So, after such a ludicrous amount of time, chapter 7 is finally done and uploaded. Yaay! You can check it out here.

Lots of things change in this chapter. First of all, we finally meet Luna and Artemis! I hope you like them and that the Ethereal concept works for you like it works in my mind. 😉

Also, I know I’ve said it before, but I hope you’re picturing Beryl as Mio right now.  That’s how I picture her in my mind. In fact, it’s been really hard for me writing this because I almost type “Mio” instead of “Beryl” almost every single sentence, lol.

I actually don’t have a lot of notes for this chapter. Everything seems self-explanatory, to me at least. I’ve spent the last two years obsessively thinking it over, though, so maybe that’s just me.  If you have any questions about the chapter, please comment here or on the chapter reviews on FF.net.

In other, depressing news, it seems PGSM-Fanfiction is gone! I went to add the chapter there and it’s just… gone. So is Kirari-PGSM.net. I’m really upset about this. First of all, I loved adding my stories to that site, and having a PGSM-only resource available. I used it frequently, but not as much as I wanted to—now that I have a smart phone and an eReader, I was hoping to read more there and make use of its ePub feature. Also, on a more personal note, I don’t think I backed up all my reviews from the site, and now they’re gone. So I’m really hoping that the site may make a reappearance… :'(

Tags: Guardians Chapter Notes

Finally, chapter 6 of “Guardians of the Earth and the Moon” has been published.  This chapter went through a lot of evolution, which is a large part of the reason it took so long to write/publish (that, and the fact that I’m easily distracted XD). You see, I started writing this fic back in 2004, but it was all on binder paper… so I had to type it, which is why it took me so long to get even this far. Chapter 5 was the last chapter I’d written back then. From Chapter 6 on, all content is brand-spanking new.

Because of the amount of time that’s passed since I wrote the first five chapters, you might see a slight difference in style between chapter 5 and chapter 6. I’m hoping it’s not too bad (my sister betas for me and she didn’t think it was a drastic departure from the previous chapters; it could be that I’m being overly critical XD).

This chapter also went through a lot of revision as I came up with new ideas to tie in more aspects of the PGSM timeline, as well as ways to give the characters more depth and backstory. Hopefully you will enjoy these additions. Here are some notes I had regarding this chapter that I hope will answer any questions you might have (here there be spoilers):

• This chapter goes into Princess Serenity’s backstory much more. I wanted to find a way to explain why Serenity is still a princess (not queen) if her mother is not present. The most logical explanation for this something that has occurred throughout history: a regency. Serenity is ruling with the help of advisors such as Egeria and others until she comes of age. In this story, Serenity is 18 and will become queen when she’s 20… that may seem old, but there’s a reason for it which will soon be explained, and it has to do with the Crystal.
• Speaking of Serenity, we see a harsher side to the Princess in this chapter. This ties into what we see in PGSM: she looks so sweet in the flashbacks, and yet she’s so cold as Princess Sailor Moon. Serenity’s under a lot of strain right now because her heart is telling her one thing, but everyone else is telling her something else; but there’s more to it than that. We’ll be seeing more of this evolution of her character, as well as the reasons behind it, in chapters to come.
• The Ethereals are probably my favorite addition in this chapter, so I hope they’re not too “WTF” for everyone else. 😛 I had been trying to think of a way to include Luna and Artemis, but was having trouble  figuring out how to incorporate talking cat plushies. My solution to this six years ago was to just ignore them. XD But then I recently came up with the idea to make them shape-shifters… I won’t give you more details than that and what Serenity explains about them within the chapter, since I don’t want to spoil you. But I’m looking forward to introducing Luna and Artemis and revealing more about the Ethereals, who will be playing an important role in the story in the future.
• I reference a lot of Greek and Roman mythology in this chapter, although I use the names loosely (a lot like Naoko Takeuchi’s borrowing of Selene and Endymion for her own story, heh heh). For example, Egeria’s name (and character) is based on Roman mythology. According to legend, a nymph by that name was the wife of the second king of Rome, and she was also his chief political advisor. Many of the laws and traditions in ancient Rome were begun by Egeria. It’s only fitting that Serenity should such a strong political leader as her advisor! I had a fun time coming up with this character, although I don’t think she’ll be playing a very big role in the story.Other mythological names in this chapter: Deukalion is actually the name of one of Endymion’s ancestors. The names of the months are based on the Athenian lunar calendar. Hestia is the Greek goddess of the hearth (tying in with how “Mariel” means of the sea [although that’s a Dutch name], I thought the princess of Mars should have a name that tied to her powers as well).

I think that’s it… if you have any questions about the chapter you’d like me to answer, feel free to post them here! ♥

Tags: Guardians Chapter Notes