He could no longer recall how long he had spent searching for Aphrodite.
Was it years, decades, or centuries? Time became his last concern after he stopped aging in his mid-twenties. Were it not for the memories of a childhood surrounded by loving parents and friends whose camaraderie could rival those he once had the fortune to know in another time, Kunzite might have believed he was born a grown man.
Dreams of a Forgotten Past
In a village on the outskirts of the City of Elysia, a young boy tossed wildly in his sleep.
His dreams were a chaotic disarray of paradise lost and gruesome battles, of passionate love and heart wrenching betrayals. He didn't know why everything felt so real and familiar. He had never seen a day of war in his young life. He couldn't understand where the feeling originated.
Trapped in his dreams, the boy didn't know he was screaming in his sleep, or his thrashing about had woken his parents. His worried mother rushed into his room and sat by his side, her hand cupping his tear-stained cheek.
"Kane, honey, wake up," his mother's voice cut through the savagery of his dreams and dragged him back to the present.
The boy woke with a start.
Sweat drenched his body and his mob of silvery hair clung to his face like wet silk. It took him some moments to compose himself enough before he turned frenzied eyes towards his mother. His body trembled uncontrollably with irrepressible fear.
"Mother, I was in a war," he said, his voice almost inaudible. "There were grotesque monsters everywhere. People were bleeding and dying. Palaces were destroyed." He swallowed. His face became stark white. "And there was blood covering my hands …"
Kane's mother regarded him with empathetic grey-green eyes. She gathered him against her stout body and pressed his head to her bosom. "Hush now, my dear boy. They're only nightmares. There are no monsters in this world. You must be stressed out to have such terrible dreams."
Kane nodded and buried his face in his mother's arms. He couldn't banish the dread from his mind. If they were only nightmares, why did he have the hollow feeling in his stomach that he was responsible for the war and the horrors that accompanied it?
Squeezing his eyes shut, he grasped onto his mother. He fell back into an uneasy slumber as she rocked and patted him like a newborn babe.
Years later, Kane would realise his nightmares were not simple dreams, but memories of a forgotten past. He would also realise Elysia was in fact a minuscule duplicate of Elysion, the sacred country of the Golden Kingdom he had once loved and protected with three other men.
Odd One Out
Kane had always known he was different from other boys.
The colour of his hair was much lighter than the various shades of blonde typical of his village. By the time he was sixteen, he already towered over their tallest man.
Growing up, he had felt he was the odd one out. Girls would giggle and sneak glances at him, but none seemed brave enough to approach him. Other villagers treated him as kindly as they did his parents, but he would sometimes catch the apprehensive looks on their faces when he walked past them. Like misbehaving children caught in the act, the apprehension would quickly morph into amicable smiles and friendliness when he made eye contact with the villagers.
He hadn't cared. He had his parents and the few friends who joked he was merely absurdly tall. For several years, Kane let himself believe that was all there was to it.
Youth Everlasting
Until his dreams began to centre upon his passionate affair with Aphrodite, the exquisite senshi and princess of the planet Venus, and his aging process slowed after his mid-twenties.
At first, Kane thought he only aged better than others. The decidedly lack of wrinkles hadn't bothered him, since his parents had also been young in appearance until their late thirties. Yet, as he beheld his friends shrivelling as the years passed, and he didn't look a day over twenty-five, Kane began to suspect it was his forbidden powers working wonders upon him.
There had once been rumours circulating about how those who ever stepped foot on the Ginzuishou-protected Moon Kingdom and its allied planets didn't age like any average person did, especially if they were gifted with an innate power. Kane, however, hadn't expected that to carry over to another life. He despised seeing his friends become old while he alone remained forever young.
He outlived everyone he had known and loved. After the last of his friends had passed away and was buried underground, Kane made his decision. He packed what little possessions he had and left his village. There was nothing left to hold him in Elysia.
It was also then that he began to use his old name – Kunzite.
The Search
He took to travelling the world in hopes of finding the people he had once known in his past life. If he was reincarnated, there was the possibility his prince and his friends were given a second chance in life as well. His heart especially yearned to be reacquainted with Aphrodite. He wanted to seek her forgiveness, if not her love.
Kunzite of the past would have scoffed at himself for his brimming emotional baggage, but Kunzite of the present knew he would be unable to find peace until he was convinced his efforts were all futile.
Much to his chagrin, he was forced to embrace the defeat that he was perhaps the only one to be reborn after visiting all the corners of the world.
L'Erosa
Eventually, Kunzite arrived in L'Erosa, a small island country with perennial sunshine. Satirically, the customs of both the Moon Kingdom and the Golden Kingdom were practiced there. The people of L'Erosa had taken the best of both worlds: from the love of otherworldly splendour, elegance, and constant festivities of the Moon, to the pursuit of harmony, diversity, and advancement of the Golden Kingdom.
How flustered the rulers of the Silver Millennium would have been had they any knowledge of the paradox. Notwithstanding four of their daughters were each romantically involved with a king of Terra, they had been adamant to deny Earth's entry into the alliance to their last breath. Goddess forbid how many Moon years later, Earth should now become the only known habitable planet in the galaxy, while their homes were but names of gods and goddesses in mythological tales passed down the generations.
Talk about irony.
But what amused Kunzite the most were the goddesses of which the people of L'Erosa worshipped.
L'Erosa had a main temple for making offerings to the goddess Selenity. Folklore and legends had it that she was the deity who defended their country at a time when dominant powers warred for sovereignty over the peripheral islands. Until recent centuries, the island of L'Erosa did not have an army of its own. While some might say their geological location gave them a momentous advantage in terms of naval warfare, their navy had never been as powerful as those of their neighbours. It was believed when Selenity saw enemy forces try to seize the island of L'Erosa, a strong, white light had blinded the captains and caused their ships to collide against each other. It was also believed the island could never be invaded afterwards.
Indebted to Selenity's aid, the early people of L'Erosa made the goddess their patron deity and built a temple in honour of her. They were convinced it was her blessings that had spared L'Erosa from future seaborne attacks. If it hadn't been for Selenity, they might not have become one of the most prosperous and harmonious countries across the seas.
On one of such reconnaissance, Kunzite discovered there was another prayer fountain behind Selenity's temple which directly faced the piazza. The people of L'Erosa would visit the fountain to ask guidance from four demigoddesses, the virtues and appearances of whom were hauntingly similar to Princess Serenity's court and closest senshi. For the first time since he began his sojourn, he felt hope spring back into his heart. At some point in time, the senshi must have traversed L'Erosa to have a fountain erected to honour their good deeds. His sixth sense hadn't failed him. He wasn't the only one to be reborn.
And he couldn't quite suppress the elation he had felt as a boy at Christmas when he realised L'Erosa was home to the one person his heart most desired to see.
Aphrodite Reincarnated
Myra, the twenty-two-year-old blonde princess of L'Erosa, was the jewel of her people. Her bubbly personality made it nigh impossible to stay mad at her, and her contagious laughter lit up the air when she entered into a room.
She was thought of as the source of her people's happiness. They loved her like a daughter, a sister. From the bits and pieces he had gathered about the mythical princess, Kunzite was rather confident he had found his Aphrodite.
His discovery of the prayer fountain had set loose a domino effect of nerves that seemed to have permanently lodged in his stomach. If memory served, Aphrodite was the only person who managed to stir his feelings even when she wasn't anywhere near him. He only had to meet the princess in person to ascertain that Myra was indeed the Aphrodite from his dreams.
Chance Meeting
His fairy godmother must have taken pity upon him, for his chance arrived when he was again standing before the fountain of the four demigoddesses.
The tranquil and quiet rooms of Selenity's temple had failed to provide him with the solace he desired, thus Kunzite found himself repeatedly drifting towards the fountain, where he would spend hours at a time reminiscing better times gone by. It was here among the hustle and bustle of the piazza that he was strangely at peace. The noise brought his mind back to his days as the adolescent Kane. It was here that he transported his mind to immerse in the love he had felt around his parents and friends in this lif—
A musical laughter like silver bells interrupted his thoughts. He turned around in time to catch the white-clad blonde tornado that fell into his arms.
Out of instincts, his hands grasped her bare arms to steady her. He smelt her scent of vanilla and sunshine under his nose. All at once, he knew who he was holding close against him.
It was his Aphrodite, breathing, happy, alive. He couldn't feel the aura of her powers, but he'd recognize her anywhere.
She raised her head to apologise for her clumsiness. Their eyes met when she parted her mouth, and in that instant, something unreadable passed in her blue gaze.
He wondered what she saw before her.
Their eyes were only locked for seconds. To Kunzite, it felt as though a lifetime had passed between them. He heard a gasp escape Aphrodite. Abruptly, she shrugged out of his arms, and tore her eyes away. She bolted towards the direction she had come.
He remained rooted on the spot until she disappeared out of his sight.
Determination
Kunzite hadn't realised how lonely he was until his chance encounter with Aphrodite.
Wandering through the years as a lone traveller, he had become accustomed to the lack of company. He never stayed in one place for too long lest he became attached to anyone, or vice versa. Earth was still wary of anomalies. Inevitably he would be thought of as an outcast should someone see he never aged.
He had expected another fruitless journey when his ship made port at L'Erosa. Years of searching and receiving no results had steeled his heart. He stopped believing in the intangible notion of hope. He accepted not every cloud had a silver lining.
Imagine his amazement when he was introduced to the customs and cultures of L'Erosa.
Imagine the light that shed upon him when he found Selenity's temple and the fountain of the four demigoddesses.
Imagine the happiness that coursed through his veins and shattered the barrier around his heart when Aphrodite fell right into his arms.
He was no longer drowning in the sea of the lost. He had found his anchor.
He had to see her again no matter the ramifications.
She had chased after him in their previous life. In this life, let him be the one to chase after her.
After dreaming of her for so long, Kunzite admitted to be a little obsessed. Or, as Zoisite would have teased him, he was mildly lovesick. It was excruciating, Aphrodite being so close, yet so incredibly far, from his reach. He almost gave in to the temptation of throwing a tantrum.
He didn't.
Soon after, he heard talk of the national tournament. Entry was opened to all interested to demonstrate his prowess. Once a year, the royal family would sit in their box and watch the games alongside the spectators. Once a year, the champion would receive his prize from the king and be invited to dine at the castle.
As a foreigner without connection, the tournament was his answer.
He entered with Aphrodite in his thoughts.
Tournament
The tournament, unbefitting of its name, was euphemism for a gladiator game. No wonder the rulers of the Silver Millennium declined Earth's petition into the alliance.
Terrans were barbaric once inside an arena.
It was universally acknowledged a 'tournament' brought out the worst in human nature. The times might have changed, the rules of the game hadn't.
Kunzite was humbled to compete against some of the toughest, slimiest, bloodthirsty people in L'Erosa. He had half believed, given the genteel character of the island country and its affinity to pacifism, violence was nonexistent.
He should have known better.
That thousands of years of disuse hadn't softened his skills as a warrior was a blessing. He narrowly escaped fatal cuts and surprise attacks in multiple games. His opponents were as determined, as unrelenting as he was.
They taunted, they feinted, they attacked without thought. They kicked, they punched, they thrust. Infinitesimal dirty tricks were used to attain one goal: to win. It wasn't a graceful dance among skilled fighters. It was a primal desire to be the last one standing.
The brutality he witnessed was only put to shame by the bloodbath that ended the era of peace and harmony he used to know.
The ruthlessness could have put a smile on vengeful Beryl's face.
When he was declared champion, he survived with minor cuts and bruises on his exposed arms and legs. Had he his old armour and the ability to wield his dormant powers, he could have emerged unscathed.
He was a lucky bastard the gods hadn't deserted him. His victory hadn't been easy.
Impressed by his performance, the king applauded him, leading to a standing ovation. He saw neither the ribbons that fell into the arena nor heard the appreciative cheers of the spectators. He was only aware of a pair of familiar sky blue eyes.
She stood out to him as though there wasn't any distance between them.
Meet the Parents
What are the odds of people one used to know becoming a family in a second life? Fate must be a sadistic mistress to play such cruel tricks.
Kunzite thought ghosts of his past had returned when the current king of L'Erosa approached him. It was his father in another life who grasped his hand in a firm hand shake to praise his victory. His queen was the last queen of Venus. Her oceanic blue eyes sent a chill to run down his spine as she sent her regards. He was undecided between amusement and offence her animosity had transcended time.
And he wondered if they remembered the past like he did.
Aphrodite smiled briefly before she looked away, a blush tainting her cheeks. She refused to meet his eyes.
He was intrigued. His teasing remark struggled to stay put. He recognized that look. His heart warmed.
After that, he followed the royal family and their retinue to the castle for the feast. It was the first genuine indulgence to satiate his appetite since he departed from Elysia. He had never starved, but his humble beginnings taught him never to overindulge. Hunger always kept him vigilant.
After the feast, he accepted hi— her father's offer of employment. A job at the castle would open the gates to reach Aphrodite. He'd do anything, anything, to be close to her.
Evasion
Kunzite was curious if Aphrodite made it her mission to be evasive.
Or more specifically, to evade him.
In the weeks since he had taken up residence at the castle, he had scarcely exchanged more than ten words with the blonde whenever he ran into her. She often had an excuse handy when he initiated conversation. She would greet him in passing, and she would quickly disappear afterwards before he could say another word. She was all sunshine smiles and giddy laughter with others. The awkwardness ceased to exist unless she was in his presence.
He began to miss her all the more. She was so close, yet farther away than ever.
Sometimes, he didn't know which pained him more: to walk past her every day without hearing her voice, or to hear her voice and stay far, far away. Both tore at him equally as much. He began to search for ways to fill the gorge between them.
But he was too late.
Aphrodite already had a betrothed.
And her wedding was less than a month away.
Her beau, Ares, was her childhood sweetheart. He was dark blonde, ruggedly handsome, with eyes the colour of lush green fields, and a temperament so sweet he could charm the eagles off the sky. Aphrodite had wished to become his bride all her life. Ares was everything she wanted, and everything Kunzite wasn't. From the whispers and gossips he picked up at court, he knew she was ecstatic about her impending nuptials. She couldn't wait to tie the knot with her prince.
Disheartened, Kunzite felt like he was played a fool by fate.
He should have foreseen he couldn't waltz into Aphrodite's life and claim her as his own. She had always been a desirable woman in their past life. She was as desirable, and perhaps more so, in her current incarnation. He didn't doubt for a moment she constantly had countless men grovelling at her feet if only to catch her eye.
Succumbing that she was forever lost to him, he stayed away at a respectable distance. To her he was merely another of her father's subjects. A stranger who won the tournament and subsequently the king's favours to serve at the castle.
He wasn't unlike any of the men who wanted to win her favours. He was but one among the sea of wanton men desiring to bathe in her light. Soon, she would forget that they had met at all, and he would fade into an unimportant passerby who dared to look the goddess in the face.
Aphrodite didn't need to know he loved her from afar.
She didn't need to know he was a phantom of her past.
She didn't need to know somewhere in time, a fool had tried in vain to reach her.
She would find him if she wanted to bridge their distance. She always did.
Confrontation
One week before her wedding, Aphrodite knocked on his door.
Surprised by the late hour of her visit, Kunzite had to school his shock into a mask of indifference. He didn't know whether to praise the gods or be alarmed that his cover might be blown.
She entered into his room without a word and stood in the centre. He recognized her nervousness in his peripheral vision: her hands were balled into tight fists by her sides, her spine stiff as a pole. She whirled around after he shut the door. Her beautiful features were a hybrid of disbelief and annoyance.
He stayed where he was, his back leaning against the door. Aphrodite always had a way of putting him in a position where he had to resist his own temptations. Once again, she was doing it tonight with her choice of outfit.
Her dress was white, short, and left her arms and most of her long white legs bare. She had tied a sash on her waist to hold the loose-fitting garment so it hung on her mid-thigh. He was certain it would rise higher if she would just put her hands on her hips-
How unwise of her to cavort around in her current attire. Whatever her reason for the unannounced visit was, she was putting her betrothal at risk by being in another man's room.
The emotional part of him, on the other hand, was struggling not to cross their scant distance and enfold her in his arms. He had missed her so much he was only a hair's breath away from ravishing her. Didn't she know she was testing his control in her skimpy dress?
His inner turmoil halted at the sound of her voice.
"Master Kunzite, you know me, don't you? I saw it in your eyes when we first met. You had looked at me with love and longing than the prudence that is common of first meetings," she said in an accusatory tone.
The impatience that laced underneath her voice hadn't escaped him. Aphrodite had often used that tone after an exasperating session with her senshi. The other times he had heard it were when she came down to Earth to retrieve Princess Serenity. He had never thought he would one day be on the receiving end of that volatile temper.
"Yes, Princess Myra," he said, voice neutral.
They never held back from each other in their past. The expression on her face informed him she demanded honesty. No reason to lie to her now.
Her eyes widened. "How?"
"I'm afraid that is something I cannot say."
"What are you hiding from me? I am the princess of L'Erosa. As a subject to my parents, and therefore to me as well, you will answer my questions truthfully when you are asked."
He frowned. "Forgive me, princess, but it is a burden that I must bear alone. One that I don't wish to lay upon you."
"Do not speak in riddles with me. I am not as naïve as you take me to be," she said, a hard edge seeping into her usually melodious voice. "Ever since you have taken employment at the castle, I have been plagued by strange dreams, Master Kunzite. No one can explain to me why I am having them. Why do I see you in my dreams when I hardly even know you behind these walls? Why do you make me feel like I am choosing a wrong path by marrying Ares?"
Kunzite scrutinized Aphrodite —Princess Myra, he rectified in his head—. Never in his wildest thoughts had he ever entertained the idea that she would see him in her dreams, or have dreams of the past. He had thought she despised him. He had thought his love was unrequited.
He hadn't become conscious of his feelings for Aphrodite's current form until he learnt of her engagement. All along he had been convinced he was looking for the woman of his dreams. But living within the castle, having her always avoiding him, and eventually hearing that she was already promised to another, made him see it was Myra that he loved and cared for. The longing to reconcile their past remained. The longing was now eclipsed by his want for the blonde girl. He only continued to think of her as Aphrodite because he believed that to be a better suited name for her.
He released the breath he had been holding. "Because you have another path available to you."
"What do you mean? You are confusing me," she inclined her head. He was glad to see the tension ease from her posture, if only slightly. "And what about my dreams? Why are you there?"
"Your dreams … they are something else, Princess Myra. I cannot tell you why you see me anymore than I can tell you it is a dangerous game to tamper with fate, which isn't really my expertise. I do not belong here in L'Erosa. I never should have come here to interfere with your life."
"I don't believe you. You are lying," she said.
Kunzite ran a hand through his hair to disguise his aggravation. He knew that voice. She had spoken it with authority as though she was interrogating him. He had never learnt to take that tone in stride when he had always been the one to give commands.
"I am telling you the truth," he countered a little too forcefully. It was difficult to maintain his cool when they were no longer equals. Unfortunately.
She shook her head, her long mane swishing like golden waves behind her. "You are evading me. I can tell a liar when one looks me in the eye." She approached him, her steps slow, deliberate, sensual. Similar to how her past self had been. She stopped less than a foot away. "What secrets are you hiding, Kunzite?"
He noticed she had dropped the honorific "Master". A shudder ran through him as she put her hands on his arms and leaned forward. Her vanilla scent enveloped him, coating his senses. He hadn't included her seduction in his calculation.
"Don't, princess." he said weakly, shutting his eyes. His control wavered like a candle flame in the wind.
Her warm breath fanned his face. "Tell me, Kunzite. Please. Do not deny me what I seek."
He opened his eyes, drowning in twin blue orbs framed by long, dark eyelashes.
She blinked innocently at him. Her tongue snaked out to wet her lips.
He growled and threw caution to the wind.
And he kissed her.
I Remember
Taken aback, Myra stilled against him.
She pushed at him, unprepared for the sensations Kunzite's touch ignited. His grip on her arms was like iron bars. Hard, unrelenting, and unbearably familiar.
The veil that had been blocking her memories lifted. An avalanche of emotions and incidents crashed into her. They surged into her head, overwhelming her senses. Her knees buckled at the sudden onslaught. If it weren't for the arm he had wrapped around her waist, the other hand holding the back of her head as he slanted his mouth against hers, she would have collapsed onto the ground.
She found herself drinking in his kiss, her hands holding, clinging, grasping anywhere she could reach for purchase. It felt like eons ago since she had luxuriated in anyone's overpowering love. Ares was always sweet to her, but his affections couldn't hold a candle to the contentment she now felt in Kunzite's embrace. She would always hold her childhood sweetheart's friendship dear. She also knew their love resembled that between siblings, than the explosive sparks between true lovers.
She now understood that fluttering feeling in her stomach every time she saw Kunzite — love. She loved him, not because of their tragic history, but because of who he was in this life.
It had been his melancholy that had first called out to her at the prayer fountain. He had looked so morose, locked deep in his thoughts, that she couldn't help not approaching him. She had known it was bold even for the princess of L'Erosa to knock into a total stranger. She took her chances, and found herself rewarded with a godlike face with captivating grey-green eyes.
She would never forget the warmth and love that had spread over his face as he looked at her. The intensity in his gaze had sent her heart to beat erratically in her chest. Embarrassed beyond reckoning and unable to face the embodiment of perfection, she ran away to salvage what remained of her dignity.
Her next encounter with him had been when he entered the arena for the first time, and she became completely mesmerized by his presence. She had known right then, without a doubt, that he would triumph. He walked with the grace of a dancer, and he fought his opponents with the agility of a lion. When he was declared the victor, she had followed her father's lead and jumped up from her seat to clap for him. Her mother had thrown her a distasteful glance, since it was a well-known fact that the Queen of L'Erosa scorned gladiatorial games.
What she hadn't expected was for her father to offer Kunzite a position at the castle. The King of L'Erosa was the country's biggest benefactor, but he had never supported a foreigner. She was so shocked by her father's offer to this victorious gladiator that she made every effort to avoid him, not wanting to have any further encounters with him until she understood what had drawn her towards him.
Then there were the dreams – memories – of the past.
Rather than feeling anger or betrayal or any other of the many myriad of emotions that she could have felt, Myra felt only pity and love for the man she was attracted to. How could she shun him when she knew he had been forced against his will to go to war? He had been brainwashed. The man she had fought had only been an empty shell of who she used to love. She couldn't hate him. She knew she too would sell her soul to the devil to safeguard the people she loved.
In the back of her mind, Myra was screaming at herself to pull away, but her heart said otherwise. Kissing Kunzite felt like the most natural thing in the world. She hungered for his touch. She yearned for him.
She returned his advances with an eagerness that she didn't know she possessed. Her hands clawed at his chest, tearing the collar of his shirt open, as he angled their bodies together. Immediately she felt the hard bulge against her belly.
She panted when Kunzite broke their lip lock.
Power Play
Kunzite stopped and pulled away before either of them could take their mutual desire further in the sexually charged room. One touch from Aphrodite had the tendency to rouse his carnal instincts. While he would have consented to Aphrodite's seduction without second thoughts, he couldn't take advantage of the girl before him. She was simply too young. He still hadn't gained her trust, much less her love. It wasn't his right to corrupt her.
No. She should consummate it with someone she loved and not someone that she once loved so long ago.
Her face was dazed when her sky blue eyes opened to look at him. He could have sworn for a moment there were gold sparks in her irises against the backdrop of the light cast by the flames crackling merrily in the fireplace, before they resumed their normal colour. Had his Aphrodite awaken? Or was it a trick of the mind?
Her soft voice dragged his attention back to her. "My dreams … they are memories. Why must you always confuse me, Kunzite? Does it please you to see me wed another man?"
A thousand nails pierced his heart at her distress. He cupped her face in his hands, hoping that would be enough to sooth her. "You are happy where you are, Aphrodite. I cannot deny you the chance of a lifetime of happiness with your beau. I never should have accepted the position your father offered."
"Please don't say that," she said. "I don't think I can now walk down the aisle without regret after what you showed me."
He kissed her forehead. "I wouldn't rush into conclusions so soon if I were you, sweet Aphrodite. You have amazed me before."
She frowned and clutched at his torn collar. "You are evasive again. Would you have stayed away if I said what happened between us means nothing to me?"
"The choice is yours," he said as he stroked her silken cheeks. "If you want me away from your sight, say the words and I promise you won't see me at your wedding. Let alone ever see me again."
"You're a frustrating man. I didn't mean it literally," she remarked, biting het bottom lip. He hadn't realised how endearing it was until now. "It was a bait. You will always be the only one I ever want. I thought you knew that quite well."
A small smile lifted the corners of his mouth. Only Aphrodite could ever disarm him with her words. "I know, but we can't be together. Not like this. What about Ares, and your parents? Can you bear to break their hearts?"
"I am not a child anymore, Kunzite. No one can force me to do anything against my will. They'll have to learn to live their lives without me."
"I cannot allow you to be irresponsible, Aphrodite. This isn't what princesses are supposed to do."
She knew that tone of his voice. "You are leaving, aren't you?"
He shied away from the question.
She pulled his face down until he was absorbed in her heated gaze.
"I knew it!" she said, her voice fierce and determined. "Take me away with you. We'll go somewhere no one knows who we are. My happiness, my home is wherever you are. It is fate as you put it."
"Aphrodite…"
"Please, Kunzite. I'll write a letter to explain my hasty departure, I promise. You can't deny me my one chance of happiness with you after what you did. You owed me."
Once again, she had nailed him.
He only hoped he survived to tell the tale.
Take Me Away
Kunzite waited outside the stables, his hands clutching the reins of the horse that would soon take them away. The sky was dark blue, but it wouldn't be long before the shade grew lighter and lighter. Dawn broke early in summer, sometimes too early. He wished Aphrodite would hurry up. They needed the dark to cloak their escape. They only had precious moments before the castle noticed she had vanished.
It was a daring move to attempt to steal her away on the eve of her wedding day. The island of L'Erosa was ecstatic about the wedding and heartily anticipating the festivities following the ceremony. Having helped organize the state affair himself, Kunzite knew neighbouring monarchs and ambassadors were also invited to the gala. Should his plan fail, or should they be intercepted, he would have an angry mob to answer to. Aphrodite's people would thirst for his blood, either by sending him to compete in the arena once again, or have him be whipped in public. The worst they could bestow upon him was decapitation.
What sentence he might receive mattered naught. If he couldn't be with Aphrodite, he was much better off dead anyway. Losing her once was enough. Losing her again would make his life meaningless. Been there, done that.
Footsteps echoed sharply in the dark. His hand immediately went to the dagger hidden in his belt and he moved to stand behind his horse. The beast concealed him from view, allowing him to observe anyone who ventured out at this ungodly hour. It felt to him he was re-enacting a time when he would remain in the shadows to watch over an errant prince. Those were the times when he had to be as discreet as he was now.
He briefly allowed his guard to drop when he beheld the petite figure walking towards his direction. Blonde locks framed Aphrodite's heart-shaped face as her blue eyes darted quickly around her. He smiled. It had been so long he had last seen the senshi of Venus in her element. He had missed her.
He removed himself from the shadows to greet Aphrodite. She gave a little jump when he seemed to have materialised out of thin air.
She had worn a travelling cloak as he had instructed her to, with loose fitting clothes, gladiator sandals, and her long hair pulled into a simple braid. Her translucent skin was milky pale under the moon's remaining light, giving her a natural glow. She was gorgeous in her simplicity. He couldn't resist pulling her in for a kiss when she stood before him.
"What will happen to my people when they realised I am gone?" she asked after they broke apart. The hesitation in her face mirrored the look she had given him when he had asked for her hand in marriage in their past.
He felt a pang of guilt in his heart. He should have remembered how her people had loved her. "I don't have an answer to that," he said. "Do you want to go back and continue with the wedding?"
Inside his heart, he begged her to say no. With only a promise to love her until the end of time, without the armies he had once commanded and the forbidden magic he once could wield, a life with him was as fragile as porcelain, as dangerous as walking on thin ice. She had every right to want to fall back to the warmth and security her life as the princess of L'Erosa provided.
Relieved flooded him when Aphrodite shook her head.
"No. The only wedding I will have is the one after we have left L'Erosa behind us, with you as my groom," she said, taking his hand. "My life until you was a very long dream. Ares was only your substitute. What I can offer him is only a sister's love, or a very good friend's, but not a wife's devotion."
He tilted her chin, amazed by her certainty. "You still have time to reconsider your choice."
"I have only ever made one choice – you." She smiled. Her blue eyes glittered like sapphires in the still night. "Now, put me on the saddle. I can't do it on my own."
He helped Aphrodite onto the horse back. After she had settled, sitting sideways, he jumped up behind her, his arms on either side of her as he threw the reins over the horse's massive head. Her long arms snaked around his waist, her head rested against his chest. Having her warm body so close transported his mind back to their last intimate encounter before their apocalyptic end.
"Do you trust me, Aphrodite?"
She nodded. "I always trust you. I believed in you even during your darkest moments." Her arms tightened around him. She squeezed him gently. "Do you still have doubts about us?"
"Do you?"
Aphrodite didn't answer. She pressed her lips to his before he cracked the reins and drove them into the breaking dawn.
The end