Title: Love For All Time Part 2 Author: Jade Hunter A.N: To understand this, read Part 1 first!! Disc: Disclaimer in part 1. "talking" **thoughts** _emphasis_ <> ^time^ ////memeories//// ###################################################################### ^Silver Millenium^ Ryuujin Noametsuchi, the Elemental Knight, couldn't help but hide a smile. He really had to sruggle to keep his eyes ice cold as the Plutonian Princess looked at his outstretched hand, flabbergasted. Still gaping, she rose in one, swift movement and took his hand. They danced to an old Earth waltz, and he gaver her no warning except a sudden glint in his eyes before twirling her out so that her long olive skirt flared. Seeing her amazement as she stopped at two arms' length away from him, he flashed her a rouguish grin before jerking gently on her arm with enough momentum to spin her back into his arms. He sighed inwardly as a contented feeling seeped into his chest. Setsuna felt as if she were melting into a huge puddle. She been astonished when she saw him enter the Ball Room dressed impecably in an all black suit, black mask, completed with a long black cape lined with silver. However, she had no idea that this man could dance so well. She had been surprised when he had daced so well with young Saturn, well enough that she followed the steps to an unknown dance as if she were a pro. But that had been nothing compared to his dances with the Queen. The Queen was a graceful dancer, everyone knew that. However, with this man, the Elemental Knight, they seemed to be gliding on ice. And Setsuna herself, the Time Guardian, the emotionless woman, felt as if she was walking on air. What neither of them knew was that these emotions were a symptom of the most rare power in the Universe: love. The dance ended much faster than either of them liked, but neither was willing to admit it, even to themselves. Ryuujin danced with many of the pretty young noble women that had been giving him the eye the entire night, encluding Princess Venus and Princess Jupiter. He ended up dancing with each one of the Senshi, and somehow, by pure chance, ended up with Princess Pluto at the end of the ball. As protocal demanded, as a higher noble, he had to escort her back to her quarters. When they reached her door, he faced her, and still holding her hand, leaned in close. Setsuna couldn't suppress the slight gasp of astonishment. He smirked, and then bowed down over their entwined hands. She was about to withdraw into her room, but found that her hand was still a captive to the mystery wrapped in an enigma. She questioned him qith her eyes, and he responded by placing a gentle kiss on her knuckles. She froze in shock, and when her senses had returned, found him turning the corner with a swish of his black cape. She smiled faintly without knowing it, and drew her tingling hand to her chest, cradling it with her other arm. And for the first time in her long life, since she had started being the Time Guardian, Setsuna fell asleep with a smile on her face. ***** ^Present^ He jerked awake with a gasp. He looked down at himself and chuckled. The sound was more deeper than before, and his eyes seemed to contain more wisdom than even Cologne posessed. He stood up and stretched, getting the kinks out of his body. What one would have normally missed, he did not. His body was more taller, his muscles more defined and more obvious. Before, his body had been the body of a gymnast, lithe yet well muscled. Now, it was more like that of a bodybuilder crossed with a champion swimmer. More muscles, yet not enough to make him look bulky. His face was also different, not just his eyes. His face had become more angular, it looked as if someone had taken a sculpture of Ranma's face and chisled into it to create a perfect specimen of a modern Hercules. After he finished stretching, he said in a deep voice filled with wisdom and understanding, "I'm back." ***** A couple of miles away, in a giant mansion in the district of Juuban, a green-haired, red-eyed woman sat up in her bed, gasping for air. She looked around hysterically, her arms flying everywhere as she groped the darkness for comfort, her anchor to the world, her life, her saftey, her emotions.........her love. It took a moment for reality to sink in, and when it did, Setsuna's heart sank in bitter disappointment. She slumped back down onto her silk sheets, in the black color of her fuku. She sighed as two tears made their way down her cheeks. She was the mature one, the wise one of the Senshi, the one known for her iron grip on her emotions, something not even Haruka or Michieru were capable of. She smirked through her tears as she recalled who had taught her that control. The same man that blessed her with her powers, the man who had gifted the other Senshi with their powers. The same man who was even more secretive than herself, the same man whom she had ever let even remotely close. The only man ever in all her existance to make her laugh, fully, heartily. The only man who had been able to get close enough to melt the ice walls around her heart, one by one. The man she had let down when she refused to fight in the last battle, and letting the Senshi, his students, walk into Death's waiting embrace. The man she had seen die from the Time Gates, her heart numbing in excrutiating pain and devestation. The man none of the Senshi remembered except herself. She gasped in surprise as her door was opened slowly, then relaxed as the purple-haired head of fourteen-year-old Hotaru peeked in. "Hotaru-chan," she called out softly, not wanting to wake Michieru or Haruka. "What's the matter?" "I think I had a dream," sniffed the young Senshi. "Can I stay here with you, Setsuna-mama?" "Of course," she replied, patting the spot next to her. Immediatly, the child jumped on the bed, and she smoothed down the girl's hair as she asked, "What was your dream about?" "Not a dream," Hotaru clarified now that she was safe. "More like a memory." "A memory?" she repeated. "From the Silver Millenium?" "I think so," Hotaru hummed. "It was about my brother." "Brother?" she asked, shocked. "Yep," nodded her 'daughter'. She smiled and remarked distantly, "He wasn't my real brother. I called him that 'cause he said I could. But in front of the other Senshi, I called him what they called him. Sensei. Do you know who he is, Setsuna-mama?" Setsuna couldn't do anything but ask numbly, "Why do you ask?" Hotaru grinned and said slyly while bouncing up and down on her bed, "Because I remember overhearing you call him Ryuu-chan when you were alone." She snickered and added, "And he called you his Lady of Time." She smiled gratefully at the heavens, glad that someone who had meant so much to her love had also remembered him. "Yes," she informed Hotaru. "He was the Elemental Knight. He gave the Senshi their powers, including Queen Serenity. I never knew his full name, but you called him your big brother, and I called him Ryuu-chan when we were alone. When we were in public, you called him Sensei, and I called him by his warrior title." "How come no one remembers him?" questioned Hotaru. "I remember that Minako-cham and Mako-chan were sooooooo jealous of you back then because he was sooooo handsome. At least that was what they said." Setsuna laughed and replied sadly, "He died when Beryl attacked. I suppose they don't remember because they didn't see him during the last battle." "They only remember the last battle, don't they, Setsuna-mama, not like us," Hotaru inquired. "Yes," Setsuna answered. "But perhaps it's for their own good. Sad memories such as that which happened so long ago won't help anybody." "Why wasn't he reborn?" Hotaru asked suddenly after a long moment of silence. "I thought you said that the Queen sent everybody to be reborn." "The Queen's power and the Silver Imperium Crystal was given to her by the Elemental Knight," Setsuna explained. "Even she could not control one who's power surpassed her own by such an encredible margin." "Then he could have used his own powers to be reborn, couldn't he?" Hotaru asked in a voice filled with hope. Setsuna felt her breath catch in her throat. He could have done that! He did have the power to do so! Maybe he was out there! She caught herself and reminded her mind that if he had done so, he surely would have shown himslef by now. She smiled down at the young girl laying on her bed, hope rising in her also; no matter how much her mind protested, her heart just would not listen. "I hope so," she whispered tiredly to the drowsy girl before driftng off. "I hope so." "Me too," Hotaru mumbled, facing Setsuna's peacful face that was still streaked with her earlier tears. "You never smile anymore. He made you smile. He made you happy. You are not happy now. I hope so, Setsuna-mama, for you would be happy then. I would be happy also. We would both be happy." ***** In Nermia as the mist set and dew formed in preparation for dawn, the newly reawakened Ryuujim Noametsuchi frowned from his position on the roof of the Dojo as he felt something deep within his soul. It took him a moment to place the familiar feeling. His face broke into a grin as he recognized the bond he had with his Senshi. The feeling had come from the two especially strong ones, from Pluto and Saturn. They were alive!! He would see them again, if it was the last thing he did! Determination filled him to the core. "Soon," he whispered into the night air. ###################################################################### To be continued in Part 3. ~~~~~Jade Hunter~~~~~ Email me at: jadeluvswc@yahoo.com