Bea here: okay my beta/muse has NOT edited this chapter, but she has given me permission to post it anyway. I will eventually be re-posting a beta-ed version, but not sure when. On with the chapter!

WARNING: there are some dark and sexual themes in this chapter, mainly mental trauma from sexual abuse, and French kissing (a reminder that the participants in that are physically mid-teens). You have been warned! This is fiction, not reality, and that fact should be kept in mind, especially for this chapter.

Chapter 7: Healing

"…And then I met you and you know the rest." Helios concluded scrubbing his lips with the back of his right hand and shuddering in revulsion from the relived memory of Nehelenia's tongue raping his mouth and her evil hands roaming his body. He hoped that his lovely maiden would not notice the shamed tears threatening to fall from his eyes

"Oh, Helios, I'm sorry." Moon exclaimed softly and sincerely, laying her right hand gently on his left hand, which was clenching his left pant leg so tightly that his hand was white, trying to catch his down turned eyes which were hiding under his bangs. Those amber eyes, which glistened with tears he refused to shed, shot up to stare at her in puzzlement.

"Why are you sorry, my Maiden? It wasn't you who did this." He asked, trying to focus on anything but the agonizing memories that flooded his mind. He could help but notice that his hand was twitching under hers and panic was bubbling up inside him from her gentle touch. Why can't I let her even touch me without my body feeling that damn witch's cold hands instead? Helios railed in his mind.

"I'm sorry because you had to go through that torturous, humiliating and repulsive experience." She replied softly, lightly brushing a stray lock of hair away from his face, not missing his hastily suppressed wince.

"It is okay, Sailor Moon, I'm fine. We need to defeat Nehelenia now." Helios said attempting to rise, but Moon shook her head grabbing his sleeve to keep him down, feeling her heart constrict at her beloved's involuntary shudder.

"Liar." She said gently but firmly. She looked squarely at him, while he avoided her gaze, a flush of humiliation staining his cheeks crimson. "I know that you have been scarred deeply by Nehelenia's actions. If you try to confront her like you are now, she will destroy you completely by using your memories and feelings against you in battle." She continued, forcing him to face and accept the truth.

"Then what can I do to save everyone?!" He whispered in despair, bringing his trembling hands up to cover his tear filled eyes, as if to physically block the images hovering in his mind's eye. "They're lives are in peril and I can't do a single damn thing to help them because of her!" He hissed angrily, hoping that anger would drown out his helplessness. Moon bit her lip in thought, looking up at the tortured and hunched form of the young man she loved, feeling her heart rip at the painful sight of him so utterly crushed.

"Helios." She hesitantly placed her gloved hand on his shoulder, removing it quickly when he recoiled violently. She knew that he was dangerously close to a mental and physical breakdown due to the memories he had to relive in order to tell her what happened. The pink haired senshi felt guilt flood her for selfishly asking him to tell her of his past, not even realizing how torturous it would be for him.

He looked up quickly even as he drew back, tear burning tracks down his face. "I'm sorry my maiden." He whispered, shame and loathing for himself and his reactions to the touch of the one he loved revealed in his amber eyes. "I can't help it, the memories…they're suffocating me. I can't even breathe without reliving that time." He continued in such a low whisper that Moon had to strain to catch it. Unable to bear seeing him so broken and defeated, Moon decided to go ahead and tell him the option she was thinking of. And I hope that if he rejects it, it won't break my heart. She thought with a pang as she hesitantly cleared her throat to recapture his attention.

"…I could help you, Helios…if you can and will allow me to." She offered tentatively, looking into his eyes. Hope flickered briefly in those golden orbs and she continued, "I can heal your emotional scars and dull the memories with my Crystal." She waited with baited breath for his answer.

"How?" he whispered hoarsely, daring to believe her, to hope.

"By using the same channels Nehelenia did while activating my Crystal's healing powers." Helios blanched and his hands gripped his pants even tighter at the first part of her sentence, but he held his tongue, striving to trust her. "I can heal your raped soul Helios." She stated softly but firmly, her beautiful crimson eyes capturing his amber ones even as tears made them sparkle like rubies. Will he let me heal his scars and show him my love? Will he be able to? Chibiusa thought anxiously, her heart in her throat. He visible braced himself, drawing in a shuddering breath as he thought about it.

"You…You would do this for me, my Maiden?" Helios finally asked as his heart began to race at the prospect of having her do the same thing Nehelenia did, but to heal him. His body and instincts screamed at him not to, to run and hide from it all, but his heart and soul said to trust her and love her.

"Yes, although I'll need to power up to my royal persona in order to have that much control over my powers." Her words barely registered to his ears as he fought to find the love, trust and courage he needed to be able to go through with her plan. Straightening his shoulders resolutely, the teen looked up into his maiden's innocent, loving and trusting eyes and knew that this was the right decision.

"Then please, heal me…beloved." Helios said quietly as Moon smiled blindingly at him, joy radiating off her in waves, warming and heartening him. She stood and shifted into Small Lady Serenity as he slowly climbed to his feet.

"As you wish…my love." Serenity said lovingly and opened her arms. He hesitantly walked into them, folding his arms slowly around her. Serenity started to glow a soft pink as she activated her crystal's powers, gently and slowly closing her arms around him as to not cause him to panic.

Communicating with him by eye contact alone, Serenity instructed Helios to take the dominant role. Licking his pale lips nervously, the youth hesitantly brought a shaking hand up to tilt her chin up. Angling his head Helios slowly forced himself to bend down, fighting the spiraling panic in his mind as his heart raced and breath quickened.

Serenity let her ruby eyes slide shut as he came nearer to her soft lips. Steeling himself, Helios tentatively brushed her lips with his own. The warmth from her radiated into him, and he gentled pressed his lips against hers, reveling in the joyous feeling of kissing his maiden. But just as he let his hands lower to rest on her shoulders, something dark and twisted reared its ugly head in the back of his mind.

In a flash, he was no longer kissing the warm soft lips of Serenity but being molested by Nehelenia's cold hungry ones. He saw in his mind her sadistic smile and slitted eyes, felt her hands roaming his body…

With a strangled gasp, Helios broke the contact and pulled back hastily, feeling his whole body go ridged as he hyperventilated. Serenity immediately dropped her arms from around him and opened her eyes. She had been pushed back by Helios, whose arms had involuntarily straightened out, his hands clutching her shoulders in a near death grip. Serenity winced at the painful pressure.

Helios, who had been hanging his head and shaking it violently to rid himself of something only he could see, looked up just in time to see her grimace. Realizing the strength of his hold, he immediately relaxed his white knuckled hands, though he had to force himself to not drop them altogether, as his body was screaming at him to do. The only sound in the room was Helios' rapid shallow breaths that were punctuated by harsh sobs

"I-I can't do it Serenity, I'm sorry. When I kissed you, I started to relive that whole experience anew." The young man gasped brokenly, a few tears falling from his eyes, which were twin pools of guilt riddled amber. She could see that he was fighting a rapidly losing battle against his panic and memories. A moment later she couldn't see them at all as he lowered his head and his bangs dropped down to cover those amber orbs.

Serenity bit her lip, silently ordering her own tears of hurt and sympathy not to fall, as she knew that would just make him feel worse. Looking at him, she slowly constructed a warm pink shield around the two of them.

When she was finished, Helios couldn't tell that he was in Nehelenia's throne room anymore. Rather it looked as if he was floating in a pink cloud, and it was as warm as a perfect summer day in Elysion. Slowly he felt his body relaxing at the 'change' in setting. Gathering his courage he raised his head to look into his maiden's eyes to see them sparkling with tears she refused to shed. Her hands were hanging limply by her sides, and she was not trying to make any contact at all, for which he was grateful.

"Helios," her soft voice called his attention back to her face. "You have to fight your memory and your body. You must open yourself to me, that's the only way I can heal you. Trust me, please, you know I love you and would never hurt you." Serenity pled, her voice getting choked up on the last syllable as her chest heaved with her effort not to cry. Tears blurred her vision as her heart constricted, knowing the near impossibility of her request. But she had spoke the truth when she said it was the only way.

"Serenity," Helios murmured, her raw emotions touching his heart and somehow calming him. "I trust you with my life, heart and soul." The white haired youth stated firmly and gently pulled her into a light embrace, though his body tensed immediately. Ignoring his involuntary reaction, Helios lowered his head once more and softly pressed his lips to Serenity's, his heart hammering in his chest.

With his hands clasped around her slim waist, the priest resolutely ignored the memories forcing him to relive Nehelenia's molestation, instead concentrating on the soft pink world around him and his beautiful maiden's face in front of his eyes. The tip of his nose brushed against her velveteen cheek and she sighed in pleasure as her ruby eyes slowly fluttered shut, prompting Helios' to slowly close.

Now his attention was focused solely on the warm, soft lips below his. Slowly, Helios slid his tongue out to lick her full lower lip, asking shyly for entrance. He could feel Serenity's smile of happiness and approval as she slowly but eagerly complied. Even as he pushed his questing tongue past her teeth, Helios struggled to open his soul to his beloved.

The memory of Nehelenia raping his mouth haunted him, but Helios was expecting them this time and had braced himself, so he merely clenched his fists and moaned in emotional distress. The priest searched though his being to locate his bond with the pink haired angel in front of him. Finding it, Helios used it as a channel to her, giving her an open door into his traumatized and scarred mind.

Her spirit flowed into him gently and lovingly, filling him with her innocent love and power. As she turned her attention to building a temporary wall between him and his memories so she could heal him, Helios felt his soul become curiously detached from his body. He was still aware of what he was doing, still felt everything, but he felt more like an observer than the one in control.

But that didn't seem to matter to his body, which had developed a mind of its own. Even as he felt Serenity's soothing presence in mind, healing him, Helios saw and felt his body Her tongue wasn't still either; as soon as he became daring in his explorations, she snuck her own small tongue into his mouth. The nimble appendage massaged his tongue and ran over his teeth.

One of her hands laid itself on his chest directly over his heart, while the other came to rest on the back of his neck, her fingers tangling in his curly hair. His hands slowly rose from her waist. One stopped at the bottom of her shoulders to wrap his arm around her back and pull her closer. The other cupped the side of her face, his fingers sliding against the silky fine hairs of her forelock.

The priest lost track of time as she poured her power into his mind to heal him, amazed at the power of her crystal. He felt the jagged painful emotions from his memory lessening in intensity and clarity. What should have taken many years of therapy was being accomplished easily in a matter of minutes. In his mind he felt her finishing and Helios realized that he was completely at ease and had been for some time. The feeling of floating apart from his body was fading as the temporary walls faded.

Feeling her finish and her tired triumph, Helios lovingly 'lifted' her spirit back into her own body. He felt her gratitude even as he came back fully to himself. He gently broke the kiss, both of them drawing back slightly to fill their oxygen deprived lungs. Probing his newly healed memories, the white-haired teen found that he could still feel and recall them. But it was as though he were reading a well-written book: able to see and feel what is happening, but able to close it and put it back on its shelf.

Pulling away a little more Helios opened his eyes in time to see Serenity doing the same. Her face was flushed and her lips red and swollen, and Helios was sure his face probably look similar. It was then that the priest realized they were very close to each other, almost touching in their embrace. He blushed as did she, but only disentangled themselves after a second of just gazing into each other's eyes.

The teen was privately very glad for his maiden's age change, knowing that what was a bit embarrassing in her current form would have been very unsettling in her normal form. Pecking her briefly on the lips was very different from what they had just shared.

"Serenity, thank you…for everything. But now we must go and defeat Nehelenia." He stated quietly holding her hands gently in his. His maiden nodded, allowing the shield she had erected to disappear.

"Yes, my senshi probably could probably really use some help right about now." Serenity said then glanced at Helios. "Um, can you get us out of here now that you are fully healed and have all your strength and powers back? I don't know how to." She admitted blushing cutely. Helios surprised himself and her with a small confident grin.

"Yes I can. But first let me change into something a little more suited to battle." Helios said, stepping out of Serenity's arms and closing his eyes. Almost immediately his over robe became a sleeveless waist length tunic over which light metallic breast and back plates formed.

His pants became virtually skin tight as metallic bracers and greaves materialized and his white shoes became calf length boots. Lastly a sword belt came into being around his waist with his rapier resting on his left side in its sheath and his necklace disappeared. Opening his eyes he grinned briefly at Serenity. She nodded appreciatively at his new ensemble and reverted to Sailor Moon.

"Great outfit, Helios, now how are we getting out of here?" She asked, sneaking an appreciative gaze at the priest's clothes change and how it showed off his muscular body. As Helios glanced around the room she was presented with a nice view of his ass, covered only by those tight pants. The young senshi blushed at her thoughts, but assuming that they came part and parcel with her aged body.

"We will fly on Pegasus." Helios replied and whistled shrilly for a moment. The magnificent white creature appeared in front of them wearing only a halter and reins (AN: Pegasus doesn't have a horn). He mounted agilely onto his back and extended a hand down to help the pink haired senshi up. Sailor Moon slipped her hand in his, watching his arm muscles tighten as he helped her mount up behind him. Moon wrapped her arms around Helios' armored torso as Pegasus launched them into the air.

"Helios, I've got a plan on how to defeat Nehelenia," Moon outlined her plan as they gained speed and altitude, Helios flung out a hand, opening a portal that they flew through.

NOTE: With regard to the ease of Helios' mental healing, I am not trying to be disrespectful of survivors of sexual abuse, nor dismissive of their struggles! My basis is that the Pink Moon Crystal, like the Silver Crystal, is an incredibly powerful object that can destroy a planet, defeat evil mega-villians, heal brainwashed heroes, revive the dead, heal brain damage, etc., so it would also be able to heal mental trauma in a matter of minutes.

Bea here: ok, definitely lengthened this one quite a bit, maybe even doubled it but oh well.

Hope I haven't scarred you for life.

Ja ne!

Okay, note. I know I said that I wasn't going to put anymore of this story on b/c no one seemed interested in it, but I just hate leaving a story incomplete online when I finally got it all done. So screw it, I'm posting the rest and I could care less what people think and whether or not they're decent enough to leave a review.

Ok done with my teenage rampage so to speak. I'm just frustrated, I didn't get accepted into OSU b/c I haven't completed the writing course here at EWU, so I've got to take it and apply for extended admission into OSU. But on a good note, my karate sensei is going to teach me how to drive! He's starting tomorrow, and I think he's nervous lol ^^