A Minako/Kunzite idea that blossomed from the story I'm writing at the moment: In Darkness. Check it out if you like this! It should be up in a few weeks!
Tears of a Leader:
Minako watched Kevin's chest rise erratically as he tensed beside her. "Oh, god, not again," she whispered to herself as she turned so she was facing him. Her fingers went to his head immediately, trying to ease his worry as he experienced nightmares that no human would be able to survive.
"I-I killed you," his voice whispered suddenly and she froze. Her hand paused in its stroking of the silky silver-blonde hair, and she looked into his now grey and wide open eyes to see the sudden spike of fear that encompassed the entirety of his being.
"No, no, Kevin, honey," Minako soothed him, resuming her stroking, "It's okay." Was it okay? She still didn't know the answer to the question. But she didn't care. Not when Kevin's sanity was on the line like this.
The fear didn't dull, instead it only grew and before she knew it, he had almost kicked away from her in a hurry to get away. He kept stumbling backwards till he hit the wall and slid down to the floor, looking up at her with wide eyes.
She rose from the silver silk bunched around her, "Kevin-"
"No!" he cried, crunching himself into an even smaller ball, "Stay away!"
"Honey, it was just a dream," she whispered brokenly. He got like this when he experienced memories that weren't his own, but yet, were. Kevin Parker was the reincarnation of Kunzite, leader of the Shitennou, and memories of his past haunted him at all times. During the day, he was usually strong enough to fight them off, but at night-
"It still happened," he retorted angrily. "I killed you- I betrayed Endymion, I destroyed everything." She hated Beryl more than was even possible for a human to hate- pure loathing for the witch flowed through Minako's veins. This was what she had reduced the Lord Kunzite, Leader of the Shitennou to.
He sat against the wall, clutching his knees close to his body. His short silver-blonde hair fell over his eyes, trying uselessly to cover the pain she could feel. His body was thin as a rack- as he barely ate anymore, and his face was shrunken and hollow, his eyes wide saucers visible between the wisps of hair fallen over his face.
"But that wasn't you," she said as she slid to the floor against the bed, "You were brainwashed. You didn't do those things, Kevin. It was Beryl and Metallia, that's all." She knew it'd make no difference, it never did. His past actions- be they under his own influence or not- had broken him. She didn't know if he would ever get over it. She just had to have hope, as Usagi kept telling her.
He didn't bother to answer as he continued to stare at her and past her with fear in his eyes. She didn't fear him- she never could. He could have stabbed a knife through her back, and still she'd never flinch. She rose slowly and exited, closing the door quietly behind her. She walked to the phone, dialing the number she used so often that she could have dialed it in her sleep.
A bleary voice came on, "Yeah?" Mamoru's voice was sleep-laden and she glanced at the clock, which read 3 A.M.
"Hey, Mamoru," she said quietly.
There was a sad sigh from the receiver, "Again? It's the third night this week."
"Yeah," she responded, "It's getting more and more often," tears welled in her eyes but she fought them away. She didn't cry.
"I'll be there if 5," he said and he hung up after she heard a sleep-weary Usagi whine quietly. She hated asking Mamoru for this, but there was no one else. If she couldn't help him, Mamoru was the only one who could.
She had asked Ami and Zach for any kind of academic help, she had begged Rei and Nick for some spiritual help, Jason and Makoto for physical- but it didn't work.
Everyone else was adjusting well- they still had nightmares every once in a while, but none reacted the way Kevin did. Maybe it had something to do with being a leader- but she didn't know how to help him anymore.
The five minutes passed excruciatingly slowly and then finally came the knock on the door. She hurried to the door and pulled it open to face a red-eyed Mamoru, hair mussed from sleep and still wearing his pajamas. "Thanks for coming," she said as she let him into the house.
Mamoru nodded and walked past her, hurrying into the room and closing the door behind him. The sad thing was that this was the only time her and Mamoru talked- to help Kevin. Otherwise, it was strictly business. They both usually saw eye-to-eye because their first priority had always been Usagi, and when they didn't, it would blow over quickly.
They didn't talk. She was the odd one out, the one who didn't have any similarities with him. Rei was his confidante when he needed help with Usagi, Ami was the smart loner, just like him and Makoto was the one he could train with. Minako didn't care all that much that they didn't talk; it was just the idea of always having to ask for his help that rubbed her the wrong way. He was her Prince; she should be helping him- not the other way around.
Time passed slowly before the bedroom door opened and Mamoru exited- probably only five to ten minutes later, but felt like an eternity to her. "How is he?" she asked from her place beside the kitchen counter.
"He'll be fine for tonight, I think," Mamoru said wearily. He looked at her sadly, "What's going on with him? How can he survive like this?"
"I don't know," she whispered brokenly. Then cracking a fake smile, "But as long as we have Super Tuxedo Kamen around, he'll be fine, right?" A tear slipped from her eye, dripping onto the counter.
Mamoru looked uncomfortably at her, hovering awkwardly. "I don't know what it is that makes me the best one to talk him down. Maybe it's a guy thing…"
"Don't be ridiculous," she whispered, wiping another tear that broke past her block, "It's because you're his Prince. You're more important."
"Now, Minako, you know that's not-"
"He trusts himself around you. He knows he could never do it to you again," she whispered, looking up at him, watching his eyes widen in sorrow, "But he could to me. If you asked, if Usagi asked. You know that"
"Minako…"
"Just say you do, dammit!" she said, slamming her hand against the marble countertop, her hand smarting from the force she had used. "You know it, he knows it and I know it. And there's nothing that can change that."
It had always been that way for Kunzite- Kevin also. His job came first- and likewise for her. That was why they had always been perfect for each other, because they understood each other perfectly. He was unfeeling in the case for everything else- except with her and the other Senshi and Shitennou.
"Maybe we should admit him…" Mamoru muttered uselessly. He had always been bad when it came to handling her during a breakdown- probably because he didn't have any practice. She usually remained aloof from the Prince, just as he did with her.
"To what? A clinic for reincarnated backstabbers?" She spat angrily, "I don't think there're many places for that!"
He stared back at her, shock flitting through his eyes and she immediately regretted her outburst.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I'm just tired and cranky, Minako without sleep is a Rei clone, Jason always says," she smiled slightly and immediately, relief shined in his eyes. "Thanks again for coming," she said, "I really appreciate it."
"It's no problem," he said as he walked to the door. Except it was. It was a big problem. He had a family for god's sake, and he ran a clinic. Yet, he still found time to talk Kevin down whenever he needed to. He exited, offering her a small smile before he closed the door, eager to leave, locking her in with all her problems.
She walked back to the room, knocking on it softly, "Kevin, honey, can I come in?" He was always slightly tense whenever she would return to the bed after a nightmare, and sometimes she had just ended up crashing on the couch because he had been unable to rest easily.
"Yes," was the soft reply she heard back and she entered slowly, leaving the door open behind her. So he would have an easy escape if need be.
She knew something needed to be done- their lives couldn't go on like this. It had already been this way for months- and it showed no signs of improving- actually, it seemed worse from how it had been in the beginning.
She would go to Pluto tomorrow and ask Setsuna to take his memories. It was their only option, and she knew it. The others still held hope that he would just get better- but she knew it just wasn't going to happen.
He was suffering too much for a human to handle- and he would die if it kept up.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, looking up at her as she looked down at him, "You deserve so much more than this. It isn't right that I'm putting you through this."
She shook her head, "It's all right." It was the biggest lie she had ever told but the lightest of smiles emerged on Kevin's face. And it was worth it.
"Let's go to bed," he said as he got to his feet shakily. She walked around to her side of the bed and slid under the covers. The bed creaked softly as he settled beside her. He pulled her close to him, and she relaxed as his hands surrounded her lovingly. She rested her head against the nook of his arm and her back pressed against his still expansive chest. Their hands intertwined together at her waist, his thumb stroking her hand slowly.
"I love you," he whispered in her ear as he settled against the pillow, his soft breathing against the back of her neck. Against her back, she felt his heart beating and she closed her eyes.
"I love you too," she whispered as tears finally broke through her hold, streaming down her cheek quietly. "So much." His hold tightened around hers, and for that one little instant she sighed peacefully. This was how it was supposed to have been.
But it hadn't turned out like the fairy tale she had imagined when she had first seen him. He was broken and it was up to her to fix him. No one else would do it, Mamoru especially wouldn't- not if it meant giving up his best friend- no one but her could do it. They all had hope left that Kevin would one day recover completely, but she didn't.
So, at the first crack of dawn, she would travel to Setsuna and beg her to relieve her lover of his pain. Even if it meant giving up her one chance at happiness.
And I will always love you, even if you don't love me back.
Review and tell me what you thought! Especially if it sucked! I want to learn how to write real one-shots, so criticism is welcomed! And if you have something nice to say, that would be great! Thank you!