"What did you make me do?!" Demando asks again. If he really thought it was her fault, he'd be at her throat instead of all but collapsed against the bed still trying to make himself let go of Esmeraude's body. But he has to say something, has to hear something, has to make this make sense somehow.
poor prince! *pets*serenitynohimeApril 8 2010, 05:40:29 UTC
It doesn't matter how shaken she is by seeing the woman die there, in front of her eyes, because... he looks so- hurt. And it pains her, to see the pain in his eyes, the way he clings to her still, so the princess swallows back that lingering fear, and her own emotions, and moves closer again, as if to reach for him.
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to. I'm sorry..." As she gets closer, she notices little things... things that remind her of the fuzzy memories she has of the time she spent as a child... She does know him- doesn't she? "Demando?"
Asking his name. This is surely not the princess of his world. Esmeraude's act had been entirely in vain. And yet, there's almost a comfort in that, in knowing that somehow amid the confusion and chaos of Fate, the person he'd protected had been an innocent victim, mistaken identity in a way.
When he answers, it makes a little less nervous, and the princess manages to gather enough courage to come close enough to touch, and she does, one hand reaching to touch his shoulder. Despite that energy she can feel coming from him... she's not afraid of him. Not when she can remember how gentle he was when they were both little, and not when he's saved her like this.
"Demando... I'm sorry." Her voice is quite, her eyes pained as she meets his gaze.
"Zoisite?" There's a confused, and frightened, look in her eyes, as she looks up at the shitennou. Those eyes... they look broken, in a way. She's never- she's never seen someone die before, and seeing it now, like this... because of her...
Her head shakes slowly in response, and she looks away to where Esmeraude had fallen, where she had died, and she feels herself trembling in shock. It's hard to focus, hard to look away, back to Zoisite, to focus on his question, but she struggles with it, and finally whispers.
She has no feeling for Esmeraude. She'll celebrate the woman's death later. But it makes her angry that once again the princess brings death in her wake - no matter how accidental, the result is still death. Mercury looks down at the body for several silent moments, expression aloof, then to the princess.
"How many people have to die because of you before you're satisfied?"
The voice makes even the shocked princess look up quickly, with an almost lost look upon her face... Death... She wouldn't wish it upon anyone, and it hurts to much, to know that it's happened because of her, and that pain reflects in the gaze she turns up to the senshi.
"How many times will you say that and expect to be forgiven? Do you think saying it brings back a single one of those lives?" It's already happening, she's already getting angrier and angrier until she could split the princess with her sword right here and now.
"I don't have any forgiveness for you. No one can be forgiven when they won't change what they do. That's not real repentance."
Mercury's speaking of herself, to herself, too; she can't repent of her hatred because she'd do every step of it over again if she knew what she knows now. But it's oh so appropriate to the princess who'll never even care enough to think about whether she should change, who even now just sits there like it'll go away.
And it will. Someone will clean the room, the senshi will fuss over the princess, and she'll forget a life was ever lost here just like she'll forget the senshi themselves and their lives eventually.
It's not true. It's not true at all, and hearing words like that from someone who she considers one of her closest friends... it hurts her heart so very much, in addition to the pain she already feels. That lost gaze wanders to that still form, away from Mercury, for a long moment, as she simply stares. Why... Why did this have to happen? Then, finally...
"It doesn't matter if you forgive me for this," she whispers quietly, her voice trembling. "How can forgiveness be important, when someone is gone like this? That's not what's important." Serenity tears her eyes away from the body once more, and turns them up to Mercury. "She's gone! And I don't even know her? Why, Mercury? Why did she have to die?"
For Demando & SerenitykingoftruthApril 8 2010, 05:57:28 UTC
"Princess. Behind me."
He doesn't wait for her to obey or for either of them to acknowledge his presence, before he reaches with one hand to take Serenity by wrists and push her behind him protectively. It doesn't matter, that the nexus has brought him here, and that this is most likely not the princess of his own world. He will not grant his enemy any hostages, and those dark eyes that glare at Demando make that clear.
Demando doesn't even look up at Kunzite. If the princess corrects the misunderstanding, he'll be grateful to her. But he can't face his enemy like this, right now. There's nothing that can be done. He props himself up to a sitting position on the floor.
In this moment, before it really sets in, while she still wants to help the person who saved her life... she has enough surprise still to look up at the shitennou in shock, and even to try and pull away, even if futilely.
"K- Kunzite!" Her eyes fly from the dark man, to where Demando still hunches over the woman, and she shakes her head. "He saved me, Kunzite! Let go, please!"
"He's an enemy," comes the swift response, even as he continues to hold her wrist firmly, trapping her in place. If there's surprise at her words, it's carefully concealed behind that warrior's mask that faces the corrupt prince. He can't afford to let his guard down now, whether or not this is the Demando of his world, or another. If the coward has finally lost his last underling... there's no telling what he will do.
for Sere, once she's alone in her room againaroyal_painApril 8 2010, 06:05:37 UTC
"Serenity!" In his shock at seeing her in that state, so obviously distraught, he doesn't even think to call her by her title. Endymion hurries into the room and towards her.
It's better, that he uses her name, because she's having such a hard time, on not staring at that spot only a little ways from her bed, on not thinking, reliving it, over and over, but his voice, and her name, are enough to pull her back into reality. When he reaches her side, she almost folds completely when she feels his arms around her, and she looks up with a tear streaked face.
He holds her without even thinking about it, even as his mind is still trying to guess what could put her in this state. This seems... worse than a fuss over visits to Earth or lessons or her friends. Endymion reaches to brush a lock of hair away from Serenity's face.
That touch of tenderness, light as it is, seems to undo her, opening some kind of floodgate, and the princess collapses into his chest, gasping for breath as the tears begin to flow and she's left sobbing. She can't breathe enough, or form words, she can only bury herself into his grasp, bury her fingers tightly into the fabric of his uniform, and cling to him.
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"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to. I'm sorry..." As she gets closer, she notices little things... things that remind her of the fuzzy memories she has of the time she spent as a child... She does know him- doesn't she? "Demando?"
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"Demando," he confirms.
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"Demando... I'm sorry." Her voice is quite, her eyes pained as she meets his gaze.
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"No... He saved me..."
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"How many people have to die because of you before you're satisfied?"
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"I- I didn't want this..."
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"I don't have any forgiveness for you. No one can be forgiven when they won't change what they do. That's not real repentance."
Mercury's speaking of herself, to herself, too; she can't repent of her hatred because she'd do every step of it over again if she knew what she knows now. But it's oh so appropriate to the princess who'll never even care enough to think about whether she should change, who even now just sits there like it'll go away.
And it will. Someone will clean the room, the senshi will fuss over the princess, and she'll forget a life was ever lost here just like she'll forget the senshi themselves and their lives eventually.
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"It doesn't matter if you forgive me for this," she whispers quietly, her voice trembling. "How can forgiveness be important, when someone is gone like this? That's not what's important." Serenity tears her eyes away from the body once more, and turns them up to Mercury. "She's gone! And I don't even know her? Why, Mercury? Why did she have to die?"
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He doesn't wait for her to obey or for either of them to acknowledge his presence, before he reaches with one hand to take Serenity by wrists and push her behind him protectively. It doesn't matter, that the nexus has brought him here, and that this is most likely not the princess of his own world. He will not grant his enemy any hostages, and those dark eyes that glare at Demando make that clear.
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"K- Kunzite!" Her eyes fly from the dark man, to where Demando still hunches over the woman, and she shakes her head. "He saved me, Kunzite! Let go, please!"
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"Endymion!"
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"What happened here?" he asks.
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