- Almost Lover -
By: dreams-of-mist
Summary: What do you do when the man you love doesn't know you? When the memories of what used to be are but a bitter reminder? Mamoru has no recollection of who Usagi is to him, and she bears the knowledge of their love alone. How much heartache can one take?
Author's Note: Hello readers, I'm back! Hope you enjoy chapter 3 of "Almost Lover". Also, I have no idea how often and what type of street festivals take place in Japan, so I'm taking some creative liberties here, haha. Nevertheless, hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the song "Almost Lover", Sailor Moon, or any of the characters in the anime/manga. The story below, however, is mine, and please don't use it without my permission.
'…' – thoughts
"…" – spoken
- CHAPTER 3 -
We walked along a crowded street
You took my hand and danced with me
Images
The Juuban district was alive with sights, smells, and sounds. The streets were lined with vendors, selling takoyakis, pork dumplings, silk purses, fashion jewelry, fresh-cut flowers, wooden sculptures, and everything in between. The annual street festival was in full swing, and the weather couldn't be more perfect - clear blue skies with not a trace of clouds anywhere. A live band was playing outdoors, the faint sounds of guitars and drums hanging like a necklace in the air.
Usagi wandered down the street, working her way through the crowds. She had promised to meet the girls at the picnic tables by the wisteria trees at 11 am. She glanced down at her watch – 11:10. Oops.
She picked up her pace, weaving gracefully between the elderly who walked slowly, the kids who raced between their legs, and the adults who chased after them.
"UMPH!"
Usagi felt herself falling back, her shoulder aching from the collision with the big burly man who had been too intent on pursuing his ice cream covered son to notice anyone else around.
Strong hands caught her from behind, steadying her before she could fall on any innocent bystander.
"Are you okay?" a rough voice asked from behind.
Usagi held her breath.
"Are you okay?" a rough voice asked from behind.
Serenity turned around and smiled.
"I'm fine, Endy. Just had the wind knocked out of me for a second there. It's so crowded here, and everyone's moving so fast! I had no idea an Earth bazaar could be so lively." All around, the town square was alive with people, eager to wheel and deal in the dynamic ritual of barter and trade. In the background, a travelling troubadour was playing his fiddle, his music gliding along the pulse and hum of the vibrant city.
"That man should've apologized. He practically bulldozed over you!" Just thinking about it made Endymion's face darken.
"Like I said, I'm fine. I'm not so fragile that the slightest touch will shatter me. I'm not made of porcelain, you know."
"I wouldn't say you're fragile. More like…delicate."
"Delicate?" She arched a single royal brow. "I do not see how that's a step up from 'fragile'."
"It is. Several steps up, in fact. I could have said 'breakable', or 'frail', but gallantly refrained from saying such. So, when you think about it, 'delicate' is actually quite a compliment." Endymion grinned, his usual stern face turned boyish when painted with his crooked smile.
Serenity couldn't help but laugh and step further into his embrace.
"You, your majesty, are quite the cheeky prince," she murmured.
"And you, fair princess, have captured my heart."
If possible, Serenity's smile grew even wider, the happiness positively glowing from her face. She threw her arms around his neck, went up on her tiptoes, and firmly pressed her lips against his.
Endymion groaned low in his throat. The little vixen was driving him crazy with her lips. While her sweetly innocent kisses at the beginning of their courtship had made his heart tremble and his knees weak, her newfound boldness was intoxicatingly appealing. She was grazing her teeth along his lower lip, gently tugging at it-
'OW!'
Ok. THAT was not so gentle.
He could feel her barely contained laugh vibrating against his lips – she did that on purpose, the little minx! He pulled back and opened his eyes and saw the clear blue of hers staring back. They were alight with mischief, and damn if she didn't look gorgeous standing there. Her cheeks were faintly flushed and her full-lips rosy and parted.
"Keep this up, darling, and we're going to have to have to cut this trip short," Endymion seductively whispered. His lips glided across the sensitive flesh beneath her ear. His wide hands crept up along her hips, lightly grazing the undersides of her breasts, as his long fingers toyed with the golden strands of her hair. She shivered delicately and wondered if he could hear the pounding of her unsteady heart.
Serenity swallowed, her throat suddenly dry.
"I think our royal guards and chaperones might have something to say about that."
Endymion sent a furtive glance over her shoulder, and sure enough, Malachite and Mina, both in civilian clothing, were trying their best to be invisible and noticeable at the same time. The two were still not quite getting along with one another, but were doing their best to perform their assigned duties and look out for their royal charges who had insisted on gallivanting about the city square, granted incognito.
"Hmm, you have got a good point, Serenity. Seduction of a princess is a task better suited to dark corners, secluded rosebushes, and deserted hallways. An audience we can do without."
He suddenly rested his hands on her waist, strong and sure, and gently urged her into a soft sway. She could feel the excitement shimmering underneath his skin and she raised a curious gaze at him. He grinned as they continued to dance in rhythm with the troubadour's music, and bringing her close, he whispered against her ear.
"What say you we make a run for it?" Her eyes widened as if in protest, but he knew that the idea was tantalizing to her; a person of decorum, Serenity most certainly was not.
"We can't."
"We can."
"They'll chase after us."
"We'll have a head start."
"They'll catch us."
"Not if we hide."
"This is insane."
"Isn't that the point?"
In an instant the decision was made. They left abruptly, a flurry of movement where absolute stillness reigned just moments before.
Heart pounding in time with their steps across the pavement, she clutched his hand tightly, his warm, callused fingers a source of strength. Sounds and colours flew past them. Above the din of the bargain hunters and profit making merchants, she could vaguely make out the alarmed shouts of their pursuers.
They dashed around an unending number of corners, slipping past crowded stalls and startled peasants. Breathlessly she followed him, gripping her dress firmly in her other hand, careful not to get tangled in the pools of cloth that swam against her legs.
And just as abruptly he pulled her into a narrow alley where the sunlight was muted against the towering walls.
"Did we lose th-"
He dragged her roughly into a kiss, pushing her against the cool stone, his hands moving possessively over the curves of her hips, her waist. His lips left a heated path against her already flushed skin as they trailed across her jaw line and down her neck.
Her legs felt weak, her body battered by sensations so brilliant, the whole world shimmered and glowed. She gasped, clutching his shoulder tightly, her nails leaving tiny crescent moons across the ridges of his taunt back.
Then his lips were back on hers, bruising, rough, even as one of his hands continued to cradle her head gently against the stone slabs. He wanted to drink in all her sighs, every gasp, every moan, to make her as mad for him as he was for her. When she arched against him, molding her softness against his body, he felt his usual self-control fraying at the seams, pulling viciously to be free. It was always like this with her. The need to take, to plunder, warring with the desire to give, to cherish, to be gentle.
And still he couldn't get enough of her.
She could feel the warmth in the pit of her stomach pool and spread. She plunged her fingers into his ebony hair, tugging on the strands, gripping his head closer to her as his mouth did devilish things to her body. Her whole system felt alive, primed and vibrating.
But it was Endymion who pushed away first, sucking in air like his life depended on it. God, Serenity tested his limits like no other.
She was a disheveled mess. Her hair stood up on all ends, one shoulder was bare, there were smudges of dirt and dust on her dress, and she had a dazed, bemused look upon her face. Here was a princess who threw caution to wind, ignored the rules of polite society, and had just gotten thoroughly ravished in a darkened alley.
No wonder he was hopelessly, madly in love with her.
And while the temptation to continue kissing her senseless was almost too much to bear, he was fully aware of how truly innocent she was. The memory of her shaking like a leaf under his touch the very first time he kissed her was still fresh in his mind. The tentative way her mouth had moved under his, the shock and rush of colour to her face when she felt his tongue touch hers. Serenity was by no means a worldly courtesan or practiced lover
"You take my breath away," he murmured. He leaned forward, grazing his knuckles against her flushed cheeks.
If possible, Serenity's faced turned more crimson, her gaze held by the midnight blue eyes that stared back at her. Eyes that were flecked with hints of gray, eyes that could be mysterious and shrouded with secrets, but were always open and naked to her.
She was well aware of how vulnerable she was to him, how she wore her heart on her sleeve for the world to see. The other senshi worried for her, concerned that she didn't keep enough of herself protected, afraid that if something terrible ever happened, there would not be enough pieces left of her broken heart and soul to bring her back.
But they didn't see what she saw when she looked into Endymion's eyes.
As surely as he held her heart, she knew she had his.
Nuzzling against his gentle touch, Serenity savoured the warmth and strength that seeped through his fingers, delighted in the smooth path he traced from cheek to chin to ear and back again.
"I wish it could always be like this. You. Me. The sun. The music and the laughter. And all the time in the world to just love."
His hand stopped. He cupped the back of her neck, drawing her forward till she could feel his breath fan across her forehead, and the brush of his lips pressed over where her insignia would be.
"Serenity…" he breathed, "that is what it feels like every time I'm with you."
Her heart leapt in her throat. How she could've been so lucky as to find Endymion in all the galaxies was beyond her. "Oh, my love," she sighed, basking in the perfect moment, childishly wanting it to go on forever, but knowing that all good things had to come to an end.
And what better way to herald that ending than with the appearance of two very ticked off / worried / irritated / rumpled guardians?
"Serenity! There you are! Do you realize that you nearly gave me a heart attack?! What if something had happened to you? OH NO, not on my watch, sister. If you think that-"
"Endymion! Have you lost your mind taking off like that? Gadding about the city unprotected and with the Moon Princess no less? Have you any idea of the number of risks and-"
Conspiratorially, Endymion leaned over to Serenity and asked breezily, "Want to make a run for it again?"
And her peals of laughter were just about one of the loveliest things he had ever heard.
"Miss? Are you okay?"
Dazed, Usagi forcefully pulled herself back to the present. For a moment the street vendors and the juggling buskers seemed both real and foreign to her, the images overlapping with the memories in her head of merchants selling fabric out of their wooden carts and the acrobats and fire eaters performing in the town square.
"Miss? Is everything okay?"
A face suddenly came into view, but she already knew it wasn't him. The soft brown eyes and curly chestnut hair only confirmed what she had felt in heart when his hands had braced her fall.
She would know his touch anywhere.
"OH! I'm sorry. Thank you for catching me in mid-fall. I'm such a klutz sometimes."
"Not at all, I'm happy I caught you in time. Are you sure you're okay? You seemed a little spaced out there for a moment. I was actually wondering if I would have to carry you off to the trailer!"
"Ummm…carry me off to your trailer?" Great…first she was late, then she was almost run over, and now she was about to be abducted by a crazy person. Clearly she was low on the good karma today.
'Maybe he won't notice me edging away…' Last resort, she would start screaming like a crazy person. (Though not the same type of crazy as her supposed 'saviour'.)
"OH! Sorry!" Immediately the man's arms went up as if he was surrendering and proving that he wasn't armed. "That came out all wrong. I swear I'm not some creeper or weirdo stalker. The Trailer is what we call the makeshift emergency medical centre. We being the hospital volunteers, doctors, and interns. We set up The Truck every year for the festival by the water fountain. See? It's just behind you to your left."
Still a little weary, Usagi glanced over her shoulder, and sure enough, there was a huge white trailer with "EMERGENCY MEDICAL CENTRE" painted across the metal paneling. Emblazoned on the door was a bright red cross.
"Well, how do I know you really work there? For all I know, that's what you say to all the girls you save so that they let their guard down around you," she teased.
"I have proof!" He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets and dug around quickly.
"AH-HAH!" he exclaimed, proffering his prize for Usagi to see.
She couldn't keep the rollicking laughter from spilling out, her sides in stitches as she examined the 'proof' through her teared-up eyes.
"A LOLLIPOP? That's your so-called proof?"
The man sheepishly grinned at Usagi as she continued to work through her laughing fit.
"Okay, you got me. That probably would've only worked on a five-year old. Why don't I get my fellow volunteer to vouch for me? Lucky for us, he's heading over here right now."
"Who-"
The words died on her lips as the man of both her dreams and nightmares cut a straight path towards her. She felt the blood drain and rush back to her face. Idly she wondered if he could hear her heartbeat the closer he came. It felt so loud in her ears; she was unsure if it was galloping from joy or dread.
Maybe both.
"Chiba-san, hello! What luck that you spotted us. I was just explaining to this lovely young lady-"
"Hello, Usagi-chan. Dr. Naitou."
"Mamoru-kun," she choked out softly.
"Oh! So you two are friends! What a coincidence! Chiba-san is one of my best volunteers, but I'm sure you already know that, Usagi-chan. Why don't you two chat for a bit before his next shift starts? I'll let the supervisor know you'll be a little late, Chiba-"
"NO! It's okay, really," Usagi said hurriedly, already moving to leave the awkward situation. It was too soon after her last 'episode' to be able to pretend that she and Mamoru were just bicker buddies. "I'm meeting my friends and I'm already very late. Thank you for your kind assistance earlier, Dr. Naitou. It was nice to meet you." She bowed deeply to the good doctor and sparing Mamoru a quick glance and a muttered goodbye, she soon disappeared amongst the throng of festival revelers.
"Well, that was unusual. Most of the time the ladies are running TOWARDS you, not away," the doctor said thoughtfully.
"Dr. Naitou, I-"
"I'm just teasing you, Chiba-san" Sometimes this bright young man needed to be a little less serious. "Anyways, I better get going. I've got some patients to meet at the hospital. Enjoy the rest of the festival!"
Mamoru watched the retreating back of the doctor feeling particularly unsettled about the past five minutes of his life.
And it all started and ended with one Usagi Tsukino.
Somehow, his eyes had been drawn to her. Even in this huge park with hundreds of people milling around, his gaze had somehow zeroed in on her petite frame. Something had tugged at him, pulling his eyes across the sea of revelers to land on her odango-head. If he was honest with himself, that was happening a lot more often these days.
He'd seen the thundering elephant of a man ram right into her, causing her to fall backwards. The sudden leap of alarm and concern in his chest had taken him aback. It had felt both foreign and familiar. He wasn't sure he liked it.
And if that wasn't strange enough, the sight of her in another man's arms, however briefly, had been strangely disconcerting. The fact that the man in question was his happily married older mentor didn't seem to register at all. Worse yet, when she started laughing…
Something tightened in Mamoru's chest just thinking about it. When he heard her sharing her carefree, infectious laughter with Dr. Naitou, he had felt oddly…bereft. As if there was a hole inside of him that he hadn't noticed was there till that moment. As if he was missing out on something important.
'That's ridiculous. It's not like I've never heard Usagi laugh before.'
"But not with you," a voice called out, causing his body to unconsciously tense. "Don't let her slip away again."
Startled, Mamoru looked around him, even as the 'voice' faded away to nothingness. "Sir." He touched the shoulder of the nearest person to him.
"What? I'm in a hurry here, buddy."
"Sorry, I was wondering if you said something just now?"
"Said something? I think you're hearing things, kid. Maybe you should go get yourself checked out. It's all those drugs you kids are doing these days. Messes with the head."
"Uh…thanks sir. I'll take that under advisement." Better to agree than protest that he didn't take drugs.
The man hurried away, leaving Mamoru alone again. He was just overreacting. The result of too many late night study sessions and not enough sleep, he figured. Shaking his head clear, he started walking back to the trailer.
And though he spent the next few hours working non-stop, patching up scraped elbows, handing out lollipops, and tending to dehydrated patients, a certain blue-eyed, blonde-haired girl was never kept creeping into his thoughts at the oddest moments.
It was like she was haunting him.
And he wasn't sure if he was bothered by that or not.
'Damn.'
- end of chapter 3 -
Hello readers! Thanks for reading chapter 3 and continuing to follow this story even though my updates are so few and far between. I'll be taking a few liberties with the lyrics from "Almost Lover" as we go along, since I think I would have some difficulty fitting in the chorus three times over, for example. :) Thank you again for reading and please review – positive or negative, it's always appreciated!