Nephrite and Naru opened the door to their spacious apartment in the Crystal Palace and went inside. The music from Endymion and Serenity's anniversary ball still echoed in their ears. Nephrite pulled his wife into his arms and spun her around the marble-floored front hall a few times, the skirt of her emerald silk gown swirling around their legs. Then he bent over her and kissed her, with all the warmth of their long, happy, and still-passionate years of marriage.

The front door opened again. "Oh, gross," said the voice of their fifteen-year-old son Jomei. "Do you guys have to do that where people can see you?"

Naru felt Nephrite's mouth twitch against hers with suppressed laughter, but he didn't break the kiss.

"Don't say anything," his older brother, Benjiro, told him. "It just encourages them."

Naru turned in her husband's arms to look proudly at their two oldest sons. Like all of Nephrite and Naru's children, Benjiro, who was seventeen, and Jomei had thick, wavy hair that was a color somewhere between Nephrite's dark auburn and Naru's bright red, and greenish-blue eyes. They showed every promise of being just as tall, broad-shouldered, and handsome as their father, and, like their father, they would one day be Guardians of the Royal Family. "How was the party?" Naru asked.

"Never mind the party, how's the car?" put in Nephrite.

"The car's fine, Dad," Benjiro said, handing over the plastic card with the embedded computer chip that operated the new Ferrari 456M8. "I fueled it up and everything. We had fun, Mama. Chiko and Chiyo said to say hi." Benjiro and Jomei had accompanied the Kumada girls to a dance for high-schoolers at one of the poshest hotels in the city. Parties were rampant in Crystal Tokyo, especially in the three years since the defeat of the Dark Moon Family's invasion. Sometimes, when Naru was in a less carefree mood than she was tonight, she wondered if this was in celebration of the strengthening of Crystal Tokyo's peace or in denial of the weakness that had been revealed. Tonight, parties were almost impossible to avoid, it being the celebration of King Endymion and Neo-Queen Serenity's twentieth wedding anniversary.

Jomei charged into the family room of the apartment, drawn by the noise and light of the holographic video game that twelve-year-old Keiji was engrossed in. "Oh, man," he said, looking at the shimmer of images dancing in the middle of the large, ivory-carpeted room. "Level 75! I've never gotten that far!"

Keiji grinned, not taking his eyes from the action. "That's because you're stupid."

"Am not. Let me see." Jomei tried to grab the controls from his younger brother, but Naru stepped in. "Time to shut it off and go to bed, Keiji. How did the younger ones do?"

"Fine, Mama." Keiji was old enough to babysit his younger siblings, Naru thought, as long as she and Nephrite were somewhere in the Palace, reachable by the Palace's communication system and able to teleport back to the apartment on a second's notice. The boy concentrated on zapping one more alien invader, then shut off the game. "They all went to bed when they were supposed to. And I didn't start playing until after they were all in bed. I promise."

"Good. I'll credit your account. Two crystal yen per hour, as usual," Naru said. After the Awakening, the world's economic system had been in a shambles. Nephrite, who knew more about money than anyone else in Endymion and Serenity's Court, having made a great deal of it in his luxury imports business, had suggested instituting a new world-wide monetary unit, the Crystal Yen, worth about one hundred and fifty of the former yen. As Nephrite had predicted, this move quickly stabilized Crystal Tokyo's economy. The city was now a universally wealthy place, and the prosperity had gradually spread throughout the rest of the rebuilt world.

"Off to bed now," Naru told Keiji. She followed him into the room he shared with nine-year-old Mieko. The walls of the boys' room were plastered with posters of video games and rock bands. Meiko's "real" toy electronic keyboard stood in one corner. It was the only uncluttered surface in the room. Meiko and his twin sister Mitsu were huddled under some blankets on Meiko's bed with a flashlight, no doubt reading the latest Sailor V comic books. Naru debated taking the flashlight away and sending Mitsu back to her own room, then decided that Mitsu and Mieko would only get up to some other mischief. If she left them alone, they would fall quietly asleep before too long, and then she could have Nephrite carry Mitsu back to her own room.

In the girls' room, where Mitsu was supposed to be, six-year-old Nariko was sleeping peacefully. Naru smoothed her silky red curls away from her face and made sure she was warmly tucked in. Nariko was the child they had almost lost, born three months too early and plagued with serious health problems, requiring multiple surgeries, through her first three years. She was fine now, but Naru, looking at her, could never help thinking how close Nariko had come to not being here. Naru smiled now, mentally making a prayer of gratitude for her child - for all her children - then, stepping over stray piles of Mitsu's comic books, went into the nursery.

Renjiro, who was two, had managed to sprawl himself the wrong way across his bed, and lay with his feet on his pillow and his blankies wadded up beneath his stomach. Naru straightened him around and tucked him in, then went over to the crib.

Two-month-old Tamika lay asleep on her back, exactly as Naru had instructed Keiji to place her. It was much safer for very young babies to sleep on their backs, and Naru had always taken every possible safety precaution with her children. While Naru watched, the baby started to squirm and make hungry little noises. Naru felt the familiar tingling fullness in her breasts as her milk let down. She picked up the baby and carried her down the back hallway across the apartment to the private sitting room off her and Nephrite's bedroom.

Naru settled herself on the cobalt-blue brocade sofa, which she had selected precisely for its design as a comfortable place for nursing a baby. She eased down the bodice of her dress, and positioned Tamika at her breast. Eagerly, the baby latched on and began suckling.

Ever since the Awakening, almost twenty years ago, the aging process had been noticeably slower. Nephrite and Naru, as well as all the other Guardians, the Senshi, the King and Queen, and everyone else who had been young adults when the Sleep descended, looked barely thirty, though Naru was thirty-nine and Nephrite was... well, it was hard to say exactly how old he was, but if you didn't count the thousand years in the Dark Kingdom and the thousand years of Sleep (no one counted those years, since all life had been held suspended during that period) and the four years when he was dead, he was probably about forty-seven or so. Of course, after seven pregnancies, Naru wasn't as slender as she used to be, but she still had a trim, well-defined waistline, and she knew that her lusher curves were admired by others, especially Nephrite. She wore her wavy red hair in a shorter, more chic style than she had when she was a teenager, but it still didn't have a single sign of gray in it.

As Naru sat nursing her baby, she wondered if her fertility was going to be extended along with her apparent youth, and if it was time to stop having babies. Eight children was a lot; most families only had two or three. But she looked down at Tamika's soft face and downy red hair, the tiny, perfect fist curled up against her breast, and felt a pang at the thought of this being the last baby. One more, Naru told herself. Just one more. She still remembered the terrible, empty years when Nephrite had been dead, and each child was further proof that he was alive now and that he loved her. And she loved each of her children dearly. Each one held a unique place in her heart, and it was a wondrous and satisfying journey, getting to know each one and watching them as they grew and changed.

The door to the sitting room opened and Nephrite walked in, unbuttoning the jacket of his black full-dress uniform. He stopped and gave Naru an appreciative look. Naru felt her face grow warm. They had been married twenty years, she was thirty-nine years old, a dignified matron, a Lady of the court and mother of eight, and he could still make her blush like a lovesick schoolgirl.

Nephrite came to the couch, his jacket completely unbuttoned now, and sprawled next to Naru. "I hate parties," he said fervently. He nuzzled his mouth against her bare shoulder. "Why do I need hundreds of other people when I've got you?"

"You may hate parties," Naru said archly, "but you seem to like the wine."

He chuckled lazily. "I shouldn't have had that last glass, should I."

He wasn't drunk; Naru had seen him drunk exactly three times in all the time she had known him. The first was after Mamoru's bachelor party, not long after Nephrite and Naru's own wedding, and Nephrite and the other Guardians had practically had to be embalmed to make them presentable for the wedding the next day.

The second time was during one of Nariko's illnesses, when the doctors said it would take a miracle for their daughter to live more than a few more hours. Naru had stayed at the hospital, making desperate prayers for the miracle to happen, while Nephrite, unable to deal with the strain, went home. Naru would never forget finding him red-eyed and flat drunk when she came home the next morning, or the way he had said, in a dull, hopeless voice, "She's dead, isn't she." Naru had stared at him coldly. "If she were, she would have died without her Papa at her side." She let him sit in shamed silence for a moment, then went on, "She's alive. She's going to be all right, this time. And the doctors said that when she's stronger they can go ahead with the surgery." Nephrite had started crying then, the only time she had ever seen him cry, and she quickly forgot her anger at his abandonment as she took him into her arms to comfort him.

The third time was after the Dark Moon invasion, when the Guardians were stranded outside the sealed-off city and couldn't get in to defend their King and his family. That had been a bad time, knowing that the King and Queen and everyone else in Crystal Tokyo were in danger, especially since Benjiro and Jomei were also trapped in the city at their school. Nephrite's fear for his oldest sons and his frustration at being unable to do his duty had led him to drink until Naru pointed out, very sensibly, that his getting drunk wasn't helping anyone either.

Nephrite wasn't drunk tonight, but he was definitely loose, his usual reserve and dignity washed away by the highly admirable wine that had been served at the ball. Naru knew from previous experience that she had a long but fun night ahead of her. Unless he suddenly fell asleep, which could happen, though it wasn't likely.

Nephrite was slowly working his way along her arm, then suddenly stopped and sat up straight. Naru took the opportunity to shift Tamika to the other breast. "Damn," Nephrite said, looking at his watch. "I forgot. Lord Shingo wanted to meet with us after the ball." He started re-buttoning his jacket.

'Us' was the four Guardians; Lord Shingo, Serenity's brother, was the head of Palace security. Together, they were working on ways to prevent future disasters such as the Dark Moon invasion.

"Why tonight?" Naru asked. "Couldn't it wait till tomorrow?"

"No." Nephrite finished buttoning his jacket, and straightened the sleeves and cuffs. "Shingo says he's found something important, and it can't wait. It shouldn't take more than an hour or so, though. I'll be back as soon as I can." He bent over Naru and kissed her mouth, then touched his lips lightly to Tamika's cheek. "Wait up if you want to." He gave her another one of those looks that made her blush, then left the apartment.

Naru finished feeding Tamika, straightened the bodice of her gown, took the baby back to bed, and checked on the other children. Mitsu had fallen sleep over the comic books, so she got Benjiro, who was awake and reading in the room he shared with Jomei, to carry his little sister back to her own bed. Then, the children settled and the lights turned off, Naru changed into a blue silk nightgown, poured herself a glass of milk, and went to bed, to read until Nephrite got home.

* * * * * * * *

Naru awoke when her book slid from her lap onto the floor. She looked at the clock; nearly three hours had passed since Nephrite left. The bed was still empty beside her. She felt a momentary panic, then reminded herself that Nephrite was in the Palace, there was no chance he had gotten into an accident out on the streets, the meeting with Lord Shingo was just running late. She tried to settle herself with her book again, but something still nagged at her. It was unlike Nephrite to be gone so much longer than he had expected without calling her. She got up and checked the voice message recorder in the sitting room. The display was blank. No messages. Other women might worry about their husbands being with someone else, when they were late like this, but Naru knew that Nephrite was absolutely faithful to her. Still, she couldn't get over the feeling that something must be wrong. She paced restlessly around the sitting room for several minutes, then finally decided that the only way her mind would be set at ease was if she saw for herself that he was all right.

She pulled an overcoat over her nightgown, then quietly left the apartment. Lord Shingo's offices and apartment were high up in the northwest corner tower of the Palace. Naru made her way there through marble-floored crystal hallways that were empty except for the occasional servant or guard. What would she say to Nephrite when she walked in in the middle of a perfectly normal meeting, wearing her nightgown and worrying needlessly about him? Well, he would understand, but it would be embarrassing in front of the other Guardians and Lord Shingo.

She deliberately avoided thinking about what she would do if she got there and found that the meeting was long over and Nephrite wasn't there.

The pair of soldiers guarding the entrance to the northwest tower recognized her and nodded politely, allowing her to pass. "I need to find my husband," Naru said. "Do you know if he's still meeting with Lord Shingo?"

"Sorry, ma'am. We only came on duty half an hour ago. We haven't seen anyone come or go," one of the guards said.

"Oh, well. Thank you." Anyway, Nephrite had probably teleported over, completely bypassing the guards, Naru thought.

She reached the door to Lord Shingo's office, and raised a hand to knock. Then she hesitated, feeling foolish. She didn't want to interrupt an important meeting with her silly worries. This lower level of Lord Shingo's suites wasn't strictly private, not like his residence or his study. She could just open the door, take a quick peek to reassure herself that Nephrite was okay, then leave without being noticed. She put her hand on the knob and turned slowly. The door opened, revealing the office, furnished with a large desk and an oval conference table which had several chairs arranged around it. No one was there. At first Naru was afraid that the meeting had ended, then noticed light shining down through the stairwell to the left, where a spiral staircase ascended to Shingo's private quarters.

Naru walked to the foot of the staircase. While she stood there, debating whether to climb them, voices floated down from the upper floors. "We didn't expect it to go this far, Shingo," Lord Zoisite said. Naru had long since forgiven him for Nephrite's murder, but hearing that voice unexpectedly could still make her stomach clench up in fear. She tried to calm herself now, telling herself that her nervousness was only the result of an over-active imagination and a too-late evening.

"This was supposed to all be theoretical." Nephrite's voice. Naru sighed, feeling the tension in her stomach unknot itself. She should leave now, but suddenly she felt too curious about what had been important enough to keep the Guardians at this meeting till three o'clock in the morning. Whatever it was, they seemed worried about it. "We didn't think you would actually try to apply what we've learned," Nephrite went on.

"We've come too far to turn back." That was Lord Shingo. "We need to test our findings. Think of it - if it works, think of what we'll be able to do."

"But, why Beryl?" Lord Kunzite asked, and in that moment Naru realized she had heard too much. Why on earth would Shingo and the Guardians be involved in something having to do with Beryl, the evil woman who had once seduced Nephrite and the other Guardians into joining her attempt to destroy the universe? Naru's previous fear was nothing compared to the dread that filled her now. Something was terribly wrong. She gathered her skirts into her hands and ran, almost forgetting to shut the door behind her.

She tried to appear calm as she left the tower and walked past the guards. She smiled and nodded graciously. "I found him. It's all right."

"Good," the one who had spoken before said. "Good night, ma'am."

Naru walked until she was out of sight of the guards, then started running. Nephrite, she thought desperately as she ran through the halls of the Crystal Palace, whatever it was you all were talking about, please don't get involved in it, please stay out of it.

Finally she reached the safety of their apartment. She shut the front door and leaned against it, trying to catch her breath. What in the world did the Guardians think they were doing? Anything having to do with Beryl could be considered treason, even though the woman was a thousand years dead. Naru knew first-hand that death was not necessarily an absolute. Suddenly Naru felt like she didn't know her husband any more. Surely he wouldn't commit treason. But he had, twice before, when he and the other Guardians betrayed Endymion to join the Dark Kingdom, and then when he turned against the Dark Kingdom for her sake. It had happened before; who was to say it couldn't happen again?

Naru went to her room, hung up her coat carefully so it wouldn't look like it had been taken out, crawled under the bedcovers, and tried to sleep. It would be best if she were asleep when Nephrite came in, so that she wouldn't have to worry about him seeing something in her face and asking questions. She felt like she would rather die than have him find out that she had spied on his meeting and heard the name "Beryl."

She couldn't sleep. She was too tense, waiting for the sound of Nephrite's footsteps in their room. When she finally did hear him, after another hour, she shut her eyes tightly and held very still. Please let him think I'm asleep, she prayed.

She felt him lean over her, his long hair brushing against her cheek and falling over her face and shoulders, then his lips lightly touched hers. She hardly dared breathe. He went off to get ready for bed; Naru heard him hanging up his uniform, moving around in the bathroom, running water. After a few minutes his footsteps padded back over to the bed and she felt the mattress shift as he settled in beside her.

He leaned over her again. "Naru, I know you're not asleep," he whispered. She held very still. "Come on, love, you can't fool me." She still didn't say anything. Finally he flicked her earlobe with the tip of his tongue, something she always found so ticklish that she couldn't help but respond. She giggled, and he answered with a low chuckle. She rolled over towards him and opened her eyes, looking into his face in the dim, pre-dawn starlight that shone through the crystal windows. It was Nephrite, the man she had loved forever, not some stranger, who was looking down at her. He smiled. "I knew you were awake." His voice was low and gentle, filled with love and the promise of pleasure.

Naru dismissed her fears, giving herself up to her husband's arms as he fulfilled the promise.

* * * * * * * *