Angry Girl: I love you! Thanks for leaving a note! Yes! In fact I've sired several stories about the other girls. They are al actually this same story so the little holes are solved in them I know- I'm obsessive. O.o. But thanks so much! I love you too. Therefore this one is dedicated to you. Cheeze!

Lija: the oOooOo' s are in response to your review. So thanks!

And now we continue:

Part 16: Forbidden Heart

"General Kunzite you are a tease."

"Well, I try and you make it so easy."

"Ha ha ha. It is to laugh." They both laughed aloud.

They had gone on a walk. Neither of them knew exactly how it had happened they just dropped everything they were doing and began to explore. Nothing was new to Venus but Kunzite liked to look at things. Even things she knew he had seen before. He liked to touch them but he would not touch her.

She knew now that anything she could say he wouldn't think the less of her. So she would rattle on about this and that and he would laugh good-naturedly and listen. Then she would ask him a question and he would answer. Sometimes he would tell her a story about one of his many adventures. They talked about their friends and they talked about the weather. They talked about the way they liked to eat and the books they liked the to read. They talked about the night and the day. They talked and laughed and floated along. Each topic coming smoothly from one to another making up for all the time they denied themselves.

They were both very content. There was only one moment when she did not know what was next to come. It was the door. They stood facing it together knowing they both must enter and sleep. They had been out for so long and reason took a hold of them at last. They had to.

Once inside they could not speak out loud as they could in this one last moment outside it. They could walk in and that would be the end. He would leave before sunrise and they would not speak again for an infinite amount of time or say goodbye now.

"Princess Venus you are a charm." He smiled down at her.

"Thank you. I had fun talking to you. I wish we could do it more often."

'Me too." She started to turn to go inside but he did not move. As long as he stood there she would too. Venus continued to talk.

"I'm sure the meeting went well tonight. I wish you could stay here a little longer but I understand you have many things to do and so do I: in the morning including preparing for the parade and party in the afternoon so I suppose I won't see you again but that shouldn't keep us for becoming very good relations and I'm sure it won't be too long before I can see you again so we won't really need to say good bye will we really certainly I can guess that your duty would keep us from-"

He interrupted her with a cheery laugh. He reached down and took her hand into his own and held it. Smiling, he looked at her shining face.

"Princess I love to be with you."

She was glad it was dark so he couldn't see the blush she could plainly feel blazing. "I wanted you to know that."

"I like being with you too, General." She could have shot herself. His voice had been playful and light while hers, from nervousness, was lenient and serious. He caught her sincerity but it did not seem to phase him. Although he didn't sound like it, he had been just as serious.

She continued, "I think you know me very well and I am glad we are friends."

"Yes…" His voice faded off. "I feel that way too."

His face contorted in confusion at first. She stood as still as she could, noting how fast and deep her heartbeat was going. She swallowed hard. She was amazed to find out how frightened she was to hear him uttering these words. She looked right into his silver eyes- the most dangerous place because of their unusual effect they had on her. But the clear eyes were not looking back at her- not really. If he had been, he would be studying her hair or the outline of her face but these eyes seemed to darken. Not for too long, but just for an instant there was a shadow staring back from a hollowed shell. He blinked and the eclipse died.

The voice swept this from memory, "We are friends. I like you Princess of Venus." He used her name as a title- not a name. "Venus-" his face relaxed and he began to, very slightly, lean forward. Like a comet, the two began to gravitate towards one another.

He liked her!

"I want you to know general- I'm very proud of you…" Her body felt frozen in place. Her face was hot but she couldn't stop it. He was so handsome! He was so kind and strong! He was everything she never knew she wanted.

They were standing so close now, his hand still on hers.

"You are…a good man." She tried to move but she couldn't. "For protecting…"

What was she going to say again? She couldn't think anymore but to see him leaning. Her weight seemed to rise up on the balls of her feet too and her head wanted to tilt so slightly to the side. Her eyes started to close. Would they kiss? She felt like dieing. She was so scared. What was she saying before?

Why was this so unreal? This wasn't supposed to happen! Ever! Ever!

Then it came back to her! She could have gasped for breath.

"-your Prince! I understand what it's like to care for that one person."

He stopped. "One person?"

"Yes. You know- your prince is a lucky man to have you." She said nervously her hand shaking in his own calloused one. "And I love my princess."

He was surprised. Suddenly he knew where he was again. The earth, the moon, the stars, the ground, that little face in the reflective glow. Standing with her, he was holding her hand, and she was looking at him with fearful but respectful yellow eyes. Where did she get those omnipotent eyes?

They burned him so he wanted to run away.

"Your right. I know you do."

"I do. And you love your prince."

"I do."

"That's what I like about you Kunzite." She tried to stop the shivering of her lungs. They rattled her heart and jostled her spine. "You understand me."

He looked at her for a moment trying to comprehend what she was saying to him. He understood her? She liked him? She loved her princess.

Prince. Liked. Venus. Moon. Princess. Prince. Venus.

Of course.

He grinned. It was a wide jolly smile that made his face bright and witty. Even at that moment, Venus could feel herself melt into the floor. "I think I do."

He lifted her hand to himself. At first she thought he would pull her toward him in an elaborate embrace she had so ardently dreamed. He took her petite hand into his own two by wrapping both around her fingers. He brought them to his lips, leaned over and separated a space around her hand with his thumbs.

He kissed it so gently it made her want to cry.

He held onto her hand until she drew it gently away. He opened the door for her and they went inside to find their companions.

She found her Princess and he found his Prince.

oOooOo

It wasn't until the next day that Venus wanted to cry. But she did not. She didn't cry the whole day. Nor the next. She hardly thought about the event. Her every motive was bent on forgetting what she had done.

Not everyone knew something was wrong but to those who knew the leader, definitely noticed. She had a bad habit to over compensate when her mind was troubled. She cleaned, she laughed, she gardened, she sang songs and went for frequent trips around the palace playing games and laughing uproariously. To the untrained eye she was in more spirits than she had ever been in her entire life.

These days she could never be seen without a smile and a hug. There she was whooping it up over a child, sometimes trying on all of her clothes at once for no particular reason, her room was a mess, and she was careful to avoid her guardian cat wherever she went.

But these things did not escape the notice of her best friends. They worried deeply for her. They came up with the idea between them that the problem was worry over the Moon princess's continued and frequent visits to the Earth. Things were not settling on Earth as they had hoped and the rebels were not safe to be around.

No one noticed the Mercurian flower's beginning to wilt, or that the storms of Jupiter were steadily growing worse, and because Rei, too, was so happy with her new soul mate, she had not been reading fires for danger as carefully as she ought to have been. They were too happy for themselves, to be loved and to have one another immediately on hand so of course their lives would seem perfect but for this.

Her depression could not have been because of the General Kunzite because he had told them he couldn't find her that night. She had stated that it had been any normal evening as ever, and went on her way.

It's sad to note that in your worst situations your friends can get the wrong idea if you don't tell them. When you need them most, they wouldn't know what to do. And how can they? They are only people.

So in this case as happens with many, Venus was denied the love she needed more than ever before.

It was decided that the one to comfort her would be Ami. Surely her knowledge would be sufficient enough to tame Minako's mind.

The opportunity arose very quickly because the two of them had made a schedule to learn history. Ami would read aloud and Minako would work on her needlepoint.

That afternoon, just like clockwork, Ami came into the sunlight room where the blond was already waiting with her sewing kit by her side. She was staring at the back of one of her hands with a blank but not sad expression. When she heard her friend step onto the wood floor, she turned abruptly.

"Hey Girly! Let's get started!" she exclaimed busily pulled out the materials grinning. "I think we were at the part where the first group had made plans to enter into their country at night disguised as traveling merchants therefore onto the Battle of the Brunt."

"Right." Ami walked over and kissed her head. She wasn't very good at starting a serious conversation about social problems so she figured it could wait until after.

The time passed and Mercury began to observe that her friend wasn't really listening anymore. She was hardly paying any attention to her project either. Her eyes had gone dark and her features appeared too old. Her face twitched as another unpleasant thought surfaced. It hurt Ami to see her friend looking so exhausted and worried. Soon she had practically closed her eyes. Her blond lashes hid her eyes so Mercury could barely tell if she was really still awake at all.

The Venus Princess drew a sharp breath and her eyes opened. Her hands made a move to drop her hoop and touch her chest.

"Oh."

"Venus?" Questioned Mercury. "Are you alright?"

"Oh yes."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine. I just…felt my heart ache for a moment. I'm fine. So tell me more." She looked back to the needlepoint on her lap.

"Minako-?"

"What Ami-Chan?" She looked up obviously perturbed. "I'm fine OK? Stop asking. It's nothing I promise. Just give it a rest."

"Well first I know what you think, but I thought I'd let you know you're sewing…"

Minako looked down, the anger dropping to the floor in curiosity. She had sewn right through the canvas, into her dress and back out again- several times. She let the hoop fall from her hands and watched as it hung loosely attached to her dress.

"Oh…" She blushed and started to undo her mistake. "I'll take care of it. Please keep reading to me." But Ami did not. She closed the text and reached over to untie the sewing mess. Minako would have objected but she knew Ami could do it twice as fast as she could possibly go. So Minako set her hands down off the dress and moved her legs to the side so Ami could kneel before her.

Minako was embarrassed because of her outburst and knew that she shouldn't have shouted. She wanted to apologize but couldn't find the words inside. She didn't want to be lectured right now. It wasn't as if she had done anything wrong, right? Was being a little more somber than usual a bad thing? So why should she apologize?

Still…she felt the need to, to the little lilac girl gently pulling back the thread.

She watched small hands pull and pull in one graceful swoop of her nimble fingers. The silence lasted while the two of them let their thoughts wander.

"Almost done." As soon as she had begun to speak Minako interrupted over lapping their speech.

"I know your not stupid Ami-Chan and I'm sure you know what's wrong I just can't let this get to me." The head of sapphire didn't look up but continued to pull at the strings. "What's wrong with me?" She put her forehead to Ami' s shoulder and smiled. "I'm just a silly girl."

"We're all worried about her." Her reassuring word floated into her ear. "But…" She set down the freed hoop on the floor and embraced the neck so warm. "I promise everything will be alright in the end. We won't let anything happen to her."

Minako let herself get wrapped up in her arms.

And didn't miss a beat.

"I know. I just…sometimes I envy her too. I will never feel that joy."

"We feel it everyday! There could never be another person of whom I could love more than our lady! I know you feel the same way. As long as we have each other we can be happy. And we can be whole." Ami hugged even tighter.

She wanted to believe her, but Minako still had a bit of a pin spotting her heart. She did love Serenity more than anything. There could be no replacement for the attachment they had formed. Venus wondered if that was all there was to it.

Was this her last immobile vow?

Just then, their other two friends came in laughing and celebrating.

"I know you're in the middle of a lesson Mercury but you have to see this-" just then they found exactly what Jupiter was talking about. From around the corner came their lovely little moon princess with a black mustache drawn across her delicate white face and instead of neat round odangos, their sat two horns made of her own hair. She had also thrown a large red cape of her fathers around her shoulders and came stalking into the room looking positively hilarious.

"Little ladies little ladies. " She said in a fake man's voice raising her eyebrows in a sinister manner. "My, my, my, such pretty things!' She pinched Mars who shouted and scurried away.

"That's creepy Serenity! Stop stop stop!" The little one waggled her head to the sides and gave Ami an Eskimo kiss. She tried to push her off but not hard enough because the White Lady lost her balance and fell into Ami's lap. At first everything looked like it was going to be fine but for helping Serenity back up again but then the inevitable happened. The chair tilled backward and the two came tumbling over one another.

"You can't leave me out of this one!" Rei feeling the thrill of the chase tackled the two and began to tickle. In turn, the little ones attempted to pin her down but to no avail, Ami and Serenity were to small to fight back Rei and Makoto.

That's why Minako joined their group in the fight- to make it even.

oOooOo

This was supposed to be the happiest time. The Moon was growing, there were parties every night, babies were being born, plans were being made, and almost everyone had someone to love.

The Moon had no dark places; the princess was growing quickly and in a matter of a few years she would begin to take her place as queen. Everything was wonderful.

No one knew that carnage and death were at all of their doors. The air would become thick with a rotting stench, crops would be burned and children's anguished cries would reverberate through the very palace's walls.

The drums of war were beating louder and louder inside Kunzite's head, breaking him in half. Every time he fought the feeling the image would claw at his brain; the image of the very Princess of Venus refusing his kiss. Refusing his love. Refusing him. For her precious Princess. Her precious Serenity.

Dark and destitute would be the lands and Kunzite swore he would see her again but never the same way he had ever before.

Lying on his bed he clung to his brain where the pounding grew louder and louder causing all the sounds and visions around to grow and worsen the pain.

"Stop!" His eyes opened wide he could barely make out a person in the doorway. The pain was more piercing that he had ever felt before and when he cried out his final word, no one, not even himself. Could hear him.

"Venus!"

oOooOo

Um guys? HELLOOOOO!

This is what? Part 16? and I got one review for the last chapter. ONE.. That is so sad.. and looking at how many people actually come to see the last new one I put up- this is downright depressing. I'm lucky I even get to see it now otherwise I might think you guys are looking at this at all! Come on! Please review.

Please do review. I know you all know what it's like and I get very few at all. I would really appreciate your support. Like just a small note or a smily face? Would someone like to read chaps. B4 they come out so I can know if they suck?

Please help me guys. You are the only ones who read this. If this pleading isn't enough…I still love you.

I do. Thanks for giving this story recently recorded (ahemnottellingactualortotal hitssneeze) my very favorite number of hits: 1234! Yay::Boogie down:

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As always,

Love love love love,

Vbabe