Luna listened to what Jupiter was saying and honestly she was right. "I have noticed a change in Princess Serenity, but whenever I try to talk to her about it or see what's going on she shuts me out." Luna said, "I believe she's afraid to talk to me because I'm also the adviser to the queen, her mother." Jupiter had gone to check on some rice and then continued to speak.

She was making some really good points and Luna had to agree that someone should talk to Princess Serenity and it was becoming clear that Luna probably wasn't the right one to do it. "Jupiter, I think you should talk to her." Luna said, "You have a unique way of getting her attention and I think she could really open up to you. At the least it won't hurt to try." Luna smiled at Jupiter. "Just tell me when you're planning to talk to her and I'll make sure that I'm not around."

--Timeskip--
Their trek into the wooded mountainside had gone rather well; while it had taken them some time to reach their current location, the morning had been almost relaxing as they traipsed through the underbrush, enjoying the morning air as their guide directed them forward. They had had a short meal before noontime as the man explained that they were about to enter the territory most overrun with the wild wolves, and, once assured that they could find their own way back, he returned to his village on their request. There was no need to endanger the man. 

They continued on confidently; using their tracking skills they found the trail of an injured doe, and believing the wolves to be not too far from the creature's final resting place they followed the tracks. But as they were hunting the wolves, they had little reason to believe that they, too, we being hunted.

The great beast before him had launched itself off of a rocky outcropping not too far ahead, and sprinted down the path at incredible speeds towards them, its mouth agape, sharp teeth bared, as its one murderous eye focused on them. Endymion had made it stop, but the constant snarls and aggression had not abated.




Endymion stood still, his hand hovering mere inches away from his quiver as he held the gaze of the wolf. He barely dared to breathe, the world swimming in his periphery as he concentrated solely on the grey eye of the wolf that crouched, snarling, before him. Somehow catching the beast's gaze had slowed its approach, had kept it in place, but it was becoming more difficult to keep its attention focused on him. Every time one of his companions so much as twitched towards their weapons, the great grey monster would react, lurching towards them - he had been able to keep it grounded with a quick tsk! of air through is teeth and his intense gaze. His mind was blank but for mental directions aimed for the wolf: stay, and do no harm. 

He did not know what they could do at this point. If this were an alpha or even a beta wolf, others would be coming to its aide or to share in its feast, else following the path behind it in search of the injured deer they had found. They might be surrounded at this very moment, and unable to move for the threat of this great wolf. If he could keep it still... if they could move either so slow it did not notice, or so fast it could not escape, they might be able to prepare before the rest of the hungry pack was upon them.

As Sailor Mars turned to leave the Princess' room, she found herself face to face with Sailor Mercury. How long had she been standing there? Had she witnessed the entire scene? However, Mercury didn't seem bothered by what she'd seen or heard - she seemed uncharacteristically worried about something else entirely. The blue senshi was afraid that Serenity was hiding something from them... Great, Mars thought. Secrets! Another reason to be annoyed at Serenity.

Mars opened her mouth to answer Mercury, turning her head back towards the Princess' door... She wanted to propose speaking to her but then she immediately realized how sadistic that would be: I think she's had enough for now. Instead she sighed and said to Mercury:

"You know what? Just... Just let her take some time to calm down and really think about what she's doing here. To herself and to those who care about her. I doubt either of us - me especially - could get anything out of her now. We can ask Venus to have a talk with the Princess at dinner later..."

Serenity seemed to trust Venus. They were surprisingly similar in some ways, and Mars thought that if anything could get through to the Princess; it wasn't going to be Mars' aggressively short fuse, nor Mercury's sound but boring advice, Jupiter's sweet delights, or Luna's nanny-like reprimands. Maybe some good old fashioned "girl talk" is what was needed here.

As Mars spoke, she could her the sound of thunder echoing outside... Nevermind the chilly air and short daylight that Mars feared - it seemed like a full-blown storm was coming!

"I'll be out in the field, gathering the archery equipment. It looks like it's going to rain... I'll see you and the others at dinner, okay?"

Serenity seemed to give up completely and handed her equipment to Mars, surprising Venus. She looked defeated and Venus couldn’t figure out the reason why. She’d only made one attempt after all—usually it took her a couple before she started whining or crying about her incompetence. Was something else going on in her mind after all? Venus saw the tears in the princess’ eyes and became alarmed, but before she could say anything, Serenity had walked away from them.

And then Mars exploded.

Venus cursed as Mars went after Serenity. She ran behind Mercury as the other senshi followed the two as well, not wanting to be left behind. Seeing the princess so sad and confused broke Venus’ heart. She might like to tease Serenity, but in her heart she loved the princess the most out of everyone she knew in her life. She even loved Serenity more than she loved her own life.

When she and Mercury arrived at Serenity’s door, Mars was already yelling. Each word felt like a stab in Venus’ own heart. No, no, no. This was not what Serenity needed right now. It would only make the princess feel worse.

Mercury mentioned that Serenity might be hiding something, and Venus agreed. There was definitely something else going on here, something that Mars might not have bothered seeing between the lines. Venus didn’t blame her; she was the kind of warrior who liked facing challenges head-on after all, but sometimes Mars did have those blind spots.

“Mars…” she said with an anguished look. “That was… You might have pushed her too far. I think harsh words aren’t what she needs right now. There’s something else going on and…” Venus paused. She hated appearing weak, appearing as if she was spoiling Serenity, but she just couldn’t bear the thought of seeing the princess hurt.

“You shouldn’t be so hard on her. I’ll… I’ll try to talk to her.”

She nodded as Mars excused herself and stared at the now closed door of Serenity’s room. Venus would never march inside without being invited, especially not now when the princess was most likely in a fragile state.

She moved toward it and knocked softly. “Princess?” she called out. “Are you alright?”

Serenity hadn't even had the chance to flop onto her bed when Mars entered the room, filling it with her fiery energy. Spinning, Serenity was taken completely by surprise when her friend began yelling and reprimanding her.

"What was that? You just run off in the middle of class and say absolutely nothing? What is wrong with you? What do you think your mother will say when she hears about this?"

The young princess's eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to speak. She was immediately interrupted as Mars continued yelling. Every word that came out of Mars's mouth rang true in Serenity's mind, and she suddenly realized just how selfish and horrible she was behaving. What kind of friend was she? Her friends were trying to help her, and here she was pushing them away and making their lives even more difficult. Serenity felt...childish as Mars spoke of Serenity's "incentives." Looking down at the skirt of her dress, the silver-haired teenager was ashamed.

"Really Princess, can't you at least pretend? For your own good?"

Those words felt like a dagger straight in Serenity's heart. Didn't Mars see how hard she had been trying? Sure, she would admit that she was not the easiest person to teach, but it wasn't like Serenity was completely impossible. She did try. Hadn't anybody seen that? Did no one notice how she held the bow with so much confidence? Or how she was getting better with her magic? 

Sitting in a chair for hours and listening to a lecture is enough to cause anyone to daydream. It was a flaw that Serenity did not have much control over, but was that truly her fault? Just because she was a Lunarian didn't make her any less human than the Terans. She had flaws, Mars had flaws, Luna had flaws. The only person Serenity could think of who was flawless was her own mother.

She wasn't perfect. And yet...Serenity felt as if they were trying to make her so.

Mars left, and Serenity dropped to her knees on the floor. Her head was aching with all of her new thoughts and emotions. She was ashamed, embarrassed, and upset. Never in her life had Serenity felt more alone than in that moment.

She could hear voices from out in the hallway, and soon there was a gentle knock on her door. Venus's voice could be heard from the other side, and Serenity cringed. There was no doubt in her mind that she would get another round of scolding from the leader of her senshi. However, Serenity had full confidence that Venus would be no where near as harsh as Mars. At times like these, when Serenity was especially down on herself, she knew she had Venus to count on.

"C-come in," Serenity called, desperately trying to hide her teary voice.

Jupiter listened as Luna spoke, she was finishing up dinner and getting ready to set it out on the table. She was surprised that Luna thought she had a great way of getting through to Serenity. Jupiter tried to treat everyone fairly but was pleased Luna felt this way about her.

“I can try to talk to her after dinner, I heard the others come in a moment ago, and it sounds like things got a little heated so I think I will let things simmer before talking to the princess. If she does have something that is concerning her, I do hope she would tell someone. Maybe I can walk with her in the gardens, I know she does like to gaze at the night sky. Even if she doesn’t want to talk yet, maybe just let her day dream, I am guilty of doing it as well, I will let you know if I learn anything tonight.”


Jupiter told Luna goodbye before she headed out to let the others know the meal was ready. She headed to the Queen’s room first. After she headed to the princess’ room. On the way she spotted Mars and Mercury. She told them the meal was ready and lightly knocked on the princess’ door, “whenever you’re ready princess, dinner is ready. I would love to see you there, I think tonight’s meal is going to be a hit,” she said with a smile before she turned and headed back to the kitchen to place the food on the table.

Mercury nodded and let Mars go before it started to pour out. Mars was right, Serenity and Venus had an inexplicable bond. If anyone could get her to admit to something, Venus could. Then they could finally get to the root of the problem. She really hoped everything would be worked out by dinner, all this tension was getting uncomfortable... When the princess was like this, everything felt off. Even the changing weather outside had an ominous tone to it now, and Mercury usually enjoyed a rain shower.

"...I'll go wait in the dining hall," Mercury said to Venus, allowing her and Serenity some privacy. She turned and walked back down the hall, trusting Venus to get to the bottom of this.

Venus nodded at Mercury as she, too, excused herself, and turned back to the door.

She heard Serenity’s shaky voice inviting her in, and was pleasantly surprised. She kind of figured the princess would rather be alone right now. But at the same time, she was relieved that Serenity was welcoming her.

She stepped inside carefully, closing the door behind her. For a moment, she struggled with what to say, before she finally approached the other girl and, rather than using words, she chose to embrace the princess gently. Venus sensed that what she needed right now was comfort and acceptance, not more harsh judgments. And so she would be happy to hug Serenity and let her cry until she was satisfied all night if that was what it took.

When Venus took up her post, the queen had explained to her that she was not only a senshi, she was also the leader. And she was not only a guardian, she was also the decoy. Should a threat ever try to find its way toward the princess, Venus was supposed to stand in her place. Venus was supposed to be the thing standing between Serenity and the knife, the arrow, the sword, whatever and however big the threat was. Her job was literally to lay down her life for Serenity.

And it was not a job she was only doing because it was her duty. It was also something she chose. Something she did willingly, with all her heart.

“Do you want to tell me what’s in your mind?” she asked softly, pulling back a little to get a glimpse of Serenity’s face.

Kunzite stood completely still. His body was rigid, not daring to move a single inch. The dangerous creature before them was one of the most savage wolves Kunzite had ever seen, and he knew that it was not going to go down easy. His hand hung in midair, mere inches away from the hilt of his sword. He knew that he could not take the risk of grabbing it with Endymion standing where he was. All he could do was stay still and wait, his reflexes prepared for a quick attack if the wolf were to lunge. At the same time, though, Kunzite scanned the area for more wolves. He knew there were more - there had to be. Where there was one, there were two. 

Despite their circumstances, Kunzite knew Endymion could handle it. In fact, he had complete confidence that his prince could handle this wolf on his own. The shittenou were there as his guardians, his protectors - but as Endymion grew older, it seemed they were not needed as much. As Kunzite's eyes landed on his charge, he realized for the second time that day just how much of an adult Endymion had become.

Serenity was taken by surprise when Venus remained silent. Where was the scolding, the lecture? What happened to, "What is wrong with you?" and "You can do better"? Before Serenity could even summon the words to speak, Venus had enveloped her in a warm, gentle hug. 

In that singular action, Serenity felt wave after wave of emotion take over her body. Tears suddenly flower from her eyes, soaking Venus's white fuku as the princess hugged her tightly. She didn't sob loudly like she normally did, but instead Serenity was quiet as she let her emotions run free. This was what she needed. How often was it that she received such a warm gesture from one of her friends? Sure, they hugged all of the time, but never like this. Never with so much...love.

Serenity couldn't help but giggle at the thought. Of course she would get that thought when hugging Venus - she was the goddess of love, after all. 

And then it was over. But that warm feeling didn't disappear. Venus pulled away, and Serenity quickly reached up to wipe the tears from her face. "I'm just..." Serenity paused. Should she tell Venus about how she had been feeling? About how she was tired of disappointing everyone, and tired of being scolded for being imperfect? Should she say how hurt she was by the constant threats her friends made, and the endless lectures and reprimands? Venus would see Serenity as ungrateful...and maybe she was. But she was still just a teenager. There was so much more to life than sitting in a chair listening to lessons all day long. There were galaxies upon galaxies out there, and Serenity was trapped - no - confined to her home. Perhaps that was what drove her to this point. She needed freedom.

"I...I cannot be the person you all want me to be. I try, Venus, but I -" Serenity paused again, swallowing the lump that had risen in her throat. "I am not my mother. I can't rule the kingdom; I cannot even shoot a bow without messing up! Perhaps I should stop daydreaming, and perhaps I should focus more on my future, but what is a future without freedom? That is what I lack, Venus. I have never left this planet, and hardly have I exited the palace gates. I need to see the world and understand why it is so imperative that I be queen. I need a reason to rule. I do not want to be queen simply because I have to - I want to want it. It is selfish, I know, but nothing I read in a textbook can give me any information about the beauty of this solar system. You understand, don't you?" 

The princess bit her lip, looking into the entrancing blue eyes of her head guardian. She hoped with all of her heart that Venus would understand her. Inside, Serenity felt like a fool saying such things. But it was how she truly felt - no one would realize that as well as Venus.

"We might need someone to act as decoy," Prince Endymion ventured quietly, his voice calm and even as he ventured an idea. If he had anything but utmost confidence in their skills, the use of a distraction to buy them time would be out of the question - an attack from a wolf this size might be even greater than his powers could reverse - but with quick reaction timing, one of them could make a move, drawing the creature's attention to one side, leaving his blind side open to attack. The monster's eye to Endymion's left was functional; the other was missing, so it would be ideal for a person standing behind and to his left to make the move, and behind and to his right to take advantage and strike before the creature had time to reach the decoy.

Luckily for him, the person standing behind and to his left was none other than Jadeite, the most agile of them. "Jadeite," he directed, his eyes still on the beast, his thoughts still imploring it not to attack, "when we're ready, strafe back and left aggressively to draw its attention. Be prepared in case I've underestimated it."

Choosing an attacker would be the tricky part. He was armed with bow and arrow, but he was unsure as to what Zoisite brought with him. He knew Nephrite and Kunzite's affinity for swords and guessed that that was the weapon they had reached for, but a sword would need to be closer to do any damage. Could he himself get an arrow notched and fired in time? ... he'd be backup, just in case. His hand slowly gripped the bow more securely. "Zoisite," he called calmly to the man standing behind and to his right, "When I say go, if you've got a ranged weapon on hand fire it as quickly as possible; with any luck it will be too distracted by Jadeite on his sight-side to notice you."

"Kunzite, Nephrite," he didn't feel he actually had to mention this, "Be ready in case something goes wrong.

"Ready?" he waited a beat for any notes of disapproval of his plan, and then directed, "Go."

Venus was relieved that Serenity seemed to be letting her emotions out. She didn’t like it when the princess, who usually showed the world what she was feeling, suddenly started keeping things all pent up. It couldn’t be healthy.

Sympathy filled her as she listened to Serenity’s words and realized the burden they’d all placed on her. Venus knew better than anyone except for her friends what being a princess entailed. How much duty and responsibility was involved, and how much was expected from them. For some of them, the skills came naturally, and going through the education and training process wasn’t so hard. But Serenity seemed to suffer under it in ways none of them had ever imagined.

Did Venus want that freedom too?

Heck, yes. She was a carefree spirit at heart, but she had long buried that part of her. When she took up her post as a senshi for Serenity, she had abandoned all the childish dreams and desires to see the world, to be free to do whatever she wanted. That wasn’t what being a princess meant. It was just the opposite.

And Venus was okay with that. But she understood how Serenity might not be. Hopefully, someday she would, though.

“Of course I get it,” she said soothingly. “I want to be out there too, having adventures. But the queen is very protective of you. She doesn’t want you to get into any danger. I want you to see the world too, princess, to discover all of its beauty. But there’s only so much I can do since I answer to a higher authority.”

Her voice was tinged with genuine regret, and she had no idea what she could do to fix this. Queen Serenity had pulled all the stops to make sure her daughter was the safest she could be, and unfortunately that meant keeping her under lock and key. It wasn’t right, but it was not Venus’ place to question the queen’s judgment.

“Is there anything else I can do to make things easier?” she asked finally, even though she knew probably there wasn’t going to be any. It was freedom Serenity desired, and it was one of the things Venus couldn’t give her.

Serenity sniffled, nodding at Venus's explanation. She knew she had to be protected. After all, she was the only heir to the Moon Kingdom throne. Her mother needed her. The whole solar system needed her.

But would she always have to live this way? Cooped up like an animal who couldn't handle the wild?

Wiping one final tear from her cheek, Serenity smiled and hugged Venus one more time. "Yes, actually. There is." The princess pulled away, still smiling slightly at her guardian. Gods, what did she do to deserve such a caring and compassionate friend?

"Tell the girls I am sorry, and -" she paused, "Do not tell Luna. Please."

Before Venus could leave the room, Serenity said, "And Venus...? Um...do you think Mars would be upset if I stopped taking archery lessons?"

Wolves it had to be wolves didn't? Why couldn't it been an overpopulation of deer?

Jadeite followed closed behind Endymion as they hiked through the woods. With his bow in hand he was ready to strike at a surprised moment. They eventually came across a injured doe and Endymion followed it up the hill. Jadeite frown at him, but followed him anyway. When they were first learning to hunt, Jadeite read books about animals. He remember text books stating that wolves were loners and wouldn't bother humans unless they felt threaten. So them chasing after this deer would definitely make the wolves be on guard. If he remember correctly the text book stated wolves don't hunt alone. Then they came to sudden stop and a wolf jumped right down in front of them. Jadeite quickly drawn an arrow, but Endymion quickly thought up a plan. Jadeite just nodded and waited for the single. This was a dangerous plan, but he trusted Endymion. 

"Go," Endymion spoke.

Jadeite took off to the left at once. The wolf fell for it and chased after him. He ran in a big circle glancing back at Zoisite. What was taking him so long? He better hurried up or he would have to take care of the wolf himself.

Venus didn’t expect Serenity to say that there was something she could do, but it was a pleasant surprise. She softened when Serenity asked her to apologize to the others, and smiled at the next request. She could understand Serenity’s hesitation to get Luna involved—the advisor cat was close to the queen and would more than likely bring this up with her. And Luna tended to be harder on Serenity than anyone else.

“I will do those things, I promise,” she said solemnly.

Hearing her last request, Venus paused. She tilted her head, considering. “I don’t know,” she finally answered honestly. “I think she may feel like a failure, too. But if you’re not comfortable doing the more… aggressive weaponry lessons, perhaps we could do something about it. After all, if we can help it, you should never need to wield a weapon at all.”

Serenity began to twist the fabric of her dress in her hands as she thought about what Venus said.

"That...was what I was thinking..." she said sadly. "I do not want to upset her, I just...am not sure if I will ever be able to use archery in the event that something does happen. I cannot bear to harm another mortal or creature - I do not have it in me. But..." she paused. "I think I can continue, after all, I am getting quite good. Thank you, Venus."

The princess felt silly. She had simply been thinking too hard about the nature of archery instead of about having fun with it. She truly did love archery, but today her mind had just been in a different state than usual. It wasn't going to happen again, she told herself. She would go back to being her old happy, optimistic self. Everyone would feel better that way - including her.

How long had it been since Mars had entered the palace on the Princess' trail? Surely no longer than thirty minutes... Forty at most! And it had been such a nice sunny afternoon... Now all of a sudden it was dark and cloudy and windy; and the sky was obviously on the verge of erupting in a thick shower of rain. Occasionally the heavens would light up in some nearby area and the low rumbling sounds of thunder would shortly follow. Mars didn't mind the weather all that much - in fact, she loved this cool, dry wind, before a storm. But unless she hurried up with the equipment and moved the targets out of the rain, she was going to attend dinner with the entire length of her dark hair sticking to her back, and with the skirt of her fuku stuck to her legs. Not a pretty image.

And the Princess... Mars looked towards the palace, to see if Serenity was at the window. She thought she saw something white, moving in the dark room, but she wasn't sure if it was Serenity's dress or her curtains. In any case, Mars could bet that the Princess was terrified right now. She dreaded thunder. And she especially dreaded being alone in a thunderstorm. But maybe Venus was still with her? Mars wondered how that conversation had gone...

Now she felt bad about being so direct with the Princess earlier. She still believed everything she had said and it was indeed an unpleasant situation, having to see the Queen's disappointed look when she realized that the guardians could once again not control their pupil. But Serenity was so delicate, and she did seem to let things like this get to her more than intended sometimes. Mars knew she had to apologize to her friend and have a normal, level-toned chat with her.

But first... Oh no. It started to rain. No, not rain, it started to POUR. One moment it's a few heavy drops on her shoes, and the next she can barely see where she's going through the heavy layers of falling water. Mars quickly finished moving the targets under the tarmac, picked up Serenity's equipment and ran full-speed towards the palace. Once inside, she stopped and leaned against a marble column, taking a few deep breaths to catch herself after the little marathon. She was dripping wet and she was covered up to her knees in dust and small specks of mud from the violent rain and from her running through it.

Mars would have to shower before dinner - she just couldn't present herself like that in front of the Lunar court. The young senshi took off her high heeled shoes, as to not leave a trail of mud all through the palace behind her, and she quickly ran up the stairs to her room.

She washed her skin and her hair and she was shocked at how much dust and mud had somehow made it into her hair. Then she put her fuku up to dry and put on her Princess dress, a more comfortable (and less muddy) pair of shoes, and she went straight down for dinner.

Jupiter had just put the last of the meals contents on the table when people began to file into the dining area.  When Jupiter saw the Queen enter, she walked over and greeted the Queen. She bowed to show respect. “Queen Serenity, I am glad you could join us all for dinner, I hope your day went well and was productive.”

Jupiter walked over and took lids off of the dishes and told those who were in the room they could begin serving themselves. Jupiter heard the door open and saw Mars come into the room. She looked stunning as always.

Jupiter walked over to her fellow senshi, “my don’t we look nice tonight.” She said hoping Mars would recognize her tone as a complimentary one.

As Mercury headed towards the dining area to wait, she heard the rain start to fall. This shower was particularly heavy, enough to drum loudly on the palace's rooftops. The large windows lining the hall showed the occasional flash of lighting, followed by the deep rumbling of thunder. She hoped that Mars was back inside by now, this weather was becoming dangerous. It was a good thing Serenity was already in her room, or she'd be panicking by now.

Mercury was already seated in the dining hall when Jupiter appeared to serve the food. Despite being allowed to eat, she decided to wait until the others came. It didn't feel right to start eating without them, and Mercury wanted to know if Venus had been successful with helping Serenity. When Mars joined them in a more formal gown, she smiled in relief, though she wondered why Mars had changed clothes. Maybe her fuku had gotten too dirty for her liking?

“We’ll be waiting for you at dinner, Princess,” Venus nodded and, with one last squeeze of Serenity’s hand, she excused herself.

The conversation had been short, but as Venus returned outside she realized that a lot had changed weather-wise. Perhaps it was just as well that Serenity had cut the archery lesson short, otherwise they would have been forced to abandon it anyway or risk getting drenched.

She walked toward the dining room, hoping Serenity would cheer up again by the time she sat down to enjoy her meal. The princess did consider meal times her favorite parts of the day.

When she entered the dining room, she saw all her fellow senshi were there already, as well as the queen. She wondered if she should tell Queen Serenity about her daughter’s concerns, but decided to wait for now. Noticing that Mars was now in her princess gown, Venus figured she probably hadn’t escaped the rain and incoming storm unscathed after all.

Venus sat down on her seat after bowing to the queen respectfully. She tried to get the other girls’ attention surreptitiously.

“Mars, Mercury…” she said in a low voice. “Serenity sends her apology to you both. I think she will be okay.”

Jupiter hadn’t been there, but they could easily catch her up on what had happened while they waited for the princess to come down.

Mars entered the dining hall and felt a bit overdressed. The people of the court were of course dressed more lavishly than she was, but her fellow senshi were all wearing their fuku, as normal. In the unlikely event that something bad did happen, Mars could always transform back into her uniform - an ability she didn't use much these days, as the fuku was already her "real-life" uniform. But for now she enjoyed the loose, comfortable fabric and the more comfortable shoes. Her hair was still a bit wet from the shower though.

She quickly scanned the hall for familiar faces and she noticed that Serenity was not there yet. Curious, Mars thought. She could've sworn that meals were the Lunar Princess' favorite parts of the day. The hall itself had the golden, dream-like atmosphere of a room filled only with artificial lighting. The tall windows on two sides of the room were pitch black and acted more like mirrors for the dinner party, rather than windows. The only hint that they were in fact not mirrors, was the occasional flash of lightning that shone through them. It was unusual for it to be so dark, so early in the evening. During late summer they would normally serve dinner in the pink-golden light of the sunset shining through those windows. But today... it was a mix of the season and the heavy dark clouds, that gave the outside world such an ominous feel.

Mars was awoken from her assessment of the light and weather by Jupiter's voice:

"My, don’t we look nice tonight", she said teasingly. 

Mars chuckled a bit:

"Heh, thank you Jupiter. I got caught in the storm outside and had to change... It's quite brutal out there!"

She paused and then added:

"I'm surprised the Princess hasn't come down yet... What with the thunderstorm and all. Usually she makes sure to have as much company as possible in weather like this."

Mars remembered when they were all very young, with Serenity barely older than a toddler. The senshi were new to the Moon back then, far away from their homes and their families, and yet the little silver-haired girl showed them so much familiarity - sneaking into their rooms and under their covers on stormy nights like this. She was a sweet kid and definitely the glue that made them all become "sisters", rather than just colleagues.

She sat down next to Mercury and Jupiter, and Venus quickly followed. The senshi of love and beauty had a message for the others:

“Mars, Mercury… Serenity sends her apology to you both. I think she will be okay”, she said in a hushed tone.

"That's sweet of her, Venus. But... I have some apologizing to do myself."

Realizing that Jupiter had no idea what was going on, Mars helped the other girls tell the senshi of thunder what had happened during and after the archery lesson. When the story was done and the food was starting to turn cold, Mars realized it was getting late and Serenity was still not there yet.

"Shouldn't she have come down by now?", she asked.

As soon as Jadeite took off and the wolf followed, Endymion completed his drawback, aimed, and fired at the beast. His arrow landed to just after and to the right of Zoisite's, but the the beast continued on despite the projectiles lodged in his side. They aimed and fired again as Jadeite circled around, and finally the beast fell with a snarl ending in a yip. He skidded forward and lay still, the arrows having pierced some major artery to give its life a quick end. 

While the battle was over, their great foe slain, Endymion did not straighten from his archer's pose. Did not move. Did not celebrate. They were not out of the woods yet, and from the sound of the silence surrounding them, neither were the wolves. The tense moments of silence stretched on; his friends' movements were muffled as he strained his ears for any sound of the predators, anything to give the intense feeling of danger and surveillance some sensory evidence. 

And then a howl broke through, loud and jarring, and the forest erupted with sound around them, dead leaves and brush tearing aside as snarling wolves attacked.

Endymion notched arrows and let them fly, instinctively covering Jadeite and backing towards the relative safety of his friends. They'd watch his back and he'd watch theirs as these snarling beasts went for their throats, their legs - any unprotected part of them. While he kept his bow and arrows close, drawing arrows in threes from his quiver, he knew that soon he'd need to swap one weapon for another.

Mercury relaxed when Venus passed on Serenity's message. It was good that she was feeling better, as her emotions tended to spread to the rest of the palace's mood. It was hard to be happy when the princess was not, but the opposite was true as well. Even Mars wanted to apologize now, and it usually took her a while to calm down after an argument. Mercury hated it when they all fought, either with each other or with their charge, so this was a pleasant surprise. But as dinner went on with no sign of Serenity, she was starting to have doubts.

"Yes, I thought she would have been here shortly after you arrived, Venus," she said, agreeing with Mars. Did she decide to freshen up too? No, she would have told someone, and that would have just delayed dinner more for her. It didn't make sense. "...maybe one of us should check on her again to be sure." It'd be terrible if Serenity was still in her bedroom alone, cowering from the freak storm outside.

Luna's talk with Jupiter put her in a good mood. This meant that at least someone could try and get through to Princess Serenity. She knew that Jupiter was the best person for this job. She was one of the most compassionate senshi and she knew how to get through to the princess. Or at least how to try and talk to her about what was on her mind. After Jupiter left the room to go find the others and tell them dinner was ready, Luna decided to walk into the dining room and maybe hang out there for a bit. She was a bit hungry still and the food smelled delicious.

It surprised her when the Queen came into the room to join them. "Queen Serenity." Luna said, "It's nice to see you've joined us for dinner." Luna smiled at the queen. "I hope your day has gone well."

As soon as Venus's warm presence was gone from the room, Serenity suddenly became aware of the brewing storm outside. Without even thinking, she had crawled onto her bed and brought her knees to her chest, hugging them tightly. Her head hung, swaying to an invisible beat as a clap of thunder boomed outside. Whimpering, the young princess's fists tightened on the fabric of her dress. Why, why did the moon have to have storms? Sure, it was no where near as bad as the storms on Jupiter, but it was still a storm nonetheless.

Serenity's dark room was illuminated by a flash of lightning, and she braced herself for another clap of thunder. It came, and she let out a frightened scream. Tears were in her eyes now, and her body was rocking back and forth. "Please go away, please please please," she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut. The storm continued to terrify the silver-haired teenager, petrifying her and preventing her from leaving her spot on the bed. She continued to whisper the words, "Please, please, please," over and over again, desperately wishing to be taken away from the dreadful storm. 

'I want to go somewhere with blue skies and rolling clouds. Not here, never here. Take me away from these storms, get them away,' Serenity desperately thought. Tears spilled from her eyes, the fear of her castle and kingdom being torn apart finally closing in. Oh gods, what if Mars was out there collecting equipment? She could get electrocuted, or she could get sick from the rain, or she could get lost in the darkness, or -

Silence.

Serenity's arms were locked tightly around her legs, her head buried in her knees. There was no thunder rumbling, no rain pelting against the roof. 

But there was noise - so much noise.


Serenity's head jerked up, her eyes focusing in the bright light. There were dogs everywhere, running and barking, teeth bared with saliva dripping from their fangs. Why were they in such a frenzy? The sight terrified Serenity instantly, and she let out a bloodcurdling scream. The awful noise brought the attention of a nearby wolf, and it turned towards her, its eyes glinting with the hunger of a predator looking upon its pray. Serenity, still on the ground, began to scoot backwards, small whimpers escaping her lips.

"P-please," she cried, holding out one pale hand in a futile attempt to keep the wolf away. Serenity tried to stand, but her knees were shaking and her dress was wrapped around her ankles. The world around her seemed to fade, until it was just her and the wolf staring at each other. 

'Is this my end?'


Before Serenity could blink, the wolf charged straight towards her, its teeth going straight for her throat.

She screamed again.

Jupiter was pleased when the others came to the dining hall. Her meal seemed to be a hit among the Lunar court. When Jupiter noticed Serenity still hadn’t come down, she told Mars, “let me see if I can get the Princess to come out, no doubt she is scared to death right now with this storm.” Jupiter rose and took her leave.

Storms had never really bothered Jupiter, she had grown used to them growing up on the stormy planet. She hoped she would be able to coax the princess out of her room. Jupiter stopped in front of the princess’ door. She knocked lightly. “Princess, its Jupiter, I have come to fetch you for dinner, everyone is wondering where you are.”

She waited a moment before knocking again, “Serenity I am coming in.” Jupiter turned the door knob and peeked her head around the door as she entered the princess’ room. At first she thought Serenity might be hiding under the bed. Jupiter smiled, she knew the princess hated storms and had liked to hide under the covers, it helped block out the noise of the storms. When Jupiter pulled the covers back, she was surprised to find an empty bed with no Serenity.

Jupiter searched Serenity’s room, hoping she was hiding elsewhere, but when she still didn’t find the princess, she began to panic, she wondered if there were any other hiding spots the princess had that she went to when storms happened. Right now all Jupiter knew was that Serenity wasn’t in her room, maybe she had just missed her and when she walked back to the dining hall, she would see the princess at the table with a smile on her face.

When Jupiter arrived in the dining hall she didn’t see the princess. Her mind was racing, but she didn’t want to panic until it was proved the princess was not in the palace, but where could she have possibly gone?

Jupiter made a bee line for Venus. She walked over to the goddess of love and beauty. She spoke in her ear so no one else would hear, she didn’t want to cause an unnecessary stir.


“Do you know of any hiding spots Serenity frequents at, I went to her room to try and get her to come out but she was not there.” Jupiter assumed if anyone knew of other hiding spots it would be Venus.

Jupiter came back unaccompanied by Serenity, and to top it all, she looked preoccupied. Mars' eyes followed her friend as she went to Venus and whispered something in her ear. Venus' expression did not help Mars relax and now she knew something was wrong. Was the Princess sick? Did she not want to attend dinner?

"What are you two whispering about?" Mars rudely interrupted their subtle exchange. She put her glass down on the table and continued:

"Is something wrong? Where's Serenity?"

Mars looked towards the Queen to see if she suspected anything but Serenity the elder had been assaulted by people of the court, who thought that dinner was a good opportunity to share their little lives and problems with the monarch. For the better, Mars though. With a bit of luck maybe the senshi won't have to involve her in this awful day...

She turned her entire body back towards Jupiter and Venus, and with her head and eyebrows she gestured for them to start explaining.

They were beginning to fall back, keeping away from them as they padded around, snarling, testing them. Endymion, like his friends, was near panting with exertion; while several of the wolves lay dead or dying around them, still more appeared, each wave as ravenous and maddened as the last. To think these were tormenting the villagers... Endymion considered, eyeing the three that stalked ahead of him, pacing back and forth, their eyes on him. 

He cautiously reached back to test his quiver, his bow held inelegantly in his off hand, his sword at home in his right. He had three arrows left. Just three. "How are we on --" he meant to continue asking about ammunition, but as soon as he began to speak the wolves charged from all sides, rushing in with fangs and claws bared. His sentence turned into a growl of his own as he lunged forward to meet the threat.

But then, suddenly, something quite unexpected happened: a young woman screamed.

The noise shocked Endymion so that he froze momentarily, his entire attention redirecting to find the source of the sound - surely there was no girl. There was no girl a moment ago -- perhaps the tracker had returned, and -- but there she was, curled up on the ground in a fine white dress, her eyes closed as the scream died on her lips, then opening again, wide in fear, as she spotted something to his left. She was astonishing: beguiling and intriguing yet completely unnerving and terrifying all at once, and in that moment he did not know what to make of her, his heart and mind confused in all but the certainty that she needed him. As he followed her gaze his muscled unbound. As he spotted her fear a new wave of adrenaline rushed through him. She was in danger. 

He dug his toe into the dirt as the wolf uncoiled, aiming to cut it off before it could reach her, and launched forward, away from his friends, away from the relative safety they provided, and towards the beast that threatened the beautiful girl that seemed to have appeared out of thin air. They raced, he and the wolf, but just before it could reach her he managed to pull ahead, turn, and get between her and the attacker just after she screamed. He skidded through the dead leaves and swung his sword. The metal caught its target on the flat end, knocking the creature aside.

"Are you alright?" He called behind his shoulder, his eyes intent on the wolf and the three others who had turned their attention upon the pair of them.

Just as was suspected, the death of the leader brought the wrath of the pack.

Before Kunzite could even process fully what was happening, his sword was drawn and he was swinging at oncoming wolves. His eyes were sharp and alert, watching not only the wolves that were closing in, but also making sure his prince and shittenou were safe. Endymion seemed to be faring well, shooting three arrows at a time, and the other shittenou seemed to be keeping things under control.

But more and more wolves appeared, as if they were spawning. Kunzite's blade felt light in his hand as he swung it to and fro, slicing through wolves as they pounced towards him. His mind was in complete battle-mode, and nothing would be able to pull him out of it until every last wolf was taken care of.

But then someone screamed.

Kunzite's haze was shattered by the earsplitting sound, and his eyes briefly wandered to the source. Endymion, who was standing a few feet in front of him, was also distracted by the noise. Kunzite soon realized that he was not the only one who noticed his prince's distraction, and a few wolves were stalking towards him, teeth bared.

"Hyah!" Kunzite shouted, leaping forward and swinging his sword in a wide horizontal arc. He sliced the flank of one wolf and bashed another in the nose with the flat edge of his sword. The rest leaped in different directions to escape Kunzite's wrath. He would not let anything hurt his prince, not now, not ever. They would have to strike him dead before any harm came to Endymion.

Kunzite turned to make sure his prince was okay, but found he was gone. The silver-haired man's eyes traveled to where he had heard the scream come from, and sure enough, Endymion was rushing to protect a girl who was sitting helplessly on the ground. Kunzite scoffed and swung at another wolf. Leave it to Endymion to snag the damsel in distress, he thought.

"Shittenou! We need to stay with Endymion! Move up!" Kunzite shouted, seeing his prince's vulnerability now that he was taking care of the mysterious female. Something about her gave Kunzite an odd feeling, but there was no time to think about that now. His prince was out of their reach, definitely in danger with what appeared to be three arrows left. 

Kunzite began to move towards the ebony-haired prince when more wolves appeared from behind the trees, forming what seemed like a barrier between the shittenou and Endymion. Cursing, Kunzite stepped back to get in line with his men. "Don't give up! It won't be long now until these mutts get the message!"

As more time passed, Venus kept glancing at the door to the dining room, expecting to see Serenity arriving, but the moment never came. She’d barely eaten her own food thanks to being so distracted by the princess’ absence, though Jupiter’s dish was delicious as usual. When the other girls finally started getting antsy too, and Jupiter offered to check on Serenity, Venus waited, wondering if their charge was simply hiding somewhere because she was too afraid by the storm.

Maybe I shouldn’t have left her alone…

She had wanted to give Serenity some time to gather herself and prepare to face the others, but with the weather outside Venus was beginning to think that wasn’t such a good idea. It seemed forever before Jupiter returned, alone. Venus tried to quell the panic that was starting to rise within her. But it became all the more impossible when Jupiter went straight for her and asked about Serenity’s hiding spots, saying that the princess wasn’t in her room.

It took every ounce of Venus’ restraint not to allow any of this to show on her face. The queen was in the room, and if she heard that her daughter was missing—oh, god, how could they have lost the princess?!—surely all hell would break loose.

Before she could reply, Mars interrupted, and her voice’s volume made Venus turn toward the queen, afraid she would hear the commotion and take notice of her daughter’s absence. Thankfully the queen seemed to be preoccupied at the moment, so Venus quickly gestured at Mars and Mercury to come closer.

“Please try to keep your voices down. Jupiter said Serenity isn’t in her room. We have to find her.” Venus turned her head to see where the cats were, and noticed Luna conversing with Queen Serenity. She turned back toward the others, took a deep breath, and her brain immediately formulated a plan.

“Let’s split up and check her usual hiding places. I know of exactly four. There’s the north tower that’s the tallest part of the palace, the observatory from where you can see earth, and the kitchens. There is the garden as well—but that one’s likely out due to this weather, so we’ll skip that one. One of you each pick a place to check. I’m going to get Artemis and ask him to help Luna out in keeping Queen Serenity occupied and figure out a plan in case we don’t find the princess.”

She looked at each of the girls in turn seriously. “Try not to attract attention and do not, under any circumstances, tell anyone the princess is missing. If anyone asks about her whereabouts, tell them she has requested to take dinner in her room, and that she’ll be having an extra studying session with Mercury. She is not to be disturbed for the rest of the night. Let’s meet back up at the south wing once you’re done.”

Used to house rooms for court guests during major events, the south wing was currently one of the quietest places in the Moon Palace with no festivities going on, and it should allow them to have the freedom to talk should they need to figure out another plan.

But hopefully, it would never come to that.