Zoisite nervously scratched the back of his head. "Like how her tutor explained to me that she doesn't need his teaching?"
"What?" Kunzite asked, confused.
"Apparently, she has aced everything he could think of to test her on."
"She knows that much from the school for training up women already?"
"No," Zoisite said, shaking his head adamantly. "Actually, she asked him to quiz her on the material for our Scholar's exam. He's unhappy with how much better she did than many of the top scholars he gets yearly."
Nephrite chuckled. "No wonder she still wanted to go through the testing."
"It's only one test," Kunzite pointed out.
Endymion sighed, "I struggled with that test, you know that."
The generals grew quiet and looked around, trying to think of somethinghelpful to say. Finally, Kunzite said, "What are your orders, Your Highness?"
That got Endymion to laugh. "You must really feel bad if you're being polite and using my title. I told you I created this mess."
"It's our job to keep you out of trouble," Nephrite replied. "We did fail you."
Endymion then said, "I never expected to say this, but Jadeite's right. Start pointing out her good qualities. I have a strong list of her bad ones."
And he did. The list wasn't long at all, but it was very damning in his eyes. One, his father wanted him to marry her; two, he hadn't ever met her before the day the contract was signed; and three, and worst of all, marrying her wasn't his choice, but one forced on him.
Minako laughed and whispered in Serenity's ear, "How did you pass the Terra portion of the exam so well?!"
Rolling her eyes, Serenity said, "I just assumed that the king's actions stemmed from arrogance and ignorance and tailored my responses to that. The section on the Nine Years' War was simple. The King was having trouble getting his wife or his mistress pregnant. Therefore, I figure his 'justification' for war was to restore order."
"How does that make any sense?" Minako asked, laughing.
"He couldn't prove his manliness with his 'male member', so he had to go out and make a conquest to make himself feel powerful. And since he can't use that as an excuse, he picked one that really means nothing. He can't say that they were unruly rebels or evil sympathizers. 'Restore order' means nothing and can't be disproven. And most importantly I would like to point out that I got top marks on my answer."
"I should scold you for talking so freely in the palace?" Minako said in reply. She knew she couldn't argue with Serenity when she got the answer right. Not that Serenity would listen if she were wrong anyway.
"No, because Rei is amazing, and she has already warded the room for sound. I can speak freely in here."
"That's a dangerous habit to start. You'll slip, Serenity. And if you do, it could mean your life."
Serenity looked chastened. "You're right. You should call me Serena then."
"And you should call me Mina! This is such a dangerous game!" Minako teared up. "I watched your mother die. I can't do that again. Serena, you have to live."
"I will, Mina. I promise. Really. That's why I am marrying Endymion."
Minako frowned. "I know. I am sorry you're forced to marry him."
"I promise I will make the best of it all. At least he's incredibly attractive."