A Starless Sky






Jadeite stepped through a warp-hole into his home. He started to pull his gloves off and realized that his hands were shaking.

“Shit,” he whispered to the empty room, “that was close. How much longer until Queen Beryl finally kills me?” He gritted his teeth as he thought about his latest failure. “Damn those senshi,” he hissed, wrapping his arms around himself. “Damn them to Abbadon and beyond.” He was shivering uncontrollably now.

He was going to die.

Or worse.

He wasn’t sure how he knew. These premonitions came infrequently, but they were always right. He was afraid, as much as he hated to admit it, even to himself. He wanted to live.

Still, he thought, a quick death would probably be for the best. He remembered the youma that Queen Beryl had tortured. The thought made him feel sick. They had screamed for days before their voices had given out. No, not like that. He closed his eyes, but still felt the moisture behind his lids.

Strong arms wrapped around him from behind, and he could feel the person’s long hair brush against his face accompanied by faint, familiar sent. Jadeite tried to pull himself together, to stop shivering.

“Jadeite, you’re freezing! What’s wrong?”

“Tetis is dead.” Jadeite replied flatly. “Beryl is… displeased, to say the least.” He swallowed and tried to force himself out of his lover’s arms, but he was unable to break free. “Nephrite, Queen Beryl is giving me one last chance before she-” He broke off, unable to continue.

“Hush, it will be alright,” Nephrite whispered into his ear. He felt his lips gently kiss the back of his neck, just above the uniform collar.

Love is a Weakness.

He could hear Queen Beryl’s voice in his head. She had been looking at Kunzite and Zoisite as she spoke, no doubt about the rumors that had been whispering their way through the youma ranks. Not having the power and rank of the Ice King, he and Nephrite had been careful to keep their relationship a secret.

He felt Nephrite’s lips working their way tenderly along his jaw-line, nibbling at his ear. He tried to relax, to loose himself in the warmth of his touch.

“Nephrite,” he whispered hoarsely, feeling a tear drip down his cheek. “Nephrite, it won’t be alright.” He bit his lower lip.

Nephrite’s arms loosened their embrace and turned him around so that they were facing. A gentle finger under his chin tilted his head up, and he found himself gazing into deep azure eyes. The cold icy barrier that so many saw was gone. They were warm, caring, and afraid.

“No, Jadeite,” he said firmly, his fingers brushing away the dampness on his cheeks. “It will be fine. Come on, keep a positive outlook. Please… Jadeite, you know I’ll protect you. I love you”

Love is a Weakness.
Jadeite forced a smile upon his lips, hoping that it didn’t look as false and sickly as he felt. Apparently, it didn’t because Nephrite smiled warmly in return. “There,” he said, “I knew you’d feel better.”

Sure, I feel much better, Jadeite said to himself. But ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a Grave man. He leaned into Nephrite, feeling the taller man stroke his hair. Where have I heard that? It’s something from the Human Realm, I think. Something… something about Star-crossed Lovers. He tilted his head up to return Nephrite’s kisses, which were becoming more ardent.

The Stars…Nephrite, ask the stars. Ask them where I’ll be soon. You will not like the answer, my Love. This is going to be our last night together, isn’t it?

With that thought in mind, he reached up to help Nephrite unbutton his jacket.


Jadeite picked himself up off the ground, a cold, hard knot in the pit of his stomach.

I failed again.

For the last time.

He felt the shift in the air, the disturbance that always preceded the opening of the warp holes, and he knew that Beryl would make sure he returned to the Dark Kingdom. The vortex opened, and he felt the cold blackness as he was forced through.

Oddly enough, the fear was gone. He had resigned himself to his fate. Still, an overwhelming sense of sorrow washed over him as he stood before Beryl’s throne. He half-heartedly tried to bargain the identities of the senshi, but Beryl was beyond reasoning with.

He could see Nephrite, just as he’d seen him this morning: sprawled across the bed, his long auburn hair a tangled mass that flowed over the pillows. Looking up, his eyes met Beryl’s.

She knew.

She knew about them, and she was going to punish not only him, but Nephrite as well. He could feel her thoughts slithering through his mind, leaving a trail of foul ooze in their wake. He wasn’t going to die, not yet.

In the back of his mind, he could hear the youma screaming.

No, not that…

He raised his hands. An instinctive gesture, but he knew that he could never block what was coming, and then…

Cold.

Pain.

It closed around him with the crystal, leeching through the wards he had woven around himself, breaking through them as if they had never been. The bitter chill was creeping into his mind, a dark blanket that obscured all but the constant pain.

Love

is a Weakness.

I am a Weakness.

Nephrite…


Nephrite crept silently into Beryl’s throne room. He used all his powers, both magical and mundane, to make sure that it was utterly deserted. Queen Beryl had assigned him to gather energy earlier today after she had…

He stopped the thought there. He moved quietly across the dark floor, barely able to see through the thick shadows.

He had criticized Jadeite and his methods, while silently praying that he would forgive him. Queen Beryl had bought it. He hoped.

The crystal loomed before him, glowing slightly in the gloom. He placed a hand against it and looked into the face that it trapped. Eyes and mouth wide, hands raised in a feeble block. He could see the pain, sorrow and fear, so easily readable. His hand clenched against the slick, cold surface, and he lowered his head, unable to look into Jadeite’s face any longer.

He knew that he was alive. He knew that he was in eternal pain. He knew that there was no way for him to help.

“It would have been better if you had died,” he whispered into the darkness. “For both of us.”

Two tears rolled from his eyes and fell silently to the polished stone floor.

“Jadeite… I failed you. I promised that I would protect you, that I would be there for you…” He bent his head forward to rest on the crystal, ignoring the stab of pain that flashed through him. He reached deep within himself for the power of the Stars, hoping to find some mote of comfort or advice.

He saw only an empty, starless sky.