IF A PICTURE PAINTS A THOUSAND WORDS #13 A Sailor Moon Sekkushiaru Roman, Based (A Bit Loosely) On Pretty Soldier Sailors Blue Version "SERENA! What in the names of all the gods are you doing. . ." Okay, maybe I'm using the Spiral Heart Moon Rod for something other than its intended purpose. . .but it's in a good cause. . . "That is your MAGICAL WEAPON, not something to help you pick things up with!" "But Luna. . .my bathing suits are way at the back of the top shelf of my closet. . .I couldn't reach them any other way!" "After all this time, I thought you'd learned RESPECT for your magical tools!" She rears up on two feet and snatches it away from me, then starts cleaning it off as if the contact with my clothes had contaminated it. Geez, she's got a *really* huffy, holier-than-thou look on her face. "Luna, it's not as if I were doing something *bad* with it!" I start to put my clothes back on. . .I'd stripped down to try on last year's bathing suits, to make sure they still fit. "Serena, your magical weapons are sacred! They come directly from the gods themselves! They are not to be used as household tools!" "I *know* how sacred they are! *Especially* that one!" Oh, yes, I know how sacred it is. . .because it was formed of the love Darien and I have for each other. "Well, you're not treating it like it were sacred! Honestly, Serena, you have no respect for. . ." "LUNA! You think I'm still that childish creature you first met, don't you? You think I'm still the crybaby who uses her Crescent Moon Wand to break into her piggybank? I've done some growing up since then, you know!" "Humph. Sometimes, I wonder. . ." "OOOHHH!!" I storm out of my bedroom in a fury, yell "I'm going to the arcade!" to anyone who cares to listen, and bang the door behind me as I leave. As I walk down the street, I'm mumbling to myself. . . "That Luna! How dare she treat me like I'm still a child! I'm a grown woman now. . .well, almost. . ." And I don't see the person coming toward me until I've collided with him hard enough to knock us both sprawling to the ground. "OW!" I say, reaching up to feel my nose. . .did I break it? "Why don't you watch where you're going?" "Me?" says the guy. "Why don't *you* watch where. . .Meatball Head!" "Darien?" Oh, Gods. . .this is almost funny. He laughs a little. "For a second, it was like the old days, when we were always yelling at each other. Are you okay, love?" "Oh, sure. . .physically." "Uh-oh. Looks like we need. . .to have a talk. . .about. . ." His voice trails off, and I notice him looking at me funny. . .more specifically, looking at my skirt funny. Oh, no. . .it rode up when I fell. I reach down to tug it back into place. . . And then, I notice something strange. I reach around and run my hand over my hip. No panty lines. That's because I dressed in such a fury that I forgot to put my panties back on. I look up at Darien and shout, "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?" "Honey. . .I just now noticed it myself." "I just had a fight with Luna and now I could have flashed the entire city of Tokyo. . ." I start to sob, little, hiccuping sobs at first, then full-blown tears. "Serena. . .don't cry. Come on, we can go back to my apartment and then you can vent about what's bugging you." He helps me up, carefully, making sure my skirt doesn't ride up again, and leads me to his car. When we get to his place, he gets me a soda. I grasp it tightly with both hands and suck a big gulp through the straw. The cold liquid feels great going down my parched throat. "Now," he says, "about Luna. . ." I slam the glass back down on the table. "She makes me so *mad*! She thinks I'm still a little kid who's afraid of the world, who's made no progress since I became Sailor Moon. . ." "Serena, she *does* have your best interests at heart. . ." "BEST INTERESTS?" I bang the table so hard with my fist that the glass jumps. "She acts like another mother! I have *two* mothers. . .I don't need a third!" "But Serena. . .she *is* kind of a surrogate mother to you. She always has been." "Just because I used the Moon Rod to take bathing suits down from the shelf. . ." I can see him looking at the ceiling, taking deep breaths, struggling to stay in control. . .struggling not to laugh. "IT'S NOT FUNNY!" I shout. "I'm sorry, Meatball Head. . .but. . .but. . ." Now he's struggling so hard not to laugh, he's face-down on the table. At this moment, I've never wanted to smack anyone more than the person I love most in the world. Finally, he regains his composure and sits back up. "Serena. . .next time you can't reach something on the top shelf, just give me a call. I would have loved to see you model the bathing suits, anyway." "Humph!" He reaches over and clasps my hand. "Honey, this'll blow over. If you apologize to Luna, I'm sure she'll apologize to you. She *does* respect you, and she *does* know how much you've progressed. I know she doesn't always show it. . .but as your trainer, she *does* have to be firm, you know." I sigh. "But sometimes, she makes me feel like I *haven't* progressed. . .I think I've come such a long way, and then she starts in on me and I feel like I'm back at square one again." "She's pushing you to excel, that's all. . .pushing you to be your very best. She knows your full potential, and she wants to see you reach it." He squeezes my hand between both of his. "And so do I." I lean over and kiss him, softly. "I know you do, my love." We kiss again, him still holding onto my hands, then he drops my hands and brings his arms around me. It's only after we've been kissing a few moments that both of us realize he deposited my hands right on top of his zipper. Hmm, I think. Do I take advantage of this. . .or do I just take my hands away? I just sit, frozen in place for a moment, thinking. . .is this the right time for this? I look at his face, he's filled with anticipation. . .he can't wait to see what I'm going to do. Oh, heck. . .I want to feel him holding me, caressing me, kissing me, driving the bad feelings away. I bring my lips to his again, and yank his zipper down. I get on my knees on the floor in front of him, pulling what I'm looking for out of his pants. Ah, look at this wonderful thing. . .he must have been *really* anticipating being with me, because he's fully erect. Mmm. . .I want to lick him like an ice cream cone. . . I start at the base and slowly start licking up toward the tip. I hear him let out a long, low moan. "Aaahhh, you minx. . ." I run my tongue up and down his length, moving it around in little swirls, hearing his sexy, sexy love-sounds. I slide just the very tip in my mouth and start sucking, letting one of my hands move down to gently rub the sac beneath. Ooohh, what's he doing? He's sliding my skirt off. . .I feel his fingers caressing my bottom, gently massaging and squeezing. Then, he's letting a hand slip down and around, and I feel him penetrate my womanhood, tiny, electric tingles shooting from my most sensitive place all over my body. I let out a groan deep in my throat and take more of him in my mouth. He pumps his fingers in and out of me, and I slide him in and out to the same rhythm, taking him out only to run my tongue over it again, then putting it right back in. He moans loudly, saying my name over and over like a mantra, and then his stroking gets faster and faster. . . His fingers flick upward to my pearl, just as I'm sliding him out of my mouth. The shock of pleasure is so intense that I let him slip out of my mouth entirely, although I grasp him with my hand. I let out a loud moan, which increases in loudness and intensity as he caresses me faster and faster, hot pleasure swelling and swelling in my loins, my belly, all over my body. . . Then, I feel everything lock up for a moment, time hanging in the balance like a skydiver suspended in midair. . . And everything crashes into frantic motion, the hot ecstasy exploding and shooting through my body like streams of molten lava. I let out a wail as the delicious shudders ripple through me. I sag to the ground, panting, the aftershocks of my orgasm making me tremble. . . I feel him gently kiss me. Darien, my love. . .I want to make you feel as good as you just made me feel. . . I put him back in my mouth again, sucking with renewed vigor. I slide him in and out, loving how he fills my mouth, the feel of him against my lips. . .I run my tongue around and around the head, while my fingers slowly caress up and down his shaft. He groans loudly, and I hear him say in a hoarse whisper, "Serena. . .gods. . ..that feels so good. . .I'm almost there, honey. . ." I begin to suck him again, rapidly, gently tickling the sac with my fingers. . .His whole body stiffens, and I quickly pull my mouth away, stroking him rapidly with both hands as he cries out and releases himself. I come back up to his mouth and kiss him. "I love you," I say. "I love you, too. . .oh, Serena, you can't even dream how much I love you. . ." I kiss him again. "I'll bet I can." We wrap our arms around each other tightly and tumble down onto the floor, and he starts playing with my hair, taking the "meatballs" down and stroking it, running his fingers through it, passing it over his skin. "So beautiful. . .like satin. . ." He pulls off my blouse and bra. (I'd hardly been aware I was still wearing them!) His lips caress mine as I feel his hands cup my breasts, his thumbs rubbing gently over the nipples. "Darien. . ." I moan as he takes them between his thumb and forefinger, squeezing just hard enough to give me incredibly intense pleasure. Then, his hands are gone, and he's sitting up. . .He pulls off his shirt and flings it away, then pulls my legs up and out. . . The next thing I feel is his tongue against my most sensitive flesh. His hands creep up my body, finding my breasts, caressing them as he licks slowly, maddeningly slowly around my entrance. I groan loudly, my balled-up fist against my mouth, my hips rising up toward him, as if encouraging him to take all of me in his mouth at once. He flicks it very, very lightly across my pearl, and I shudder, feeling another climax start to build and build. . . He plunges his tongue inside me, as he'd done with his fingers, and I cry out, my hands coming down to tangle in his hair and pull him closer and closer. More, my darling, more, I want this to go on forever and ever. . . Then, he moves up to my jewel again. . .and he rubs it with the *underside* of his tongue, where the flesh is softer and smoother. Oh, Gods! It's a new sensation, and it's *incredible!* So soft, so wet. . .A few fast strokes, and I'm done for. I let out a shriek as I'm flooded with hot joy. He reaches over for his pants, fumbles for his wallet, pulls out a condom. I hear the tearing of the foil. . .then, a few seconds later, he's pulling my legs up and out again. . . At the first thrust, I shudder again, my hips coming up to meet his. "Yes," I whisper. . .yes, baby, come to me, fill me, make me yours. . . He starts to move, and I move with him. He leans over to kiss me, and I let my tongue caress his. . .the tongue that just a few moments ago, had pleasured me so intensely. . .he knows so many ways to make me feel incredible, to make me scream, to make me feel loved. . . Suddenly, he gives a gasp and stops. "Darien?" I say. He smiles, giving a small chuckle. "It's all right, darling. . .let's just say time shifted around us for a second, there. . ." "What do you mean?" "I was seeing you under me. . .as you were in the Silver Millennium. As Princess Serenity. . ." I wrap both arms around him and pull him tighter. "Oh, baby. . ." "It happens now and then. I guess at these intimate moments. . .past and present merge." I kiss him. "There's no difference between past and present, my love. . .I loved you with all my heart a thousand years ago, and I love you with all my heart now." We stay like that for a moment, with him inside me, yet both bodies still, just feeling our hearts beating against each other, the quiet harmony of the bond between us. Finally, he sits up. "I want to try something a bit different, my love. . ." He pulls out of me and rolls me on my side, pulling a leg up and onto his shoulder. . .but right away, both of us know that this position isn't going to work out. I feel like a wishbone, and he's struggling to find a proper angle for entry. After a bit of wriggling on both our parts, we stop and laugh. "I guess, even after a thousand years, we *still* have things to learn about making love to each other," he says. I manage to get out of the pretzel-twist position and come back up to kiss him. "But I *love* the research. The failures we have just make the successes all the more sweeter." I lay down on my back again, lifting my legs. . . "Now let's go with something we *know* works." He takes both my legs and puts them on his shoulders, then pushes into me again. I groan loudly. . .ahh, that's more like it! In this position, he penetrates deep, deep inside me, and I feel like he's filling every ounce of my body, that he and I are truly, truly one. His hand is reaching down to my jewel, his fingers finding it, stroking it, gently caressing it. . .my head is rolling side to side, my mouth open, the moans and sighs escaping me as the pleasure builds and builds and builds and. . . I yell out his name as the climax shoots through me, and every bit of my body and soul is flooded with liquid flame. And I hear him yell my name in response as his own orgasm consumes him. He gently lowers my legs, and flops down next to me. Wrapped in each other's arms, we kiss, and I feel so safe, so protected, as if no problems from within or without can touch me. "I love you," I tell him. "I love you, too." And I snuggle against his chest and drift off into a nap. * * * When I get home, Luna is waiting for me. "You ran off without your underwear," she says. "I'm aware of that," I say, coolly, heading right for my room. "Serena. . .about earlier. . ." "There's nothing to discuss. Let's drop it." "I don't want to drop it. Especially since you still seem upset." I find my underwear and put them back on. "Luna, please. . ." "Serena. . .do you think I still treat you like a child? Is that it?" She hit the nail right on the head. . . so much that it catches me off-balance for a moment. I don't know what to say. . . I finally spit out, "Why don't *you* tell *me*?" She hops on my bed. "It's true that you sometimes still do some childish things. . .and that stunt with the Moon Rod was definitely one of them. But that doesn't mean that you're not growing up in other ways. I was so proud of you when I heard about how you handled yourself during the last showdown with Pharaoh 90. . .you'd become the Warrior of Justice I always knew you could be. You'd come such a long way from the girl who used to cling to lampposts and cry because she didn't want me to drag her into battle. . ." I feel tears forming in my eyes. Darien was right. . .she *does* respect me. . .I sit down on the bed next to her. "Back in the Silver Millennium, when she appointed me your mentor, your mother said to me, 'Luna, I will not be satisfied unless my daughter achieves every tiny drop of her potential.' And when I found you again in this lifetime. . .I swore up and down that I would keep that vow. I know that I may seem like a stern taskmistress sometimes. . ." "Well. . .yes." "But believe me, Serena. . .I only want to see you be the best fighter. . .and queen. . .that you can possibly be." I put my hand on her back. "I know, Luna. . .I know. It's just that sometimes you make me feel like such a. . .a child!" "Technically, Serena, you *aren't* a woman yet. . .but you've taken some huge steps in that direction." (I want to tell her that Darien says I'm *all* woman. . .but she'd blow a gasket if she knew that he and I sleep together). I sigh. "Sometimes, it feels like I'm going to have to keep *stepping* towards womanhood forever." "But you will reach that goal. Reenie speaks of her mother as a 'real lady'. . .someday, that 'real lady' is going to be you." I give Luna a hug, and I feel her hug back. . .as well as a cat can. We don't need to say anything else. When the hug breaks, I say, "Hey, Luna. . .feel like taking a walk with me?" "To where? I'm almost afraid to ask. . ." "When I was out, I passed Fashion Bug. . .they're having a sale on bathing suits!" "BATHING SUITS? You must have *fifty* in the top of that closet!" "But Luna, most of them are *old*! I can't go to the beach in a threadbare bathing suit!" "Threadbare? Most of those suits have been worn once or twice! You really have to be more careful with your monMMPH!" Her voice is muffled as I put her in the basket and head out the door. Things are back to normal between us. And I wouldn't have it any other way. AUTHOR'S NOTES: I'm pleased to announce that I have a new e-mail address! You can reach me at sailormac@wjjz.com. (Ah, the wonderful feeling of being free from AOHell's @#$%ed up e-mail network. . .) Thanks, as always, to Artemis and Luna, to my Lemon Tree friends, and to all my faithful readers! Standard Sailor Moon disclaimers apply. These characters ain't mine, I'm just borrowing them for a little while.