Disclaimer: As always, These characters aren't mine, I'm just borrowing them! Secret Garden: Chapter 8 *Back on the Moon* A tall, stately woman with silver hair walked down a shimmering hallway, her beautiful, doll-like face a mask of worry. "Where is she? She is not in her room, or the garden, or at the stables. I checked the kitchen, the dining hall, even the servant's quarters!" The woman paused on one of the balconies that were part of the beautiful architecture of the hall and her eyes strayed to the blue and green orb that hung above her. "She would not have gone to Earth, would she? Surely she would not take a chance like, she is more responsible than that!" "Queen Serenity!" the woman turned, the soft light of the sun and earth glinting off the golden crescent moon in the middle of her forehead. The white gown she wore clung to her every curve like a lover, its hold firm on her generous curves. Her hair; silvery gray strands that fell to well past her knees and almost trailed on the ground, was done up in two buns towards the back and on the sides of her head. It lent her the look of a rabbit, but a regal, kind rabbit, which was worried for it's young. Serenity's blue eyes focused on the girl running towards her. She had black hair that fell past her waist and purple-black eyes that burned with an inner fire. She stopped off to the side, her hands folded across her chest, holding her elbows as if in protection of herself. She wore red, one-inch heels, and a red sailor fuku. The body suit was white and of a material that was molded to the your senshi's body. The purple bow in front rested over her developing chest, a red button holding it in place. A red bow was tied at the back of a rather short, red, skirt. On her head she wore a tiara of the purest gold and in the center was the red stone, the color of Mars, and defining this girl as the Princess of the fire planet. One of the Princess' guards. One who had failed in her given task. Queen Serenity nodded to the young girl who was about her daughter's age, "Anything, Princess Mars? Have you found her?" Mars bowed to the Queen and then shook her head, "Nothing, My Queen. We have looked everywhere. The Gardens have been almost torn apart in our search, her room has lent us no clues and no one can remember seeing her since the Queen of Venus went to talk to her. Your daughter has not been found and we despair as to where she could be." Her cold tone could have been taken for uncaring, but she spoke as a warrior who was reporting to a commanding officer in the time of stress. The Queen's sharp eyes took in the worry in the young senshi's purple orbs and the determination in her stance. Queen Serenity closed her eyes, "Thank you, Princess Mars. Keep looking if you would." Princess Mars nodded, even though the Queen's eyes remained shut, "I will, your majesty." "Please ask my guard and counsel to convene in my throne room as soon as possible, Princess Mars. I will join them shortly." "Yes, your majesty. We will find her, you have my word." The clicking of heels on the polished floors was the Queen's only indication that she was once again alone. She sighed, opening her eyes to look back to the blue green orb and then quickly left the balcony and headed for her daughter's chambers. She passed down more polished corridors, her eyes never straying from the path she'd set herself. The palace done in a glittering silver rock that was from the quarries on the moon, one that reflected nearly all light and in turn absorbed very little. It was a material that could absorb energy or reflect it as needed and for centuries it had kept the royal family safe. The Queen knew every hall in the palace intimately; every cranny, and she did her best to keep her mind focused on the present situation instead of being drawn down into the well of memories that these halls held for her. She passed artworks from all the planets, each showing a scene of peace, of something that had been done to make the Silver Millennium prosper. Ever picture, every portrayal, had come with a price, she knew, but the ones that lined the walls were depicting the rewards after the struggle. They held the regular colors of the moon and the other kingdoms. None of the portraits or tapestries depicted the Earth. Not one. Queen Serenity felt herself being drawn into the peacefulness that radiated from the pictures and drew strength from it. She turned down the final corridor in the wing of the palace she was on, the west wing, and walked to the door of her daughter's chambers. She took a deep breath and entered. She looked around the room, finding it neat and tidy, the way she liked to see it. She walked to her daughter's dressing table and looked around. Nothing out of the ordinary, though she didn't see the locket she had given her daughter on her last birthday; the one Queen Serenity's husband had given her on their wedding day. She quickly squashed that thought and walked to the closet. She quickly went through the dresses and she absently noted that more than half of them probably didn't fit her daughter's growing body. She made a mental note, even among the furious search for her daughter, to have them replaced. She also noted that, of all the gowns, only the royal gown seemed to be missing, "How very strange." She murmured. The Queen then went to the balcony and looked around, kneeling on the ground when a spot of read caught her eye. She put a finger to it and then pulled back, 'Blood? But, how did she injure herself? There is nothing in her room or on the Moon that should have been able to do that.' The Queen speculated silently about what the Princess could have done to injure herself but nothing seemed plausible. Nothing on the Moon should have been able to prick her and leave only a single drop of blood on the ground. She stood up and re-entered the chambers, going to the bed and looking around, first checking under the pillow and then the covers and finally under the mattress. Nothing. Not a single clue. She sighed and sat on the bed, her hands in her lap, her posture dejected. 'If I was my daughter, where would I hide something?' she asked herself silently. Her eyes fell on the dressing table. She felt guilty about invading her daughter's privacy but she needed to know. She steeled herself against the guilt and continued her search. The Queen quickly went back to it and sat in the chair, pulling the drawers out of it from the bottom and riffling through them. She found nothing so she moved onto the next one. Finally, at the last drawer, the Queen found what she was looking for. Underneath her daughter's undergarments was a small book, the cover worn from age, the edged of the pages curling and yellowed. "Why would she be interested in this?" she murmured, opening the cover. Faded images reached out to the Queen, images of animals she'd never seen, colors never in display on the moon and faint drawings of people she remembered from the last time she'd been there. She closed her eyes briefly but opened them before turning the next page as an image of her husband flittered across her closed lids. She frowned as a bump in the pages presented itself and she opened it to that page, passing over a bunch of different pictures and stories. The middle of the book opened and she gasped, her eyes widening in shock and finally softening with the implications of what she saw. "Oh, Serenity, how could you?" she murmured, rare tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. In her hands lay a pressed, blood red rose. By coincidence, or design, the pages it had been pressed between held the names, and pictures, of the earth's royal line. ******** Secret Garden: Chapter 9 Princess Serenity woke slowly; feeling gentle hands on her shoulders and turned her head slightly to the warm, calloused fingers. A slight smile curved her lips as two of the warm fingers gently slid across the sensitive skin of her neck, causing her to shiver. "Open those baby blues for me, my Angel," said a slightly husky voice. Serenity opened her eyes slowly, her lashes lifting and parting with minimum effort as her, sleepy, brilliant blue eyes were revealed to the watcher. She pulled her hands out from under her head and reached one up to trace the defined line of his jaw, "Hello, Endymion," she said softly, looking into his eyes. Her gentle fingertips traced the curve of his cheekbone as his head came down slowly. He stopped, looked into her eyes as his bangs fell into his dark blue orbs, and then planted a very gentle, achingly soft kiss on her lips. Serenity sighed as he pulled away and then stretched her arms over her head too stretch out muscles that were tense from sleeping in the same position for too long, "What time is it?" she asked, yawning and quickly reaching one of her hands down to cover her mouth. Her cheeks were tainted a light pink by the ensuing blush. Endymion smiled and pulled away as she carefully extracted herself from his covers, "Mid afternoon. I have had the chef put together a late lunch for us. Are you hungry?" She nodded, sliding off the bed and arranging her skirts, the blush still staining her cheeks, "Yes, very. It has been a while since I had anything to eat." Her stomach growled loudly, suddenly, backing up her claim. Her cheeks flushed redder as Endymion looked at her surprised. She couldn't meet his eyes as she accepted the arm he offered, absently noting that he still wore his armor, and they exited his chambers. Serenity froze almost in mid step as they entered the hallway. Everything was made of stone, black stone; that absorbed most of the sunlight but shone dully. She tried not to gawk as Endymion led her through the halls but the artwork, the way the palace was constructed and the greenery that filled the nooks and crannies, so different from her home on the Moon, fascinated her and she finally stopped him to explain the stonework. "Endy, this place is amazing! I have never seen stone of this color! What is it? And those, what are they? What is this green stuff?" Endymion chuckled as she let go of his arm to examine the stonework, the lichen and the moss that grew in this area of the castle. There were near the servant's quarters and though they were ordered to keep the blocks moss and lichen free, with a palace as big as it was, some was bound to be missed or just not attended to in time, "Slow down, Angel. Give me a chance to answer your questions!" he told her with a smile, walking to towards her as she stood on her tiptoes to try and looks at something out of her eyesight. A couple of gruesome looking gargoyles looked down on the two as they stood in the hall, their bodies covered in lichen and moss, out of reach of the servants. She blushed, "Sorry, I have just never seen stone like this before, or that green stuff." She reached up a hand to gently run her fingertips across the stone, feeling the rough edges and the smooth places. Her fingers rested gently on the moss, trying to place the texture. He smiled and came to stand by her side, a hand on her waist to steady her as she nearly lost her balance. "Well, the stone comes from the quarry that is about 20 or so miles from here. It is shipped in using boats or it is carried over land in huge carts. I -think- it is just regular stone but I do not know for certain. The green stuff is just like in the garden; it is moss, though that other, darker shade of green-blue; is lichen. It only grows like moss, in areas of extreme moisture. Though usually in underground grottos." Serenity smiled a brilliant smile, "Can you tell me about the tapestries and the paintings? About the people they portray and the places they show? Can you tell me about the vases and their symbols? How about those?" she pointed to a gargoyle that was above them, it's gruesome visage staring down at them as if it was about to swoop down and gobble them up. Endymion smiled and caught her around the waist in a sudden display of affection, pulling her in close, but not tight enough for her to be pressed uncomfortably against his armor, "Serenity, Angel, you are more curious than a kitten but I love you for it. You can find something amazing even in an ordinary piece of stone. You shall never cease to amaze me, my love." He lowered his head and gently placed a chaste, soft kiss on her lips. "Come," he said at last, pulling away from her sweet, feather soft lips, "We shall eat and then I will take you on a tour of my castle and tell you everything you wish to know." ******** Author's notes: Thank you to everyone who's read my fic and encouraged me to continue it! I know these parts probably wasn't what everyone was expecting, (shorter than I thought they'd be too) but the next couple should include Serenity's mother confronting her daughter at some point. More to come! :) Callista has been a dear and posted my fic at her site, go check it out! it's a great site! Still in the begining stages, it looks like, but send her your fics and she'll be a sweetheart and post them :) Check out her site, it's: http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Highrise/3867/ Thank again to everyone who wrote me! I appreciate it! As always, feedback is wonderful! Jade_Max@innocent.com Write me, please, I'll be sure to respond! -Jade_Max