Affair - Chapter 9
by Sereko
sereko13@yahoo.com
LOOKIE! LOOKIE! I actually got a new chapter up and running!
What a concept! Sorry to say that school and work are pounding
on me hard and making it increasingly difficult for me to
continuously update with new chapters. I'm very sorry about
that. Please bear with me! I hope you all enjoy this short,
little part. And you'll be happy to know that Chapter 10
should DEFINATLY be out next week. Chapter 10, ironically,
is the first chapter that I ever wrote for this story. I have
a weird habit of finding the inspiration for my stories in
the middle. The scene that first grabs my imagination tends
to be somewhere past the beginning of the fanfic itself.
Anyway, I hope you look forward to it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or any of the characters
associated with the story. I merely use Naoko Takeuchi's genius
as a starting point for my own storytelling.
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Chapter 9
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7:00am
The morning light came slowly to her. It did come, however,
and she was forced to get out of bed. Shoving aside the curtains that
surrounded her four-poster bed, her feet lightly slipped onto the
ground below.
A full-length mirror across the room reflected her tired form.
The white gauzy material of her nightgown flittered around her
anxiously. It, like the crisp air and the noisy birds chirping just
outside her window, knew what was coming.
Serenity sat down at her vanity, a calm expression on her face.
Reaching out, she picked up a brush and began to run it carefully
through her long hair.
Today was the day.
7:30am
Maids had finally decided to invade her room a half an hour
after she awoke. There were at least ten. Some were setting her wedding
bath with fragrant bubbles, white rose petals for purity of soul on the
holy occasion, and several softly glowing candles. Others were formally
disrobing her and massaging her skin as they uncovered it. Serenity
felt that a man should have had that privilege but held her tongue on
the matter. She knew it was only part of the ritual preparation. The
last of the attendants were laying out her dress and pressing it free
of wrinkles. They were also setting out her jewelry and shinning the
regal silver that wrapped elegantly and intricately around several
freshwater pearls.
She would look even more majestic than usual in such trappings.
Sighing, the princess allowed the women at her sides to lead her into
the large, almost pool-like, bath. It would be hours before she would
be let out of the cleansing room - after being thoroughly pampered
with lotions and exfoliating creams. Then, the time to pay a visit to
the altar of Selene would come.
Her head dipped under the steaming waters. There was much to
come. Too much for a woman who did not wish to be married.
It was going to be a long, sad day.
10:30am
"She has been in preparation for three hours already. Mars says
that Arian started his own preparation last night. The queen has been
jumping about excitedly all week, fixing flower bouquets and whatnot.
Guards have been doubled for the event. The world has gone mad, Minara.
Simply mad!" Though Mercury's voice started as an agitated whisper, it
increased in volume towards the end. Her anger at being helpless was
getting the best of her.
With a shudder and a shake of her head, she dropped
unceremoniously onto the stone bench that Venus was perched upon. She
ran an unsteady hand through her short tresses.
"There must be some way to prevent this."
The blonde next to her turned from her trance to look
emotionlessly at her friend.
"Do not start, captain. I know what you are going to say. You
will tell me that we cannot do anything. This is one of those
situations that has no solution. We must only grin and bear it."
Venus blinked, trying to keep herself from quirking an eyebrow.
Mercury shot up defiantly. Her hand and head were raised
towards the sky. "Well that is just not good enough!"
Losing interest in her companion's tirade, Venus turned back
to face the West side of the gardens. "No, it is not good enough. But
only the gods have the power to grant a happy ending," she murmured to
herself.
12:00pm
He was pacing. He had started off sitting in a chair tapping
his foot, but when his comrade glared at him because of the incessant
noise he was forced to stand up. In his mind, the other man should have
been pacing, too - even more vigorously than he.
Instead, the younger man was calmly sitting in his chair. Ok,
not calmly. Resignedly. A pile of papers lay strewn across the desk in
front of him. It served as evidence of work that had once been started.
Anyone who looked carefully, however, would have noticed that
signatures were missing and plans were unformed. A feather laid
listlessly, its end untouched by ink. The hand resting next to it was
uncurled but tense.
The man that it belonged to was known by the entirety of the
planet beneath his feet. Yet, with all that power, he was unable to
prevent the worst moment in his life. If only his identity were not so
forbidden. Being able to come forth and claim Serenity's hand as his
own would've lead to a traditional and understandable duel with the
current fiancé. He would have won the fight, of course, and he and his
new bride could flee civilization forever.
Then again, if his identity were not forbidden, none of the
Martian marriage plans would have ever come to pass. He could have
courted Serenity in public from the start and they would have lived
happily ever after as King and Queen.
Endymion shook his head piteously, raking a calloused hand
through his tresses. He sounded like a five-year-old spouting the
ideals of fairy tales.
If only five-year-olds knew of broken hearts, then no happiness
would ever shine upon the world.
And then he would have been prepared for this.
Unhappy, but prepared.
3:00pm
After spending four long, relaxing hours in the bathhouse, the
Moon Princess had been ushered to a formal dining hall. It was a room
Serenity had visited less than twice in her entire life for it was only
used for very special occasions and, even then, rarely used by anyone
other than the royal family. It was basically a ritual room.
A specific menu had been prepared by the highest-ranking chef
in the palace. A holy man stood by to sanctify and bless each dish. The
princess received small servings of light foods to keep her body
tantalizingly empty so that she might look forward to the fullness of
spirit her husband would give her. Baby greens with a light vinaigrette
started the meal, followed closely by a helping of veal and mushroom
sauce with caramelized fruit and wafers for desert.
The ceremonial acceptance of food segued slowly into a parade
to the main entrance of the palace. That was where Serenity was now,
walking slowly from the entrance to a path that led to the altar of
Selene. Her mother took sure steps before her, head held high.
The altar was an open affair, six pillars standing tall as the
six points of a Lunarian star but without a ceiling laid upon them. In
the center was elegantly carved marble in the shape of the supreme
goddess. Her robes draped in waves along her body stopping at her
pointed toes. One arm was raised to touch the sky, the other lying
along her side and reaching out to accept the offerings of her patrons.
Water ran in rivulets along the marble flooring of the temple.
It touched Serenity's newly bared feet as she knelt in front of the
dais. Her mother knelt next to her. Neither had spoken a word to each
other since the beginning of the parade. The princess was sure that
the queen was merely holding her words until she alone could hear them.
If she knew her monarch well enough, she guessed that the older woman
would say something derogatory once their prayer silence had ended.
The silence was meant to last a half an hour and it did. The
queen mother had prayed for a healthy female heir within the coming
year and her child prayed for the strength to overcome her mother. A
tear slipped down Serenity's cheek at the end for she had also wished
for the strength to live without Endymion and the mere thought was
deafening.
"You slouched during the precession. I hope never to see such
horrible posture on you again."
Had Serenity had a watch, she would have noted that it had
only taken her mother 36 seconds after the end of the silence to bore
in on her.
"Yes, majesty," she whispered.
The queen was quick to throw the girl a sideways glance. "If
this wedding has brought me anything, I am happy that it was your
subservience."
Serenity dropped her chin to her chest.
5:00pm
"There is only an hour left."
Mercury slammed her fists into the wall in front of her. "I
cannot stand this! There must be something someone can do!"
Venus sighed and solemnly looked at the grass at her feet.
5:01pm
"There is only an hour left."
"You do not have to remind me!" screamed a black-haired man. He
had ventured into the outer courtyard with his companion once he had
felt too confined sitting in his office. The courtyard also gave him
more room on its long gravel paths for him to pace, something he had
started not long after his previous conversation with the general.
"Can you just stand here?" Kunzite ventured.
Endymion threw a glare over his shoulder and answered childishly,
"I am not standing. I am pacing." Without waiting for Kunzite's retort,
he delved in, "What else can I do, my friend? Run into the middle of
the Moon Palace and snatch her up for all to see?" There was no chance
of that happening. He would have been killed on the spot. There was
nothing he could do, Endymion knew. He just had to face the facts.
His affair with Serenity was over.
It was fun while it lasted...while it lasted. The prince's head
dropped.
"What am I to do, Kunzite?"
The general was in a state of equal disappointment. It wasn't
as if no one knew of the eventual outcome of Serenity and Endymion's
fling, but there had been a hope that something would change. Why
couldn't something change?
"I do not know if anyone can answer that question, Endy, not
even me."
If he had hoped for it, Kunzite would have been disappointed
to find that Endymion had noticed his slip of the tongue. How could he
not? For the fifteen or more years that Kunzite had been enlisted in
the royal service, not once had he broken formality or protocol.
With his emotions hanging on such a thin wire, Endymion was
unable to keep hold after such a revolutionary proclamation. His face
turned to show his pain and he clasped his good friend without reserve.
"Thank you," he breathed almost reverently.
The white-haired stoic was glad to embrace his liege in return.
"You need a friend. For the first time, your own strength is not enough.
I will always be here for you during these times, Endy. Always."
6:00pm
There were hundreds upon hundreds of people filling the throne
room. All were decked out in their very best silks, everyone a varying
shade of white for the grand occasion. The bride was not to blend in,
despite her matching white gown, simply because of the brilliant aura
that emanated off her. The candles in the ballroom had a way of
reflecting off of the freshwater pearls sown into the material and
incorporated into the jewelry that made the princess glow as she walked.
Her groom was equally debonair in his trappings, as was the
queen. They had made their own ritualistic entrances earlier and were
standing at different points of the throne's dais awaiting the princess.
Arian could not have explained to anyone what he felt like as
he awaited the marriage of himself to his best friend. He definitely
sensed a chill coming from the general direction of Queen Serenity and
was more than willing to accommodate the monarch with an icy wind from
himself. The servant of Selene that stood next to the queen finally
finished his introductory speech and Arian was almost thrilled to
pieces when he heard the scuffle of feet at the other end of the room.
Two imperious guards posted on the inside of the doors took
their time in prying the large wooden structures apart. The wait only
grated on Arian's nerves more.
'Please, if there are any benevolent powers in the heavens then
stop this. So many lives will be ruined. Please, I beg of you.' The
door creaked another foot apart. 'I cannot bear to see my dear friend's
face. Oh, Sere, would that I could fix this situation for you. Would
that I could.' The guards sped up after noticing everyone's anxious
moods and slid the doors fully open.
5:50pm
She felt guilty. She felt horribly guilty. Never had she turned
her fighting skills upon ones undeserving until then. She had to, she
rationalized. It was as simple as that.
'I am sorry, my friends, but I had to.'
With a quick check to make sure that no serious injuries were
inflicted, the woman proceeded out of the doors to her right. The
hallways were abandoned. Of course they were, every human being -
guard and visitor alike - was filling and surrounding the throne
room. Several dozen other guards were patrolling the outer perimeter,
but none filled the hallways. She couldn't help but smile.
It seemed like it was only an instant later before she stood in
front of her savior. Let the goddesses rejoice that she had a key to her
freedom. A frail, unstable one...but a key none-the-less.
'Take me, my savior. Take me away from this pain.'
6:00pm
Endymion had asked to be alone when the time finally came. He
had, however, told Kunzite to remain relatively close. There was no way
he would be able to suffer the pain of the moment without a shoulder to
lean on afterwards. But for now, he wanted to send all of his thoughts
and feelings to his dearest Serenity.
['I love you.']
His telepathy was a garbled mess, but he was sure that she at
least understood his emotions, even if the distance prevented her from
hearing his words precisely. With a strangled cry the prince listened to
the bells of his home toll that the hour had come.
She was lost to him.
The Earth shuddered as he fell upon its soil like a lump of coal.
Using every fiber of his being, he sent out what would be the
last message he would ever send to her...
['Be happy.']
End Chapter 9
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Two points of note for this chapter:
1) The wedding is *supposed* to only
incorporate the Moon's rituals and
procedures as opposed to being a
mixture of Martian and Lunarian.
This is mainly because the Moon is
the ruling kingdom of the entire
system, so its procedures are to be
revered above all others.
2) I realize that whenever I flip
in between the Earth and the Moon,
times of day do not change. I do
this in previous chapters, as well.
This is for simplicity's sake. It
is easier to follow to story with-
out having to compute hour
differences and figure out why all
of a sudden Serenity goes from a
rainy night to a sunny day.
Please send ANY comments to me, Sereko.
My e-mail is: sereko13@yahoo.com
Copyright © 2002 by Sereko
(
geocities.com/sereko13)