyrants fall. …The queen had always been sick; the crystal slowed her aging and the progression of what lay dormant in her lungs… I touched her but once in a moment of weakness she had and willed the sickness to progress inside her faster."

"And now you have killed again."

Laughter. "I have already said that treasonous dog fulfilled her purpose. As have you…as will that girl."

Endymion's blue eyes locked with the royal's. "What purpose does Serena serve to you?"

"What purpose does the girl serve to you, prince? You have played champion for that girl, that shade, almost since her arrival… You have turned your loyalty and affections towards a girl whose only redeeming feature is her appearance. How fickle your feelings are."

"If that is true…then why are you so set to marry her."

"Because I wish to see the crystal gone. The crystal is an abomination and it has taken enough from me," he said bitterly. "She possesses it somehow…if I am to destroy her to destroy it, I will do so."

Anger surged within the prince's veins. "I will not allow it."

Scornful laughter. "I have already told you that what happens to her is no longer your concern."

"Serena is my concern." He said those words and believed in them wholeheartedly. "If you believe that she has the crystal, then her safety is my concern and protecting her is my purpose. Until my dying breath."

Hard laughter. "Until your dying breath?

"…So be it then."

Endymion watched as the skin of Diamond's forehead began to spread apart lengthwise. He thought what had happened next, the appearance of a newly formed-oval and the movement of a thick black ring in its space was a trick of the mind. But it was not. And then he realized what he was staring at:

An eye.

A/N: Happy New Year, everyone! Chapter "XI" is done. This last scene is done. *victory dance*

This final confrontation between Diamond and Endymion, like Serena's scene in the Mare Serenitias, has been at the forefront of my mind since I first started writing Rebirth and there were so many things to pack in—I can't believe it came out better than I imagined it.

Thank you, October Autumn, for your PM! I hope that it was worth the wait!

R&R