Several days passed. The sense of dread that had overwhelmed Naru the night of the anniversary ball faded away as life went on normally. Nephrite gave no hint that anything was wrong, and Naru almost managed to convince herself that she hadn't heard correctly, or that she had heard perfectly innocent comments out of context.

Five days after the ball, Nephrite came home late in the morning, a time when he would normally have been training military recruits or working on his research in his planetarium high in the northeast tower. As he walked into the family room, Naru, who was curled up on a sofa reading a story to Renjiro, said, "You're home early."

"Naru, I want you to take the children and your mother and go up to the lake house this afternoon."

"Today?" Naru asked. "I really shouldn't take them out of school -"

Nephrite slammed his hand against the side of the arched doorway. "I am your husband, and you will obey me without question! Do you understand?"

Naru stared at him, shocked. She opened her mouth to object to his manner, then stopped herself. The only other time he had spoken to her that way, in all the time she had known him, had been the night he was killed by Zoisite's youma, when he tried to order her to run away and save herself. Now she could see that same look of desperation in his face. He was begging her to take herself and her mother and the children and run for safety, but he couldn't let on that there was anything wrong....

It was beginning, Naru realized. The potentially treasonous test of something the Guardians and Lord Shingo had discovered, that she had heard them talking about the night of the ball, was beginning. Naru tried to speak normally, without revealing her sudden fear. "Of course, dear. If you think it would be a good idea, then of course we'll go."

"This afternoon."

"Yes, Nephrite. Of course." She picked up her cell phone to call her mother.

* * * * * * * *

Jasmine walked into the Palace apartment she shared with her fathers, wondering why they had called her home from school in the middle of the day. They had never done that before. In the elegant, gray-carpeted front room, Kunzite and Zoisite, wearing their gray work uniforms, were speaking urgently to each other in low voices. When they saw Jasmine, they fell silent and tried to look as though everything was perfectly normal.

Jasmine had Kunzite's pale gray-blue eyes and was tall for her age, but her hair was Zoisite's rich, wavy gold. She was one of the first children to be created using a technique that fused two sperm cells together within the nutritive environment of a sterilized human egg, making her the biological child of two men. She had been conceived in a petrie dish thirteen years ago, carried in the womb of a professional surrogate, and raised by two men who appeared to not have the slightest idea what to do with a daughter. She had cost Kunzite and Zoisite two hundred and fifty thousand Crystal Yen, and they never seemed to regret the expenditure. She loved them, and they loved her, and they certainly tried hard. Though Zoisite's attempt to explain the facts of life to her had been funny. Jasmine hadn't dared laugh, and she hadn't told them that she had already received the information in a much more accurate and coherent form at school. Zoisite, red-faced and confused, had plunged on bravely, while Kunzite sat stony-faced, trying to look fatherly, and she had loved them both for it, though she was as embarrassed as they were. Sometimes Jasmine wondered if either of them had ever Done It with a woman. She suspected not, at least not Zoisite, going by the muddle he had made of his attempt to tell her about It.

Kunzite was "Father," and Zoisite was "Papa," but when she was about nine they had started insisting that she call them by their names. Jasmine complied - she was an obedient daughter - even though it made her feel strange, even more different from the other children than she already felt. In her mind she still called them "Father" and "Papa."

"Is something wrong?" Jasmine asked her fathers.

"Nothing at all," Kunzite said, in his deep, level voice that made it impossible to guess at what was going on inside his mind.

"You've been invited to go with Lady Naru and her children to their family's house at the lake for a few days. You'll leave this afternoon," Zoisite said.

"But -" Nothing like this had ever happened before. Being sent on a holiday trip right in the middle of a schoolday? This was weird.

"You've been invited," Kunzite said, "and we've already accepted on your behalf."

"It would be very rude to turn down the invitation at this point," Zoisite added.

"Aren't you guys coming with?" Jasmine asked. She had never gone anywhere without her fathers before.

"We have to stay here and work. We're in the middle of an important project with Lord Shingo," Zoisite said.

"Oh." It was silly to be nervous about traveling without them, Jasmine told herself. Lady Naru would look after her perfectly well. "Will Keiji be going?" she asked shyly.

Kunzite and Zoisite glanced at each other. Jasmine knew that they had not always gotten along well with Keiji's father, Lord Nephrite, but she had never asked for details. She didn't understand why it meant she wasn't supposed to like Keiji. "I believe so," Kunzite said. "Doubtless, you will find plenty of things to do with Mitsu, and Lady Naru will appreciate your help with the younger children. Now, go pack your bag."

Jasmine went to her room. Zoisite followed her to make sure she packed properly, as he always did when they were getting ready to travel somewhere. "What's going on, Zoisite?" Jasmine asked as she opened her small floral-tapestry suitcase on her pink ruffled bed. She would rather have had her room decorated in blue and green and outdoorsy textures, but her fathers insisted on all her belongings being very feminine. The only concession to her own taste was the four framed photos of classic motorcycles on one wall.

"Nothing at all," Zoisite answered. "It's just a kind invitation to join the Sanjouin family on a short holiday." Zoisite selected several light sweaters appropriate for the time of year from the dresser and placed them in the suitcase.

"I'm not stupid, Zoisite, even though you and Kunzite seem to think I am."

"We're your fathers, and we know what's best for you. This visit to the country will be good for you. Now, no arguing. And don't roll your eyes at me, young lady. I still know more than you do, even if you are all of twelve years old."

Jasmine smiled to herself. They weren't the greatest parents in the world, but they did try. Zoisite left the room so she could change out of her school uniform. She put on a daisy-embroidered denim dress and wished that her dads would let her wear jeans. When she was ready, she took her bag and stood at the door of her room, listening a moment. Kids could hear the most interesting things when their parents thought they were busy in their rooms.

"Are you sure we're doing the right thing?" Zoisite asked anxiously, his voice carrying down the hallway to Jasmine's door.

"We've no choice," Kunzite replied in his deep, expressionless voice.

"We don't have to go through with it. We could refuse -- "

"No. Do you want to take the chance of appearing the least bit disloyal?"

"No..." Zoisite said uncertainly.

"Don't worry, my love. It's only an experiment. Everything will be all right, and in a few days we can bring Jasmine back from the lake."

"If you say so, Kunzite-sama." Zoisite's words were followed by a silence which, Jasmine knew from previous spying, probably meant that they were kissing.

So, something was going on. They were worried about something they were doing for work, and they were afraid to refuse to do it, so they were sending her to the country to protect her from whatever it was they thought might happen. Well, she couldn't very well argue with that. Jasmine left her room and walked into the front room. "Okay, guys, I'm ready to go. I'll just walk over by myself."

"Of course," Kunzite said. "Have fun, Jasmine."

"Have fun, darling," Zoisite echoed, his voice sounding funny, like he was going to cry. Suddenly both of her fathers grabbed her and hugged her. Jasmine clung to them, wishing she hadn't overheard their conversation. They were going to do something that could be dangerous, and she was afraid that something bad would happen to them. But she couldn't show her fear; she wasn't supposed to know there was anything wrong. She pulled back and smiled brightly at them. "It'll be fun. Especially if Keiji-kun is there." She winked mischievously, blew them each a kiss, and left the apartment.

It wouldn't be so bad, Jasmine told herself. If Kunzite told Zoisite there was nothing to worry about, then she had to believe it. She knew that they lied to her sometimes, the kinds of lies parents tell their children to protect them, but she knew that they never lied to each other. And it would be fun to spend a few days at the Sanjouins' country home. The truth was, sometimes Jasmine wished that Lady Naru were her mom. No matter how busy she was with her own children, she always had a hug and a listening ear to spare, and sometimes it was nice to talk to someone who remembered what it was like to be a twelve-year-old girl. And Jasmine liked being around Lord Nephrite and Lady Naru's large, busy, noisy family. It seemed like the group generated so much love that it overflowed onto whoever was nearby. Jasmine knew without question that her fathers loved her, and she loved them, but sometimes she craved the warm, enveloping, unquestioning rush of affection and acceptance she felt with Lady Naru's family. Jasmine smiled, all at once feeling excited about the unexpected holiday, and quickened her steps as she walked through the marble-and-crystal corridors of the Crystal Palace.

* * * * * * * *

"Mina? It's Jae," Jadeite said when his wife answered her cell phone. She was obviously in the middle of a training session; she was breathing hard and had that particularly exhilarated sound in her voice that meant she was exercising hard.

"Hi, Jae! What's up?"

"Neph is sending Naru and the kids out to their house at the lake for a few days, and they've invited Toshiro and Seiji to go along. They're leaving this afternoon. I think Jasmine is going, too."

"Oh, that's nice of them! I'll call Yumiko right away and ask her to pick the boys up from school and get them ready. This will be so much fun for them!"

"Yes, I thought it would be a nice treat."

"They'll be so excited. You know, I really admire Naru, how she can handle all those kids and still want to have other peoples' kids around too. I just don't know how she does it. I think it's wonderful."

"It is amazing, isn't it. I'll let you go now. Better call Yumiko right away. Why don't we meet for dinner at the Crystal Terrace at seven, then I've got a late meeting this evening."

"Sounds good, Jae! Talk to you later. Love you!"

"I love you, too. I'll see you later."

Jadeite hung up so that his wife could phone their sons' governess and make the necessary arrangements for the boys' outing. He was relieved that she hadn't tried to question him; he hoped that the other Guardians were having a similarly easy time in getting their families away from the Palace. He wished he could send Minako to the lake also, but she was a Senshi and her sudden departure could raise questions. Besides, if things went wrong, she might be needed....

It had been so unexpected, him and Minako. In the Silver Millennium, they had barely noticed each other. Two thousand years ago, Kunzite and Zoisite had already begun their liaison, Nephrite had been wrapped up in his romance with Princess Serenity's red-haired lady-in-waiting, and Jadeite had been attempting to win the heart of the notoriously hot-and-cold Princess Rei of Mars, who seemed pleased to treat Court musicians and Royal Guardians with equal callousness. To Jadeite, Minako had simply been a Senshi Who Was Not Rei.

During the war in the twentieth century between the Dark Kingdom and Earth, Jadeite hadn't remembered Rei, not even during the time he lived with her and her grandfather at their shrine, and by the time Sailor Venus had joined the battle, he was already encased in that damned ice crystal. Jadeite remembered that eternity of imprisonment, and wondered what the hell he and the others thought they were doing, going along with this wild plan of Shingo's to test the new warding technique they had discovered. Stop worrying, he told himself. It'll work. It has to work. In theory, it's foolproof.

In theory. He wished again that it was possible to send Mina to the country without raising suspicions.

Besides, he and the other Guardians had already committed treason once, when they joined Beryl, thereby bringing about the downfall of the Silver Millennium, and Lord Shingo was zealous in his duties to protect his sister the Queen and her family. None of the Guardians could afford to give Shingo the slightest notion that any of them were less than one hundred percent loyal. They had worked too hard to redeem themselves from their previous treachery to risk that.

When the Guardians were revived, Zoisite and Kunzite continued where they had left off, Nephrite finally married his red-haired lover, and Rei had already given her bad-tempered heart to the musician. Jadeite hadn't been able to decide whether he envied or pitied the man. Then came the Sleep and the Awakening, and eventually all the members of the Court were paired off, except for young Hotaru of Saturn, the distant and mysterious Setsuna of Pluto, and Minako of Venus.

As the odd ones out, Jadeite and Minako usually found themselves seated together at dinners and dancing together at balls, and after some time Jadeite was startled to realize that the blonde Senshi's constant cheerfulness didn't annoy him nearly as much as he thought it should. Her unrelenting belief that there was goodness in everyone's heart began to work its way beneath his skin, beneath the image he presented to the world and to himself of a serious, aloof, ambitious man who had no patience with love or other forms of frivolity. In short, she made him feel alive for the first time in a very long time. They had embarked on a love affair, which Jadeite privately considered to be experimental at first, but quickly he realized how he had been suffocating on his single-minded focus on work before Minako found the cracks in his shell and wedged them open, letting in the fresh air. He was still a serious, hard-working, and ambitious man, but his heart was no longer withering away from lack of warmth and sunlight. To everyone's astonishment, not the least of which was his own, he married Mina, and over the next few years they had their two blond sons. Toshiro was nine now, as bubbly and cheerful as his mother, and Seiji was seven, much more serious and introspective. Jadeite was happy, something he had never expected to be, and he wouldn't risk his happiness for anything except his duty to protect King Endymion and Neo-Queen Serenity.

* * * * * * * *

Naru finished her phone calls to her mother, who still owned and operated the OSA*P jewelry boutique, and to the children's schools. Before she could dial the train station to reserve tickets for that afternoon, Nephrite said, "By the way, I've invited Jae and Mina's boys and Jasmine to go with you."

Naru looked at her husband a moment, remembering their last conversation about Jasmine. "Thank the stars, Zoisite and Kunzite could only afford to reproduce once," Nephrite had said.

"I think Jasmine's a lovely child. And it isn't her fault that you and her fathers haven't always gotten along very well."

"I just don't think the world needs more than one copy of their chromosomes running around."

"Nephrite! Really." Naru tried to sound reproving, but apparently he didn't deign to notice.

"There's one thing I know she inherited from them," Nephrite went on. "She likes boys."

It was hard not to laugh, but Naru had made a valiant effort.

"To be specific," Nephrite had continued, "she likes our boy. Keiji is far too young to be getting distracted by girls. I don't want her hanging around him."

And now, Naru thought, he had arranged for Jasmine to accompany their children, Keiji included, on a holiday of indefinite length. She started to say something about this, but was interrupted by the elegant chiming sound of the doorbell. Naru went into the front hall and opened the front door to find Jasmine standing there, clutching a flowered tapestry bag in both hands. The poor child always looked slightly forlorn, though Naru knew she was loved and well cared for. Being twelve was so difficult, especially when you were a girl with two fathers and no other female in the house. Naru smiled warmly at her. "Come in, Jasmine dear. I'm so glad you're going with us." She put an arm around Jasmine's slender shoulders, though the girl was taller than she was, and led her inside. "Make yourself comfortable. Everyone should be here soon. The afternoon train to the mountains leaves in about two hours." Naru turned her bright smile to her husband. "Nephrite, darling, may I have a word with you in private?"

"Of course." He followed her into their sitting room.

Naru faced him, still with that brilliant smile plastered on her face. "My love, would you be so kind as to tell me exactly what the hell is going on here?"

He blinked at her unaccustomed use of profanity. After a moment he said, "Naru, I told you not to question me. If you've ever trusted me, please trust me now."

Again she saw that desperate look in his eyes, that wordless pleading. He was afraid of something, and he couldn't -- or didn't want to -- tell her what it was. "All right, Nephrite. I think I understand. You and the other Guardians will be working very long hours for a few days, and you decided that since you won't be home very much you might as well send your families to relax at the lake, right?"

His tension seemed to ease a bit, and relief replaced the desperation in his face. "Only for a few days. We may even come out to join you when this project we're working on is finished."

"That would be wonderful. Will you help me get the children's things ready?"

"Of course, love."

He had sworn he would never lie to her again, Naru thought as she walked towards the children's rooms. But now, he had come about as close to breaking that promise as he could without actually telling her a lie. If it was for the good of their children, she supposed she could forgive him. What she wasn't so sure about was whether she could forgive him for getting into a situation where he felt like he needed to lie to her.

* * * * * * * *