~Wavering Destiny~
by Strawberry Moon Rose
Feedback appreciated ;)
Enjoy =D
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or any of the characters. They belong to Naoko Takeuchi.
The moon, almost too bright to look at, hung high in the starry sky. Three times the size of Earth's moon, its dusty craters and shadows created a rabbit-less, abstract design, that lit the sky like a firework above the ocean's waters.
"What are you looking at?" Seiya whispered into her ear. The two girls were still standing in the ocean, far enough out the waves rocked over their shoulders, but they could still feel the sandy bottom under their feet. Seiya had the side of her cheek resting harmlessly on the back of Usagi's shoulder. Embracing her from behind, she was unwilling to let her go. The air was getting cooler as the night went on, making the bobbing ocean waves that sloshed to up to her collarbone feel warm.
"The moon," replied Usagi. "It's so beautiful..." Her blue-eyed gaze seemed magnetically drawn to the floating orb above them. Its white surface, rocky and pale, was so far away, yet so close.
"Yes, the moon is very beautiful," Seiya purred in her ear. Usagi didn't catch onto the innuendo.
"It's just so big," Usagi murmured.
"Hmm...which one?" Seiya brought her eyes to the sky.
Usagi wrinkled her forehead in confusion. "What do you mean 'which one'? I'm still talking about the moon."
"Me too. Our planet has three of them."
Usagi blinked, her eyes scanning the starry heavens. "What're you talking about? There's only one-" She gasped. Hanging in the opposite corner of the sky, rising just over the palace was another small, round globe of light.
Seiya smiled. "I forget you don't know some of these things." Seiya leaned her head over the back of Usagi's shoulder so their faces were close.
"Three moons? That's so neat," Usagi whispered.
Seiya tightened her gentle embrace on the smaller girl. "The other one will rise in a few hours. There's lots of neat things on Kinmoku. You should stay here longer to see them." Seiya turned so her lips were to Usagi's right ear. "I don't want you to go," she whispered.
Usagi swallowed. Seiya's lips gently brushed against her ear, tickling her with her warm breath. She was unsure how to react to her words and touch.
"Odango." Seiya's voice lowered. "I missed you so bad. I thought about you everyday. You can ask Taiki and Yaten, or even the Princess, I was a mess when we came back here."
"Seiya..." Usagi bit her lip in frustration. It was heartbreaking imagining how hard it must have been. But she knew she wasn't lying; she remembered the quietness in Seiya's eyes when she first saw her outside the palace. But within the past few days she'd seemed to be herself again, much to to her relief.
Seiya pressed her forehead into Usagi's wet hair. "I wanted to visit you, but I knew it'd only make it worse. But even though I told myself that, I couldn't just forget someone like you so easily."
A familiar welling puddled in Usagi's eyes. "Seiya, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for everything I've put you through. Maybe I shouldn't have come here, but I couldn't help it. I missed you too much."
"I missed you more," Seiya whispered back without skipping a beat. She nuzzled her face into her wet, blonde locks. Usagi rested her head to the side, against Seiya's. They were quiet for a while, enjoying each others warmth under the endless dome of dark sky.
"How are you gonna leave after all this? Now that you know how you feel about me..." Seiya asked into her ear.
Usagi's face contorted in confusion. "How I feel about you?" she repeated, puzzled.
Seiya smiled a little. "That's a good one..." she mumbled, almost inaudibly.
Usagi frowned. "What are you mumbling about?"
"You're in love with me, Odango," Seiya stated simply.
Usagi's lips parted in surprise. "W-what? In love? With you? Come on now, that's...that's..." Boom. Boom. Usagi wished her heartbeat wasn't so loud.
"What gives you that crazy idea, Seiya? Gosh, you're such a weird person..."
Seiya smiled. "Oh, don't pretend like you haven't been thinking about it all day too."
"Thinking about what?" Usagi asked, clueless.
Seiya blinked quickly, blushing at the burning memory. "You know what I'm talking about...our kiss." The word exploded into the air like a bomb, silencing everything. Even the waves seemed to suddenly be still.
"Huh? K-kiss? What kiss? Why would I be thinking about that?" Usagi fiddled nervously in her grip. She couldn't believe Seiya had said it aloud! No, she could; it was Seiya after all.
"Need I say more?"
Usagi shook her head. "You're so full of yourself! Why would I still be thinking about that? So what? I mean, it was just a kiss. No big deal..." she fibbed.
"Just a kiss?" Seiya asked slyly, into her ear.
"Uh huh. Do you guys, like, not kiss your friends here on Kinmoku or what?" Usagi blabbed while wheels twisted in her head as she tried to think of something clever to say. She was drawing a blank.
Seiya was torn between laughing and crying at the same time. "Oh? So you mean that you kiss your friends?" She put extra emphasis on the word.
Usagi shrugged in her embrace. "Yeah. Friends can kiss each other, it's a sign of affection. So?" This isn't good, this isn't good at all.
Seiya smirked, seeing right through her. "Alright then. So tomorrow it'll be perfectly okay if I walk up to Yaten and peck her on the lips?" She tried her best not to crack up.
Usagi's mouth curled into a smile. She couldn't even imagine Yaten's reaction if Seiya did that to her. She'd probably walk away with a bloody nose and broken jaw.
Seiya narrowed her eyes. "So I take it you've kissed all your friends once or twice, am I right? Makoto, Ami, Rei...is that what you're telling me? That what we shared was nothing special?"
Usagi squirmed. "Um..."
Seiya chuckled at the thought of Usagi and Rei kissing the passionate way she and Usagi had last night. The idea was so absurd, she had to choke down her second round of laughter. "Okay, then Odango, whatever you say..."
Usagi let out a sigh. "Okay, so I lied," she admitted.
Seiya smiled. "You see then? We're more than just friends." She snuggled her face closer to prove her point.
"Whatever..."
Seiya grinned, recalling last night's unforgettable moment. The way Usagi had tangled her fingers in her bluish locks, moving her lips rhymatically against her own... It was something she'd even dreamed about afterwards.
"You sure looked like you were enjoying yourself," Seiya teased, replaying the cinematic scene in her head like a movie.
Usagi's face turned tomato-red. She was glad Seiya wasn't facing her to see. "I was not!"
"You definitely were."
"No way!" Usagi said quickly. "You think I liked that? It's...not like I had a choice or anything! What else was I supposed to do?"
"Hmm, that's not the way it looked to me," Seiya whispered. She danced her lips against Usagi's ear, playfully.
Usagi winced. "You're imagining things..." she muttered.
Seiya smirked, enjoying her reaction. "If it was so awful, why did you kiss me a second time?"
Usagi's stomach dropped. She nibbled on her lips, anxiously. "What are you talking about? That never happened."
"Yes it did."
"I don't remember that," Usagi mumbled to the waves in front of her. She remembered, all too well; her body had acted on its own, spontaneously bringing her lips to Seiya's after she'd pulled away. Thinking back, she couldn't believe she actually did something so crazy. Apparently, neither could Seiya.
"Yes. You leaned closer," Seiya said, inching over her, "and brought your lips up like this..." Seiya trailed her lips down to the side of Usagi's cheek, breathing her hot breath onto her wet skin. "Do you want me to refresh your memory?" she whispered, quietly.
Kaboom. Kaboom. Like gunshots, Usagi's heart exploded. Unconsciously, her head started to turn to the side. She felt herself melting to butter right there. A deer in the headlights, she couldn't move if she wanted too.
Seiya's blue eyes gleamed with a devious spark of excitement. Gotcha. She inched her face closer at a snail's pace, drawing it out. Seiya couldn't help but smile to herself at Usagi's nervous expression; her eyes squeezed shut and lips slightly trembling.
Easing in, Seiya brought her mouth near Usagi's. Inches away from collision, she stopped.
Seconds ticked by. Usagi slowly opened her eyes to see Seiya grinning at her, insanely close. She looked away, embarrassed. "What?" Usagi grumbled, slightly angered that Seiya had hesitated for some odd reason.
Seiya beamed. "You didn't object."
Usagi's mouth opened in utter surprise. She turned away, bringing her focus anywhere but on the Starlight. "Shut up, Seiya, just shut up."
Seiya chuckled. "Hey now, it's okay. I take it you remember, then?" She peered over the blonde's other shoulder, trying to look at her.
Usagi brought her hands to her burning face. "It's not funny. I'm already confused enough about what I'm supposed to do, don't make it worse!"
She slipped out of Seiya's arms and submerged herself under the water. The lower she sank into the solitude, the cooler it felt. She wished the water would somehow extinguish her red face and transport her somewhere else. Usagi didn't want to come back up and face her. Why did she just do that?
An uncomfortable tightening in her lungs signaled that she was in need of air. Sinking her bare toes into the cold sand, she launched herself upwards, breaking the surface.
"Odango?" She heard Seiya's voice, a combination of worry and confusion.
Usagi brushed her wet bangs out of her eyes. The Starlight stood right before her.
"Are you okay?" She hesitantly raised her hand toward Usagi.
Usagi flinched away from her, unaware of Seiya's hurt expression. "No! I'm not, thank you very much," she cried. "I don't know anything anymore." She brought her balled fists to her eyes, considering dipping back under the water.
"Odango, I-"
"How can I be okay when nothing makes sense like it used to? Every time you get close to me, my head starts spinning and my heart does weird things! I don't know what's going on between us anymore," Usagi spilled, uncontrollably. "I thought we were just friends. I mean, I know you liked me back on Earth, but I never took you seriously. And now...now I th-think maybe I felt the same way, but never really noticed it..." Hot tears trickled down her cheek as she fell apart.
Seiya couldn't take it any longer, watching her dumpling break down broke her heart. She pulled her into a close hug. Usagi buried her face onto her tall shoulder without protest.
Usagi's voice was muffled and quiet as she mumbled into the wet material of Seiya's shirt. "I didn't know how much I liked you until you were gone. And I don't know how I feel about you now, so don't tease me like that..."
Seiya hugged her tighter, her own heart beginning to race. "Odango, I..." Words had escaped her. This...can't be happening. I can't believe it. All this time she...
Usagi's breathing returned to normal, but her stomach still fluttered anxiously.
Seiya said nothing while she held her close. The ocean air was cool, the waves were warm, and her body was hot.
"Odango, if you get that excited around me, that means you like me," Seiya whispered quietly with a smile. Usagi didn't say anything, so she lowered her head and murmured, "But that's okay, 'cause the same thing happens to me when I'm around you."
Usagi closed her eyes and rested her head on Seiya's shoulder. "You're an idiot..." she muttered softly.
Seiya chuckled. "Perhaps."
Usagi sighed and pulled away from her. She sank back into the waters until the waves were up to her shoulders. "But it's not that easy," she said with a sigh.
Seiya sank down beside her. "Why not?"
"You and me...I don't think that's the hard part," Usagi admitted. She knew how she felt about Seiya (for the most part), and definitely knew how Seiya felt about her.
"Then what is?" Seiya asked in a kind whisper.
Usagi looked up at one of the moons above them and said, "I have Mamo-chan and my future..."
Seiya's insides wallowed at the mention of her boyfriend. She didn't know much about him, but she knew that she could be a better match for Usagi than he could ever be.
"You already told me that your relationship with him felt 'forced' and 'bland', right?" Seiya pointed out.
Usagi slowly nodded. "Yeah. And he treats me like a kid," she mumbled to herself.
"Well?" Seiya asked.
"Well what?"
She motioned to herself. "Aren't I a lot more fun and exciting than him?" Seiya wiggled her eyebrows in a flirty manner.
Whoosh! Usagi splashed her, trying to wipe the smile right off her face.
"Oi!" Seiya laughed and pushed her wet bangs out of her eyes. "Come on, Odango, you know it's true," she said. "I'm cool."
Usagi smiled because she was right; Mamoru never did anything fun with her. He acted more like a father or an older brother to her; always telling her to go to bed on time, do her homework, and brush her teeth so she didn't get cavities like Chibi-Usa. His idea of a fun time was sitting in front of his computer typing up papers for college and buying Usagi a nice pair of earrings to make up for his total lack of concern for advancing their 'relationship'.
And here she was, splashing in the ocean in the middle of the night with Seiya, something Mamoru never would do with her. Seiya was right; she was a lot more exciting. And good looking (but that was beside the point).
"Yeah, I suppose," Usagi replied with a grin.
"Then don't worry about a thing, okay?" Seiya swam closer to her. The twinkle in her navy eyes was dangerously mischievous. "Right now it's just me and you. And I can help you decide how you feel about me..."
Usagi gulped as Seiya closed the distance between them. She stared up at the girl uneasily, not sure what to do.
"Don't worry about a thing Odango, I'll lead..." Seiya purred. She placed her hands on Usagi's shoulders, running them down the sleeves of her wet dress to the bare skin of her arms. Flesh on flesh, a tingly sensation trailed after her fingers on Usagi's forearm.
Usagi's mind was reeling around the suffocating feeling that Seiya was touching her, and that it must be why she couldn't breathe. That sensational zap she got last night from kissing her was presenting itself right before her again, taunting her to explore the new, eccentric feeling. It'd be so easy to close her eyes and let Seiya do the work. She didn't doubt that she had nothing to worry about; she trusted Seiya. So tempting...too tempting... Usagi felt her eyelids lower over the blue of her eyes.
Seiya stepped in, pressing her stomach against Usagi's below the sloshing water. She raised one hand to brush away a damp, blonde strand of hair in her face, making Usagi flinch under her light touch. She leaned down, bringing her face to the shorter girl's, not bothering to tease her by hesitating this time.
Seiya felt her own cheeks heat at the idea of what she was about to do. Intuitively, she lingered one hand on Usagi's jaw, wanting to savor the moment. Seiya closed her eyes and ever-so slowly eased in.
Time stopped all together, as if someone hit pause.
Colorful, scorching fireworks seemed to explode on their lips. The paralyzing shock, full of pleasure, made Seiya's knees almost buckle out underneath her, she felt so weak. She quickly got it together and advanced in the kiss. After all, she was supposed to be the one leading this thing, no matter how undone she came.
Usagi involuntarily moved her hands up Seiya's shoulders, entwining her fingers in the blue-tinted locks at her neck. Grasping and pulling softly, she helplessly knotted her fingers in the Starlight's low ponytail to keep from letting out a soft moan. She could taste the salty ocean water on Seiya, tingling her taste buds. She kissed her back, unlike any other kiss she'd ever shared before, better than their first, if that was possible. This time she wasn't caught so off guard, and could wrap her head around what was happening, enjoying it even more than before.
Seiya pulled her lips away to break for air, only to quickly bring them back over Usagi's mouth without skipping a beat. She tilted her head to the side, deepening the movement, pressing Usagi's wet body impossibly closer to hers. She had one hand on her face and the other on the small of her back, running her hand up and down, tickling her spine.
Usagi's breathing was heavy, her face heating up like an oven. To her, nothing else mattered; they were the only two people in the world. Seiya's lips parted more, as she ran her tongue along the bottom of Usagi's lip playfully. Usagi blushed even redder, squeezing her eyes shut at the sly movement. She couldn't help but wonder if Seiya had kissed anyone else before or if she was just making it up as she went. If she hadn't, she was doing a good job of hiding her inexperience.
"O...dango," Seiya whispered, catching her breath. She lingered away, gently kissing her cheek in a sweet movement while she waited for her brain to catch up to her body. Usagi could hear her breathing, thick and flustered over the stirring water around them. Seiya's cheek felt hot against her own.
To think that was the end of the amazing experience, Usagi was slightly disappointed. She'd been waiting so long to feel that static shock again, and it was over much too soon.
The Starlight lustfully covered her lips back over Usagi's. She should have known Seiya wasn't done yet.
Thump. Thump. Thump. The blood pumped loudly in Usagi's ears. She gripped her hands to Seiya's shoulders and squeezed them nervously, kissing her back in a mixture of passion and innocence. She felt like her face could burst aflame at any given second. Her heart was trying to jump straight out of her chest. She was certain Seiya could feel it through her wet shirt.
The two girls were so caught up in the moment, they didn't sense the tall wave that hurled towards them. Over their heads, it came down, drenching the two of them in mid-kiss. It took them both a second to realize what had happened. Water slicked their hair into their eyes, their clothes clung to their bodies even heavier and restraining. Usagi felt Seiya's soft lips pull into a smile under her own, the taste of water coming between them.
When everything had settled and the night was quiet again, Usagi felt the awkward tension fall over them both. Seiya wasn't moving her lips like she had before, and Usagi suddenly became aware of where her hands were at. She immediately pulled away, detaching their lips with a soft sound.
Seiya wiped her hair out of her face, flinging water droplets behind her. She was mentally cursing the ocean for interrupting one of the best moments of her life. After a few painfully silent seconds, Seiya finally remembered how to speak.
"So..." she said quietly, avoiding Usagi's gaze.
"Um, yeah..." Usagi fiddled with the ends of her soaking-wet hair. Seiya didn't have to worry, she couldn't look up if she tried to.
Seiya reached behind her head and untied her loose ponytail. She gathered the long, tangled tresses around her shoulders and retied them back up. Seiya then lowered herself shoulder-deep into the water.
"Well? Am I a good kisser or what?" She winked, breaking the ice.
Usagi gaped down at her, speechless. She could feel her face burn at the remark. Seiya just grinned, despite the fact that she seemed a bit flustered too. Usagi quickly sunk into the water beside her, unsure of what else to do except dive under the waves and disappear like she wanted to.
Even she had to admit Seiya was decent; the Starlight wasn't afraid to take chances, and the dangerous way her hands behaved made Usagi's stomach scream in pleasure. She found that sort of confidence comforting and kind of...attractive. But there was no way in hell she was going to admit Seiya was a good kisser. But she didn't have to; her blushing face said it all.
Seiya's grin brimmed with satisfaction. "I'll take that as a yes."