"I had finished a portion of the last and the eleventh; there remained but a single stone to be fitted and plastered in."

"The Cask of Amontillado" by E. A. Poe (1846)

"What do you want?" Endymion's voice was low and dangerous. His eyes, once vibrantly blue, were dark and murky red. Slightly out of breath from my pursuit of him into the Black Moon Clan's territory, I held my chin high and tried to make myself seem as tall as possible.

"You already know what I want." Refusing to allow my voice to waver, I stepped closer to him. He needed to know I was not afraid of him.

"It's never gonna happen, Princess." He did not back away; rather, his warm whisper at my ear sent traitorous gooseflesh down my spine. "Are you sure there's nothing else I can…" he paused, nipping my earlobe between his teeth, "do for you?"

"You can go to hell." I spat as I slapped his cheek. He brought his elegant, princely fingers to his cheek and dabbed at the blood pooling at his lower lip. He chuckled as he slowly turned his face back towards mine.

"So that's the game you want to play, Princess?" In the blink of an eye, he had me pressed against the wall with one large hand pinning both of mine above my head. The other hand, slowly tracing my face. I didn't struggle. I knew that was what he wanted. His hand on my face was gentle and caressing. Mamoru was still there.

I just knew it.

His lips softly ghosted over my face and I couldn't keep my treacherous heart from pounding inside my chest. His entire body was pressed into mine and I could feel the ridges of each muscle from his chest to the lower part of his abdomen. I swallowed as I tried to keep my face neutral.

"I'm going to make you scream, Princess." He murmured against the hollow of my throat. "I'm going to make you scream my name and I'm going to make him watch."

"So you admit he's still in there."

"I never said he wasn't." He said nonchalantly as he pulled back slightly to look into my eyes; his hair slightly obscuring his own. A wicked smile slowly spread across his face as his eyes flicked to a spot on the wall behind me and locked them back on mine. "Your precious Mamoru is locked away. He's calling out for you right now and cursing me all the while. He is pulling at the chains binding him in a vain attempt to overtake me. And the longer he's in there, the weaker he gets until," Endymion snapped his fingers, "in pace requiescat!"

Contextual cues clued me in to what Endymion meant and tears threatened to spill as the mental image of Mamo-chan chained to a wall growing weaker by the minute flashed in my mind. I gritted my teeth. "Let him go."

"No." Endymion's tone was nonchalant as he moved his face a hair's breadth from mine. "I quite like it here in the real world." Despite myself, I licked my parched lips. As if it was even possible, his eyes grew darker and he pressed his lips to mine. My eyes flew open and my hands struggled against his as I resisted the kiss but he held on tighter and pressed further into me. I pressed my lips as close together as I could but felt my resolve weakening. Endymion's lips were the same as Mamoru's: soft and warm.

That's where the similarities ended. The hunger and urgency with which Endymion kissed me was overpowering and I felt myself melting into him as he traced the seam of my lips with his tongue. I hated how quickly my own lips parted for him. I despised how I drank him in as if I was a woman dying of thirst. I abhorred how my body instinctually pressed into his.

But maybe this could work to my advantage.

I allowed the moan I'd been holding back to escape and I could feel him smile against my lips. "Let me touch you…" I whispered between kisses.

"You think me a fool, Princess?" He tightened his grip on my wrists and I felt a sharp bite from his teeth on my earlobe. I gasped as I arched into him. "I am many things… a fool is not one of them."

Raising one of my legs, I wrapped it around his hip, his armor cold against my blazing skin. I grinned internally as his hand moved to bunch the skirt of my fuku to hold my leg in place. He pressed himself into me and I could feel him straining against the fabric of his pants. His lips moved from my ear, down my jawline and to my neck where he nipped at the sensitive skin above the pulse point. A reluctant cry of pleasure escaped me.

His fingers wedged their way between the hem of my bodice and the skin of my thigh and I squirmed against him. Inching their way between my legs, they pulled the fabric down and a rush of cold air danced through the opening and over the wetness of my vagina. Soft, tapered fingers teased the edges of my labia and I bit my lip to keep from whimpering like a lovesick puppy.

"What do you want?" Endymion repeated, his voice a low rumble.

"You already know— ahhh!" I gasped in surprise as he pinched my clit between his thumb and forefinger.

"You were saying, Princess?" He growled as he inserted a finger inside of me. I squeezed my eyes shut as he added a second digit and pleasure welled up within me.

"You—" I sighed. "Right there!" His thumb pressed into my clit as his fingers picked up their pace. Even at our most adventurous, Mamoru was never this rough. My mouth opened in a silent scream and my head fell back against the wall as my orgasm racked my body with violent convulsions. His mouth was back on mine as I floated back to Earth and I heard the metallic sound of his belt and hilt hitting the stone floor. Feelings of culpability overwhelmed me. Guilt for having given in to his seduction. Remorse for having enjoyed it. Shame for not thinking of another way to free him.

I felt him wrench the fabric covering my sex aside and the sound of it ripping echoed in my ears.

'I'm sorry, Mamo-chan.' I blinked back the tears gathering at the corners of my eyes and swallowed a sob. Endymion was exposed before me completely erect and I felt my pulse throbbing in my groin. I hated how much I actually wanted this.

But, if I could weaken his mental defenses, then maybe - just maybe - I could free Mamo-chan.

"I need you…" I whined as I arched my hips towards his. With a smug smile, he placed a hand under my ass and lifted me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist and locked them at his lower back. I felt him rub the head of his cock at my entrance and braced myself. I was so pathetically wet for him that it wasn't long before he was pushing himself inside of me.

My vision went white. Mamoru and I had had sex before but never upright against a wall. Gravity caused him to fill me even further and the sensation was borderline euphoric.

Endymion must have felt it too because he buried his face in my neck as he began to move within me.

I squeezed my eyes shut and silently summoned my Crescent Moon Wand. The timing had to be just right.

His movements became more and more erratic as he climbed closer and closer to his climax. The sounds he made were those of feral satisfaction: growls, grunts, and hisses. I yearned for the word 'Usako' to pass his lips as it did when Mamoru was near orgasm. I longed for Mamoru's eyes locked on mine as we climbed higher and higher together. Endymion's eyes were squeezed shut. Mamoru's hands would gently caress my face, hair, and anywhere he could get his hands on. I craved his gentle touch. I could feel Endymion's fingers digging so deeply into the flesh of my hips that I was sure there would be bruising. As he reached the height of his pleasure, he cried out against the skin of my neck as he filled me.

This was it. It was now or never.

I snapped my eyes open and shouted. "Moon Healing ESCALATION!"


Thank you to Lin Lamont for hosting Dendy Week this year! Make sure to check out all of the other wonderful submissions!

Also thank you to ReisPinkOveralls00 and SailorSpaceCougar for their beta awesomeness!

Latin translations:

Ego te provoco: I challenge you

In pace requiescat: Rest in peace