A/N: Hello, everyone! I hope this chapter finds you well! :)

I so very much enjoyed writing this chapter! I'm a hopeless romantic, as you may have gathered by now. If not, then this is me admitting to that fact lol. And Serenity and Endymion (or Usagi and Mamo) are one of my favorite anime couples of all-time.

This chapter is being posted earlier than anticipated, so I'm very happy about that! Please don't hesitate to share any feedback that you may have. I always look forward to hearing from you all!

Until the next chapter,

-Dev

"...fruit often tastes sweeter when it's forbidden."

―Stephane Narcisse, "Reign"

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.:Serenity:.

My heart pounded frantically against my ribs. I shouldn't be doing this, I was being foolish. But after the dozens of letters exchanged these past seven months, I could no longer fear the man I was born with a duty to hate, nor could I continue to stay away. Yet exchanging letters was one thing, but to meet with him? Surely that was a step too far, despite my previous encounters with Endymion giving me little reason to be afraid.

The letters had started as, well, I wasn't entirely sure what they'd been. A distraction? A game? But no, they were something far more wonderful. We'd pretended the reason we wrote was due to the animosity we were supposed to feel, but which felt impossible now. I knew we were playing a dangerous game, yet I couldn't bring myself to stop.

We'd arranged to meet in the place we'd accidentally met once before―the Borderlands Library. My quest to find the Relic of Abundance provided me with the needed excuse to make such a trip. Mina faithfully accompanied me and took her place just outside of the entrance, not knowing about the secret passageways that would allow a certain prince to easily slip past her.

My anticipation for our meeting was almost swallowed up by the nerves tightening my stomach. I restlessly paced the rows, occasionally pausing to read a few of the worn titles in an attempt to distract myself. I wasn't waiting long before footsteps sounded behind me, echoing against the stone walls. I held my breath in anticipation as they drew closer.

They paused at the end of the row where I stood. "Ah, it worked."

I startled at Endymion's voice, somehow so familiar despite not having heard it in months. With a wavering breath I slowly turned, and immediately stilled.

The man who had penned the words that made me smile, laugh, and share more about myself than I ever had with anyone else, stood in front of me. My breath caught as I drank in the sight of him. The prince had always been handsome, but had he ever made my heart pound so rapidly or made me feel so weak at the knees just upon sight? Had his gaze ever been such a soft, vivid blue and filled with tenderness as he looked at me?

He stared back with wide eyes before his entire manner softened. "Serenity."

Something happened when he said my name―I felt as if my entire world shifted. I'd spent months pretending I hadn't grown to care for the man in my letters, but with that single word, spoken so reverently and with such familiarity, everything changed.

No, I couldn't. Surely that was too far. I hastily buried my feelings deep in the heart that hadn't stopped pounding since his arrival. "What worked?" I managed breathlessly.

Endymion stepped forward, his gaze not once leaving mine, and despite his having come closer, it somehow wasn't nearly close enough. "I've spent hours pondering how to successfully capture an enemy princess and finally found the perfect lure."

My lips twitched at this familiar game of ours, but I fought against my smile. "I must warn you, Your Highness, that I'm not so easily caught."

"Unless I have something you simply can't resist." He pulled a book from behind his back and waved it tauntingly.

I gasped when I caught sight of the title: Secrets and Mysteries Surrounding the Relic of Abundance. In an instant I bridged the distance between us. "Wherever did you find this?"

"I've been perusing our impressive library for weeks in search of it." His gaze was riveted to my smile, seeming quite pleased he'd been the cause of it. "It contains a great deal of information about where the relic may be located, as well as what enchantments guard it. I'm hoping it will help you."

I was so overcome I could barely speak. "Thank you, Endymion."

His expression softened. "It's my pleasure, Serenity."

For a long moment we simply stared at one another, a look which contained so many unspoken sentiments. Heat filled my cheeks and I hastily lowered my gaze to the book, but before I could use it as a much-needed distraction he advanced another step, causing me to step back against the bookshelves.

I grinned. "What are you up to?"

"The bait worked, so it's my duty to capture you. We're supposedly enemies, you know."

"So I've heard."

He grinned and pressed his hands on either side of me like a cage, but I didn't feel at all trapped. Instead, I felt...so many things, all of them beautiful, albeit rather alarming.

"You've caught me," I managed airily. "What are you going to do now?"

"Something rather devious." He lifted his hand, and after a moment's hesitation he ran his knuckles along my cheek in the softest caress, causing my entire body to shudder from the sheer intimacy of it. "I've wanted to do that for so long," he murmured. "Letters can be a rather...limiting form of communication."

My breath caught and, suddenly, there was no book, no history of hatred between our two kingdoms, no expectations. There was only Endymion's intoxicating presence, the blazing look filling his bright eyes, the feel of my pounding heart, the sound of our breaths coming short and fast, and his soft and addicting touch.

"Endymion?" I managed breathlessly.

"Mmm?" He seemed perfectly content to run his thumb along my jaw in a thoroughly distracting way, making my search for words rather difficult.

"Have we forgotten who one another is?"

His fingers stilled, but rather than pull away, he searched my eyes with a look like he was seeking something precious he was desperate to find. "Do you want us to be what's expected, Sere?"

"...No." The word was barely audible.

"Nor do I. It all seems so...ridiculous, and yet I find myself clinging to the expectations placed upon me by keeping you at arm's length; despite having dreamt of this moment for months, telling myself I shouldn't do what I most long to do."

My breath caught. "What do you long to do?"

I'd thought there was little space between us before but I was wrong, for when he took a small step forward I was overwhelmed by his closeness. His proximity was warm and even a little tingly, making me yearn to curl myself against him, an impulse almost impossible to resist.

He continued to stroke my cheek. I leaned against his soft touch with a moan, wanting more. His warm breath tickled my skin as he leaned down to my ear. "I can't want you...yet, I'm coming to discover there's absolutely nothing that I want more."

I ached to tell him that I wanted him, too, but I was afraid of what would happen if I did. "Th―This is wrong," I managed. "We can't..." I couldn't finish.

Endymion paused. "Do you want me to stop?"

I rapidly shook my head. "No."

To my relief, he didn't pull away. Yet even with my permission to continue, each of his movements were done achingly slow, each one giving me a chance to stop him should I come to my senses. But, even though I knew I should, I couldn't; not when I wanted nothing more than the forbidden to happen.

Endymion pressed himself, if possible, even closer. His nose skimmed my jawline until he hovered just above my lips where he paused. He lifted his gaze so that his blue gaze penetrated mine, his incredibly soft. Whatever he saw must have given him the courage to utter, "I'm going to kiss you now." Those words warmed my blood.

And he did.

His mouth descended upon mine slowly, as if he was giving me a chance to resist. The heat of his lips sent jolts of lightning throughout my body. Endymion slipped his left arm around my waist securely. I let the fingers of both my hands entangle themselves in his soft ebony hair as his tongue slipped past my pliable lips.

Finally.

I trembled under Endymion's featherlight touch, his thumb caressing my cheek, his other hand moving across my back, easing the tension from the muscles until I could easily fall into the mold of his embrace. I didn't know it could be like this.

I was unprepared for the magnitude of the moment, for the swell of feelings that overcame me the moment our lips touched. I realized that what had begun as innocent friendship had turned into something so much more. One kiss couldn't alter our circumstances, dispel the hatred of our families, or change how forbidden this relationship was between us was. Yet, despite all of that, my heart had been stolen beyond my control and I knew I was lost to him forever. There would be no turning back.

Yet, in this moment, I didn't care; despite everything telling me this was wrong, nothing had ever felt so right.

All of Endymion filled my senses―his warmth, his taste, the heat of his hands on my back, the way my pounding heart swelled with a feeling such as I'd never experienced before.

A small, wistful sigh escaped my parted lips as he slowly eased back from me. I didn't want to open my eyes; I could go on for hours kissing this boy.

Almost immediately, however, reality came crashing back in and I began to shy away, looking at my right hand as it lowered to his heart, beating wildly beneath my fingertips.

Endymion tipped my head up with his hand. "I've been waiting for a moment like this," he whispered hoarsely, his eyes flitting rapidly over my flushed face.

"How long?" I asked in a whisper.

He chuckled and rested his forehead against mine. "Too long," was his vague response.

The only thing I could think to ask was, "Really?" Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pulled him closer.

"Really."

As the proximity of our lips increased in closeness, I played with Endymion's hair absentmindedly—basking in the warmth and security exuding from him—loving the feeling of it between my fingers. His lips brushed mine, briefly, before kissing my cheeks, nose, my eyelids, and then my forehead. Everywhere his lips touched my skin tingled in response.

I sighed languidly as I nestled more into his embrace, allowing silence to settle between us for a moment.

Despite the beauty of the moment, fear tainted it like poison. What had just happened was irreversible, thrusting me on a path I'd never expected to walk, a complicated path riddled with obstacles and no guarantee of a happily ever after. And yet, I couldn't turn back. I'd gone too far.

I took a steadying breath. "Endymion, did you mean it?"

He didn't even need to ask what I meant. "Unfortunately, I did."

His answer both lifted my heart and caused it to sink, but happiness was the far stronger emotion, enfolding me in an embrace. "So did I."

His grin lit up his eyes. No one had ever looked upon me with such joy, and to think that his happiness was because of me; the thought warmed me through.

He dipped down, as if he meant to kiss me again, but as much as I ached to explore what was happening between us, fear lingered, whispering reminder I'd give anything to ignore.

"What do we do now?"

Endymion paused inches from my lips, where he remained for a moment before he groaned. "I don't know. I confess I was afraid of falling for you, terrified of the likely possibility of losing you... But the moment I saw you again, Serenity, I knew it was too late."

"It is for me, too," I whispered. "But can anything come from this? Not only is this forbidden, but my parents are still making arrangements with Prince Daedric."

"And mine with Princess Beryl." He ran his thumb along my cheek. "But I shall tell her no."

"You...will?" I squeaked.

"Despite there being no clear path forward, I have another princess in mind I'd like to pursue."

He pressed his lips back to mine, a kiss that was both beautiful and painful, for no matter how much I longed to melt against him and his alluring promise, in this moment his words felt impossible.

My strangled sob broke our kiss. "Endymion, we can't. However will we make it work?"

He gathered me in his arms and held me close and I clung to him in return, unwilling to loosen my grip in case doing so caused him to slip away.

"We'll find a way, Sere," he murmured. "We have to, for I can't let you go. I'm ashamed to admit that I've tried... During the moments I awaited another of your letters, I tried to talk sense into myself, only to hear from you, making every attempt to argue against what was happening between us futile."

"Yet the decision isn't up to us," I said. "We're trapped in a history of hatred and the expectations of our families."

"Love is stronger than any of that."

His beautiful words enfolded me. I'd spent years fantasizing about the moment when my heart would be stolen, only for it to have snuck up on me. Endymion had stolen pieces of my heart one-by-one without my even realizing it, laying claim to it until it wasn't mine any longer—it was his.

Joy as I'd never experienced it swelled within me; a happiness that was short-lived due to our circumstances. Love was supposed to be beautiful, and though it was that, it was also complicated, simply because the object of my affections was the last man my parents—specifically my mother—would ever allow a union with.

Yet in this moment it didn't matter. My feelings only deepened as I stared into his smoldering gaze. My love for him had grown with every letter, beginning as friendship before becoming something far deeper the further we'd ventured into forbidden territory. Part of me recognized I was falling in love with him, but I'd been afraid to admit it, terrified of the implications that would surely follow. And though I knew our feelings betrayed all that our kingdoms stood for, I loved Endymion all the same.

"Love..." Tenderness cradled the word as I spoke it, as well as a sense of rightness. "Is this my punishment for being a descendent of the monarch who supposedly stole from Elysion? You stole my heart."

Endymion grinned as he pressed his forehead against mine. "Can you blame me for enacting revenge? I suppose we're even, considering you've stolen mine as well."

My response was soon covered by another kiss, one that was, if possible, even more beautiful than our first considering this one contained the truth of our feelings. With it I almost forgot all of our worries—almost.

Yet they lingered, waiting patiently for us to part in order to revisit.

"What happens now?" I wondered quietly.

He stroked my cheek. "Keep it a secret. At least, until we find a way to be together."

Was that even possible? For it wasn't just the tradition of animosity between our kingdoms we had to overcome, but our roles within them—for we weren't just from enemy families, but in line for our own crowns. Yet despite all that, I still stubbornly clung to the hope that our story wouldn't end before it'd even begun.

"How can we keep it a secret?" I asked.

"The same way we've done this past year: we will continue to write letters, and we'll meet here as often as we can."

"And when we're in public?"

Endymion sighed. "Then we'll pretend to be what's expected."

"You mean we'll pretend to hate one another?" How could I possibly feign an emotion the complete opposite of what I truly felt?

He nodded gravely.

For a moment I couldn't speak, too horrified by what he'd just proposed. I didn't want to feign hatred; I wanted to explore the warm, beautiful love we were just beginning to feel, to bask in it, not hide it away in a box, only to be taken out when we were alone.

Endymion stroked my cheek with his thumb, wiping away the tears I only just realized had escaped. "The last thing I want is to pretend, Serenity, but it's the only way to protect this—us. You're too precious for me to lose now."

Although the thought still broke my heart, I understood, but to feign hatred... Can I truly manage such a charade?

He sensed my hesitance. "To make it easier, perhaps we can think of it as a game."

I released a strangled sob. "Another game? What sort of game shall we play this time?"

"The one we've been playing from the beginning—to pretend we're enemies to protect the truth: that we're really lovers."

The corners of my mouth slowly lifted, a forced attempt at a smile I didn't at all feel. "Is there a prize for the winner?"

"There can be." He kissed each corner of my mouth, causing me to shiver with a longing so acute I feared I'd burst.

"Books are, apparently, how you capture enemy princesses. Are kisses how one catches an enemy prince?" I kept my voice teasing, an attempt to stave off the tears longed to escape at our seemingly impossible situation.

"Indeed. You've captured me completely, Princess." He pressed his lips first to my forehead, then the tip of my nose, and finally to my lips. My arms enfolded him as I melted into his kiss.

Even after it ended I couldn't make myself pull away. Instead I snuggled closer, nestling against his chest to bask in the feel of his embrace, feeling so content and incredibly cherished.

But as lovely as the moment was, I knew it was only one of very few we'd manage to steal, considering we were only at the beginning of a long, arduous road. Nevertheless, wherever it led, I'd embark on this journey if there was any hope of making this work. Though our love was new and fragile, I already knew without a shadow of a doubt that it was far too precious for me to lose.

Endymion nestled against my hair and his arms tightened around me, as if he meant to hold me forever. "No matter what it takes, we'll find a way."

His words contained a promise, one I wanted nothing more than to be fulfilled. Despite the seemingly insurmountable odds, perhaps it would, for I knew there was no obstacle I wouldn't overcome if it meant I could have a future with him.

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à suivre...