Chapter III

She covers her mouth, blushing deeply.

I can’t believe I just ASKED him that! The teachers always said I had a mouth too big for my own good…

“I’m sorry, that was too forward of me. I apologize.”

She looks down at her folded hands, looking less like a mysterious, exotic dignitary and more like an embarrassed young woman, far away from home and unsure of herself.

Neph smiles with a mixture of sadness and amusement after a few moments of silence. “I can tell our relationship is going to be full of surprises. I’m single.”

She smiles at him and their eyes lock.

He’s so handsome… What am I doing? Snap out of it! This is no way for the Pharaoh to act!

HLM clears her throat slightly and looks away.

After a moment, Nephrite remembers what he was doing and starts speaking again. “Ahem, well anyway, about Jadeite and Diana. They’re lovers, as we’ve determined. Jae’s from the Earth Kingdom, and one of Prince Endymion’s guardians, as are Zoisite, Kunzite and I. Jae’s the Guardian of summer and the summer storms. He’s also Zoisite’s younger brother by three years, the baby of the Guardians, as it were. Jae’s lover, Diana, is about two years younger than he is, and a child of the Moon and Earth Kingdoms.”

HLM blinks. “Both?”

She must be the warrior sworn to both kingdoms. It’s funny, I was picturing someone a little more sturdy…

“Hai,” he smiles, a note of appreciation for this alien’s beauty entering his voice. “Her mother was an Earth warrior, her father a Moon warrior. They met on the training grounds and slowly fell in love.”

“Was?”

“Unfortunately yes…her mother died during her birth. Her father cared for her the best he could until she was five, before dying in a horrible accident.” Sadly, he shakes his head. “Sometimes, late at night, I can hear her in the gardens, crying softly. People who agreed to take care of her and train her raised her. Thanks to them, her interest in the martial arts has been nurtured. In fact, that’s how she fell in with us.

She was at the same conference that Kunzite and Zoisite were at, and she and Zoisite were paired off as sparring partners. Zoisite is Jae’s older brother, and the Guardian of Spring and healing. Being Kunzite’s lover, he was the first one Zoi introduced her to. Then she was introduced to Zoi and Jae’s parents, and finally to Jae. This was about two years back, so Jae was still living with his parents and was being trained to be one of Endymion’s guards.”

“Wow, that’s really interesting,” HLM comments, leaning forward in her chair. “What about yourself and Kunzite? Is there anything I should know about either of you?”

“Hmm…Kunzite is the Guardian of Winter and ice, dubbed by some as the Ice King because of his cold exterior.”

“I can see that.”

“Kunzite and Zoisite met when they were going to the same school. They didn’t really get along well with each other in the beginning, but eventually they became friends. Their relationship progressed to what it is now.

As for me…well,, there isn’t really much to say, except that I’m the Guardian of Autumn and the Stars.”

HLM’s eyes light up. “The Stars?”

She can remember countless days and nights of gazing up at the stars, searching for answers in their cheerful, sparkling light, and usually finding them.

“Hai…” he looks at her, brow arched at her reaction.

I’ll have to show him my worlds, sometime. He’d love them.

“How did you find out?”

“It was actually pretty gradual. Ever since I was a small boy, the stars fascinated me. My parents and brothers thought that one day I would be an astronomer. Of course, my brothers, all older, thought that this was a wimpy thing for me to go into, and would beat me up. When I was younger, they’d succeed, but as I got older, it got harder to beat me. I always seemed to see the next blow they were going to deal out to me before they actually threw it. Indeed, I did. I didn’t know how I did at first, nor did I care. Though, as the years passed, I figured out that the stars were speaking to me, and eventually I learned how to use this power.” He fall silent.

“So you can tell the future?” HLM asks in a hushed voice.

“I only know as much or as little as the stars wish to tell me.”

“Ah…”

After a few moments of uneasy silence, he clears his throat softly, asking, “Would you care to tell me a bit about yourself?”

She blushes. “Well, ah, I don’t like talking about myself that much, but I’ll tell you a few things about my family and life and such.

I’m the latest of the thirteen pharaohs of the Black Hole Worlds.”

Neph blinks. “Pharaoh? As in ‘earthly manifestation of a god’ pharaoh?”

“Well, not exactly, but that’s the only word that comes closest to the actual meaning.” Putting a delicate fingertip to her lips, she narrows her eyes in thought.

How do I explain this to him without going into a drawn out history of my worlds?

“Hmm…well, in each millennia, there are thirteen children born with ice blue eyes that later turn to green on black and powers that emerge throughout their lives.

Those children are sought out and trained to be leaders of society.

I’m one of those children. Heh…was one of those children. I’m an adult now,” she pauses, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes, “or so some tell me.”

“You look very much like a full grown woman now, M-chan, and a very pretty one at that,” he tells her with a soft chuckle.

“Looks aren’t everything,” she responds with a wink, referring to earlier in the conversation.

He smiles, looking her up and down before replying, “This is true. Perhaps after you’ve settled in and before the ball, you would like to accompany me on a tour of the kingdom?”

“Oh,” she smiles gently and blushes. “It would be a delight,” she answers, standing gracefully.

“I’m glad.” Another blush rises to her cheeks as he takes one of her hands and gently kisses it.

With all this blushing, I’m surprised I haven’t passed out!

“How does an hour sound?” he asks.

Her voice soft, she responds, “An hour sounds good.”

“Good, then I’ll return in one hour.” With that, he turns, smiling one last time at her and leaves her to regain her composure.

Neph closes the door to the emissary’s rooms behind him as he leaves.

What a fascinating young woman! I’ve never met anyone like her before. She’s so attractive, too.

He makes his way to his rooms only to find Kunzite and Zoisite waiting for him outside his door. He raises a brow.

“Good afternoon, Kunzite, Zoisite. What can I do for you?”

Zoisite grins impishly. “How did your…ahem…meeting go with our guest?”

Neph rolls his eyes at the implication in that statement. “It went well, Zoisite. We had a nice chat.”

“Oh?” Kunzite speaks up, “What did you learn about her?”

“For one thing, she’s really a sweet person. Very intelligent and observant, too. She knew upon sight that Jae and Diana are together, the same with you and Zoisite, Kunzite.”

They both look slightly distressed at that bit of news. They didn’t want to ruin relations with a powerful possible alley because their leader is uncomfortable with same sex relationships.

“How did she know?” Zoisite asks, worry in his tenor voice.

“She seems to be adept at reading body language,” Neph answers, “it must have been part of her training, or else she simply has a lot of experience in the practice.

She could also tell that we were telepathing back and forth.”

Kunz blinks. “I don’t think body language had anything to do with that. We didn’t offend her did we? And how did she know?”

“Fortunately, she wasn’t offended. Knowing when a telepathic conversation is going on is apparently one of her powers. She didn’t know what we were talking about, though.”

They both nod, relief evident on their faces.

“Now, if you two will excuse me, I’m going to be meeting our esteemed guest to give her a tour in an hour. I wanted to do a divination before seeing her again.”

“Ah. Do you think she’d mind if we tagged along on your little tour?” Zoi asks.

“I don’t think she will. Meet us in a little over an hour in the gardens so you don’t surprise her too badly.”

Kunz nods. “That’s acceptable. We’ll see you then.” With that, the two lovers head off.

Left alone, the auburn haired guardian steps into his rooms, shaking his head and grinning slightly.

Chapter II
Chapter IV
Life Between Worlds Index