Author's Note: Thank you to those who reviewed Chapter 4! I'm trying to reply to each individual replies, because I love replying to one as much as I get one! Anyway, one person pointed out to me that some of my settings are a little bit drastic, but there's reason to everything (and you would have to read to find out how everything ties together in the end, and I think I've mentioned that somewhere)! Well, I'm hoping that you like this chapter too.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Sailor Moon!

Unbroken Vow

By lovelikealoha

Neptune submerged herself under the cold water in the tub, placed in a spacious and elegantly-decorated bathing room, trying to rid all the tensions that built up in her body throughout the day from all the walking. It was as though every pore of her body was squealing in a bliss, as cold water came in contact with her body.

Margaret had left her temporarily, and Neptune was allowing her mind to wander in space. After remembering the letter she received short time before, along with the violin, she reached over the tub to the letter, that Margaret had so kindly placed on top of the towels, placed on a small stool. Carefully opening the navy waxed seal of the blue envelope, Neptune gently pulled out its contents, revealing a letter in an elegant handwriting. Placing the now empty envelope back where it was, she sank back in the tub, and began reading the letter that was addressed to her by her mother, making sure that none of the parts become wet.

To my dearest daughter,
Is your stay at Tenousei going well for you? I assume that you have reached their safely. It must have been an exiting journey for you, but do not over-exhaust yourself—rest when you must. You must be surprised that I wrote this letter to you so early, but there were few things I forgot to mention while you were here:
Do not bother King Prospero more than necessarily. You must not expect him to be like your father, and do not speak to him unless spoken to during the meals.
I recommend that you keep your things to yourself…if my memory serves me correct, Titania often critiqued my habits of collecting fragrances and such. I assume that her daughter is the same. Do not be disappointed if she does not find likings in what you do. I am sure that you two will get along fine.
Also, you forgot your sketchbook on your bed; I will be sending you one along with the pallet.
Once you are well enough, I would like to take you with me to see Queen Phoebe of Dosei. If you meet Margaret, tell her that I wish her well.
Try not to be a burden to anyone at the castle,
Your loving mother,
Naiad

Neptune smiled to herself as she carefully placed the letter back inside the envelope, and placed it away from the cold water. Her mother might have been a little over-protecting sometimes, but Neptune did not mind at all. Rather, it was more comforting to always be able to listen to her voice in her study, hearing her sing, and spending the afternoons together. That was the way she was brought up, and so was her mother, grandmother, and so on—Neptune also wished to keep that tradition, if, she ever had a daughter herself.

Three hard knocks on the door brought back her attention, as Margaret entered the door.

"Are you still dipping yourself? Don't you think you have been there long enough?" Margaret sighed as she reached over the towel, waiting for Neptune to step out of the tub. "The temperature is not even that hot today."

"Mother wishes you well," Neptune took the towel from Margaret's hand and put it back on the chair, shaking her head, as a sign that she had no intention of getting out of the water. "I haven't had time to relax in the bath this morning. Won't you allow me to dip myself a little longer?" Neptune stared up at Margaret: apparently, she had given up trying to convince her. She disappeared from the room for a moment, only to come back with a small stool and stitching material.

"You're the one who said it will take long," Margaret commenced her needlework. Neptune leaned over the tub, crossing her arms over the porcelain edge, and placed her chin on the top.

"Margaret?" Neptune asked. Margaret replied 'yes' without lifting her gaze from the stitchery. "Can you tell me something about Queen Titania?"

"Why do you want to know about her all the sudden? Haven't your mother or Oberon or Uranus told you about her?" Neptune shook her head. "It depends. What do you want to know about her?" Margaret stopped, then set the strings and needles aside.

"Well, everything! I've heard her names so many times today. I should know something about her, shouldn't I? All I know about her is what she looks like in a painting…she is so beautiful! I assume that she must have been very well liked. Mother said that she's like Uranus…" Margaret laughed heartily upon hearing it.

"Of course! Like mother like daughter…except for the fact that Titania actually fell for a man. I doubt that Uranus ever will." There was a thing that Margaret was about to mention, regarding Titania's love preferences in relationships, but she thought it best to not mention any to Neptune at that moment.

"Were they good friends? Queen Titania and my mother?"

"Very," Margaret nodded. "In fact, she often traveled to Kaiousei to see your mother. It was Naiad who presented Titania the dresses..."

"But I thought she doesn't wear dresses, if Uranus is supposed to be so like her."

"Oh, but one cannot wear men's clothes when one's carrying a child—they aren't made for such occasions..."

Neptune had been enjoying the story-telling of Margaret, as to how Titania had been as a queen. However, Margaret had realized that she had chattered long enough, and nearly pulled Neptune out of the tub—thinking it absurd to take a bath in cold water. It was common back in Kaiousei, yet the people of Tenousei did not seem to appreciate the cold water.

After she was dressed, Margaret had left to do her own business, something about supervising the maids and butlers to make sure they were doing their share of work. Left by herself, Neptune immediately started writing a reply to her mother: to explain to her that she was doing well, and that she was looking forward to seeing Queen Phoebe, who was suppose to be having a baby soon. She decided until the next day to send her the letter in the morning; maybe Uranus can take here there again like earlier today.

Neptune realized that she was feeling surprisingly better than usual. Had she been in back on her own planet, she would have been worn out from all the walking, in addition to being rushed throughout the day. Today, however, she did not feel the need of lying down on the bed, so far. Therefore she decided to polish the Marine Cathedral, one of her favorite leisure pursuit—she would have loved to paint the landscapes of Tenousei from the balcony, but decided to wait until her mother sent her the sketchbook.

Content with her polished-violin, she commenced playing the instrument. Neptune loved the way the low notes vibrated through her body, while the high notes gave her chills that ran down her spine. The music warmed her surroundings, and enabled her to forget her physical presence—just as the music filled the room, she always imagined floating along with the rich melodies of the violin, to other places of the solar systems she had heard stories being told about. Always when she played the violin, her pains and fatigue seemed to disappear for few moments. And always, she would play to imprison the lonely feelings within her heart, of not being able to do the things other princesses would do. Yet today, she was actually on a different planet. Today, there was no sickly tiredness. And today, she could look forward to the day she would be able to do what others can do—imagine herself running in the winds! The Marine Cathedral was perfect for reflecting her moods: uplifting, warm, and cheerful. Just perfect.

When the knock was heard on the door, Neptune froze for a moment. Her mind immediately rushed: had she played too long and bothered the other inhabitants of the castle? Did the people of Tenousei appreciate music? If not, would she not be able to play anymore? However, it did not take long for her worries to dissipate, since there was Oberon, standing in front of the door, who greeted her with a light kiss on her cheek.

"Play that song for me again," requested Oberon, once he was settled on a divan. Noticing his grim countenance and the low-spirit in his tone of voice, Neptune started to play the song she had been playing before. Oberon closed his eyes to listen, and she continued to play until she observed his features soften a bit.

"What's wrong?" Neptune settled herself next to Oberon, after carefully placing back the instrument in its proper resting place. She looked into his troubled eyes—the same green orbs that caught her attention when she first met him. When she looked into them, she felt as though he could see through her mind, and she into his.

"I have to leave this week with the men to go to Meiousei…I thought that there would be a little more time for me to spend time with you." He gently pulled her towards him in an embrace.

"Is Proteus going with you?" Oberon nodded. "Then won't you be back soon? If my father is not the one who will be going, then I'm sure that he feels it wouldn't take long."

"That's true…supposedly, the enemy isn't so large. So the queen is giving it at most two weeks. But why do you think Queen Pluto would want both of us from Tenousei and Kaiousei to go? Doesn't she usually ask just your planet?"

"She does, but maybe she wanted your army to help, too. Just in case. The more people there are, the battles end faster. Besides, everybody knows that the army of Tenousei is the best in the solar system!" Oberon gave a chuckle at the compliment.

"King Poseidon and Proteus aren't going to be happy when you tell them that. The men on your planet are good fighters, too, if you haven't realized that."

"I do, but mothers says that they're being too soft. That's why they aren't as swift as yours. By the way, will Uranus be going with you?"

"I would rather have her stay with you, because it might get lonely here without anyone except Margaret to keep you company. But she went to ask father whether he would let her go..." Oberon was interrupted by a large slam of the door, coming from outside the room, followed by the sound of braking glass. The two immediately rushed out to the hallway, noticing that the door of Uranus's room was ajar: apparently, the door had not closed properly after being slammed closed too hard. Neptune followed closely behind Oberon, as he entered to see what was the matter.

As she entered, she saw a broken glass cup, shattered on the floor, yet there was no sign of the tall blond woman. She was horrified at the traces left of the scene, assuming that something unfortunate must have happened. On the contrary, however, she heard Oberon sigh and walk over to the bedroom, who knocked on the door before entering. Hearing no reply, he opened the door, motioning Neptune to come in as well.

There by the window, Uranus had her head down on the window sill, her back against the two, as though she collapsed unto it.

"Is she…?" she whispered.

"No, she's alright." Oberon assured her. Then he turned his attention towards his sister. "Uranus, having tantrums doesn't help you solve problems." Hearing no reply from Uranus, Oberon continued. "If you want to become a good fighter, you better start learning how to control your temper."

"I know," a frustrated reply came back, almost in a mumble, as her head was buried in her arms. "But how can I become a good fighter, even if I was able to control my temper, when my father doesn't even allow me to fight at every battle? The only reason why he let me go in the past was because the stupid suitors were supposedly there to protect me. And you know what happened? They all died on the first day and I survived." Her speech was getting more heated as Uranus raised her head. "Don't you think that's enough proof that I can fight as well as any men? Father thinks the only reason why I survived without a single scar is because they died protecting me!"

"Uranus, that's not true…he knows that you fight well. Otherwise, he wouldn't send you..."

"Oh, and the other reason was because you always convinced him somehow. He would listen to you because you're his 'perfect' son. What is there to complain or criticize about you? He would never listen to me just because I'm not what he expects me to be…everyone except him knows I despise the princesses and their dresses and their voices and their foolish, passive way of living life from the bottom of my heart..."

Hearing those words made Neptune's heart ache. She had been so kind to me yesterday and today, she thought. Was she just pretending? Was she forcing herself to be caring? She knew that there were people in the solar system who did not appreciate the ways the daughters of the royals were brought up, including herself. She had overheard the crowd whispering during the balls, where she would sit silently and pretend not to hear. Yet it stirred her feelings after hearing the words directly from someone's mouth, especially when she thought this person cared…even though Neptune knew that Uranus was not necessarily specifying her. It was then that Uranus finally stood up to turn around, and noticed that Oberon was not the only one standing in her room.

"Neptune..."

"I apologize…I shouldn't have been here. I'll leave right now," Neptune quickly turned around to exit the bedroom. Yet as she walked out the bedroom to the door leading to the halls, she felt tingly sensations and the surroundings twirling around her. She heard someone calling her name in the distant, but could not figure out the source. Just when she thought she reached the handle—unable to control her extremities, her world faded slowly, and turned pitch black.

To be continued…

Questions…comments? Please read and review! Let me know what you like about the story or don't like about the story. Critics are welcome, as long as it isn't a list of putdowns! And of course, encouragements are always welcomed! Thank you to the people who reviewed so far!

I realize that I'm not keeping up my promises as to the updates…I'm really really sorry! So I'll try me best to update to the best of my abilities! The AP classes are torturing me…so much homework!