AN: That's right. This IS a new chapter. You're not seeing things. I am actually alive. I'm sorry for taking so long. I just don't have much interest in Sailor Moon at all now. In fact, the only reason I even wrote this chapter is because of you GORGEOUS readers and the fact that you reviewed...ahh...bliss. Thank you all so very much for sticking with this story. I hope you like it, even if I don't.
Chapter Eleven
"Good Morning Endymion." Called a voice from behind. Turning, the prince saw the queen of the Moon walking towards him."Your Majesty." He replied, bowing his head in greeting. For so early a time in the morning, she looked refreshed and vibrant, ready to welcome a new day. He could see the resemblance the princess bore from her. The features were striking. High cheekbones, bright blue eyes verging on the edge of grey, obscured by refined golden eyebrows matching the colour of her hair. But where the queen was a cool river, flowing steadily and surely in its beauty; Serenity was the raging fire, running rampant and wild alongside it. Almost uncontrollable. Almost.
"Please Endymion, it is too early in the morning for titles. Call me Selene." She requested, emphasizing the dismissal of her title with a wave of the hand.
"As you wish." He answered, averting his gaze once more upon the lushness of the landscape before him. He looked upon the same horizon as he had the evening before when standing with Mina, only this time he was capturing the beauty of the sunrise.
And as Mina had done, the queen stood beside him in silence, wistfully watching as the sun's light chased the darkness into hiding and rose bringing the promise of a beautiful day. Evidence of the previous night's storm just a fading memory.
Her gaze switched to the sullen prince standing beside her, appraising him. He was indeed extraordinarily handsome and a poignant reminder of his mother, her once best friend. But where Gaea was bright light exuding warmth, Endymion was the dark breath of frost, the winter's splendor. The Earth queen had been so very enchanting in her beauty – inner and outer. She was just one of those people who would consume everyone in her love, and be loved in return. She was flawless, but still mortal. And now only a memory.
How Damius could marry somebody like Vienna after a life with Gaea was beyond her reasoning, but then, to her, a life without Azrael seemed pointless. Perhaps it was just two very different loves.
"What ails you, Endymion?" Selene asked suddenly, startling him out of his thoughts.
"Nothing ails me maj-Selene."
"You cannot deceive a woman's intuition, dear prince." She retorted with a smile. "Is my daughter giving you grief?" She posed half-jokingly, half- serious.
Right on the button, Endymion thought with a grimace. How should he answer this one? Do the duty of an infatuated prince and claim her charming and request her hand in marriage? Or offer the truth, explaining that at the moment, he merely wanted to sink himself into her daughter's nubile body. No marriage. No joyous celebration. Just strip her naked and sate his hunger on her body. That's all. It just did not seem entirely appropriate to relay all one's lustful urges on the mother of one's desire. He would no doubt be arrested for some of the explicit thoughts traipsing through his head.
"Nothing that is not reciprocated, I am sure." That in itself was a half- truth at least. There was no doubt in his mind that the princess also endured the same problems as he.
Selene sighed heavily as if she bared the weight of the world on her shoulders, smiling at his answer, looking into the distance, watching as the sun's light evaporated the mist hovering over the gully, revealing the sight of rooftops and treetops; the grand Lunar kingdom.
"My daughter is at an age where she'll only be open to anything that does not threaten her. Where she will discard that which she cannot control." She paused, sighing once again before continuing. "I started introducing men to her as a preventative measure in hopes that she would find somebody she could come to care for and marry before it came time for me to choose for her as according to law. Regrettably she came to reject every proposal offered. Not in the most preferred methods of refusals unfortunately, but in such a manner that it became blaringly obvious my choices of suitors did not agree with her."
She looked over to find Endymion staring intently at the scenery. She could only assume he was listening and absorbing the information.
"I am telling you this, Endymion, because I do not want you to run off screaming as those previous have." Her voice softened. "Because I cannot help but notice that there is some type of chemistry between the two of you. Whether I am sensing loathing or lust is not my business, but usually I catch Serenity scheming by now and that has yet to happen. Or else she has just gotten better at hiding it." She said with a smile to show she was joking before continuing.
"In conclusion to this very long lecture I am sure, be patient with her. If you think you could come to care for her, and I know you have not known each other long and this is probably too soon to say, but just... do not be intimidated by her. Do not let her negative actions or words put you off in any way. Know that she is not rejecting you per se, but rejecting that which she finds threatening and beyond her control. Something that is new to her and untried, and whether the results are good or bad, just may be up to you."
And with a last parting smile to his expressionless face, she walked away, leaving him to ponder over her words.
The queen was both wrong and right. Serenity did not discard anything she couldn't control. She embraced the challenge. She mastered the situation, twisting it into her own level of game playing. She made herself an equal contender and did not cease until she succeeded. He was just not going to let her win was all.
And yet, somehow, she scared him a little. There was no doubt in his mind that somewhere, deep inside, something was screaming for him to cut his losses and run away in fear. The man who he was before was petrified of the feelings she evoked in him, for it was all new and unknown. What was it about that girl, no, woman, that had him scratching his head in puzzlement? Since when did he doubt his abilities to lure any female within eyesight? What were these foreign feelings that accompanied his hormonal urges every time he looked at her? He dragged his hand through his hair in puzzlement.
He wanted to kiss her, yes. He wanted to ravish her, absolutely. But strangely enough, he wanted more. He wanted to stroke her skin in a sweet caress. He wanted to enfold her in his arms and nuzzle her hair, inhale into himself the exotic scent of mango and vanilla, and the tangy feminine smell that was all her own. The aroma that made his nostrils flare as a stallion does when scenting his mate.
Worst still, he wanted to know her. Know who she was and why. Why had she scared all her previous suitors away? What encouraged her adamant refusal of men? Why did she allow him to kiss her as if it was something entirely alien to her and then suggest that a mere kiss was nothing new at all? What the hell was it about her that made lust coil through his veins, set his skin afire, and have him panting like a rabid dog in heat? What made him want to destroy any man with his bare hands, who dared stare at her too long?
It was the story about her fear of storms that triggered all these unnatural feelings and he couldn't for the life of him figure out why. He had all these questions running through his brain and nobody to answer them. Well at least nobody who was willing to talk to him civilly and provide answers. So perhaps that was it. Just talk to her. Alone of course. Definitely alone. Who knows, maybe it could lead to something pleasurable after all. He had to find her. Question her. Gather all the necessary solutions. And then strip her naked, toss her in his bed and sort out a few hard problems that continued to persist him these past few days.
Smiling with satisfaction, he turned and left the balcony.
She lay in bed staring intently up at the ceiling. She refused to let any thoughts enter her brain. None at all. Zero. So, of course, considering that was what she wanted, thoughts absorbed her mind anyway. There was just no escaping them. Although there was one thing she was considerably thankful for - no unpleasant dreams, blessed her sleep that night. Minus the strange one of being chased by a flying octopus, as scary as that was it was relatively uninteresting. Unfortunately though, it meant it was morning. Another day to face the unwelcome guests. What would today hold in store for her? More unexpected kisses? More unwanted feelings? The stubborn ass of a prince in general.
Even if it is a delicious ass.
Serenity scrunched up her face in frustration. Where the hell had that come from?
You might as well accept it. You want him.
She growled in exasperation dismissing the wayward thought, pressing her face into her pillow. That was all she needed; the alternate personality to emerge with its usual flourished timing, the second persona who was flawlessly shameless, popping weird little comments and performing brazen deeds when least expected. Sadly though, she had to admit, it had been lingering for a while now. Ever since he arrived to be precise. Not exceptionally surprising. Why not just accept it like everything else?
Accept it. That was what Mina had said. Not only accept these untried urges but also embrace them. Ride the wave and crash to shore with it. Easy enough in theory, but putting action to words was a whole different story. Ok, so she couldn't deny the feelings she felt. The liquid desire that flooded through her body at the sight of him. The illicit thoughts that brewed up a storm inside of her when their eyes met. Or the fluid heat that consumed her when they kissed. Hell, touching him was enough to make her pounce like a starving cat on denied prey with no thought but to devour it.
But this was Endymion. An arrogant, obnoxious, playboy prince who was used to getting everything and anything he wanted with a click of his fingers. He was everything she had brought herself to despise. She couldn't go ahead and contradict herself now. Giving in to him would go against everything she believed in, against everything she had worked so hard to accomplish. Sacrifice her own morals and beliefs for her hormones.
Sacrifice. It sounded drastically dramatic. Tragically exaggerated but that was how it felt, as if she were giving up her own self-worth for a fleeting emotion. A burgeoning lust that was the most primal force included in any female package – a hunger for another. Her yearning for Endymion. It was such a basic, pubescent need that it made her sick at herself for being so adolescently foolish, yet it could not be ignored. And in the end, she was a teenager. This would have happened eventually, so why not now? Why not with him?
Disappointingly enough, her unhelpful ceiling was offering no solutions. So, mustering up all the courage and strength she had, she decided to go straight to the source of the problem. It was time she got some answers. It was time she had a decent conversation with Endymion.
Now...what to wear?
"Get out." She hissed dangerously.
"Mina please..."
"Get out!" Her voice dripping with venom as her eyes glared daggers at the intruder.
"I'm not leaving until you talk to me." Kunzite stated simply. His expression firm, standing strong making it clear there was no way he was leaving before he got what he wanted.
He had just so happily waltzed into her room, not caring whether she was asleep, undressed, damn well indecent. And of course, he had to look so bloody good this early in the morning, where most normal people were still groggy and incoherent from sleep. But that was beside the point. Mina seethed with anger at his gall. "How dare you come in here uninvited. Unwanted!"
Kunzite had the guts to smirk, increasing her frustration. "You invited me here when you refused to look at me, let alone speak to me. We were going to do this sooner or later, it might as well be now."
She looked around her room, searching for anything that would make a suitable weapon. The only object within her reach being items on her dresser, she picked up her bulky, wooden hairbrush first. A useless item or not, she would make sure it hurt him and with great aim, his head would only be her second target. "Get out of my room, now!" She warned, ready to attack if his reply was to be to her disliking.
Kunzite grinned approvingly finding once again the woman he fell in love with. This was the Mina he knew. Not some vulnerable, meek willow of a girl but a fiery, spitting cat preparing to attack at will. The fervent warrior that wasn't going down without a fight. If the only way to get through to her was by stoking the flames of her anger, then he was willing to play. He could feel the blood boiling in his veins already.
"You don't want to fight me, babe. If I recall, last time we fought, I won." Pausing, his eyes traveled the length of her. He bit back a groan as he really looked at her for the first time – golden hair, tousled and sexily kittenish, her flushed skin adorned in a white nightgown, where if the light hit it right, his trouser button would pop off from so much strain at the sight of its transparency. He concentrated on keeping his hormones under check. "I won, in so many ways."
The blatant innuendo made Mina blush as the memory of their first real meeting surfaced to mind. She snarled in fury and jerked her arm back, launching the brush at the smug general. He naturally assumed she would aim for his head, so he was unprepared to perform any lower body dodging maneuvers when the brush painfully bounced off his left thigh instead, narrowly missing his groin.
"The next one won't miss." She threatened warningly. "Now get out."
His shock melted into an intent glare, watching her pick up the next item –a bottle of moisturizer– and he snarled evenly before she could shoot, "You're going to regret throwing that."
Mina raised her eyebrows in deliberate defiance before drawing back her hand and firing her bullet, this time with the purpose of hitting his numb skull.
Barely evading it, he lunged at her before she could pick up her next object, grabbing hold of her arms and driving her back into the wall. That didn't last very long however when she regained her bearings and with an enraged cry started fighting back.
She thrust forwards as he pushed her backwards, both struggling to regain domination over the other. He forgot how strong she was; almost succeeding in knocking off his hold, so he did the only thing he could, he linked their fingers and slammed her hands up above her head against the wall, crushing his hard body into the softness of hers, allowing her little room to move. His legs forced themselves in between hers, prohibiting any movement.
She did try; she fought as hard as she could, twisting and turning, wriggling and jerking, trying to knee him in the crotch, head butt him, bite at him, but her efforts were squelched only leading to a loss of breath and aching limbs.
"Stop moving you little hellion." His breath surged over her skin in sharp hot gushes. "It's over." His words only incensed her more, giving her just a little extra boost, restarting the battle once again.
After a few minutes, of the same exhausting routine, she finally managed to tire them both out, him still maintaining dominance.
"Get off me, damn it." She wheezed irately, the warm gusts of air feathering across his neck making him groan as his body began reacting to their closeness, the friction of their panting stirring familiar sensations. Long unused compulsions he had not felt since he'd last seen her, welcoming them back with a purr of satisfaction.
He breathed unevenly into her hair, inhaling the sweet, saccharine scent that only she possessed so overjoyed to smell it once again. Her heaving body only increased his 'excitement' at seeing her to the point of pain and as punishment to making him endure such a struggle, he thrust his hardness against her, into the juncture of her thighs, making her breath catch, reluctantly releasing a shocked moan.
"See what you do to me..." Kunzite mumbled into her hair, feathering kisses against the disheveled strands. "See how you make me feel..." He nibbled into her ear and thrust teasingly, temptingly into her again, eliciting another moan. "You make me burn..." His hands released her, sliding down her forearms, down past her armpits, brushing ever so leisurely down the sides of her breasts, coming to a rest on her hips.
Her hands rested unsurely upon his shoulders, unable to look away from his eyes. He couldn't help himself. He was finally here, touching her, smelling her, hearing her, it was too overwhelming. For a moment, he'd forgotten all his hard earned control when his body recognized hers. Every fiber of him came alive and he was determined to let her know it.
"I could come just by tasting you." And before she could comprehend his words, before she could even draw a breath, Kunzite leaned his head down and wrapped his mouth around her peaked nipple through her nightdress. She threw her head back with a short astonished cry that rapidly dissolved into a sob of delight, her hands entwining within his hair as he sucked through the thin cotton. The familiar stirrings were pulling at her loins again and every cell remembered and sang with welcome. She was home.
A sharp, painful rush of lust swept through her body, all but making her pliant in his arms. She had forgotten how this felt. Goddess, she had forgotten. Her arms locked around his head and her open mouth whimpered into his hair when she felt the moisture from his tongue. He then raised his head, a feral gleam in his eyes, a fierce hunger pulling his jaw taut. His hands recklessly flew to the top of her nightgown in a desperate attempt to open it. Pull it off. Rip the cursed thing. Anything to get her out of it and feel the naked skin it hid.
Then he looked into her willing eyes, reflecting back at him his own deep desires. And he stopped. She looked so vulnerable and trusting and so breath-takingly beautiful it almost broke his heart. Again. No matter how much he ached to have her, no matter the cost of pain from his own denial, he forced himself to step away. His body despaired at the distance. And he had to close his eyes against the luscious sight she made because if he took her now, all would be lost. He would not have gained any ground and diminished any hope of trust and understanding.
His hesitation at venturing their actions any further, woke her brain and her face shuttered back to shocked anger. Indignant, she strode forward and slapped him firmly across the cheek. He did not even move to avoid it. Her body mourned the loss of his, but she forced herself to stamp down her lust. She was furious with him she had to remember that. But inside, she was infuriated at her own admission. Touching him, being anywhere within breathing distance of him was just paving the way to her own destruction. Once was enough.
They glared at each other silently. Mina's golden hair was more mussed than ever and her clothes wrinkled and askew from their coupling, a damp spot hovered over her left breast making it slightly transparent. Kunzite's clothes were still immaculate as ever, though a noticeable strain tented his trousers, and his hair was awry from the combing of Mina's fingers. The only evidence of what just happened.
"I...I have...I need to know what happened to us." His voice sounded hoarse and unused and she identified the demand in his plea.
She sought desperately for the strength to stand firm. She refused to cry, but rebellious tears sprang to her eyes anyway. There was no avoiding this conversation. As painful as it may be, it had to be done.
"How could you not know? How can you stand there and believe you did nothing wrong?"
"I don't know what I did wrong. I wasn't even aware I had done anything wrong." He exclaimed with a wretched bellow. "At one moment I was having the best two weeks of my entire life. I had actually lost my balls and fallen in love with an amazing, captivating, passionate woman who...who completed me in a sense that I didn't even understand, but refused to question." He shook his head in lost wonder, "And the next moment, you had disappeared. Totally vanished, forbidding me from seeing you, from contacting you in any way and it ripped me into tiny pieces. You tore my fucking heart out without a word and I have no idea why."
Mina slashed the back of her hand at the tears trailing down her cheeks. "You liar. You lie to me now as you lied to me then. And I thought you could sink no lower." She made to move past him, away from him completely, but he wouldn't allow it, grabbing her elbow, halting any movement.
"How do I lie?" He cried desperately, his eyes piercing her profile. "That I did not love you? Inconceivable." He hissed harshly. "That you did not break my heart? You obliterated it to dust when I realized I had lost you." He searched her eyes imploringly, silently begging her to see the truth. "What don't you believe?"
Mina turned to him, her face filled with pain, her heart shattering all over again with each tear that fell. "Everything. Every word you say." She shook her head brokenly, remembering vividly the moment her heart cracked, admitting darkness and vanishing any existence of light.
"I saw you Kunzite...I saw you with her."
Serenity had at first decided to adorn a scandalous crimson dress with a plunging neckline and a bodice that clung to her like a second skin, a dress that was sure to grab his attention but then she vaguely remembered that she wasn't a slag and opted for a chic turquoise gown instead. It wasn't so chaste that it screamed 'Welcome to Spinsterhood', but managed to maintain a modest decorum of sensuality which was all her own. She wanted to attract him of course, but not look as if she tried. Her hair was left in a loose braid, the end of her hair flirting with the small of her back with every sway of the hips, easily able to come undone should he wish to sink his hands in its lustrous length.
Tasteful and hopefully tasty.
Taking a deep breath, she began the trek towards the dining room that would lead her to the Earth Prince. Now what to say. Did she simply come out and ask him? Tell him how irritating it was that she wanted him with so much urgency, and since it was his fault, he had to fix it? Did she subtly slip it into one of their casual chats? She mused sardonically.
'Endymion, I don't like you. I don't like you at all. But I do want to jump your bones.'
'Look, I don't like you. I'm definitely not going to fall in love with you. So with all that out of the way, fancy a shag?'
'Oi. You. In my bed. Now!'
She had to stop and lean against the wall in order to laugh at her ludicrous inner dialogue. She was now, officially, certifiably insane. He was turning her into a schizophrenic lunatic and it was only their third day of having met. She didn't know whether to break into hysterics or lock herself in her room and bawl her eyes out. This was just getting ridiculous, she concluded, shaking her head with bemusement. Honestly, was that the best she could do? He was going to think she was some rabid nymphomaniac with all the thoughts prancing through her head.
She sighed up at the ceiling. It was the second time today she'd looked to the roof or somewhere higher for answers. She couldn't do this. What the hell was she thinking? Confront him and then straddle him. Great plan, since it worked so well the last time.
A sudden white blur caught her peripheral vision, but it was the brush of fur against her thighs that almost sent her screaming in alarm. Luckily she bit it back and instead exchanged it for a bark of startled laughter at Ferinx's appearance. Sinking down to her knees, she embraced her.
"Oh girl." she giggled into the soft neck of her canandri. "You scared me."
In reply, Ferinx licked her bare arm, purring in contentment at having found her mistress. Serenity wrapped her arms further around her neck, hugging her tighter. It was as if the animal sensed when she was troubled. It was at times like these, the princess wished she could cry. It was very rare for one to be fortunate enough to spill all problems into a being of another species. Ferinx was there for her comfort, without questions, without hopeless solutions and she would forever be grateful.
She spent a minute or so simply absorbing all her worries, all her problems into the silky texture of Ferinx's hide and then leaned back, stroking the sides of her face, skimming along the whiskers, fondling behind the ears, scratching her along all her favourite places. How the magnificent animal knew when it was needed was beyond Serenity's realm of thinking but she did not question it.
"I don't know what to do girl." The princess expressed, smoothing down various patches of ruffled fur. "Any ideas?"
The canandri nicked softly as if offering a logical answer and then licked its mistress along the side of her face making her snicker in delight. "You think I should lick him? That was my solution too." She said in amusement. Then with a heavy sigh, she rose to her feet. "But one thing I do know, you're not supposed to be wandering around like this." She scolded before making a detour from the dining room, heading toward the animal wing instead.
Ferinx grumbled quietly as if retaliating to Serenity's reprimand. "You know the rules girl. Mother would have both our heads if she saw you. So we'd better get back."
In empathy, Ferinx nuzzled her head against Serenity's thigh, unenthusiastically giving herself up to the capture. By the time they had reached their destination and she had relieved the anxiously pacing guards, feeding Ferinx and thanking her for a much needed release, locking her in her pen Serenity realized that the time had already leaked into the midst of breakfast. If she did not hurry, she would miss it completely.
Not that she actually cared. Aside from the witty repartee between her mother and the Terran King, the simmering sexual tension between Mina and Kunzite, the baleful glare of Vienna the Jealous and her very own side play of subtle glances towards Endymion, it was only a trivial minority on her pressing schedule. It wasn't like she'd be missed anyway.
Sighing with self-pity, she began her daily routine of feeding her animals, losing herself once again in the magical world these creatures inhabited. Besides, the more she could prolong her imminent meeting with Endymion, the better. She still hadn't a clue what she was to say to him, nor her final judgment to their situation. The more she thought about it, the more it inflated into a confusing balloon just waiting to explode. Unconsciously following through with her animal care regime, in no time she realized she had finished. It was unfairly quicker than she recalled.
Sighing heavily, she dropped the feeding pallets in their places and removed her apron. So, the key to this puzzle was to just not think about it. Not even let it enter her mind. Tamper down her need for ravishment as best she could and just let it be. Should anything happen, it happens. One thing she did know though, this thing wasn't going down without a fight. She confirmed the thought with a self-satisfied smile and turned around only to walk into a brick wall. Except it couldn't be a brick wall because brick walls didn't wear clothes. That would just be silly. Who would make clothes for walls?
Faintly feeling the searing heat from his hands tightly gripping her bare arms, keeping her from falling backwards, her nose inhaled his hot musky scent, her mouth began watering and by that alone, her mysterious wall revealed itself, the carnal desire slamming into her at his presence. Her head started buzzing and currents sparked to life, pumping adrenaline into her veins. She suddenly felt very, very hungry. Her eyes tracked the length of his broad chest, floating up his tanned neck, quite leisurely glancing upon the sensuous pout of his lips, drawn into their hypnotizing effect, sweeping up the aristocratic shape of his nose to finally land within his eyes.
Oh, that's right, she marveled vaguely, stupidly she had forgotten about this. How had she managed to do that? The fiery depth of his eyes scalded her with their intensity. She had to swallow several times before she could get any words out, and even then, nothing came. His very presence brought out the dumb bewildered damsel in her.
Dimly she became aware of their closeness. This brick wall was refusing to let her go, keeping her captured in a relentless grip, his eyes glaring fiercely, reluctantly, at the soft petals of her lips, the inner turmoil in his head debating his current predicament. Apprehending the fact that he was fighting a losing battle, surrendering and cursing silently beneath his breath, he gave in to temptation and claimed her lips with his own.
Too stunned to react, as she knew she should, knowing it would be insane to give herself up to the craving of his kiss. Knowing that she most definitely should not fall under the beguiling spell of his body, urging her to press herself more firmly against him, retract her fingers from delving within the silky texture of his hair. Knowing she must resist the closing of her eyelids and the opening of her mouth, desperately knowing she must seek the strength to ignore the savage thrust of his tongue. Knowing all that she must refrain from doing, she went ahead and did it anyway.
For one mindless, breath-taking moment, time stood still. Every living object ceased all movement. Distant sounds faded into a hushed silence. Any thoughts, all problems, floated from their minds, hovering indistinctly above their heads waiting for a chance to reinvade. And all that existed in this vast medium of stillness was just two - two bodies, one pressed firmly against the other; Two pairs of arms embracing, two hands tangled in hair, twisted in cloth, grazing skin; Two mouths, locked in a damp heat, sipping, drinking, devouring. Two tongues tangling, dancing, searching and discovering everything they secretly yearned, desperately fought.
With a satisfied groan rumbling in his chest, Endymion was the first to pull away. He eyed the half-closed lids of the princess, the thoroughly ravished lips, the flushed cheeks and was seemingly content with the result. His left hand was curled around her small waist, pushing her slim body into the hardness of his own, while the right hand worked its way through the velvety mass of her hair, clenching and sifting in time to the rhythmic strokes of his tongue.
Following suit, the lashes of Serenity's eyes swept open and the azure pupils fastened on his face with alarming clarity, taking in the position of their bodies and the wantonness of her actions. Hastily she struggled to put distance between them, pushing at his solid chest faintly surprised when he relented, slowly releasing her completely yet keeping her within reach.
"Go away." Her voice a raw whisper after finally retrieving her bearings. It took a while, admittedly, but once they had returned, they barreled into her with the force of an avalanche. Her insides brewed up a tornado of contradictory urges, physical instincts fighting for supremacy over rational thought, throwing up a smokescreen of moral debate, primal lust thrusting its way through. It was an ongoing battle – mind over male – and it was at times like these, she didn't know whom she was rooting for.
Kissing her was not something Endymion had initially planned to do. When sitting at the breakfast table and noticing the absence of his general and Mina, he was amused and relieved that Kunzite had finally managed to work up the nerve to confront her. It was when the wayward princess ceased to make an appearance did a faint nugget of worry plant itself in his head. Where was she? Was she hurt? He immediately volunteered to search for her when the queen voiced her concerns. Frantic, yet purposely not acknowledging it, his apprehension transformed to anger once he found her safe and happy with her damned animals. Blue fire in his eyes, he stalked up to her like an enraged bull ready to voice his frustrations, but when she'd looked at him with that vulnerable mix of longing and confusion in her eyes, the bull was overcome by the need to rut. It was the same feeling he got every time he was around her and he was beginning to anticipate it, welcomed it. Consequences be damned.
"Not a chance." He replied, his gaze full of purpose, promise.
Her eyes narrowed in a dangerous catlike way. "You can't force me to do anything with you."
"I'm quite certain I don't need force." He said in a determined drawl, his cerulean coloured eyes traveling down her body, resting at her thighs, at her breasts, back to her face. His features were smug and meaningful and she wanted to slap them off. She wanted to feel anger and resentment towards him, towards his advances, wishing she could reject him, resist him, fearing it was impossible.
"We can't keep doing this." She pleaded anxiously, wishing he would agree. Hoping he'd have some logical answer, telling her that he would leave and with his departure these wicked feelings would vanish along with him.
"Why not?" He asked simply.
Why not indeed. The wild motioning of her hands expressed her mounting exasperation. "Because it doesn't make sense. We've only known each other for three days, if that. It's just not right that we should be...acting how we are, without even having had a decent conversation. It can't be normal."
Endymion could have laughed at her reasoning, but it would have been a hell of a lot funnier if it weren't true. Yes, their simmering attraction to each other couldn't be normal, but he was not about to question it right this minute. Not until she was beneath him and he was driving inside of her, sating both their hunger. He'd think about it later.
"I'll admit, this is new to me, but you and I both know something is happening here. We can't prevent it nor can we control it. And the more we deny it, the stronger it gets." He stepped closer to her, the murky pools of his eyes boring into her. "So we need to sort this thing out now." His hand gesturing back and forth between them.
"Thing? I don't do things." She retorted tartly.
"You'll do mine." He growled under his breath.
Serenity raised an eyebrow at him, considering the urge to simply walk away, infuriating him further, hating that he was right, hating the wrongness of it all and knowing that she could do nothing to refuse it. Reveling in the fact that he was just as helpless to this desire as she was, despising that she was just as weak as he, if not more, not being able to ignore its force. Sighing in resignation, she questioned, "And what exactly do you suggest?"
Eyes clouding with hunger he murmured quietly, surely, "You know."
She shivered in response as his voice dripped silkily over her. She did know, that was the problem. She broke eye contact, her entire internal system withering from the intensity of his stare. Of his smell. Of his presence. Hoping he would disappear, praying he would stay, wishing to the Gods that she did not feel this urge, knowing she would not exchange it for anything.
No matter how hard they tried, she tried; they couldn't escape the pulsating sexual chemistry they had. It was pounding its way through her blood, stirring a sensation deep within her belly, trying to thrust through her pressing inner rejections. And succeeding. They were both fighting against this reluctant attraction, that the force of their denials was only strengthening it. So it seemed, once they accepted it, embraced it, rode it out, then would they be happy. Then may it finally leave them in peace.
With heavy-lidded intent, he revealed his proposal. "I suggest a truce."
Her announcement absolutely floored him. He must not have heard her right, because he could not have possibly heard what he did. "What? With who?"
She whirled around, flinging her arm out of his grasp, furious. "How the fuck should I know? Do you think I fucking care which slut you chose to screw while I was gone for the day? For just one day." She shouted in a rage.
He staggered back as if she had physically hit him. Saying Kunzite was shocked would be an understatement. Cheated on her? He couldn't think of anything more preposterous. She could tell him she was a fire-breathing dragon and he would not be any more astounded than he was right now at her accusation.
"What!?"
"Oh please." This was better, Mina thought to herself. She preferred this overwhelming wrath to her pathetic weeping any day. Her resolve steeled over once more and she stood tall. "Spare me the theatrics. You fucked me; you fucked me over, congratulations. It's finished. Though why you're continuing to chase me I don't know, but it needs to end now. You've had your fun, now get out."
Kunzite was still shaking in disbelief. "You think I cheated on you?"
Mina rolled her eyes in exasperation. "No I'm making all of this up, just for kicks. Funny right?" She stated sarcastically, turning to walk away.
Enraged Kunzite yanked her back to him, plastering her once more against the solidity of his body. This time he did not care if he hurt her. He could not comprehend the blasphemy she spoke. "You must be making it up then because I did not, HAVE not, ever made love to any other woman but you. What made you think otherwise?"
She stared intently into his eyes, searching for any lies behind his words as he pleaded with her, her heart desperately hoping for truth. If she did not know any better, she may have even believed him. "I saw it Kunzite. I walked into your room and saw you both on your bed." She closed her eyes in disgust at the memory almost gagging on her words. "Sh-she was on top of you, screaming your name." Her voice failed on her at the end of the sentence. "I know it was you because of your ring." She picked up the hand wearing the criminal artifact. Point and case. "The ring you swore never left your body." Her voice was filled with bitterness. "The day I died."
She took advantage of his astonished silence to pull her arm free of his grasp. He was frozen to the spot. He tried despondently to wrack his brain for any explanation of what she'd seen. It was an impossibility. He would never in his life cheat on her. She had to have been hallucinating or something. But he knew those were not options either. Mina was the most sane, stable, sensible being he had ever met which left only one far- fetched yet plausible solution.
"Someone set me up." He stated incredulously to her back.
Mina scoffed dubiously and started to walk away until Kunzite stalked in front of her preventing movement. He took hold of her arms, beseeching her attention. "Listen to me. That wasn't me. That couldn't have been me because..." If he remembered correctly, and he knew he did, he pinpointed the day exactly, it was one he was not likely to forget, "...I wasn't wearing my ring that day."
She yanked her head back. "What?" Mina breathed in astonishment. "Please, give it up–"
"No listen." Kunzite shook her forcefully cutting off her sentence. "That day, I had given my ring to a jeweler to make a replica of it, only shaping it for a female hand. I know that to the very depth of my bones, I recall that day exactly because...because that was the night I was going to ask you to marry me." He finished resignedly. He had just rehashed three years of misery into one powerful conversation.
She stared up at him in dismay and let out an anguished whimper. The fight fled as quickly as it came. She knew he told the truth. She saw it in his face. She heard the heartache in his voice. She felt his compelling honesty as a tear slipped down her cheek at the complete pointlessness of it all.
"Who would do that?" She cried in a bewildered despair. "Why would anybody want to hurt us like that?"
His hand flew to her cheek; his thumb sweeping away the falling tears marring her pale beauty. "I don't know... I don't know why anyone would do that. But I will find out. And they'll pay." He promised her. He promised himself. He couldn't believe some vicious creature even dared think about coming between him and Mina. And not only daring, but succeeding.
"It was all for nothing then." Her hair flew into her face as she shook her head vehemently. This knowledge only increased the pain of her foolishness. All that time, all those years, those tears, wasted because of her mistaken judgment. She felt like such a worthless moron.
"Why didn't you believe in me? In us?" He implored, pushing the obstructing bangs off her wet cheeks. His eyes were frantic with puzzlement. He couldn't believe her reasoning. He didn't understand how she was so quick to misjudge him. A lifetime of hurt for a calculated error. He was so angry and so relieved and so indignant and so ashamed. He was so many emotions, but it all boiled down to one thing: he loved her. And no matter what, he could never intentionally be apart from her. It cost too dearly, it killed too slowly.
"Oh Kunzite... I was scared. So scared. I'd lost my heart and my mind, my soul to the most perfect man in the most wonderful way, and everything was going so fast, and so unplanned, I thought I'd lost myself. I was deliriously happy and vulnerable and confused and scared shitless with love. I was so afraid it wasn't real." She paused for breath, "You'd created my heart into a beautiful, fragile sculpture, and, it seemed as if it were only a matter of time before it shattered at my feet. So when I saw...what I thought, what I believed I'd seen... I had no reason to doubt it, because it just proved that you, our love, was too good to be true." She smiled wistfully through a sparkling layer of tears, exposing herself to the possibility of happiness once again.
Love shone through Kunzite's eyes at this woman. His woman. He didn't care how long it took for them to mend their wounds. He knew it was within his rights to be infuriated with her at being so quick to underestimate him, but the kind of love they had for each other was able to frighten anybody. How could he blame her? How could he doubt her? It was over and she was here. She was finally back in his arms where she belonged and this time, come the fiery depths of hell, she was never escaping him again.
"Oh Mina...my silly little chit..." He chided, bending his head for the too long awaited joining of lips he'd denied himself earlier, only to watch her duck away, turning her face to the side, tears streaming down her face more forcefully than before.
Gazing at her perplexed he asked, "Darling, why are you still crying?"
"I lost her." Her careful control slipped as the words broke through trembling lips. And she burst into great heaving sobs, crying desolate tears she swore she'd never shed again. She did not protest to Kunzite's arms as they comfortingly slipped tighter around her quaking body, rubbing the cold skin beneath his hands.
"Lost who?" He asked in dismay, his heart breaking all over again. All for the same girl, hating himself for not being able to banish the sadness that so viciously stabbed at him with every gut-wrenching sob torn from her throat.
And with two soft-spoken, shattering words, she ripped his world apart. "Our daughter."
"A what?"
"A truce. It is where two or more conflicting parties –"
"I know what a truce is." She responded heatedly. "What about it?"
"We are simply two heirs of royalty, unwillingly brought into a situation over which we have no control, and thereby forced to deal with the consequences." As he spoke, he slowly closed the distance that separated them. She could feel the warmth emanating from his body. "But before all that, before all the politics inevitably dampers any type of relationship between us," by now, he was so close, their bodies flirted with each other, "I suggest we simply be just a man and woman," his lips only a breath from her own, fluttering to touch with every word, "who want to fuck each other's brains out."
The shock from his statement was like electricity shooting through her body. Her brain screamed for her to get as far away from him as possible but it was clouded by every other organ in her body holding her in place. As crude as his words were, they were unfailingly true, even if she wouldn't audibly admit it to him, or herself. Well, maybe not actually fu...ah, consummate their desires, but surely enact enough...intimate activities to vent their frustrations. She took a deep shuddering breath, unintentionally brushing her lips against his.
Goddess, even that small movement inspired a friction sure to set alight. It was like a match, sparking to life, creating the beginnings of an inferno. As much as she wanted to feed the fire, there was still something holding her back. Her head would not let her go through with it. Not yet, no matter how tempting it was. There was just the small matter of her morals to sort out first.
As a female, as was her gender's obligation, she had to grasp some sort of reassurance that she wasn't about to make the biggest mistake of her life. As extreme as that sounded, because it was him, she had to do it. With a new resolve she stepped away from him, stared solemnly into his eyes and in a beseeching voice asked, "Why do you want me?"
He looked at her, speechless. He didn't have any response. He didn't know how to put all his answers into words. He didn't know how to tell her all what he thought of her. He only knew how to define his feelings by means of touching her. It was an instinctive reaction to soothe a woman's fears with his hands, lips, and other parts of his anatomy. To put any type of emotion across to a woman, he did it by ways of sex. He knew how to charm his way into any female's good graces and draw the response he sought, knowing all the right things to say to any woman... until this very moment. Was the cause of his desire not obvious?
A heart-breaking smile fluttered across her face, closing her eyes in some type of self-defeat and she shook her head in what could only be scorn – at her or himself, it was a toss up. She couldn't believe she thought he could offer some moral assuagement, some kind of mental and part emotional conciliation, encouraging her that she would not regret granting him access to her body.
How foolish to hope so falsely. The only difference between him and every other prince that tried to woo their way beneath her dress was that, he was succeeding. But then she would stop to think, with absurd simplicity and remember who he was, and thus, who she was.
"Why does any man want me?" She inquired aloud, taking a deep breath she continued. "Why is it you princes all line up in race for my hand?" She paused as if in thought. "For my kingdom? For the power you acquire by ruling at my side? For the universal authority that comes with the title of my king?" Sorrowfully she smiled, as if just stumbling upon a truth she wished she could not find.
"Do you want me for my beauty? Fleeting. In time these looks will fade and you will be left staring at nothing but wrinkled, sagging skin and graying, malting hair. You will get sick of staring at the same features day after day and come to find it plain and boring, and search for something different, adapting yourself to a new definition of beauty and whoring yourself off to her." She shook her head and turned away with a great tide of loneliness and delusional hopes, cursing herself for being foolish enough to believe anything else.
"Nobody wants me for me. Nobody even takes the time to try and know who I am. All they see is a simple-minded pliant little girl that they'll easily overwhelm with flattery and dull wit, expecting me to giggle and fawn over their sweet words and handsome face. If one of them asked me once, just once, how I was feeling that day, instead of glorying me with stories of how they once rescued a cat, I may have considered a decent conversation with them." She scoffed to the sky, scowling at the last few years of her life, and the endeavours they held. She swept back around to face the stony mask of Endymion.
"However, here I am. Prince-less." She nodded her head at him. "And there you are. A prince. What vast and exciting originality have you to offer?" She asked sarcastically, concluding her speech, folding her arms across her chest, expression of one prepared to receive her low expectations. She wondered if he had even listened to anything she even said. It would not surprise her if he hadn't.
Endymion was silent. As she spilled her heart, despite his posture of boredom and contrary to her beliefs that he wasn't listening, she was wrong. He listened. To every word she said, and every word she didn't say. He watched every facial expression she made, enraptured, her scowls failing to taint her beauty. He also watched the vulnerability threatening to seep out at each word, their echoes of sadness, hiding behind a mask of stoicism. And, naturally, was turned on by the fire in her eyes, flaring up not only her dueling emotions but also his unspoken desires.
Nevertheless, what intrigued him most about her explanation was that she said the very words that he had not even realised applied to him. Every sentence she spoke was as if she was relaying his very own life right in front of him. Was as if somebody had written out the script to his very existence and given it to her to read. In a show of paranoia he feared for his privacy, but immediately dismissed the ridiculous notion. If this fascinating beauty had not peeked into his soul, then he could only assume he had found not only a conquest and a lover, but a friend. Somebody who could, strangely enough, sympathise with him.
He stubbornly refused to delve any further into the discovery. It may just expose answers to questions he was not near prepared to ask. It would scare him into remission, fleeing for the hills, hiding from an emotion he could not have, would not have. But by experiencing everything she had just expressed, it formed an understanding, a standoff, which was something he could use.
That could be access to her heart.
Don't get him wrong, he did not wish for her to love him, because he certainly did not reciprocate an absurdity such as that, but being that it was he, a woman harbouring love for him was sadly, inevitable. He did not exactly enforce said emotion to come seeping out of his every conquest, but as narcissistic as it sounded, it was unbearably a consequence of being intimate with him. But if getting her into his bed resulted with her falling in love with him, it wasn't his problem. He wanted her. It was as simple as that. And he would play as dirty as possible to assure victory, even if it did mean pulling at heartstrings, falsely emitting emotions he was truly incapable of, cleverly crafting her to become one of his women. He looked at her and found her waiting. She had asked him a question and he would give the answer she wanted.
"How are you feeling today, princess?"
Serenity stopped. Stared incredulous, mouth agape, eyes disbelieving and body still, she began to laugh.
A lovely melodic laugh accompanied with an equally lovely smile that had him smirking in delight and pleased that he could evoke such a radiant response. It was either that or a swift kick to the balls so he was glad she chose the former.
She felt a slight burst of hysterics creeping over, considering the situation and her frustration, but quickly controlled it as she ran her hands through her hair and sighed in amused vexation. That lengthy rant and bout of semi-hysteria swept away her hostility for the prince, relaxing despite their predicament. Amazingly enough, she actually felt at ease with Endymion now. As if admitting the truth to one of her foes had essentially taken a weight off her shoulders. And there he was, looking gorgeous and tanned and smiling at her as if she verged on the edge of insanity, but nonetheless, accepting her for her. She had just claimed she despised everything he was, and he made her laugh. He was obviously as insane as she first presumed and therefore, she was not responsible for any imminent incidents. He asked, he got.
"You're impossible." She stated firmly, struggling to keep a smile off her face.
"So I've frequently been informed, thank you." He eyed her somewhat cautiously as if gauging a reaction, then with a somewhat serious undertone, he explained. "You asked me why I want you. I don't. I want this. What we have now, here. I want to prevent this desire from overtaking me completely. I don't want to think about tomorrow or next week. I just want you. So far, its purely sexual, if it comes to more, so be it. But until we acquire mutual boredom, like it or not, I'm going to keep coming at you until I have you in my bed."
And just like that, battle lines were drawn.
Her eyes narrowed with the thrill of the challenge, with the promise of a chase and he watched her reaction, automatically it brought to surface all the predatory impulses within him, his skin tingling with anticipation to hunt and devour. Their eyes gleamed with rivaled lust.
"So..." Serenity began backing up slowly, an involuntary reflex when he was concerned. A part of her wanted to prolong the pursuit, wanting to see how far she could take it before he pounced, like a mischievous mare in heat, enticing the stallion to mate. While the other part just wanted to surrender now. Become wholly consumed by all he had to offer and give him a taste of his own medicine.
"So." He followed, scenting her reluctant acceptance, hardening in response.
"I'm not going to jump straight into bed with you. I mean..." This was painful, but she needed to make it clear, for the both of them. "I realize it's... probably inevitable – "
"Definitely inevitable." He interrupted.
She frowned and carried on, "But that doesn't mean I'm going to spread my legs at the drop of your pants." Her face flushed in embarrassment at her bluntness, especially when he began grinning, but she hastened to continue before she lost her nerve. "If we're going to do this, you're going to court me properly. Gifts, compliments, the whole enchilada. Whether their genuine or not, I still want it."
"Compliments?" He asked in amusement. "Like... your legs would look great as my scarf?"
She kicked him in the shin as reply. Gasping on a laugh, he grimaced in pain, trying not to let it show, noticing his failure when he saw her self- satisfied smile. "These shoes aren't only good for height."
He straightened and seized the front of her dress, pulling her up and into him, bringing her face within centimeters of his. "One day soon, I'm going to make you pay for that."
Can't wait, she thought silently. Serenity would have said it but she felt she had already admitted too much today as it was and saying so would cross a boundary she did not dare. It would give him all the permission he needed to throw her over his shoulder and storm up to his room.
Not yet.
"I still don't see how this will work. We're kind of on a deadline here. My birthday is only a few weeks away, and by then, I have to be married and your desire to wed me is as miniscule as my desire to marry you." She declared honestly, all her previous protests fading like the morning dew.
"So until you find a potential suitor, have fun with me."
The offer was so immoral. So debauched. So wickedly tempting.
But without waiting for an answer, without waiting for a spoken acceptance, her silence was a good enough response for him, and not being able to hold it off any longer, he muttered, "Now that's settled..."
Amused at his lack of patience, all she could do was stand there and watch as the prince's hands reached up to cup her face, swooping down for a hard, swift kiss, crushing her lips beneath his. The rest of his hard body followed seconds later to rest against the softness of hers and as if he wasn't quite satisfied with that, his left hand transported itself to her back, pushing her more firmly against him. Not letting him have control over this, her hands floated up to wrap themselves in his hair, leaning up, adding her own force behind the kiss.
His good intentions were meant to be a swift, sweet, confirming of the deal kiss, but when she pushed herself up against him like that, hell, good intentions be damned. He disconnected their lips for a moment, muttering something unintelligible before joining them again, sweeping his tongue along the bottom of her lip, and encouraging her to open for him. When his request was granted his tongue plundered deeper into her mouth, trying to drink her very essence with ruthless abandon.
Her willing response left him aching with the desperate need to feel her bare skin against his. She refused to be docile and dominated, arching wildly in his embrace, hands rightfully in his hair, sucking at his tongue, reveling in his growl of hunger. She wanted to climb the swollen ridge of his erection thrusting so insistently against her belly, to cradle it in the soft notch of her legs, rubbing slowly, slowly, increasing the pressure until it peaked into an uncontrollable ecstasy.
But she didn't. Now was not the right time. This was not the right place. And as much as it hurt her to do it, she pulled away. Slightly. She felt a fleeting compulsion to rebuild her mental walls, but knew it was too late. He was already in.
"I don't think– "
"Good, don't think. You're kind of annoying when you do." He mumbled into her neck, nibbling along her skin. He certainly did not mind flaunting his exhibitionist qualities.
She retaliated by burrowing her hand beneath his shirt, and yanking on a small patch of hair sprinkled lightly over his chest. Hard. "As I was saying," she continued over his strangled gasps of pain, "I don't think here would be an appropriate place to start anything right now. Why don't I give you that tour of the garden?"
Lifting his head, he glared at her and then nodded, his hand extracting her tugging fingers, and with a smirk indicating prominent mischief, he pushed her hand slowly down so they trailed down the length of his stomach, her eyes widening in alarm at the path they were taking. "If you want to pull on something..."
His insinuation had her wrenching her hand away as if she'd been burned leaving him chuckling in glee at the expected reaction. She tried scowling at him, at the crudity of his actions but his smug grin was infectious, rendering her own amused smile.
Retrieving her hand again, he entwined their fingers and tugged her to follow him, leading them out of the animal wing. "So show me this garden of yours."
So much for resisting him, was her bemused thought as she let herself be pulled along with him.
Let's see where this leads.
AN: Sorry, umm...do the characters all seem out of whack to you? I just couldn't remember how I actually wanted them to be when I first started writing and I don't know if this story flows or not. If it doesn't, I apologise.