Standard disclaimers apply. The characters belong to the various owners of Sailor Moon. Not me.

Kunzite stood in front of the bed, agonizing. He hated leaving; always had, and now even more intensely, always would. He'd lost her too many times and every moment felt stolen from fate. Lifetimes of years would never give him the feeling of security others had effortlessly. It comforted him somehow to see the same emotion swirl in Endymion's eyes as he gazed on Serenity. Perhaps he was just as wrong in his fears as he knew, with confidence, Endymion to be.

But that wasn't the catalyst for his agonizing at this particular moment. At this moment, he had a task to attend to. It was his duty to care for the logistics of their shared space, to set the sprinkler system, install batteries in smoke detectors, check dates on perishables, etc. Left to her own devices, Minako would die of botulism, he was fairly sure.

There had always been someone to see to her, while she saw to Serenity: a fleet of servants, a host of supportive friends, a mother. Now he had taken up responsibility in this in-between time, after the loss of a mother, after and before servants, with otherwise occupied friends. He found the opportunity to offer her this little penitence she would accept, without knowing she accepted it, immensely comforting.

But this was the task that he dreaded most. Minako was as unpredictable asleep as she was awake. No matter how warm the morning, she might still cling to him in a shivering mass, complaining of the cold, and despite the cold, she still might kick all her covers to the floor, unless he clung to them for dear life. So when he left for any amount of time, he went worried. If he made the bed with too few blankets, and was not there to supplement, he knew she would lie there, letting herself half-sleep because of the cold, never thinking to get a blanket. If he put on too many, she'd kick them to the floor, where they'd stay for the duration of his absence, causing scenario one to occur on all subsequent nights.

So now he stood staring at the bed again, wondering how best to perform this most difficult of tasks, the sheets already on, two blankets and a quilt in his arms, in the dark blue he'd convinced Minako to buy by telling her about "the way it made her skin shimmer". That always worked. (And he avoided that god-awful neon yellow and hot pink set she'd almost picked.) The top general of the earth should not have to sleep in pink and yellow. Besides, her skin did shimmer against the dark fabric, deliciously so.

He shook off the very distracting thought. He had a task, to make a decision which would affect the well-being of his soulmate for days. He steeled himself to his choice, and added both blankets, and the quilt, thinking of the December air. He knew the risks, but he had an idea. The number on his speed-dial, despite the circumstances.

"Hello?"

"Hello."

"You. What do you want? Do you have any idea what hour it is?" Kunzite cringed at his mistake.

"A favor."

"When I'm in hell, maybe."

"It's about her." There was silence.

"Just tell me already, then."

"Come check on her. I'll be gone for a week. She tends to sleep like a maniac, but then you know that. Make sure she's not sleeping on a bare mattress."

"Ah, I'll do what I can. She's stubborn, and easily distracted. But then you know that too. It works in your favor."

He let it go, as usual. "Thank you. I know it's not for me, but thank you all the same."

"You're leaving tomorrow?"

"Well, today. In a few hours."

"I'll be over tomorrow morning then, once you're gone."

"She'll be glad to see you. She says how much she misses you. And not in the dramatic way. She says it like she means it."

"You could leave."

"I am."

"You know what I mean."

"As long as she wants me here, and it makes her happier than not, I'll be here. I'd crawl through coals to stay with her, even if she turns me away eventually."

"You'll never be good enough for her."

"I know. I don't know why she wants me still. Mercy, perhaps."

"Stupidity."

Kunzite bristled, "Don't pretend you don't know she's brilliant."

"Yes, but even Ami can do stupid things. As we see."

"Just because you wouldn't make the same choice-"

"Doesn't mean I'm wrong either. I'm letting it go for now, but I'm still waiting for the day when I help her burn your clothes."

"When I merit it, use my lighter."

"The one she doesn't know about."

Kunzite laughed, and so did the voice on the other end. A good thing. "The very same."

"I should tell her, but we all have harmless vices. And I can afford to be fair; I'm waiting for the really good ones to convince her."

"Me too." There was the sound of the door being flung open. "She's home."

"I'll go then. I'll be there tomorrow, to check on her."

"I'll let her know. Tell her someone else told you I'd be gone."

The phone went dead as Minako walked into the room. Her warm arms encircled his waist which, coupled with the feel softness and hot slightly-slick skin scented with honeysuckle and apple, made him feel light-headed.

"Don't leave."

"I wouldn't but-"

"Oh, I know. It's not really a request. I'm just saying it because it runs though my head a million times a minute just thinking about it."

"Only a week this time."

"Only! And 'this time'! As if that wasn't a long time! And as if reminding me how often I have to look forward to this again is supposed to be comforting." Yet she was pulling closer to him, head between his shoulder blades. He let the silence show her her victory. He put his hands over hers where they crossed over his ribs, protectively placed, right where armor would cover. "I'll miss you." She said at length.

"And I you."

"Who was that on the phone?"

"Just last minute arrangements before I leave."

She moved away from him, to sit on the bed. He turned to look at her, sitting there, looking remarkably fragile in the cool, blue light of pre-dawn morning. She was flushed and covered with a thin sheen of sweat. She must have stripped off her running clothes, as she so often did, on the path from the front door, because she sat naked and glowing pale against the dark sheets, just as he had said.

"I hate to say this, when you just made the bed, but a week is a long time and" He started to approach her slowly, feeling his pulse quicken as her legs spread as she scouted up the bed, making space for him. She bit her lip, a nervous smile on her lips, "well, we've got a few hours. I mean, I guess I could wait."

He was kneeling between her legs now, just barely kissing her neck as she said this, carefully not touching the rest of her. She was teasing at this point, and they both knew it. He traced the shell of her ear with his nose lightly.

"Fuck the bed. I'm fucking you." He grabbed her legs, pulling them out from underneath her, putting her on her back in the process, smiling at the squeal of surprise, luxuriating in the moan as her thighs flexed against his head, and hands pulled at his hair.

There was something so satisfying in knowing that Artemis would have to deal with the mess. That, coupled with the knowledge that she would be cared for, let Kunzite released himself from his duty to the sheets. He had far more pressing demands.

P.S. For anyone interested and/or very angry with me, the next section of Built is done and being edited.