Venus began with her hair. She pulled it up, put it down, braided it into two tails, tied it in a bun… She sighed, going through at least twenty different hair styles. Sere came and helped her for a while too, until they finally decided that a half braid, tied off just below her shoulder blades, the loose ends falling over the rest of her back, was mature, pretty, and workable, but not so done up that it looked like she had spent much time on it. After all, she was only meeting this man for the first time as a date. She had a couple dresses in her luggage and a few casual outfits, but she never thought she'd be able to use any of the clothes that weren't for training or formal occasions. She found a knee length tunic made from light golden colored material, the shoulders almost falling down onto her arms, yet just barely staying up. She tied a burnt orange sash around her waist, found soft leather boots, and put tiny amounts of gold hints on her eyes and lips. Slipping tiny gold hoops into her ears, the warrior walked stealthily down a hidden passageway that was put there in case they had to escape quietly, but was now being used for an after midnight rendezvous. Sere had told her about it while she was helping with her hair.

Kunzite was sitting with a book at the beautifully carved table, his long legs stretched out in front of him, his cape off his general's uniform, the top button of it undone so his collarbone was exposed, but he still looked so handsome it made her knees weak. She drank in his tanned skin and stunning eyes, their contrast only making him more attractive.

"Ah, the leader of the sailor soldiers… Hello Venus." Kunzite stood, smiling and walking to the curvaceous beauty. He took her hand, kissing her fingertips and palm when she put up no resistance. "I'm surprised you actually came."

"What do you mean?" Venus felt herself blushing as he greeted her, not sure how to act around this man. He was a head and a half taller than her, his silver hair fell over his shoulders, and his eyes, oh his eyes… She bit her lip, staring up into his eyes, watching him smirk. It was dangerous, he knew he was gorgeous, and that should have sent up warning flags in Venus's head, but his confidence in his looks was just another point on his good qualities to her.

"The people of the Moon are so proud, so uppity… so… distant. When the Prince and the Princess started to see each other secretly, I was surprised. Happy for my Prince, but surprised…" Kunzite brought Venus to the table and pulled the chair out for her, letting her sit before he pushed it in. He sat down across from her and magically produced tea when he told Venus to look at the Earth overhead of them. Well, it had been hidden on a small tray behind him, but he'd let Venus think he magick'd it up. "And you, freshly arrived here, agreeing to meet me, breaking at least two rules, and possibly messing up all favor you were going to curry protecting your Princess. All within a day. That was quite the pleasant surprise for me."

Venus rested her hands on the table, sliding a finger slowly over the lip of the cup, watching the steaming brew and gazing into her date's eyes through the hot mist. "Well, Venus women are nice and warm and usually always happy. But I have received training to be the leader of the soldiers. I… uh… Wait, favor? What do you mean?"

Kunzite chuckled, leaning close to Venus and saying softly, "All Venus leaders have been the favorite of the Moon royals. They're bright, happy, beautiful, favored women of the Moon's court. Fearless leaders when they are in battle, the best dancers at the balls…" He leaned back, gazing up at the stars, tipping his chair onto two legs and balancing on it. "You should be protecting the Princess, wearing your uniform, not leaving your room at a nightly hour, not meeting a man… Did the Queen tell you that until you retire, you will be unable to have a spouse or lover of any kind, because your duty is to your charge?"

Venus looked a bit dumb, staring quietly at the silver haired man. "No lovers? That… I must've not heard…" She sighed, looking down at her cup and pouting a bit. Who knew how long it would be until she would retire? Twenty, thirty years? And the longevity of the Moon Kingdom, of all the people connected to it, was increased nearly tenfold. And she had to put everything she might want before herself because she was watching a Princess who was secretly meeting the Prince of their neighboring planet? Another sigh escaped her lips and she lifted her cup to sip at her tea. "But you asked me to come here anyway, knowing it'd be breaking rules."

Kunzite cleared his throat, smiling faintly. "Well, I find you attractive of course." He drank his tea slowly, closing his eyes and letting a slow breath out. "And Endymion does not have a problem with one of his Generals taking a lover; he thinks it gives us something to fight for. Those of us from Earth are much less uptight than your ...matriarch Moon queen." Kunzite had hesitated, almost as if he intended to call Queen Serenity something else, but changed his mind.

Color flooded the teenager's cheeks and she grinned, biting her lower lip. He had called her attractive! Living in the palace, everyone said she was pretty, but no one had ever said anything like they were attracted to her. It was unheard of, since the only ones who would dare say anything along those lines had to be suitors, and only men of equal status could even dream of courting a princess. She felt butterflies as she enjoyed her tea with Kunzite and turned things to a different, better topic.

"Well… uh… How old are you?"

"I'm twenty-two," he replied, stretching his legs out again.

"And how long have you served the Prince?"

"Hmmm… Six years."

"And… your lovers…?"

"None. I was more focused on work than finding a girl from the time I joined the military. I was always in the rush of battle, the thrill of charging at people and fighting. Of course I fight with the other generals a lot as well."

"Why?"

"Well, Nephrite is so quiet and stiff I want to punch him sometimes, Jadeite is the newest to the generals, and the youngest, so he's insanely eager to prove himself. It's a bit annoying, but he has spirit. And Zoicite spends about as much time on his hair as a woman. It's infuriating, actually…"

"Your hair is very…"

Kunzite stepped in before Venus said anything else about his silver locks. "My hair is easy to maintain. Wash it, let it dry. Run a comb through it before leaving if I remember." He smirked, looking at her hair. "Your hair must be a nightmare."

Venus touched the bangs that fell around her eyes, and then her braid. She smiled, biting her lower lip and giggling. "I love taking care of my hair. Washing it, conditioning it, combing it, brushing it…" She sighed softly. "It's the best when someone else brushes my hair though."

"Really? I'll have to remember that."

Venus yawned, covering her mouth, her face crimson with his words. Flatterer. She wanted to believe he never spoke to another this way, but he seemed to know just what to say, which made it impossible for her to believe she was truly anything special. She figured she was just another person to tease while he was there, since she was willing to play with him.

Kunzite stood, offering his hand to the golden clad princess. "Dance with me," he muttered, pulling her up and spinning her around when she took his outstretched hand. She laughed and stumbled a bit, but the tall man gently brought her into the steps, twirling her about the hidden meeting place. When the dance ended, Kunzite held Venus pressed up against him, one arm against her lower back, the other stretched out, fingers laced with hers. "You're not so graceful on your feet… But would you like to be my partner for the ball?"

Venus swallowed, staring up at Kunzite. His partner for the ball? It made her feel all gooey inside. "Y-yes!" She grinned, face flushed as she nearly stood on her toes, almost trying to get closer to him.

Kunzite looked at Venus and tilted his head, sliding a hand up and over her jaw, gently pushing her head back as he leaned down slowly, closing his eyes and pressing his mouth to hers. Venus closed her eyes, enjoying the moment and pushing up against his lips, squeezing his upper arms gently. When Kuzite pulled away, he had a light tint of pink on his cheek bones. He cleared his throat and muttered, "I'll see you Friday evening."

Venus left first, inching back to her room as she thought about how cute Kunzite looked blushing. It eased some of her worries that he might have other women he teased; it seemed more likely he was charismatic, but all talk. The hidden passageway went to the common area the girls all shared and she entered, flushed and happy, bubbling up with the desire to scream. She spun around on her toes instead, positively bouncing with delight.

"Have fun on your secret date?"

Venus covered her mouth to keep from shouting. Artemis sat on a chair, staring at her. Venus swallowed, shaking a bit as she tried to calm her newly jangled nerves. "What?"

"Your date. I came in to check on you and you weren't in your bed. And then I heard laughter and began to look around. You were with that General, Kunzite." He did not sound happy and Venus pouted, shaking her head slowly, about to talk. "No, don't say anything. You think I'm just a cat, that I'm just…" He sighed. After a moment he stared up at the Earth that was passing by in the sky window, and then he closed his eyes. A light grew that bathed the cat grew brighter and brighter, until Venus had to look away from him. When the glowing faded away Venus turned back to look for the cat, but a tall man with white hair, blue eyes, and a crescent moon on his forehead stared at her. "I am Artemis, partner to the leader of the Sailor Soldiers, Guardian of the Venus heir. And you… You are nothing like your mother." He turned and stalked off, looking disgusted.

Venus swallowed, covering her mouth. Why… why was that cat so good looking as a man?!

A/N: Yay, chapter four! Venus and Kunzite, sitting in a glade, d-a-n-c-i-n-g! First comes a date, then comes a ball, then comes Kunzite with a calling card! …Yes I'm weird. And I suck at rhyming. But have you ever noticed that the men Venus likes or is partnered up with all look similar? Long, light colored hair, blue eyes, tall, angular… Artemis as a human, Kunzite, and that guy from Sailor V, the delinquent type. Next chapter's the ball, I can't wait! Hooray! Also, I'm on the Coast in RI, so I'm watching for Hurricane Sandy. I'll be working on the next chapter during it and have about half of it finished!

2017 A/N: Just did a bit of grammar tweaking, adding some thoughts to V's head.