Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Kishikata no Eos ❯ Return ( Chapter 12 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: dawningfire 
Wherein the Pavori are confounded by a treaty and Dawn is confounded by science (Warning: fade-to-black sex scene)
Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi / Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 04.06.2005 | Pages: 5 | Words: 5.4K | Visits: 160 | Status: Completed
Wherein the Pavori are confounded by a treaty and Dawn is confounded by science (Warning: fade-to-black sex scene)
Anime/Manga: Sailor Moon Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi / Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 04.06.2005 | Pages: 5 | Words: 5.4K | Visits: 160 | Status: Completed
Kishikata no Eos
Chapter Twelve -- Return
For once, the Princess had taken a page out of her Guardian's book. Each hand clenched around a strappy pink sandal, Rini stormed down the hallways towards the private living areas in the palace. Fuming, she didn't offer so much as a nod to the guards who opened the doors to let her inside. Rather than talk to her, Dawn had clung to that stupid designer the moment she'd stepped off the ship. Her parents had even gone so far as to /thank/ Rainault for keeping her safe. Then and there, Rini had decided to just wait at the door of the Guardian's quarters, so that she could properly give her a piece of her mind.
The nerve. The nerve of him to actually take the thanks, while Dawn just stood there and blushed and smiled and ducked her head in that 'I'm nobody special' way that set Rini's teeth on edge every time she endured it. And gypsies... space gypsies being thanked and rewarded and granted special trade status? A loud snort escaped Rini's inner rant as she rounded the corner, the beginnings of a tirade already forming in her head.
Breandon leaned his head on Dawn's shoulder as the pair made their way back from the palace hospital. They'd been poked, prodded, tested, questioned, and scanned until he was ready to scream from the idiocy of it all. Logical bits of him knew perfectly well what was going on, but the rest of him just wanted to go lie down, with Dawn, and sleep. Somewhere safe. Somewhere -- "Oh, shit."
There was Rini, tapping her unclad foot and glaring fit to burn the building down.
"There you are," she offered icily. "Took your sweet time, I see." Arms folded across her chest, the shoes dangled from one hand.
Dawn frowned down at the Princess. "They did. I just decided to walk a little more slowly. Your point?"
"My /point?/" Her voice rose octaves as she repeated Dawn's question. "I don't have to have a point! I... I'm the PRINCESS! And I just had to go and thank a bunch of /gypsies/ for rescuing you because you had to run off with HIM one morning!" She flung a hand out at Breandon, gesticulating wildly with her shoes. "If it wasn't for you..."
"If it wasn't for me she might be dead."
"She wouldn't have been RUNNING AROUND OUTSIDE where BOUNTY HUNTERS could get her!" Red faced, Rini screamed at the designer. She took another step forward, mouth open to deliver another tirade before Dawn forcibly put herself between the two.
"You," she began, her voice dangerously low, "are going to shut up and back off. Now." The Guardian narrowed her eyes at her charge, bile rising in her throat. "I don't care how inconvenienced you are, you're going to suck it up for a night."
Breandon bit his tongue on his next thought, which was something along with lines of not locking people in cages, and Rini didn't like being locked up much either, and what if she'd been with Rini instead? Instead, he set his jaw, folded his arms, and prepared to watch his lover set a Royal Princess straight.
"I get to go where I want, when I want. If you'll recall, you told me that it didn't matter where I went, there was always someone out to get you. Your Eos got attacked here, remember?" Dawn knocked a hand on the door in punctuation of her remark. "I didn't agree to come here to live in a plastic bubble, and I'm certainly not going to do it because /you/ tell me to do it."
"But I'm the /Princess/," Rini hissed back.
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Big fuckin' deal. I. Don't. Care." She didn't flinch at Rini's outraged shriek, but merely cut off another tirade. "I'm going to bed because I'm tired, and because I have to go with you to the negotiations tomorrow."
"No, you will not," huffed the pink-haired one.
"Yes, I will."
"Nuh-uh."
She couldn't resist. "Take it up with your mother. I'm going to bed." Dawn reached for Breandon's wrist.
He gave her his hand, looking up at Rini with a gaze that more exhausted than angry. "Grow up, Princess." Then they were gone, and the door closed in Rini's stunned face. She lifted a fist to pound in the door.
"Don't."
She didn't turn to look at her mother, but the fist dropped. "Why not?"
"Because I said so. Because she's an adult, and because you're acting like a child." Serenity rubbed at her temples, her expression weary. "This is wholly inappropriate behavior. Neither one of them deserve that kind of treatment."
She turned to walk away, and looked back. "A Princess who has to remind others of the fact isn't much of a Princess."
"You don't think this would have happened if he hadn't asked her to meet him that morning?" Rini's voice choked out the question to her mother.
Serenity came back and placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "I think that it would not have mattered. She exists so you don't have to live in a crystal cage. You cannot expect her to live in one, either. Soon or late, there would have been an attempt. Would you blame yourself if it had been you she was protecting at the time?"
"No, because that's her job. She's supposed to do that." The cool hand on her shoulder seemed to sap the spite from Rini, and she slumped forward. Deep down, she wanted to be mad at him, to find some reason to yell at him for taking everyone away from her - whether or not he actually did was another matter - and yet, she couldn't justify storming in Dawn's room and continuing the argument. "It's just not fair," made its way out of her mouth in defeated whimper.
"She came back," Serenity pointed out mildly. "Are you so selfish that you think she should only be devoted to you, or are you jealous?"
Her lower lip quivered, her posture defiant as she tried to look her mother in the eye. "No."
Serenity pulled her daughter into an embrace. "It's natural to be angry when worry is suddenly relieved." She stroked the pink hair. "This is hard for you."
Rini fought the hug for a moment, but gave up as her mother smoothed her hair back. Emotionally exhausted, she brought both arms about her mother's waist in a desperate hug. "I want to be more mad, but I can't."
"Shhhhh." Serenity guided Rini away from Dawn's rooms, down the hall to a small sitting room.
Curled up in her mother's lap, she let loose a long shuddering sigh. Jealous? Of what? Certainly not of Rainault, that was certain.
Serenity rocked her daughter gently, humming. Hesitantly, she began, "Is this about Ashe?"
"Maybe." Eyes closed, she listened to the familiar melody. "But not about Ashe because he's Ashe. Ashe because, well," she offered, rubbing at her nose. "Because I don't have anything like that anymore. And I miss it," she hiccuped.
"Oh, baby," Serenity whispered. She held her daughter close. Chief among her thoughts was a sudden realisation of how hard it must be to be the offspring of the most romantic liaison. Rini had high standards, naturally. "Oh, baby."
"Am I doing something wrong?" She tried to lift her head. "Is it supposed to be this hard?"
"No, honey." Serenity laced her fingers in her daughter's hair. "It's not supposed to be hard, or easy. It just is."
She sighed softly in reply, tired and worn out far past her seventeen years. "I wish it wasn't," she murmured. Rini's head rested against the soft white shoulder of Serenity's gown, eyes closing as sleep slowly took over.
"I know," her mother whispered. "I know." A few tears dampened the pink hair before Serenity sniffed gracelessly. Endymion peeked in. "She's asleep."
He walked over, and stood looking down. "Poor child. Here, let me carry her." The two parents looked at their child, and looked at each other, and shared a quintessential moment of parenthood, each wishing they could smooth the way and make it easy for her. Then Endymion picked Rini up and carried her to bed.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Back in her suite, Dawn had managed to trade her traveler's clothing for a simple robe before collapsing on the bed next to Breandon. Resting her head on his chest, she counted heartbeats in time with his breathing. Home, and yet not really home quite yet. It was an bittersweet sort of relief to be back.
Breandon, for his part, sprawled in boneless relief across Dawn's bed, one hand rubbing at his forehead in sheer frustration. "What," he began, "is her problem? I thought you two had gotten through that."
She waved a hand in the air as if to totally dismiss the subject. "I have no clue, and I don't care. Princess or not, she's not going to dictate anything when it comes to me and you."
He smoothed his free hand over her hair. "I know that. But you do still have to accompany her."
She closed her eyes and sighed. "It doesn't mean that I have to put up with her whining. Sure, I'll punch the first person who tries to harm one hair on her pretty head, but so help me..." A hand balled into a fist as she punched the comforter on the bed in frustration. "I'll be nice and smile, okay? No embarrassing anyone. I'll be the picture of obedience."
"That's a very bad picture." He pried her fingers open. "Didn't your mother ever teach you to ignore people?"
"If she did, I didn't pay attention." Absently, she scratched at his stomach, watching the fabric of his shirt move under her nails. "Besides, it's hard to ignore people you care about."
"Not when they're being ... " He hesitated for a word, "Snippy. It's a kind of punishment. As far as conversation goes, she stops existing unless she's being nice."
She gave a gentle shrug and closed her eyes. "I suppose. It'll be better in the morning, after we all sleep. I just... I think she's glad that we're back."
"I think you're right, but it's a funny way of showing it." Rolling over, he put an arm around her waist and whispered, "Do you really want to go to sleep right now?"
She raised herself up on an elbow, grinning conspiratorially. "Sleep now? After I've finally managed to lure you in here?"
"That's what I thought." He yanked her close, squashing himself, and kissed her thoroughly.
She squealed and giggled, rolling back so that she could look up at him. Returning the kiss, she reached for the leather band to undo his hair.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
More than a week had passed since the glorious rescue and the new treaty negotiations between the Moon Kingdom and Chavi Rivka's crew. Dawn didn't understand much of the legal ramifications, but Breandon had managed to explain that it meant more than enough money for the _Basilikya_'s crew to last them for decades. Disgruntled threats from the Arronné family after the announcement of the treaty had meant that Dawn was to be even more of a shadow for the Princess, which had Rini in a huff. After a particularly strained dinner, Serenity had graciously declared a 'family night,' giving Dawn the opportunity to get away from a still-sullen Rini.
That had been more than three hours ago. Unable to find Breandon, she'd resigned herself to another game of pool at Greynn's, interspersed with conversations with Vince. Setting up what would be the eighth game of the night, she barely looked up when a long shadow fell across the green felt.
"Dawn!"
The noise barely fazed her as the thwack of the balls resounded in the nearly-empty bar. Straightening up, she gave the lanky figure a tired but warm grin. "Hey Kieran. You're out past your bedtime, aren't you?"
"I have a bedtime?" His purple eyes were wide, and there was no way to tell if he was serious or not. He leaned both elbows on the edge of the table.
"Everyone has a bedtime. We just choose to ignore 'em when it's convenient." She strolled around the table, looking for a better shot. "You wanna play?"
He shook his dark head. "I'd have to take a handicap."
"Suit yourself." Dawn leaned down to continue her game, but her concentration wasn't on the game at hand now. "Um, have you seen Breandon anywhere? I couldn't find him earlier, since I had the night off and stuff." She tried t sound nonchalant.
Again Kieran shook his head. "He doesn't tell me where he goes."
"Oh." Dawn couldn't hide the disappointment in her voice this time. "I just thought... oh, nevermind. Did you want a drink or something? Vince is gettin' lazy with just me ordering."
"Not tonight."
She nodded in reply, silently going back to her game. Distraction was evident as the white ball went to the right of the red striped ball, Dawn swearing in whispers.
"Your angle was wrong," Kieran pointed out, following the balls.
"I know." She stepped back and watched the table. "I need more practice, or something." Reaching for her drink, Dawn took a long sip and eyed Kieran over the rim of the glass. "Did you just come to hang out and watch me play pool?"
He shrugged. "I don't like to sit in the lab all day. Ami chases me out every so often if I don't go on my own."
"Oh." Ice clinked as she set the glass down. "Kieran, I don't mean to ask dumb questions, and you don't have to answer 'em if you don't want to, but Breandon..."
Kieran cocked an eyebrow.
"Well, does he... does he know that they're going to make me leave?" Blue chalk dirtied her thumb as she spoke, Dawn suddenly fixated on the end of the pool cue.
"You ask the hard questions." Kieran pushed a hand through his hair, making even more of it stand up on end. "Just a moment." He signalled to Vince. When Vince had given him a vibrantly blue drink with some kind of sparks in it, he sat down at a nearby table and stared at it. "Yes. Yes, he knows."
"And?" She hugged herself tightly, leaning against the pool table. "He's not upset with me because of that, is he?"
A sudden movement pushed the glass half across the table. "No. Of course not. It's not because of you."
"Because I..." She licked her lips nervously. It'd been so long since she'd been able to open up to anyone about Breandon without hearing some kind of warning or judgment. "I don't want to go, because it'd mean leaving him."
Retrieving the drink, Kieran took a long swallow. "Of course."
"But he's upset?"
"Not with you."
"Then with whom?" She slid into the chair across from him.
He turned the drink between his fingers. "I don't know."
She nodded once, unsure as to whether or not she should pry further. "But he's upset about something?" Dawn wondered briefly if Rini had given him another earful.
"He doesn't want you to leave either."
She smiled faintly at that revelation. "Well, that's good. It'd be awfully awkward if only one of us was going to be eternally heartbroken when I get shipped back home." Sarcasm was hardly solace, and Dawn looked down at the table.
"He's trying to make that not happen.”
His voice was soft enough, Dawn thought that she hadn't heard Kieran at first. "What? Did you just..."
Kieran cleared his throat. "He's trying to find a way to keep you here."
Her mouth twisted oddly, caught between a full-out smile and an extremely worried grimace. "So I'd stay? But once Eos has her kids, and Rini accompanies her mother, there's no reason for me to stay unless-" Dawn stopped abruptly.
He didn't look up. "Go on."
"He's talking to one of them, isn't he?"
"Not right now."
"Has he talked to them yet?" Either Serenity or Pluto, it didn't matter at this point. She started to get up from the chair.
"Sit down."
She sat.
"If you go charging in there now, it will be disruptive." Kieran sighed. "I don't understand it. I only understand the science. And science says that at some point you or -- this is important -- one of your descendants has to go back."
"Excuse me?" Dawn leaned forward. "Descendants?"
"Children?"
"I know what they are," she retorted. "I just... oh, hell. This is so complicated, it hurts." Head in her hands, she stared down at the table.
"It makes perfect sense to me."
"Then you're a whole lot smarter than I am," she said morosely. One hand reached for his drink. "May I?"
He put his hand over it. "That's really not a good thing for pure humans."
She sighed. "Fine. I'll get my own oblivion."
"Good idea."
Getting up, she crossed the room to the bar, where Vince was talking animatedly on a phone. He put up a fuzzy paw as if to tell her to wait, finishing the conversation with a "that's great, tell her I said congratulations," before setting the phone down. "Whatever you want, Dawn. Drinks are on the house."
"On the house? How come?" Her stomach bottomed out as he beamed at her. "Good news?"
"Great news. Three healthy kids, one tired and drugged up new mother, and a rather giddy father." Vince waved to Kieran. "You too, man. Whatever you want."
Dawn's smile spread thin over her lips, eyes bright and cheerfulness forced. "That's... that's great. Really great. Wow, that's just fantastic."
Kieran shook his head, though his grin was far less forced than Dawn's.
"Y'know, I think I'm gonna have to pass," she managed to get out, stumbling over the barstool. "It's late and all, and I should really get some sleep. Tell Theo I said congratulations," she offered hoarsely, nearing the door.
Which swung open, revealing the slightly tousled figure of Breandon, a backpack slung over one shoulder. "Dawn?"
A surprised squeak came forth instead of a warmer greeting, her expression instantly guilty and relieved at the same time. "I... I was looking for you earlier but I couldn't... Eos. She had the babies, and I just..." Dawn swallowed hard, glancing back to the pair at the bar. "I was just leaving."
"I'll go with you," Breandon said instantly. He didn't even glance at Kieran, or Vince. Stepping out of the doorway, he flourished an arm at the street.
She walked ahead of him, taking a turn in the direction of his shop. "I don't want to go back to the palace," she mumbled.
"Right, fine."
"I don't want to go back anywhere."
"Sure, okay. Go to the shop, Dawn."
"No." She stopped and turned to him. The light on the street flickered above them as the hum of a transport sounded from the nearby spaceport. "I don't want to go back. Anywhere."
He didn't look in the best of moods, either. "I'm not doing this out in the street, Dawn. Go to the shop, so we can talk. Or you can yell. Either."
Silently, she turned and continued down the street, past the square where the Incident had taken place, down the tidy side street, up to his door. She dug her hands in her pockets and waited to be let inside.
He unlocked the door and shouldered his way inside, lights coming on at the motion. "Have a seat, darling." He vanished into his bedroom for a moment, and she could hear thumps indicating opening and closing of things. After a moment, he reappeared, loose hair and zippered pullover indicating casualness.
She flopped onto the floor, snatching a stray throw pillow to hold as she rested her head against the papasan chair. "I was looking for you earlier," she noted quietly.
"I'm sorry. I had to make a shopping trip unexpectedly." He took a seat on the futon, stretching to rub a foot over her stomach. "What's wrong?"
Dawn closed her eyes, concentrating on the feel of the fabric against her cheek. "I got a night off, and I couldn't find you, and I found Kieran and talked to him, and I think..." She let out a long sigh. "I think that I don't want to go back anymore."
"Be more specific."
"I want this to be home. Here." She opened both eyes. "Is that specific enough?"
"Yes, thank you." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Dawn, if you stay here you will never be safe."
"What's not safe?" She sat up, pillow to her chest. "I don't want to be safe, I want to be happy. I want to be loved. I want to be someplace where I'm needed."
"Don't your parents need you?" He shook his head. "No, never mind that. If you stay here there will always be the possibility of repeating what just happened."
She sighed, holding the pillow time. "And if I go back, who's to say that this entire scenario won't repeat itself? I... I hate to say it, but this goes beyond the small family I have at home. It's a Senshi thing, almost," she offered. "I stay where I'm needed. And even if I'm not needed," Dawn continued with controlled calm, "I'm still needed. Aren't I?"
"I hate it when you fish."
She pushed the pillow to the floor. "And I hate this 'Are you sure?' crap that you're throwing at me. I am sure that I want to stay here. I think, wait, no. I know that you need me, just like I need you, and that's another reason why I want to stay." She pushed the hair out her eyes. "So just correct me if I'm wrong, that's all."
"I'm only doing what they're going to do to me, you know." He tapped his foot on her stomach again.
"Yeah, well..." Dawn trailed off, unable to find a decent reply. She traced the underside of his foot with a delicate finger, leaning back once more. "I guess the whole 'accidentally and wholly in love' argument doesn't work in the future, huh?"
"Don't be an idiot."
"I'll take that as a no."
"You're always jumping to conclusions."
"It's a talent I've refined. Two-footed, so I splash a lot." With that dry remark, she flopped back on the floor to stare morosely at the ceiling. "Kieran said that science says I'd have to go back."
"Just someone from your direct bloodline."
"Oh, good. You know the specifics, too." She took a few deep breaths, eyes closing after a moment. "What if... what if sending me back would end that line," she mused.
"Can we please not talk about this right now? I've been over all the arguments for the last week, and my head is ringing with temporal science." Breandon looked at her pleadingly. "Please."
"I don't think this part is science, but I'll stop anyways," she agreed. Dawn raised herself up on her elbows and gave him a soft smile. "What other topic would you rather discuss, oh dark-tressed champion of my heart?"
Breandon spluttered with laughter.
"Yeah, it doesn't sound the same when I say it, does it?" Dawn chuckled from the floor. "I make it sound corny."
"It may be an accent thing." He patted the futon next to him. "Come sit up here with me, beloved angel of the sky."
Obediently, she scrambled up to the futon, all but flinging herself into his lap. This was better; they could pretend that there was no last day coming or heartbreaking farewell on the horizon. Dawn pulled a bit of his hair down, twining it in her fingers.
Nibbling at her ear, Breandon whispered, "Stay here tonight?"
She squirmed at the tickling. "Well, it's only fair, since you got to sleep over at the palace." Giggling, she toyed with the zipper of his pullover. "I'll just need to be home by breakfast."
"As usual." He bit the earlobe gently, then started to kiss his way down her cheekbone.
"You know," she began playfully, pulling the zipper all the way down. "if I didn't know any better, I'd think that you were trying to seduce me."
Plunging his hands into her hair, he told her, "I don't think 'try' is an applicable word here. I /am/ seducing you."
She gave a throaty giggle. "If it hasn't occurred to you, I'm acknowledging the attention and even encouraging it." She lightly raked her nails down the exposed skin of his chest. "You're losing your touch."
"I /what/?" Determined to prevent any repetition of the damning words, he firmly kissed her, pinning her head between his hands.
Her only verbal reaction came in the form of a soft warm purr, hands blindly fumbling to relieve him of his pullover.
Breaking the kiss, he whispered, "Slow down. We were going to make the most of everything, remember? So slow down." He smiled gently and let go, standing up.
Pouting, she sat up. "Slow... oh, all right."
Breandon stepped to the window, ignoring the unzipped pullover, and flung the shades wide, letting in the brilliant earthlight. "Dawn, there is a box of matches on the corner table. Could you light all the candles?"
She blinked, but wordlessly nodded and stood up. It took a few tries, but she managed to go to each small group of candles about the room, little tongues of light soon dancing on the walls. Shaking out the last match, she set the box back on the table and turned to face him.
He had been tapping keys at the discreet computer in the corner between kitchen and living room, and familiar classical music began to fill the small room. He turned and faced her, arms held wide like the whole scene had been conjured up by him, personally. "Better?"
Dawn shrugged and smiled back at him, thumbs in the waistband of her pants. "It's definitely a nice touch, but you still look as appealing as you did when we were back on the futon. I do like the candles, though."
"Here I believed you were a romantic."
"Selective romantic," she corrected, approaching him coyly. "And instinctively sensual, thanks to you." She tapped a finger on his chest. Taking her hand, he began to kiss each finger. "Oh... now, that's just cheating," she murmured softly. He made an inquiring noise.
"Fingers... mouth, just-" The explanation melted into a moan as he nibbled the tip of her middle finger. He chuckled, letting go of the hand and going for her mouth before she could respond. This time, her hands flew to his hair, knotting the strands about her fingers as she returned the kiss aggressively.
"Down," he muttered indistinctly, and they collapsed to the plush carpet. She managed to somehow end up above him, a very un-angelic expression gracing her lips. His hands were already sliding up under her shirt, a crease forming at the edge of one eyebrow. Rather than wait, she unceremoniously pulled the simple white tee over her head and dropped it onto the futon.
"Again with the haste, angel of the dawn." Nibbling at her chin, he muttered, "What do I have to do to teach you to slow down?!" The question ended in a squeak.
She'd raked her nails over his chest, straddling his hips as she giggled. "Tie me up, probably," she offered with a naughty laugh.
"That's not much of a punishment if you like it." Slowly, he slid his fingers up her bare back, barely brushing the skin.
She shivered at the touch, incoherent hums and whispers giving testament to the fact that she relished the light caress despite her claims to the contrary. One hand rested on his chest, steadying herself as she arched her back.
Chapter Twelve -- Return
For once, the Princess had taken a page out of her Guardian's book. Each hand clenched around a strappy pink sandal, Rini stormed down the hallways towards the private living areas in the palace. Fuming, she didn't offer so much as a nod to the guards who opened the doors to let her inside. Rather than talk to her, Dawn had clung to that stupid designer the moment she'd stepped off the ship. Her parents had even gone so far as to /thank/ Rainault for keeping her safe. Then and there, Rini had decided to just wait at the door of the Guardian's quarters, so that she could properly give her a piece of her mind.
The nerve. The nerve of him to actually take the thanks, while Dawn just stood there and blushed and smiled and ducked her head in that 'I'm nobody special' way that set Rini's teeth on edge every time she endured it. And gypsies... space gypsies being thanked and rewarded and granted special trade status? A loud snort escaped Rini's inner rant as she rounded the corner, the beginnings of a tirade already forming in her head.
Breandon leaned his head on Dawn's shoulder as the pair made their way back from the palace hospital. They'd been poked, prodded, tested, questioned, and scanned until he was ready to scream from the idiocy of it all. Logical bits of him knew perfectly well what was going on, but the rest of him just wanted to go lie down, with Dawn, and sleep. Somewhere safe. Somewhere -- "Oh, shit."
There was Rini, tapping her unclad foot and glaring fit to burn the building down.
"There you are," she offered icily. "Took your sweet time, I see." Arms folded across her chest, the shoes dangled from one hand.
Dawn frowned down at the Princess. "They did. I just decided to walk a little more slowly. Your point?"
"My /point?/" Her voice rose octaves as she repeated Dawn's question. "I don't have to have a point! I... I'm the PRINCESS! And I just had to go and thank a bunch of /gypsies/ for rescuing you because you had to run off with HIM one morning!" She flung a hand out at Breandon, gesticulating wildly with her shoes. "If it wasn't for you..."
"If it wasn't for me she might be dead."
"She wouldn't have been RUNNING AROUND OUTSIDE where BOUNTY HUNTERS could get her!" Red faced, Rini screamed at the designer. She took another step forward, mouth open to deliver another tirade before Dawn forcibly put herself between the two.
"You," she began, her voice dangerously low, "are going to shut up and back off. Now." The Guardian narrowed her eyes at her charge, bile rising in her throat. "I don't care how inconvenienced you are, you're going to suck it up for a night."
Breandon bit his tongue on his next thought, which was something along with lines of not locking people in cages, and Rini didn't like being locked up much either, and what if she'd been with Rini instead? Instead, he set his jaw, folded his arms, and prepared to watch his lover set a Royal Princess straight.
"I get to go where I want, when I want. If you'll recall, you told me that it didn't matter where I went, there was always someone out to get you. Your Eos got attacked here, remember?" Dawn knocked a hand on the door in punctuation of her remark. "I didn't agree to come here to live in a plastic bubble, and I'm certainly not going to do it because /you/ tell me to do it."
"But I'm the /Princess/," Rini hissed back.
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Big fuckin' deal. I. Don't. Care." She didn't flinch at Rini's outraged shriek, but merely cut off another tirade. "I'm going to bed because I'm tired, and because I have to go with you to the negotiations tomorrow."
"No, you will not," huffed the pink-haired one.
"Yes, I will."
"Nuh-uh."
She couldn't resist. "Take it up with your mother. I'm going to bed." Dawn reached for Breandon's wrist.
He gave her his hand, looking up at Rini with a gaze that more exhausted than angry. "Grow up, Princess." Then they were gone, and the door closed in Rini's stunned face. She lifted a fist to pound in the door.
"Don't."
She didn't turn to look at her mother, but the fist dropped. "Why not?"
"Because I said so. Because she's an adult, and because you're acting like a child." Serenity rubbed at her temples, her expression weary. "This is wholly inappropriate behavior. Neither one of them deserve that kind of treatment."
She turned to walk away, and looked back. "A Princess who has to remind others of the fact isn't much of a Princess."
"You don't think this would have happened if he hadn't asked her to meet him that morning?" Rini's voice choked out the question to her mother.
Serenity came back and placed a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "I think that it would not have mattered. She exists so you don't have to live in a crystal cage. You cannot expect her to live in one, either. Soon or late, there would have been an attempt. Would you blame yourself if it had been you she was protecting at the time?"
"No, because that's her job. She's supposed to do that." The cool hand on her shoulder seemed to sap the spite from Rini, and she slumped forward. Deep down, she wanted to be mad at him, to find some reason to yell at him for taking everyone away from her - whether or not he actually did was another matter - and yet, she couldn't justify storming in Dawn's room and continuing the argument. "It's just not fair," made its way out of her mouth in defeated whimper.
"She came back," Serenity pointed out mildly. "Are you so selfish that you think she should only be devoted to you, or are you jealous?"
Her lower lip quivered, her posture defiant as she tried to look her mother in the eye. "No."
Serenity pulled her daughter into an embrace. "It's natural to be angry when worry is suddenly relieved." She stroked the pink hair. "This is hard for you."
Rini fought the hug for a moment, but gave up as her mother smoothed her hair back. Emotionally exhausted, she brought both arms about her mother's waist in a desperate hug. "I want to be more mad, but I can't."
"Shhhhh." Serenity guided Rini away from Dawn's rooms, down the hall to a small sitting room.
Curled up in her mother's lap, she let loose a long shuddering sigh. Jealous? Of what? Certainly not of Rainault, that was certain.
Serenity rocked her daughter gently, humming. Hesitantly, she began, "Is this about Ashe?"
"Maybe." Eyes closed, she listened to the familiar melody. "But not about Ashe because he's Ashe. Ashe because, well," she offered, rubbing at her nose. "Because I don't have anything like that anymore. And I miss it," she hiccuped.
"Oh, baby," Serenity whispered. She held her daughter close. Chief among her thoughts was a sudden realisation of how hard it must be to be the offspring of the most romantic liaison. Rini had high standards, naturally. "Oh, baby."
"Am I doing something wrong?" She tried to lift her head. "Is it supposed to be this hard?"
"No, honey." Serenity laced her fingers in her daughter's hair. "It's not supposed to be hard, or easy. It just is."
She sighed softly in reply, tired and worn out far past her seventeen years. "I wish it wasn't," she murmured. Rini's head rested against the soft white shoulder of Serenity's gown, eyes closing as sleep slowly took over.
"I know," her mother whispered. "I know." A few tears dampened the pink hair before Serenity sniffed gracelessly. Endymion peeked in. "She's asleep."
He walked over, and stood looking down. "Poor child. Here, let me carry her." The two parents looked at their child, and looked at each other, and shared a quintessential moment of parenthood, each wishing they could smooth the way and make it easy for her. Then Endymion picked Rini up and carried her to bed.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Back in her suite, Dawn had managed to trade her traveler's clothing for a simple robe before collapsing on the bed next to Breandon. Resting her head on his chest, she counted heartbeats in time with his breathing. Home, and yet not really home quite yet. It was an bittersweet sort of relief to be back.
Breandon, for his part, sprawled in boneless relief across Dawn's bed, one hand rubbing at his forehead in sheer frustration. "What," he began, "is her problem? I thought you two had gotten through that."
She waved a hand in the air as if to totally dismiss the subject. "I have no clue, and I don't care. Princess or not, she's not going to dictate anything when it comes to me and you."
He smoothed his free hand over her hair. "I know that. But you do still have to accompany her."
She closed her eyes and sighed. "It doesn't mean that I have to put up with her whining. Sure, I'll punch the first person who tries to harm one hair on her pretty head, but so help me..." A hand balled into a fist as she punched the comforter on the bed in frustration. "I'll be nice and smile, okay? No embarrassing anyone. I'll be the picture of obedience."
"That's a very bad picture." He pried her fingers open. "Didn't your mother ever teach you to ignore people?"
"If she did, I didn't pay attention." Absently, she scratched at his stomach, watching the fabric of his shirt move under her nails. "Besides, it's hard to ignore people you care about."
"Not when they're being ... " He hesitated for a word, "Snippy. It's a kind of punishment. As far as conversation goes, she stops existing unless she's being nice."
She gave a gentle shrug and closed her eyes. "I suppose. It'll be better in the morning, after we all sleep. I just... I think she's glad that we're back."
"I think you're right, but it's a funny way of showing it." Rolling over, he put an arm around her waist and whispered, "Do you really want to go to sleep right now?"
She raised herself up on an elbow, grinning conspiratorially. "Sleep now? After I've finally managed to lure you in here?"
"That's what I thought." He yanked her close, squashing himself, and kissed her thoroughly.
She squealed and giggled, rolling back so that she could look up at him. Returning the kiss, she reached for the leather band to undo his hair.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
More than a week had passed since the glorious rescue and the new treaty negotiations between the Moon Kingdom and Chavi Rivka's crew. Dawn didn't understand much of the legal ramifications, but Breandon had managed to explain that it meant more than enough money for the _Basilikya_'s crew to last them for decades. Disgruntled threats from the Arronné family after the announcement of the treaty had meant that Dawn was to be even more of a shadow for the Princess, which had Rini in a huff. After a particularly strained dinner, Serenity had graciously declared a 'family night,' giving Dawn the opportunity to get away from a still-sullen Rini.
That had been more than three hours ago. Unable to find Breandon, she'd resigned herself to another game of pool at Greynn's, interspersed with conversations with Vince. Setting up what would be the eighth game of the night, she barely looked up when a long shadow fell across the green felt.
"Dawn!"
The noise barely fazed her as the thwack of the balls resounded in the nearly-empty bar. Straightening up, she gave the lanky figure a tired but warm grin. "Hey Kieran. You're out past your bedtime, aren't you?"
"I have a bedtime?" His purple eyes were wide, and there was no way to tell if he was serious or not. He leaned both elbows on the edge of the table.
"Everyone has a bedtime. We just choose to ignore 'em when it's convenient." She strolled around the table, looking for a better shot. "You wanna play?"
He shook his dark head. "I'd have to take a handicap."
"Suit yourself." Dawn leaned down to continue her game, but her concentration wasn't on the game at hand now. "Um, have you seen Breandon anywhere? I couldn't find him earlier, since I had the night off and stuff." She tried t sound nonchalant.
Again Kieran shook his head. "He doesn't tell me where he goes."
"Oh." Dawn couldn't hide the disappointment in her voice this time. "I just thought... oh, nevermind. Did you want a drink or something? Vince is gettin' lazy with just me ordering."
"Not tonight."
She nodded in reply, silently going back to her game. Distraction was evident as the white ball went to the right of the red striped ball, Dawn swearing in whispers.
"Your angle was wrong," Kieran pointed out, following the balls.
"I know." She stepped back and watched the table. "I need more practice, or something." Reaching for her drink, Dawn took a long sip and eyed Kieran over the rim of the glass. "Did you just come to hang out and watch me play pool?"
He shrugged. "I don't like to sit in the lab all day. Ami chases me out every so often if I don't go on my own."
"Oh." Ice clinked as she set the glass down. "Kieran, I don't mean to ask dumb questions, and you don't have to answer 'em if you don't want to, but Breandon..."
Kieran cocked an eyebrow.
"Well, does he... does he know that they're going to make me leave?" Blue chalk dirtied her thumb as she spoke, Dawn suddenly fixated on the end of the pool cue.
"You ask the hard questions." Kieran pushed a hand through his hair, making even more of it stand up on end. "Just a moment." He signalled to Vince. When Vince had given him a vibrantly blue drink with some kind of sparks in it, he sat down at a nearby table and stared at it. "Yes. Yes, he knows."
"And?" She hugged herself tightly, leaning against the pool table. "He's not upset with me because of that, is he?"
A sudden movement pushed the glass half across the table. "No. Of course not. It's not because of you."
"Because I..." She licked her lips nervously. It'd been so long since she'd been able to open up to anyone about Breandon without hearing some kind of warning or judgment. "I don't want to go, because it'd mean leaving him."
Retrieving the drink, Kieran took a long swallow. "Of course."
"But he's upset?"
"Not with you."
"Then with whom?" She slid into the chair across from him.
He turned the drink between his fingers. "I don't know."
She nodded once, unsure as to whether or not she should pry further. "But he's upset about something?" Dawn wondered briefly if Rini had given him another earful.
"He doesn't want you to leave either."
She smiled faintly at that revelation. "Well, that's good. It'd be awfully awkward if only one of us was going to be eternally heartbroken when I get shipped back home." Sarcasm was hardly solace, and Dawn looked down at the table.
"He's trying to make that not happen.”
His voice was soft enough, Dawn thought that she hadn't heard Kieran at first. "What? Did you just..."
Kieran cleared his throat. "He's trying to find a way to keep you here."
Her mouth twisted oddly, caught between a full-out smile and an extremely worried grimace. "So I'd stay? But once Eos has her kids, and Rini accompanies her mother, there's no reason for me to stay unless-" Dawn stopped abruptly.
He didn't look up. "Go on."
"He's talking to one of them, isn't he?"
"Not right now."
"Has he talked to them yet?" Either Serenity or Pluto, it didn't matter at this point. She started to get up from the chair.
"Sit down."
She sat.
"If you go charging in there now, it will be disruptive." Kieran sighed. "I don't understand it. I only understand the science. And science says that at some point you or -- this is important -- one of your descendants has to go back."
"Excuse me?" Dawn leaned forward. "Descendants?"
"Children?"
"I know what they are," she retorted. "I just... oh, hell. This is so complicated, it hurts." Head in her hands, she stared down at the table.
"It makes perfect sense to me."
"Then you're a whole lot smarter than I am," she said morosely. One hand reached for his drink. "May I?"
He put his hand over it. "That's really not a good thing for pure humans."
She sighed. "Fine. I'll get my own oblivion."
"Good idea."
Getting up, she crossed the room to the bar, where Vince was talking animatedly on a phone. He put up a fuzzy paw as if to tell her to wait, finishing the conversation with a "that's great, tell her I said congratulations," before setting the phone down. "Whatever you want, Dawn. Drinks are on the house."
"On the house? How come?" Her stomach bottomed out as he beamed at her. "Good news?"
"Great news. Three healthy kids, one tired and drugged up new mother, and a rather giddy father." Vince waved to Kieran. "You too, man. Whatever you want."
Dawn's smile spread thin over her lips, eyes bright and cheerfulness forced. "That's... that's great. Really great. Wow, that's just fantastic."
Kieran shook his head, though his grin was far less forced than Dawn's.
"Y'know, I think I'm gonna have to pass," she managed to get out, stumbling over the barstool. "It's late and all, and I should really get some sleep. Tell Theo I said congratulations," she offered hoarsely, nearing the door.
Which swung open, revealing the slightly tousled figure of Breandon, a backpack slung over one shoulder. "Dawn?"
A surprised squeak came forth instead of a warmer greeting, her expression instantly guilty and relieved at the same time. "I... I was looking for you earlier but I couldn't... Eos. She had the babies, and I just..." Dawn swallowed hard, glancing back to the pair at the bar. "I was just leaving."
"I'll go with you," Breandon said instantly. He didn't even glance at Kieran, or Vince. Stepping out of the doorway, he flourished an arm at the street.
She walked ahead of him, taking a turn in the direction of his shop. "I don't want to go back to the palace," she mumbled.
"Right, fine."
"I don't want to go back anywhere."
"Sure, okay. Go to the shop, Dawn."
"No." She stopped and turned to him. The light on the street flickered above them as the hum of a transport sounded from the nearby spaceport. "I don't want to go back. Anywhere."
He didn't look in the best of moods, either. "I'm not doing this out in the street, Dawn. Go to the shop, so we can talk. Or you can yell. Either."
Silently, she turned and continued down the street, past the square where the Incident had taken place, down the tidy side street, up to his door. She dug her hands in her pockets and waited to be let inside.
He unlocked the door and shouldered his way inside, lights coming on at the motion. "Have a seat, darling." He vanished into his bedroom for a moment, and she could hear thumps indicating opening and closing of things. After a moment, he reappeared, loose hair and zippered pullover indicating casualness.
She flopped onto the floor, snatching a stray throw pillow to hold as she rested her head against the papasan chair. "I was looking for you earlier," she noted quietly.
"I'm sorry. I had to make a shopping trip unexpectedly." He took a seat on the futon, stretching to rub a foot over her stomach. "What's wrong?"
Dawn closed her eyes, concentrating on the feel of the fabric against her cheek. "I got a night off, and I couldn't find you, and I found Kieran and talked to him, and I think..." She let out a long sigh. "I think that I don't want to go back anymore."
"Be more specific."
"I want this to be home. Here." She opened both eyes. "Is that specific enough?"
"Yes, thank you." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Dawn, if you stay here you will never be safe."
"What's not safe?" She sat up, pillow to her chest. "I don't want to be safe, I want to be happy. I want to be loved. I want to be someplace where I'm needed."
"Don't your parents need you?" He shook his head. "No, never mind that. If you stay here there will always be the possibility of repeating what just happened."
She sighed, holding the pillow time. "And if I go back, who's to say that this entire scenario won't repeat itself? I... I hate to say it, but this goes beyond the small family I have at home. It's a Senshi thing, almost," she offered. "I stay where I'm needed. And even if I'm not needed," Dawn continued with controlled calm, "I'm still needed. Aren't I?"
"I hate it when you fish."
She pushed the pillow to the floor. "And I hate this 'Are you sure?' crap that you're throwing at me. I am sure that I want to stay here. I think, wait, no. I know that you need me, just like I need you, and that's another reason why I want to stay." She pushed the hair out her eyes. "So just correct me if I'm wrong, that's all."
"I'm only doing what they're going to do to me, you know." He tapped his foot on her stomach again.
"Yeah, well..." Dawn trailed off, unable to find a decent reply. She traced the underside of his foot with a delicate finger, leaning back once more. "I guess the whole 'accidentally and wholly in love' argument doesn't work in the future, huh?"
"Don't be an idiot."
"I'll take that as a no."
"You're always jumping to conclusions."
"It's a talent I've refined. Two-footed, so I splash a lot." With that dry remark, she flopped back on the floor to stare morosely at the ceiling. "Kieran said that science says I'd have to go back."
"Just someone from your direct bloodline."
"Oh, good. You know the specifics, too." She took a few deep breaths, eyes closing after a moment. "What if... what if sending me back would end that line," she mused.
"Can we please not talk about this right now? I've been over all the arguments for the last week, and my head is ringing with temporal science." Breandon looked at her pleadingly. "Please."
"I don't think this part is science, but I'll stop anyways," she agreed. Dawn raised herself up on her elbows and gave him a soft smile. "What other topic would you rather discuss, oh dark-tressed champion of my heart?"
Breandon spluttered with laughter.
"Yeah, it doesn't sound the same when I say it, does it?" Dawn chuckled from the floor. "I make it sound corny."
"It may be an accent thing." He patted the futon next to him. "Come sit up here with me, beloved angel of the sky."
Obediently, she scrambled up to the futon, all but flinging herself into his lap. This was better; they could pretend that there was no last day coming or heartbreaking farewell on the horizon. Dawn pulled a bit of his hair down, twining it in her fingers.
Nibbling at her ear, Breandon whispered, "Stay here tonight?"
She squirmed at the tickling. "Well, it's only fair, since you got to sleep over at the palace." Giggling, she toyed with the zipper of his pullover. "I'll just need to be home by breakfast."
"As usual." He bit the earlobe gently, then started to kiss his way down her cheekbone.
"You know," she began playfully, pulling the zipper all the way down. "if I didn't know any better, I'd think that you were trying to seduce me."
Plunging his hands into her hair, he told her, "I don't think 'try' is an applicable word here. I /am/ seducing you."
She gave a throaty giggle. "If it hasn't occurred to you, I'm acknowledging the attention and even encouraging it." She lightly raked her nails down the exposed skin of his chest. "You're losing your touch."
"I /what/?" Determined to prevent any repetition of the damning words, he firmly kissed her, pinning her head between his hands.
Her only verbal reaction came in the form of a soft warm purr, hands blindly fumbling to relieve him of his pullover.
Breaking the kiss, he whispered, "Slow down. We were going to make the most of everything, remember? So slow down." He smiled gently and let go, standing up.
Pouting, she sat up. "Slow... oh, all right."
Breandon stepped to the window, ignoring the unzipped pullover, and flung the shades wide, letting in the brilliant earthlight. "Dawn, there is a box of matches on the corner table. Could you light all the candles?"
She blinked, but wordlessly nodded and stood up. It took a few tries, but she managed to go to each small group of candles about the room, little tongues of light soon dancing on the walls. Shaking out the last match, she set the box back on the table and turned to face him.
He had been tapping keys at the discreet computer in the corner between kitchen and living room, and familiar classical music began to fill the small room. He turned and faced her, arms held wide like the whole scene had been conjured up by him, personally. "Better?"
Dawn shrugged and smiled back at him, thumbs in the waistband of her pants. "It's definitely a nice touch, but you still look as appealing as you did when we were back on the futon. I do like the candles, though."
"Here I believed you were a romantic."
"Selective romantic," she corrected, approaching him coyly. "And instinctively sensual, thanks to you." She tapped a finger on his chest. Taking her hand, he began to kiss each finger. "Oh... now, that's just cheating," she murmured softly. He made an inquiring noise.
"Fingers... mouth, just-" The explanation melted into a moan as he nibbled the tip of her middle finger. He chuckled, letting go of the hand and going for her mouth before she could respond. This time, her hands flew to his hair, knotting the strands about her fingers as she returned the kiss aggressively.
"Down," he muttered indistinctly, and they collapsed to the plush carpet. She managed to somehow end up above him, a very un-angelic expression gracing her lips. His hands were already sliding up under her shirt, a crease forming at the edge of one eyebrow. Rather than wait, she unceremoniously pulled the simple white tee over her head and dropped it onto the futon.
"Again with the haste, angel of the dawn." Nibbling at her chin, he muttered, "What do I have to do to teach you to slow down?!" The question ended in a squeak.
She'd raked her nails over his chest, straddling his hips as she giggled. "Tie me up, probably," she offered with a naughty laugh.
"That's not much of a punishment if you like it." Slowly, he slid his fingers up her bare back, barely brushing the skin.
She shivered at the touch, incoherent hums and whispers giving testament to the fact that she relished the light caress despite her claims to the contrary. One hand rested on his chest, steadying herself as she arched her back.