| Title: The Gift of a Rose Author: Jenn (KitakiAino@aol.com, http://www.oocities.org/unique_and_original/) Rating: PG for mild violence b/c Endymion kicks butt ^_^ Disclaimer: Sailor Moon is not mine, Skittles are not mine, and America doesn't own the Moon but just stuck a crummy flag up there to show off. "The Gift of a Rose" (OR: Endymion Kicks Butt) The wind whipped through Mamoru's jet-black hair as he sat, dejectedly, on a park bench. He had spent the entire night, wasting away timeless hours that may have been committed to studying, thinking about a young schoolgirl. Her radiance was overwhelming to the point that Mamoru found himself green with envy. He wished he was happy as Usagi was, wished he had the vivaciousness that enveloped her. The man sighed, as he had done many times the night before, Usagi was out of his league. She had a thirst for life that was parallel to no one. Mamoru hated the life he was born into and, more recently than before, had continued to look for a way to escape from its daily rejections. This was the main reason he had decided to become Tuxedo Mask, the infamous slayer of evildoers. He didn't feel the need to help his fellow man; he was simply too weak to kill himself. Putting himself in harm's way seemed a much more honorable way to die. As if on cue, the bouncing bubble of life dubbed Tsukino Usagi strolled up the pathway. She caught his gaze. "Hello, Satan," she said breathlessly, strolling past him. "Ohayo, Odango." "Kami-sama, is that the only insult you can think of, Satan?" she turned back to him, taking the young man by surprise. "'Ohayo, Odango'," she repeated in a dejected tone. "Surely, Mamoru-san, you can think of something new? You've made fun of my hair for a year now, don't you think it's getting old?" With that, she turned on her heel and walked away, leaving the man stunned. The day went by slowly after that. As night approached, Mamoru began to look at the dusk with an eminent feeling of foreboding. The night was always the worst time for him. He stayed up studying or keeping his mind busy with other things, trying to escape the horrid nightmares that filled his dream world. He didn't have the normal nightmares of monsters chasing and growling, but of memories best left undiscovered. Every night it seemed the man was forced to relived the horrific deaths of his parents, his lonely days at the orphanage, and the unseemly retch he had become. To make matters worse, Mamoru had begun to have dreams of experiences he knew he had never had. One time, he was standing in a wood, aiming an arrow at the heart of tree. Another time, he was walking through gardens in the pursuit of some elusive person. In almost all of these dreams, Mamoru felt some kind of unearthly connection to the person in them. Intuition told him the person was himself. In the dreams, he was almost always looking for the same woman, too. He felt a deep longing for whoever it was and knew that he had to find her. The alarm always rang the moment he saw her outline and the man had never actually seen the face of the maiden he searched for. It was that night, as he collapsed upon the bed, that Mamoru saw her. He was in a thick clearing within the woods and a mist of guilt filled the place like a deadly gas. The man could feel it inside his own heart. He had come to this section of the woods intent on revealing something of grave interest, but he couldn't tell what it was. He sat on the stump of a tree and waited for the woman he always sought after, a pit in his stomach becoming larger as the minutes passed by. As he sat, Mamoru began to remember the past times he had been with this woman. All the happiness they had shared and the sorrow. Intuition told him his love for this woman was forbidden. Wait. He loved this woman? Mamoru reflected upon his feelings for the fair maiden; her beautiful figure, her loving care for everything living, her undying love for him. He bit his lip. "Am I in love with this woman? Or is my past life?" he asked softly before a rustle outside the clearing caught his attention. As if she were an apparition, a young woman dressed in ivory silks came from the woods in a black cape. With an elegant movement of her hands, she pulled the hood from her face and Mamoru saw a pair of sky blue eyes staring at him intently. His voice caught in his throat as he stared at the beautiful figure before him. Her shining silver hair cascaded down her back from two long pigtails tied in small buns that crowned her head. A small crescent was glowing from her forehead. Serenity. She walked briskly toward him and closed the gap between them. She looked at him expectantly but Mamoru found there was nothing he could say to her. Her soft lips let out a sigh and she smiled. She squatted and wrapped her gentle hands around his own. His blue eyes stared at her, dumbfounded, as she kissed his callous knuckles. She turned her sky blue eyes on him once again and the prince found the only thing he could do was drown in their blue depths as he watched apprehension and fear swirl through them. Raising a hand, Mamoru caressed the face of the princess before him, leaned down, and placed a soft kiss against her forehead. He scooped her into his arms, embracing her tightly. He was afraid to let her go and held her close for a long time. Her arms wrapped around his back and Mamoru whispered softly into her ear, grittily, "They're coming." "I know," she said sadly. The ancient prince held her closer and she snuggled into his shoulder. "Endymion, what will you do?" He sighed before replying, "I will fight those who will try to kill you." The woman tried to withhold a small cry, but it escaped her lips. "You will give away the loyalty of your kingdom to protect me?" "What good is a kingdom if I don't have someone to rule with me?" Mamoru was suddenly flashed forward to a bloody battle. His arm burned from a slice someone dealt him, but he ignored it. His entire being was focused on reaching his princess. She was huddled on the ground, a taller, more malicious woman standing above her, ready to strike the girl with a sword. Just as the bloodied metal came crashing down upon Serenity, Endymion launched himself between the two women. He screamed as pain seared his body. He looked down to see a river of blood flowing from a deep gash across his chest. A gush of liquid flowed out of his mouth and began to choke him when he could not release it quickly. His head began to feel light as Endymion fell backwards, feeling the soft arms of his princess instead of the hard marble ground. She was crying his name and he felt her icy tears falling on his face. Her lips gently touched his as she held firmly to one of his hands. Vaguely, he felt her reaching for something, then pulling it closer to her. It wasn't until cool liquid was pouring on his body and his princess lay perfectly still beside him that he realized she had killed herself in order to die with honor. He gasped and a single tear fell from his eye as pain seared through his body. Suddenly, Endymion felt a faint light envelope him. Pain pounded in his head, keeping time with his bedside clock. "Three in the morning," he chimed. As the haze of sleep wore off of him, he sat up in bed, staring at his hands. The memories of his past life flooded through him. He was Endymion, Prince of the Earth, and Mamoru, above-average high school student. He was cold and ruthless, but innocent and fearful. He was proud and regal, self-pitying and shameful. How could he be two people? Endymion/Mamoru sighed. His confusion didn't matter to him. Endymion's undying urge to be with his princess began to demand his undivided attention. The overwhelming thought of Usagi filled his mind. Knowing what he did, the man longed to be near the incarnation of his princess. Mamoru scoffed and ignorantly proclaimed that Usagi was too stupid and clumsy to be Endymion's princess. "You're scared," a voice in his head stated bluntly. Mamoru blinked. He hated when his subconscious was correct. Biting his lip, he sighed. "Go after her." "She hates me," Mamoru said softly to the darkness of his apartment. "She loves Endymion and hates Mamoru," it corrected. "So, she loves half of me. That doesn't help." "No," the voice spoke harshly, "she loves Endymion, you are Endymion. She hates Mamoru, you are Mamoru." "You can't love and hate a person." "And you can't be two people," it countered. "You make no sense. It's not possible for someone to love and hate the same person." "Maybe she doesn't hate you, Mamoru." There was a small pause. "Princess Serenity loved Prince Endymion, Endymion loved Serenity. Mamoru loves Usagi ..." and the voice faded into the morning. "I... love Usagi?" he repeated softly. Mamoru began to remember times he couldn't pry his eyes off of the blonde goddess, times he loved her happiness and jingling laughter, moments he wished he held her favor as much as an ice cream cone. A combination of a smirk and a blush erupted onto the man's cheeks, sometimes he wanted to be that cone. To be able to touch her pink lips. Somehow he know they would be soft, so very soft. The voice cleared its throat. "I can help you." For the second time, Mamoru blinked. "How?" "It's simple, you just--" "Who are you, anyway?" Mamoru interjected. As if he wasn't paranoid enough already, now he was hearing voices that were trying to help him with his love life. Schizophrenia was not a good disease to have. "You haven't figured it out yet?" "No...." "Kami-sama, I'm dumb." Blink. "You're me?" "No, I'm the purple elephant in a thong that'll pop out of a cake during your Bachelor Party." Silence. "Baka. I'm Endymion," the voice said irritated. "I'm you, in a way." Mamoru pondered this, found that doing so turned his thoughts into circles and made him dizzy, and decided to accept without argument. The voice seemed pleased. "So, what do I do?" It was a cool, autumn day when Usagi Tsukino skipped out of her driveway. Her long blonde pigtails trailed behind her, bouncing on her gleeful tailwind. The girl's blue eyes sparkled with the sudden happiness that only occurred during the crisp mornings of October. Her pink lips were parted in a wonderfully glowing smile that couldn't be disrupted by anything. The day was beautiful, and Usagi hummed a simple melody as she strode through the park. Usagi was so infatuated with her sudden burst of happiness, she didn't notice that a tall, black-haired man stood in her pathway through the park. As usual, Usagi plowed right into him and fell back onto her rump, hitting the pavement hard with a small whimper. "Ohayo, Odango," a tired voice called before her. Usagi looked up to find she had rammed into her archenemy: Chiba Mamoru. At first, the girl readied to match his joke on her hairstyle with a quip of her own, but then she noticed his worn face with deep, purple circles beneath his stunningly blue eyes, a messed shock of black hair, and the thickly creased mouth. She had never seen him like this. Mamoru was normally fastidious and she never thought she would ever see him in such disarray. Usagi was so shocked she simply sat there, her legs sprawled unnaturally about her and supported by her hands, with a horrified look upon her face. Mamoru wasn't at all amused at her expression. He grunted, standing, then offered her a hand. Helping the girl to stand, Mamoru picked up the two books he had had nestled beneath his arm. "Are you okay?" he asked wearily. "I think I should ask you that," Usagi retorted. Mamoru smirked slightly before responding, "I haven't been getting as much sleep as I need." "Oh." Was the lack of sleep making him a better person? Usagi had always found that with less sleep people became crankier. Mamoru seemed to be the complete opposite. Normally he was cruel to her, it was a nice change in being friendly to each other. Usagi didn't think she'd ever see the day she felt no obligation to volley insults with her elder. The truth was, aside from his personality, Mamoru was a very handsome man. Even Usagi had to admit it. He was tall, dashing, and had a pair of gorgeous blue eyes and thick black hair that Usagi found herself fantasizing about running her fingers through. Usagi blushed as he turned a weary smile to her. "He's never smiled like that at me," Usagi thought, feeling her heart pound harder in her chest. Her blush deepened as she stared at her feet. "Where are you going?" Mamoru asked, breaking the silence between them. Usagi shrugged. "Nowhere, I guess." Mamoru chuckled and nodded. "Well, enjoy your day, Odango!" he called as he turned to leave. Usagi watched his back as he turned the corner. "Maybe he's sick or something?" she mumbled. With immense confusion swirling in her eyes, she turned and headed toward the arcade. A soda and some ice cream would be a very good treat. Mamoru rounded the corner with a silly smile on his face. He wished he could have photographed the look on Usagi's face. It was perfect! The innocent confusion mixed with concern. He felt his heart leap with happiness. Her lips had been tempting, too. The way they were parted just so, leaving him to revel in their smoothness. Next time, certainly, he would taste those lips. "Woah, Lover Boy," came a voice beside him. Mamoru almost fainted at the sight. An apparition of Prince Endymion perched on the wall, looking down at Mamoru. His legs were crossed at the ankles and his hand was holding up his chin as the other supported his elbow. He was dressed in his most informal attire: a white shirt, complete with ruffles at the end of the sleeves and around the collar, and dark black dress pants. There was a tree branch sticking straight through his side, but Endymion didn't seem to notice or care. Mamoru stared at Endymion, stunned into a silent stupor. Endymion rolled his eyes and said calmly, "People are staring." Mamoru snapped his jaw shut and looked around at the people watching him with increased interest. It wasn't everyday you saw someone become so fascinated with a tree limb. Mamoru hurried on through the park until he found a quiet place where no one was. Then he rounded and came face-to-face with his past self. "What're you doing here?" he asked, barely above a whisper. Endymion chuckled. "Mamoru-kun," he began in a voice so eerily akin to the Mamoru's it sent shivers down his spine, "you don't seem to be doing too well with Usagi-chan. To-day was a good start, but that was just to-day. I'm here to make sure everyday is like that." Mamoru raised an eyebrow. Endymion smiled, already knowing the question before it had formulated in Mamoru's brain. He pulled back his fist and punched Mamoru, who landed in a heap on the ground. Endymion strolled to him, as he pulled his hand to his throbbing cheek. "You see, Mamoru-kun, I can be very persuasive. Every time you're mean to Usagi-chan." He slammed his fist into the palm of his other hand. His eyes alighted with the most wicked merriment Mamoru thought he had ever seen. Instantly he knew Endymion would keep his vow, would most likely enjoy enforcing it. Mamoru cringed. Endymion sat beside his reincarnated self. "Now," he said as he pulled up his knee and rested his arm on it, "we're going to devise a plan to get Usagi-chan to admit that she likes you." Mamoru looked at himself skeptically. "How do you know she likes me?" "I'm dead, I know these things. Besides, inside Usagi-chan is Sere, and Sere loves me." His voice became soft at the end and Mamoru watched as a lifetime of feelings flowed throw Endymion's ocean-blue eyes. Endymion recovered and chuckled, brushing off his digression. He turned to Mamoru, stating plainly, "She passed her last test, you know." "Wow, maybe we should alert the police," Mamoru drawled, sarcasm oozing from his lips. "You never know how serious something like that can be." Endymion rounded on him with a glare. In a span of one second the dead man's fist had embedded itself into Mamoru's cheek. He smiled sadistically. "You know, Mamoru-kun, there's one good thing about being dead. If you hit someone living, nothing shows. Look at your cheek, Mamoru. It's not even bruised." With obvious reluctance, Mamoru faced away from Endymion and peered into the small pond beside him. In his reflection he saw no change to his cheek, though it had been punched twice. And Endymion hadn't held any of his strength back, either. "Now," the apparition started once more, "let's try this again. And try not to be a jerk about it, even ghosts get sore muscles. So, here we go again. Usagi-chan passed a test to-day." Mamoru looked up at Endymion. This was going to be hard. He'd never let his emotions out, and suddenly he was supposed to think with them? He hid his feelings deep within him, sometimes he didn't even know what he was feeling. Mamoru sighed, knowing his past self didn't care. "Okay," Mamoru pondered out loud. "I'm guessing I should reward her. Any grade above a fifteen is good for her." He dodged Endymion's backhand. Mamoru simpered. If he didn't succeed with Usagi, at least he could hone his battle senses. He chuckled to himself until Endymion thwarted him with a stick. "Ouch!" he shrieked, holding the top of his head. Endymion smiled sinisterly, proud of himself. Mamoru grumbled then returned to what he had been thinking about. "Maybe I could buy her a soda? or maybe an ice cream sundae?" He looked to Endymion for assurance. The man was standing, stomping his foot. "Okay, something better than ice cream." He watched Endymion roll his eyes. Mamoru frowned, clearly frustrated, "What is it you want me to do?" Endymion smiled in a patronizing way, making Mamoru grimace. "Why don't you ask Usagi-chan?" he stated simply, as if it were the obvious answer. Which it was, but that didn't stop Mamoru from yelling at his retreating ghost, "Well, why didn't you say that in the first place?" "That's great, Usagi-chan!" four girls sang in chorus as Mamoru walked into the arcade. They were in a circle around a certain smiling blonde. Mamoru smiled, too. He stopped just before the stairs that led to the lower level of the arcade, able to see the group of girls without drawing too much attention. He chuckled, thinking it would be hard for Usagi to trip when she was standing still. With a sharp pain to his rump, Mamoru fell unceremoniously down the three steps. The group of girls stared at him wide-eyed. Mamoru looked behind him to see a sadistic smile fading into nothingness. He cursed his past self under his breath. Mamoru collected himself from the ground, wiping away the dust. Usagi sauntered up, joining the group of girls around him. "Gee, Mamoru-san, don't be a hypocrite," she teased. Mamoru would have returned the comment if she hadn't of said it so happily. Dazed, he looked at her face and noticed she was smiling, not showing him a condescending look per usual. The man returned the smile with ease, causing a great many gasps around the room. Certainly these two weren't enjoying each other's company? "So, what was all the excitement about?" Mamoru asked innocently. He felt Endymion nodding at him, and assumed he'd done the right thing in pretending to know nothing of Usagi's grade. "Usagi-chan passed her history test!" Makoto shrieked loudly, pressing the crumpled paper into his face. Mamoru chuckled and looked over the paper. "Ninety-three, Odango?" He grimaced as his kidney felt like it had been pinched. The light went out of Usagi's eyes, paining Mamoru even more. "Usagi," he amended, even more gasps issuing through the room. "This deserves a reward. You must have tried hard, and 'hard work pays off,' right?" Usagi blushed under his appreciative gaze. She suddenly found a piece of tile very interesting. "Usako," he whispered and her head shot up in a fraction of a second. Mamoru chuckled. "Would you like to celebrate?" She nodded quietly, surprise in her own baby blue orbs. "Would you like to go out to eat? See a movie? Walk through the park?" Endymion chuckled when Mamoru suddenly flushed. He was asking her out, and not in a roundabout way, either. He had just bluntly asked her out, with the excuse of the paper. What bothered him was everybody knew it, too. He was never going to live this down. Headlines flashed through Mamoru's head: "Archenemies Hit it Off in Restaurant". Inwardly, he groaned before he felt a cool wind near him and knew that Endymion was two seconds away from beating him again. Usagi smiled slightly at the man's discomfort. He was looking away from her, at a very purple piece of drapery. She reached out and touched her finger to his hand. He turned his attention to her smiling face. She felt herself drowning in his oceanic depths as she held his gaze. She took a step forward and her hand fell into the grasp of his own. "I'd love to," she spoke softly, her voice as sweetly pitched as a nightingale. Mamoru smiled. "All of them?" She shared his smile, her eyes twinkling. "The dinner, the walk, there's not enough time for the movie. I have a curfew to keep." And she winked. Mamoru almost fell forward. She was beautiful when she was flirtatious. How often had he seen her like this? In this light? Never, he amended. He had never let himself get this close to Usagi. What had changed? Was it the sudden realization that he loved her? or the sudden appearance of an annoying ghost? Mamoru cringed, thinking he wouldn't have used his shins anyway. He bent at the waist, bowing like gentleman. The girls in the arcade swooned at such a noble display and even Serena felt enchanted by this new kind of Mamoru. "At six, then?" and he kissed her silky palm. Serena nodded, bringing her other hand up to hide her blush. He smiled at her and turned, exiting the arcade in grand style. At the top of the stairs he turned a winked at her and Usagi nearly fainted. In the corner, Endymion chuckled as the girls surrounded Usagi, interrogating the girl ruthlessly. "That's horrible," Endymion said, assessing the misshapen shape of Mamoru's tie. In typical Mamoru fashion, the man was dressed thirty minutes before having to leave to pick up Usagi. At the moment, Mamoru had already gone through denial, saying he had simply asked Usagi on a celebration date and that it was nothing more than friendly, and giddiness, realizing he had finally asked the girl on a date. Now, unfortunately, he was going through the worst stage: apprehension. "I don't know how you talked me into this," Mamoru said bitterly, raking the tie from his neck. "I only suggested it," Endymion retorted, watching Mamoru redo the tie with shaking hands. He smiled a little, remembering his own fears when he first met Serenity. "What's so amusing?" Mamoru spat, pacing the length of his room. He slammed a comb through his jet-black hair for the umpteenth time. The smile fell from the prince's face when Mamoru picked up his car keys. "You're kidding, right?" "What now?" Mamoru turned angrily. This guy was getting annoying. If he was so bent on this being a wonderful evening, why didn't he go out with Usako? "Usako?" Endymion asked, the smile had returned. "She's your 'little bunny,' I presume?" "Shuddap. What's wrong with the car?" Endymion smiled. "Take the motorcycle. Something about her night has to be exciting. You're pretty dull, after all." Mamoru growled and turned to the ghost. "Why don't you go out with her? That way, I'm guaranteed to make you happy." Endymion grew serious and there was a harsh sadness in his eyes that made Mamoru want to instantly refute his statement. "You don't understand yet," the prince said softly. "I love Serenity, not Usagi. They look the same, but are not the same. First, Usagi doesn't know she's Serenity. Second, Serenity and I are dead. Only dead people love dead people, Mamoru-kun. You and Usagi, you're living. You have so many chances to do what I never got to do with Sere. You understand that, though. Somewhere deep inside, you know. I know you know, just as I know you love Usagi. Just as I know you won't admit to loving Usagi." Endymion smiled tenderly. "But you love her, Mamoru. When you can say 'Usako' without even meaning to, when the word is so natural to you that you speak it almost instinctively that means you love Usagi. That you have always loved her, and that you always will." Mamoru stood stunned at the raw honesty in Endymion's words. His past self, however, had drawn very inward and an uncomfortable silence crept between the two men. Suddenly, Mamoru understood something that had gone unsaid: while Serenity was busy being different than Usako, Mamoru was also very different from Endymion. Mamoru swallowed and opened his parched mouth. Endymion smiled slightly from his side of the room. "I'm living in the past," he stated softly, almost to no one. "I can only live in the past. Sere and I have no future. But you, Mamoru, you could have an entire lifetime with Usagi. You could have what we never shared. Maybe that's why I wanted you to realize your feelings for her. I couldn't bare to know my present self loathed the girl I died protecting. You have so much ahead of you. I think I'm kind of jealous," Endymion added quietly. Mamoru smiled, a mirror image of the one on Endymion's face. He strode across the room and stuck his hand out. "I promise," he began and Endymion stared at the solid version of himself. "I promise to protect and love my Usako with my life, just as you have for Serenity. And, if I fail to do so, you have my permission to royally kick my butt," Mamoru added jovially. Endymion smiled and nodded, taking the man's offered hand. With a shake, the prince's body disappeared in a flash of gold. Mamoru felt his arm tingle and knew the prince had joined with Mamoru's body and mind once more. An object rolled in his hand and Mamoru peered down at it to see a crystalline red rose. Mamoru smiled as he locked the door to his apartment. He strolled into the elevator before realizing he had grabbed his motorcycle's keys. With a chuckle he shook his head, but didn't stop the elevator. He had the sudden vision of Usako's arms wrapped around his stomach holding on to him as the wind whipped her hair behind her. With a smile he walked out of his complex, toward his motorcycle. In his hand, he carefully held the priceless gift. The red coloring of the rose seemed to draw every source of light to it. Mamoru grinned as he remembered Serenity's affinity for his rose gardens. The rose would be the perfect gift for Usako, representing their new and old love. |