Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or associated characters.

Author notes: I'm really starting to enjoying writing this fic. Maybe because of everyone who appreciates it. Anyhow, I'll be trying to put out a chapter as soon as I can, unless I get the dreaded writer's block. Or work interferes.

Lovelyl: I've seen both the Japanese and English dub of SM, and I have to say that Japanese is the best. I'd love to read the manga, but the only one I've found was a crappy, hard to read copy. I have to disagree about Usagi's voice though, but probably because I'm male… As for Mamoru, being an arse isn't really a strong personality trait, but it was humorous. Thanks for the support!

ButterGinger: Thank you for the wonderful praise! I'm an aspiring writer and it's nice to know how much my style is appreciated.

For all the rest of the reviewers, egging me on to do another chapter, Thank You! And here you go.

Chapter 4: Misunderstandings and Happiness.

Endymion hadn't fallen asleep yet, his mind was working too hard for slumber to claim him. Instead, his left hand had gently rubbed Serenity's back, while he thought of what his father was trying to accomplish, of what he was trying to force Endy into.

He could see that the sun was going down by the faint line of fading light that escaped between the heavy curtains. Knowing his father wanted the reports at dinner, Endy gave a soft sigh of regret and worked himself out from under Serenity's leg, arm, and head.

He did that very slowly, as to not wake the new found center of his problems. With the little amount of light from the dying fire, he got himself dressed. He took a long glance at her softly breathing form, while confusing thoughts whirled around in his head. With another sigh, he gently closed the door and left his rooms.

His mind couldn't stay focused on the task at hand for too long, as he made his way down to the private dining hall. Private, meaning only able to sit fifty people. Disgusting.

He wondered if Serenity would like the paintings hung on the walls of the corridors. A lot of them were quite elegant. Why would I care if she liked them? I don't even know the girl! He considered the girl again, from the start. Serenity was obviously the best looking woman he had ever seen, but even that shouldn't affect him so while he was around her. Her poise, and posture were serene, even regal. Her lack of words might be attributed to her shyness. And then there was the easy acceptance between the two of them. The line of thought was driving him crazy, so he switched his thoughts to the preparation of his report to his father, still a couple minutes from the dining hall. Enough time to summarize everything neatly.

He cursed silently as he had to backtrack a few doors to the right one, having passed it while thinking of Serenity again. Would she wake while I'm gone? What if she does, will she be frightened? Shaking his head to clear his mind, Endy opened the double doors to the private dining room. He let out a sigh of relief, finding only the king and his captains in the room, not wanting to deal with the sycophants of court.

"What the hell kept you, Son? You're late! And where the fuck is Serenity? I thought I was clear that she was to be with you at all times!" his father was yelling by the time he finished.

Endymion jumped a little in surprise. He had been thinking of her again. She'll probably be hungry when she wakes, I'll go see Makoto on my way back.

"She's sleeping in my bed," Endy said casually as he made his way to the opposite side of the king from where his captains were seated.

The four men snickered upon hearing that. Even the king smiled, probably thinking dirty thoughts.

"We haven't done anything, she just slept on me after our bath…" Endy snapped his jaw shut as he felt like he was making things worse.

"You didn't do anything in bed, cause you already did it in the bath!" he heard Jadeite whisper to himself.

Fucking asshole. He doesn't know anything.

Although mentioning the bath brought color to the prince's cheeks.

Flashback:

Serenity was still clinging to the back of his shirt as he closed the door. As promised, the tub was filled and steaming.

"Serenity, I need you to let go." He needed her to, but did he want her to?

"Oh, yes," she released her grip, a slight pink tinged her cheeks.

Endy stood in place for a couple seconds, shuffling his feet. "Ummm, could you turn around, or close your eyes?"

"Why?" she asked.

"Well, ummm…." he thought fast, "It's improper for me to e nude in front of a lady I just met."

"Oh. Will this help?" she said as she slipped her dress off her shoulders.

Endy spun around so quick, he was light headed for a couple seconds. "No, that's not quite what I had in mind."

"Am I not pretty enough?" Serenity sounded really worried.

He spun around and lightly grabbed her shoulders, stepping in close so he wouldn't be able to see her nude form. Too late. He really didn't believe in perfection, but the eyeful he got of her breasts had him believing otherwise. He fought with all of his will power to keep his hands on her shoulders and away from her breasts. "No, the opposite seems to be the problem. You're too pretty."

A rosy color blossomed on her cheeks from his words. Then her hands snaked up to his collar and started to undo his buttons. He immediately stepped back, not realizing the situation he would put himself into. His face drained of all color when he understood the gravity of his action, now her whole body was visible to him. He did the only thing he could think of, he turned to the tub and shed his clothing as fast as he could. He had to slow down while entering the water, as it was still steaming hot. Everything became mechanical, as he kept his thoughts away from the pale beauty behind him. He was so busy not thinking about her that he jumped when her hands touched his back.

"Wait! What are you doing?" he sputtered.

"I'm washing your back…" she answered, hesitantly.

Endy wondered how his current situation came to be. Oh, yeah. The king. He started to think dark thoughts about his father.

He nearly fainted when Serenity started to climb into the tub with him. He reacted exactly in a way that was opposite to what he wanted to do, he scrambled out of the tub as fast as he could. He grabbed a towel and started to dry off as quickly as he had exited the tub. Glancing back to Serenity, to make sure she was alright, he found her with a hand covering her mouth, giggling at him. As she stood, he grabbed another towel and went over to her. He wrapped her up, leaving her arms free, and picked up her small frame. He carried her over to the door and gently set her down. Endy was consumed with disgust and embarrassment for himself as he exited the bathroom.

Endy shook his head, trying to erase the pleasant, but unpleasant scene from his mind.

"I want to know why you are disobeying my order!" the king had a serious expression now. The king's words brought him back the present, and the conversation that had brought up the memory.

"I didn't think she needed to be here for the reports. It would be quite boring for her. Besides, she needs her rest. Being exposed to the cold can sap one's strength," Endy reasoned, as he took a seat next to his father. "I think your order needs to be revised. It's not possible for her to be around me at all times, I have duties which may not be reasonable to ask a lady to follow me to. If she's sleeping and I need to work, it isn't fair to wake her then drag her along."

"I see your point, and I'll take it under advisement," his father had turned to him while responding. He raised a hand to wave servants over with the food. "Because you're late, your captains have already filled me in on everything that has happened. You do me proud, son. I knew I made the right decision in sending you to deal with Rubeus."

"But, Rubeus is still alive! We weren't able to locate him," Endy was confused with the praise on a failed mission.

"You miss the point, Endymion. The way you handled your men, organized the assault, and you actually led the soldiers into battle! I couldn't be more pleased of the way you have stepped into leadership. That was the most important part of the mission. There's no question that I would've liked Rubeus's head, but he no longer has a hold on my territory," the king had a genuine smile for his son. Endy nodded his head, his eyes misting a bit from his father's approval.

The food that was placed in front of him had gigantic portions and heady aromas. Definitely Makoto's work. What had Endy confused was that his stomach rebelled at the gourmet fare in front of him.

"Tomorrow is the parade. Then we'll have your birthday feast! I knew that your celebration would be late, so we'll make up for it with extravagance," his father said, after he had taken a few bites of the twice-spiced lamb. "I expect your little lady to be riding with you in the parade, that shouldn't bore her. Make sure she attends your birthday feast as well. I already had dresses made for her, so you can pick the one you like the best."

"Wait, how have you had dresses made up for her already? And why are you continually forcing her on to me!" Endy was starting to get angry with not knowing what was going on all the time.

"Think, boy! I had dresses made for all the girls! I'm always prepared," his father had such a smug look on his face that it made Endy want to punch him right in the nose.

He decided with feeling stupid, as his father had thought of everything, again. It should have been obvious to him, but it was hard to concentrate lately. "As for forcing her on to you, it was you who agreed to the deal we had."

"Yeah," was all he could come up with. He picked up his wine glass and tried to drink some, wanting to loosen up his stomach. Makoto would be very displeased if his plate came back untouched.

The wine felt like it turned into lead when it hit his stomach, making him swallow a few times to keep the wine down. Putting the glass down, he picked up his fork to push food around his plate.

He watched out of the corner of his eye as his father and the captains devoured their meal, while he sat there not able to think about food. Kunzite looked up and spied Endy's undiminished plate, despite being rearranged.

"Is there something wrong, Prince Endymion?" Kunzite queried.

"Huh? Oh, no. Just not hungry. So, father, are you going to join us at the parade?" Endy had looked up as he answered, then used the question as a distraction to wave his food away. The smell was making him sick. A warmth was starting to spread from his middle, though, and Endy recognized the effect of wine. He grabbed his glass to force more down is gullet, hoping it could ease his nerves that were on edge for no reason.

His question had the king choking on a piece of meat he just ate. The king grabbed his glass and gulped wine to help pass the stubborn bit of food. "No argument?" he gasped, "No flying into a rage about a parade thrown especially for you? You're just going to sit there and ask if I'll be there? I agree with Captain Kunzite, what is wrong with you?" Endy had waved over a servant to refill his glass as his father spoke. He took a drink before responding.

"There has to be something wrong with me to do my duty? The soldiers will love it. They need to be recognized for all their hard work. It wouldn't be fair for them to suf-fer jus because I don appre-ciate such things. I apol-lo-gize if I ha-ve ben selfissh in the pass," Endy said. His captains were used to his new view of things already, but it was the kings first chance to see it. He just sat there with mouth agape, staring at his son, while the captains hid smiles behind their glasses.

Endy hadn't noticed that the servant had been refilling his wine glass again until this moment, as he watched him pour the red liquid into his glass. He didn't know how much he had consumed, although the warm feeling had spread throughout his whole body now, even making his thoughts a little foggy. He waved the servant off, thinking this would be his last bit of wine.

The sound of a fork clattering against a plate had Endy look up from his wine to see his father studying him with intense eyes. He smiled at him, not knowing why, it just felt like the right thing to do. His body had a pleasant, warm glow infusing it and he took another sip of his wine to continue the feeling.

"Are you drunk, Endymion?" his father asked, some mock concern sounding in his voice. Endy thought for a moment, while waving for a refill.

"Dunno, neve ben dunk…. drrunk b-fore," Endy winced inwardly, was he really slurring that much? He was taken aback and slightly angry when his father and his captains started laughing. Jadeite was laughing so hard that he was pounding the table. It didn't help that the servants all wore smiles of amusement. "Yeeeaahh? Alllwrighty, I thin I ill go ow. Goood nigh."

He stood up to go, but found himself falling back into his seat. To cover up the incident, he grabbed his glass and drained the last of the wine. When he attempted to stand up again, he used the table and chair arm to steady himself all the while ignoring his father's and captain's gales of laughter. Endy gave them all a mocking salute before he stumbled out the door.

The hallway seemed to move the opposite direction in which he was going, making him weave back and forth. Older servants had knowing smiles as he passed, while the younger ones had a worried look for him. He made it to the kitchens without falling on his face, but he had no idea why he was there.

Endy stood there for a moment, scratching his head, trying to figure out why he had come to the kitchens. With a sigh of frustration, he threw his hands up in defeat. He knew that it had been important, but nothing was coming to mind. So he turned around to go seek out his bed. His bed! Serenity! He smiled and mentally patted himself on the back for figuring that out.

Once he entered the kitchens, wonderful food aromas assaulted his nose, and then made his belly twist and jump. All this great food, and it still upsets my stomach. Ugh. He shoved his bile back down, hard. Then strode over to Makoto who was making sure the dough for the mornings bread was setting and ready.

"Gooood even Mako, hows you… now?" Endy's words confused himself.

"What drunken idiot…" Makoto spun around to give an ear full to whoever was disturbing her, but stopped when she was face to face with a very inebriated prince. "Oh, goodness. What have you done? Nevermind, come over here and sit." Makoto led him to the same table that he had an earlier meal at.

"Waaaiit, Im her foor foo-d," the heat of the fires were lulling him to sleep, so he had the mental fog and now sleep to fight. If he sat, he would lose to sleep, so Endy pushed away from the stool Makoto was trying to maneuver him into.

"Didn't you just have dinner with your father?" she asked.

"Ummm, yes," simple answers seemed best. They'd be hard to mess up.

"So, why do you need food?" she pressed. Damn! No simple answer. He concentrated really hard as to not slur and make himself understandable.

"I nee foo-d foor a la-dy frien," that didn't sound really accurate, "For Serenity." That sounded good. What Endy didn't notice was the look of adoration on his own face when he said Serenity's name, but Makoto caught it.

"That's incredible! I'm happy for you, Endy. Finally, you found someone," Makoto's eyes were far-away, dreaming of a prince for herself.

"Wha…? Whoo ya.. I don un dah stan…?" He was really lost, now, but didn't have any more time to figure it out as Makoto whisked around the room. She came back with a plate covered with a white napkin and utensils. He reached for it, but she pulled it back, out of his grasp.

"Maybe I should carry it for you, so you don't spill it…?" Makoto made it seem like a half statement and half request.

The room was starting to spin for Endy, so he didn't waste time and nodded his assent. Makoto had a grin plastered on her face the entire time it took them to get to his rooms.

Darkness greeted them as Endy opened the door to his sitting room. He groped around, just inside, for a candle left there just for situations like this. Taking the candle to the closest lamp in the hallway to light the wick, he came back to illuminate the sitting room. The candle light weakly pushed back the darkness, but Endy didn't think that he would be up long enough to warrant lighting his lamps.

"Did you hear something," he asked, a little more sober then a few minutes ago.

Makoto paused a moment, tilting her head. "No. Nothing, dear."

Endy stopped breathing for a moment. There! A soft, sniffling noise. From where though? He slapped his forehead as he rushed to his bedroom. He threw the door open with random fears racing through his head, not knowing what he would find.

Serenity was sitting on the edge of the bed in her shift. At the light and noise, she lifted her eyes to the interruption of her personnel torment. At the sight of Endymion, her face became serene, portraying her namesake.

"Are you okay?" Endy's fog of inebriation seemed to dissipate as he rushed over to her. Her cheeks were wet with tears, eyes puffy and red. She nodded, and then looked to the side. He eased her chin back towards him, so he could look into her eyes. With her face towards him again, she cast her gaze down, not meeting his. "What's wrong, Serenity?"

"Nothing," she mumbled. Even her mumbling was sweet on his ears.

"Then what are the tears for? Let me help you," he implored.

"You should not worry about me, Master," she still wouldn't meet his eyes. He did a double take, standing up in surprise. Master? I'm not… He hung his head in shame, feeling unworthy of anything. He should have explained to her already. Instead he had just assumed she knew that she wasn't a slave anymore. What a bastard he was.

"Serenity, I'm not your master. You're not a slave anymore. Please, call me Endy," he sat beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Only then did she look up at him.

"If I am not a slave anymore, then what am I, Endymion?" her eyes were still wet while asking her question.

"Ummm…." she had stumped him with that one.

"You're his companion," Makoto saved him, entering the room. "It's way better than being a slave, love. And you're so lucky to be his companion! No girl could ask for a better man." Endy had forgotten that she was there. Quite possibly because of the lack of light in the room. The candle didn't give light past a few feet and the embers of the fire just gave off a glow.

Endy gave the cook a grateful smile, then turned back to Serenity to see how well she accepted the answer. She digested it quietly for a few moments and her expression brightened considerably. His question hadn't been suitably answered yet, and he wasn't one to let an issue go.

"You haven't said why you were crying yet…" he trailed off, leaving the necessary opening for her to answer.

"I'll just leave her dinner in the sitting room, and leave you two so you might rest. Be a dear, Endy, and bring her down for breakfast?" Makoto spoke instead, and left without even hearing his response. It hadn't sounded like a question, anyhow, more like a demand. Very few people could get away with that, and she was one of them.

"Because I was scared, I missed… it was dark…" he turned to her as she spoke. Again, she cast her eyes down. He lifted her chin with two fingers, this time she met his gaze.

Her eyes seemed almost luminous, nearly glowing in the dark. Not taking a second to reconsider, he dove into them, losing himself in pure emotion and beauty. His lips briefly touched her nose, giving her a soft kiss. His next target being her lips, aching to devour her. He was stopped a hair's width away by a grumbling sound. Her visage one of complete seriousness, ready for the kiss. Then her eyes erupted in mirth with her giggling insanely.

"Hungry," she whispered. He couldn't help but laugh with her.

"Of course. I'll let you eat then. Let's go to the next room," he pulled her into a quick embrace before letting her up. The mental fog was back, and he settled into it. Much easier then dealing with the confusing emotions he was experiencing.

The next morning found Endy in his favorite chair, watching Serenity sleep. He hadn't slept very much, he never did, so he had made use of the morning hours to fetch her a dress and fresh shift. He also found a cloth bag with women things in it. Ami and Naru had left it before he woke. A note was left for him on top of the bag.

It read: Endy,

A silly boy like you wouldn't know what a girl needs to be beautiful, so Naru and I retrieved a few of her things and some extras. We'll move all of her other things in while you two are out today. Play nice, sweet prince.

Ami

It was just like those two, always trying to be in his business. He didn't mind, though, as he peeked into the bag and saw a hairbrush, hair pins, brushes, bottles, powders, and a whole mess of other things he knew nothing about. Must be hard to be a girl, he mused.

He wasn't in the bed with her due to the emotions he was feeling. They were different than any others he had before, and now wasn't the time to figure them out. He needed to talk with his father before things got any more complicated.

Soft sounds were emitted from a pillow. Soon, her head rose up and she yawned then stretched her arms. Good lord! His breath caught in his throat. With still sleepy eyes, she sat framed by her long golden locks, looking like an awakening angel. She spotted him in his chair across the room and smiled. Her smile faltered when she realized he was over there instead of beside her.

"Why are you over there…?" she asked, meekly, not trusting the situation.

Thoughts of the other day ran through his head, he was sure that she thought they were close now. But he couldn't let that be. He'd die before hurting her, though, so he just ignored the question.

"I got you a riding dress and fresh shift for today. My father wants you to ride in the parade. The girls brought you some stuff I'm sure you'll want. So, after you dress and freshen up, we can go have breakfast."

He had already dressed for the day and she gave him the once over. Black seemed like his theme, as every piece of clothing he had on was mostly black. From his black boots, to his black trousers. His shirt was black but with silver work traveling up both sides of the buttons. She looked to her dress that was hanging on the wardrobe after looking Endy over. Rather simple looking, it was a light blue riding dress but with lace spilling out at the shoulders and neck. Not a lot of lace, just enough to make it look a bit fancy.

"I don't know how to ride," she was getting a sad look. Her eyes were misting some.

His father probably planned this.

Conniving bastard!

He knew where this was going, and once again, saw no way out of the trap.

"That's fine, you can ride with me," he said, giving in.

Her earlier smile graced her face again as she bounded out of bed, rushing over to her dress. She tentativelytouched the fabric and spun to him. "It's silk?" her eyes wide with wonder.

"Of course," he was rather confused about her question. He didn't have a moment longer before he had a barely clothed angel hopping in his lap with her arms thrown around his neck.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" she repeated over and over again. He cracked a smile, enjoying the simple gratitude of a girl getting something nice.

"You'll have to thank my father for it, I wasn't the one to have it made," he said as he tried to maneuver her onto her own feet. He refused to admit to himself how nice it felt to have her in his lap.

"Oh," she said, as she deftly avoided getting out of his lap, "Thank you, anyway." With that, she hopped off like it was her intention all along. Spying the bag sitting beside the wardrobe, she walked over to it. After a few moments of rifling through the bag, Endy was surprised when she only came up with a hair brush and ribbon.

"I'll leave you to dress. I'll wait in the sitting room," he said as he got up.

Once again, Endy found himself brooding as he waited for Serenity to dress. He went over the talk he was going to have with his father. It couldn't be too disrespectful, but it needed to show his anger at being manipulated. He was going over a particularly troublesome part when the door to his bedroom opened, and all he could do was stare.

My mouth is probably hanging open as well, he thought.

Even though the dress was on the plain side, Serenity made it something more, much more. It was as if the dress was a canvas waiting for a painter, and she was a world class artist. Her hair was up with a bow again, a light green bow. A grumbling sound had him glance at her belly.

"I think your stomach is telling us what we should be doing. Shall we?" he presented an arm to her. She nodded, and in an unladylike manner, grabbed his arm and clung to it.

The sudden light from the private dining room was a big contrast from the slightly gloomy corridor, having the two of them standing still for a moment adjusting their eyes. During the brief blindness, he heard a few startled gasps.

He was guessing it was a reaction from Serenity clinging to his arm, or maybe the fact he was escorting a girl, period. When his eyesight returned, he could see that the table was half full. His father at the high chair, like always, his four captains to his right plus a few more that hadn't campaigned with him. Two empty chairs to his left indicated where they would sit, and then sprinkled throughout the rest were minor functionaries, advisors, and nobles. He noticed when Serenity's eyesight returned to her by the sudden tightening on his arm.

"Ah! My son has arrived. And with such a beautiful maiden on his arm… Let us eat," the king stuttered a moment, seeing how Serenity held onto Endymion's arm. Endy quickly steered them both to the empty chairs, hoping that sitting would calm the girl's obviously frayed nerves.

She doesn't do well with crowds, he noted to himself, How is she going to be during the parade?

The whole way to their chairs, she avoided eye contact and ignored questions. When they made it to their chairs, Endy pulled out the far one away from his father for her, then sat in the one right next to the king.

"We need to talk," he said pointedly to his father.

"So, talk," the king replied, nonchalantly.

"Did you plan all of this?" he lowered his voice, so they would be the only two to hear his words.

"Of course not, the cooks and the servants actually do most of the planning," the king smiled sweetly at him. It gave a kind of confirmation, but Endy wouldn't let it go.

"Stop being obtuse, you know what I mean," he scolded his father.

"Why? Are you two having a lover's spat already?" his father winked at him. He winked!

"No! You don't know what you're doing to me, I've heard stories of heartbreak before. I won't let that happen to me. I won't have a perfect girl in my life then have to give her up to marry some stupid princess to seal some stupid alliance!" Endy was breathing heavy by the end of his speech. The king saw what was really bothering his son, now.

"Endymion, I have something to say," the king's face became somber, "I lied to you the other day. I didn't have dresses made for the other girls, just Serenity." He stopped so Endy could figure out what that meant. Endy sat a moment before his eyes got wide.

"You knew!? How could you know what girl I'd pick, if I was going to pick?" he was starting to get red in the face.

"Calm, Endymion. Ever since you were little, I could tell how proper you would turn out to be. Your mother would be proud of you. I knew you wouldn't be bothered with finding yourself a lady when duty prescribed you to marry for the state. So I took the liberty of looking for the perfect girl for years now. I knew that no ordinary woman would be accepted by you. I knew who you would pick because I've known you for twenty years. I'm king, I've got to know people better then they know themselves. Don't worry, I won't take her away for some 'stupid alliance'. I didn't spend all that time looking for her to throw it away. That's your real birthday present, freedom to love who you wish. Just don't screw it up."

Endy sat back, dumbfounded. He didn't trust everything his father said, yet. But there weren't any holes to his statement. He went to pick some egg onto his fork, but the smell was making him nauseous still. He pushed his plate away and mulled over his father's words some more.

"….to Endymion?" he caught the last of the question that was asked of Serenity.

"I'm his companion," she answered, softly, scooting closer to him.

The question had come from Motoki, the Royal Treasury Advisor. A good enough friend, when Endy had the time. Motoki scratched his head at Serenity's answer.

"What's a Companion?" he asked.

"It means that I'm courting her," Endy blurted out, then the ramifications of the statement slammed into his mind.

Ahh crap! Why did I say that?

"And that she's my guest at the same time." He had to fill it in some. Courting wouldn't explain companion all by itself. Endy pictured himself digging a hole, as which he thought he was doing anyway.

Serenity had a strained smile as she looked up at him, her cheeks rosy from all the attention. Her plate was still full, and he recognized the problem right away.

"Enough questions, let the poor girl eat!" He gave a mock glare to those who seemed to have been pestering her.

Serenity didn't waste any time, and started to eat like Endy, shoveling food into her mouth. Flashbacks of last night filtered into his mind, Serenity had devoured the whole plate and looked like she wanted more. He was brought out of his musings by the laughter around the table.

"She eats just like the Prince! They were made for each other!" More laughter ringed the table. Serenity seemed oblivious to the fact that she was the subject of mirth, having her attention rather devoted to the task of conquering her plate. He let his ire cool as she didn't seem to care. He tried to put some of his own food away, but when the fork neared his mouth, bile rose in the back of his throat. Grunting unhappily, he waved for his plate to be taken away.

The rest of breakfast went awkwardly. Serenity was more interested in clinging to his arm than to talking with anyone at the table. Endy didn't mind, per-say, but it left him to deal with all the conversation. With Serenity on his arm, he was starting to feel exactly what his father wanted him to feel, happy. Unfortunately, he still had a nagging doubt nestled right in the middle of his mind. This couldn't last, nothing ever went this well.

Author notes: Apologies for the lateness of this update. From vacation, to having obtained a beta, time just didn't seem available. I'll see what I can do this week-end and maybe a couple chapters will be posted next week. As for Endy getting drunk so quick, try drinking on a empty stomach, it takes literally like 20 minutes to start slurring if you're drinking heavily. Again, sorry to keep all of you waiting for so long.