Author: Celyia (cel@celyia.com)
Rating: R
Note: Oi. I'm so not used tot his story not being NC-17. Makes things a little strange. Anyway, I was reading over this story tonight and correcting a ton of spelling mishaps (and I used to think my spelling was so good!) when I realised something.
I hate this story.
Funny thing is, I think the premise is pretty cool but the actual implementation sucks. :-) All I can say is that I was a kid when I wrote it, but over the years, my writing style has changed greatly. So, in short, I suspect that once I finish a couple of projects I'm working on, I think I'll really give this story a hell of a revision. Anyway! thought you might like to hear that!
Thanks!
-Cel.
Usagi gasped at her throat as she sat up in bed. Blinking, she slowed her breathing down as she closed her eyes. Tears...she noted in shock as she brushed a hand down her face. Closing her eyes, Usagi summoned her dream to return, a part of her instinctively knowing it was important.
A diamond amid the moonbeams, the crystal stood alone in the darkness. Had it not been for the tight, claustrophobic feeling squeezing her throat, Usagi would have been swept away by the beauty of the scene. Exhaling forcefully, she tried to clear her trachea, but it just wouldn't work.
"Princess..." a voice had called, its manly tones sinister in the night. "Princess..."
A hand instinctively protecting her throat, she floated closer to the mysterious object. "Please... I want to help..." she whispered, praying with all her soul that he would finally listen. "Please!"
"Princess!" it screamed in her ears as the crystal shattered. Shards flew, slicing her arms and legs with a myriad of long, thin cuts. "I shall see you dead," it promised, the voice wavering in her mind.
For some reason, the threat just seemed to bounce off of her, but the pain behind the voice broke her heart.
"Please...where are you? Let me help you," she begged as she felt a million tears roll down her cheeks. "I can help you. I know I can. Let me try."
"I would rather die first," the voice answered angrily. And suddenly it was all over.
Usagi shivered as she remembered the creature's pain. Thank god it was only a dream, she whispered to herself as she continued to tremble. The pain had been so sharp, so pronounced, it seemed to cut into her very heart even now. The sheer loneliness of it all seemed to overwhelm her until all she could do was thank Queen Selenity for giving her the opportunity to live a life past the loneliness. Thank god! She turned to her left in utter relief to look down at her beautiful husband who was destined to save her from the pain.
"Mamoru? Where are you?" Usagi blinked as she noticed that he was nowhere to be found. Laying a hand on his side of the bed, Usagi frowned. Cold. No on had slept here, she realised. Standing up, she barely remembered to throw her robe on.
"Oh, god!" Usagi whispered as she checked the empty bathroom. "What if Jadeite got him?" Running down the stairs, she glanced all around, intent on finding her Mamo-chan.
"Please, God, please let him be ok. Please." she pleaded as she jingled car keys in her hand. She darted into the cold night, dressed in just silk pajamas and bunny slippers, not caring that the dew of the late sky ruined both articles of clothing.
Opening the grey car door, she screamed as a heavy body fell out on her, pinning her on the wet concrete.
"Usa!" Mamoru grumbled as he slowly came to his feet. His white oxford shirt was stained with some stinky liquid, the same odor that reeked from his breath. "God dammit. Why did you do that?"
Taking a step back, Usagi sniffled, pushing the tears out of her eyes. "I was only worried..."
Mamoru rolled his eyes as he started walking unsteadily to the apartment building, leaving his stunned bride on the cold ground. Ignore her calls, he angrily slammed the door.
Too overwhelmed to really cry, Usagi stood up. "Mamoru?" she asked as she began the short walk back to her shelter. Damn! Usagi groaned as she felt the pain shoot up her leg. Glaring at the ankle she twisted when Mamoru fell on her, she clenched her teeth as she continued walking.
"Are you ok?" a rather comforting voice whispered in her ear.
Usagi jumped, crying out as she clutched a hand to her heart. Wincing at the pain, she turned to the owner of the voice and smiled wearily. "Yes, thank you, sir."
The man laid a slender, well-kept hand on her shoulder. "Allow me to help you, miss." he smiled warmly, his vivid blue eyes dancing with some emotion or another.
Finding the idea of walking up the two flights of stairs to her apartment daunting at best, Usagi nodded slowly. "I'm afraid I hurt myself...if you would?"
He seemed to tense up as she leaned on him. "Don't you mean that husband of yours hurt you?" he growled as they made their way to the apartment entrance.
"No! No!" Usagi insisted as she waved her hands, dismissing the thought. "I've always been such a klutz...hey, how did you know I was married?" she asked, her look merely curious.
The man almost seemed to grimace with the question. No, I'm imagining it, Usagi informed herself as she looked up into the beautiful, masculine face of her rescuer. Lord, he was gorgeous, she thought as she watched him attempt to run his free hand through the mass of dark-blond hair. He must usually keep it loose, Usagi thought idly as she noted the slightly surprised look in his eyes as his hand met the barrier of the braid. But as pretty as the hair was, it was nothing compared to the ruggedly handsome lines of his face.
"The ring on your hand," he shrugged. Without warning, he swept her up into his arms. "It will make it easier to go up the steps like this..." he mumbled as he pushed the entrance open with his backside.
Usagi nodded dumbly as she tried to ignore that awkward, tingling feeling in her stomach. The unknown man seemed vaguely familiar...
"Thank you for helping me," she started, even before she realised she was speaking. "I'm Usagi. And you are...?"
His left eye was suddenly victimized by a small twitch. With her curiousity, Usagi made the man uncomfortable, she noted with some guilt. It didn't dawn on her to wonder why.
"I'm..." the man grunted as he began walking up the first flight of stairs. "I'm Akuron," he rushed over the word, as though it was a curse.
"Unusual name," Usagi blurted as Akuron continued slowly up the long staircase.
"Yes, it is."
Even Usagi couldn't miss the fact that the conversation was at an end. Sighing, she let her head fall to his shoulder. Can't believe I was that stupid to alienate him, she grimaced internally as she regarded the kind man carrying her to her apartment.
"Tired?" he asked, his voice seeming to shake off a little of the coldness it had picked up.
Nodding weakly, she yawned. "A little..."
"A little nothing," Akuron laughed as he set her down in front of the door. "You are exhausted." His blue eyes met her slightly shadowed ones.
Unable to break the stare, Usagi blindly fumbled with the door. "Maybe a little..." she murmured absently as her hand fiddled with the hard brass of the knob.
"Why?"
Usagi shrugged as she finally turned to face the door. "Had a bad dream before I... it's locked!" she groaned as she knocked gently on the door. "Mamoru! Are you awake?" she whispered as she leaned into the brown wood.
"You won't wake him up that way," Akuron noted, a blond eyebrow raised high with what could only be identified as amusement. He raised his fist to beat on the door.
Catching his hand, Usagi shook her head violently. "No, please don't wake him. He's even more tired than I am."
Akuron tilted his head as he looked at her, a question in his eyes. "But he's drunk..."
"He is not!" she growled, her eyes instantly contrite as she remembered Akuron's extreme kindness. "Well, I guess he is." Usagi spoke softly, her voice full of uncertainty. "But I'd still prefer not to wake him."
Nodding, Akuron picked her up again, seeming to be unfazed by her weight.
"Hmm?" Usagi looked at the blond man, absolute trust written in her eyes. Akuron's face turned a slight pink as he regarded her face.
"I can't leave you here all night," he explained as he began the long trip down the stairs. "I have a spare bedroom..."
Usagi smiled, her expressive eyes touched and gentle. "I really appreciate that, Akuron. Very much so." Letting herself relax against his strong chest, Usagi felt that strange sensation in her tummy return with a vengeance.
It's not pain, exactly...Usagi considered, her full lips pursed in thought. Her pretty face reddened with embarrassment as she dismissed sexual arousal, for as handsome as he was, she really wasn't...er...attracted to the man like that. No one for her but Mamo-chan, she smiled sweetly, as she remembered the man whom the Fates had destined for her to love. Who had currently, she groaned as she thought back to his drunken demeanor, locked her out of their apartment.
"Is something wrong?" Akuron asked, his breathing a tad uneasy.
Usagi smiled as she banished every thought other than the events currently taking place from her blonde head. "No, just... thinking."
Akuron nodded as he pushed the door to the freedom that lay just outside the apartment building.
"Oh, do you have a car or something?" Usagi asked as she looked at her own, grey one sitting idly by the curb.
Akuron smiled, a secret look filling his eyes. "Nope. Never needed one," he grinned as he started walking quickly down the street. "It's ok, Usagi-san. I live only a block away."
Usagi nodded as she looked back to the apartment building that held the apartments which her and Mamoru had shared since she moved in years before. Shaking her head slowly, Usagi returned her attention to the street ahead of her. Laying silently on the wet ground, the apartment key, hidden in the ring of keys Usagi dropped, lay forgotten by everyone but a lone ant who had decided to explore the cold, hard surface.
* * *
Jadeite cursed fluently as he regarded the girl currently sleeping in his bed. He had panicked; Jadeite winced as he remembered the scene in that godforsaken apartment building.
"Damn her," he grimaced as he listened to Usagi's light snores.
It was unfortunate that she had decided to go search for her bum of a husband right then, right as he took his nightly walk. Just as was the Dark King's habit, he walked by the building that had shielded her from his vengeance.
Growling as he tried to get comfortable in the lumpy armchair, he attempted to pull the light blanket up to his chin...only to leave his freezing toes uncovered to the night.
I couldn't have left her there, Jadeite thought as he gave up on any semblance of comfort while remaining in that chair, the stupid chit would have gotten herself even more hurt than she already is. Even he wouldn't mess with those street gangs that roamed through Tokyo at this time of night. Abandoning her there would only leave her vulnerable, therefore denying him his rightful vengeance.
He hadn't wanted to drag her back to the house that he had bought two years before, which he had considered his own sanctuary. He was lying through his teeth when he mentioned that spare room, but he knew the reincarnated princess would have never accepted had she known she would be putting him out so. Strange girl, he thought as a chuckle invaded his throat, so full of contradictions...
Wincing as he remembered his reaction to the girl's predicament, he had known he had no choice but to approach her as she sat stunned on the ground. When she was but a girl, Usagi would have burst out into uncontrollable tears had Mamoru treated her so roughly then, but now, she carried a demeanor of silent hurt.
Instantly, he assumed the appearance of the person he had just been thinking about, only to assume that person's name minutes later. He shivered as he remembered the last time Akuron and him met...
"Please. Let me help you," Usagi moaned in her sleep, tossing the thin covers off.
He shot up out of the chair and leaned over the young woman as she lay helpless in his bed. It would be so easy to destroy her now, Jadeite thought as he watched her twist with discomfort. But, he couldn't...not yet.
"So easy," he whispered as he brushed a strand of soft, blonde hair away from Usagi's full lips. "I wonder..."
"Please...please let me help you," she begged in her sleep, hot tears pouring from her tightly closed eyes.
It was so tempting, Jadeite frowned as he felt some of his resolve disappear. It would be so easy to let everything go, let his quest for vengeance die, and just go back home and start putting the pieces back together.
As he began stroking her silky hair, Jadeite began to wonder why he didn't do exactly that. "But I can't," he muttered as he lifted his hand away, "I just can't let go of it..." Growling, his mind immediately recalled his imprisonment in the crystal. He didn't even need to look down to identify what was causing the sharp pain to seize his chest. He gritted his teeth as he held the large pendant of nephrite close to his heart. The glowing gem warmed his hands with an intense heat, but fear made it impossible for Jadeite to release the stone.
"Damn," he muttered, his hands trembling, as he watched Usagi stir. Rubbing her eyes with the back of her tiny hands, Usagi slowly started to sit up.
Jadeite jumped back away from the bed as she looked around, those piercing blue eyes clouded over with confusion.
"It's ok, Usagi," Jadeite smiled as he attempted to regain control of his wavering voice. "It's ok. Mamoru locked you out last night, so you slept here. I just heard you groaning, so I came to check on you..." he explained quickly as possible.
Usagi nodded. "Oh, yeah...thanks, Akuron." Her face suddenly flushed. "Um... I hope I didn't wake you up?"
Jadeite smiled, one of the first genuine, non-sarcastic smiles to come to his handsome face in years. "No, Usagi-san, you didn't." Realising the girl held no fear of him, he took the opportunity to sit on the side of the bed.
Even on the bed, it was obvious that he was much taller than the girl. She certainly was beautiful, he grudgingly admitted, as his eyes traced over the gentle, but firm lines of her face. Her blonde hair, mussed and slightly knotted, tumbled over her shoulders, now just barely long enough to cover the impressive curves of her breasts. The shabby, green blanket had fallen to her slender waist, giving the young woman in the pink, silk pajamas an insanely sexy, albeit innocent look.
"You're beautiful," he groaned, lost in the moment. At her surprised look, he nearly slapped himself in the forehead. Damn! he berated himself as he edged away from her. How could I let that slip? She's my enemy, for god's sake, Jadeite cursed himself.
Usagi smiled sweetly, seeming to sense his embarrassment. "Thank you, Akuron. That's very nice of you." Blushing, she touched her blonde hair. "I recently cut it, but I didn't know..."
Jadeite shook his head. "You are beautiful," he assured her, not knowing what got into him. Angry thoughts flooded his head, but Jadeite quickly shut them out. "I've seen you around, Usagi. And I like your hair like this..." he answered honestly as he tentatively touched a long strand, "much better."
Her face lit up. "Really?"
"Really." Jadeite returned her charming smile with one of his own. It's amazing what a compliment can do, he grinned as he saw the difference in her attitude.
"That's a pretty stone," Usagi said as she reached out to touch the mineral dangling around his neck. "But I've never seen a material like it..."
Jadeite looked down at the silver chain carrying the oddly formed, spinach-green lump. "It's called nephrite," he mentioned, watching her eyes blink in surprise.
"Nephrite?" Usagi blurted as she kept her fingers about an inch away from the necklace.
Jadeite chuckled as he recognized the look of utter confusion. "It's a kind of jade..."
"That doesn't look like jade," Usagi muttered as she remembered the bright green ring she had in her treasure box.
"You are thinking of the other jade, jadeite," he answered with a grin. "It's of no worry, most people do. There are a couple types of gems called jade," Jadeite held the nephrite out for her to inspect. "And this is one."
"And what's the other one called?" Usagi asked as she touched the stone.
"Jadeite."
"Oh, yeah. D'oh." Usagi smiled up at the amused man. "So, how do you know all this, Akuron?"
Shrugging, he let the stone fall, only to dangle on his chest. "I like geology."
Usagi giggled at that. "Geesh! Didn't think *anyone* liked geology, except for stuffy old professors and Umino..."
"It's an interesting subject," Jadeite smiled as he leaned against the dark oak bedpost. And then, it hit him.
"What's wrong?" Usagi asked, leaning forward in concern.
Jadeite just shook his head dumbly, wondering what the hell possessed him to not just shelter his worst enemy for a night, but to share a rather amiable conversation with her. I'm a fool, he growled as he stood up.
Usagi jumped out of the bed, the green blanket falling to her feet. "Did I offend you, Akuron? If I did, I'm really sorry..."
Ignoring her, he walked swiftly to the door.
Wincing at the pain in her leg, she just picked up the bunny slippers waiting at the side of the bed. "Thank you very much for helping me, Akuron," Usagi smiled sadly as she gave a deep bow. Slowly, she started limping to the door. She bit off a scream as her unsteady ankle gave way, leaving her clutching a dresser for support.
"Don't be silly, Usagi," Jadeite growled, rather inhospitably. Picking her up roughly, he deposited her on the springy mattress. "It's still the middle of the night."
Usagi nodded, fear finally dawning in her eyes. Pulling herself to the far side of the creaky bed, she watched him carefully, as if she were a hunted animal and he: the predator.
With surprise, Jadeite found he didn't appreciate that look very much. Dammit, he grumbled to himself. How dare she! I've never given her any reason to fear me. Sighing, he sat down next to her.
"I'm sorry, Usagi. I didn't mean it," he apologized, reluctantly admitting to himself that he really didn't. Jadeite was disappointed to see that she only gave him a blank stare, when he had been expecting to see her easy smile.
"Usagi! I'm sorry!" he muttered grumpily as he ran his hand through his hair. Oh, yeah... a braid, he remembered as he looked away from her wide eyes. "I guess I'm just a little tired..."
"A little tired?" Usagi whispered, her voice faint. "Is that why?"
Jadeite nodded, relieved to finally get a response from the girl.
"You treat me like that," Usagi spoke a little louder, her voice trembling with anger. "You yell at me, you literally toss me around...and your excuse is because you are tired?"
"I already said I was sorry!" Jadeite stood up, astonished to see her eyes flashing and nostrils flare. Anger pulsed through his veins as he looked at the small girl glaring up at him from his own bed.
"God, I am just so stupid," she muttered as she rolled to the edge of the bed. "What was I thinking when I actually came home with you..."
"Now, excuse me," Jadeite found himself yelling at the stubborn brat. "Have I done *anything* that gave you reason to think I'd be anything less than a gentleman?"
Usagi chuckled harshly. "Most gentlemen don't go around tossing injured girls on their beds!" Standing on her uninjured foot, she hopped gracelessly around the bed.
Blocking her exit, he towered over her, idly noting the lack of fear written on her beautiful, although a tad flushed face. She had a certain kind of spirit that angered the hell out of him, when it wasn't making him wish to grin like an idiot.
"Well?" she grumbled, her nose wrinkling in a rather unflattering way. Still, he couldn't help thinking that the girl was damn cute. So damn cute.
And then, he kissed her.
Usagi closed her eyes as she pressed her lips against his, her arms pulling his blond head down to meet her. Ignoring her own protests, she threw everything she had in the relatively chaste kiss. Mamoru, she remembered, her heart falling, I can't do this. Mamoru.
Breaking away from the kiss, she smiled weakly up at Akuron. "I... um..." Sighing at the horrible timing, she blushed as her eyes filled with tears.
With more tenderness Usagi ever dreamt of a man possessing, Akuron brushed a fingertip down her cheek. "It's ok, Usagi. I'll leave now. I guess you are right. I'm not a gentleman tonight, am I."
Blinking, Usagi's hands suddenly clutched at her stomach. That weird ache was back to haunt her, bringing another, more familiar emotion with it. Lust. And this time, she wanted to sate that desire more than anything.
"Uh, Akuron?" Usagi asked as she extended a slender arm towards him.
He cocked his head, his chiseled features powdered over with a blush. He was blushing? "Yes, Usagi?"
Go for it, the most wicked part of her soul urged her. What about Mamoru? she asked herself sadly, having the worst time resisting temptation. What about disease? What, she winced at the thought, what if I get pregnant? Selenity wouldn't do this...
Screw Selenity, she cursed, sick and tired of living up to Selenity's standards. What if I go the rest of my life being as alone as I am now? Selenity would never understand.
Summoning all of her courage, her hands trembling and cold, she smiled up at him. Usagi pushed any thought of rejection aside as she spoke. "Don't leave me."
Akuron blinked.
Usagi's heart fell as he remained transfixed, just out of reach. Oh, hell, she groaned silently.
"Usagi?"
Forcing herself to smile, she shrugged. "Oh, um.. nice weather, isn't it?"
He nodded slowly, looking at her carefully. "I would love to stay, Usa-san. But I can't..." The slight frown on his lips spoke more than his voice ever could, she decided. He was disgusted with her. As well he should be, Usagi admitted angrily.
Wincing, she turned away. I can't take this, she thought as her heart began to tear in two. "That's ok. I mean, I just wanted you to stay in case I had any more nightmares..."
Akuron smiled as he moved towards the door, his lips curving up in a slight smile as he let the subject change go unremarked. "I noticed that last one. Seemed pretty intense."
But not as intense as standing in here with you, she smiled wryly to herself. "It was. See you in the morning! Thanks!" she jumped to the bed, and waved as if the arguing, or the kiss never took place.
"Sleep well, Usagi," Akuron whispered as he turned off the lights.
"You too!" she called out cheerfully as she pulled the blanket over her head.
The moment the door was closed, Usagi sat back up. "I don't believe... Oh, Usagi! How *could* you?" she whimpered as a torrent of tears flooded her eyes. Stuffing the pillow hard onto her face, she started to cry.
Jadeite stood outside the door, listening to his enemy's sobs. He would have never guessed it would have been painful to listen to her go on so, but it was. Damn, he cursed as he stalked away. She wasn't what he expected. Sexiness is one thing, Jadeite thought as he pinched the bridge of his nose. He could withstand that. But the sweetness… those eyes… that was a completely different story.
In a matter of one night, his entire world crumbled. The Dark King leaned heavily against the door, his face crestfallen as his eyes focused on the brass knob that separated him from her. It would be so easy just to open the door. So easy to forget. So easy just to let the girl go on with her life. He couldn't summon the anger that had kept him going for so long. It was almost as if he were completely lost in those beautiful, caring eyes.
"Shit," he muttered as he forced himself back to the lumpy chair. One thought burned through his mind, incinerating all others until only it remained. How, he wondered in awe, will I ever destroy an enemy that I no longer hate?