Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Enemy Within? ❯ Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Do you seriously think that I'm writing this story for money? Excuse me while I laugh in your face, and sell you a fertile piece of land in the Sahara. Takeuchi-sama and Squaresoft own these characters. I own nothing. My lifestyle proves it. Case closed.

Chapter Two

Sephiroth returned home that night with a small smile on his face. The smile had quite a bit to do with the help he and Serin had given to Endymion, but it wasn't the main reason at all.

As if seeking a degree of reassurance, Sephiroth pulled out a small box from his coat pocket and simply stared at it for some time, as if anything about it had changed. With a shake of his head, the military commander dismissed that thought...but he couldn't deny that he was still extremely nervous about the directions that his future could go. He also couldn't deny that he didn't want a future without Hotaru at his side, as his wife.

So, he had gone out and spent a great degree of cash to get an appropriate engagement ring. He had taken Hotaru out on a number of occasions, having her try out various rings and mentally cataloguing the things that she said she liked. When the time finally came, Sephiroth had explicitly specified the custom ring that he wanted made: a golden band with a ring of flourite stones that were interwoven with strands of silver. Once he had all the required information he had, in true gentlemanly custom, requested Haruka and Michiru's permission and blessing to marry their adopted daughter.

A faint chuckle escaped his lips as he recalled the discussion that the wind senshi had put him through...

--------------------------------------------------------------- -------

Haruka stood in front of him, clad in her usual off-duty wear of jeans and a men's button down shirt. She stared at him for a moment, her gaze never wavering once. Sephiroth kept his head bowed, but his gaze occasionally stole glances at the masculine senshi, awaiting her verdict.

Michiru stood off to the side, watching this uncomfortable standoff, dressed in her own off-duty wear of a casual skirt and blouse ensemble. She had made no secret of her joy upon hearing the commander's request. She had been naturally been quick to give her approval to the union, but the water senshi also knew that her companion's approval would not be so easy to attain.

Finally, when it seemed that the silence would reach the breaking point, Haruka spoke: "Why do you want to marry Hotaru, Sephiroth?"

The commander looked up in surprise at what he thought was such an inane question, but stopped himself before he could speak. A strategist first and foremost, he could sense the trick to this question, and therefore planned his answer accordingly. When he felt he had an appropriate answer, Sephiroth replied, "I could say because I love her, which is true, but it's only one part of it." He took a deep breath, and then plunged ahead. "The real truth is that she has gone through many similar ordeals as I have-losing our mothers at a young age, watching our fathers descend into madness, and being utilized as guinea pigs for experiments. And...despite all of that, she...she's become such a strong woman."

Sephiroth then looked up at his soon-to-be-in-law. "It's because of that, that I love her so much. And...I promise to make her so happy, that those memories of the past will fade away. I...I only wish to have your blessing."

Haruka pursed her lips briefly, her serious gaze remaining on her face. "I don't know, Sephiroth. Quite frankly, I think there's still some things that make Hotaru too good for you. She's been through a lot, yes...and as her 'papa', I will do whatever it takes to keep her from getting hurt ever again."

Sephiroth blinked, then set his jaw. "If by that, you mean to refuse..."

Haruka raised an eyebrow challengingly. "Then what, Sephiroth? What do you plan to do? Beg?"

A flash of anger over Haruka's stubborness raced through the swordsman's mind, but he kept his tone civil, though cool and determined. "If you mean to refuse...then I will marry Hotaru anyway. With," and at that, he shot a glance at Michiru before returning it to her partner, "Or without your consent. And I will spend the rest of my life showing you just how wrong you are about me and my promise."

Haruka's eyes narrowed, and she stepped to within a foot of the military commander. Despite the slight difference in their heights, the wind senshi still managed to make an imposing sight that made Michiru ready to step in and break them apart if need be. Before too long, the tension was broken once more.

"I hope for your own sake you aren't lying, Sephiroth. Because if you hurt Hotaru in any way, I will make you pay for it twofold," Haruka said in an even tone.

It took a moment for the silver haired commander to process the words separately from the tone, but when he did, his eyes widened. "You..."

Haruka showed a small smile. "Yes. I give you my approval and blessing to make Hotaru-chan your wife. Just don't break your promise, okay?"

Overcome with gratitude, Sephiroth bowed deeply. "I...you have my word! I would sooner die than harm Hotaru. I...thank you so much, both of you!"

--------------------------------------------------------------- -------

The swordsman came out of his reverie just in time to realize that he was at his own quarters. Putting the ring box away, he opened the door and stepped inside. Taking a quick glance at the clock in his living room, Sephiroth was surprised to note that he only had an hour before Hotaru was supposed to arrive for dinner. Muttering a short curse, the swordsman rushed to the bathroom, stripping before he stepped into the shower. Fifteen minutes later, he stood in front of his mirror, fully dressed in a semi-formal white business shirt with a black sport jacket on top of it. As he brushed a few stray strands of lint from the fabric, a sudden wave of dizziness hit him. Struggling to stay upright, the commander grabbed the chest of drawers nearby as darkness overtook him, a faint cry escaping his lips...

And suddenly, he was upright. At least, he assumed so, as it was a bit hard to tell with no ground beneath him, and no visible surroundings to get his bearings. Frantically searching the area, the swordsman was bewildered, to say the least. His eyes quickly adjusted to the inky blackness, and he was able to make out a shape approaching soundlessly.

A grimace briefly crossed his face as he realized that he had no weapon. With a slight shrug, Sephiroth brought his hands up in a relaxed defensive posture, and called out, "Who's there?!"

The figure appeared to pause briefly, then resumed its approach. Try as he might, Sephiroth could still not make out who it was, and a trace of anger crept into his voice. "If you do not identify yourself, I will force it out of you! Now speak!!"

Silence greeted him until the silhouette was within a few feet. As it stopped, a low, mocking laugh began to emanate from all around him. The laughter grew in volume, straining Sephiroth's patience to the breaking point. With a roar of anger, the swordsman leapt at his tormentor...or at least, he tried to. Unfortunately, the lack of ground beneath his feet considerably hindered his movement, and he was unable to do anything more than flail wildly in midair.

It was at this point that the silhouette stepped into the light...or perhaps chose to reveal itself. And despite all that he had seen and witnessed, Sephiroth could not help but gasp in utter shock at the sight.

The man who stood in front of him was, for all intents and purposes, his identical twin. Dressed in Sephiroth's trademark trench coat, and wielding a blade that bore more than a passing resemblance to his fabled Masamune, it wasn't until the swordsman looked into his double's eyes that he saw a difference. Where his own eyes were friendly, yet intense, this doppleganger's own orbs were filled with what could charitably be called fanatic hatred.

The faux Sephiroth grinned coldly, and reached back into the darkness, pulling forward another person, which he deposited roughly between the two of them...

"Hotaru!" Sephiroth screamed. His love had cuts and bruises all over her body, and several portions of her fuku looked like they had seen better days.

"Hotaru, wake up! Please, wake up!" the warrior pleaded. A sigh of relief escaped his lips as the senshi of silence stirred, opened her eyes, and gazed at her love.

"S...Seph...kun...I..." she whispered.

A whisper of movement caught Sephiroth's eye, and he glanced up in time to see his clone raising its blade. The warrior was too stunned to even attempt to move, but he managed to scream, "NO!!!" just as his double tensed, bringing the sword down with a sharp whistle...

..."NO!!!" he screamed, jerking awake. His eyes again frantically scanned the area, his relief only abating slightly as he realized that he was in his apartment again.

"Sephiroth?"

The innocent question caused the warrior to jerk unconsciously as he turned around, clambering to his feet. "Oh, uh...hi, Hotaru."

Hotaru, dressed in a conservative dark purple party dress, frowned in deep concern at Sephiroth. "What happened? You didn't answer your door, and when I came in, you were lying on the floor out cold. And now, all of a sudden you woke up screaming."

Sephiroth blinked several times as he gathered his thoughts. Truth be told, even he wasn't sure what had happened-a dream it may have been, but the implications...he shuddered briefly before getting himself under control. Glancing at his love's face, he could easily see that she had been deeply frightened by finding him in this state. There was, naturally, no sense in frightening her further.

Summoning what he hoped was a convincing smile, he replied, "Sorry Hotaru-chan. I...guess I've just been working too hard. I was just standing around, getting some lint off my jacket, and...well, just kinda blacked out." Walking over, he hugged her gently. "Sorry to have worried you."

He could tell, due to the pause before she returned his embrace, that she didn't believe him. Keeping his mind blank, he tried not to send any troubling thoughts through their psychic link, despite the tentative probing he could feel from her. Pulling back briefly, he gave a genuine smile. "So, dear senshi of silence; what do I have to do to convince you that I'm fine?"

Hotaru blinked for a moment, then got an impish grin on her face. "Kiss me, you dope," she said, swatting him playfully for effect.

Her beau laughed and proceeded to do just that, thankful that he had distracted her from his troublesome dream. He was certain that that's all it was. He'd had a bad scare, but it was over now.

--------------------------------------------------------------- ---------

Only a half-hour later, the two of them sat in a posh restaurant, laughing and softly talking as they enjoyed their meal. Hotaru was enjoying one of her favorite foods, soba with tempura, while Sephiroth went a more American route, and was partaking in a 7 oz steak with a baked potato.

As the evening wore on, Hotaru closely watched Sephiroth as he fiddled with the last remnants of his food. Her brow creased with confusion as he glanced up at her, jumped when he saw that she was looking at him, and then quickly averted his gaze again.

'Strange,' she thought. 'He's never acted like this before...I wonder what's got him so nervous? Did he get some new assignment or something? Or could it be...?' Before she could dwell on the matter any more, her love cleared his throat, and seemingly reluctantly sat up straight.

"U, um...Hotaru-chan..." Sephiroth started.

The senshi of silence smiled at her beau. "What is it, Seph-kun?"

With that smile, bit by bit, the commander could feel his confidence fleeing him every second. Biting his lip, he tried to regain the upper hand and continue.

'It's not gonna work, it's not gonna work, you're gonna sound like an idiot,' he could hear the nagging doubts shout in his mind. But at the same time, what little confidence he had retaliated with, 'But you know that there's no way in Hades that she's going to say no. And besides, she said before that she loves you for you, right? So just SAY IT already!!!'

With that burst of confidence, Sephiroth continued with his speech; "I, uh...I had a talk with your parents not too long ago. We, uh...we talked about quite a few things-like what my intentions are, and how you're too good for me..."

Hotaru frowned deeply at that, but her displeasure wasn't directed anywhere near her boyfriend. 'That sounds an awful lot like something Haruka-papa would say...I think I need to have a talk with her after Sephiroth drops me off at home...'

Unaware that his future fiancee wasn't listening at the moment, Sephiroth spoke on and on in his little circles, until finally, Hotaru returned to her senses in time to hear: "...which brings me to this date...well, this moment."

Hotaru felt a sense of apprehension in her chest. 'Did Haruka-papa or Michiru-mama tell him to break up with me? No, please tell me that...Wait...if that was the case, he was far too happy about going out with me tonight, so...'

Sephiroth, unaware of his fiancee's monologue, slid out of the chair, came around the table, and knelt beside her. Taking her left hand, the swordsman simultaneously pulled out his small surprise, and with one deft movement, pulled the ring out of its case, placing it on her finger. With a surprising amount of strength behind his words, he whispered, "Hotaru Tomoe...Sailor Saturn. I would be most honored and delighted...if you would be my wife. Will<deep breath>will you marry me?"

The next several moments seemed to drag on and on for Sephiroth as he patiently awaited Hotaru's answer. He was firm on his unspoken pledge not to probe Hotaru's mind, so he remained in his kneeling position, and began praying, 'Please, anyone up there who may be listening...please make her say yes...'

Hotaru, for her own part, could only hear those last four words reverberating in her head. It was as if time had stopped and there was a complete vacuum around her, keeping any other sounds from shattering the spell she had just been put under. Needless to say, this was a complete surprise, despite the talking that they had done on that subject before. Even when Sephiroth had listened attentively as Hotaru tried on different rings, verbally cataloguing the pros and cons of each one, she still hadn't expected this so soon.

And yet, Hotaru knew that this was what they had both wanted for so long...for too long, in the senshi's case. A faint smile appeared on her lips as her eyes watered with joyful tears. She knew that it was such a cliche, but she understood now what the other senshi were talking about when they spoke of the magic moment. Certain that her voice was going to break, but beyond caring, she said, "Aishiteru, Sephiroth...and yes, I would love for nothing more than to be your wife."

It was at that moment that Sephiroth slumped, letting a huge breath of relief. He looked back up at his fiancee with a silly grin on his face. "Despite how well we know each other, I had my doubts there for a moment..." the swordsman admitted as he gave a tender kiss to Hotaru's hand while returning to his seat.

The senshi of silence got an absolutely wicked grin on her face at that moment. "Really? Then I guess I'll have to make sure I permanently cure those doubts..."

The tone, not to mention her words, threw her beloved for a loop. "Eh? What do you...huh?!?" he uttered while jerking to a ramrod stiff position as Hotaru's foot ran along his lower body...especially...

A fine sheen of sweat appeared on Sephiroth's brow, which he attempted to relieve with a glass of water. "U, uh...Hotaru-chan, there's...people around..."

The young woman giggled playfully. "Then I guess we'd better go somewhere where there aren't any people, hm? I don't know about you, but I've lost my appetite for this food..." she answered in a seductive tone.

A little suspicious about the sudden change, Sephiroth asked, "Um...Hotaru-chan, are you alright?"

Hotaru smiled genuinely at her fiance's concern. "I'm fine, love. But if you don't hurry up and finish your dinner, then you'll have to wait until our honeymoon to collect on the prize I'm offering." She finished with a wink, and her foot teased Sephiroth's lower body again.

That was all the motivation her boyfriend needed to call for the check, pay, and practically drag his fiancee out of the restaurant, both of them laughing out the door at their own exuberance.

--------------------------------------------------------------- ------

The next morning...

Serenity slowly awoke from a restful, giddy sleep. Even though the power of the Ginzuishou gave everyone in the city of Crystal Tokyo virtual immortality, birthdays failed to lose their significance...particularly when it came to a certain odango-haired monarch.

Giggling with barely restrained exuberance, Serenity sat up, stretched, and turned to the other lump in bed. "Mamo-chan..." she crooned softly, almost teasingly.

A low grunt was the only response from the king, and Serenity laughed softly. "Mamo-chan, wake up. You aren't going to sleep the whole day away, are you?"

Endymion rolled over with a groan, blinked a couple of times to adjust his eyes, and smiled at his wife. "Three hundred and sixty four days out of the year, you don't get out of bed before noon. When your birthday rolls around, however..."

"Three hundred and sixty THREE," Serenity corrected with a touch of indignance. "I get up early for Christmas too."

Endymion flat out grinned. "That's only because our daughter wakes up at the crack of dawn and drops the alarm clock on both of our heads to wake us up, Usa-ko."

Serenity laughed. "Okay, but still..."

It was at this moment that their chamber doors flew open, allowing a pink comet to come barreling through before launching itself into the air and landing with a soft 'poomf' on both occupants. "Morning, Mom and Dad!"

Endymion grunted playfully, acting as though his daughter was heavier than she really was. "Oof! Usa-chan, you weigh a ton! What'd you do, put bricks in your pockets?"

Chibi-usa(now known more commonly as Usa-chan, especially by her friends and family), glared at her father. While six years ago(had it really been that long, Endymion thought) the effect was comical at best(and irritating to Usagi at worst), it now had the effect of conveying genuine anger...for those who didn't know better, at least.

Serenity sat up and ruffled her daughter's hair. "Hey spore, what's the occasion?"

The glare that the princess had been directing at her father suddenly zeroed in on its new target, but only for a moment. Where Usagi might have truly meant that in the past when Chibi-usa dropped in for her unannounced visits, here it became one of her many terms of affection.

Smiling at her mother, she said, "Well, I just wanted to be the first person to wish you a happy birthday, Mom!"

"Oh darn. You beat me out by a few seconds, Usa-chan," Endymion said with mock regret.

Serenity giggled playfully. "Thank you, both of you. That really means a lot."

Endymion kissed his wife's cheek a couple of times, and in response, she turned and kissed him deeply before a sense of deja vu came over them, starting with the words, "Hey, you two, cool off!"

Usa-chan grabbed her Luna-P ball, which had transformed itself into a squirt gun, and shot a couple of jets of ice cold water at the two of them, drawing shrieks from the queen, and laughter from the king. She was only able to keep it up for a moment, however, before Serenity wrested the squirt gun from her daughter and began to mercilessly tickle her. This sent the princess into a hysterical fit, until she finally screamed, "Uncle, UNCLE!!! HAHAHAAA!!!"

Only then did Serenity allow her daughter up from the humorous torture. For her part, Usa-chan acted for a moment as if she was going to resume squirting her parents, but instead only picked up Luna-P, and gave her mother a kiss. "Happy Birthday again, Mom."

Endymion cut in at this moment, saying, "Usa-chan, why don't you take a shower real quick? We've all got to have one before your mother's birthday can really start."

"Okay, Dad! I'll be out in a minute!" And with those words, the princess headed for her parent's bathroom.

Serenity sighed and leaned back. "She is such a sweet daughter. It's almost hard to believe that I thought she was such a pain all those years ago."

Endymion grinned. "I don't believe you stopped at just 'pain', love."

A playful punch to the arm was his only answer before the queen rose from their bed and pulled the drapes open, staring out at the cityscape below the palace. Endymion followed his wife's example, and rose from bed as well, walking up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. The queen sighed and snuggled against her husband's chest as they continued to admire the view.

"Two years of peace," Serenity whispered. "I almost feel like the events from before are nothing more than a bad dream, and yet..."

Endymion gave the queen a gentle squeeze. "Hey, now...everyone knows the truth. They know that it wasn't you giving all those scurrilous orders. And it's obvious that they still trust you."

Serenity nodded, reflecting on the day she had returned to Crystal Tokyo...truly returned. The first thing she had done was explain to everyone in the city what had truly happened. Her explanation had been finished with saying that if the citizenry did not trust her and wished to have her step down, then she would do so.

There had been a unanimous vote: their queen would always remain their queen.

Endymion kissed Serenity's cheek. "Come on, Usa-ko, it's your birthday. Let's not have any gloom-and-doom talk, okay?"

Serenity smiled and kissed her husband back. "Okay, Mamo-chan." Slipping out of her love's embrace, she headed for the bathroom, and looked back over her shoulder. "Aren't you going to join me?"

The king grinned. "And do our part for water conservation?" he teased.

"Oh, you're horrible!" the queen responded, her words at odds with the smile on her face.

Raising an eyebrow, Endymion corrected, "Not as horrible as when we first met."

The memory caused Serenity to bust out laughing. "Haha...That...that wasn't funny, either, hehehe."

"Hey, you were the one who got the 30 on that test, not me," he responded with a grin. With that, Endymion rushed up, scooping his wife into his arms. "Well, as much as I'd like to reminisce about all the times we lovingly insulted each other, I have a big day planned for you, so we'd better get our shower out of the way."

Remembering what he'd said earlier, along with his current choice of words, piqued Serenity's curiousity. "You have a big day planned for me? What about...?" She stopped as Endymion placed his finger on her lips.

"Let's...just say that it's taken care of," he answered vaguely.

Torn between pressing for details, and spoiling the surprise, Serenity decided to let bygones be bygones, and simply held her peace as they entered the bathroom.