blueeyeddevil06 thanks for being my beta!

Endymion spent much of the day on the road thinking about his conversations with Jadeite and Serenity. He was deep in thought when Nephrite drew him a bit away from the procession. He was curious to learn what was on his general's mind.

Nephrite said, "I could use some advice, and it looks to me like you could too. I was figuring we could help each other out." The horses automatically kept pace with each other.

"You go ahead with your problem first. I don't think you can solve my particular puzzle." He was sure he didn't want to lay the whole problem out to anyone.

"Fair enough. It has to do with Lita. I'm in love with her but-"

"I'm renouncing my title of Crown Prince, and Arcas will take my place. My father and brother don't know that yet. There aren't any duties that would keep you away from Lita." He smiled when he observed his general's reaction.

Nephrite exhaled, "That solves my problem completely. Well, one of them actually." He looked over at Lita and looked pensive. "Now, I just have to convince her to marry me. That may not be so easy."

Endymion chuckled and said, "Spar with her. When she kicks your ass again, ask her to marry you."

"Hey! You don't have to be a…" He paused. Nephrite worked it through for a moment, nodded and said, "That might actually work. I think I'll try that." He smiled at Endymion.

They rode on for a bit in silence. Nephrite asked, "And, what's your issue?"

Endymion looked at him and tried to figure out what, if anything, he should say. He settled on, "Serenity is rather... unique all of the way around. I find that I am struggling to keep up with her at times."

Nephrite leveled an understanding look at him and said, "Have you told her yet?"

"What?"

"If she knows what you're feeling, wouldn't she be open to talking about it with you? She listens to everyone and cares about what they feel. Wouldn't that be even more the case for the man she loves so much?"

Endymion had to admit that he was completely right. He nodded and said, "I'm glad we talked. It seems we helped each other quite a lot today."

That night, small tents lined the field that they stopped in. Far from the impressive military camp that was laid out before. This one was much more modest. Three larger tents were placed at the center. In the smallest of the three laid Serenity. The other two were there as decoys.

Endymion lay in his tent and listened to the sounds of the camp around him. He exhaled and sat up. He then appeared in Serenity's tent and stared at her. Her hair was down, and she was brushing it.

He walked over, took the hair brush, and started to brush it. "You are stunning." He continued to brush it in silence for a while. He loved her hair.

After a while, she smiled over her shoulder at him, and then he went back to brushing her hair for a bit. She then asked, "What else did you talk to Lord Elwes about?" She had been curious all day and was trying to be patient.

He set down the brush and turned her to look at him. "He pointed out that I can't be Crown Prince of my father's kingdom and King in yours." She went to speak, and he placed his index finger over her lips. He then leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "You can't tell me that you object to the idea of Arcas being Crowned Prince." Her shoulders slumped, and he removed his finger. "I want this. He didn't bring it to both of us because he knew you wouldn't ever ask me to do it. He was protecting you. I already respected him before. But now, now he is someone I deeply trust."

She smiled at him and leaned her head on his shoulder. "I hate that you have to do this."

"I don't. I'll be proud to watch Arcas take on my role." He leaned his head on hers and added, "That, and I would trade everything to be with you."

"I don't want you to give up-"

"Nothing, I give up nothing. I gain everything with you. Please, just trust me on this."

She pulled back and looked him in the eyes. "I trust you." She smiled, "Thank you. I wouldn't have wanted to ask it of you, but you're right. It has to be done."

He kissed her nose and said, "Plus, I have talked to Kunzite and Nephrite today. They are sworn to me, not my father's kingdom. They were both relieved to find out that they would be free to marry the girls they are in love with. That is if they can get them to say yes."

Serenity smiled, "That makes the news even better."

Endymion wrapped his arms around Serenity and pressed her back to his front. He held her tightly and kissed the nape of her neck. He knew it was time to take Nephrite's advice, but he felt more comfortable opening up like this. He said, "You're incredible. I struggle to keep up with you. Well, that's at least how it feels. You're right. You initiate everything. I want you to feel desired and adored. You are, but I struggle with what I'm allowed to do. I'm honestly intimidated by you. It makes me hold back. Not my feelings, but my acting on them. I still can't believe that you somehow fell in love with me."

"Can I look at you now?" She felt him release her, and she shifted to look him in the eyes. "You're the one who walked with me in the Royal Gardens and spent time talking to me and laughing with me. Every time you looked at me, it felt like you actually saw me and not my title. You were rather unimpressed with my title actually." She chuckled and held up her hand to stop him. "Initially it was irritating, yes. But, then I saw it for what it really was. You had to look past my title and you did. You never once came to seek me out because I was a princess. You seemed to enjoy talking to me. You know what it's like to be pursued and sought out over your title. Well, so do I. I quickly found that walking with you in the gardens was the highlight of my day. Never be surprised I fell in love with you."

He surged forward and kissed her. She opened up to let him deepen the kiss. He let a low rumble emanate from his chest, and then he was covering her body with his. She was laid out on her bed, and he hovered over her. He nipped at her neck and said, "I know I have to leave certain things intact for our wedding night, but…" he brought one hand to her breast and pinched her nipple. "There are other things we can do in the meantime."

He slid his hand under her nightgown and spread her legs open. "There is something I really want to do to you. You'll have to be very quiet though." He smirked at her and gave her a heated look. "This tent isn't as capable of keeping prying ears out." He pulled up her nightgown, buried his head between her legs and brought her to orgasm. She had to stuff her knuckles in her mouth to keep from screaming out.

She laid there panting with her chest heaving. She gave him a sated smile. "That was incredible."

"It was. I like the way you wriggle when you are trying to not make any sound. It's so damn sexy." He wrapped her up in his arms and tucked them in bed.

She turned to look at him. "And, what about you?"

"I can wait. Tonight was about you."

She shook her head, reached down with her small hand and pulled out his cock. "Well, if that's true, then I get to do whatever I want. And… I want to suck on this." She felt him grow harder in her hand.

"You don't have to just because I did."

She rolled her eyes. "Shut up." She said without any real heat. She then put his cock in her mouth, and he almost lost it right there. He placed his hand on the back of her head to gently guide her. She licked and sucked him, and he was blinded by pleasure. He came hard in her mouth, and he almost screamed out loud.

She pulled back and looked smug. "So, you liked that, did you?"

He just nodded his head adamantly, and she chuckled.

They fell asleep that night, sated, in each other's arms.