Fic: On Razor's Edge - Interlude
Title: On Razor's Edge - Interlude
A/N: Many thanks to Charlie and Spirit for their help! The previous chapter is here.
The sharp edge of a razor is difficult to pass over; thus the wise say the path to Salvation is hard.
~ verse in the Katha-Upanishad
It was the middle of the night, the deepest, darkest part of it. No stars were to be found on the sky, no moon, and not even a single cloud. It was if the world had been covered with a midnight blanket, and nothing moved underneath it.
Except for the woman appearing on the Western balcony in swirl of twinkling golden lights, ripping the cover of darkness away for a few precious seconds. It was as if a star had fallen onto earth, and strictly speaking, it had. Looking over her shoulder, Venus made sure that she was unnoticed before slipping inside the palace.
Jadeite's room was dark, but she knew her way around here. Not as well as she did around another room, located in the East wing, but well enough not to bump into anything. “Jadeite,” she whispered, carefully moving further into the room, stumbling over some boots thrown on the floor. They'd agreed to meet tonight, to discuss---
“Jadeite is busy tonight,” a cold voice cut into the darkness, and Venus stiffened. “I'm afraid you will have to make do with me.”
So much for secrecy, Venus thought, and sighed. She waved her hand, and the tiny golden lights that had enveloped her when she teleported onto the balcony appeared once more, floating through the air until each settled on a candle, setting it aflame with an audible crack. The room around her came to light.
Kunzite was sitting at Jadeite's desk. His gloves were off, and discarded on the table in front of him. His cape too was gone, and the top button of his uniform was open. For him, that almost constituted casual wear. He looked decidedly bored, but she knew he was anything but. His temper, while so well hidden from the world, was always visible to her.
“So, what brings you to the room of one of my men in the middle of the night?”
For one second, Venus debated just kissing him until he forgot his question, but she knew him too well to assume he'd let her.
“I can't tell you,” she instead said, her voice solemn.
“If this is about him insulting Mars, then I'm afraid you won't be able to change his mind.”
In the flickering light of the candles, Venus paled. “You know?”
“He is one of my men,” Kunzite said pointedly, and there was no mistaking the anger in his voice. “Of course I know.”
“She broke her vow for him. He must marry her, even if it's only in secret.”
Kunzite shrugged. “Her vow is of no consequence to us. He will marry her in front of everyone, or not at all. She rejected his offer-”
“You talk about it as if were a diplomatic mission,” Venus interjected heatedly and took an angry step towards him.
“She rejected his offer,” Kunzite repeated, “and therefore, he is not bound to her by any means. He can do what he pleases.” After a deliberate pause, he looked up, nothing but mild interest on his features. “And it seems that what pleases him these days is you.”
Her hand struck out like lightning, but he caught it easily.
“You are no longer welcome here. If Serenity wants to see Endymion, she can come alone.”
Venus tried to snatch her hand back, but he held on, and she knew his grip would leave bruises. “Kunzite, let me go.”
“Do not make the mistake of returning, Venus,” he warned, and released her. She took a hurried step back, her heart hammering in her chest. She had not expected this, not expected this at all. Fighting to regain the necessary concentration to teleport, she dug her long fingernails into her palms, almost breaking the skin, but the pain was nothing compared to having him look at her with such contempt. She needed to leave, to return to Mars and Serenity and to get away----
All the flames shot up from the candles and raced back towards her, once more becoming the twinkling golden lights. They spiralled around the princess, faster and faster, a hurricane of gold, its light almost blinding. And then, as quickly as she had appeared, she was gone, leaving the room and Kunzite in darkness once more.
***
Up on the moon, Mars sat on a marble bench in Jupiter's garden, blankly staring at an ivory-covered wall. It was a mild night, but then most Lunar nights were. Temperature had long since been governed by magic, and the weather controllers were most apt at maintaining the same temperature day in, day out. Despite all the years she had lived here, Mars still longed for the searing heat of her home planet, the flaming fountains of the meditation arenas, and the feeling of the sun burning into her skin until it was as red as the soil she used to walk on. But Mars was used to longing, and even more used to not being allowed to have what she desired most.
When the senshi of love appeared out of thin air, little lights still twinkling, Mars barely looked up. The fact that Venus had returned alone told her all she needed to know.
“He won't marry me,” she whispered, and got up.
Venus scoffed and rubbed her wrist. “I didn't even see him. Kunzite delivered a message instead.”
Mars already knew what that message was. Jadeite had become so fixed on this idea, so determined, and a part of her wondered whether it wasn’t a ploy to get rid of her and end their complicated relationship. “I can't marry him in front of all the Alliance. It is forbidden, it would mean I could no longer serve Serenity. I gave my--- my heart to him, I broke one vow already. I cannot break another.”
“I will go back tomorrow night. I just need to catch him alone, then I can make him see reason. You can marry, but it must remain a secret. I'll make him understand,” Venus said, looking cross. Her leader, Mars knew, was not used to having someone deny her wishes or disobey her commands, but Jadeite was not someone who let strangers dictate his life. Her fate was sealed.
It did not matter if Venus would catch Jadeite alone tomorrow evening. The die was cast, the decision made. Jadeite’s absence tonight was his way of telling her that she wasn’t good enough and that their road was at an end. One broken vow had not been enough to convince him of her sincerity, and another one she could not break. It was all she had left. Looking at the floor, she wondered how to tell Venus that her help had come too late. “You won't be able to change his mind. I know it.”
“Have you seen it in the Holy Fire?” Venus asked and sat down beside her, taking her hand. If Mars had seen it in the fire, then there was nothing she could do. The fire spoke the truth.
Mars sighed. Even after all those years, Venus had no understanding of the gift of second sight, the nature of premonitions, the danger of prophecies. She would try to explain it again, but not tonight. Tonight, she needed to retreat. Tonight, she needed to mourn.
“Thank you for trying, my friend,” the Martian princess murmured and got up. Not looking back, she walked away, the white gown rustling around her.
***
After a much too short and sleepless night, Venus teleported back onto Earth the second the sun began to shine on Endymion's kingdom. It was foolish of her to try to go to Jadeite directly: she could not hope to convince him if she did not have Kunzite on her side. Kunzite was utterly territorial, and by sidestepping him, she had wounded his pride. As his lover, Venus couldn’t possibly care less, but as a tactician, she realised that this had been a grave mistake. She had to make him feel included so that he would help her, and Mars by extension.
In daylight, as young as it still was, she could not risk teleporting onto the balcony, but luckily, she knew of a safer place. It was a bit daring, given their last encounter, but their fights never lasted long. The time they had together was too limited and too precious for that. Closing her eyes mid-teleportation, she conjured the image in her mind, and when her feet made contact, it was on a much softer surface.
“I sent you away, and not only do you come back, you come to my bed?”
Unbidden, Venus giggled. This was the voice of the man she knew and loved, warm and tinted with humour, and, as it was so often when addressing her, slightly exasperated. Of course he was already awake, just about to button his cape to his uniform. She let herself fall back onto his bed, arms outstretched, bouncing off the mattress, all thoughts of tactics fleeing her mind.
“I am a glutton for punishment.”
Shaking his head, he walked over to her, the sound of his boots heavy on the polished floor. In the morning, in his own rooms, his face was softer, and she could tell that as long as they were alone here, she might have a chance to make him see reason. Outstretching a hand, she whispered, “join me.” Last night's memories needed to be banished, and what better way than to do so by a lover's touch? They could talk later. Venus loved to touch him when the sunlight shone through the windows, warming his skin and her own.
But he was hesitant, and it did not take a mindreader to know why. Last night’s fight was still in his thoughts. “I have duties to attend to.”
“They can wait. No one is awake yet.”
“My men rise with the sun, Venus. It’s good for morale.” He took her hand, but instead of letting her pull him down as she was wont to do, he pulled her up until she found herself in a sitting position. She pouted at him, winning herself one of his rare smiles. When he finally sat down on the edge of the bed, he was careful to maintain some distance between them, making it clear that this was not going to end the way she wanted it to. They would not ignore everything that stood between them by rolling around in his sheets. Gently, he pushed her sleeve up, revealing a hand-shaped bruise around her wrist. His face fell.
She knew he was looking for words of apology where none were possible. It had happened, it was in the past, and Venus had decided that all that mattered was their future, so she leaned in and placed a kiss on his cheek.
“Shush, Kunzite, don't speak of it.” They needed to move on, but the way he looked at her made clear that it wasn't going to happen. Inwardly, Venus cursed. He was too damn honourable for his own good.
“This should not have happened.”
Instead of answering, Venus shifted on the bed, until she was lying down again, her head in his lap. It was a sign of trust, despite the ugly words and despite the bruises, and she hoped that she would accept it more willingly than any attempt at seduction. “Why did it? You are normally more in control than that.”
“Not when it comes to you,” he amended, still examining the bruise on her wrist. If things were different, he would ask Endymion to heal her, to make her skin milky white and perfect once more, but then he would not only have to reveal the relationship he had gone to great lengths to hide, but also his master’s singular ability: Endymion’s healing powers were one of Earth’s best kept secrets.
“She cannot marry him in public,” Venus said softly, interrupting his thoughts, “but that doesn't mean her love for him is not pure. You of all people should know that.”
“Me of all people,” he repeated and gave her a shrewd look. “Unlike Jadeite, Venus, I do not recall proposing to anyone lately.” He had not done so, and would never be able to. Of course he wanted to marry her, but he was a realist, and as such had never held any illusions as to where this relationship was going. Never down the aisle. She was his secret, one he guarded jealously, and Venus had to know that. Marriage, for them, had never been on the cards.
“Now you deliberately misunderstand me.”
“Do I?”
She reached up and stroked his cheek. “Love is not always for everyone to see. Sometimes it must remain hidden.”
He grasped her hand, and bent down to place a tender kiss on the bruises. “My planet needs a sign of trust. Its political position needs cementing.” He himself could not do it, his kingdom and Endymion needed him unmarried, but Mars and Jadeite... they could make this statement. They could unite the Silver Alliance with the planet that so desperately sought inclusion into the elusive federation.
“And you think a princess of Mars marrying a lesser Terran king would be enough?” Her voice held a hint of derision that made him let go of her hand immediately.
“Lesser king? Jadeite has a kingdom, same as me. Am I a lesser king to you?”
Venus blinked. “I am a lesser princess. You are a lesser king. We both serve someone greater.”
“So you see Endymion as being on par with your princess?” He sounded nonchalant, but the fact that he no longer caressed her spoke volumes. Sometimes, Venus thought, her life would be so much easier if only she were a better liar.
“No.”
“Earth deserves more than the position at the end of the interplanetary food chain you have so graciously bestowed on us. We have come far, and once Endymion ascends the throne, a new time will begin. What we need is for the Silver Alliance to acknowledge that. A marriage between Mars and Earth is a logical first step.”
It was an uncharacteristically long speech for him. And it was not that Venus didn’t agree with its basic premise, she did. Ever since Serenity had fallen for Endymion, and her guardians had to spend more and more time on Earth, Venus had come to love the blue planet as much as her own. Its magic was clearly nowhere near as developed as that of her home and she had observed some rather savage rites, but Earth had the potential to be great. It was just that she could not condone sacrificing Mars’s position as Serenity’s guardian to make the Alliance see it.
She pushed herself into a sitting position once more. “Kunzite, would you sacrifice being Endymion’s guardian for the welfare of another planet?”
He rubbed a hand over his face, and suddenly looked tired and worn-out. “Of course not.”
“What makes you think it’s any different for Mars?”
“She is not like you and I,” he said.
“She is exactly like you and I,” Venus disagreed, but the denial sounded weak, even to her own ears. Had Venus made a vow of chastity, as her sister-in-arms had, then she would have never let Kunzite touch her. Never. She would have stayed away, and made him do the same. And where even Serenity knew of Mars’s feelings for Jadeite, and of their relationship, Venus and Kunzite kept their relationship hidden from the world. No one knew. No one even suspected, neither senshi nor shitennou. To everyone else, they were allies in maintaining the safety of prince and princess in troubling times, but that was all. The truth, as often the case, was a different one. Venus’s and Kunzite’s story had begun the very first moment the head senshi had followed her princess to Earth and, dizzy from teleportation, stumbled into Kunzite’s arms. He had caught her with one arm while pressing a dagger to her throat with the other.
“Talk to Jadeite if you must, but you won’t be able to change his mind.” She had won him over once more, and while a part of him was impressed by her tenacity, her loyalty to friends and princess alike, another part of him worried that these qualities would eventually make her a problem rather than a pleasure.
“You underestimate me,” she replied, an easy smile once more sliding onto her lips, and his worries slipped away.
Chuckling, he reached over and entangled a hand in her hair. “Never.”
***
Over the next few days, Venus travelled to Earth more often, seeking the suddenly elusive Jadeite, but to no avail. It was as if the blue planet had decided to swallow him whole, and not even left a bone to trace him.
***
First unlacing and then kicking off her sandals, Venus stretched out on the lavender-coloured recamier before folding herself back together to rub her feet. She’d run around that dastardly palace all day long, hiding her face behind stuffy veils, looking for Jadeite, and all she had to show for it were blisters all over her feet.
“It’s so frustrating,” Venus confided in Jupiter as the two women reclined in the latter’s room. “I’ve never had this problem before, never. Jadeite is usually always around. He’s such a gossip, so he is where the most interesting things happen, where the most entertaining people are. And now, try as I might, I can spot neither hide nor hair of him.”
Jupiter tilted her head, her brown curls tumbling over shoulder, hiding the hickey Venus knew was just below her collarbone. “Have you tried the other place?”
Venus frowned, all thoughts of hickeys forgotten. “What other place?”
“You know,” the Jovian insisted, and gave Venus a pointed look.
Feeling something in her stomach curl, her instincts awakening, Venus sat straighter. “I assure you, I do not. What other place?”
Jupiter shrugged, the curls shifting so that the marks Nephrite so liked to leave on her were visible once more. “I don’t know how they call it. But it’s like... another dimension.”
Venus blinked. “Come again?”
“I was taken there once. It’s lovely, Venus, so full of life and goodness. And the flowers, they are not like ours, they are full of colour and---”
Venus’s face darkened. “Are you telling me, now, after months of Serenity travelling down there, that there is another world hidden from view? One, if I infer correctly, you and I cannot enter without the aid of someone from Endymion’s guard?”
Jupiter blanched. “I had never thought of it like this before.”
“You had never thought that if there is a place we cannot enter alone, then it might mean it’s a place she wouldn’t be able to leave?”
“You misunderstand, Venus, it’s a peaceful place. It’s not dangerous, not at all.”
“Jupiter, it might be peaceful today, and a prison tomorrow. How could you be so foolish not to mention this to me?”
“I don’t even know whether Serenity has ever been there!”
“That’s right, you don’t know,” Venus said, her eyes blazing. “You don’t know because you are too busy with Nephrite between your legs to take note.” And with that, the head of Serenity’s guard jumped up and stormed out, kicking the door to Jupiter’s quarters shut behind her.
***
The twinkling lights announced her entry once more, and Kunzite hastily put the maps Lady Beryl had given him into one of his desk’s many secret drawers. These were concerns he could not share with Venus, worries he must shoulder alone.
By the time his lover materialised in his chambers, all of Earth’s secrets were carefully hidden once more. Her visit came at a good time; he was in dire need of diversion.
“My, what have I done to warrant another visit so soon?” he jested, but her drawn face told him that something was afoot. Had she heard about---?
Not bothering with pleasantries, Venus cut to the chase. “Is there another dimension round here that Serenity could not leave on her own accord if she should wish to do so?”
Kunzite tensed, got up, and walked past her to the doors leading to the balcony. He shut them, making use of this moment with his back to her to smooth his face. So she hadn’t heard about the changes, but this was hardly better. Elysion was and needed to remain a secret, especially now. Even if she had already heard whispers about it, he would not tell her so much as another word, and whoever did, would pay. Dearly. He would see to that himself.
“Well, is there?” Venus repeated impatiently.
Turning to her, he affected a mildly curious look. “Why are you asking?”
Huffing, Venus crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I take that as a yes.”
“You may take it as whatever you like.”
“Why did you close the door? Scared of someone listening in? Is it a secret, that place?”
“Apparently not to you,” he murmured, and leaned his back against the cool glass, the hands in his pockets balled into fists.
“Oh, no, it was perfectly secret to me, but the same cannot be said for Jupiter,” Venus sniped, looking utterly vexed. Kunzite arched a brow. “In that case, it seems that Nephrite and I will have to have a little talk.”
“First, you and I will. Can Serenity leave on her own accord?”
“No. But Endymion has not taken her there. It’s high treason.”
A snort of derision escaped Venus. “Oh please. Being with Serenity already is, so what’s a little more? You can hardly be executed more than once.”
“Nobody is laying a finger on him while I live,” Kunzite said firmly, and Venus felt as if the room temperature dropped a few crucial degrees.
“I was not making a threat to your liege,” she stated, still sounding cross. Trust Kunzite to take offence at such an off-hand comment.
“I would kill you before you could,” he responded, not a muscle in his face moving. She flinched.
“Glad we got that all cleared up,” she said slowly while trying to regain both footing and composure. “Make sure he doesn’t take Serenity there. If you notice he does anyway, tell me. I will shackle her to a pillar in her mother’s palace if I have to.”
Instead of teleporting away, she made for the door.
“Where are you going?”
“Since today seems to be such a great day for talking, I will try to find Jadeite once more.”
“You won’t.”
Exasperated, Venus whirled around. “Because he’s there?” She waved her hands heavenwards, wiggling her fingers.
Kunzite looked down at his boots.
“He is, isn’t he? I swear, there are days when I wish Serenity would have been born blind. Ever since she saw Earth, it’s been trouble. Day in, day out. Jupiter, who seems to have mislaid her common sense in your man’s bed, is more than useless, and now Mars has been caught in your web too, and I need to talk Jadeite, and he’s in some secret hidey-hole. You are driving me insane, all of you!” she exclaimed angrily. For one second, Kunzite was sure she would stomp her foot like a child or throw one of the candlesticks against the wall, but instead, she just groaned loudly.
“He’s not... there,” Kunzite said, refusing to betray even the name of his kingdom’s holiest place, “he’s on a journey east with Zoisite.” Yet another secret was that the two men had not set out alone: they were accompanied by the Lady Beryl, but this was none of Venus’s business.
“Fine then, when will he return?”
“Next week, the week after that... It’s not set in stone.”
“But what about Mars? You know how urgently I need to speak with him! Why didn’t you tell me that he was about to leave?”
“Mind your own, Venus.”
“You will do everything to make her agree to the public wedding, won’t you? Do you think that by sending him away, you will lessen my chances of convincing him to marry her in secret? Do you think distance will make her heart grow fonder? That it will make her give up, just so that she can be with him again? Because it won’t work, I promise you that.”
“I do not make my plans based on you.”
“No, you do not. Which, I assume, is why Jupiter got taken to what she described as Earth’s most beautiful place, while all I ever get is this room, preferably in the darkness of the night so that you can keep me as your dirty little secret.” Her hand flew to her mouth as if to capture the words that had escaped it. “I don’t know where that came from.”
He looked up. “You need to leave now.”
“Kunzite, I---”
“Venus, you seem to be labouring under the misapprehension that this can be anything more than a bedroom dalliance. It cannot. If you wish to entertain a relationship more...,” he paused, searching for the right word, “accommodating than this one, I suggest you seek it with someone else.”
“Oh,” she whispered. “Right. Of course.”
She looked at him, clenching her hands in the folds of her gown. Trying to will herself to the silence, she failed, the worlds just tumbling from her lips. “Tell me, have you ever, for one moment, thought that we could do it? Taken a stand in front of the universe? Venus and Earth, together? That we could be the symbol you think your planet needs?”
His answer was as simple as it was immediate. “No.” He didn’t even look sad, she noted, not even sad. Just matter-of-fact, unperturbed. Perhaps a bit annoyed.
She nodded, and took a step back. The thought of marrying Kunzite had never occurred to her before, she did not even know she wanted to until the moment she had begun to feel that he did not. Realities were one thing: she knew they could not marry, not today, not ever, not in front of everyone, and not even in front of no one at all. They simply could not do it, but knowing that he didn’t want to, wouldn’t even consider it, wouldn’t even think of it... it took her breath away, leaving her drowning, out of air.
She could not teleport, not now that she was feeling as if she was about to cry, but she could also not stay, and let him see her cry. It would be the ultimate defeat. Kunzite was not a man you showed weakness to. Torn between wanting to leave and not being able to, Venus took another step back, until she collided with the door, feeling its handle dig into her back.
He was still looking at her, his green eyes serious, when her hand pushed the handle down, and she made her escape as an ordinary human would.
***
By the time Venus had regained enough concentration to teleport back home, her mood had changed from devastation to rightful anger. If he thought that she would come back to him after a display like this, then Kunzite was sorely mistaken. Before the golden lights had even faded away, she set off in a brisk pace, having decided to lock herself into her chambers for the rest of the night, but she’d barely made it three steps down the hall before she - quite literally - stumbled over her princess, who was hiding behind some curtains, her sandal-clad feet peeking out.
“Ouch!” the curtain exclaimed in Serenity’s voice, and Luna careened around the corner. “Found you!” the Mauan triumphed, tossing her black curls over her shoulder. “And now you need to prepare for the visit of the delegation from Ganymede next week.”
Serenity pulled the curtain away, and revealed herself and the impressive pout she was sporting. “Why? Can’t we just have a dinner and be done with it?”
Luna narrowed her eyes. “Reception, dinner, ball. And you will stun everyone with your knowledge of the Ganymedian culture. Now go to the study, princess, I’ll meet you there.”
“But we haven’t found Mercury and Jupiter yet! Mercury is probably hiding in the library, she always does! So easy! But we need to find Jupiter, she always has such good hiding spots! Please, Luna, please please please! And when we find them, they can tell me everything about Ganymede that I need to know, which isn’t much anyway. Jupiter said Ganymede is the most boring moon in the orbit.”
“Jupiter needs to keep quiet,” Venus interjected, and mustered Serenity with a firm look. “Go to the study, princess.” Knowing better than to resist her lead guardian (at least on all accounts other than Endymion), Serenity shuffled her feet before slowly and dramatically making her way to the detested room, leaving Luna and Venus alone in the hallway.
“Delegation from Ganymede?” Venus asked, and Luna nodded.
“They seek inclusion in the Alliance.”
Venus felt as if the rug was pulled from underneath her for the third time that night. “But surely, they won’t be accepted?”
Earth had been rejected over and over again, never having even been invited to Queen Serenity’s palace for a meeting, and the barbarians from Ganymede, a mere moon with no magical properties to speak of, its population not even a third of Earth’s, and its king as charming as a box of wet matches, was to set foot onto court a week from today, for a full diplomatic visit?
Luna shrugged. “I think they will. And Uranus is next.”
“Uranus? Luna, you must be joking. Ganymede and Uranus before Earth?”
Lowering her voice, Luna gripped Venus’s elbow. “Earth is out of the running. The Queen has not made it official yet, but she received some worrying reports and has decided to re-evaluate in a hundred years.”
“Does Serenity know?”
Luna laughed. “Oh, don’t I wish she would concern herself with the day-to-day Alliance business. Alas, no, she does not. This is confidential for now, so don’t tell her.”
Numbly, Venus nodded. “I won’t.” Kunzite would seethe. If this became common knowledge before she could talk to Jadeite, he would never marry Mars in secret. In fact, Venus was quite sure he would not marry her at all. Jadeite was not as proud as Kunzite, but even he would find it hard to bind himself to a woman who stood for a diplomatic attitude that favoured Ganymede over Earth.
And re-evaluation in a hundred years... Endymion and his men would be long dead by then.
“Shouldn’t you ask me what reports?” Luna prodded, her eyes gleaming with good gossip. Luna, in her position as the young princess’s counsellor, and the queen’s advisor, and with her ability to shape-shift into an inconspicuous cat, was one of the best sources for information in all of the Silver Alliance. The shape-shifting was a well-kept secret, allowing her to listen in on confidential meetings foreign delegations had after their audience with the Queen. Luna pricked her feline ears, reported back to Queen Serenity, and just like that the head of the Silver Alliance was always one step ahead of everyone else. Luckily, the senshi were a tight-knit group, so no word of the dalliance between Serenity the younger and Endymion had reached the Mauan’s ears. Venus was, however, quite sure that Luna knew about Jupiter and Nephrite. Everyone knew about Jupiter and Nephrite, and if Mars wouldn’t stop all the crying, then it wouldn’t be long before people began to catch onto that too.
“Fine, what reports?” Venus took the bite. In a perfect world, she would have heard about any and all things from the man whose bedroom she had just left, but Venus was a realist, and perfection out of reach.
Luna leaned closer, lowering her voice to a whisper.
“Our watchers have noticed that all across the planet, mountains have begun to spew fire. More and more each day!”
Unbelieveable, Venus thought. If anyone - other than Serenity - would have ever bothered to familiarise themselves with the Terran landscape, she would not have to stand in a cold, drafty hallway at this hour to explain volcanoes to Luna while all she really wanted to do was to lock herself in her room to mourn the demise of her doomed relationship.
“Luna, this is nothing special. These things are called volcanoes, they’re a common geographical feature down there. Mars has plenty of them too. This is no reason to stall Earth’s entry into the Silver Alliance.”
Luna waved her hand impatiently. “You don’t understand. They appear everywhere, even in areas that are covered with ice and snow. The watchers and the Queen do not care about the volcaenios-” Luna stumbled over the new word, “over the fire mountains,” she corrected herself, “that have always been there, but about the ones that appear in the middle of a city. Just like that!” She snapped her fingers.
A thought began to stir in the back of Venus’s head, and slowly, a puzzle piece fell into place.
“Is there an occurrence of this phenomenon in the East of the Golden Kingdom?”
Luna nodded. “One was found just last week underneath the sands of the Eternal Desert.”
“Ask the queen whether she wants me to teleport there. I’ll go in disguise, try to get a closer look than the watchers have from up here.”
Frowning, Luna asked: “Why?”
“What do you mean, why?”
“The decision has already been made, we are calling our dignitaries back, and then we wait. There is no need to go and investigate what is happening on Earth.”
And then it dawned on Venus that very much like Jupiter and Mars, she too had begun to slip up. Earth was special to them, but not to the Alliance, and certainly not the queen. For them it was just one uncivilised planet among many. For them, time was not an issue. Give or take a hundred years, what did it matter?
But Venus was not the leader of Serenity’s guard for nothing. Shrouding herself in the authority of her planet and position, she stood a little taller. “There is every need to go and investigate, Luna, because in case you have not noticed, we revolve around Earth. What if whatever is going on is contagious? What if it spreads?”
This gave Luna pause. “I will talk to Mercury, and, when necessary, broach it with the queen. If anyone goes down there, it’ll be you.”
“Thank you.”
***
He found Nephrite in an unpretentious tavern close to the palace. Nephrite hated courtiers, and was always much more at ease with soldiers, traders and farmers. Right now, he was earnestly discussing the advantages of some sort of crop over the other, while three other men nodded, agreeing with every word he said. Their table was overflowing with food and drink, all of which, Kunzite knew, Nephrite had paid for.
“--But this crop has one - and only one - disadvantage: it needs to be harvested before the autumn winds rise, otherwise it’s all for naught. But if you harvest at the right time, it’s a gold mine. It can feed hundreds, where another crop feeds ten. Excellent stuff.” Leaned back in his chair, his brown curls tied back in an unruly ponytail and with far more scruff than was befitting for a dignitary of Endymion, Nephrite looked completely at home. He wasn’t wearing his uniform, but instead dressed down in a brown tunic and leather pants, wearing a scandalously dirty and dusty pair of old boots. Of course, he was fooling no one. Everyone on Earth knew the faces of the four heavenly kings, but it barely mattered: the people loved Nephrite as if he were one of their own.
Kunzite knew that the same could not be said about him. Where people inched closer to Nephrite to catch his every word, they moved away from as he walked up to the table, their eyes carefully not meeting his.
He came to stand directly behind Nephrite, his shadow falling on the table.
“A word, please.”
“Kunzite!” Nephrite threw a charming smile over his shoulder and grabbed his mug of ale, parting from his farmer friends with one last toast. “To the Golden crop!”
“To the Golden crop!” the men repeated merrily and watched their new found friend leave. Nephrite threw one arm over Kunzite’s shoulder and thus guided them through the crowded tavern and through a small wooden door that led into a backroom. “Brother, what brings you here?”
Between barrels of ale and wine, and underneath some dried hams that were dangling from the ceiling, Kunzite shrugged Nephrite’s arm off.
“What’s wrong?” Nephrite asked, smile sliding off his large face.
Before answering him, Kunzite checked that the door was locked, and that the room was windowless. Satisfied that nobody could listen in on them, he turned to Nephrite.
“You took Jupiter to Elysion.”
There was no need to explain the magnitude of this error. The look on Nephrite’s face - shocked, contrite, ashamed, defiant - told Kunzite that his brother knew already. The mistake had been made and now Kunzite had to make sure that it would not find repetition.
Nephrite opened his mouth, but Kunzite held up a hand. “I am not interested in what you have to say for yourself.”
The two men stared at each other, and Nephrite’s face was as open and as easy to read as Kunzite’s was closed.
“If this happens again, I will have you put on trial for high treason, and I will execute you. Personally. And then I go after her. Are we clear?”
“You wouldn’t--- she’s a royal from another planet, you cannot touch her!” Nephrite took a step towards his commander, but before he could say another word or even raise his hand, Kunzite lifted his own and shot a burst of electricity from his fingertips. It hit Nephrite square in the chest, sending him flying backwards against the barrels. Nephrite looked down, shocked, his hand wandering to the hole in his tunic and the burned skin underneath. His fingers came away stained by blood.
“Make no mistake,” Kunzite said softly, “I can.”
***
Two weeks passed, and Zoisite and Jadeite remained gone. The palace was quieter without them around, and Kunzite, while by no means a sentimental man, found himself missing them.
Endymion was busy with Serenity, and when he was not, entirely occupied by his father’s demands on his time. The old king seemed to know that his clock was ticking, and had begun to take his son wherever he went, instructing him in the finer details and inner workings of the kingdom Endymion was set to inherit one day.
As a punishment for revealing Elysion to Jupiter, Kunzite would have liked nothing more than to send Nephrite on an expedition to the arctic, but that would leave Endymion with only one guardian. So he arranged for a busier schedule for Nephrite: training the newest members of the palace guard in the morning, accompanying Endymion and the king from noon till nightfall, and watching the stars till the wee hours of the morning. With only three or four hours of sleep every night, chances of him sneaking off to meet Jupiter were slim, and Kunzite hoped that his threat would make Nephrite obey, at least until his wounds had healed. He did not relish the idea of turning his blade on his brother and Jupiter, but he would do it if he had to.
Elysion was their last line of defense.
If Earth was ever under attack, Endymion could retreat into the holy country, where nothing and no one could lay a finger on him. In Elysion, his prince was safe, and Endymion’s safety was paramount. He was their future, their only hope. Without him, the Silver Alliance would not include Earth, but assimilate it.
It did not bear thinking about, the danger Nephrite had put their liege in. The magical properties of the senshi were strong, and while Jupiter was not the smartest of the four, he would not put it past her to find a way to enter the holy land on her own now that she had been taken there. He would have to talk to Venus: she had to make sure that Jupiter was never again tasked with retrieving the Moon princess from Earth, but after their last encounter, Venus had not appeared in his bedroom again. Only Mercury travelled to Earth these days, silently fetching Serenity while barely lifting her eyes from the floor. Where Kunzite had witnessed the childlike Moon princess protesting her planned return to her home planet with every other guardian, he was surprised to find that as soon as Mercury appeared, Serenity extricated herself from Endymion’s embrace, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. He did not understand why this was so, Mercury seemed like the weakest and least imposing of the princess’s guardians, but she was successful where even Venus had failed.
Venus.
Whom he had not seen for over three weeks. Another blank spot on the map.
With Endymion so busy, Jadeite and Zoisite gone, and Nephrite ignoring him, Kunzite suddenly found himself alone. He normally itched for every moment of quiet and solitude because the palace, especially when filled with Endymion’s guardians, was like the town square on market day. People running and shouting, something happening in every corner, and not a minute to himself. There was always something to do, someone to scold, but also someone to talk and laugh with. Now that all his companions were gone or otherwise occupied, Kunzite came to truly understand the role his brothers had in his life.
All decisions had to be made by him, with no one to consult with. Zoisite’s opinion, always invaluable, was missing. Jadeite’s jokes, tedious as they were, left the hallways silent in their absence. Nephrite’s easy smile and easier company meant that all roads were now travelled alone.
And still the reports came coming. More and more volcanoes each day. Sudden disappearances. Sights of dragons circling the sky over the new volcanoes in the East, and maelstroms as large as villages in the Sunshine Seas. Something was shifting in their world, and it set Kunzite’s teeth on edge. Trying to see the bigger picture, he compiled information, consulted with the king’s magicians and the advisors from all the smaller kingdoms, but nobody had the answer he was looking for.
All he knew was that something was coming their way, and when it hit them, Endymion needed to be safe in Elysion and if that safety had to be paid for with Nephrite’s and Jupiter’s heads, then so be it.
So be it.
*** End of the Interlude ***
A/N: Many thanks to Charlie and Spirit for their help! The previous chapter is here.
The sharp edge of a razor is difficult to pass over; thus the wise say the path to Salvation is hard.
~ verse in the Katha-Upanishad
It was the middle of the night, the deepest, darkest part of it. No stars were to be found on the sky, no moon, and not even a single cloud. It was if the world had been covered with a midnight blanket, and nothing moved underneath it.
Except for the woman appearing on the Western balcony in swirl of twinkling golden lights, ripping the cover of darkness away for a few precious seconds. It was as if a star had fallen onto earth, and strictly speaking, it had. Looking over her shoulder, Venus made sure that she was unnoticed before slipping inside the palace.
Jadeite's room was dark, but she knew her way around here. Not as well as she did around another room, located in the East wing, but well enough not to bump into anything. “Jadeite,” she whispered, carefully moving further into the room, stumbling over some boots thrown on the floor. They'd agreed to meet tonight, to discuss---
“Jadeite is busy tonight,” a cold voice cut into the darkness, and Venus stiffened. “I'm afraid you will have to make do with me.”
So much for secrecy, Venus thought, and sighed. She waved her hand, and the tiny golden lights that had enveloped her when she teleported onto the balcony appeared once more, floating through the air until each settled on a candle, setting it aflame with an audible crack. The room around her came to light.
Kunzite was sitting at Jadeite's desk. His gloves were off, and discarded on the table in front of him. His cape too was gone, and the top button of his uniform was open. For him, that almost constituted casual wear. He looked decidedly bored, but she knew he was anything but. His temper, while so well hidden from the world, was always visible to her.
“So, what brings you to the room of one of my men in the middle of the night?”
For one second, Venus debated just kissing him until he forgot his question, but she knew him too well to assume he'd let her.
“I can't tell you,” she instead said, her voice solemn.
“If this is about him insulting Mars, then I'm afraid you won't be able to change his mind.”
In the flickering light of the candles, Venus paled. “You know?”
“He is one of my men,” Kunzite said pointedly, and there was no mistaking the anger in his voice. “Of course I know.”
“She broke her vow for him. He must marry her, even if it's only in secret.”
Kunzite shrugged. “Her vow is of no consequence to us. He will marry her in front of everyone, or not at all. She rejected his offer-”
“You talk about it as if were a diplomatic mission,” Venus interjected heatedly and took an angry step towards him.
“She rejected his offer,” Kunzite repeated, “and therefore, he is not bound to her by any means. He can do what he pleases.” After a deliberate pause, he looked up, nothing but mild interest on his features. “And it seems that what pleases him these days is you.”
Her hand struck out like lightning, but he caught it easily.
“You are no longer welcome here. If Serenity wants to see Endymion, she can come alone.”
Venus tried to snatch her hand back, but he held on, and she knew his grip would leave bruises. “Kunzite, let me go.”
“Do not make the mistake of returning, Venus,” he warned, and released her. She took a hurried step back, her heart hammering in her chest. She had not expected this, not expected this at all. Fighting to regain the necessary concentration to teleport, she dug her long fingernails into her palms, almost breaking the skin, but the pain was nothing compared to having him look at her with such contempt. She needed to leave, to return to Mars and Serenity and to get away----
All the flames shot up from the candles and raced back towards her, once more becoming the twinkling golden lights. They spiralled around the princess, faster and faster, a hurricane of gold, its light almost blinding. And then, as quickly as she had appeared, she was gone, leaving the room and Kunzite in darkness once more.
***
Up on the moon, Mars sat on a marble bench in Jupiter's garden, blankly staring at an ivory-covered wall. It was a mild night, but then most Lunar nights were. Temperature had long since been governed by magic, and the weather controllers were most apt at maintaining the same temperature day in, day out. Despite all the years she had lived here, Mars still longed for the searing heat of her home planet, the flaming fountains of the meditation arenas, and the feeling of the sun burning into her skin until it was as red as the soil she used to walk on. But Mars was used to longing, and even more used to not being allowed to have what she desired most.
When the senshi of love appeared out of thin air, little lights still twinkling, Mars barely looked up. The fact that Venus had returned alone told her all she needed to know.
“He won't marry me,” she whispered, and got up.
Venus scoffed and rubbed her wrist. “I didn't even see him. Kunzite delivered a message instead.”
Mars already knew what that message was. Jadeite had become so fixed on this idea, so determined, and a part of her wondered whether it wasn’t a ploy to get rid of her and end their complicated relationship. “I can't marry him in front of all the Alliance. It is forbidden, it would mean I could no longer serve Serenity. I gave my--- my heart to him, I broke one vow already. I cannot break another.”
“I will go back tomorrow night. I just need to catch him alone, then I can make him see reason. You can marry, but it must remain a secret. I'll make him understand,” Venus said, looking cross. Her leader, Mars knew, was not used to having someone deny her wishes or disobey her commands, but Jadeite was not someone who let strangers dictate his life. Her fate was sealed.
It did not matter if Venus would catch Jadeite alone tomorrow evening. The die was cast, the decision made. Jadeite’s absence tonight was his way of telling her that she wasn’t good enough and that their road was at an end. One broken vow had not been enough to convince him of her sincerity, and another one she could not break. It was all she had left. Looking at the floor, she wondered how to tell Venus that her help had come too late. “You won't be able to change his mind. I know it.”
“Have you seen it in the Holy Fire?” Venus asked and sat down beside her, taking her hand. If Mars had seen it in the fire, then there was nothing she could do. The fire spoke the truth.
Mars sighed. Even after all those years, Venus had no understanding of the gift of second sight, the nature of premonitions, the danger of prophecies. She would try to explain it again, but not tonight. Tonight, she needed to retreat. Tonight, she needed to mourn.
“Thank you for trying, my friend,” the Martian princess murmured and got up. Not looking back, she walked away, the white gown rustling around her.
***
After a much too short and sleepless night, Venus teleported back onto Earth the second the sun began to shine on Endymion's kingdom. It was foolish of her to try to go to Jadeite directly: she could not hope to convince him if she did not have Kunzite on her side. Kunzite was utterly territorial, and by sidestepping him, she had wounded his pride. As his lover, Venus couldn’t possibly care less, but as a tactician, she realised that this had been a grave mistake. She had to make him feel included so that he would help her, and Mars by extension.
In daylight, as young as it still was, she could not risk teleporting onto the balcony, but luckily, she knew of a safer place. It was a bit daring, given their last encounter, but their fights never lasted long. The time they had together was too limited and too precious for that. Closing her eyes mid-teleportation, she conjured the image in her mind, and when her feet made contact, it was on a much softer surface.
“I sent you away, and not only do you come back, you come to my bed?”
Unbidden, Venus giggled. This was the voice of the man she knew and loved, warm and tinted with humour, and, as it was so often when addressing her, slightly exasperated. Of course he was already awake, just about to button his cape to his uniform. She let herself fall back onto his bed, arms outstretched, bouncing off the mattress, all thoughts of tactics fleeing her mind.
“I am a glutton for punishment.”
Shaking his head, he walked over to her, the sound of his boots heavy on the polished floor. In the morning, in his own rooms, his face was softer, and she could tell that as long as they were alone here, she might have a chance to make him see reason. Outstretching a hand, she whispered, “join me.” Last night's memories needed to be banished, and what better way than to do so by a lover's touch? They could talk later. Venus loved to touch him when the sunlight shone through the windows, warming his skin and her own.
But he was hesitant, and it did not take a mindreader to know why. Last night’s fight was still in his thoughts. “I have duties to attend to.”
“They can wait. No one is awake yet.”
“My men rise with the sun, Venus. It’s good for morale.” He took her hand, but instead of letting her pull him down as she was wont to do, he pulled her up until she found herself in a sitting position. She pouted at him, winning herself one of his rare smiles. When he finally sat down on the edge of the bed, he was careful to maintain some distance between them, making it clear that this was not going to end the way she wanted it to. They would not ignore everything that stood between them by rolling around in his sheets. Gently, he pushed her sleeve up, revealing a hand-shaped bruise around her wrist. His face fell.
She knew he was looking for words of apology where none were possible. It had happened, it was in the past, and Venus had decided that all that mattered was their future, so she leaned in and placed a kiss on his cheek.
“Shush, Kunzite, don't speak of it.” They needed to move on, but the way he looked at her made clear that it wasn't going to happen. Inwardly, Venus cursed. He was too damn honourable for his own good.
“This should not have happened.”
Instead of answering, Venus shifted on the bed, until she was lying down again, her head in his lap. It was a sign of trust, despite the ugly words and despite the bruises, and she hoped that she would accept it more willingly than any attempt at seduction. “Why did it? You are normally more in control than that.”
“Not when it comes to you,” he amended, still examining the bruise on her wrist. If things were different, he would ask Endymion to heal her, to make her skin milky white and perfect once more, but then he would not only have to reveal the relationship he had gone to great lengths to hide, but also his master’s singular ability: Endymion’s healing powers were one of Earth’s best kept secrets.
“She cannot marry him in public,” Venus said softly, interrupting his thoughts, “but that doesn't mean her love for him is not pure. You of all people should know that.”
“Me of all people,” he repeated and gave her a shrewd look. “Unlike Jadeite, Venus, I do not recall proposing to anyone lately.” He had not done so, and would never be able to. Of course he wanted to marry her, but he was a realist, and as such had never held any illusions as to where this relationship was going. Never down the aisle. She was his secret, one he guarded jealously, and Venus had to know that. Marriage, for them, had never been on the cards.
“Now you deliberately misunderstand me.”
“Do I?”
She reached up and stroked his cheek. “Love is not always for everyone to see. Sometimes it must remain hidden.”
He grasped her hand, and bent down to place a tender kiss on the bruises. “My planet needs a sign of trust. Its political position needs cementing.” He himself could not do it, his kingdom and Endymion needed him unmarried, but Mars and Jadeite... they could make this statement. They could unite the Silver Alliance with the planet that so desperately sought inclusion into the elusive federation.
“And you think a princess of Mars marrying a lesser Terran king would be enough?” Her voice held a hint of derision that made him let go of her hand immediately.
“Lesser king? Jadeite has a kingdom, same as me. Am I a lesser king to you?”
Venus blinked. “I am a lesser princess. You are a lesser king. We both serve someone greater.”
“So you see Endymion as being on par with your princess?” He sounded nonchalant, but the fact that he no longer caressed her spoke volumes. Sometimes, Venus thought, her life would be so much easier if only she were a better liar.
“No.”
“Earth deserves more than the position at the end of the interplanetary food chain you have so graciously bestowed on us. We have come far, and once Endymion ascends the throne, a new time will begin. What we need is for the Silver Alliance to acknowledge that. A marriage between Mars and Earth is a logical first step.”
It was an uncharacteristically long speech for him. And it was not that Venus didn’t agree with its basic premise, she did. Ever since Serenity had fallen for Endymion, and her guardians had to spend more and more time on Earth, Venus had come to love the blue planet as much as her own. Its magic was clearly nowhere near as developed as that of her home and she had observed some rather savage rites, but Earth had the potential to be great. It was just that she could not condone sacrificing Mars’s position as Serenity’s guardian to make the Alliance see it.
She pushed herself into a sitting position once more. “Kunzite, would you sacrifice being Endymion’s guardian for the welfare of another planet?”
He rubbed a hand over his face, and suddenly looked tired and worn-out. “Of course not.”
“What makes you think it’s any different for Mars?”
“She is not like you and I,” he said.
“She is exactly like you and I,” Venus disagreed, but the denial sounded weak, even to her own ears. Had Venus made a vow of chastity, as her sister-in-arms had, then she would have never let Kunzite touch her. Never. She would have stayed away, and made him do the same. And where even Serenity knew of Mars’s feelings for Jadeite, and of their relationship, Venus and Kunzite kept their relationship hidden from the world. No one knew. No one even suspected, neither senshi nor shitennou. To everyone else, they were allies in maintaining the safety of prince and princess in troubling times, but that was all. The truth, as often the case, was a different one. Venus’s and Kunzite’s story had begun the very first moment the head senshi had followed her princess to Earth and, dizzy from teleportation, stumbled into Kunzite’s arms. He had caught her with one arm while pressing a dagger to her throat with the other.
“Talk to Jadeite if you must, but you won’t be able to change his mind.” She had won him over once more, and while a part of him was impressed by her tenacity, her loyalty to friends and princess alike, another part of him worried that these qualities would eventually make her a problem rather than a pleasure.
“You underestimate me,” she replied, an easy smile once more sliding onto her lips, and his worries slipped away.
Chuckling, he reached over and entangled a hand in her hair. “Never.”
***
Over the next few days, Venus travelled to Earth more often, seeking the suddenly elusive Jadeite, but to no avail. It was as if the blue planet had decided to swallow him whole, and not even left a bone to trace him.
***
First unlacing and then kicking off her sandals, Venus stretched out on the lavender-coloured recamier before folding herself back together to rub her feet. She’d run around that dastardly palace all day long, hiding her face behind stuffy veils, looking for Jadeite, and all she had to show for it were blisters all over her feet.
“It’s so frustrating,” Venus confided in Jupiter as the two women reclined in the latter’s room. “I’ve never had this problem before, never. Jadeite is usually always around. He’s such a gossip, so he is where the most interesting things happen, where the most entertaining people are. And now, try as I might, I can spot neither hide nor hair of him.”
Jupiter tilted her head, her brown curls tumbling over shoulder, hiding the hickey Venus knew was just below her collarbone. “Have you tried the other place?”
Venus frowned, all thoughts of hickeys forgotten. “What other place?”
“You know,” the Jovian insisted, and gave Venus a pointed look.
Feeling something in her stomach curl, her instincts awakening, Venus sat straighter. “I assure you, I do not. What other place?”
Jupiter shrugged, the curls shifting so that the marks Nephrite so liked to leave on her were visible once more. “I don’t know how they call it. But it’s like... another dimension.”
Venus blinked. “Come again?”
“I was taken there once. It’s lovely, Venus, so full of life and goodness. And the flowers, they are not like ours, they are full of colour and---”
Venus’s face darkened. “Are you telling me, now, after months of Serenity travelling down there, that there is another world hidden from view? One, if I infer correctly, you and I cannot enter without the aid of someone from Endymion’s guard?”
Jupiter blanched. “I had never thought of it like this before.”
“You had never thought that if there is a place we cannot enter alone, then it might mean it’s a place she wouldn’t be able to leave?”
“You misunderstand, Venus, it’s a peaceful place. It’s not dangerous, not at all.”
“Jupiter, it might be peaceful today, and a prison tomorrow. How could you be so foolish not to mention this to me?”
“I don’t even know whether Serenity has ever been there!”
“That’s right, you don’t know,” Venus said, her eyes blazing. “You don’t know because you are too busy with Nephrite between your legs to take note.” And with that, the head of Serenity’s guard jumped up and stormed out, kicking the door to Jupiter’s quarters shut behind her.
***
The twinkling lights announced her entry once more, and Kunzite hastily put the maps Lady Beryl had given him into one of his desk’s many secret drawers. These were concerns he could not share with Venus, worries he must shoulder alone.
By the time his lover materialised in his chambers, all of Earth’s secrets were carefully hidden once more. Her visit came at a good time; he was in dire need of diversion.
“My, what have I done to warrant another visit so soon?” he jested, but her drawn face told him that something was afoot. Had she heard about---?
Not bothering with pleasantries, Venus cut to the chase. “Is there another dimension round here that Serenity could not leave on her own accord if she should wish to do so?”
Kunzite tensed, got up, and walked past her to the doors leading to the balcony. He shut them, making use of this moment with his back to her to smooth his face. So she hadn’t heard about the changes, but this was hardly better. Elysion was and needed to remain a secret, especially now. Even if she had already heard whispers about it, he would not tell her so much as another word, and whoever did, would pay. Dearly. He would see to that himself.
“Well, is there?” Venus repeated impatiently.
Turning to her, he affected a mildly curious look. “Why are you asking?”
Huffing, Venus crossed her arms in front of her chest. “I take that as a yes.”
“You may take it as whatever you like.”
“Why did you close the door? Scared of someone listening in? Is it a secret, that place?”
“Apparently not to you,” he murmured, and leaned his back against the cool glass, the hands in his pockets balled into fists.
“Oh, no, it was perfectly secret to me, but the same cannot be said for Jupiter,” Venus sniped, looking utterly vexed. Kunzite arched a brow. “In that case, it seems that Nephrite and I will have to have a little talk.”
“First, you and I will. Can Serenity leave on her own accord?”
“No. But Endymion has not taken her there. It’s high treason.”
A snort of derision escaped Venus. “Oh please. Being with Serenity already is, so what’s a little more? You can hardly be executed more than once.”
“Nobody is laying a finger on him while I live,” Kunzite said firmly, and Venus felt as if the room temperature dropped a few crucial degrees.
“I was not making a threat to your liege,” she stated, still sounding cross. Trust Kunzite to take offence at such an off-hand comment.
“I would kill you before you could,” he responded, not a muscle in his face moving. She flinched.
“Glad we got that all cleared up,” she said slowly while trying to regain both footing and composure. “Make sure he doesn’t take Serenity there. If you notice he does anyway, tell me. I will shackle her to a pillar in her mother’s palace if I have to.”
Instead of teleporting away, she made for the door.
“Where are you going?”
“Since today seems to be such a great day for talking, I will try to find Jadeite once more.”
“You won’t.”
Exasperated, Venus whirled around. “Because he’s there?” She waved her hands heavenwards, wiggling her fingers.
Kunzite looked down at his boots.
“He is, isn’t he? I swear, there are days when I wish Serenity would have been born blind. Ever since she saw Earth, it’s been trouble. Day in, day out. Jupiter, who seems to have mislaid her common sense in your man’s bed, is more than useless, and now Mars has been caught in your web too, and I need to talk Jadeite, and he’s in some secret hidey-hole. You are driving me insane, all of you!” she exclaimed angrily. For one second, Kunzite was sure she would stomp her foot like a child or throw one of the candlesticks against the wall, but instead, she just groaned loudly.
“He’s not... there,” Kunzite said, refusing to betray even the name of his kingdom’s holiest place, “he’s on a journey east with Zoisite.” Yet another secret was that the two men had not set out alone: they were accompanied by the Lady Beryl, but this was none of Venus’s business.
“Fine then, when will he return?”
“Next week, the week after that... It’s not set in stone.”
“But what about Mars? You know how urgently I need to speak with him! Why didn’t you tell me that he was about to leave?”
“Mind your own, Venus.”
“You will do everything to make her agree to the public wedding, won’t you? Do you think that by sending him away, you will lessen my chances of convincing him to marry her in secret? Do you think distance will make her heart grow fonder? That it will make her give up, just so that she can be with him again? Because it won’t work, I promise you that.”
“I do not make my plans based on you.”
“No, you do not. Which, I assume, is why Jupiter got taken to what she described as Earth’s most beautiful place, while all I ever get is this room, preferably in the darkness of the night so that you can keep me as your dirty little secret.” Her hand flew to her mouth as if to capture the words that had escaped it. “I don’t know where that came from.”
He looked up. “You need to leave now.”
“Kunzite, I---”
“Venus, you seem to be labouring under the misapprehension that this can be anything more than a bedroom dalliance. It cannot. If you wish to entertain a relationship more...,” he paused, searching for the right word, “accommodating than this one, I suggest you seek it with someone else.”
“Oh,” she whispered. “Right. Of course.”
She looked at him, clenching her hands in the folds of her gown. Trying to will herself to the silence, she failed, the worlds just tumbling from her lips. “Tell me, have you ever, for one moment, thought that we could do it? Taken a stand in front of the universe? Venus and Earth, together? That we could be the symbol you think your planet needs?”
His answer was as simple as it was immediate. “No.” He didn’t even look sad, she noted, not even sad. Just matter-of-fact, unperturbed. Perhaps a bit annoyed.
She nodded, and took a step back. The thought of marrying Kunzite had never occurred to her before, she did not even know she wanted to until the moment she had begun to feel that he did not. Realities were one thing: she knew they could not marry, not today, not ever, not in front of everyone, and not even in front of no one at all. They simply could not do it, but knowing that he didn’t want to, wouldn’t even consider it, wouldn’t even think of it... it took her breath away, leaving her drowning, out of air.
She could not teleport, not now that she was feeling as if she was about to cry, but she could also not stay, and let him see her cry. It would be the ultimate defeat. Kunzite was not a man you showed weakness to. Torn between wanting to leave and not being able to, Venus took another step back, until she collided with the door, feeling its handle dig into her back.
He was still looking at her, his green eyes serious, when her hand pushed the handle down, and she made her escape as an ordinary human would.
***
By the time Venus had regained enough concentration to teleport back home, her mood had changed from devastation to rightful anger. If he thought that she would come back to him after a display like this, then Kunzite was sorely mistaken. Before the golden lights had even faded away, she set off in a brisk pace, having decided to lock herself into her chambers for the rest of the night, but she’d barely made it three steps down the hall before she - quite literally - stumbled over her princess, who was hiding behind some curtains, her sandal-clad feet peeking out.
“Ouch!” the curtain exclaimed in Serenity’s voice, and Luna careened around the corner. “Found you!” the Mauan triumphed, tossing her black curls over her shoulder. “And now you need to prepare for the visit of the delegation from Ganymede next week.”
Serenity pulled the curtain away, and revealed herself and the impressive pout she was sporting. “Why? Can’t we just have a dinner and be done with it?”
Luna narrowed her eyes. “Reception, dinner, ball. And you will stun everyone with your knowledge of the Ganymedian culture. Now go to the study, princess, I’ll meet you there.”
“But we haven’t found Mercury and Jupiter yet! Mercury is probably hiding in the library, she always does! So easy! But we need to find Jupiter, she always has such good hiding spots! Please, Luna, please please please! And when we find them, they can tell me everything about Ganymede that I need to know, which isn’t much anyway. Jupiter said Ganymede is the most boring moon in the orbit.”
“Jupiter needs to keep quiet,” Venus interjected, and mustered Serenity with a firm look. “Go to the study, princess.” Knowing better than to resist her lead guardian (at least on all accounts other than Endymion), Serenity shuffled her feet before slowly and dramatically making her way to the detested room, leaving Luna and Venus alone in the hallway.
“Delegation from Ganymede?” Venus asked, and Luna nodded.
“They seek inclusion in the Alliance.”
Venus felt as if the rug was pulled from underneath her for the third time that night. “But surely, they won’t be accepted?”
Earth had been rejected over and over again, never having even been invited to Queen Serenity’s palace for a meeting, and the barbarians from Ganymede, a mere moon with no magical properties to speak of, its population not even a third of Earth’s, and its king as charming as a box of wet matches, was to set foot onto court a week from today, for a full diplomatic visit?
Luna shrugged. “I think they will. And Uranus is next.”
“Uranus? Luna, you must be joking. Ganymede and Uranus before Earth?”
Lowering her voice, Luna gripped Venus’s elbow. “Earth is out of the running. The Queen has not made it official yet, but she received some worrying reports and has decided to re-evaluate in a hundred years.”
“Does Serenity know?”
Luna laughed. “Oh, don’t I wish she would concern herself with the day-to-day Alliance business. Alas, no, she does not. This is confidential for now, so don’t tell her.”
Numbly, Venus nodded. “I won’t.” Kunzite would seethe. If this became common knowledge before she could talk to Jadeite, he would never marry Mars in secret. In fact, Venus was quite sure he would not marry her at all. Jadeite was not as proud as Kunzite, but even he would find it hard to bind himself to a woman who stood for a diplomatic attitude that favoured Ganymede over Earth.
And re-evaluation in a hundred years... Endymion and his men would be long dead by then.
“Shouldn’t you ask me what reports?” Luna prodded, her eyes gleaming with good gossip. Luna, in her position as the young princess’s counsellor, and the queen’s advisor, and with her ability to shape-shift into an inconspicuous cat, was one of the best sources for information in all of the Silver Alliance. The shape-shifting was a well-kept secret, allowing her to listen in on confidential meetings foreign delegations had after their audience with the Queen. Luna pricked her feline ears, reported back to Queen Serenity, and just like that the head of the Silver Alliance was always one step ahead of everyone else. Luckily, the senshi were a tight-knit group, so no word of the dalliance between Serenity the younger and Endymion had reached the Mauan’s ears. Venus was, however, quite sure that Luna knew about Jupiter and Nephrite. Everyone knew about Jupiter and Nephrite, and if Mars wouldn’t stop all the crying, then it wouldn’t be long before people began to catch onto that too.
“Fine, what reports?” Venus took the bite. In a perfect world, she would have heard about any and all things from the man whose bedroom she had just left, but Venus was a realist, and perfection out of reach.
Luna leaned closer, lowering her voice to a whisper.
“Our watchers have noticed that all across the planet, mountains have begun to spew fire. More and more each day!”
Unbelieveable, Venus thought. If anyone - other than Serenity - would have ever bothered to familiarise themselves with the Terran landscape, she would not have to stand in a cold, drafty hallway at this hour to explain volcanoes to Luna while all she really wanted to do was to lock herself in her room to mourn the demise of her doomed relationship.
“Luna, this is nothing special. These things are called volcanoes, they’re a common geographical feature down there. Mars has plenty of them too. This is no reason to stall Earth’s entry into the Silver Alliance.”
Luna waved her hand impatiently. “You don’t understand. They appear everywhere, even in areas that are covered with ice and snow. The watchers and the Queen do not care about the volcaenios-” Luna stumbled over the new word, “over the fire mountains,” she corrected herself, “that have always been there, but about the ones that appear in the middle of a city. Just like that!” She snapped her fingers.
A thought began to stir in the back of Venus’s head, and slowly, a puzzle piece fell into place.
“Is there an occurrence of this phenomenon in the East of the Golden Kingdom?”
Luna nodded. “One was found just last week underneath the sands of the Eternal Desert.”
“Ask the queen whether she wants me to teleport there. I’ll go in disguise, try to get a closer look than the watchers have from up here.”
Frowning, Luna asked: “Why?”
“What do you mean, why?”
“The decision has already been made, we are calling our dignitaries back, and then we wait. There is no need to go and investigate what is happening on Earth.”
And then it dawned on Venus that very much like Jupiter and Mars, she too had begun to slip up. Earth was special to them, but not to the Alliance, and certainly not the queen. For them it was just one uncivilised planet among many. For them, time was not an issue. Give or take a hundred years, what did it matter?
But Venus was not the leader of Serenity’s guard for nothing. Shrouding herself in the authority of her planet and position, she stood a little taller. “There is every need to go and investigate, Luna, because in case you have not noticed, we revolve around Earth. What if whatever is going on is contagious? What if it spreads?”
This gave Luna pause. “I will talk to Mercury, and, when necessary, broach it with the queen. If anyone goes down there, it’ll be you.”
“Thank you.”
***
He found Nephrite in an unpretentious tavern close to the palace. Nephrite hated courtiers, and was always much more at ease with soldiers, traders and farmers. Right now, he was earnestly discussing the advantages of some sort of crop over the other, while three other men nodded, agreeing with every word he said. Their table was overflowing with food and drink, all of which, Kunzite knew, Nephrite had paid for.
“--But this crop has one - and only one - disadvantage: it needs to be harvested before the autumn winds rise, otherwise it’s all for naught. But if you harvest at the right time, it’s a gold mine. It can feed hundreds, where another crop feeds ten. Excellent stuff.” Leaned back in his chair, his brown curls tied back in an unruly ponytail and with far more scruff than was befitting for a dignitary of Endymion, Nephrite looked completely at home. He wasn’t wearing his uniform, but instead dressed down in a brown tunic and leather pants, wearing a scandalously dirty and dusty pair of old boots. Of course, he was fooling no one. Everyone on Earth knew the faces of the four heavenly kings, but it barely mattered: the people loved Nephrite as if he were one of their own.
Kunzite knew that the same could not be said about him. Where people inched closer to Nephrite to catch his every word, they moved away from as he walked up to the table, their eyes carefully not meeting his.
He came to stand directly behind Nephrite, his shadow falling on the table.
“A word, please.”
“Kunzite!” Nephrite threw a charming smile over his shoulder and grabbed his mug of ale, parting from his farmer friends with one last toast. “To the Golden crop!”
“To the Golden crop!” the men repeated merrily and watched their new found friend leave. Nephrite threw one arm over Kunzite’s shoulder and thus guided them through the crowded tavern and through a small wooden door that led into a backroom. “Brother, what brings you here?”
Between barrels of ale and wine, and underneath some dried hams that were dangling from the ceiling, Kunzite shrugged Nephrite’s arm off.
“What’s wrong?” Nephrite asked, smile sliding off his large face.
Before answering him, Kunzite checked that the door was locked, and that the room was windowless. Satisfied that nobody could listen in on them, he turned to Nephrite.
“You took Jupiter to Elysion.”
There was no need to explain the magnitude of this error. The look on Nephrite’s face - shocked, contrite, ashamed, defiant - told Kunzite that his brother knew already. The mistake had been made and now Kunzite had to make sure that it would not find repetition.
Nephrite opened his mouth, but Kunzite held up a hand. “I am not interested in what you have to say for yourself.”
The two men stared at each other, and Nephrite’s face was as open and as easy to read as Kunzite’s was closed.
“If this happens again, I will have you put on trial for high treason, and I will execute you. Personally. And then I go after her. Are we clear?”
“You wouldn’t--- she’s a royal from another planet, you cannot touch her!” Nephrite took a step towards his commander, but before he could say another word or even raise his hand, Kunzite lifted his own and shot a burst of electricity from his fingertips. It hit Nephrite square in the chest, sending him flying backwards against the barrels. Nephrite looked down, shocked, his hand wandering to the hole in his tunic and the burned skin underneath. His fingers came away stained by blood.
“Make no mistake,” Kunzite said softly, “I can.”
***
Two weeks passed, and Zoisite and Jadeite remained gone. The palace was quieter without them around, and Kunzite, while by no means a sentimental man, found himself missing them.
Endymion was busy with Serenity, and when he was not, entirely occupied by his father’s demands on his time. The old king seemed to know that his clock was ticking, and had begun to take his son wherever he went, instructing him in the finer details and inner workings of the kingdom Endymion was set to inherit one day.
As a punishment for revealing Elysion to Jupiter, Kunzite would have liked nothing more than to send Nephrite on an expedition to the arctic, but that would leave Endymion with only one guardian. So he arranged for a busier schedule for Nephrite: training the newest members of the palace guard in the morning, accompanying Endymion and the king from noon till nightfall, and watching the stars till the wee hours of the morning. With only three or four hours of sleep every night, chances of him sneaking off to meet Jupiter were slim, and Kunzite hoped that his threat would make Nephrite obey, at least until his wounds had healed. He did not relish the idea of turning his blade on his brother and Jupiter, but he would do it if he had to.
Elysion was their last line of defense.
If Earth was ever under attack, Endymion could retreat into the holy country, where nothing and no one could lay a finger on him. In Elysion, his prince was safe, and Endymion’s safety was paramount. He was their future, their only hope. Without him, the Silver Alliance would not include Earth, but assimilate it.
It did not bear thinking about, the danger Nephrite had put their liege in. The magical properties of the senshi were strong, and while Jupiter was not the smartest of the four, he would not put it past her to find a way to enter the holy land on her own now that she had been taken there. He would have to talk to Venus: she had to make sure that Jupiter was never again tasked with retrieving the Moon princess from Earth, but after their last encounter, Venus had not appeared in his bedroom again. Only Mercury travelled to Earth these days, silently fetching Serenity while barely lifting her eyes from the floor. Where Kunzite had witnessed the childlike Moon princess protesting her planned return to her home planet with every other guardian, he was surprised to find that as soon as Mercury appeared, Serenity extricated herself from Endymion’s embrace, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. He did not understand why this was so, Mercury seemed like the weakest and least imposing of the princess’s guardians, but she was successful where even Venus had failed.
Venus.
Whom he had not seen for over three weeks. Another blank spot on the map.
With Endymion so busy, Jadeite and Zoisite gone, and Nephrite ignoring him, Kunzite suddenly found himself alone. He normally itched for every moment of quiet and solitude because the palace, especially when filled with Endymion’s guardians, was like the town square on market day. People running and shouting, something happening in every corner, and not a minute to himself. There was always something to do, someone to scold, but also someone to talk and laugh with. Now that all his companions were gone or otherwise occupied, Kunzite came to truly understand the role his brothers had in his life.
All decisions had to be made by him, with no one to consult with. Zoisite’s opinion, always invaluable, was missing. Jadeite’s jokes, tedious as they were, left the hallways silent in their absence. Nephrite’s easy smile and easier company meant that all roads were now travelled alone.
And still the reports came coming. More and more volcanoes each day. Sudden disappearances. Sights of dragons circling the sky over the new volcanoes in the East, and maelstroms as large as villages in the Sunshine Seas. Something was shifting in their world, and it set Kunzite’s teeth on edge. Trying to see the bigger picture, he compiled information, consulted with the king’s magicians and the advisors from all the smaller kingdoms, but nobody had the answer he was looking for.
All he knew was that something was coming their way, and when it hit them, Endymion needed to be safe in Elysion and if that safety had to be paid for with Nephrite’s and Jupiter’s heads, then so be it.
So be it.
*** End of the Interlude ***