Star-Crossed Lovers-Chapter Eleven

As the month went by, Serena and Darien continued to keep contact via letters when it was inconvenient for them to see one another. In these letters, not only did they express their thoughts and feelings regarding each other, but also thoughts regarding their own situations and pasts. Every emotion from love to anger was poured out.

How Mina knew this, however, was quite a shock, even for someone with as much of a gossiping, nosy personality as she had. Serena had asked her cousin to read each letter and approve them before their being sent. Most love-struck girls, as Mina knew, would never allow a friend to read a letter to the boy of their dreams. Not in a lifetime, but then again, Serena was not scared to show her true feelings to her friends and get them involved. It was as if she considered it a sin to leave them in the dark. She had even left Amy and Lita read them once or twice and asked for their opinions.

Raye's advice, of course, was out of the question for any of them. She was still noticeably angry and bitter after Prince Michael's intrepid comments and had gone so far as to threaten to stab him in the heel again (but with something far more sinister) if she ever saw him again.

Well, at least it would only be in the heel, Mina thought after having heard the comment. Hopefully, it wouldn't lead to any permanent damage. Then again, if Raye were really hoping to inflict any real damage, she could have waited a little until her Sailor powers were under control and singed him if she really wanted to do so; but of course, Mina would not suggest that to a girl as vengeful as Raye was. Plus, if Raye really were to go through with it, Queen Serenity would have had her sent home for sure.

"I wish she would get over herself and find a new hobby," Lita had remarked irritably one day as she, Mina, and Amy sat in the gardens under the warmth of the sun. Mina was particularly excited because the flowers had just begun to blossom a few weeks earlier and were still in their early stages, putting off the most wonderful smells.

"How could you call hating Michael a hobby?" Amy asked. As was her habit, she held a book from the Palace library in her hands and barely lifted her eyes from the pages as she spoke.

"Because," Lita said as she stretched her legs out on the stone bench that she was taking up all to herself, "that's all she ever does. Complain and say how much she hates him."

"Then, that would be called an obsession," said Amy, "not a hobby."

Lita rolled her eyes as Mina laughed openly. Amy could be hilarious without even knowing it, and that was the best part.

"What are you all laughing at?" Serena's curious voice floated toward them from the opposite direction where they were seated. She was beginning to sound—and act—more and more like her mother every day.

"Raye," Mina responded as her cousin sat down beside her on the bench. "Well, really Amy, but Raye was the ultimate cause of the laughter."

"Yes," Serena sighed, the sun making her golden hair shimmer, "Raye's situations can be something to laugh at."

"Can be?" Lita echoed, now stretching her long arms out up toward the sky. She seemed to be getting tanner by the second. "They always are."

"So, when do you begin your Scout training?" Serena asked out of the blue, absentmindedly tapping her fingers on her long white gown.

"Not for a few more days," said Amy, finally lifting her eyes from her book for longer than a nanosecond. Mina assumed it was out of courtesy for the Moon Princess, although Serena constantly reminded her guardians specifically not to show her any royal treatment. She preferred for them to act as they would toward any normal person, nothing more.

"Do you think my mother would consent to my spending some time on Earth?" Serena asked suddenly, as though she had never even uttered the previous question.

Sometimes Serena's train of thought annoyed Mina to the fullest. That was one thing the Moon Queen and Princess did not have in common. Whereas Queen Serenity always had smooth transitions from one topic to another and would never start another conversation without clearly finishing the first, Serena had a habit of asking whatever was on her mind as soon as it entered her mind.

However, this time it was not Serena's randomness that caught Mina's attention. It was the question itself.

"You've never even been to Earth," Mina said, looking at her cousin with odd eyes. "What makes you think your mother would let you go alone?"

"I won't be alone," Serena answered, sounding a bit irritated, "Darien and his family will be there. They have a room for me and everything. Look."

She opened up her red satchel, a deep contrast to her dress, and pulled out yet another of Darien's letters. But, before Mina could take it, Lita sprang from her bench and grabbed it from the Moon Princess's hand.

"Excuse me, Serena," she said apologetically, "but I'm rather nosy."

She held the letter up to her face, above where the other girls could read it themselves. She skimmed through the entire letter before reading the part she was looking for aloud.

"'My parents would love to get to know you,'" she began, "'so they insisted to invite you over to our home for a few days. A room will be prepared just for you. I hope your mother consents.' That's rather nice."

Serena rolled her eyes. "Is that all you can say, Lita?"

Lita looked down quizzically at the Moon Princess with her deep green eyes. "What else would you want me to say? That's rather horrible? I think it's very sweet that his parents want to get to know you. That's always a good sign."

"How would you know?" asked Mina skeptically. "Have you ever dated anyone?"

"Yes," Lita responded promptly, handing the letter back to Serena and returning to sit on her bench. "I dated Amy's brother, Prince Matthew."

Amy snorted, her eyes again on her book, although, Mina noticed that they were not moving across the pages, as one's eyes normally did when one was reading. "Having a picnic lunch with someone one time is not dating. Dating means that you saw him more than once."

"So?" Lita rested her head back on the bench and closed her eyes. "Your parents certainly liked me."

"That doesn't mean a thing," Amy retorted. She had not turned the page once since the conversation had begun.

Rather than get involved in Amy and Lita's argument, however, Mina turned to advise her cousin. "If it's his parents' idea, then I would say yes. Just be sure to explain everything to your mother when you ask her."

"Alright." Serena gave her elder cousin a smile. "I'll try to go find her."

With that, Mina watched as her favorite uncle's daughter skipped back toward the Palace, hoping that all would turn out in her favor.

+*+*+

Despite having lived in the Moon Palace all her life, Serena still had a horrible time of finding where she was going. There were so many rooms and turns that it was easy for anyone, even the most experienced of people, to get lost. She wandered around until finally, about ten minutes into her search, when she found where her mother was.

Or, at least, where she was supposed to be. Knowing that her mother did not have any meetings planned for the day, Serena had known that she would be somewhere inside the Palace, but as to where, she had had to ask Barbara, one of her mother's handmaidens, who always knew everything. Hopefully, Barbara's knowledge was not mistaken and it would be easy for Serena to find her mother. But, unfortunately, even knowing where she was did not make finding her easy for Serena.

Knocking lightly on the large oak door, Serena heard her mother's soft voice respond.

"Enter," the Queen said.

Serena slowly opened the door to the library, where she found her mother sitting at the old piano, wiping it clean of the dust with a cotton cloth.

It's about time, Serena thought. That piano has been dirty for years. For at least as long as Serena could remember, that is.

"May I help you with something, darling?" Serenity inquired, now thumbing through some old sheets of music.

"Yes, Madam." Serena curtsied politely, still clutching Darien's letter in her hand and came forward.

Serenity put down the music and sat up straight to give her daughter her full attention.

"Prince Darien's parents offered me to come spend some time with the family on Earth," Serena began, holding out Darien's letter so that her mother could read it. "I'll be perfectly good, I promise you."

Serenity smiled as she read the letter. "I have no doubt that you would be, my dear. You have your father's righteousness."

Serena sat down on the black bench beside her mother. "May I go?"

"I don't see why not," the Queen responded, handing the letter back. "But, I'm having Luna go with you, if you don't mind."

Of course, Serena didn't mind, but even if she did, her mother would have made Luna go anyway. Even though she was a cat, Luna was Queen Serenity's most trusted advisor and as such, she gave her the duty of watching over Serena when necessary.

"I would love for her to come," Serena answered, giving her mother a smile.

"Then, I give you permission."

"Really? Oh, Mother! Thank you so much! " Serena's heart fluttered inside of her. She leaned over to give her mother a hug and kiss, accidently letting her elbow hit one of the piano keys.

"I didn't know you played the piano," the Princess commented, staring at the now shiny white keys. It was marvelous how much of a difference a little cleaning could do for an object so old and grand.

"I only play the basics," the Queen said modestly, staring down at the keys herself. "Your father began to teach me when we were first married, but I never got to be as advanced as he was. This is the first time I've even touched a piano since…." The Queen paused and began to look through the sheets of music once more.

That explained why no one had used the piano in years and why it had collected so much dust. Serena guessed that her mother viewed it almost like a sacred object that no one could touch now that her husband was dead, not even to clean it.

"I—I thought I would try and see if I still remembered how," the beautiful woman finished.

"I would love to hear you play," Serena said, putting her arms around her mother's waist. "I'm sure you're amazing."

Serenity chuckled. "Thank you, love." She gave her daughter a kiss on the top of her head. Finally, she found a piece she recognized and began to hit each key. Serena watched with awe as she did so. In her opinion, her mother was quite good for a beginner. She herself couldn't have done better.

When the music was finished, Serena clapped her hands in high praise for her mother's job. The Queen thanked her daughter, but Serena could tell that her mother was not too happy with her own accomplishment.

"I missed at least five notes along the way," she commented. "Julius would not have missed one had he been playing. If only you could have heard him, then you would know a real musician."

+*+*+

Instead of picking a fight with Malachite, Michael had spent the remainder of the month coming up with ways to get him away from Zoicite. For a while, the Prince had considered an arrest be a nice way to separate them. After all, being the Prince of Earth, whatever crime Michael accused anyone of committing was basically one set in stone. There would be no second-guessing the supposed criminal and jail time was certain. However, Michael soon disregarded the idea, thinking that he would never be able to come up with a crime scene, except perhaps stealing or smuggling. Then again, Darien would probably be able to see right through it, and he, obviously, had much more credibility than Michael could ever have.

Murdering the general was most definitely out of the question, as it was too risky and far too traceable. Michael certainly could not carry out anything so elaborate even with a hired henchman, and again, Darien would be able to see who did it. His brain was just too quick.

There was just no easy way to fix the problem. Michael sighed as he lay on his bed, attempting to rack his brain for anything else worthy of doing. Something that Darien would never be able to trace to him.

He sat up and looked at the darkness around his room. He could not sleep and needed some light. Reaching his nightstand, he pulled out a match from the drawer and lit a fresh candle. That was better. Now, he could think.

What was one thing that would keep Malachite away from Zoicite for good? It seemed like such a simple question at first, and to anyone else, it might very well have been, but to Michael, it was nothing but a biting flea.

He walked back to his bed again and placed his face in his hands. Staring at the wooden floor below him, he asked himself, what would it take for me to get my mind off a woman? Then, he realized, that he should have asked himself this question a long time ago. The answer most likely would have come much faster and he would not have had to think so hard for so long.

Then, like a bolt of lightning, the answer came: another woman. The thought was so simple that Michael almost jumped for joy, but stopped himself at the thought of one of the servants hearing him and rushing to see what was the matter. If only he could get Malachite to lay eyes on another woman, then Zoicite would be his. He didn't care if it was forbidden to get involved with a guardian. He was a prince, allowed to break the rules.

But, what woman could he possibly fall for? And more importantly, what woman would be so desperate as to potentially fall in love with him (apart from Zoicite, of course)? Michael knew no women, apart from those he had met at balls and parties. Where any of those women worthy? Michael tried desperately to remember any of them. After a while, none of them seemed to be good choices. Except….

One particular woman, he remembered, stood out from the others. She was confident, flirty, and exceedingly stubborn. She had been the one to try her hardest for Darien's affections, but he had turned her down (possibly with more assertiveness than he had the other women). Could she be the right match for Malachite? Then again, Michael could care less if she was or not. He just needed a woman to turn Malachite's attention from Zoicite.

Deciding that it could work, he walked over to his nightstand, pulled out a piece of parchment and quill and ink, and began his letter to the woman.

Dear Princess Beryl,

Author's Note: Hey guys! How was it? I think it went pretty well. As you can see, more tension and plot is building. I hope you review and stay tuned for the next chapter.

Merci mes amis,

Amélie