I've been playing around with the idea of starting a series of shorts for some time now. I'm still relatively new at writing again, and feel like shorts are a good opportunity to practice and hone my skills. As for the title, lacuna (plural lacunae) is Latin for a gap or space. Part of the reason I enjoy writing fanfiction is the opportunity it presents to fill what I see as gaps in the narrative, which is exactly what I'll be doing in these shorts. I didn't want to limit myself to any specific season, hence, they'll be loosely thematically divided into "Day" and "Night". "Day" pieces will generally be fluffy, light, comedic pieces. "Night" pieces will generally be more serious in tone. This isn't to say Day pieces are happy and Night pieces are sad; life isn't that black and white. A million thanks to FloraOne for helping me figure out a way to categorize all the random ideas for shorts floating around my head in a way that makes sense and doesn't limit me much at all.
My first short falls under "Day". It's set firmly in 1990s anime canon, with a little twist that's going to make a lot more sense if you've watched Crystal. I'll leave the rest of my author's notes about this specific piece until the end, lest I spoil anything ;).
I want to send out a massive thank you my beta, Kasienda, whose feedback improved this piece tremendously. She is awesome; go check out her stuff if you haven't already!
Day and Night Lacunae
Day: The Untouchable King
"No."
"Come on, Mamo-chan! What's the harm in doing it for me?"
"No," King Endymion repeated, more firmly this time. "It's gratuitous and inappropriate, and, more importantly, not me at all. I'm not some sort of sex symbol. I'm the king, for God's sake."
Neo-Queen Serenity's snort echoed through the sunlit halls of the Crystal Palace the two walked through. "Mamo-chan, if you don't want to be a sex symbol, you probably should have kept it in your pants at that state banquet last month."
Endymion's blood rushed to his cheeks just as two palace servants turned the corner. They had clearly overheard, judging by the smiles playing at the corners of their lips and feeble attempts to suppress their laughter as they greeted the monarchs.
Serenity did audibly laugh. "I must be going now, love; I have lunch with the senshi today." She leaned up to kiss Endymion on the cheek, clearly amused by his embarrassment.
She stopped to chat with the servants for a minute. And while usually, the queen's effervescent personality and and genuine interest in people captivated all of the palace staff, the two women still glanced in Endymion's direction, their eyes sparkling with amusement.
Endymion excused himself and released an exasperated breath as he sat down in his study, still feeling scandalized. One of his wife's favorite things to do was publicly tease him like that.
One would think that after approximately 200 years of being married, Endymion would have become less of a prude.
And while he had become much more comfortable with sex than he had been in his early adulthood, he still saw no reason to broadcast that to the world.
Serenity was probably right about that state banquet, though.
Between foreign travel, meetings with heads of state and world political conferences, they had barely had any time for each other. She'd been in her element that night — dancing, drinking, chatting up foreign dignitaries as if they were her best friends in the world.
As the night had gone on, his eyes had been glued to her form, laser-focused on the beads of sweat glistening on her back from dancing, the way her gauzy dress hugged her body.
He'd had to have her right then.
Both sloppy from alcohol, he'd led her into a storage room right off the throne room, and they'd had exhilarating sex.
Really, it had been against Endymion's better judgment.
He knew Serenity had a tendency to be loud during sex, especially after a few drinks. What he hadn't expected was the next day's tabloid article: "Untouchable King Can't Resist Queen", complete with a description of how the Queen's moans could be heard resonating throughout the throne room.
That was what they called him. The Untouchable King.
Maybe it was naive, but Endymion had never thought that he and Serenity would provide fodder for the tabloids. Even in their youth, when Usagi would sit on his bed by the big window devouring those trashy celebrity gossip magazines, neither of them had ever made the connection that, as future king and queen, they would eventually be celebrities the tabloids would show an interest in.
Serenity took it in stride, of course; nothing bad was ever said about her. The public adored her, and tabloid pieces about her were fluffy, light, and fun. She had even directly given a few interviews herself, inviting tabloid reporters to the palace for a day of baking (well, in her case, eating) with Makoto. The resulting article had been a hit, filled with pictures of Serenity smiling, making funny faces, and stuffing her mouth with cupcakes.
Endymion never felt the need to do anything similar. He was kind and gracious and open to speaking to the media, of course, but didn't see the use in speaking to tabloids, which he'd always thought of as shoddy excuses for journalism.
It's not like anything particularly bad was ever said about him either, per se.
Early in Serenity and Endymion's reign, articles had focused on the appeal of how mysterious, brooding, and intellectual the king was. They had sometimes commented on his physical appearance as well, but it wasn't until someone had snapped a photo of him and Serenity on vacation at the beach that the headlines took an uncomfortable turn:
Endymi-OH-MY-on Flaunts His Stuff
Who Needs a Tuxedo? Endymion Unmasked
King Can Have 'Diplomatic' Relations with Us Anytime
Those headlines still made him cringe.
The accompanying picture featured the the two of them standing in crystal clear water, Serenity waving and smiling broadly in her bunny-printed two piece, Endymion looking uncomfortably serious next to her in his dark green swim trunks and nothing else.
After that, the tabloid interest in him had grown tenfold.
There had been articles about his workout routine (Royals are Just Like Us: Endymion Manages Stress of Being King of the World with Running), his relationship with the royal cats (Is King Endymion Actually a Cat Whisperer?), and his diet (King's Weaknesses: Serenity AND for Warm Fudge Brownies); along with interviews with people from his past (Endymion still wanted to kill Motoki and Kobayashi for those).
The article that had given rise to the "Untouchable King" nickname was from that crop: Crystal Tokyo's Greatest Love Story: An In-Depth Exposé of the King and Queen's Courtship.
Like everything else, it was mostly a fluff piece, and focused on how a young Mamoru Chiba hadn't shown interest in any girl ever, until one day Usagi Tsukino had walked into the Crown Arcade and he "stupidly couldn't stop teasing her like a little boy unsure of how to flirt" (again, Motoki was dead).
Endymion's conspicuous discomfort at being photographed shirtless, combined with his quiet nature and obvious worship of Serenity had led to the nickname.
Endymion scoffed. If they wanted to call him the Untouchable King because he had no interest in cheating on his wife, so be it.
Serenity was highly amused by the whole thing, collecting her favorite articles and pictures in a scrapbook and constantly teasing him about the tabloids' fascination with his looks and his taciturnity.
Endymion wasn't completely unfamiliar with this type of attention. When he had been Tuxedo Kamen, the Tokyo tabloids had run wild with rumors about his identity, his intentions, and his relationship with Sailor Moon. But then, at least, there had been some anonymity. Mamoru Chiba wasn't directly associated with Tuxedo Kamen, at least, not on the outside.
But now, there was no separating Mamoru Chiba from Endymion-the handsome, untouchable king.
Things had gotten worse for him about a year ago…
"Mamo-chan!" Serenity came dashing into the sitting area of their bedroom in an excited flurry of white and blonde.
Endymion looked up from his book, his reading glasses perched on the edge of his nose. "Usa? Is everything okay?"
Serenity beamed at him. "More than okay. Look!" She thrust a glossy magazine on top of his book. On the page was an old picture of them, well, Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen, gloved hands clasped together, facing down some threat with matching determined looks on their faces. Above the photo, a bold headline proclaimed: "Coming Soon: Anime Adaptation of King and Queen's Story".
Endymion paled, dread falling in the pit of his stomach as he scanned the article's text: "Coming next year, Sailor Moon Crystal, the story of our king, queen, and senshi before they were royals".
"They're doing it! They're making an anime about us!" Serenity exclaimed excitedly. "What do you think?" She didn't bother waiting for an answer, and instead flopped onto her back on the bed, her head over the side, long pigtails pooling onto the carpet below. "I've always wanted an anime about me! I was so jealous of Minako!"
Endymion read the rest of the article, which was peppered with words and phrases like "true story", "unplugged", "exclusive", and "once in a lifetime television event".
"I don't know about this. Shouldn't they have met with us to get the rights or something? And besides, why would we want our private business on TV?"
Serenity rolled her eyes. "Mamo-chan, we barely have any privacy as it is." She propped her elbow onto the side, holding her head up. "This way, we get to be famous!"
"We already are famous," Endymion grumbled in response.
"But not like this! We'll get to be like movie stars! You'll see; this is going to be great!
Endymion really should have expected it.
After all, Usagi used to regularly cram all of her friends into their tiny apartment for binge watching and junk food nights. Upon construction of the Crystal Palace, she'd insisted they add a movie theater room connected to their bedroom, all big screen and oversized leather couches and popcorn bar and surround sound. It was a cozy space rather than an ostentatious one, and Serenity could often be found there unwinding with TV or video games.
Royal or not, she was still Usagi Tsukino.
So, it really shouldn't have surprised him the night he'd stumbled into their bedroom, exhausted from travel, to hear Haruka's voice from the adjoining space. "Sounds like his highness made it in time for his big debut."
All eight senshi were in the theater room, lounging among the fluffy pillows on the ivory-colored couch, bowls of popcorn, plates of sweets, and drinks strewn all around them. In the middle of all of them sat his wife, in her pink and white cotton pajamas, happily picking from the bowl of popcorn perched on her lap.
They may as well have all been in their teens and at a weekly senshi meeting at the Hikawa Shrine.
Endymion furrowed his brow. "My debut?"
Serenity rolled her eyes. "Mamo-chan, could you be any more behind? Sailor Moon Crystal? The anime? The one about us? Tonight's the premiere!" She scooted over and patted the couch next to her. "Come on; it's about to start!"
And that was how Endymion found himself, every Sunday night for the next few months, sandwiched in between all of the senshi, his wife, and occasionally their daughter, watching his past play out in full color.
Each week, everyone felt compelled to share their unfiltered opinions about the anime.
"You were actually a lot more clumsy than that, Usagi-chan," Rei offered one night, laughing as Serenity attempted to aim a piece of popcorn at her head that instead hit Michiru.
They could be savage. And they reserved the majority of their savagery for their king.
"You never actually punched Zoisite, did you?" Makoto asked one night, nibbling on a cookie.
"They really gave you a pass with the fashion thing, huh?" Minako cackled. "No ugly green jacket in sight! From what I remember, you were pretty attached to that thing."
"They probably didn't include the time you two broke up because they couldn't figure out a way to portray it that made any logical sense," Ami quietly mused.
Honestly, Endymion didn't mind these little jabs, and he laughed along with them.
There were moments that were hard to watch, of course.
Chibiusa couldn't bear to watch the episodes in which she became Black Lady. Serenity and Endymion spent more than a few nights tightly wrapped in each other's arms after being reminded of some of their most trying times. They had processed all of these things to death over the years, of course, but sometimes, they still brought her old insecurities and fears to the surface. His, too.
They had all settled into a nice rhythm by the time they hit the third season. It was nice—a weekly respite from reality in which they didn't have to deal with any royal responsibilities and could just be themselves.
And overall, the artists had done an excellent job. Sure, there was some creative license taken here and there, but overall it was evident that they truly wanted to do justice to the king and queen's story. Then, one day, the end credits changed.
They had done this a few times, and it started out innocently enough: Tuxedo Kamen flourishing around (nothing he hadn't been teased about before), images of Princess Serenity and Prince Endymion from the distant past.
But then. Dear God.
The heat rose in Endymion's cheeks as the camera panned up on the animated version on himself, in skinny black jeans and a white button-down shirt, soaking wet, his eyes closed in rapture.
The 1990s-era synth pop music playing was saying something about eternity and being awakened from dreams, but Endymion was not focused on the lyrics.
Instead, his mortification grew as he noticed how tightly the pellucid white shirt clung to his chest, far too many buttons open at the top, the rivulet of water (or was it supposed to be sweat?) that coursed down his left cheek.
What. The. Fuck.
The camera zoomed in on his face and his blush deepened as his animated counterpart opened his eyes, wet lashes accenting his brooding expression.
It had only been a minute before the screen again switched to images of him and Serenity, but the change of mood in the room was palpable.
Serenity was biting her bottom lip and staring straight at the screen, her fist clenched, her pupils dilated. He knew that look. Endymion swallowed nervously before scanning the rest of the room.
Ami was suddenly very interested in the drink in her hand. Minako, Rei, and Michiru were exchanging knowing smirks with each other. Chibiusa looked mortified. Even Setsuna had a slight tinge of red to her cheeks.
Endymion wanted to sink into the couch and disappear.
Haruka coughed. "Well. It certainly seems like they took some creative license with the untouchable king."
And that was when it had started. Serenity begging him to recreate that animated moment in real life, his repeated refusals to falling on deaf ears.
"Come on, Mamo-chan. Just for me? I promise I won't tell the girls."
Yeah, right. Endymion was pretty sure those women could describe the intimate details of his sex life better than he could.
On one occasion, he'd come to their room to find a folded up white button-down and black skinny jeans (where had she even found those? They'd gone out of style years ago) on their bed, a post-it note with a winking hand drawn bunny stuck to them. Exasperated, he'd tossed them into a dresser drawer.
Another day, she'd come home with a postcard print of a still from the anime. "Look! Here's the latest souvenir from that shop outside the palace. Apparently, it's a bestseller." She tucked it into the mirror of her vanity, and Endymion grimaced every time he caught a glance of his wet, animated self.
After getting a few hours of work done, Endymion sighed again, sinking more deeply into the chair in his study, his thoughts drifting back to his current predicament.
For one, the animated scenario Serenity wanted him to recreate wasn't realistic. Not once, in all of the battles and tribulations they'd faced together, from being kidnapped and brainwashed by evil queens to facing off against ridiculous circus freak youma, had either of them ended up soaking wet for any reason that he could remember.
And if they had, it certainly hadn't been sexy.
It also wasn't practical. Whenever Endymion had been caught in the rain without an umbrella, he'd been annoyed by the cold and the sticky clothes weighing him down.
"Oy, Kendy!"
Endymion looked up at the familiar voice as Sailor Venus strolled into his study and hoisted herself up into a sitting position on the edge of his desk. Of all the senshi, Venus cared the least about adhering to royal protocol with him behind closed doors. He supposed it had something to do with an ancient, yet still vivid, memory he had of Venus threatening to destroy him if he ever broke Princess Serenity's heart.
And while Endymion knew that Venus had grown to respect and love him like family, she certainly still held all of the power in their relationship.
"What can I do for you, Minako?"
Venus looked back at him over her shoulder, her fingernails tapping on his desk. "Nothing for me, thanks. But you can do something for your wife. You know that meeting she had this afternoon with the American delegation? It didn't go well."
As if on cue, Serenity walked into the study and let out an exhausted breath as she plopped down in a chair. "That was a disaster," she groaned, rubbing her temples. "They just…refuse to see reason, and on top of that, they were just…"
"Assholes," Venus finished helpfully.
Endymion took note of the frustrated tears pooling at the edge of Serenity's eyes, the slight tremble of her bottom lip. Serenity exuded a quiet strength and steely resolve in her official capacities as queen, but, underneath all that, she was still deeply sensitive, and clearly, this meeting had upset her.
Frowning, he looked up from his wife to Venus and gave her an almost imperceptible nod.
She smirked in response. The king could be talked into doing almost anything to cheer Serenity up when she was sad. That's what Venus was counting on.
And that was how, later that evening, the King of Crystal Tokyo found himself sitting on the edge of the royal couple's soaking tub, fully dressed except for his shoes, resigned to drenching himself in the adjacent shower at any minute.
He tugged at the waist of the skin tight black jeans, the fabric constricting him. No wonder these had gone out of style; they were so uncomfortable! The white button-down was easy enough—a little bit longer and tighter than what he was accustomed to, but not terrible.
Endymion had to keep replaying Serenity's sad, defeated face in his mind to stop himself from running out of the room in embarrassment.
While their bathroom suite did contain all the traditional Japanese elements - separate shower room, ofuro — it also featured a large, Western-style jacuzzi tub. After long weeks or tough days, Serenity had taken to unwinding under a massive pile of soapy, scented bubbles, jets swirling the water all around her.
Sometimes, Endymion joined her, but, at this time in the evening, he could most often be found showering after his evening run. Given that, Serenity wouldn't suspect anything.
Endymion straightened as he heard Serenity enter the bathroom and start running the water in the tub. Her exhausted sigh as she sank into the water signaled that it was time. He took a deep breath, reached for the faucet, and grimaced as he stepped under the running water.
His bare feet padding on the cool tile, Endymion opened the door a crack to spy Serenity, deeply sunken in the jacuzzi, skin flushed from the heat, hair piled atop her head. He frowned at the crease on her forehead, the frown on her face. Maybe this would be worth it after all.
Endymion saw the perfect opportunity when she closed her eyes. He curled his fingers in a familiar motion, felt the flower form between his fingertips, then softly took aim. 'Still got it,' he thought, as the rose landed perfectly on a pile of fluffy towels on the edge of the tub.
At the same time Serenity's eyes snapped open, Endymion reached for the remote control he had placed on the windowsill earlier and couldn't help but cringe as a very familiar 90s-era synth pop song filled the bathroom.
Serenity looked around wildly as Endymion emerged from the shower room, drenched and feeling like an idiot.
But he needed to commit.
It had been a while since he'd given a campy speech. "Feeling your feelings is a thing of beauty, but I, Tuxedo Mask, am here to listen to the song of your heart."
Not his best, but it had been a few hundred years.
Endymion had expected Serenity to be thrilled by his grand, romantic gesture. After all, she had been asking him for this for months, and he'd finally given in. She would look at him like she looked at his animated self, and then they'd have made passionate love, probably on the cold bathroom floor.
What he had not expected was the confused stare he was met with instead.
"Mamo-chan, what are you doing?" Serenity looked him up and down, and the crease in her brow grew. "And why are you all wet?"
Endymion was flabbergasted by her reaction. "The outfit? The song?" He gave a little twirl, water dripping down his face, and immediately felt stupid for doing so.
Realization slowly dawned on Serenity's face. "Oh. Oh."And then, she started laughing. Not just giggles, but deep belly laughs that sent the water in the tub wildly waving around and splashing over the sides.
Endymion stared awkwardly at her and knelt down by the tub, getting cold from the wet clothes sticking to him. "I'm trying to do sexy anime Mamoru Chiba for you," he tried to explain.
"By getting into the shower fully dressed and then scaring me half to death?"
"I wanted to cheer you up," Endymion mumbled dejectedly. He felt stupid.
Serenity laughed again, wiping the tears from of mirth from her eyes. She reached over the edge of the tub and clasped her hands with his, smiling "Well, you have."
"Fine," Endymion growled, pulling the cold and wet shirt over his head and tossing it to the floor. The mood in the room instantly changed. Serenity bit her bottom lip, eyes roving over Endymion's now naked chest. He responded with a raised eyebrow and his trademark cocky grin.
Perhaps sex on the bathroom floor wasn't completely off the table tonight.
There you go! This little piece was actually inspired by one of FloraOne's Tumblr posts, in which she pointed out that Usagi would probably be REALLY into wet Mamoru from those Crystal end credits. It wasn't meant as a prompt, but I certainly took it as one, so thank you for that! I also have to thank FloraOne for general advice about how to just write without getting stuck in my own perfectionism. I once referred to her as the fairy godmother of Sailor Moon fanfiction authors, and that still stands.
I'm VERY curious to hear what people think of this, since comedy is so far from anything I've written before, so please let me know! I'm honestly shocked that my first short is comedic, as I have a feeling the total collection will be lopsided in the other direction.
And again, thank you thank you thank you to Kasienda!
Much love to all, and Merry Christmas!