In all honesty, I expected this chapter to turn out to be the one where the scouts engage in their plan, but instead, I decided at last minute to have it be more about romance a little more tension between Darien and Serena.

I'll warn you now, there is a specific adult scene in this chapter.

But I hope you all enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any Sailor Moon characters

Chapter 14: Entanglement

Serena sat up waiting for Darien to enter through the double French doors to their Golden Palace bed chamber. It was nearly one o'clock in the morning and he still hadn't arrived. Feeling tired and exhausted from the day's events, she threw the covers off her and walked into the brightly lit bathroom. She started to run a bath for herself, dropping in small aroma beads as the hot water ran. She undressed quickly and got into the tub as it was still filling up with water when she suddenly heard the door close.

"Endymion?" she asked.

He strolled into the bathroom and looked down at his naked wife who had pulled her knees up to her chin. She still hadn't taken her down her hair and she tilted her head to gesture for him to do it for her. He knelt down and started to unravel her silky white tresses, gazing at her worried expression and waiting for her to say something more.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about the plan," she blushed. "It was sort of just decided upon at last minute. Ami received some incoming data, we started to layer one detail on after another and then it was settled that I would stay just in case anything went wrong."

"You don't think I can handle it?" he asked calmly as he untangled the rest of her long locks.

"I do," she said, curling her face up against her arms that were wrapped around her legs.

"You got like this when you were pregnant with Rini too," he commented. "I don't mean to trivialize your condition Serena, but you tend to get very high and mighty when you're with child. You want to do everything yourself and not have anyone help. You may be called an 'invincible queen' but you know you're not."

"It drains me," she shrugged. "Being pregnant and carrying a new child, the anticipation of it all … I want to be back to normal."

He leaned over and kissed the top of her head, "Normal for you is almighty and overly powerful; having the stars at your fingertips."

Serenity looked back up at her husband and with quick tug of his wrist and an unexpected feat of strength on her part, she pulled him into the bath with her. The two laughed out loud and she started to undress him out of his lavender cape and tuxedo shirt. Before they could get too intimate, they heard a voice holler through their bedroom.

"Mom?! Dad?"

Rini suddenly walked into the bathroom and couldn't help but stare at her two parents in the bathroom. Serena shrieked with alarm and slight anger her dumbfounded daughter. When she didn't move right away – frozen with shock – Darien pulled himself out of the tub as quickly as possible and pushed his daughter out of the room.

"We'll talk to you in a minute Small Lady."

"But—"

"Out!"

"But—"

Serena jumped out of the tub and with Darien's body covering her, she pushed the door closed and screamed through it, "What part of privacy don't you understand young lady?! Go to your room!"

The two exhaled loudly as they slid down the back of the door. Darien wrapped his arms around his dripping wet wife whose expression of annoyance was deeply engrained in her features from the looks of it. She patted her stomach and asked with an arched eyebrow, "You really want another one of those? Seriously?"

"What is she doing here?" he asked.

"That's what I was trying to tell you!" she said through the door. "The Sailor Stars arrived at the Crystal Palace and I escorted them to the Golden Palace to see you!"

"Rini, I said go to your room. NOW!" Serena shouted. She sighed in Darien's arms, "We'll never get a moment's rest. Ever. Can we please take a sick day?"

"You've had plenty of those with the morning sickness haven't you?" he remarked. "And the birthing process will be another day or so. Revel in the chaos … at least for now."

"Why?"

"Because then there are quick moments like this…"

He leaned over and kissed her longingly on the lips. These "quick moments" as he put it were more like stretches of time that felt like forever but were wrapped up in only a few seconds. Serena had felt this before many times when battling with alongside her. She had also felt it when they would make very passionate love with one another and it felt like it lasted years, but really it was just one night together. When Darien pulled back, he stroked her cheek gently.

Serena jumped up from his lap and started to dry off her naked body, "Let's go before I get too caught up in your kiss."

Darien grinned at her and went off to go change into some dry clothes. The two changed into their royal gear and entered the den where the Sailor Stars were waiting patiently around the large fire; they were in their male forms. They turned and smiled proudly at the king and queen. Seiya specifically held a wider smirk than the rest of them as he caught Serenity's eye. The three of them knelt down quickly to their higher superiors.

"I'm pleased to see you all," Serenity greeted. "To what do we owe this rather late arrival of yours?"

"I apologize for the time, your majesty," Yaten bowed.

"It's no trouble."

"We received word from Sailor Pluto that you were having difficulties lately," Taiki said. "Can we be of any assistance to you?"

"For now, no, we do have it under control," she replied. "If you'd like to stay though, you're more than welcome."

The two who had spoken, looked to Seiya who was keeping his eye trained on Serena. Endymion was watching him watch her and he had to say, it made him rather uncomfortable. He had only met these three a few times and heard a multitude of stories about them. He was thankful that they had been around to help Serena during her last battle, but as far as he was concerned, they were still some what of strangers to him.

Serenity glanced over her shoulder, noticing that her husband was getting tense at the idea of having the Sailor Stars in his palace. His ego was being walked all over and she knew he didn't like it, just by the sound of his breathing. She grasped onto his hand and smiled at the three, slender men who were waiting for something more to be said.

"We should head off to bed," she said to them. "We have a big day tomorrow and we're going to need all of the energy we can possibly muster. I'll see you all at breakfast."

With that, she bid them goodnight and dragged Darien away from the staring contest he was having with Seiya. They made it back to their bedroom where she immediately got undressed as soon as the doors closed. The moonlight bounced off of her porcelain skin as she sashayed over to the bed. There she laid herself out and proposed him to follow with a flick of her finger. Darien's eyes were practically drunk at the sight of his beloved laying naked before him. Before moving toward her, he locked the door just in case anyone had any crazy ideas of trying to barge in again. He started to quickly undress gracefully, almost like the clothes were melting off of him.

Darien climbed into the bed and straddled over his wife's body as she whispered, "Will you make love to me? While I don't have a camel's hump on my stomach?"

He sniggered at that comment and leaned over closely to her lips, "We were able to have sex when you had a 'hump' before. It made you more relaxed. The doctor even prescribed it."

"It felt awkward."

"You were awkward. You're not used to that kind of body," he replied as his hands ran over breasts, gently massaging her nipples, making her groan. "I love it when you get that heavenly glow from the inside out. You look beautiful in any stage of life."

"Shut up and kiss me," she ordered, tugging his face to smash against hers.

His hands slid down to her lower region, rubbing her slowly and smiling at the result; she was moist already. She gripped onto his shaft, seeing that he was just as ready as she was. Her heartbeat quickened a little and her breath grew deep and fast. He slowly let her pull him inside her; the two of them were one. It felt warm, tight, soothing, and released a calming sensation over the two of them. They both started to produce a gentle rhythm, going in and out, sweaty skin slapped against one another as they did. Serena gripped onto the sheets before smacking her palms against Darien's back. She used her nails to scratch his back which gave him chills across his warming skin. He lifted her up and pressed her against the headboard as he continued to slam inside her. Positive moans and groans escaped from her lips while he gritted his teeth, holding onto her hips and keeping her in an upright position. Darien felt her shake a little bit which to him meant that she had just climaxed. A huge smile cut across her face as she gripped onto his shoulder, making him pause for a moment so that she could relish in the tingling feeling. When she felt she had taken in all she could, she grasped onto the back his head which bid him to continue to imbed himself inside her. Darien leaned over and started to kiss her breasts, tasting the sweat droplets that slithered down her skin. A grin yanked at his expression as he tugged on her nipples with his teeth. Serena gasped loudly which was followed quickly with a bubbling giggle. They laced their finger together and Serena's arms were placed above her head as he continued to slide in and out of her quickly. His grip tightened on her hands and he leaned his forehead against the wall adjacent to her head. Darien groaned out loud, becoming tense and shaking slightly while Serena felt herself become warm and rather relaxed. The two stayed in their position for a moment, trying to catch their heavy handed breath and feeling the other pulsate with passion. Serena clasped her hands onto Darien's face and kissed him deeply.

"We haven't made love like that in years," he breathed as they slithered back down to the bed and got underneath the surprisingly cold sheets.

"I feel energized, but limp," Serena said, still gasping for her breath to be steady.

The two lay down next to each other and linked hands again, but both were too hot and sweaty to cuddle. Darien rolled over onto his side and he rested his head against his palm as he studied her.

"Hey, what are we going to name the baby?" he asked.

"I don't think we should decide on that until it comes into this world," she answered.

He nodded in agreement and flopped back down onto the pillow. The two of them eventually found each other in the large bed after they had cooled off and became tangled in one another.

It wasn't chirping that woke Rini up that morning, but the sound of her mother pulling the curtains to her room wide open. She turned around to face her daughter, her arms crossed over her chest and a look of disapproval and anger written all over her face. The sun shimmered right behind Serenity, making her look even more powerful than she probably was feeling after a whole night of love making.

"Why didn't you call?" she asked sternly.

"I called the scouts," she shrugged. "No one answered. And since they came so late, I thought it would just be best to bring them to you."

"Do you know why I left you at the Crystal Palace, Small Lady?"

She shook her head.

"It's safe there. It's impenetrable. It's a fortress. You could have been attacked on that ship all by yourself."

"I wasn't by myself. Hotaru and the Sailor Stars were with me," she corrected as she sat up in her bed.

"You went against my orders. You could have waited until morning to get a hold of us here at the palace!" she snapped. "You were impatient, you were hasty, and you put your life at risk. I want you to do a three-hour session of study work, an hour lunch, and then four full hours of training. No ifs, ands, or buts about it! You understand me?"

"Yes Mama," she nodded solemnly.

"Good. Now get up and meet us for breakfast."

She left her daughter's room in a huff and was met with Darien half way down the hallway. He had that all-knowing look on his face and she knew exactly what he was going to say as her heels clacked harshly against the marble floor, "I'm the bad guy! I know!"

"No, you're not," he reassured her, grabbing her hand and making her stop walking so fast. "You did exactly what I would have done. What she did was reckless. She's a teenager though; rebellion runs through her veins."

"I don't ever recall being like this when I was her age," she murmured as they walked at a slower pace, hand in hand.

"You were fighting evil, remember? You had just come into your prime teenage years. I think you were able to take all of your rebellion out on the monsters," he grinned.

She elbowed him with a sly smile curving her lips before they entered the large dining room where everyone was waiting for them. The Sailor Scouts and Sailor Stars were seated at the white sheeted round table. Serena hated the idea of sitting at the head of a long table and Darien sitting practically all the way across the room at the other end. So to solve that problem, she requested for a round table; that way everyone was equal.

"Where's the princess?" Hoatru asked.

"She's on her way," Serenity replied curtly as the king held out her chair for her. He sat down next to her started to fill his plate with toast, sunny side up eggs, and grilled vegetables. "So, are we all ready for the plan today?" The scouts nodded to the queen. "Good."

"We'll be in the control room here at the palace, communicating with you guys at all times," Darien announced.

"What? No," his wife protested. "I want to be there when they catch her!"

"Serenity, you're not going to put that baby in danger."

"And you're not going to tell me what to do!"

"You starting to sound like our daughter," he said icily. "Where will you possibly fit into the plan that was molded by you and the scouts at the spur of the moment? It was specifically made for the scouts to handle and engage in. You have no place there."

"Endymion!"

"Listen to me!" he barked, slamming his fist down on to the table causing the silverware across the whole piece of furniture to shake. "I don't want you going out there where she could do so much damage to you! Do you understand me?" The scouts stared widely as the couple openly argued in front of them. Darien stood up to his feet and threw his napkin over his plate, "Now I'm the bad guy… the bad guy with no appetite."

He turned away from the group and swiftly walked out of the room, passing by his rushing daughter as he did. She looked at him with her mouth slightly agape at his angered façade. Before she could close her mouth, her mother went running passed her, probably to go get her father. She turned back to the group of shocked looking scouts. The one who did catch her eye, Hotaru, patted the seat next to her.

"Lover's quarrel," Mina sighed as she shook her head and started to dig into her waffles. The rest of the group joined in quickly after her in order to erase the awkward silence.

Serena went running through the palace, her lungs huffing and puffing for air even more so than earlier that night when they had their passionate rendezvous. Her husband always did this; when he wanted to disappear, he would, but where to was a whole other story. She searched in their bedroom, in the upper north-east tower, in the servant's quarters, but she couldn't find him. That's when she thought of going to the garden. He was probably at that damn gazebo, waiting for her to appear. Clenching her fists at her side, she tensely started to walk out into the garden. She wasn't ready yet. That gazebo meant she had forgiven for him for what he had done; it meant that they were back to the love they had shared for centuries. She couldn't force herself to do that yet. She didn't feel it was time.

"Hey."

The queen turned to her right to find Darien sitting on the edge of a fountain, playing with the fish. He squinted a bit in the harsh sunlight and gestured for her to come toward him.

"Where were you headed to?" he asked.

"The gazebo. I thought you would be there," she answered quietly.

"No," he said simply. "This is not a moment to be shared there."

"Darien I—"

He held his palm out to her and stopped her from speaking. He stood up and walked toward her. Once he was right in front of her he was shadowing the sunlight from her face so she didn't have to wrinkle her forehead anymore to get a good visual of him.

"I don't want to be you parent," he said calmly. "I want to be your partner, your lover, your husband, and the father of your children. But in order for me to be that, you need to tell me things that are on your mind, tell me important things that are going on, and help protect our offspring."

"You are biologically the father of my children, you are still surprisingly and legally bound as my husband, you were my lover last night, and we have yet to establish if I am ready to have you back as my full-blown partner," she replied with just as much poise and precision with her words as he had had. "I love you Darien, but that doesn't mean I've forgiven you."

"At this point, I really don't care if you forgive me. I just want you to be safe. It's just like how you want Rini to listen and be safe with you." He tilted his head a little to the side, "Just because you are carrying a new child shouldn't mean I need to treat you like one. Think of someone other than yourself, Serena."

"You're one to talk," she scoffed.

"And I've learned my lesson which is why I'm telling this to you now."

He rubbed her bare shoulders and she casually fell into an embrace with him. She shut her eyes tight and sighed as he rocked gently side to side. They were going to have a long, enduring day trying to get through the last-minute whipped up plan. The only way Serena was going to keep herself together was if Darien was by her side.

Up next: The scouts follow through with their plan. Will it work?