Disclaimer: Sailormoon Stars and concepts belong to Takeuchi Naoko-dono, Toei and Kodansha; Ren Akari and the Imperial Knights of Kinmoku belong to Cassandra Sisenta; Tsuko/Neo-Keeper and Kuroi/Neo-Striker also belong to Cassandra Sisenta; the Neo-Inner Starlights (Taiga, Yukiko & Suta) belong to Senashenta, as do the "New" Starlights (Hikaru/Hunter, Josei/Dancer & Amai/Dreamer).

Notes: Saa. The main characters in this, Yukiko Kou (Neo-Maker) and Ren Akari (one of the Imperial Knights), are from the huge long timeline that Cassandra Sisenta and I created for the Starlights home planet of Kinmoku(sei), as are Taiga Kou (Neo-Fighter) and Suta Kou (Neo-Healer). ;;

If anyone was interested in reading more about/with our OC Starlights (there are about 20 of them all together ;;), you can go to my profile and scroll down to the "Links" part: the site is called "Nagareboshi Destiny". You could also go and read some of Cassandra-san's fics, since she writes with our Starlights quite a bit. She's listed in my Favorite Authors, and her pen name is "Cassandra Sisenta or Krey-Zey".

Anyway, Yuki-chan and Ren's relationship is my favorite one in our entire Kinmoku Timeline, and I find them to be too cute for words. - So I'm writing this. (Besides which, I told Cassandra-san I would and I can't back down now or she'll hunt me down and sick Kagami-san on me... or something!)

EIEN NO YUME NI MUKATTE

Night 1: Silence

How long had they been doing this?

She couldn't really remember.

It felt like a long time, but could have been only months... or even weeks.

Magenta eyes opened against the shadows around her, pupils dilating widely because of the darkness—but they only remained open for a moment before shutting once more, lulled by the soft breathing that caressed the back of her neck.

The first time she had spent the night in Ren Akari's apartment, it had been on a whim. Unable to sleep, she'd shown up on his doorstep with a bowl of popcorn and an armful of video tapes, and all but forced him into a "movie night". And he had grudgingly agreed to it... why? If she was honest with herself, she really didn't know...

When she finally had fallen asleep that night, it had been on the couch—and she had awakened the next morning with a thick, warm green blanket draped over her, the television turned off, and Ren nowhere in sight.

That had been when he was still rooming with Endo and Akuma, who had since moved out to—ahem—"give Ren more privacy."

How far they had come since then...

And at the same time, a lot of things hadn't changed.

I need to go.

The unwelcome thought was followed by an resigned sigh—one which made Ren unconsciously move closer to her, his arms tightening around her ever-so-slightly. Yuki appreciated the sentiment, even if he didn't know he was doing it, and for a short moment she considered just staying for the rest of the night.

I can't... unless I want Akai-sama to sit us both down and give us a Birds And Bees talk...

As always, she would be gone before he woke the next morning—not that there was really anything for them to want to hide.

Every night that she spent with him was the same: they talked, sometimes. About everything from the weather to her Training, to the other Starlights and Knights, to her hopes, dreams and fears—though he had never confessed any of his.

But mostly they slept...

It was always on a night when she was feeling sad or depressed. Always on a night when she couldn't sleep on her own bedroom, because of the silent demons that routinely and secretly plagued her thoughts. Always on a night when she needed someone... someone, who...

Who... what?

She had often wondered what their relationship really was...

Much as she hated to do so, she slipped from his surprisingly comforting embrace and headed quickly for the door: the last thing he needed was for anyone to find out that she had slept in his room all night. Whether the others believed that she actually had just been sleeping or not was completely irrelevant—he'd still be teased unmercifully—and then there was Akai, who might just mush him into a fine paste against the concrete footpath in the Palace Gardens because, as was his mantra, "no one touches the Starlights!"

I'd stay, if I thought that Suta-san and Taiga-san wouldn't care... or that Akai-sama wouldn't completely lose his head over it... or that I wouldn't get lectures from Taiki-sama... and Josei-san... and everyone else...

This regretful, thoughtful, and somewhat sad side of her was something that only Ren had ever seen. To everyone else, she was just the genki, overly energetic Starlight-Trainee, Neo Sailor Starmaker. She was just "Yuki" or "Yuki-chan". She was just an amusement at best of times, and just an annoyance at the worst...

"The hallway door has a chain-lock, now. You've got to undo it to get out."

Eep!

Ren's voice brought her out of her uncharacteristic reverie. Giggling nervously, she turned back to look at him. He had cracked one eye open a bit and was watching her silently. "Ne... I thought you were asleep!"

"And I thought you were."

"Maa... I need to get back to my room."

"Aa."

"Ah... so... ja matte ne..."

"Go to bed, Yuki. You need to sleep."

"H-ai..."

It was a strange feeling, sneaking out of his bedroom instead of into it, as she did most mornings, to wake him up at the crack of dawn—a strange and nervous feeling, and one that she had never really gotten used to, especially on the nights when, despite his silence, he wasn't actually asleep at all...

Sighing, she hurried to unlock the chain-lock and stepped out into the hallway, shutting the door behind herself with a soft click—

—only to turn and slam right into someone else, knocking both of them to the ground with indignant squeaks and muffled thumps.

"Itai..."

"Amai-san!"

The "someone else" that she had run into was Amai Kou—Sailor Stardreamer—and a higher-ranking Senshi than herself, no less. The supremely shy Starlight didn't say anything for a moment, as Yuki gaped at her in surprise, and—

This was a problem.

Despite how immature she acted, or how "innocent", the implications of her slipping out of Ren's room just before dawn weren't lost on Yuki. She was already babbling an explanation even as she and Amai were picking themselves up off of the floor.

"—see, I was feeling really down yesterday, and Ren-kun always listens to me when I'm like that, and we were talking, and then I fell asleep, and the next thing I knew it was almost morning and—" pausing, she blinked at Amai when a sudden realization hit her. Magenta eyes drifted from the embarrassed look on her superior's face, down the hall in the direction Amai had been coming from, which lead toward where she knew Tohma Akari's room was. "Ah, Amai-san, what are you doing here?"

It took a long moment before Amai could compose herself enough to come up with an answer at all, and when she finally did, it was a very thinly-veiled lie—but then, Amai Kou had never been a good liar.

"I... was just out for a walk, Yuki-chan."

Yuki couldn't help giggling, which only made the flush of red that had taken over Amai's face darken. "Sou da ne?" She smiled brightly, "that's just what I was doing, too! It's a nice night for a walk, isn't it?"

Amai blinked, twice, slowly, and by the time she had managed to realize what Yuki had said, the blonde had spun around and was heading in the opposite direction. She gave a cheerful wave over her shoulder as she ran—one which Amai returned with no little confusion.

A loud whisper, so she wouldn't wake anyone else in the Knight's Wing up: "ja ne, Amai-san!"

For a long moment, the soft spoken Starlight didn't move. Somehow, the shorter girl always left her feeling as if she had just been run in circles—she could never keep up with the little Neo-Maker's enthusiasm, happiness, or even energy in general...

She liked her, of course, but she had trouble relating to her.

Hikaru-san does better with Yuki-chan than I could ever hope to.

And then she thought of something—

Green eyes turned upward, curiously, toward the door that Yuki had emerged from, and, despite the blush that was still threatening to overtake her, a smile graced her lips.

"Ah, Yuki-chan, I see you and I have something in common, after all."