Chapter One

Momo Belia, formerly the third Princess of Deviluke, strode through her personal ship, the Snowmelt, with a purpose. She felt eyes on her with every step but she didn't mind. Quite the opposite. Every crewmember aboard the Snowmelt worshiped the ground she walked on. Momo wouldn't have had it any other way. Loyalty was the most valuable commodity in the universe. No man or woman who crewed her ship could even think of betrayal. Their reward was being blessed with the sight of her daily. More importantly, Momo was confidant they all knew their place. The number one rule aboard the Snowmelt was 'look but don't touch.' Very few had ever broken that taboo and, truthfully, Momo felt sorry for the ones that had. She didn't actually ever have to do anything to the offending person. Her crew could be quite unpleasant to those they felt violated or insulted their Princess.

Risa came into sight and Momo noted that a smirk stretched across her face. The human woman was always smiling as if she knew a joke that nobody else understood. Momo knew that that was what had prompted Risa Momioka to follow her off Earth. To her, the world was nothing but a source of amusement and the universe offered a much wider range of possibilities. "Here already, Momo-chii?" The brown-eyed woman winked. "Eager, aren't you?"

Momo huffed. "Of course I am. This is the first lead we've gotten in awhile."

Risa's grinned even wider. "Whatever you say."

Momo flipped her shoulder-length pink hair back. "Just because I am good at this sort of thing doesn't mean that enjoy it." She had her image to consider after all.

"Yes, yes, Momo-chii." Risa leaned in so close that locks of her dark blonde hair tickled Momo's nose. "I know what you enjoy." Her warm breath caressed Momo's ear and the Princess's knees started to weaken. Risa's hand curled around Momo's hip and grasped her tail ever so gently.

Momo jumped and pushed Risa away. "I need to interrogate the prisoner," she yelped, quite unbecomingly. Risa laughed and let herself be pushed away. Momo hurried into the room Risa had been guarding, a blush on her face. Will that woman ever get sick of playing with me? Momo suspected the answer was no.

The room was just a small storage area containing a few spare parts for the ship. The figure suspended from the ceiling was the real reason that Momo was here. She didn't know what species he was but he looked quite a bit like a human, only more thickly built than most and with two tusks poking up out of his mouth. His skin was a dark orange that wouldn't have been found on earth. The man opened his yellow eyes and his face darkened at the sight of her. Momo couldn't tell if it was anger or embarrassment. The man was completely naked, after all.

Momo studied him. Not my type at all. When his member twitched, she smiled internally, however. I seem to be his, though. But really, how could I not be? Not only was she one of the most beautiful women in the universe, she dressed in a manner that accentuated that fact. She wore black ankle-high booties with low heels and black tights. Her shirt was long-sleeved but white and just this side of transparent. It was tied at the throat but that was the only closure until the belt that circled around her hips. When she was still, the shirt settled on her perfectly but any movement opened up tantalizing glimpses. Her thin, black belt had a skull and crossbones buckle and a short sword hung down her left hip. In place of the flower accessories she used to wear in her hair, she had braided one forelock with colored beads and from the end of the lock dangled a little silver skull with bat wings.

She advanced on the prisoner, her heels clacking on the metal deck. Her shirt gaped open and his eyes went right to her chest. A thrill ran up her spine and her thin, black tail thrashed from side to side. There was no way he didn't now know she wasn't wearing a bra. I'm not wearing any panties either. I wonder if he can tell. Instead of the predatory look her face naturally wanted to take on, Momo made sure that her expression was troubled. "Oh, dear, I am so sorry," she said, touching him lightly on the hip. The man was suspended so that Momo's eyes sat level with his stomach. She stared up at him and clasped her hands together. With her peripheral vision, she noticed his member move again. "I didn't mean for my crew to treat you so roughly. I have been trying to work with them but they can sometimes be a little overzealous."

"Don't put on your little act for me, Princess Bitch," he said. Momo knew he was trying to sound tough but the nervous tremor in his voice completely betrayed him.

Momo gasped, as if his words had hurt her. "Please don't call me such. This doesn't have to be unpleasant if you don't want it to be." She trailed her fingers down his hip ever so lightly.

The man shuddered. "I-I'm not going to tell you anything."

Momo suppressed a smile. So they all say. "Now, now. I'm not after much here." She circled around behind him, letting her tail caress him gently. "Why don't we just start with your name. It can't hurt to tell me that."

The man was silent for a moment. "Fine, Princess Bitch. I'll have you know that you are dealing with Captain Gar Gan Garna of the Slim Gar, the most lethal pirate in the galaxy!"

Momo was unable to resist the temptation to undercut him. "Shouldn't that be the 'former captain' of the Slim Gar?" she asked. Her Snowmelt had just gotten through blasting the good captain's ship apart, after all. It might have been salvaged had Momo the impetus to do so. As it was, she was content to let it drift into the nearby asteroid field where it would slowly be pulverized.

Gar jerked, rattling the chains that held him up. "You bitch! You'll regret this!"

Momo sighed and decided to let her sweet and innocent persona go completely. It could be fun to act like that but it was wasted on a brute like Gar. She walked back in front of him. "Alright, Gar," she said. Her worried expression was replaced with an amused smirk. "Let's come to it. There is a certain planet, Barataria, only known to pirate captains. You will give me the coordinates to this planet. That's all I want, Gar." She winked at him. "That's not too much trouble, is it?"

"That planet is for pirates!" Gar snarled. "I won't betray my brethren."

Momo affected a sigh and then flicked at her braided forelock. "If it is for pirates, then it is for me. I am just Momo Belia now, pirate queen of the black seas."

Gar snorted in disbelief. "As if I will ever believe the daughter of Gid Lucione Deviluke would reject her heritage and go pirate. This is obviously a trap."

Momo put her hands on her hips and huffed in annoyance. Of course she was also aware that this pushed her chest up and out. "It's obviously not a trap!" she snapped. "Why would I be dispatched on that kind of a mission? Everybody knows who I am. I would be the worst person to try and infiltrate a group of my father's enemies."

"Maybe that's the point," Gar speculated. "Maybe it's so obvious that Gid expects to overthink it and not suspect you. What do you say to that?"

Momo rolled her eyes. Then she smirked at him. Her tail slithered up and curled around one of the shirt ties trailing down from her neck. She tugged and the knot opened. That let her shit gape open down to her navel. Gar couldn't see much yet but one wrong move...And judging by the beads of sweat popping out on his head, Gar knew it too. "Do you think my father would allow me to do things like this?" He probably actually wouldn't mind, the old pervert. The universe tended to perceive Gid as a far sterner man than he was in real life, however.

"Maybe he doesn't know everything that you are up to?" Gar ventured.

Momo's smirk stretched into a truly wolfish grin. "He doesn't know a thing, Gar. I've repudiated my family name. I'm sure Zastin or one of his other flunkies has been dispatched to try and bring me back home." But, as my sister proved, they are not particularly adept at such things. "I wish to be a pirate but I'll need a safe haven. The coordinates?"

Gar licked his lips. "If Zastin and the Royal Guard are after you, that's even more reason to deny you. The last thing we need is giving them more of a reason to try and find Barataria."

Momo's fingered the end of her hair. This was beginning to get old. She shrugged. "It really doesn't matter if you believe me or not. You are going to tell me what I want to know, either way." Momo giggled. "Because no man can deny me." Well, one could...Momo clamped down hard on the thought before it go any further. It still inspired a riot of emotions in her. Mostly rage and sorrow. She shook it off as best she could. "For my first trick, why don't I make you hard without laying a finger on you?"

"W-what are you talking about?" he asked, trying and failing to hide his nervousness. "I've thrown away better looking chicks than you."

Momo suppressed a laugh at the sad lie. Instead, she trained her purple eyes on the pirate captain's member. It started to rise almost immediately. Not that Momo had any particular powers to make it do so. She just knew that paying attention to it would make him think about it. That, plus the situation and their various states of dress was no doubt causing him to imagine all sorts of things. Momo undulated her hands above his member as it swelled up. She laughed. "Loot at that. It's up! Magic." Momo didn't know what it was like to have an erection but Gar certainly didn't look very comfortable. It seemed like his cock was trying to tear away from his body to reach her. She walked forward and ran a finger along the underside of his penis. Her breast briefly flashed into view as she did so. Gar released a long, rattling breath. "Do you feel like talking yet?"

"Go to hell, Princess Bitch," he snarled.

Momo smiled, a little impressed he was still putting up a fight. She flicked the head of his penis and he shouted in pain. "Now, now. We can at least be civil, can't we?" She noticed that the pain hadn't reduced his ardor in the least. That made her raise an eyebrow. Interesting. "Come, now, Gar-chan. You can tell me. Who will ever even know? I promise that I'll make it worth your while." Gar held his silence, which she supposed was at least an improvement over insulting her. "Do I need prove it to you?" Momo walked behind him and, without warning, she whipped her tail through the air and across his backside. Gar shouted again and flinched forward. But, as Momo suspected, his erection didn't wilt in the least.

That made her laugh loudly. "So you like it this way, Gar-chan? I don't mind it." Gar swallowed audibly but he didn't protest. Momo decided to whip him a few more times with her tail. Gar's groans certainly took on a more erotic tone. She had to quit after a few strikes, however. That actually hurts me quite a bit. She circled back in front of him and drew her sword. "Do you like a little danger, Gar-chan?" She poked him in the hip just hard enough to draw a bead of blood. It trickled down into his thatch of pubic hair. Momo brought the blade lower, rubbing it on the side of his shaft. Gar's deep, rattling breaths suggested that he did indeed like the danger.

Momo watched his face and, when it seemed like he was close to orgasm, she dropped her sword away. She didn't say anything this time, idly tapping her sword against the toe of her boot. After a moment, Gar whispered, "Please…" Momo couldn't help smirking slightly. Despite all his protests, he had broken rather easily.

"Please…?" she asked, as if she had no clue what he was speaking of.

"Please let me finish." He sounded deeply ashamed but Momo suspected that was only adding to the pleasure of his experience.

Momo rested her blade on her shoulder. "You know what I need."

"Barataria." Gar closed his eyes and licked his lips. Then he told her.

The thrill of victory ran through Momo. Her grin was savage. "Good boy!" she praised him.

Then her tail shot out and wrapped around his dick. She worked it up and down rapidly, squeezing tightly. Gar only last a few seconds before screaming, "Princess!" Momo deftly dodged his ejaculate.

"Call me Captain," she said. She unwound her tail and walked out of the room. The moment the door slid closed behind her, Momo collapsed against the wall. She put a hand on her chest. Her heart was hammering in her chest. That hadn't been the first person she'd interrogated in such a manner but it was always thrilling and terrifying. That she could achieve such power over a man so easily both frightened and exhilarated her. Most men are so simple. A little pleasure and they lose themselves. That was why…

Before she could finish her thought, a pair of hands slipped under her shirt and cupped her breasts. "Oh, hard as diamonds!" Risa cackled. How did she get behind me?! "Somebody had some fun in there."

"L-let go of me," Momo said shakily. She held back a moan. Risa was some kind of savant when it came to fondling.

Instead of letting go, Risa snaked one hand down and into Momo's tights. "Oh! You really are excited!" Momo couldn't trust herself to speak. Risa pushed Momo around and pinned her against the wall. The human woman opened Momo's shirt completely and kissed along her chest and collarbone. At the same time, the hand in Momo's tights maneuvered around to cup Momo's ass. Then Risa started to pull the tights down.

Momo tried to protest one more time. "Risa," she gasped. "The crew!"

"I sent them away," Risa murmured between kisses. "You're all mine." She took one of Momo's nipples in her mouth. At the same time, her hand came back up and she gently inserted a finger. Momo was embarrassed about how easily it slid in. When Risa used her other hand to catch Momo's tail and start caressing that as well, the Devilukian woman hand to put her hands over her mouth to keep from crying out. Momo couldn't last very long under such circumstances and soon climaxed so hard that it left her a little dazed.

Risa licked off her hand with a cheeky smirk, which humiliated Momo further. She jerked up her tights and tried to storm off. Her legs were too weak to allow it, however. Risa laughed and scooped her up easily. Momo squawked in surprise. She struggled weakly. "Let me go. What if one of the crew sees this?"

Risa grinned. "Then they'll know that their little princess tuckered herself out."

Momo's face darkened. "I am not their 'little princess,'" she snapped. "I am their captain."

Risa chuckled. "I know but you're embarrassed face is too cute to resist." Momo huffed but ceased her struggle. She knew that Risa was just being Risa and actually appreciated it. She was one of the few people who treated Momo exactly the same as she treated everyone else. Truthfully Momo was jealous of Risa's ability to always be herself. That didn't come so easily for Momo. She always felt like she was playing a part. Being a pirate was supposed to be a way for her to cut loose and stop worrying about making everyone around her happy. But wasn't that just a part she was playing too? So what am I? Is that why he…?

Momo shook her head fervently. She wouldn't think about him. She wouldn't. Risa glanced down at her but thankfully held her silence. The human woman dropped Momo off at her quarters. "You okay to walk?" she asked with her customary grin.

Momo flushed. "I am just fine, thank you very much."

Risa laughed. "So what should I do with the illustrious Captain Gar?"

"Offer him a spot as a scullion?" Momo deadpanned.

Risa stuck out her tongue. "Honestly, he'll probably take it after all of this. They laughed together and then Risa went on her way with a jaunty wave.

Momo decided to take a shower. She emerged a short time later, wrapped in a towel. A pot of tea was waiting for her on her desk. Courtesy, no doubt of Risa. Momo smiled. Risa might have seemed selfish but she was actually very cognizant of other's desires. That's what makes her a first rate first mate. Momo giggled at her own stupid joke as she sat down. She poured herself a cup and took a sip. Not bad but it's not as good as Mikan-san's. The thought killed her enjoyment of the tea. Even a cup of tea makes me think of my time there. Will I ever be free of him?

She stood up and walked to the window of her cabin. It was floor to ceiling and just now showed a vast, uninterrupted view of space. Momo put one hand on the window and touched her chest with her other. Wasn't this pain supposed to lessen with time? That's what everybody told her but it felt as painful as the moment Rito Yuki had crushed her heart. For the first time. She could still hear his words, clear if it been an hour ago rather than nearly four years ago. Even while he was completely rejecting her, he'd maintained that wishy-washy, apologetic tone. "I don't think it will work, Momo," he'd said, hand behind his head, afraid to meet her eyes. "I want to try being with her alone." Then he'd bowed, "Please let me try, Momo!"

Haruna had confessed and Rito had decided that the harem plan wasn't fair to Haruna. Was too selfish. Momo had tried explaining that it was more selfish to reject all of the other women who loved him. He hadn't listened. She'd realized right then that Haruna wasn't only first in Rito's heart; she completely owned it. She was more important to him than the rest of them combined. Even Lala. It had devastated her and Momo had given up on the harem plan completely. She should have left Earth then, she knew, but Lala and Nana both wanted to stay. Lala was despondent, of course, and Nana was hurt in her own way as well. Momo had stay for them. But she had also stayed away from Rito.

If the other girls had done the same, Momo wondered what would have happened. Rito started dating Haruna and they quickly became a lovey-dovey couple. The more reasonable of his suitors, like Yami and Yui, had accepted it. Others did not. Niether Mea or Nemesis were really in love Rito but they did like to play with him and put him in all sorts of awkward situations that humiliated him and Haruna both. Lala had wanted to stay friends and Rito being Rito, they often found themselves in very suggestive situations. The same things happened with Yami and Yui and even Mikan. Momo had seen the stress was getting to Haruna and wondered what she expected. That Rito would suddenly stop being Rito when they became a couple? Still, it might have all turned out alright if it hadn't been for Run. She was the one who truly never gave up, cornering Rito and begging him several times. Sobbing all over him. It was quite shameful in Momo's opinion.

Things finally came to head just after Rito graduated. Momo still wasn't sure what happened but Haruna had finally broken up with of Momo dearly wished that hadn't happened. It had reignited all the old hopes she'd had. She'd figured that the last time she confessed to him, his heart had already been owned by Haruna. Maybe this time she'd have an actual chance to win him. It was a delusion. Rito wasn't the man she wanted him to be. After Haruna left, he'd run straight into Lala's arms.

Lala, being Lala, had accepted him without condition. After thinking about it, Momo realized that the reason Rito had gone to her was that she was probably the only person he could be sure would take him unconditionally. Despite everything, Rito was a man with little self-confidence. He needed somebody uncomplicated like Lala. There was no talk of a harem this time, even though Lala would have been more receptive to it than Haruna. Momo couldn't delude herself into wanting it this time. If Rito truly would have loved them all, Momo thought she could have accepted the harem, even with Lala as the number one girl. Rito wasn't that kind of man, however. Truthfully, Momo wondered whether such a man could ever exist or if was something that could only exist in her fictional galge.

So Rito had married Lala and everyone, save Run, who probably was still trying to get a pity fuck, accepted it. After all, there was no way Lala would ever leave Rito the way Haruna had. She was a seemingly bottomless font of kindness and patience. Just like that, Momo's dreams turned to ash. Rito had been what she wanted most in the universe and, for the first time in her life, she'd utterly failed. Not knowing how to handle the situation, she had run.

Momo bounced her hand off the window and sighed. I ran away so I wouldn't have to think about it yet it is all I think about. She sighed. I need to keep busy. Momo dressed, this time in pink capri pants, black slippers and a long-sleeved black blouse. She made sure to wear panties and a bra this time, as well. Her boobs were feeling a little sore after all that. She left her room and swiftly made her way to the bridge of the Snowmelt.

Her alpha bridge crew were at their stations. The Snowmelt wasn't big enough to require a large crew and her bridge only consisted of a pilot, navigator and gunnery chief. Momo was the captain, of course, and Risa was the executive officer. Since she was running away from home, she hadn't been able to take any of her staff or bodyguards with her. She and Risa had been forced to collect a crew of mercenaries and adventurers wherever they could find them. Not an easy task but she and Risa had more than their fair share of charm.

The pilot was a man named Sugu. He was lanky and tall, with coal black skin and shaggy bright red hair. Momo was uncertain what planet he was from but he seemed to be able to see without ever opening his eyes. Momo would have asked him what the purpose of his species having eyes was if they never opened them but she was a little worried he was some kind of mutant or something. If that was why he had left his homeworld, she didn't want to remind him of it. The navigator was his lover, Maha. She was the complete opposite of him in many ways, being short and pale. She wore her blue hair in two tails and the only indication she wasn't human was the bright golden color of her eyes. The Gunnery Chief, Tarik, was the least humanoid. He was an Urs, tall and stocky and covered from head to toe in coarse black fur. His eyes were dark and a little beady, in comparison to a human's.

Momo knew she had lucked out with the small bridge crew. They worked well together and each of them managed to deal with Risa in their own way. "Captain!" Tarik and Maha shouted, getting to their feet in a show of respect. Sugu didn't get up, simply waving his hand and muttering, "Captain." Maha nervously glanced from Momo to Sugu despite the fact that he typically greeted her in such a manner. Momo didn't mind. The only thing that she cared about was his piloting ability. In that, Momo thought he was one of the best in the universe.

"Maha, Tarik, Sugu" she said said with a grin. That cued the two who had stood to sit back down. "How is the Snowmelt?"

Maha jumped back up. "Top condition, Captain! All minor repairs after the battle with the Slim Gar are completed. The Snowmelt can launch at your leisure, Captain."

That made Momo happy. Not only had they tore apart the Slim Gar with ease, despite the Snowmelt only massing slightly more, the damage they'd taken in return hadn't even taken a day to repair. Gar wasn't the best pirate around but he wasn't the worst either. If I can do this to him, I can stand up against any of these other pirates. She also knew, from experience, that the Deviluke military was mediocre unless her father was at the helm. "Good job," Momo said. "Please convey to the crew how proud I am of all of you. That goes double for the bridge crew." She gave them her softest, most pure smile. Maha blushed deep red and Tarik trembled with pleasure. Only Sugu didn't react but Momo tried not to take offense. She wasn't even sure he could see her smile with those eyes of his.

"You do us too much honor," Maha whispered, her eyes glued to the floor.

"Nonsense." Momo stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder. The woman looked as if she was about to panic. With a kind smile, Momo steered her back into her seat. Then she bent over the screen at Maha's workstation and input a few commands. "These are the coordinates for Barataria that I received from Gar." Maha's embarrassment faded as she studied the coordinates. "Do you think you can get us there?"

Maha smiled. "Of course, Captain." She typed a few things on the screen. "In fact, it shouldn't take very long at all."

"Excellent," Momo said. "In that case, launch as soon as you have a heading." Maha nodded and Momo wondered to her captain's chair and sat. The chair was too big for her but she liked to think that her force of personality more than made up for her rather diminutive stature. She'd hadn't grown that much in the last few years. Not as much as she'd been hoping. Still bigger than Nana, at least she thought with a silent laugh. Excitement pulsed through Momo. This was it, the next step on her quest. Any pirate who was anyone trafficked through Barataria. There was no better place to get a lead on a vulnerable target or fence stolen goods. Momo giggled and rested her chin on her interlaced fingers. I hope you're ready for me, Barataria.

Author's Note: I always liked the combination of fear and courage Momo had when it came to Rito so this is my conception of a rejected Momo trying to push herself beyond Rito and become the kind of fearless woman she wants to be (while running away at the same time :P). It may seem like I'm bashing Rito a bit here but I think its pretty clear in the manga that he's just a regular boy who wants a regular relationship. Momo and Risa will be the only two To Love-ru characters that have a major role in this story, I think. I'm not planning on reuniting the whole gang, just FYI. Some of the other characters I like may show up. I haven't decided yet. Anyway, thanks for reading. I hope you liked it.