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Post by Chiba Mamoru on Dec 24, 2008 22:59:44 GMT -5
Mamoru had been feeling uneasy ever since his meeting with Pluto the day before had come to an end. He knew his uneasiness had either come from the rumor that Ami had informed him about, or the meeting with that stranger that had fallen into the chambers. For that matter, the amount of stress he had been under since the creation of Crystal Tokyo and the fact that his wedding was getting steadily nearer probably had played a part in his current state of being.
He loved Usagi with every fiber of his being, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t nervous about his upcoming wedding. After all, didn’t every man get cold feet before he said his vows? They had been through so much together and he knew that he could keep her safe enough, especially with the help of her ever present senshi. His real worry had to come with did he truly deserve such a treasure as Usagi ...
Then there was that stranger, that psychic that Rei had vouched for the other day. There had been something familiar about him, something about him that made Mamoru think he should know him and yet he knew that he had never seen him before.
At any rate, he had so many thoughts tumbling in his head that he was having trouble making sense of anything. Therefore he had decided to turn to the four that always seemed to be able to lay to rest his uneasiness. Mamoru had made certain to tell the palace staff that he was not to be interrupted for any reason unless it was Usagi that needed him. He had then locked his chamber doors and brought out the glass case that contained the four precious stones holding the souls of his Shitennou. Sitting down in his most comfortable chair, Mamoru set the glass case on the table in front of him and opened it. Then he closed his eyes and concentrated on calling for the Shitennou ...
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Post by Khalid ibn Maleec on Dec 24, 2008 23:15:25 GMT -5
Kunzite felt the prince calling him and responded to the silent call immediately, the pink stone giving off a faint light as his spirit manifested in the room. As soon as he had fully manifested himself, the leader of the Shitennou dropped to one knee before Endymion, placed his fist over his heart, and bowed his head.
"My liege. How can we serve you?" Kunzite did not check to make sure that the others showed the proper respect as well, but rather trusted that they would.
He also expected that Mamoru would let them know if he wanted a more informal conversation. Which basically meant that the others would behave the same way they did when Mamoru did not call them.
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Post by Nathaniel Bernhardt on Dec 24, 2008 23:21:01 GMT -5
"Majesty."
Nephrite's voice was not far behind Kunzite's, his manifestation performing the same deeply respectful bow but faster, showing the Second's more impatient nature.
It irked him to have to wait to find out what was wrong, but one did not rush a king. Rank dictated that the king speak first, then and only then were his servants free to follow suit. Protocol like that was just such a waste of time, but it did defer authority properly.
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Zacharie Babineaux
Pure Heart
King of the North
Coming soon to a theatre near you <3
Posts: 84
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Post by Zacharie Babineaux on Dec 24, 2008 23:46:10 GMT -5
Not terribly long after the first two had arrived did the third appear. Not quite as formal as the other two tended to be, Zoisite's grin stretched a little at seeing his King once again. "Your Highness," He greeted him with a sketched bow, and then broke Kunzite's trust immediately, "Are we to be your conscience or your demons? I'm not quite sure our current state allows a change of wardrobe, but I do think I'd make a much better angel. Better colour scheme."
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Post by Chiba Mamoru on Dec 25, 2008 0:06:23 GMT -5
Mamoru immediately relaxed as the Shitennou appeared, although after a moment when Jadeite did not appear the uneasiness he had been feeling came back. He waited another second before deciding that the missing member was not going to appear.
He ignored Zoisite’s comment about wardrobe and quickly drove right to the point of why he had called upon them. “I’ve been feeling uneasy for awhile now. Whether it is because of the stress of creating a new government, my upcoming wedding, or something else I’m not quite certain. There have been so many things to happen lately that it has been hard to even think straight ...”
Mamoru paused a moment, still rather troubled that Jadeite had yet to appear. Finally he murmured, “The fact that Jadeite has also failed to appear only makes me more worried that there is something going on, something more then any of us have guessed at.”
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Post by Khalid ibn Maleec on Dec 25, 2008 0:18:27 GMT -5
Kunzite spared a moment to give Zoisite "that look," the one he had perfected over countless years as a commander. However, his normally stoic expression became a sincere frown when Jadeite did not make an appearance.
All that was pushed aside when Mamoru began to speak. "Any of those are enough to create stress, but I'm wondering if something specific has happened to cause you to feel off? And I agree, Jadeite's lack of appearing is troubling."
He frowned slightly, "He has been quiet lately."
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Post by Nathaniel Bernhardt on Dec 25, 2008 0:29:33 GMT -5
"Angel? More like an imp, Zoisite." His response was one the casual teasing and banter that flowed between the four of them, born of many many years of camaraderie, even if the tone was angrier than it needed to be.
"Jadeite's energy has been shifting, fading. He hasn't even roused much recently to poke fun at Zoisite. Something is in the air, the skies are changing."
Shaking his long mane of hair, Nephrite looked back at his king's youthful face. The Endymion that he remembered best was slightly older, a little less soft, but still just as in love with his Serenity.
"People never take well to change, Endymion. Even if it's good for them, they will fight it with everything they have." A wry smile twisted his lips at those words. The Shittenou had fought change against Beryl and for Beryl, and now they were shades bound to their namesake stones. "There will always be those who disagree and insist on being different." A meaningful flick of the eyes once more in Zoisite's direction accompanied that final remark.
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Zacharie Babineaux
Pure Heart
King of the North
Coming soon to a theatre near you <3
Posts: 84
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Post by Zacharie Babineaux on Dec 25, 2008 0:49:19 GMT -5
"Quite." Zoisite agreed with Nephrite's last comment. He didn't bother to even respond to Kunzite's look or the imp remark. Instead he frowned at the final stone and sighed, "Quite indeed. That boy is the only respite I have from the two party poopers here, and he's been all preoccupied. Do you have any idea what its like being trapped inside rocks with these three as company?"
The blond shook his head sadly, "You're getting cold feet, Endymion. It happens to the best of us, when faced with this sort of thing. Just take a deep breath and realize: how much is this going to change? Especially when you've been with the woman for .. what.. seven years now? More, if you count before."
There was a pause, and then Zoi couldn't resist. He peeked one eye open from his haughtier-than-thou look and glanced Mamoru up and down. "Also, you need to fire your seamstress. Purple, Endimion? Really?"
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Post by Chiba Mamoru on Dec 25, 2008 1:21:06 GMT -5
Flushing just a little at Zoisite’s comment about his suit, Mamoru growled, “At the time purple seemed like a good choice, but on to other more important things ...”
At the time that he had it made, it had seemed like a good choice. The seamstress that had made it for him certainly didn’t have any complaints, but perhaps she was simply glad for the job. Now however, the sad fact was that the more he wore it the more he grew to hate it. Purple ... whoever heard of a king wearing purple, perhaps he really should let someone else pick his outfits from now on.
Mamoru nodded in agreement with the rest of the comments. Zoisite was right about nothing changing with his relationship with Usagi, except that she would be officially his wife. Nephrite was right about change being hard to deal with.
After a moment of thoughtful silence he finally replied, “I think my uneasiness comes from the intruder from the other day. There was something about him, something familiar though I know I haven’t ever met him before.”
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Post by Khalid ibn Maleec on Dec 25, 2008 1:32:01 GMT -5
Kunzite rolled his eyes as the conversation moved to Endymion's color choices. At least part of what Zoisite had said was relevant to their liege's concerns. For now, he'd let both Nephrite and Zoisite's comments slide, after all, Endymion had obviously not been concerned with maintaining formality in this conversation. That didn't mean if they began arguing he'd ignore it.
He was curious about Nephrite's comment that the skies were changing, but what really caught his attention was the bit about an intruder. "How did an intruder get in? But, more importantly, what was familiar about him? Perhaps we can help you figure that part out at least."
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Post by Nathaniel Bernhardt on Dec 25, 2008 2:06:52 GMT -5
The informality of the meeting was like a bit of soul balm. He missed having flesh, he missed seeing the world, he missed having the stars overhead, and he was able to get small tastes of those pleasures again. This shadow version of himself soaked up this brief taste of freedom like a desert plant with rain.
Even though he didn't need to breathe, Nephrite tasted the air, and it tasted like lightning, like ozone. That was different and it showed on his face.
As he turned to face the king once more, Jadeite's stone caught the corner of his eye. It was flawed. "There are flaws in Jadeite's stone. Cracks. And on the heels of a strange intruder that seemed familiar to you. I have to ask Endymion, was this a physical familiarity or psychic?"
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Zacharie Babineaux
Pure Heart
King of the North
Coming soon to a theatre near you <3
Posts: 84
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Post by Zacharie Babineaux on Dec 25, 2008 16:25:01 GMT -5
"Well if it was a physical familiarity, then I suppose he's getting cold feet for a reason," Zoisite remarked with a deadpan expression. He smiled innocently at the brunette, casually making certain that he was out of hitting range--not that spirits could really hurt one another, it was a habit long born of physical ties. "Have you had a background check done on him? Its entirely possible that you're jumping at shadows thanks to your current stress. Then again, there hasn't been much by way of a magical enemy the kind of which we're used to facing, and by all intensive purposes its about due time that one appears."
Again, he paused and then had to tack on: "Don't forget that 'at the time' that green eyesore jacket seemed like a good idea to you, too. I suggest allowing Serenity to dress--... No, no. Sailor Venus. If you allow Serenity the keys to your wardrobe you'll end up in pink and mohair, neither of which will do justice to your complexion."
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Post by Chiba Mamoru on Dec 26, 2008 0:12:13 GMT -5
Mamoru glared in mild annoyance at Zoisite, though he wasn’t at all put out by the teasing. In fact, he was actually enjoying the informality of it all. “That jacket of mine was comfortable and I have no intention of going to Sailor Venus for help in picking out my clothes, nor do I have any intention of dressing in pink and mohair either so you don’t have to worry about that.”
Returning to the more serious discussion Mamoru said, “I believe he originally came to Sailor Mars for help, but when she was called away he decided to follow her. I’m not really certain how he managed to make it through the palace without being stopped, except that security was busy searching for Serenity at the time.”
He frowned as he gazed at Jadeite’s flawed stone and tried to figure out just how the intruder had been familiar. After a moment he murmured thoughtfully, “It was more of a feeling that I should know him and yet I didn’t. I suppose I would have to say both a physical and a psychic familiarity, actually he really kind of looked like ....”
Mamoru trailed off uneasily, not willing to finish his sentence. He knew what he had been thinking of course, but that really shouldn’t be possible. The entire matter with both the intruder and the cracking of Jadeite's stone was troubling and he decided that he really should investigate it much further, even speak to Pluto if he had to.
Aware that he had lapsed into silence, Mamoru said, “I don’t know, I just know that he was familiar and yet he wasn’t.”
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Post by Khalid ibn Maleec on Dec 26, 2008 0:32:30 GMT -5
Kunzite relaxed as he watched the cues that Endymion was giving himself. He allowed himself to raise an eyebrow at the banter. He might not admit it to anyone, but the truth was that he enjoyed the banter and friendship that existed between the five men. However, Kunzite was very much aware of how much he needed to atone for before he could be fully relaxed again; he wondered if that would ever happen.
He listened to Endymion's description of the familiarity and then frowned slightly when he did not finish his thought. "He kind of looked like whom, my Liege? This is clearly bothering you. Please, allow us to help you with it."
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Post by Nathaniel Bernhardt on Dec 26, 2008 1:46:30 GMT -5
Nephrite was only half paying attention to the king's words as Jadeite's stone was cracking even more deeply right before his eyes.
"Kind of like whom," he asked, echoing Kunzite's unheard question. His tone of voice was very distracted sounding as he continued to watch the cracks turn into fissures.
"Majesty..."
One hand curled to beckon the king closer, but before anyone could actually move the room was filled with a loud screeching and a noise like crunching stone.
It was a purely reflexive action, but Nephrite looked quickly away, one arm flying up to cover his eyes, as he was unsure exactly what was going to happen. When the noise had died down, the shade uncovered his eyes with a self-chastising frown before peering into the case where Jadeite's stone lay in two pieces, cracked neatly down the middle.
(Jadeite-mun asked me to have this happen so it explains fully why he didn't come when the king called)
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