Vol. 19

Chapter 74

It was lunchtime in the Alder Manor, Selina wore a tight fitting formal dress of a pale pink. The rest of the ladies participating the seminar wore the same thing. They all sat in the dining hall with polished white plates and bowls with a handful of cutlery on each side of the plates. Selina was having a hard time breathing. This is so tight! She tried to accommodate herself in the dress the best way she can. She then looked around and observed her follow students' faces. They seem to be having no problems with their dresses. I admire them. Selina said to herself. The butler, Edwin, began serving the soup. Selina got excited. "Alright!" She cheered.

"Everyone, let us enjoy our meal." Said Countess Grace.

"I'm starving!" Selina started to scoop up her soup without a care in the world. Everyone watched her eat and listened to the horrible slurping she's creating. Edwin walked quickly to Selina's side and whispered to her.

"Excuse me, you mustn't slurp." He said sincerely. Selina stopped instantaneously.

"Right!" She said embarrassingly. She started to eat her soup again. The slurping was even louder.

"No, try again." Said Edwin. Selina did what she been told. No luck. The Countess Grace used her handkerchief to cover her emotions. "Try again without making any noise!" Said Edwin in a strict tone. Selina stopped entirely.

"I can't believe a meal could be such torture." Selina flipped. In the next class, they were all sent to the lounging area.

"Manners in language are very important for a royal. The most important area is the proper usage of honorifics; you must be able to use refined speech correctly." Explained Countess Grace. Selina was sitting on the chairs yawning away.

This is no different from being in college. Selina thought to herself.

"Very well, you are next." Called out Grace. Selina stood straight like a board.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"How do you offer coffee to a guest?" Asked Grace putting Selina on the spot.

"Uh...that is...err...Wo...would you may perhaps like to please drink a cup of honorable coffee?" When Selina finished her sentence, her peers around her laughed.

"You do not have to apply an honorific to coffee. 'Would you like a cup of coffee?' should be sufficient." Explained Grace.

"Whatever you say." Said Selina. Later on in the evening, the main hall was set up for formal dancing. Everyone wore a white gown and danced with a male partner to a waltz piece.

"Dance gracefully. Un, deux, trois. Follow the music. This is the final lesson in the Royalty Seminar. Those of you I tap on the shoulder have graduated." Announced Grace. Selina in heels and dancing the waltz with a partner is asking for trouble. Selina did a wrong footing and outcome was extreme.

"MY FOOT!" Said the partner.

"Oops! Sorry!" Replied Selina. She took another step and tripped over her own gown. "God damn it! This is hell..." Selina complained while sitting on the floor.

"Just like always, aren't you?" Said a familiar voice. Selina looked up to Marcella and the rest of the group dancing along with their partners.

"Everybody is here?!" Selina was surprised to see them all here.

"You can't enjoy this by yourself." Said Hermione.

"Exactly." Agreed Jovana.

"We're here to keep you company." Added Danica. Hermione danced beautifully and the same with Danica. But when it comes to Marcella...

"Well, every person has something they can do well." Marcella admits as she almost flipped her partner over her shoulder. Jovana also has some issues.

"Every person has something they can't do well." Jovana tried her best on the dancing but failed by almost amputating her partner's foot. "Dancing is the only thing I don't have the knack for."

"And I don't have a knack for anything. I guess I can't be a noble." Selina confessed. Countess Grace walked and weave between the students and began to choose her graduates.

"You have graduated. And you." Once she chose her A listers, she stopped the music. "I'd like all those who graduated to come to the next room." Everyone applaud. The group moved to the next room. Hermione and Danica waved and winked to the three failures.

"See you around." Hermione shouted out as she left the room.

"We blew it." Selina admits in behalf of Marcella and Jovana. In the other room, it was filled with white roman like sculptures and all female models.

"It looks so eerie." Said Hermione as she walks around the room with Danica.

"They don't look like fakes." Added Danica.

"You are correct." Countess Grace stepped into the center of the room. "These statues are all our graduates."

"What?" Hermione got worried. In front of them Countess Grace transformed into a Grecian ivory gown with a shawl designed like the wings of a Tortoiseshell butterfly. Her hair was in a updo with full of ornaments and jewels.

"An enemy!" Said Danica.

"I am one of the Graces sisters, Aglaea, Goddess of Charm. It is a pleasure to meet you all." Aglaea held up her shawl and open them up like wings and spread dust like substance all over the room. All the ladies in the room turned into statues immediately including Hermione and Danica. In the main hall where the three await for the Countess, they all sense something wrong.

"Hey, did you hear something?" Asked Selina.

"Something must have happened to Hermione and the others." Said Marcella.

"Let's go!" Added Jovana. As the three ran to the room, before they got to the door, Aglaea appeared in front of them. "Of course an enemy is behind all this!" The butlers in the room saw the woman and panicked. They started to run away. "It's a ghost! Run!" They screamed. From behind, Aglaea open her shawl to spread the dust to the running men and and turn them into stone. The three were amazed.

"I've got a bad feeling about this." Said Selina.

"It was regrettable that you failed the Royalty Seminar. I believe that one of you is Guardian Moon. Would you identify yourself?" Aglaea asked with class. Selina was confused with the approach.

"What makes you say that?" Asked Selina.

"How could the ungraceful, silly, bungling, and celebrity-struck Guardian Moon pass the Royalty Seminar?" Aglaea explained.

"I see." Understood Jovana.

"You got that right." Agreed Marcella.

"HEY, we have no time to be impressed!" Flipped Selina knowing it's all about her.

"Would you mind becoming statues?" Aglaea spread open the shawl and spread the dust in a projectile approach. One aimed at Marcella, which she dodged by hiding behind a column. The other aimed at Selina, she dodged by running away. From above, a black wolf and a white wolf leaped down to the enemy.

"Watch out!" Growled Helios. Luna and Helios attacked Aglaea face first.

"DAMN WOLVES! My view is obstructed!" She complained as she fights off the wolves' jaws.

"Transform, now!" Growled Luna. The three jumped out of the window for an escape.

"Upon the Rule of Diana, Lend Me Your Light!"

"Upon the Rule of Mars, Lend Me Your Rage!"

"Upon the Rule of Jupiter, Lend Me Your Thunder!"

"Out of my way!" Aglaea finally got herself freed from the wolves and looked for the Guardians. "Now where could those three be?"

"I won't forgive you for flunking Guardian Moon!" Aglaea turned to looked up to the balcony and found the three taking their stand. "For rights and justice, warrior of the Hunt, Guardian Moon!"

"Warrior of War, Guardian Mars!"

"Warrior of Thunder, Guardian Jupiter!"

"In the name of Mont Olympus...We will defeat you!" Selina ended it off.

"One of the three was Guardian Moon after all. Please accept my humble attack!" Aglaea used her projectile dust aimed at the balcony. The three dodged it by leaping off the balcony and glided through the air.

"I'll knock them off! Iron Fist, Collide!" Marcella punched in her attack directly to Aglaea's attack but the dust turned the attack into rock. Aglaea attacked again.

"Tin Strike, Crash!" Jovana aimed her electric shock at the dust but it too turned to jagged stone. "The Tin Strike and Iron Fist are useless?" Jovana was out of ideas.

"Then my Silver Moon disk wouldn't work either!" Selina panicked. Aglaea walked slowly to them.

"I will have a very nice marble statue indeed." She said.

"N...no! I like art but I don't want to become one!" Selina complained. Out of nowhere a black leaf slash through the air and struck the ground. "This leaf..."

"Is that..." Marcella couldn't believe it.

"Well done, Aglaea." Appeared beside her, Commander Edward in his dark attire.

"Lord Edward, a pleasure." Greeted Aglaea.

"Guardian Earth in black, did you come to give us another speech?" Said Selina not looking to happy.

"Guardian Earth..." Marcella grew nervous.

"Guardian Moon, give me the Moonstone. In exchange, I'll spare your life." Said Edward.

"Excuse me, that would contradict Lord Midas' orders." Aglaea interrupted.

"Well, Guardian Moon?" He asked again not taking note of what Aglaea said.

"Mr. Edward, you can be a real pain." Selina tried to hide her emotions.

"I know what you're trying to do, Guardian Moon. But he's not the Guardian Earth we used to know." Jovana reminded Selina of him before.

"Now!" He demanded.

"Lord Edward." Appeared Lord Midas. "Stop interfering with my plan."

"What are you talking about?"

"This is my operation. You are not part of this."

"The objective is to gain the Moonstone. That is all."

"What?"

"What should I..." Aglaea was confused.

"Finish off Guardian Moon." Ordered Midas.

"Wait, the Moonstone first." Ordered Edward.

"No, Guardian Moon!"

"The Moonstone!"

"Guardian Moon!"

"The Moonstone!"

"You're wrong!" At this point, Aglaea was getting a headache.

"Whose order should I follow?" She asked herself. Selina walked up beside Aglaea.

"Quite tiring, isn't it? Would you like a cup of honorable coffee to relax?" Selina asked.

"Did I not tell you that coffee does not need an honorific?" Aglaea replied.

"Oh really?" Selina took out her Silver Moon wand and prepared it. "Moonstone, Heal!" Aglaea turned back into Countess Grace and fainted to the floor. "Will you look at that, it was Countess Grace after all. I'll get Guardian Earth back the way he was! Moonstone..." Before she can finish her incantation, Lord Midas disappeared and Edward moved furthered away.

"You will keep the Moonstone until we meet again. Farewell." He too vanished.

"Guardian Earth." Selina said under her breath. All the statues in the room turned back to their original selves. Hermione was back.

"Where is she?!" Hermione looked around the room.

"What happened?" Danica was clueless. By the window stood the silhouette of Guardian Moon. Selina stare out to the Moon and wondered.

"Guardian Earth..."

The next day, "SHIT!" Selina ran down the apartment building and out the door.

"There you go again." Luna sighed.

"I've made up my mind." Said Selina

"About what?"

"I've decided that I'll just have to be a Deity in my own way. See ya!" Selina left Luna in the dust.

"Does she know what she's talking about?" Luna could only pray, as Selina ran down the street with a slice of toast in her mouth.