The website: http://members.xoom.com/sailmoonSol/solitair3.html CHAPTER FIVE ***************************** Crystal Tokyo - Nemesis ***************************** Emerald watched enviously as the Prince sat on his throne, Solitaire on his lap with her arms wrapped around him. She had only been here for a couple of months, but already she had managed to take Diamond's attention away from his duties towards the others. Solitaire was changing too - she no longer opposed his plans to destroy Crystal Tokyo, after Diamond had explained to her what the Wiseman had told him - how Queen Serenity was responsible for their life on Nemesis. Solitaire felt that Serena had taken away her rulership from her, and thought if she would have been Queen she would have never sent the Black Moon Family to Nemesis. Diamond had already sent the four sisters back to twentieth century Tokyo, along with Rubeus. Sapphire had refused to go with Prisma, saying that he needed to keep on eye on his brother. Solitaire's crystal, meanwhile, had been fused into the black crystal, explaining the ease with which Solitaire lost her loyalty towards her sister and converted those feelings towards Diamond. The two would always be seen together - the happiness they both were experiencing like an addictive drug that caused them to forget about their other worries. Emerald knew it was love, but did not want to admit it to herself. It was even more unsettling when the black crescent moon appeared on Solitaire's forehead three months back, for Emerald knew that meant Solitaire had been initiated into the family and within the next months her and Diamond's child could be on its way. Stepping out of the shadow of the pillar, Emerald came fourth into the royal room and addressed the Prince with the news of Rubeus' progress. "Prince Diamond," Emerald called to him. Diamond ignored Emerald while he traced his finger along Solitaire's shoulder. Solitaire turned away from him for a moment, her smile melting as she looked irately at Emerald. "What is it Emerald?" Solitaire asked annoyedly. Emerald's anger reflected in her voice - "Tell Prince Diamond when he comes back to his senses that Rubeus has arrived in Tokyo with the sisters and are waiting for his orders." Emerald could almost feel the wind pick up around her and push her back. "Thanks, I will." Solitaire coolly replied, returning her attention towards Diamond and not looking to see if Emerald had left. "Emerald!" Diamond yelled to the beautiful green-haired woman, Emerald turning and facing him happily until she saw his angered expression. The Prince's voice took on a softer note as he said "Don't question me, Emerald. We'll have revenge on Queen Serenity soon." Solitaire looked worried for a moment. When she spent time with Diamond, it always made her wonder if they were doing the right thing. Emerald bowed and left the room furiously. She whispered "Yes my dear Prince. We'll have revenge on that Moon Princess very soon." Emerald hurried towards where she could find Wiseman. *************************** 20th-century Tokyo *************************** Darien approached the woman's body as she lay silently on the ground, crouching beside her. "Solitaire?" he asked, but was met with no response. Darien lifted her body, carrying her to his car and placing her inside on the passengers seat. Solitaire mumbled something incomprehensible, however Darien was reassured that she was okay and didn't injure herself in the fall. The cold rain had soaked through them both, but Solitaire began to shiver. Darien could make out the words "Please" as he held her head. He decided to take her back to his apartment, as he closed the door and got in the car. As he made his way through the pouring rain, he wondered how Solitaire, if it was her, could be alive and why she would be all alone in the middle of a deserted ally. Perhaps the ambulance that had taken her away a year ago had not disappeared after all. Why didn't she try to reach him then? As he looked over to her, dressed in a tight short skirt and a shoulderless sweater, he wondered if perhaps it really wasn't her - something seemed strange to him, other than the obvious. Over and over again he heard the words "help me" as he carried her up to his apartment, into his warm bedroom. Darien left for a moment, to make some tea, while Solitaire rested on the bed. When he came back, Solitaire was clothed in nothing but his bathrobe, as she stood next to the window. "Oh! Are you alright?" Darien asked, as he set down the tea next to her, marveling at the woman's expression. It was Solitaire, but then again it wasn't; her eyes seemed to have a different meaning in them. Solitaire tilted her head to one side, looking down at him as he lifted his eyes to hers. She smiled, the strange glimmer in her eyes growing more distinguished. "Thank you." she said, as she reached for one of the cups. Darien ignored her response, and taking her hand, asked - "Is it really you, Solitaire?", looking deep into her eyes to try to find her soul. Solitaire's eyes flashed for a moment with feelings from the past. Quickly she averted his gaze. "I didn't see you coming, and when the car was so close I thought it was too late." she replied, looking thoughtful, and showing little emotion as was so characteristic of her. Darien remembered seeing her in the road, coming close to hitting her. His expression grew brooding, remembering his mistake. "I'm sorry - I was careless. I'm just glad you're alright." he replied, running his hand across her cheek. He was convinced it was her. Solitaire smiled. The only thing he couldn't figure out was why she was here. "Where were you all this time? Why didn't you try to call me?" Darien asked. Solitaire let the robe slide partly down her shoulder as she explained; "I don't remember much after the accident - I was home, in the US. My parents didn't understand what happened, and I couldn't tell them - they wouldn't let me talk to you. They though it was your fault.". Darien's face flushed with guilt - he had since felt that the accident was his fault. But then again, Solitaire was alive. Solitaire continued - "They wouldn't let me come to Tokyo either. Finally I told them I was going to Europe, and instead I came here. I wanted to see you." To Darien the explanation was less relevant than to hear the voice of the one that he had been missing for so long. He didn't think to ask why she what she was doing in the bad part of the city all alone. ********************************** Silver Millenium - four months before the final ball ********************************** It was a rare night when Endymion was at all perceptive of his surroundings, but this night he took time away from his own exploits to examine the scene infront of him. Snow packed the ground outside, but inside it was warm and the great chandelier lit the room well, as the figures beneath it were scattered. Some were dancing, many were drinking, a few were just watching, but everyone was dressed formally for the occasion. Even Malachite had been persuaded to dress up a little, as Endymion watched him elegantly gliding across the floor with Solitaire. They looked so serious, Endymion thought. He was about to look away, until he saw the both of them laughing, which was rare for the two people. Endymion thought for a moment what an unfortunate couple the two would be - both so serious and emotionless. But Malachite was slowly changing when he was with Solitaire, Endymion thought, as he still stared at the couple. Malachite's expression had grown serious again, but Solitaire had hardly taken note, her face still caught in amusement. It was too late for the Prince to look away; he saw Malachite kissing Solitaire, Solitaire pulling away and walking out of the ballroom. Malachite stood awkwardly for a moment, but decided to follow her. Endymion's stomach turned. Solitaire had done it again - she had succeeded to seduce another one of his generals, only to throw them away like dead flowers. He turned, watching Neflite's concerned expression as he stood against a pillar, noting the same scene that he had just witnessed. Endymion was glad at least Jaedite was so infatuated with Mars, even if it took away from his duty, as to not be blinded by Solitaire, and hoped that Zoicite was intelligent enough not to fall for Solitaire as well. He didn't want to admit to himself that despite what he thought of Solitaire, he too wanted to be the one to be with her, dancing with her, and making her happy, even if it meant going against Beryl. That was Solitaire's charm. Her sadness was what attracted others, and it was what would force them away. ******************************* Crystal Tokyo ******************************* Solitaire smiled a smile of self-pity. Under her breath, a laugh was almost audible as she exhaled. She was already planning her death, like a young woman would plan her wedding. Knowing that she would not live for much longer released the emotion that was hiding within her all this time, although it manifested itself in awkward ways. She felt angry, not really at the others - she was angry at something that she had no control over. As a rule, Solitaire never dwelt on things that were unavoidable, but now that nothing mattered anymore, Solitaire began to grow angry at her fate. Looking back, her whole life had been purposeless - Serena had two responsibilities - one to be Queen, another to Darien, and now Rini was the third. Solitaire had never had a duty in her life, other than to protect the Moon, but now there was nothing to wake up for each morning. Her hopes with Diamond had been shattered, and she refused to spend her time idly living off the others in the Palace. Even an honorable or pointful death would be denied to her. Her whole existence seemed meaningless. The hall she was walking along turned into the point where Solitaire had left, completing a circle. Solitaire knew it would be a couple more days before her strength was back and she could use the power of her silver crystal to get what she wanted most. Since there was no evil to kill her, the only way she could die is if she used the crystal's most powerful force. A soft voice from behind her broke her train of thought - "Solitaire-" Rei addressed the other woman gently. She smiled warmly. "Would you join us for some tea?" Solitaire thought immediately of Jaedite, and how much he had told her of Rei in the past. She had only met Rei briefly, before the Moon Kingdom was destroyed. "No, no thank you." she replied coldly. She was used to turning away kindness, and she didn't need the pity of some girls that had never understood pain themselves. "Perhaps later then" Rei cheerfully replied, nodding to Solitaire and leaving. She sensed that Solitaire was not yet ready to open up. *********************************** Nemesis *********************************** "Wiseman!" Emerald called to the figure levitating in a cloak. Wiseman turned to face her. "What do you want?" he asked. Emerald smiled lightly, shifting her stance. "Something that will help us both." she replied. "Solitaire is ruining our plans." Emerald lied. "What? She doesn't have any powers anymore - the silver crystal was fused with the dark crystal." Wiseman responded. "She's convincing Diamond to abandon our mission." "Trust me, Emerald, both of them are so lovestruck that they are completely harmless." Wiseman manipulated his crystal ball. "I know why you want her gone" he added. Emerald growled. She hated trying convincing Wiseman. "But if she were gone, Diamond would re-focus on securing Crystal Tokyo. Solitaire is dragging us all down!" Wiseman contemplated for a moment. If he helped Emerald get rid of Solitaire, then she would be indebted to him forever, she would have to trust him. Right now he needed to cement his relations within the palace to be able to take over. He had also sensed that Solitaire did pose danger to his plans, but did not want to admit it to Emerald. Wiseman needed the power of the dark crystal, and to have it, he needed to keep the allegiance of the Dark Moon Family. And with Solitaire gone, the Dark Crystal would be secure. "If I help you Emerald, you know what I want in return." Emerald smiled evilly, pleased that Wiseman was so easy to convince. Teaming up with Wiseman would allow the both of them to defeat Solitaire. ************************************* Moon Kingdom ************************************* "Solitaire, please! I didn't mean to hurt you." Malachite called to the woman standing in the hall. "I'm sorry." "Don't be sorry, Malachite." Solitaire replied. "You don't understand." she said, looking away. "You're right. I don't understand." Malachite frustratedly replied as he approached Solitaire, taking her hand. Quickly she drew it back. "No! We can't do this." she replied coldly and emotionlessly. Malachite had no idea what he had done wrong. "Its not your fault. You'll only get hurt." "But Solitaire," Malachite pleaded, his low voice echoing through the hall. "NO! What don't you understand?!" Solitaire yelled at him angrily. She was almost at the point of crying. Malachite drew back, his eyes turning dark gray. He had never been so mistreated by anyone in his life, and he didn't understand what he had done to hurt Solitaire. He thought he had felt her liking him, but he assumed he was wrong. "Fine. I'm sorry." Malachite quickly retorted, turning to leave. He didn't have to take this, even if it was from her. "Malachite, wait - " Solitaire called to him, trying to stifle the pain in her voice. Malachite couldn't bear the sound of her sadness - he turned to face her, her pain-filled eyes piercing his. He wanted to hold her and comfort her, wash the pain away from her. Impulsiveness caught up to Solitaire as she stared at Malachite, running to him and kissing him passionalty. Eventually reality filtered through to her, as she unwrapped herself from his embrace. "You deserve better, Malachite. You have to trust me. I can't let this happen. Someday you'll understand. Please forgive me." "Understand what?" Malachite angrily asked. He cursed himself for raising his voice. "One minute I'm kissing you, the next I can't - " he said on a softer note. "I know. Its my fault. I shouldn't have let anything happen." Solitaire replied, her tone stained with sadness. She wanted to be able to tell Malachite the truth, that she couldn't love him because it would only end in sadness, one way or another. But a lady did not press her burden upon others. "Please don't misunderstand. It has nothing to do with you." Malachite suddenly remembered Neflite. It had been almost two months since he had deserted Solitaire. He had even seen them talking and laughing together - he thought that they had long resolved their differences. Could it be she still loved him? He hadn't seen them together as anything but friends. But Solitaire always succeeded to hide feelings. "I didn't know you still cared for him in that way. I'm sorry - I didn't mean to hurt you." Solitaire turned her face so that Malachite wouldn't see her tear- filled eyes. "No, Malachite. Don't be sorry. Its not Neflite. I liked kissing you. It just can't go on anymore. You have to trust me." Malachite couldn't understand what was wrong. If it wasn't Neflite, why was Solitaire avoiding him? It seemed so clear to him earlier that she liked him. She had told him she liked him. He didn't understand why Solitaire was hiding the truth from him. Could it be to protect him? He had to understand. Her condescending tone only irritated him. "How can I trust someone who won't trust me? The only thing I know with you Solitaire, is to be true to what I feel. How can what I feel be wrong, if you feel the same?" "Please, Malachite. Try to understand it has nothing to do with how you feel or how I feel. There are some things we have no control over." Malachite could make out the tears behind her voice, even though he could not see Solitaire's face. It was so rare when she ever showed her sadness (or even her happiness for that matter), and something must be torturing her to make her unable to hide her feelings. He hated to be the one to bring these emotions out in her. It wasn't worth it. "Nothing I say is going to change your mind." "I wish it was up to me. Do you think I enjoy this?" Solitaire replied, trying her best to not show pain, as the void words slipped from her mouth. Malachite's frustration manifested itself as Solitaire was able to hide her pain from him. "Perhaps you do, because you do it so well." Immediately he wished he could take back what he had said, but it was too late - Solitaire's eyes widened, their lavender expanses emitting anger and pain that slapped him in the face, a gust of wind ruffling his hair. She stopped herself from being angry at him. He couldn't have meant it. She should never have let her guard down, she shouldn't have admitted to herself that she liked Malachite. Another mistake, another loss of control. In the meantime she had allowed him to like her as more than a friend, and now both of them would have to pay the price for her weakness. Solitaire vowed to avoid another encounter like this in her future. And yet looking into Malachite's eyes her resolve weakened. She wanted to be with him. She wanted to be able to love him. The only thing that kept her from letting herself fall into his embrace was her pride, which was also what kept Malachite from opening up to her. All these feelings raced through her mind, but in the end Solitaire's fortitude prevented her from revealing any of them, as she silently submitted to Malachite's accusation. Her arms involuntarily closed around herself, her eyes looking to the ground. Malachite's chest heaved as he waited for her response, but the silence in the hall went unshattered. Not seeing Solitaire's face, Malachite could almost alienate himself from her feelings. It was like looking at a lifeless statue. Her silence only justified his anger towards what he had no control over. She didn't trust him enough to tell him what she was thinking. He couldn't stand the silence anymore. "Don't you have anything to say?!" "Leave...." came a toneless voice from under silken strands of silvery-blue hair. The lack of emotion in it would haunt Malachite for months to come. Pride being the only thing Malachite could salvage from the situation, he bowed to her, turning and heading towards the ballroom. The woman did not stand alone in the hall for long, a man with long brown hair approaching her. The perfect face stared at Neflite, who cradled its eerie seamlessness with his hand against his shoulder like a father would his daughter. Solitaire didn't realize that all this time Neflite was going through the same feelings that Malachite was feeling now. ****************************** 20th Century Tokyo ****************************** More rain quietly rolled off the temple walls as the three girls sat inside of its shelter. A sigh came from under a manga comic as Serena rolled off her back, followed by a high-pitched whimper. Ami and Rei quickly glanced at eachother, both thinking if they should dare ask Serena what was wrong. More squeals came from the bed that Serena was laying on. Luna knew she had to put an end to this - "Serena, what is it?". Rei winced as Luna broke the peace of the room. Ami looked determined to concentrate on her book. "Oh Luna!" (squealing) (sigh) "I was right next to him, holding him." Serena replied, staring upwards. "Here we go again!" Rei snapped, as she grabbed a pillow off the bed and put it over her ears and began to hum. "Oh shut up, Rei! We have to keep listening to you go on and on about Darien...other people can have feelings too!" Serena replied eagerly, looking to Ami for her agreement. Ami smiled at Serena. Rei realized the pillow wasn't working. "If only I could have spent more time with him. Why did you have to come to the elevator so soon?" Serena whined. "Serena!" Rei shouted, throwing the pillow in Serena's direction. "You should be thanking us for saving your butts!" "What?! Were you looking at him?! Rei, I swear, if I ever find out that you..." Serena said, as the pillow brushed against her arm. "Ugh! When will you ever grow up, Serena! Luna, how can you stand living with her all the time?" Rei answered as she stood up. Luna sighed as her head dropped towards the ground. Rei struggled to put on her jacket. "Rei - where are you going?" Ami asked nervously. "I can't stand being cooped up with her all day - I'm going for a walk. Come if you like." Rei answered. Serena huffed, crossing her arms, but her pout soon melted back into a smile as she thought about Tuxedo Mask. "I could stand a break. Too bad it has to rain." Ami replied. "But I don't mind. Sure." Rei smiled, happy that she was escaping Serena and that Ami would come with her. Ami grabbed an umbrella and headed out the door with Rei, Luna looking at them jealously. No one could deal with Serena when she was in this mood. **************************** Nemesis **************************** "Are you sure I can't come with you?" Solitaire asked, sighing. Diamond stared into her beautiful eyes that seemed to hold the universe in their cool expanses. "No - its too dangerous. Whatever happened to you in the past, I don't want you to be exposed to it again. I'll only be gone a little while to see Emerald's progress. Its been so long, almost too long since I've heard her complaining." Diamond replied, trying to laugh. He didn't want to leave Solitaire alone, even in his own home. He wanted to be there to protect her, but he didn't understand from what. Diamond was also unsure of what the others thought of his spending time with her and her involvement in their efforts towards regaining control of Tokyo. A gust encircled the couple as they shared a kiss, Diamond then disappearing into the past as the wind died down. Solitaire was sad for a moment, but realized that she was making a big deal out of nothing - he would be back in a matter of days. She often found herself forgetting to hold back her emotions when she was with him. "Whatever happened to you in the past..." the words still sounded in Solitaire's mind. She had no memory of how she came to Nemesis, other than the brief battle with Sailor Moon. Diamond had mentioned to her that she spoke of someone called "Neflite" when she had arrived, but the name had faded away in her mind. What happened before Nemesis was a mystery to her, just as how she knew Serena was her sister also remained without answer. She had been having dreams since she had been here, but the images were ones she could not place. The most prevailing one was about a man, set in the time of Tokyo. At first she had thought the man to be Diamond, but eventually she was able to picture his face and she saw that it was not. The dreams about the man revolved over and over again in her sleep, as they remained the happiest thoughts that she had. There was another set of dreams from another world, and Solitaire realized the same man was in them, but there was also many others and eventually she realized Serena was in them as well. Only when Solitaire was near the Dark Crystal did her dreams become clear to her and take on the form of memories. Consequently, Solitaire headed towards the room where the crystal was kept. The palace was beautiful, despite the darkness - it was more beautiful than the one she remembered. The pillars gave way to the deep dark color of the crystal, which glowed with more of its newly acquired energy. The crystal encased her in a feeling of warmth, even though it was tainted with evil. She ran her hand along one of its smooth planes, the stone glowing unstably where she had touched it. Suddenly a word dominated her mind - "Darien" she whispered, the face of the man in her dreams returning to her. The more time she spent next to the crystal, the more memories she regained. Solitaire was unaware, however, that when she touched the crystal, she felt stronger not because her past came alive in her, but more because she was actually taking away the energy of the crystal. *********************************** Crystal Tokyo *********************************** Solitaire felt betrayed. She didn't understand why Diamond had forgotten her. In the end she concluded it must be her destiny, but even in the past the ones that had loved her went unwillingly. It was always she who had refused to love them, not the other way around. She didn't understand what she had done to Diamond to make him forget about her. But like in Diamond's case, to Solitaire he was only an ideal; eventually the means replaced the goal; she had spent her time thinking about getting back to Diamond, not getting back with Diamond. Perhaps Malachite had once been right - perhaps she did enjoy crushing the love between herself and others, because now that Diamond had prevented her from doing so, she was left wondering. She realized she had always been so naive, thinking that others would always have to come to her and be the ones to love her. She had never really made any effort to love them back, as much as they cared for her and loved her - she was always selfish. And in the end she had denied them the fruits of their efforts. Pride, however, prevented Solitaire from admitting to herself that she was at all at fault. Instead, she thought of how undeserving the other scouts were of the love of their husbands. They had never felt pain, like the generals had, they had never felt pain like she did - none of them had had their souls ripped apart and their existences robbed from them. More injustices, thought Solitaire. And when she thought of the love between Serena and Darien, her stomach turned. How could Darien, who had been the only one throughout her whole life who she felt cared for her, fall for Serena, who was so awkward? Everything had been handed to that girl that Solitaire felt should have been hers. Like his unfortunate promise to Beryl, destiny had forced Darien to love Serena, just like destiny had forced Solitaire to be alone. She hated thinking that there existed such a thing that she could not control. If only she could prove destiny wrong. Solitaire refused to admit that not only did Darien love Serena, but Serena loved him back. Solitaire returned to the part of the corridor where she had entered it. As she stepped into her room, she noticed the tray of steaming tea on the table next to the bed. Only when she sat on the bed, taking the beads out of her hair, did she see Endymion's reflection in the mirror across from. He didn't need Serenity's convincing to realize that he had to help Solitaire get through this hardship in her life. deep down, he knew that he didn't want to see her leave; he wanted to see her be as happy as he was. "I'm sorry - I didn't mean to intrude." he said jokingly, smiling. Solitaire's lips curved upward for a moment as she caught the joke. "Maybe you do need that lesson in royal protocol.." Solitaire replied wittily. A few moments later, however, her sadness returned to her. Endymion meanwhile approached her, handing her a small box with a crescent moon on the top. "I know its no Silver Crystal, but I though you might enjoy it." Solitaire took the box and opened it, revealing a pair of keys. She could read the BMW logo on them. Even though it had been a thousand years since 20th century Tokyo, the "great sleep" had prevented the evolution of humanity and after Serenity's cleansing the life in the city and the world pretty much took off from where it had left off. Solitaire's eyes brightened, thinking of how Endymion remembered how much she had loved his car when they were together. "I thought you might like silver better than the red, though." Endymion continued, trying to get Solitaire to smile again. Her voice strained slightly as she answered - "You didn't have to." Immediately, she felt bad how rude she had been to him and Serena earlier. They only cared about her happiness, while she had almost come to the point to undermine theirs. But she still felt she couldn't stay. "I thought perhaps you'd like it. But really, it was nothing." Endymion replied. Solitaire's mind had already drifted away from the car and back to him and Serena. "Do you ever wonder if you had any choice in you life, Darien?" Darien frowned for a moment, but tried his best to understand her question. "What do you mean?" "I mean, do you think you would have loved Serena even if it wasn't your destiny?" Endymion winced at the question, because it was almost the same one he had been asking himself ever since Solitaire arrived. "I know that our lives on Earth were influenced by the ones we had had on the Moon, but I think things turned out well." he tried to reply cheerily. Solitaire sadly nodded in agreement. She had hoped to hear something else, something that would have provided her with hope. She didn't realize Endymion was answering a different question than she had asked, that he was talking about 20th century Tokyo when she infact was referring to the Moon Kingdom. She had wanted to see if Darien would have loved Serena anyway when they were together on the moon, even it was no his destiny. Endymion knew that he had to phrase his words carefully, because her life depended on it. He couldn't lie to her, and he didn't have the time to try and hide anything. "Destiny is something that we create, though. In my case, it was created for me, before I was born, but that doesn't mean that I couldn't have had any say in what happened in my life. My destiny was to wed Beryl, but as you can see that didn't come true. In the end the individual does have ultimate control over their choices." "But here you are with Serena. Doesn't it bother you to think that your love for her is entirely manufactured, and had it not been for that curse, you might never have loved her?" Endymion was completely baffled. "What curse?" Solitaire realized that he did not even know that she was referring to their lives on the Moon. "The decree that the daughter of Queen Serenity must fall in love with a powerful planetary prince - please tell me that you knew about that?" Endymion almost laughed out loud, but Solitaire's hurt expression prevented him from doing so. "Do you honestly believe in that, Solitaire?" Solitaire's expression became even more offended. Endymion continued - "That "curse" was widely popularized by Serenity to prevent Beryl from having anger towards me or Serena. Yes, there was a curse in the past that would prevent Serena from finding love, but that was amended so that she could. Why would her love be restricted to a prince? Besides, in the silver Millenium I was technically a king, because both my parents had died. I thought we were talking about our lives on Earth." Only now did Solitaire realize that Serena and Darien's love was infact genuine, like the other scouts'. Clearly, the question that dominated her mind was - "But does that amendment extend to me?" "What? Why wouldn't it extend to you?" Endymion asked, astonished. "But I heard my mother say that I would never find love, and because of that I could not be Queen. Why else would my name be Solitaire?" Endymion was confused for a moment, but sorted out his thoughts out loud - "Your name isn't "Solitaire", like the word solitude. You name is actually French, which is where you were born, and its real pronunciation is "Sol et Terre", which means "ground and Earth", but your mother had meant to say "Sun and Earth", which would have been "Soleil et Terre", but that was too long anyway. "Sun" stood for your father, and "Earth" I guess because you were born there. Your parents had been visiting Earth while your mother was pregnant." Solitaire struggled to understand what Endymion was saying, the shock of the news providing her with an enormous headache. Everything she believed in was shattering, and she would have been happy if she had realized it sooner. "I don't know why she thought that you would never find love, but I do know that she loved you very much and she only wanted things to work out well for you and Serena." Solitaire suddenly made a connection - "The amendment was made before Serena was born. Infact, she was born because my mother knew I could never love and I could never be Queen." "You mean the reason you refused to love Neflite or Malachite or me in the Moon Kingdom was because you thought this? Solitaire, why didn't you ever tell me?" Endymion pleaded. "Exactly. I shouldn't have told you. I don't want your help. There's nothing you can do." Endymion could see that Solitaire had not changed at all, that she still refused to reveal any of her emotions. "Don't you see? Love is more powerful than any other force - love spans across centuries, love won our battles, and it is even powerful enough to overcome destiny. I know you wouldn't understand this, because you have never tried to love anyone Solitaire." "You're wrong." Solitaire said angrily. "I did love you. And I loved Diamond." She stopped herself before she revealed anything more. She had to remember that she was leaving soon. "I don't think you knew what love ever was. I know you didn't love me, and its clear you didn't love Diamond." Endymion harshly replied. Solitaire didn't understand why he was doing this. What did he mean she didn't love him? She knew she loved Diamond, even if that loved had faded by now. "Why are you saying this? You know I loved you - just because I didn't say it all the time like Serena doesn't mean I didn't. And you don't know anything about Diamond and me. You weren't even there." Solitaire replied. Her anger had subsided, hidden deep within her heart and making it colder by the minute. "Look at you! You're not sorry - you never were sorry. It bothered you that Diamond left you not because he did, but because you didn't get to him first. You've never felt anything for anyone." "At least I didn't start a war from my love. How many people did you and Serena kill?" The words sank beautifully into Darien's soul, thought Solitaire, as his eyes grew sad and hurt. "We could have forgiven you, if it was destiny, if you had no control over it, but now I see that you refused to but your duty and honor ahead of your emotions. If you could have kept yourself away from her, then our world would still exist, my mother be alive, and thousands of people would have been saved." "Only a coward like you Solitaire hides their emotions. It takes much more strength to show them and admit to them. You never admitted to anything. You didn't know Beryl and you don't understand our love. If you did, you would know that that was not why there was war." "At least I was not the one who sat in the shadows while my countrymen died. You, Darien, were too busy saving your precious Serena to care about anyone else but yourself." "Its ironic how much you sound just like Beryl. I suggest leaving the mistakes of our youth where they were, Solitaire. If you hadn't broke the Silver Crystal, no one would have had to die. Don't you see the war was entirely your fault?! Beryl would have never attacked if she knew that the Silver Crystal was intact!" Solitaire's eyes widened in complete horror. She was speechless. "Darien!" came an angry voice from the door, as Serenity stood between its elegant pillars. "Are you out of your mind?!" Endymion turned towards Serenity, hoping that she would see past the facade and understand what he was trying to do. Serenity only saw the anger and hurt in his eyes that he had received from Solitaire's accusations. She ignored him, looking at her sister's vacant expression as she stared at nothing. "Solitaire - " she called to her consolingly, the seamless face turning to her lifelessly. "He didn't mean it, Solitaire. What?s in the past should remain there." "Look at yourself - you don't even care!" Endymion continued. "Stop it, Darien!" Serenity ordered, running to Solitaire and trying to hold her. Solitaire pushed her away forcefully, but avoided hurting her. Keys in her hand, she headed towards the door. "Right, Solitaire, run away from your problems! At least Beryl had enough courage to face the truth!" Endymion yelled after her, until a warm sensation developed on his cheek where Serenity had slapped him. Solitaire stopped momentarily, passion and sadness burned in her eyes like they never had before. A strong gust of wind blew in Endymion's direction, cooling the skin that was burning on his face as his eyes met Solitaire's. But there were no tears in their sad expanses, and there was no anger in her face. Nothing but a vacant perfection, other than the eyes, which Darien knew were window's to her soul, and she couldn't hide her feelings in them. Solitaire didn't want them to see her like this, especially Serenity. She had subconsciously transformed, the anger that was deep within her (even though she was unaware of it) surfacing in such an awkward manner. She had to leave, she felt, as she headed out of the corridor towards where she had noticed a silver form on the road infront of the courtyard earlier. Normally her mind would have debated accepting Endymion's gift like this, but she was too preoccupied with what had just gone on to think about that. The car boomed past the gates into the dimming sunset as Solitaire headed for the highway.