Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ The Embers of a Flame ❯ What kind of princess? ( Chapter 5 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: himitsu-no-hi 
Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Angst | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.27.2002 | Pages: 1 | Words: 2.0K | Visits: 217 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Drama / Angst | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.27.2002 | Pages: 1 | Words: 2.0K | Visits: 217 | Status: Work In Progress
The Embers of a Flame ~ Chapter 5
By Himitsu no Hi
It was a cold morning on Mars as Rei hurried up the Sacred Shrine steps. Pausing for a second to regain her breath she glanced up at the towering oak doors of the fire temple, the gentle glow which seeped through the small nooks and crannies reminded her of her grandmother's special room on the Moon; now the Moon princess had been born she may be able to visit the room once more, perhaps when she eventually went to live in the Lunarian palace her mother would teacher her to read the fires and she could practice by Harmony's scared flames until she could perform the ritual perfectly.
That thought brought a smile to her face as she reached up, quietly easing open the doors. Gazing inside her violet eyes rested upon the welcome sight of her mother,
"Mama, I just heard the news about the baby, isn't it great? The maid told me you were here-are we leaving for the Moon kingdom now?"
Eris turned slowly, exhaustion apparent in her features, although she had always considered fire reading a gift, continuous efforts could swiftly drain away all of a person's energy. The queen motioned for Rei to come and sit by her. The princess walked cautiously into the holy place, not daring to make a noise as she came to sit by her mother. Eris smiled at Rei, brushing a hand gently through the young senshi's raven locks,
"We will be leaving soon, but first there is something important I must tell you about..."
Eris' gaze turned to the flames, her weary face seemed to glow with life and vivacity as the light danced in her eyes,
"Fire bird, since you were old enough to walk I have been bringing you to the sacred fires, do you know why?" She continued in a serious tone, Rei shook her head in the negative,
"I have always known that one day you would become the next sailor Mars, solider of War and Passion. You know that you have the power of fire within you, for you can feel as I can feel it, burning strongly in your heart, with that power you will have the strength and courage to succeed in all that your heart believes in... But being a warrior of Mars you have another gift. A gift more precious than fire and in many ways more powerful. It is time now Rei hime, for you to awaken this power, time for you to look into the flames," Eris had never looked more regal to her daughter than at that moment, almost as if the fires could sense her praise and rewarded her with a beauty and grace that surpassed all others, "ask them to reveal to you their secrets... and if you are patient they will show to you all that has been, all that is and all that will be..."
Rei's eyes flickered towards the roaring flames, her whole body quivered in anticipation; mama was letting her read the fires now? She shook thoughts of how jealous Yuuichirou would be and how she would tell her new friends of her experience, from her mind as her face became stoic with determination. As she concentrated upon the dancing flames her thoughts, her gaze, her senses lost themselves to their light and warmth. Many believe fire to be nothing but a vicious destroyer of life a powerful force merciless, cruel and undiscriminating in its madness, but to Rei the flames gave life, they symbolised the great passions, the joys, indeed the very spirit of existence, warm and inviting like a mother's embrace. A new sensation surrounded her, one of calm and harmony; she had sat and watched the fires before as her mother gazed into them, but never had she felt this way. Violet orbs glistened with the lively light of the flames; they beckoned to her, bending back and forth calling her to delve into the secrets they held. The young princess closed her eyes and focused on the heat of the flames,
'Tell me what you know, please reveal to me your secrets...'
Suddenly the fire roared to twice its height, Rei felt the flames that run through her own heart soar as images flashed before her.
Wide-eyed Rei turned to face her mother almost throwing herself into Eris' arms, fear and worry consuming her features,
"Mama, the princess, the light, was consumed by darkness, mama! Don't let them hurt the princess!"
Eris wrapped her arms around her daughter, pulling her into a tight embrace, after a moment she began to speak once more,
"This is your gift fire bird, within these flames you can see the evil that wishes to dim the light, you can sense the darkness as it approaches and with this knowledge, this power you can and must stand up and protect the light from whatever wishes to destroy it."
"But mama, how? How will I know what to do? I'm so small compared to the darkness..."
"When the time comes Rei hime, you will be ready... you must remember, no matter how difficult a task seems you can conquer it if you fight with all your heart and soul, call upon those who stand with you for with your friends by your side you will be invincible." Eris' expression became distant as her tiredness reasserted itself in her features,
"I too have seen what you have seen; darkness is invading our Moon kingdom fire bird, it has remained hidden for so long-perhaps it will soon reveal itself, but as doctrine commands the senshi's powers are taken after the ceremony of their heirs, only my spiritual gift remains-we are all now too weak to fight. It is left to you and the new senshi to save the light from the darkness..."
~~~~~~~
"Congratulations Queen Serenity!" Four small senshi called out in unison as they hurried into the queen's room in the Moon Palace. Serenity turned as they called to her, revealing the baby she held in her arms,
"I've been waiting for you," she replied beckoning them to her,
"Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and Venus-Princess Serenity's Four Guardian Goddesses!" the queen exclaimed. Vibrant smiles spread across all four young faces; Venus stepped forward, as the senshi bowed down on one knee before the queen,
"Queen the day has come. As leader of the four guardian's of the Moon princess I promise that we will protect her always so that one day she may take her place on the throne and become queen!"
Queen Serenity nodded, her bright smile unfaltering as she lay her child down in a cot so that the princesses could see her. The four senshi gathered around the baby,
"She's so tiny" Jupiter remarked
"She'll grow soon and catch up with you." Serenity replied
"Its so exciting" Venus grinned
"I wonder what kind of princess she'll be..." Mars mused as she gazed at the tiny giggling form buried under soft warm blankets.
"Congratulations Serenity!" Aphrodite called entering the room, a large bunch of orange coloured flowers spilling from her hands
"To you!" the queens of Mars, Mercury and Jupiter chimed in unison, each holding a gift of their own for the moon queen. A great cheer echoed throughout the room as Serenity embraced her friends. As they parted a suddenly feeling of dread and coldness took hold of Eris, her eyes widened as they glanced around the room,
"Dark energy" she spoke softly, her eyes staring distantly into the shadows.
"Let me in... On this celebration!" a raspy voice called from the dimness of the room, interrupting their celebration. The senshi instinctively moved in front of the Queen and her baby as the voice spoke once more,
"The biggest event on the moon and you forgot me?!"
The uninvited guest, moved forward into view, dragging her black shadow. Indeed she was a creature of evil, as dark as Serenity was light. Endless hair as black as night curled around her lithe figure, tied on top in tight odangos, upon her forehead were three glowing upturned crescent moons of ebony.
" You-Tainting our holy palace! Who are you?!" Venus ordered moving forward as if to repel the darkness. The strange woman only smiled,
"I live here too! I came from within the deep moon."
"You're lying, you don't live here!" Jupiter yelled her eyes flashing. Mars stood quietly beside a rather frightened Mercury, staring at the shadow woman, the uninvited one, her mother's words from earlier that day slipping into her thoughts,
"Its you isn't it," she began almost silently, her voice gaining volume and conviction as she continued, her arm outstretched pointing accusingly "invading our moon! A monstrosity of evil spreading the darkness!!"
Serenity stepped forward, motioning for Venus to watch the princess, before she spoke, her voice gentle yet firm,
"If you seek peace... I shall welcome you...but I cannot let u bring evil and darkness!"
"Silly you..." replied the dark creature,
"You too have come from another galaxy. We share the same origin. Welcome the darkness..."
No one had known that the power of light attracts the darkness. No one had known of the shadows that lived deep within the bright moon.
The words of the shadow woman wrapped themselves around Serenity's mind; her arm began to rise, her palm opening as if to do as told and receive the darkness. Mars watched, uncertainty and worry building in her heart, she could sense the others around her; a bond had formed between them at the ceremony, an unbreakable cord that held them together eternally, a bond which now told her that they were as afraid yet as helpless as she felt. Rei wanted her mother to stop the evil, to save the light, she didn't know what to do, she wanted someone to help, someone to do something... and then someone did.
'Princess Mars... do not be swayed by indecision, by fear-let your heart and spirit guide you -I am always here, do not be afraid...'
A strange courage came to her then, a natural strength, which came from deep within, a passion, which Rei would always hold to. Her friends stood by her side and she found the valour to act. Mars glared at the dark aura that encircled the Queen, she felt the energy build within her, her gift to sense the darkness stirred and reaching out her palm she yelled,
"Freakish one! Vanish at once! Aku Ryo Tai San!" A stream of fire released from her fingertips, penetrating the dark aura with its light and warmth. A small attack, true, but it was enough. She blinked, amazed at herself.
The dark woman moved backwards her hypnosis interrupted by the sudden interference; her eyes glazed over a she spoke once again,
"Fools...With the light comes darkness. The dark calls the light...as the light calls upon the dark!!"
Her arms flew out to her sides, an almighty gust of wind gathered around her, spiralling into a cyclone of shadow. The senshi pulled back, making a protective wall around the moon princess, as the darkness grew, unsure as to what was happening. The queen however stood tall, raising her moon wand against the creature, she released the light of the Silver Crystal. The brightness spread out like moonbeams penetrating the night,
"I shall seal you away...in the darkness forever!" she cried, pushing the shadow creature to the furthest corner of her room, towards a golden mirror which stood there. A final cry came from the shadow woman as her dark soul was locked away inside of the reflective glass,
"A gift from me!! Take it!!! My beautiful curse!! This kingdom will cease to exist. The princess will die before she sees her throne. That is my gift to you!"
As if in proof of the curse, the baby princess began to cry...
Author's babble:
Thankies for the review Twiglet! ^-^ If its any consolation for your dislike of Chad/Yuuichirou-this is not a Rei/Chad pairing! Jadeite will make an appearance later on in the story!
Until next time~
H.n.H
By Himitsu no Hi
It was a cold morning on Mars as Rei hurried up the Sacred Shrine steps. Pausing for a second to regain her breath she glanced up at the towering oak doors of the fire temple, the gentle glow which seeped through the small nooks and crannies reminded her of her grandmother's special room on the Moon; now the Moon princess had been born she may be able to visit the room once more, perhaps when she eventually went to live in the Lunarian palace her mother would teacher her to read the fires and she could practice by Harmony's scared flames until she could perform the ritual perfectly.
That thought brought a smile to her face as she reached up, quietly easing open the doors. Gazing inside her violet eyes rested upon the welcome sight of her mother,
"Mama, I just heard the news about the baby, isn't it great? The maid told me you were here-are we leaving for the Moon kingdom now?"
Eris turned slowly, exhaustion apparent in her features, although she had always considered fire reading a gift, continuous efforts could swiftly drain away all of a person's energy. The queen motioned for Rei to come and sit by her. The princess walked cautiously into the holy place, not daring to make a noise as she came to sit by her mother. Eris smiled at Rei, brushing a hand gently through the young senshi's raven locks,
"We will be leaving soon, but first there is something important I must tell you about..."
Eris' gaze turned to the flames, her weary face seemed to glow with life and vivacity as the light danced in her eyes,
"Fire bird, since you were old enough to walk I have been bringing you to the sacred fires, do you know why?" She continued in a serious tone, Rei shook her head in the negative,
"I have always known that one day you would become the next sailor Mars, solider of War and Passion. You know that you have the power of fire within you, for you can feel as I can feel it, burning strongly in your heart, with that power you will have the strength and courage to succeed in all that your heart believes in... But being a warrior of Mars you have another gift. A gift more precious than fire and in many ways more powerful. It is time now Rei hime, for you to awaken this power, time for you to look into the flames," Eris had never looked more regal to her daughter than at that moment, almost as if the fires could sense her praise and rewarded her with a beauty and grace that surpassed all others, "ask them to reveal to you their secrets... and if you are patient they will show to you all that has been, all that is and all that will be..."
Rei's eyes flickered towards the roaring flames, her whole body quivered in anticipation; mama was letting her read the fires now? She shook thoughts of how jealous Yuuichirou would be and how she would tell her new friends of her experience, from her mind as her face became stoic with determination. As she concentrated upon the dancing flames her thoughts, her gaze, her senses lost themselves to their light and warmth. Many believe fire to be nothing but a vicious destroyer of life a powerful force merciless, cruel and undiscriminating in its madness, but to Rei the flames gave life, they symbolised the great passions, the joys, indeed the very spirit of existence, warm and inviting like a mother's embrace. A new sensation surrounded her, one of calm and harmony; she had sat and watched the fires before as her mother gazed into them, but never had she felt this way. Violet orbs glistened with the lively light of the flames; they beckoned to her, bending back and forth calling her to delve into the secrets they held. The young princess closed her eyes and focused on the heat of the flames,
'Tell me what you know, please reveal to me your secrets...'
Suddenly the fire roared to twice its height, Rei felt the flames that run through her own heart soar as images flashed before her.
Wide-eyed Rei turned to face her mother almost throwing herself into Eris' arms, fear and worry consuming her features,
"Mama, the princess, the light, was consumed by darkness, mama! Don't let them hurt the princess!"
Eris wrapped her arms around her daughter, pulling her into a tight embrace, after a moment she began to speak once more,
"This is your gift fire bird, within these flames you can see the evil that wishes to dim the light, you can sense the darkness as it approaches and with this knowledge, this power you can and must stand up and protect the light from whatever wishes to destroy it."
"But mama, how? How will I know what to do? I'm so small compared to the darkness..."
"When the time comes Rei hime, you will be ready... you must remember, no matter how difficult a task seems you can conquer it if you fight with all your heart and soul, call upon those who stand with you for with your friends by your side you will be invincible." Eris' expression became distant as her tiredness reasserted itself in her features,
"I too have seen what you have seen; darkness is invading our Moon kingdom fire bird, it has remained hidden for so long-perhaps it will soon reveal itself, but as doctrine commands the senshi's powers are taken after the ceremony of their heirs, only my spiritual gift remains-we are all now too weak to fight. It is left to you and the new senshi to save the light from the darkness..."
~~~~~~~
"Congratulations Queen Serenity!" Four small senshi called out in unison as they hurried into the queen's room in the Moon Palace. Serenity turned as they called to her, revealing the baby she held in her arms,
"I've been waiting for you," she replied beckoning them to her,
"Mercury, Mars, Jupiter and Venus-Princess Serenity's Four Guardian Goddesses!" the queen exclaimed. Vibrant smiles spread across all four young faces; Venus stepped forward, as the senshi bowed down on one knee before the queen,
"Queen the day has come. As leader of the four guardian's of the Moon princess I promise that we will protect her always so that one day she may take her place on the throne and become queen!"
Queen Serenity nodded, her bright smile unfaltering as she lay her child down in a cot so that the princesses could see her. The four senshi gathered around the baby,
"She's so tiny" Jupiter remarked
"She'll grow soon and catch up with you." Serenity replied
"Its so exciting" Venus grinned
"I wonder what kind of princess she'll be..." Mars mused as she gazed at the tiny giggling form buried under soft warm blankets.
"Congratulations Serenity!" Aphrodite called entering the room, a large bunch of orange coloured flowers spilling from her hands
"To you!" the queens of Mars, Mercury and Jupiter chimed in unison, each holding a gift of their own for the moon queen. A great cheer echoed throughout the room as Serenity embraced her friends. As they parted a suddenly feeling of dread and coldness took hold of Eris, her eyes widened as they glanced around the room,
"Dark energy" she spoke softly, her eyes staring distantly into the shadows.
"Let me in... On this celebration!" a raspy voice called from the dimness of the room, interrupting their celebration. The senshi instinctively moved in front of the Queen and her baby as the voice spoke once more,
"The biggest event on the moon and you forgot me?!"
The uninvited guest, moved forward into view, dragging her black shadow. Indeed she was a creature of evil, as dark as Serenity was light. Endless hair as black as night curled around her lithe figure, tied on top in tight odangos, upon her forehead were three glowing upturned crescent moons of ebony.
" You-Tainting our holy palace! Who are you?!" Venus ordered moving forward as if to repel the darkness. The strange woman only smiled,
"I live here too! I came from within the deep moon."
"You're lying, you don't live here!" Jupiter yelled her eyes flashing. Mars stood quietly beside a rather frightened Mercury, staring at the shadow woman, the uninvited one, her mother's words from earlier that day slipping into her thoughts,
"Its you isn't it," she began almost silently, her voice gaining volume and conviction as she continued, her arm outstretched pointing accusingly "invading our moon! A monstrosity of evil spreading the darkness!!"
Serenity stepped forward, motioning for Venus to watch the princess, before she spoke, her voice gentle yet firm,
"If you seek peace... I shall welcome you...but I cannot let u bring evil and darkness!"
"Silly you..." replied the dark creature,
"You too have come from another galaxy. We share the same origin. Welcome the darkness..."
No one had known that the power of light attracts the darkness. No one had known of the shadows that lived deep within the bright moon.
The words of the shadow woman wrapped themselves around Serenity's mind; her arm began to rise, her palm opening as if to do as told and receive the darkness. Mars watched, uncertainty and worry building in her heart, she could sense the others around her; a bond had formed between them at the ceremony, an unbreakable cord that held them together eternally, a bond which now told her that they were as afraid yet as helpless as she felt. Rei wanted her mother to stop the evil, to save the light, she didn't know what to do, she wanted someone to help, someone to do something... and then someone did.
'Princess Mars... do not be swayed by indecision, by fear-let your heart and spirit guide you -I am always here, do not be afraid...'
A strange courage came to her then, a natural strength, which came from deep within, a passion, which Rei would always hold to. Her friends stood by her side and she found the valour to act. Mars glared at the dark aura that encircled the Queen, she felt the energy build within her, her gift to sense the darkness stirred and reaching out her palm she yelled,
"Freakish one! Vanish at once! Aku Ryo Tai San!" A stream of fire released from her fingertips, penetrating the dark aura with its light and warmth. A small attack, true, but it was enough. She blinked, amazed at herself.
The dark woman moved backwards her hypnosis interrupted by the sudden interference; her eyes glazed over a she spoke once again,
"Fools...With the light comes darkness. The dark calls the light...as the light calls upon the dark!!"
Her arms flew out to her sides, an almighty gust of wind gathered around her, spiralling into a cyclone of shadow. The senshi pulled back, making a protective wall around the moon princess, as the darkness grew, unsure as to what was happening. The queen however stood tall, raising her moon wand against the creature, she released the light of the Silver Crystal. The brightness spread out like moonbeams penetrating the night,
"I shall seal you away...in the darkness forever!" she cried, pushing the shadow creature to the furthest corner of her room, towards a golden mirror which stood there. A final cry came from the shadow woman as her dark soul was locked away inside of the reflective glass,
"A gift from me!! Take it!!! My beautiful curse!! This kingdom will cease to exist. The princess will die before she sees her throne. That is my gift to you!"
As if in proof of the curse, the baby princess began to cry...
Author's babble:
Thankies for the review Twiglet! ^-^ If its any consolation for your dislike of Chad/Yuuichirou-this is not a Rei/Chad pairing! Jadeite will make an appearance later on in the story!
Until next time~
H.n.H