Minako sat down with a whoosh of air on the volleyball court sidelines. Usagi and Makoto hooted at her from the bleachers. Ami was engrossed in her book, her glasses glinting in the sunlight. Minako laughed and waved at her friends.
"That's sweet. Your friends coming to cheer for you during practice," one of the older team members, Keiko, told her.
Minako smiled.
She could see the image of a much younger Princess Serenity bouncing next to a much more sedate Sailor Mars superimposed over her friends of today. They were seated along the steps of a vaguely Grecian style gazebo raised above the multipurpose fields of the practice grounds.
She was waving from far away. Sailor Jupiter took advantage of her distraction and knocked her off her feet. Venus twisted on her back, wrapped her legs about Jupiter's, and twisted again. The two tussled on the ground: Jupiter had the height and the reach of her, but Venus was a dirty fighter in close quarters. It was all going according to her plan as she smashed Jupiter's face into the dirt until an icy chill settled over her. Jupiter's eyes widened below her. Not good!
They both rolled together, before Venus used her stronger legs to kick Jupiter upright while the other used her momentum to pull her leader after her. They landed a few meters from their starting point that was now covered in ice.
Mercury smiled and waved from the other side of the practice field. "Oh, were you dueling?" she called to them, very politely.
"Aino-kun?" Keiko snapped her fingers next to Minako's face. "Are you all right?"
Ami had put away her book and was now laughing at something Makoto had said. She could hear Usagi asking, "What, what? What's so funny?" even from this side of court.
Minako shook her head with a smile and pulled her knee pads back into place. "Sorry! It's--it's just so nice of them!"
The referee blew the whistle. Minako rushed to replace one of the other girls. In the background, she could hear all three of her friends shouting encouragement. The volleyball was passed to her, she set, and she served. The other team didn't have a chance.
***
She was in a tent. A very well decorated tent, but a tent. There was a carpet to cover the rocky ground. There was a low table covered in maps. Colorful silks and throws were everywhere. A bed of rushes set off to the side was given a form of privacy by a cloth canopy.
And she was filthy: covered in dirt, sweat, and blood. Some her own, mostly not. She had fought and led a battle. It had gone well but not well enough. She was tired, bone tired. Yet. Yet.
“Princess,” that wind rough voice whispered in her ear. “You should rest.”
She closed her eyes. “I will,” she whispered back. “But I wished to see to you.”
“Aino!” Sensei smacked her on the side of the head with a rolled up paper. “Where are you?! Read aloud paragraphs 10 through 25!”
Minako stood up quickly, stumbled slightly, and then stuttered her way through several small English examples of Aesop's Fables. Sensei glared at her after she finished but moved on to the next student, a boy two rows forward who had snickered at her getting caught daydreaming.
“V-chan,” Usagi whispered behind her. “V-chan!” Minako shook her head. “But, V-chan! What's wrong?” Usagi continued even louder.
And was promptly smacked on the head by Sensei.
“Tsukino! Paragraphs 75 through 125!”
“W-what?!” Usagi stuttered. “But! I didn't read that far!”
“WHAT?” Sensei shouted.
Minako could see Ami cover her face with her hands out of the corner of her eye. Makoto, on the other hand, was trying desperately to signal Usagi to look at her so she could mouth the words. Makoto was mostly wrong, but it was more right than Usagi would guess.
She looked out the open window to prevent herself from giggling. The sun was bright, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. It was almost time for summer break.
The only light source was a single candle burning on the low table in the center of the tent. The wax was threatening to overflow and cover the maps it held in place. Minako rubbed at her temple. She was still sitting at her desk by the window. Usagi was still haltingly sounding out Engrish at Sensei who was slowly turning purple.
Kunzite shrugged out of the long, leather tunic that acted as his armor. There was no more haze of memory: this was Kunzite, vividly saturated. The tent, with its riot of colors, was dull in comparison. He was the brightest thing in her mind's eye. His green eyes were the brightest color of all.
“See to me?” The corner of his mouth almost twitched upward but not quite. There was a large bruise on his left side of his jaw, and a bloody gash in his hairline that streaked his silver hair a dull pink. He reached out and carefully stroked down the column of her neck with two lashed-together, broken fingers of his right hand. It hurt. Her entire torso throbbed. She must have have bruised a rib or three. “You should see to yourself first.”
“It is tradition,” she whispered back. “After the battle is won,” and she continued on over his huff of disagreement. “Yes, even if that battle is a stalemate that we are lucky the enemy retreated from, the battle is won. But after it is won, we must cleanse. It is very common on the other worlds. I wash your back, you wash mine.”
He did smile then. “I am but your backscrub, lady?”
She reached upward and touched his lips with her fingers. His smile disappeared. His lips were rough and cracked. Nothing like she had felt before. She smiled. “Yes,” she lied.
“Aino! Help Tsukino-- AINO!” Sensei smacked the back of her head with his hand this time. “Don't fall asleep again when I am standing right here! Stand up and help Tsukino!”
Minako stared up at Sensei without moving. She was still mostly inside her head: she felt her dress pool about her feet as Sensei dragged her up from her seat. The touch of Usagi's hand against her wrist stuttered against the feeling of Kunzite tying back her long hair and dropping a kiss on the back of her neck.
“The... the...” Minako stared down at the page. She had no idea where she was supposed to be looking. There was water dripping down her back.
“The cow!” Usagi shouted.
“Crow,” Minako corrected. She picked one of the paragraphs at random. “The crow stole a piece of meat and per--perched...”
Kunzite dipped the cloth into the basin again, and the water turned pink. He rubbed across her collarbones, then gently patted instead when she sucked in a breath from pain. One hand almost accidentally traced the curve of her breast, and Kunzite never broke eye contact.
Minako bit her lip. Usagi struggled on, replacing “beak” with “butt” and explaining how the fox liked big butts and it could not lie.
She took the cloth from Kunzite's hand and dipped it once more into the basin. He settled one hand on her hip, and with the other fully squeezed her breast. Even flicked her nipple. Minako's eyes widened and she sucked in a breath. Sensei was starting to look concerned, and not just for Usagi's horrible translation.
She washed the blood from his face, the grime from his eyes, wet his dry lips. He bent slightly to let her scrub the caked blood from the shallow gash across his shoulder. Every muscle was tense under her fingers as she traced lower. When she came to the belt that kept his leather apron tight about his hips, she hesitated. Then tugged the belt from its loop.
That broke the spell of inaction. Kunzite snatched her up, tossing her up his body so her breasts were at level with his mouth and bit. She let out a shriek at the pain to her bruised body and then another when he dropped her without ceremony on to his rough bed. The universe blurred, he fumbled between their bodies, and then shoved.
Minako stumbled to the side. Usagi instantly dropped her book and steadied her. “Mina-chan! Mina-chan!”
It was frantic. She was pressing upward, he was shoving forward. Her hips and back were in agony from the slamming of their bodies. Kunzite muttered something into the valley of her breasts and kissed a wet, messy path up to her pulse point. She panted, tightening her grip with her ankles around the small of his back. It was nothing like the ecchi manga Minako sometimes stole peeks at in the bookstores. This was not a gentle thing. It was wet and it hurt, and her hair was stuck under her elbow, letting her neck only move so far. It was incredible.
“Do not stop! Do not--!” She shoved back hard. Dug her fingers into his back.
“...don't...” Minako slurred to Usagi.
“Don't what?” Usagi whispered frantically. Makoto gave up pretensions and shot out of her seat to Minako's other side.
“Sensei, Sensei!” Ami was almost shouting.
Kunzite licked his fingers and shoved his hand between them. He rubbed his thumb in a circular motion around her clit and pinched. She bit him on the shoulder and shuddered.
“Aino!” Sensei shook Minako by both shoulders. He was staring at her with real concern. The entire class was watching them. Some had gotten out of their seats to get a better look. Usagi had her by the hand, her face white. Makoto had her arm around her waist. Ami was just over Sensei's shoulder, about to shove him out of the way.
Kunzite groaned over her with one last violent slam and collapsed on top of her.
Minako vomited on Sensei's shoes and darted from the classroom in the stunned silence.
Usagi found her curled up on the floor of the girl's bathroom on the third floor. She had no idea how she had gotten there. Her hair was plastered to her face, sweat soaked through her uniform top.
“Mina-chan!” Usagi stumbled down next to her and lifted Minako's head into her lap. “Mina-chan! What's wrong? Tell me!”
Minako shook her head again and again. Usagi's hands were cool against her forehead and cheeks. She tried to burrow into Usagi's lap. Usagi would make it all better; she always did.
“You're burning up!”
Makoto came galloping into the bathroom. The door slammed so hard against the wall that the plaster dented. “What is it? What happened?”
“She's burning up! She won't answer me, and she's burning up!” Usagi was becoming frantic. “V-chan! Talk to me! Please! What's wrong!”
“Ami!” Makoto ran back out the door shouting. “Ami, come here quickly!”
The candle had almost burnt out. Kunzite pulled a thick fur from a storage chest and draped it over the both of them. It was now dusk, and the desert was starting to cool.
“You should return,” he whispered even as he settled next to her in bed.
“You wish to be rid of me so quickly?” she teased.
“Will you not be missed?”
“No.” She whispered against his mouth. “It is expected of me. Jupiter is distracting most of the camp with her javelin contest with your second-in-command. They will all sleep late into the morning, and no one will see from which tent I will emerge.” Still teasing, “Your reputation is safe, my king.”
He let out a deep laugh, something she rarely heard. “Thank you, lady, for your forward thinking.”
“I am a great military commander," she reminded him.
He settled over her on his elbows, both of them smiling at their oh so witty pillow talk. The tent was dark now. The candle had finally burnt out. “I...” Kunzite started and stopped. His green, green eyes were the only thing she could see any more. “You are the greatest woman I have ever known.”
Minako sat up and tried to stumble to the toilet. “Mako-chan!” Usagi shouted. She tried to wedge herself under Minako's shoulder and almost lost her footing. Makoto ran back inside, helped Minako to a stall, and both she and Usagi held Minako's hair back as she vomited.
“I'm sorry!” Minako cried. “I'm so sorry!”
***
"Daisuke is thinking of leaving the band again," Minako heard from far, far away. She opened her eyes slowly then closed them again. The light hurt. "I know you'll hate it, but I think Edo should leave for his own career. I'd buy his CD. ...I think I'm outgrowing boy groups," Makoto continued.
"Traitor," Minako whispered.
The magazine closed and Makato felt her friend's forehead. "You're still burning up. Here, drink some water."
"Yes, mama," Minako whispered again.
"Do it or I dump it on your head."
Minako let out a tired laugh and did as she was told.
"How are you feeling?" Makoto finally asked. "And don't say 'fine' or 'good'. You're not."
"...tired," Minako finally admitted. "I don't feel like I've slept, even though I know I have. And I'm afraid to stand up again. I almost crushed Rei-chan."
"You're sick." Makoto ran a hand through Minako's bangs and smiled down at her. "You've been asleep on and off for the last two days. Ami-chan and Rei-chan dragged Usagi-chan home a bit ago. Ami said she'd come stay with you for a while tomorrow. They're all worried about you."
Minako caught her hand and held it. "But not you?"
"I trust you to tell me if something's wrong."
In her mind's eye, Minako could see a different conversation. Sailor Jupiter was storming away from her. "You never trusted me! Never! You always kept your plans to yourself! You should have told me what you had hoped-- I would have gone along with it! I liked him! We were friends! I would have been happy!"
"I had hoped it would come naturally, that you would choose him yourself. You're the only one us among that-- that--"
"That isn't nobility? Do not rub that in my face now, princess--"
"That could choose for yourself! You are so free, Jupiter! I wish--"
Jupiter turned then. The hallway darkened, and every hair on Venus' body stood up on end. "No wishes. Not now. Serenity has made enough of those for all of us. You hid yourself from me, and now look at us. We will do our duty and do it gladly, as you always remind me. There is nothing more to say on the subject, your majesty."
"Mina-chan?"
Minako blinked back the cloudy haze of memory. Makoto was still sitting next to her bed, surrounded by a stack of celebrity magazines she and the other girls had collected just for her enjoyment.
"I'm sorry," Minako whispered. She wanted to cry but her eyes were dry. She never cried but for the past few days, she had been nothing but tears. Now, they would not even come.
"Mina-chan, please." Makoto put her arms around her friend and hugged her. "There's nothing for you to be sorry about! You're sick."
Minako shook her head again and again.
***
It was the middle of the night. Minako had no idea why she was awake, but she was now. Her head still felt like it was filled with cotton. She sat up slightly then slid back down under the covers when the world swam. Yes, she was still dizzy. Artemis made a snuffing noise in his sleep and curled into an even tighter ball next to Minako's knee.
She sat up slowly this time and managed to swing her legs over the side of the bed before she had to stop and wait for the world to right itself. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, rubbed at her nose with the back of her wrist, and then blinked. Kunzite was standing in front of her. He looked rather surprised to be in the center of her room, but Minako wasn't. She had been dreaming of the past for three months. What was one more hallucination in her own bedroom?
“...Lady?” he whispered.
Minako shrugged. “Not very ladylike right now.” She hadn't showered in two days, not since she last woke up when Makoto was there to help her.
He knelt (rather shakily) in front of her. “Lady,” he whispered again. This time, he went so far as to almost touch her knees. Minako simply stared at him and said nothing. The memories always acted for her. She felt a compulsion to act them out, sometimes, but never made an active decision to do so. Kunzite continued to stare at her. Nothing happened. Minako blinked again. Her room was dark, in its natural state of cluttered chaos, and empty. Save for her talking cat.
Artemis stretched next to her and blinked sleepy eyes at her.
“Mina-chan,” he whispered half asleep but still excited. "You're awake!" He rolled over and buried his face in her hip. And promptly rolled away with a disgusted face. “You smell horrible!”
“Thanks, kitty,” Minako told him with a smile.
***
Minako straightened her bow in the mirror. Over her shoulder, Kunzite watched her.
“It's the first day of summer vacation,” Artemis muttered sleepily. He was curled up in the sunspot below Minako's window. “Aren't you supposed to sleep late and eat junk food?”
Minako giggled and compared earrings to her outfit. Her mirror companion was gone. “I was stuck in bed for almost two weeks and only got to go to the last day of classes! I don't need any more sleep for a week! I'm lucky the volleyball club needs me so much or I'd be out of a spot.”
Artemis grumbled some more and rolled over onto his back.
***
“V-chaaaaan!” Usagi shouted before tackling her friend. Minako went down and took her princess with her.
“Usagi! Be careful! Mina-chan's been very, very sick.” Rei scolded her and started to tug her off Minako by a pigtail.
“It’s okay!” Minako clung to her princess. “I’ve missed you all so much! Come on, let’s go!” Keeping a firm grip on Usagi’s hand, Minako skipped down the sidewalk.
Usagi laughed and stumbled along after her. Makoto grinned and laughed, following behind them at a leisurely walk, quickly overtaking the shorter girls. Ami smiled wanly at Rei and followed behind their friends. Minako looked over her shoulder. She saw Sailor Mars standing alone on the burning ruins of the Moon, her uniform in tattered ruins and tears streaming down her face.
“Rei-chan!” Usagi shouted. She let go of Minako and ran back. “Rei-chan, come on!” Usagi took up Rei’s hand, dragged the other girl behind her, and grabbed Minako’s hand once more. She grinned at them both and started skipping again. “We’ll never get a good table if you two are so slow!”
Minako laughed as Rei rolled her eyes with a smile.
***
Sailor Venus stood on a hill near the center of a great hanging garden. Golden vines curled up and over themselves in impossible loops, glittering against the never changing velvet sky. Red, white, and green flowers and fruit hung heavy above her head. Their scent was thick, sticking in the back of her throat. She took a deep breath. She loved this place. She would always love this place.
The Holy Blade was in her hand even before she turned (...the sword was lost forever in the grave of the Dark Kingdom). She kept her eyes locked with Kunzite's, the sword balanced over her forearm and never letting the point waver from his throat. Neither moved.
"Why are you here?" she asked at last.
Kunzite walked onto her sword.
Minako sat up in bed. It was late morning. She needed to go for a jog. Classes started back in a few weeks, and she had to be in top shape for the volleyball club. She had to prove that being sick at the end of term had not left her weak!
She started to pull off her pajama top then stopped. She looked in the mirror. Kunzite looked back at her. "Turn your head," she told him over her mostly bare shoulder with her shirt tight over her breasts. He nodded and turned his head. She even thought he might have blushed.
Minako shrugged. In a whirlwind of motion, she stripped down, threw on her gym uniform, and was out the door.
***
It was Mars, this time. The world smelt of smoke and was covered in ashe. On the distant mountain ridge, a white palace burnt and crumbled to the ground.
"Answer me," Venus intoned. Once again, her sword was raised and ready. "And don't try and kill yourself this time."
Kunzite bowed and offered his palms up to her. "Lady, I--"
"Did you do this to me?" she spat. "Did you give me false memories?"
"I serve only my master. There is nothing I could--"
"Do you haunt him, too?" She advanced slowly. "Is that what you call service? Ghosting through his mind and jumbling up his past and present to the point he's sick? Did you do this to him, too?"
Kunzite did not back away. He kept his open hands in her view and his expression calm. "I did nothing to you, lady--"
"I know you!" she shouted into the silence of this long dead world. "Who you were! What you did!" Her sword wavered for a moment then held true. Kunzite almost formed an expression at her movement. "Are you an enemy? Are you some figment someone made to prod at me? I've embraced my destiny! My fate is to continue fighting! I won't give up!" She took a step forward. The sword point rested against Kunzite's cheek.
"I know," he whispered.
"I won't give in," she whispered back. "I will protect them. All of them."
"You have. I have seen it."
Mars melted around them. Her bedroom flooded into place, washed in tones of blue. The full moon was huge outside her window. Artemis was asleep at the foot of her messy bed. It was Minako in her sunflower pajama pants and ratty tank top who stood facing the leader of the Shitenou.
Kunzite took a step toward her. The room suddenly felt very small and very warm. "...Thank you, lady," he whispered. "For all that you have done." He kept his hands low but within her sight at all times.
There was a long pause. She could hear city traffic outside her window, Artemis lightly snoring, and their combined breathing. Minako looked at him then. She took in the obvious crinkles around his eyes and mouth from smiles and laughter. While his hair was silver, there were obvious bits of grey that were dull against the shine of the rest of his hair; just along his temples. On the open hands he offered her, she could see the calluses from years of sword handling and manual labor. She reached out and touched with her thumb: these were the same hands she remembered from her dreams. Even if she was embarrassed that she remembered the exact feel of his rough hands across her body, they were the same. Was this too much to create for an illusion?
"It was real, wasn't it? All the things I saw. About you."
A small, sad smile bloomed slowly across his face when she changed her grip and brushed her fingers over his knuckles. He hesitated then. His face was a few inches above hers, both their heads tilting together but never breaking eye contact.
"You will always be the greatest woman I have ever known," he whispered. His breath was warm against her lips. Everything was tense, tight as a bow string. Something was about to snap, and she wasn't sure if that would be so horrible.
"Please wake up," Kunzite suddenly whispered as he leaned closer.
Minako opened her eyes. She was standing alone in the middle of her dark room.
