Sweet Nocturne

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, but I do own this storyline.

Chapter 1: Dreamy Rendezvous

--------------------

He kissed every inch of her face and pulled back to stare at her. They were on the soft grass underneath a grand tree by the bubbling brook. The moonlight shone through the iridescent leaves, bounced off the running water, and illuminated her beautiful features, which seemed right in place with the rays. Her lips were full and swollen, and her pale face was tinged with a light pink blush, which resembled the color of her hair. Her long locks were freed from the odd buns they were usually in and pooled all around her attractively, shining and moving along with her. Her eyes were still closed and her breathing was ragged. Her chest heaved up and down under his weight, and her slinky nightgown hiked past her thighs, revealing incredibly long and shapely legs.

"Rini…" he said, before lowering his head to kiss her swan-like neck. He blazed a hot trail down to the extremely low cut of her nightgown. He stopped again and kissed the crescent moon that was glowing on the middle of her forehead. She felt a large hand slowly trail up her thigh, hitching the dress higher. His other hand gently touched her cheek. He called her name again.

"Open your eyes, darling..." his voice was beginning to trail off.

With a sudden stab of panic, she opened her eyes immediately. Then she saw them. Those amber eyes, so deep and so faint. She felt herself drowning in them, and then her vision blurred some more. The panic rose in her stomach; she was losing him again. She felt her surroundings disappearing, she felt the world tilting, she felt like she was falling...

THUMP.

She landed ungracefully on her back, her pillows and silk blanket tangled around her body on the floor. She groaned at the bright sunlight that shone through the drawn curtains of her huge windows. Reluctantly, her eyes opened to see the brilliant face of none other than the queen.

"Morning, mother."

"Good morning, Small Lady." The queen smiled down at her daughter, who was still on the floor, looking rather unladylike. She held her hand out, waiting for Rini to grab it. Rini blinked a couple more times and hoisted herself up with her mother's hand. She didn't bother to straighten her nightgown; she gave her mother a peck on a cheek and turned to go to her bathroom, before she could smack her for waking her up in the middle of her... dream rendezvous.

"Did I disturb a pleasant dream?" asked Neo-Queen Serenity, as if reading Rini's thoughts.

Rini stopped dead in her tracks and turned around slowly. Oh gods, does she know? She inwardly panicked. She saw the teasing look in her mother's face and gulped. "I – I don't remember now."

A delicate eyebrow shot up. "Really now? I heard you mumbling from outside, and you were blushing in your sleep." At this, Serenity smiled.

She can't know – "Blushing? I don't... remember... what I was dreaming about, mama." Rini gave her best confused look, along with a head scratch. Her eyes traveled upwards as if searching deep within the confines of her brain for any remnants of her dream.

Serenity stared at her for a while, and Rini was beginning to get really uncomfortable under her thoughtful gaze. "Very well." She said at last. Rini visibly relaxed. "Don't stay up too late and don't eat too many sweets before retiring to bed. They tend to over-stimulate the brain, so they say. Get dressed now, we'll wait for you downstairs." She smiled at her and Rini smiled back; it was a strange inclination to smile back genuinely whenever Serenity smiled at you. She turned to leave the room.

As soon as she heard the soft click of the closed door, Rini let out her breath which she had unconsciously been holding. Sweets over-stimulate the brain? Better ask Amy about that. She had been having these highly sensual dreams for the past month now. And they had always ended with them (she and her dream lover) on the ground, him telling her to open her eyes, and the moment she did, everything went away and she'd wake up, either naturally or by her environment (e.g. her mother, her maid, annoying chirping birds, etc.) The first few nights she had dismissed them to be the overactive imaginations of young twenty-one-year-old virgin ladies, until he kept on visiting and the dreams became more passionate. The second week, she made up her mind that when he'd tell her to open her eyes (which she unwillingly kept closed), she wouldn't, just to see what would happen. But it wouldn't work; her eyes would open by themselves, and she'd wake up sweaty and frustrated.

Who is this guy? Rini knew these dreams mean something, not just hot foreplay. She knew his body by now; her dreams felt very real. She knew the contour of his muscled back, the broadness of his hard chest, the feel of his thick, wavy hair which felt feather-light at the same time. She knew his hands too; the times when they weren't on any other part of her body, she was holding them. They were hard but not rough, gentle yet determined. She absolutely loved the feel of them. Another thing she loved was his voice. It was a thick, rich, deep baritone that seemed to her like warm, melted chocolate of the sweetest kind. That's probably the over-stimulating "sweet" my mother was talking about, she giggled. His voice echoed through her head, sending sharp thrills up her spine: "Open your eyes, darling…"

Darling. I'm his darling. A scowl appeared on her face. I'm nobody's darling! A thoughtful look replaced the scowl. I don't even know who he is...I think I do, it's just so blurry...

One thing for sure though is the eyes. His amber-colored eyes with a hint of gold. Rini thought she'd never seen such beautiful, soul-wrenching eyes. They seemed so familiar, and they were the only things that she saw of him with her eyes open. She doesn't know what color his hair is, what his skin tone is, how tall he is... all she knew for sure were the eyes.

I'll find out who you are... sooner or later.

She tugged at some strings and the slinky nightgown traveled down to her feet. She could still feel the warmth of the man's hand on her thigh. She blushed shortly and tied her long hair into a single, messy bun high on her head. She stepped into the tub and hissed as the hot water snapped at her shins. She lowered herself slowly and inhaled the soft scent of roses from the water. She just sat there, pondering, having that dreamy yet concentrated look on her face.

"Small Lady!" A disgruntled-looking Diana walked into the bathroom, snapping Rini out of her trance. "We're waiting for you." She said as a loud grumble erupted from her stomach.

"Oh shit! I'm sorry! Wait, five minutes! I'll be done!" Rini stammered, forgetting all etiquette, for that was not entirely necessary in the presence of one of her closest friends and trusted Mau guardian. She quickly soaped up and washed her hair, and was toweling herself dry as Diana pulled out a simple, yet elegant white dress made for the hot, stuffy days of summer.

"Thanks," she smiled as she slipped into the dress and Diana helped arrange her hair into their customary style of the moon fashion.

"Hmm, you didn't wash well enough, Rini," Diana stated nonchalantly while she smoothed out the long streamers of pink locks from the two buns. "You've got a little bit of grass in your hair."