Disclaimer: I think we've established that no one on this site owns Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon, and I'll be damned if any of us ever do.
Author's Notes: A change of scenery is always nice... I myself am in the mood to go to the beach. I'm a little envious of the characters in this chapter, but then again, judging by the things that I'm going to do to them, I'm content with just pointing and laughing.
To my editor, whom I've been avoiding: I'm still ashamed of myself. I know you said that you'd stick around for the duration, but I don't feel right e-mailing you a chapter after almost half a year. I don't deserve you! I have to learn to do this on my own, now. I haven't the courage to request your aid anymore. I value your help and enthusiasm, but you must have better things to do than revise my overdue chapters.
' denotes thought
AN: =author's notes
denotes mental messages
The Winning Losers
Chapter 17: Shenanigans by the Seashore Part 1
"You're an angel. Do you know that?"
"Yes, actually, I do! You tell me all the time."
"You're my angel."
"Oh Endy, hush!"
"I can't help it, Usako."
"Have you been taking lessons from my romance novels?"
"That Annabelle on the cover is a looker, ain't she?"
"Endy...."
"I'm kidding, darling. Pierre is so much hotter."
"He is a fox, isn't he?"
Endymion gasped and put an affronted hand over his heart. "How could you say such a thing in my presence?"
"I'm sorry," giggled Serenity. "I know that you had your eye on him first."
"That's not what I meant," he huffed adorably.
"Oh? And exactly what did you mean, my prince?"
"I thought that I was the fox!"
"You know very well that you are a handsome young man, Endy. I'm sure you get compliments a thousand times a day on Earth. You don't need me to tell you that."
"But I like it when you tell me such things. Only when the compliment comes from your mouth does it ever mean anything to me."
"You're such a woman! Aren't you supposed to be flattering me?"
"Oh, but I just did! What I'm saying is simply this: people may tell me a million nice things, but a million nice things from them mean nothing compared to just one word from you."
Princess Usagi Serenity II, being a lady of decorum, hid her growing smile behind her lace fan and turned her head away from him.
"What am I to do with you, Endy?" she sighed, shaking her head fondly.
The park was empty that cool summer afternoon, save for the two young royals and the understood sentiment saturating the air. They were sitting on the wood-and-rope swings, side by side, and Serenity's flowing, seashell pink chiffon skirts barely brushed the soft green grass. As she swung slowly, the amber rays of sunlight danced in her golden locks, and every now and then, Endymion would subconsciously run his hand through a silken river of her hair.
Endymion stood up from his swing and moved behind his princess. He slowed her forward and backward motion by gently holding on to her narrow shoulders, and when she finally came to a stop, she tilted her head up to face him. He stood entranced, looking down and falling into her luminous cornflower blue eyes.
"I flatter you all day, and yet you tell me to stop. A modest angel, you are."
"I guess your superfluous adulation is okay for now. I mean, you're only making up for eight lost years, am I right?"
"Quite so. Though the warmth of your letters has brought me unmatched joy, ink and stationary is hardly a substitute for the real person."
"I thought I was an angel," she playfully corrected, leaning into him with her head still tilted upward.
"You are. My angel..." he trailed off, closing the distance between their lips.
The bright, cloudless summer season was the perfect time to experience the Sea of Serenity, just five miles from the Moon Palace. It was only natural for Queen Serenity to suggest a fun-filled day at the beach to her best friends, Queen Gwendolyn and King James. The first week of their visit was devoted to catching up and reminiscence. They were ready to have some real fun.
The king was getting restless. He loved his wife more than life itself, and he adored Serenity Sr., but a man, especially a scamp of a man like James, could only bear the company of chatty women for so long. The beach sounded good to him.
Artemis had caught a cold after Luna threw him into the Clairdesprit River, but he was nonetheless game to jump into the waters of the Sea of Serenity if it meant that he could ogle Luna in a swimsuit.
"Plus," reasoned the Queen, "the Senshi and the Shittenou deserve a day of repose and recreation."
And so our heroes found themselves on the shore of the sea, sandals adorning their feet and sunscreen lotion glistening on their skin.
"Why am I here again?" groaned Kunzite, taking off his sunglasses.
"For fun," muttered Nephrite.
Zoisite eyed a trio of scantily clad blondes sunbathing on the sand. He then turned his attention to a sexy red-head frolicking with her pretty girl friend in the water. A sensual dirty blonde sixty-three degrees to his left was massaging sun tan lotion onto her thighs. His "wench-radar" was going off the charts. "You know, I think this trip wasn't such a bad idea."
The memory of the bet with Princess Ami nagged him in the back of his head. 'But I have six months to accomplish that! Surely, I can take the day off today.' A steamy, exotic looking woman brushed against him as she walked past, winking at him to show that her brush with him was no accident. 'And maybe I can take off more than just the day,' he thought roguishly.
He was about to follow the smoking temptress when an unmistakable head of blue hair floated into his peripheral vision. Princess Ami was a distraction, and for the life of him, Zoisite couldn't think why. He found himself standing in place, losing track of the anonymous woman who had brushed into him. He forgot that she even existed. Ami was certainly no temptress, and her present attire, unlike the rest of the beach's visitors, revealed nothing on which the imagination could elaborate. A sizeable, flimsy straw sun hat completely shaded her delicate pale face, and the upper half of her body hid under a thin, long-sleeved beige cardigan. Her matching floral-print skirt flowed down to her ankles, down to her light tan loafers. With lucid blue eyes framed behind gold framed reading glasses fixed intently on the book in her hands, Ami sat beneath the huge beach umbrella, content with the company of the sea breeze in her hair and the sand in her skirts.
Zoisite couldn't take it. She didn't deserve rescuing, but she needed it. Determined to carry out his mission at hand, he stalked over to her, pulled the book quickly out of her hand, threw it to the side, and pulled her to her feet.
"Lord Aufait, exactly what do you think you are doing?" she asked pointedly.
"Saving your ungrateful self, Ice," he retorted, "And just call me Zoisite, for goodness' sake. The lord and lady stuff seems wildly out of place at the beach."
"And who's going to save me from you and your annoying self?"
"No one until you learn to live life properly. Look, I don't particularly like you, let alone understand you, but I can't let you waste this beautiful day by the ocean. Don't you ever just enjoy yourself and the things around you?"
"I have plenty of fun. The girls and I always --"
"Sure, but besides the Senshi and the princess, don't you ever socialize, ever just lose yourself?"
"I haven't the need nor the desire. My loved ones and my books are all I need to be happy."
"I know what you mean, but don't you ever just want to be free, like a child? Forgetting about your royal responsibilities for a moment, don't you ever wish to just be human?"
The look she gave him chilled his bones, despite the sunny weather. "I am very human, Zoisite. You just don't have the privilege of seeing it." Zoisite scrunched his brow. That hurt. The worst part was that he knew it shouldn't have.
She turned to look out at the glistening sea. "And aren't you supposed to be scouring the shore for the love of your life?" she asked, looking sideways at him with the slightest hint of a smirk. God, was she pretty when she had that expression on her face. "I believe you only have five months, thirty days, and twelve hours until our bet reaches its deadline."
"Yeah, yeah, but that can wait. No pressure." He grabbed her hand and dragged her toward the water.
"What are you doing?" she yelled. "I'm still fully dressed!"
He stopped abruptly, causing her to smack into him. "Right you are. Did you even bring a swimming outfit? Or did you make sure to leave it at home so no one could persuade you to get a little wet?"
She rolled her eyes, exasperated with his narrow-mindedness. "My elements are water and ice, you daft twit. Of course I brought my bathing suit. I'm at home in the water."
"Then what are you waiting for? Go change!" he ordered.
"No need. I'm wearing it underneath my clothes." Walking back toward the beach umbrella, she unpinned the hat from her short navy locks and shook her head so they bounced freely around her face. Zoisite watched her, completely transfixed, and she seemed to move in slow motion, in measured, graceful movements. He watched the hat hover down to the sand. He watched her creamy hand push the cardigan from her shoulders and watched her lift her blouse over her head. He watched her step out of her long skirt and into the sunlight, kicking her loafers into the air and walking toward him, barefoot and smiling. "I'm ready now."
It was a simple black one-piece swimsuit that clung beautifully to her. The straps were thin laces that tied into a bow behind her neck, and the suit completely exposed her smooth white back, showing off the graceful line of her spine. He never realized how long and shapely her legs were, and although she was rather thin, she had an appealing athletic build. Most surprising of all, she didn't seem the least bit uncomfortable as he'd thought she'd be. She didn't seem to mind the appreciative stares from the male population or the fact that she was wearing a tight suit out in the open. As she had said, she was at home on the beach.
Zoisite cleared his throat. "I think the guys are setting up a volleyball net. Let's get a game going, shall we?"
Ami ran past him. "I'm way ahead of you!"
She never ceased to surprise him.
Minako prepared herself for battle. Her trademark red hair ribbon secured her long golden hair in a high ponytail, and her glowing golden arms crossed her crimson bikini top. The sides of her bikini bottom were tied in small bows, and she had wrapped a semi-transparent sarong patterned with flames around her well-rounded hips. The ensuing volleyball game was a girls versus boys affair, and her team had named her captain. She, a former volleyball superstar during her schoolgirl years and a consummate athlete. This was her game, her victory. She practically owned the sport.
Ami, Makoto, Rei, Usagi, Luna, and Minako faced their smug male opponents on the other side of the net. After much pleading, Luna had actually agreed to fill the sixth spot needed to complete the team. Artemis had readily jumped into the game. Passing for the girls team in the back were Ami, Rei, and Luna. The Princess Serenity would play setter and front center in her frilly pink and white swimsuit, and the obvious choices for outside hitters were the tall and powerful Makoto and the speedy and talented Minako.
The men, being the male chauvinists that they are, were acting like they had a guaranteed victory. Kunzite was nominated team captain, and he had positioned himself to pass in the back between a grinning Artemis and a humming Endymion. Zoisite, the setter, was playing "Ring Around the Rosie" with Jadeite, an outside hitter, as the other outside hitter, Nephrite, bounced the ball on his head.
During the coin toss, Kunzite had called heads, and because the coin landed heads, the men got to serve first. Ami, Rei, and Luna got low to the ground with arms outstretched, ready to receive the ball. Nephrite threw the ball over his broad shoulder to Endymion, the first to serve. The crown prince rolled the ball between his hands, took a deep breath, stepped back a few steps, tossed the ball up, charged forward, and delivered a beautiful jump serve, launching the poor ball with fierce speed.
"I got it!" shouted Rei, even before her cousin's serving hand had touched the ball. Her psychic powers were good for more than just saving the galaxy. She lunged forward so that the ball bounced perfectly off her forearms and into Usagi's poised and reflexive hands. The petite blonde set the ball without a problem to Minako, and with a ferocious fire in her eyes that matched the sarong around her waist, Minako spiked the ball with such strength and speed that she caught the men off guard. The ball ended up in their court, a foot deep in the sand and smoldering. They looked at her incredulously, fearfully. She winked at them, blowing them an innocent kiss. Could they even hope to compete with Minako, a volleyball legend?
"One to zero!" called Luna.
"How 'bout a little one-on-one between you and me?" shouted back Artemis.
A few minutes later, Artemis was lying face down on the ground with a mouthful of sand to keep him quiet.
The men soon learned not to underestimate their female opponents. Soon, it was game point, ladies 14, men 13. Kunzite, not one to take defeat lightly, vowed to put an end to the game. He would not, could not lose to a bunch of girls. However, throughout the entire match, he studied Minako's movements and facial expressions, admired the grace of her maneuvers. She was highly skilled, that was for sure. He found comfort in knowing that if hell should freeze over and his team should lose, at least their adversary was worthy. Not to mention incredibly sexy in a blazing red bikini.
His mind lost track of the ball. Unfortunately, the ball found him.
While he let himself get carried away by fantasy and other unmentionable things, Serenity had set a perfect ball to Minako the Great, who then smacked the ball with more power than a cannon shooting a cannonball. Kunzite knew this for a fact - he felt the full force of it as it smacked into his forehead.
"Kunzite, are you alright?"
"My lord?"
"Speak to me, son!"
"How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Hey! Put that finger down! There's kids around!"
Kunzite groaned. He opened his eyes to see eleven blurry faces moving in and out of blackness. He couldn't get up from his prostrate position. His head pounded with too much pain. Suddenly, he felt a warm hand hold up his neck and set his head on a soft lap. "Kunzite, I'm so sorry… Oh, please be okay…"
Minako's voice. Worried? Holding him. Close to him. She smelled like cinnamon and vanilla.
"What the hell is your problem?!" she screeched.
Moment ruined.
Cracking open one eye, he muttered an oath. "What the hell is yours?" he groaned back, lifting a hand to the nasty bulge growing on his head. She smacked his hand away. "Don't touch it," she ordered. "Ami-chan's getting the first aid kit. Why did you just stand there and let the ball pound you in the face? You're Kunzite the Stony, not Kunzite the Stoner! You normally have such good reflexes." He looked around at their audience. The Senshi and the Shittenou were regarding them with a mixture of interest and suspicion. Their looks put him on the defensive. He tried to get his head off Minako's lap quickly. Bad idea, though. It only made the pain worst.
"You idiot, hold still!" She pinned his shoulders to the ground. Looking up at their companions, she assured them that she could handle the situation and took the ice pack that Ami offered. The crowd dispersed, leaving Kunzite alone with Minako in the middle of the volleyball court. Gently, she held the ice pack to his rising bruise, stroking his platinum hair away from his face. Though the pounding in his head was awful, he felt more content than he ever did in his life.
Minako bent her head over him, and her golden ponytail lightly brushed his face. Her lustrous blue eyes scrutinized him to check for signs of serious head trauma. After a time, she was satisfied, and they were not aware how long they stayed like that.
"Kunzite?" she addressed him after so long.
"Hmm?" he murmured lazily.
"We kicked your ass."
"WHAT?! I was injured! That's not fair."
"Life's not fair, but the ladies still won."
"No way. Rematch."
"Sore loser."
"Cheater."
"LOSER."
"COWARD."
Minako pressed the ice pack hard into his throbbing bump. He hissed in pain and finally shut up.
She won this round. His head still hurt. They still had the whole day at the beach ahead of them. Together.
The headache was not going away any time soon.
I'm leaving this whole summer! I won't even be in the country! Because I wouldn't have internet access, I had to cut the intended length of this chapter in half, and for that I am sorry. But I know people want to see the story continue, so hopefully, not to many people are disappointed. Thanks for the reviews and the helpful criticisms… As a writer, I've learned that I still have a long way to go as far as my skills are concerned.
Review! When I come back to the States, I better see a mailbox full of them!
Author's Notes: A change of scenery is always nice... I myself am in the mood to go to the beach. I'm a little envious of the characters in this chapter, but then again, judging by the things that I'm going to do to them, I'm content with just pointing and laughing.
To my editor, whom I've been avoiding: I'm still ashamed of myself. I know you said that you'd stick around for the duration, but I don't feel right e-mailing you a chapter after almost half a year. I don't deserve you! I have to learn to do this on my own, now. I haven't the courage to request your aid anymore. I value your help and enthusiasm, but you must have better things to do than revise my overdue chapters.
' denotes thought
AN: =author's notes
denotes mental messages
The Winning Losers
Chapter 17: Shenanigans by the Seashore Part 1
"You're an angel. Do you know that?"
"Yes, actually, I do! You tell me all the time."
"You're my angel."
"Oh Endy, hush!"
"I can't help it, Usako."
"Have you been taking lessons from my romance novels?"
"That Annabelle on the cover is a looker, ain't she?"
"Endy...."
"I'm kidding, darling. Pierre is so much hotter."
"He is a fox, isn't he?"
Endymion gasped and put an affronted hand over his heart. "How could you say such a thing in my presence?"
"I'm sorry," giggled Serenity. "I know that you had your eye on him first."
"That's not what I meant," he huffed adorably.
"Oh? And exactly what did you mean, my prince?"
"I thought that I was the fox!"
"You know very well that you are a handsome young man, Endy. I'm sure you get compliments a thousand times a day on Earth. You don't need me to tell you that."
"But I like it when you tell me such things. Only when the compliment comes from your mouth does it ever mean anything to me."
"You're such a woman! Aren't you supposed to be flattering me?"
"Oh, but I just did! What I'm saying is simply this: people may tell me a million nice things, but a million nice things from them mean nothing compared to just one word from you."
Princess Usagi Serenity II, being a lady of decorum, hid her growing smile behind her lace fan and turned her head away from him.
"What am I to do with you, Endy?" she sighed, shaking her head fondly.
The park was empty that cool summer afternoon, save for the two young royals and the understood sentiment saturating the air. They were sitting on the wood-and-rope swings, side by side, and Serenity's flowing, seashell pink chiffon skirts barely brushed the soft green grass. As she swung slowly, the amber rays of sunlight danced in her golden locks, and every now and then, Endymion would subconsciously run his hand through a silken river of her hair.
Endymion stood up from his swing and moved behind his princess. He slowed her forward and backward motion by gently holding on to her narrow shoulders, and when she finally came to a stop, she tilted her head up to face him. He stood entranced, looking down and falling into her luminous cornflower blue eyes.
"I flatter you all day, and yet you tell me to stop. A modest angel, you are."
"I guess your superfluous adulation is okay for now. I mean, you're only making up for eight lost years, am I right?"
"Quite so. Though the warmth of your letters has brought me unmatched joy, ink and stationary is hardly a substitute for the real person."
"I thought I was an angel," she playfully corrected, leaning into him with her head still tilted upward.
"You are. My angel..." he trailed off, closing the distance between their lips.
The bright, cloudless summer season was the perfect time to experience the Sea of Serenity, just five miles from the Moon Palace. It was only natural for Queen Serenity to suggest a fun-filled day at the beach to her best friends, Queen Gwendolyn and King James. The first week of their visit was devoted to catching up and reminiscence. They were ready to have some real fun.
The king was getting restless. He loved his wife more than life itself, and he adored Serenity Sr., but a man, especially a scamp of a man like James, could only bear the company of chatty women for so long. The beach sounded good to him.
Artemis had caught a cold after Luna threw him into the Clairdesprit River, but he was nonetheless game to jump into the waters of the Sea of Serenity if it meant that he could ogle Luna in a swimsuit.
"Plus," reasoned the Queen, "the Senshi and the Shittenou deserve a day of repose and recreation."
And so our heroes found themselves on the shore of the sea, sandals adorning their feet and sunscreen lotion glistening on their skin.
"Why am I here again?" groaned Kunzite, taking off his sunglasses.
"For fun," muttered Nephrite.
Zoisite eyed a trio of scantily clad blondes sunbathing on the sand. He then turned his attention to a sexy red-head frolicking with her pretty girl friend in the water. A sensual dirty blonde sixty-three degrees to his left was massaging sun tan lotion onto her thighs. His "wench-radar" was going off the charts. "You know, I think this trip wasn't such a bad idea."
The memory of the bet with Princess Ami nagged him in the back of his head. 'But I have six months to accomplish that! Surely, I can take the day off today.' A steamy, exotic looking woman brushed against him as she walked past, winking at him to show that her brush with him was no accident. 'And maybe I can take off more than just the day,' he thought roguishly.
He was about to follow the smoking temptress when an unmistakable head of blue hair floated into his peripheral vision. Princess Ami was a distraction, and for the life of him, Zoisite couldn't think why. He found himself standing in place, losing track of the anonymous woman who had brushed into him. He forgot that she even existed. Ami was certainly no temptress, and her present attire, unlike the rest of the beach's visitors, revealed nothing on which the imagination could elaborate. A sizeable, flimsy straw sun hat completely shaded her delicate pale face, and the upper half of her body hid under a thin, long-sleeved beige cardigan. Her matching floral-print skirt flowed down to her ankles, down to her light tan loafers. With lucid blue eyes framed behind gold framed reading glasses fixed intently on the book in her hands, Ami sat beneath the huge beach umbrella, content with the company of the sea breeze in her hair and the sand in her skirts.
Zoisite couldn't take it. She didn't deserve rescuing, but she needed it. Determined to carry out his mission at hand, he stalked over to her, pulled the book quickly out of her hand, threw it to the side, and pulled her to her feet.
"Lord Aufait, exactly what do you think you are doing?" she asked pointedly.
"Saving your ungrateful self, Ice," he retorted, "And just call me Zoisite, for goodness' sake. The lord and lady stuff seems wildly out of place at the beach."
"And who's going to save me from you and your annoying self?"
"No one until you learn to live life properly. Look, I don't particularly like you, let alone understand you, but I can't let you waste this beautiful day by the ocean. Don't you ever just enjoy yourself and the things around you?"
"I have plenty of fun. The girls and I always --"
"Sure, but besides the Senshi and the princess, don't you ever socialize, ever just lose yourself?"
"I haven't the need nor the desire. My loved ones and my books are all I need to be happy."
"I know what you mean, but don't you ever just want to be free, like a child? Forgetting about your royal responsibilities for a moment, don't you ever wish to just be human?"
The look she gave him chilled his bones, despite the sunny weather. "I am very human, Zoisite. You just don't have the privilege of seeing it." Zoisite scrunched his brow. That hurt. The worst part was that he knew it shouldn't have.
She turned to look out at the glistening sea. "And aren't you supposed to be scouring the shore for the love of your life?" she asked, looking sideways at him with the slightest hint of a smirk. God, was she pretty when she had that expression on her face. "I believe you only have five months, thirty days, and twelve hours until our bet reaches its deadline."
"Yeah, yeah, but that can wait. No pressure." He grabbed her hand and dragged her toward the water.
"What are you doing?" she yelled. "I'm still fully dressed!"
He stopped abruptly, causing her to smack into him. "Right you are. Did you even bring a swimming outfit? Or did you make sure to leave it at home so no one could persuade you to get a little wet?"
She rolled her eyes, exasperated with his narrow-mindedness. "My elements are water and ice, you daft twit. Of course I brought my bathing suit. I'm at home in the water."
"Then what are you waiting for? Go change!" he ordered.
"No need. I'm wearing it underneath my clothes." Walking back toward the beach umbrella, she unpinned the hat from her short navy locks and shook her head so they bounced freely around her face. Zoisite watched her, completely transfixed, and she seemed to move in slow motion, in measured, graceful movements. He watched the hat hover down to the sand. He watched her creamy hand push the cardigan from her shoulders and watched her lift her blouse over her head. He watched her step out of her long skirt and into the sunlight, kicking her loafers into the air and walking toward him, barefoot and smiling. "I'm ready now."
It was a simple black one-piece swimsuit that clung beautifully to her. The straps were thin laces that tied into a bow behind her neck, and the suit completely exposed her smooth white back, showing off the graceful line of her spine. He never realized how long and shapely her legs were, and although she was rather thin, she had an appealing athletic build. Most surprising of all, she didn't seem the least bit uncomfortable as he'd thought she'd be. She didn't seem to mind the appreciative stares from the male population or the fact that she was wearing a tight suit out in the open. As she had said, she was at home on the beach.
Zoisite cleared his throat. "I think the guys are setting up a volleyball net. Let's get a game going, shall we?"
Ami ran past him. "I'm way ahead of you!"
She never ceased to surprise him.
Minako prepared herself for battle. Her trademark red hair ribbon secured her long golden hair in a high ponytail, and her glowing golden arms crossed her crimson bikini top. The sides of her bikini bottom were tied in small bows, and she had wrapped a semi-transparent sarong patterned with flames around her well-rounded hips. The ensuing volleyball game was a girls versus boys affair, and her team had named her captain. She, a former volleyball superstar during her schoolgirl years and a consummate athlete. This was her game, her victory. She practically owned the sport.
Ami, Makoto, Rei, Usagi, Luna, and Minako faced their smug male opponents on the other side of the net. After much pleading, Luna had actually agreed to fill the sixth spot needed to complete the team. Artemis had readily jumped into the game. Passing for the girls team in the back were Ami, Rei, and Luna. The Princess Serenity would play setter and front center in her frilly pink and white swimsuit, and the obvious choices for outside hitters were the tall and powerful Makoto and the speedy and talented Minako.
The men, being the male chauvinists that they are, were acting like they had a guaranteed victory. Kunzite was nominated team captain, and he had positioned himself to pass in the back between a grinning Artemis and a humming Endymion. Zoisite, the setter, was playing "Ring Around the Rosie" with Jadeite, an outside hitter, as the other outside hitter, Nephrite, bounced the ball on his head.
During the coin toss, Kunzite had called heads, and because the coin landed heads, the men got to serve first. Ami, Rei, and Luna got low to the ground with arms outstretched, ready to receive the ball. Nephrite threw the ball over his broad shoulder to Endymion, the first to serve. The crown prince rolled the ball between his hands, took a deep breath, stepped back a few steps, tossed the ball up, charged forward, and delivered a beautiful jump serve, launching the poor ball with fierce speed.
"I got it!" shouted Rei, even before her cousin's serving hand had touched the ball. Her psychic powers were good for more than just saving the galaxy. She lunged forward so that the ball bounced perfectly off her forearms and into Usagi's poised and reflexive hands. The petite blonde set the ball without a problem to Minako, and with a ferocious fire in her eyes that matched the sarong around her waist, Minako spiked the ball with such strength and speed that she caught the men off guard. The ball ended up in their court, a foot deep in the sand and smoldering. They looked at her incredulously, fearfully. She winked at them, blowing them an innocent kiss. Could they even hope to compete with Minako, a volleyball legend?
"One to zero!" called Luna.
"How 'bout a little one-on-one between you and me?" shouted back Artemis.
A few minutes later, Artemis was lying face down on the ground with a mouthful of sand to keep him quiet.
The men soon learned not to underestimate their female opponents. Soon, it was game point, ladies 14, men 13. Kunzite, not one to take defeat lightly, vowed to put an end to the game. He would not, could not lose to a bunch of girls. However, throughout the entire match, he studied Minako's movements and facial expressions, admired the grace of her maneuvers. She was highly skilled, that was for sure. He found comfort in knowing that if hell should freeze over and his team should lose, at least their adversary was worthy. Not to mention incredibly sexy in a blazing red bikini.
His mind lost track of the ball. Unfortunately, the ball found him.
While he let himself get carried away by fantasy and other unmentionable things, Serenity had set a perfect ball to Minako the Great, who then smacked the ball with more power than a cannon shooting a cannonball. Kunzite knew this for a fact - he felt the full force of it as it smacked into his forehead.
"Kunzite, are you alright?"
"My lord?"
"Speak to me, son!"
"How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Hey! Put that finger down! There's kids around!"
Kunzite groaned. He opened his eyes to see eleven blurry faces moving in and out of blackness. He couldn't get up from his prostrate position. His head pounded with too much pain. Suddenly, he felt a warm hand hold up his neck and set his head on a soft lap. "Kunzite, I'm so sorry… Oh, please be okay…"
Minako's voice. Worried? Holding him. Close to him. She smelled like cinnamon and vanilla.
"What the hell is your problem?!" she screeched.
Moment ruined.
Cracking open one eye, he muttered an oath. "What the hell is yours?" he groaned back, lifting a hand to the nasty bulge growing on his head. She smacked his hand away. "Don't touch it," she ordered. "Ami-chan's getting the first aid kit. Why did you just stand there and let the ball pound you in the face? You're Kunzite the Stony, not Kunzite the Stoner! You normally have such good reflexes." He looked around at their audience. The Senshi and the Shittenou were regarding them with a mixture of interest and suspicion. Their looks put him on the defensive. He tried to get his head off Minako's lap quickly. Bad idea, though. It only made the pain worst.
"You idiot, hold still!" She pinned his shoulders to the ground. Looking up at their companions, she assured them that she could handle the situation and took the ice pack that Ami offered. The crowd dispersed, leaving Kunzite alone with Minako in the middle of the volleyball court. Gently, she held the ice pack to his rising bruise, stroking his platinum hair away from his face. Though the pounding in his head was awful, he felt more content than he ever did in his life.
Minako bent her head over him, and her golden ponytail lightly brushed his face. Her lustrous blue eyes scrutinized him to check for signs of serious head trauma. After a time, she was satisfied, and they were not aware how long they stayed like that.
"Kunzite?" she addressed him after so long.
"Hmm?" he murmured lazily.
"We kicked your ass."
"WHAT?! I was injured! That's not fair."
"Life's not fair, but the ladies still won."
"No way. Rematch."
"Sore loser."
"Cheater."
"LOSER."
"COWARD."
Minako pressed the ice pack hard into his throbbing bump. He hissed in pain and finally shut up.
She won this round. His head still hurt. They still had the whole day at the beach ahead of them. Together.
The headache was not going away any time soon.
I'm leaving this whole summer! I won't even be in the country! Because I wouldn't have internet access, I had to cut the intended length of this chapter in half, and for that I am sorry. But I know people want to see the story continue, so hopefully, not to many people are disappointed. Thanks for the reviews and the helpful criticisms… As a writer, I've learned that I still have a long way to go as far as my skills are concerned.
Review! When I come back to the States, I better see a mailbox full of them!