This is Just the Beginning

a Sailor Moon fanfiction by Krampus

You're supposed to make a new life here. It should be easy because, just 
as you were told, the moon is beautiful and so are its people. They all 
want to dance with you and share their smiles, make you laugh and hear 
stories about Venus.

It's invigorating. Back home, you were the butterfly of the court too, 
but there, you were the princess and expected nothing less. Here, among 
nobles and royalty from all corners of the kingdom, no one owes you 
their attention but you get it anyway. It only takes months for you to 
get the satisfied impression that this court, or at least your peers, 
have become like the cobra you once saw in the market and you the piper.

After such a quick and easy rise to the top, you should have seen that 
an obstacle would present itself sooner or later. As life would choose, 
with its unique sense of irony, the only one to arrive at the moon 
uninterested in you would turn out to be the one you wanted to interest 
most.

By all rights, she shouldn't have captivated you so easily. She's 
nothing like you - serious, antisocial and out of place. In an attempt 
to label what it is that attracts you to this girl, you settle on the 
notion of an enigma. Puzzles are meant to be intriguing, and you 
certainly can't solve this one. Then you hear a group of girls giggling 
at a ball over how mysterious the Marsian princess is and you realise, 
furious, that they feel what you feel but somehow you managed to catch 
it worse than anyone.

She pays you no attention and you're not about to go out of your way and 
talk to her. As a matter of principle, she should be the one coming to 
you. Even so, you manage to find out a great deal about this princess 
from Mars, this Rei, who treats people politely but impersonally, who 
was once spotted meditating in the Devonian gardens, who is a year 
younger than you and therefore decidedly below you. Besides, she's not 
even that great looking - hardly above average, not really worth a 
second glance.

But it's still not fair that she ignores you so completely. You can't 
even say for sure what her eyes look like, as they're never directed 
toward you. She has a tall, brunette friend who knows what her gaze 
feels like when they sit comfortably together and talk, and the princess 
Serenity must know, because Rei's attention if frequently on her. There 
are others who know as well - a group of young nobles, rich enough to 
spend their days as they please and not high enough in stature to be 
tied down by duties, who make every excuse to gain the Marsian's 
attention and then gush over it in front of you afterwards. You scoff at 
them and profess your lack of understanding where it concerns their 
interest in her. Of course, your words alone aren't enough to break them 
of their fascination. If they were, you would have freed yourself to 
begin with.

As there's nothing else for it, you settle on ignoring her in turn and 
it is soon common knowledge that mention of Rei in your presence sours 
the mood. It's not entirely possible to forget her existence, but for a 
few blissful weeks, you manage not to dwell on it like before.

Then the little Mercurian arrives and plans you never knew about get set 
into motion, starting with the Queen's announcement. Senshi, she says to 
the four of you, and for a split second, Rei is looking at you - only 
you - and you never knew one person's attention could feel so good. All 
too soon, the dissatisfaction returns in a rush as she cuts your moment 
short by looking elsewhere, leaving you hollow and angry at how easily 
your determination to ignore her was overwhelmed.

Classes start the next week in the college wing of the palace and in the 
training yards. You follow a regime similar to what pages undergo to 
become knights, plus a few extra lessons for powers that will one day 
manifest.

The others in the class, the non-Senshi, as you think of them, are there 
for their knighthood or for similar military posts. You know most of 
them from court and make a point of out competing them in as many areas 
as you can. You certainly promise yourself to never score lower than 
Serenity, who is also in a couple classes with you and has a memory like 
a sieve. Overall, you excel, though it never earns you the reward you're 
itching for.

You see Rei so much you probably couldn't have continued to ignore her 
even if she hadn't ruined it by noticing you. This inability to ignore 
seems to be one-sided, however, as she reverts to looking past you when 
she even bothers to turn in your direction. You want her to look at you 
again, want those eyes to see your own and linger there, or on your 
mouth or even just your hair. You want to see her expression darken with 
what everyone else so readily shows you. Even the Mercurian, shy, 
book-loving Ami can be made to blush with a certain look, so you know 
it's through no fault of your own that the Marsian just doesn't get it.

What you don't know is just why it bothers the hell out of you. Really, 
you try rationalising to yourself, other than some . . . intangible 
thing, you can point to nothing about her that warrants your developing 
obsession. She's horribly self-centred, or perhaps just entirely 
introverted, both of which are completely unattractive qualities, to be 
sure. And she's not even that pretty. Everything about her is dark - 
eyes, hair, closed expression and usually her clothes as well. But not 
her skin, which is pale and smoothly flawless and you stop looking at 
her because the longer you stare, the more her imperfections seem to 
fade. She's just some girl, and obviously not a very bright one at that. 
She doesn't even have the good sense to be properly attracted to you.

Months pass, spent in classes, courtyards and ballrooms, quietly 
stealing glances and befriending the tall friend, the Jovian - Makoto. 
She's easy-going and down to earth. You find her simple optimism and 
reassuring aura hard to pair with Rei's apparent demeanour, but you 
never ask (there are appearances to maintain) and she never talks to you 
about the Marsian.

You've done yourself a disservice by pretending to dislike her and by 
publishing this fabrication, because knowing less about her only 
aggravates your curiosity.

Things get a little messy around the end of your first term of training 
when the swordsmaster finally lets up on drills and has you try 
skirmishing with practice blades. Your first match pads your ego nicely 
as you trounce the unsuspecting boy in a matter of seconds. Then the 
bubble bursts when Makoto steps up against you and your sword flying 
from your grip signals your embarrassing defeat. You thought you were 
doing well, but the suspicion creeps up that you've been setting your 
standards too low by comparing yourself to the non-Senshi.

You drag Ami over to test this theory, with no prior knowledge of the 
shorter girl's swordsmanship and too much zeal. The Mercurian tries to 
stifle her yelp, but you know you've struck too hard when Ami's practice 
sword drops and she curls around her hand, grimacing. You want to 
apologise, you do feel bad, but Makoto arrives surprisingly quickly to 
escort Ami away and the dull end of the practice sword that presses 
stiffly into your chest blocks your way. The wooden sword lowers when 
you stop and Ami is forgotten in the face of this hostile challenge. 
Your wish has been granted - she's looking at you again, but the violet 
gaze isn't attentive this time, it's piercing.

"I hope you're just self-centred, because if you knew Ami was shy with a 
sword - as anyone could easily detect - you would have to be utterly 
callous to win that way." She says this quietly and the softness of her 
tone magnifies how harsh her words are.

She takes a few steps back from you and raises her practice blade into a 
ready position. After a stunned half-second, you clumsily bring your 
weapon from your side and point it at your new opponent.

She comes at you instantly, mercilessly. She's no Makoto, who strikes 
with bone-rattling force, but Rei is quite skilled enough to seize the 
upper hand and press her advantage to the fullest. In other words, she 
catches you flat-footed and your stumbling attempts to defend yourself 
only last for a minute at most. The hit across your knuckles breaks your 
grip and nothing else. She checked her blow, as you should have.

You fume at the humiliation, but control it and any other sentiments 
that might make you more of an ass than you already are. She bows, 
retrieves your sword for you, and turns away to resume ignoring you. You 
resolve to train twice as hard. That she could win so quickly and in the 
exactly the scenario she wanted to speaks volumes on how outclassed you 
are.

The break between terms is one week and you spend its entirety training. 
Your body aches as you lie in bed and dwell on her words, her 
expression. Guiltily, you also recall the supple way her body moved and 
the way her long hair danced. Any hope you once had that you might 
overcome or forget your fixation has been worn away. She's the first 
person you see in a room and your last thought before sleep. Getting her 
to like you has become a rather pressing goal and you find yourself idly 
scheming of ways to accomplish it when you have nothing else to occupy 
your mind.

Classes start again and your determination to do better carries over. 
You don't miraculously improve, but you're working twice as hard now and 
learning to pay more attention to the people around you. As you push 
yourself harder, a distance begins to grow and become evident between 
you and the group of nobles you called friends. Maybe you were never 
that close to begin with, but you suspect that there's something 
fundamental that sets the Senshi apart.

Over weeks of surreptitious study, you note that within the four Senshi, 
relationships are developing and changing. Through your efforts, Ami has 
become a friend, the skirmish forgiven. Makoto is reliable as ever, easy 
to speak with and entertainingly protective of the young Mercurian. Her 
friendship with Rei seems to have suffered, however. The Marsian has 
taken to acting more withdrawn than ever, hunching at her desk with 
sleepless eyes and refusing most attempts at conversation, even from the 
Jovian. She looks stressed to the point of illness and you want to 
approach her but if fear of rejection deterred you before she started 
looking so hostile, it's certainly paralyzing you now. You can only 
watch, as you always have, while Rei continues to seal herself off.

You make several interesting discoveries the following week, the first 
of which is a weapon you had never considered before. The chain feels so 
comfortable in your grip, moves just the way you command it to 
(sometimes) and enables so many subtle manoeuvres you want to kick 
yourself for not trying it sooner. Hours past sunset, you're exhausted, 
grinning and sporting whip lashes all over. The proper technique when 
handling whips and chains comes at a rather painful price, it would 
seem.

You're creeping back to your room as stealthily as possible, hoping that 
nobody chances to spot you and ask who it was that whipped the crap out 
of you. The answer would be far too embarrassing.

As it turns out, your sneaking takes you quietly past a door muffling 
raised voices. One speaker in particular makes you stop to listen.

"Then help me!"

You've never heard Rei yell, but you could never mistake her voice.

The reply is too soft for you to hear the words but you detect the 
placating tone of someone trying to calm another. It doesn't seem to 
produce the desired result with Rei, who snarls, "They need to stop! 
They're unnatural!"

You creep closer to the door to hear the reply. "They're as much a part 
of you as your swordarm and may prove twice as useful." The speaker is 
female, but unrecognisable to you.

"They will never be a part of me! I want them gone."

"Then you must first learn to control them. That, I will help you with."

Puzzled and wary of being caught, you move away and continue toward your 
own bedroom. You toss and turn for most of the night, trying to guess 
what Rei was so worked up about. The panicked edge to her anger worries 
you and worse, fills your mind with ideas of comforting her that have 
you blushing all the way to your ears.

It's several months before you gain any more headway in understanding 
Rei - months spent busily learning and covertly watching. Months of 
drifting further from her and doing your utmost to stay close without 
outright approaching. Your inaction puzzles and frustrates you. Every 
time you steel yourself to just talk to her an overwhelming shyness 
creeps up - you feel almost petrified and all you can do is put one foot 
in front of the other to walk the other way and escape. What would you 
say to her? What if she ignored you? Dismissed you? What would you do?

You only share one class with her now, which is a blend of history and 
current political affairs - probably highly important as a princess and 
as a Senshi, but half the time you pay so little attention you may as 
well not be in the class at all. The rest of Rei's schedule is occupied 
by more specialised lessons in things like archery and meditation, 
whereas your classes now include military tactics and diplomacy.

Rei gradually returns to her usual aloofness after nearly a month of 
brittle solitude and the unhealthy pallor of her skin goes away, though 
you still catch her staring off into the distance, her expression not 
exactly cheerful. It takes some considerable restraint on your part to 
not grill Makoto and Ami over what was happening with Rei and it's only 
through observation that you learn that the brunette is back to being 
friends with the unapproachable Marsian, who had also started to warm to 
Ami.

You feel like the only one missing out, and all thanks to a ruse which 
you suspect is growing flimsy as you get caught oogling the younger girl 
now and then by the other two Senshi. But it still stings your 
self-esteem, especially sensitive where it concerns Rei, to think that 
you will have to be the one to show interest when she will not.

In the training yard one morning, Makoto offers you a bet - if she can 
beat you in five moves, you have to ask Rei to the next ball and if she 
can't, she'll ask Rei for you. Your pride roars at this bargain. 
Nobody's defeated you so easily lately and certainly not with your 
chain.

Nineteen moves later, Makoto's heavy blade is hovering near your jugular 
and she's still grinning like a fool. Sneaky Jovians.

"I got tired of watching you stare," she prods.

"Yeah, well I'm tired of watching you and shorty blush whenever you're 
within five feet of each other." That shuts her up.

Then horror at the impending ball dawns on you and for once, you're glad 
you no longer share weapons training with the Marsian princess. If 
Makoto asked her in front of you, you would spontaneously combust for 
sure.

Up to now, you've only ever attended balls with your beau of the moment, 
making them careless, flirtatious events. But Rei . . .

What if Rei says no?!

The answer Makoto delivers to you the next morning is indeed no. 
Sleepless and agitated, you gape while the tall girl shrugs, professing 
not to understand it either. It takes you all of a day to go from 
feeling like your soul has been sucked out, to wanting to stay in your 
bed and wail for a month, to needing desperately to know why.

She's meditating or something when you barge into her room and she only 
cracks one eye open at your arrival as if spurned, horribly infatuated 
girls regularly burst through her door. She can't ignore you now, 
however, and the realisation makes you just a little anxious and giddy.

"What are you doing?" you blurt.

With a sigh, she unfolds from her cross-legged position on the floor. 
"Meditating."

"Why?"

She stands and sits gracefully back down on her couch. "To train my body 
and quieten my dreams."

You don't really understand that at all and you're still standing by the 
open door like a tool. Or, more likely, like someone who has just come 
to their senses and wants desperately to flee. Why are you even here? 
"Why did you say no?" Oh yes, there you go.

She frowns for a moment and looks away. "Firstly, I don't want to spend 
the evening as your arm candy."

"Oh. But it's not-"

"Secondly, you didn't even have the grace to ask me in person - instead, 
you used my well-intentioned friend as a courier." She rises from the 
couch, limbs tense and tone venomous. "Offer this insult to someone 
else." She stalks away to the door to her bedroom. "And stop staring at 
me in class."

The door slams and you sit down to ponder your options a bit. That went 
nicely to hell, you think. You could explain that it was all Makoto's 
idea in the first place, laugh it off, go back to pretending you hate 
her . . . and die on the inside. No, not that, and telling Rei that she 
was the subject of a wager isn't likely to win you her favour either. 
It's hopeless, but you keep thinking on it. Seven hours later, you're 
being softly shaken awake by the shoulder and blink your eyes open to 
see a bemused Marsian.

"Next time you crash my couch, the blankets are in that closet."

You nod mutely and sit up, a little stunned and still a bit sleepy. It's 
too much work to pretend that you're not staring so you just sit and 
watch Rei move about her rooms, gathering her books and materials for 
the day. The way she moves, the soft lines of her body and her quiet 
steps are captivating. Every morning ought to start out with a little 
Rei.

"Is everyone so lucky as to have you stare at them, or am I the only 
one?" She glances over at you with a faintly amused expression.

"You're the only one," you mumble honestly.

She's looking at you again and it's not angry or appraising this time, 
just interested. Her eyes are a unique, enthralling shade of violet that 
unbalances you a bit and makes you try not to blink lest you miss a 
second of receiving this long desired attention.

"You should get ready for class." She breaks the stare, looking mildly 
flustered. "You're going to be late."

It's out before you can help yourself. "Will you go to the ball with 
me?"

She opens the door and looks back at you. A smile, something you've 
never seen before, creeps onto her lips. "I'll meet you there."

Then she leaves and you sit in a daze, a goofy grin overtaking your 
face. Then you realise she just left for a class you both share in five 
minutes and you jump up to race to your room and get changed. Her eyes 
rise to meet yours when you slink into the class, late, and she seems 
amused but returns to focusing on the teacher's lecture.

You're basically useless for the rest of the week. Either you're 
floating about, blissfully absent or you're stressing and agonising over 
details. It occurs to you that you don't remember much of what you did 
with your past dates asides from a dance or two and making them bring 
you drinks. What do you talk about? How will you be able to tell if 
she's enjoying herself or not?

The afternoon before the ball, Ami tries to implant some sense into your 
madly racing brain. "You're nervous because you don't know her well 
enough. That's simple - ask her questions. Get to know her better."

"And be polite," Makoto contributes.

Ami nods in agreement. "And don't be afraid to show that you're 
interested."

"But keep in mind that Rei doesn't take well to pretences. Just be 
yourself."

You snort at that clichéd bit of advice but commit it all to memory 
regardless. Then you shoo the other two Senshi out of your room so that 
you can spend the next two hours preparing to look perfect. Of course, 
your stubborn cowlick still cannot be tamed (as expected) and you've 
discovered a pimple (near your hairline - concealable) but you're ready 
as you'll ever be and happily terrified.

Rei looks incredible in burgundy, her hair a sleek fall of black that 
flutters gently as people walk past her by the entrance to the ballroom. 
She catches sight of you, her lips quirk upward and the evening is 
already worth the week of stress that preceded it.

"You look beautiful," she compliments as you enter the room together.

You flush straight down to your toes and smile so widely your face ought 
to crack. Even while thousands of chimps are jumping for joy in your 
mind, you demure, "No, you look amazing. Next to you, I probably look 
mediocre at best."

She smirks and disagrees. "I could never be seen with a mediocre date. 
You must be beautiful."

Happily, you do not disagree. Rather, you take the opportunity to 
nervously ask her for a dance.

The evening goes well - you don't step on her toes once, you manage not 
to run out of conversation and Rei pays perfect attention to you without 
having to try. She hears about your family, your classes and laughs with 
you over the story of your first botched attempt at wielding your chain. 
In turn, you get to learn similar details of her life, drink in her 
animated expression when she speaks and watch her lips move. 
Tentatively, you start thinking about whether to kiss her or not while 
you're fetching drinks. The ball begins to wind down and while you enjoy 
every second of it, anxiety creeps up over what to do when you part for 
the night.

In the end, you chicken out. You both pause where the hallway branches 
toward your separate rooms and all you can manage to tell her is, "I 
really enjoyed tonight."

She smiles and nods. "I've never enjoyed events like this, but this one 
was different."

Fiddling with the pale gold fabric of your dress, you venture, "Maybe 
next time we could do this again?"

"It could happen," she agrees.

"Great! That's yay! Um I- I mean, yay, that's great!" you bumble 
enthusiastically. "But yeah, so uh, goodnight."

You flee so quickly you barely hear her wish you a good night in return. 
It's not that you're scared, it's just that you're terrified - what if 
she didn't want a kiss goodnight? Going for one could have been 
disastrous. Best to play it safe.

Opening the door to your room, it occurs to you that if she expected a 
kiss it could be equally bad that she didn't get one. What if she 
thought you weren't interested? You had already gotten off to a bad 
start by letting Makoto do your asking out and now what if Rei was 
convinced you didn't mean anything by this date?

You spin a one-eighty, take two determined steps forward and spin around 
again. This is stupid. What are you going to do - stalk her out and ask 
for a kiss? You open the door to your room again and stop, overwhelmed 
by the same dissatisfaction your empty room represents.

With a sigh, you turn around again, trying to ignore the fact that if 
anyone's watching, you must look completely nuts. As you retrace your 
steps, you try and justify what you're doing - you wouldn't be able to 
sleep anyway, right? And really, a first date deserves a first kiss. In 
fact, Rei is probably horribly disappointed that-

The little quirk to her lips when she sees you turn the corner tells you 
everything you had just opened your mouth to ask. You stop a few feet 
away and fumble for a new question.

"How did you-"

"Sometimes I just know."

"Oh." What is that supposed to mean?

She extends her hand to you as if asking for a dance but when you place 
your nervous fingers lightly in her palm, she doesn't pull you into a 
spin, only closer.

"I never thought I would be glad to just know," she murmurs and she 
looks happy, even if she is speaking in riddles.

Growing more confused with every word out of Rei's mouth, you decide to 
state honestly, "I don't know what you're talking about but I'd really, 
really like to kiss you."

She doesn't say she knows, for which you're grateful. Her eyes search 
your face and she leans toward you slowly - your cue to do the same. You 
kiss timidly at first until every little worry just floats away and you 
melt into each other. You pull Rei a little closer by the waist and she 
approves by bringing her arms around your neck. Her lips press tender 
kisses to yours and you respond just as gently, lingering to suck 
lightly at her bottom lip. Her little gasp nearly drives you insane and 
it also reminds you both that you're standing in a hallway where anyone 
could walk by.

You separate from Rei a little, reluctant to let go but nervous about 
being caught. In amazement, you watch as she blushes and bites her lip, 
all too human, and you remember she's younger than you are, for all her 
cool maturity. This time when you say goodnight, she's the one who walks 
away and you feel a pang, already suffering withdrawal without her 
attention.

It goes away the next morning when you pass each other in a hallway and 
she smiles, just for you. Her hair is pulled back and she's in her fuku 
so you suspect she has power training, which is the only time you ever 
need to wear the full uniform. After wasting leadership class 
fantasising about Rei in that short skirt and those heels, you skip over 
to the training room to see her in action - you've heard her power is 
fire but you've never been able to verify this first hand.

Unfortunately, the instructor is leaving just as you get there, 
signalling the end of the lesson. Inside the insulated, 
near-indestructible room, Rei is peeling off her gloves, examining the 
scorch marks on the fingers with a frown. When she hears you enter, she 
looks up and gives you another smile.

Your insides are doing all sorts of strange, weightless acrobatics as 
you examine the blackened walls and try not to stare at her legs. When 
you do turn back to Rei, you realise she's been watching you since you 
entered and your eyes drop involuntarily to her lips.

"Do you want to see the new attack I'm working on?" she asks, and you 
nod because you are interested in more than kissing her but sometimes 
you get distracted.

She extends her gloveless hand with authority and the glowing sign of 
Mars appears in her palm. Fire bursts from the insignia to swirl around 
the girl summoning it and when it dies down, a bow has materialised just 
beyond her fingertips. Drawing her other arm back, an arrow flickers 
into being just long enough for you to recognise it as a sort of red 
version of the energy you use yourself, before both the bow and arrow 
wink out of existence. She frowns but shrugs.

You talk with her as you walk back to her rooms so she can change for 
dinner. She's nearly perfected all of her attacks and you tell her a bit 
about your own, which you've nearly mastered as well and she promises to 
drop by next week to see for herself.

As you wait on the couch while she showers and changes, you muse to 
yourself that you could see days like this become routine. You want to 
see her everyday and perhaps more importantly, you want her to see you.

At dinner, the four Senshi sit together for the first time and your 
heart swells with some indefinable emotion - joy and satisfaction, 
confidence and the sense that yes, this is how it should be. She looks 
at you frequently now - anytime you speak and sometimes when you're 
silent. You smile each time and she subtly returns it. Ami and Makoto 
are too happily distracted by one another to notice much, though Makoto 
does ask some teasing questions about the dance that Rei cheekily lets 
you answer by yourself.

The other two Senshi slink off after the meal, blushing at the 
insinuating comments you make even though you're glad to have Rei to 
yourself again. Her attention makes you want to curl up and purr, makes 
your face feel warm and your stomach fluttery. You feel energised, like 
you could run a marathon or two, but you also feel a sleepy kind of 
pleasure that reminds you of afternoon naps and kisses. By this point, 
you're happily resigned to being in love and you'll just wait for the 
right time to tell her.

As you leave the dinning room, you take her hand in yours as if it were 
a casual thing, thankful that Rei can't hear your heart beating like a 
drum roll in your chest. She squeezes back and your anxiety diminishes, 
though she looks over at you with an unreadable expression.

"Not that I'm complaining, but . . ." She's nervous, you realise, as she 
looks down at her feet. "I thought you didn't like me."

Not expecting this, you stutter a bit. "I . . . I-I never disliked you. 
I guess I just . . . I don't know. Maybe I didn't want people to know 
how much I like you." It's true, you realise, though you never took much 
time to analyse just why you decided to pretend to hate Rei. "I also 
couldn't stand the way you ignored me."

At this, Rei smirks. "I know."

You gape indignantly while she opens the door to her room and let's you 
enter first. "What? What do you mean?"

She sits on the couch and crosses one leg over the other and even though 
you're in a huff, you can't help but be a bit distracted by how 
gracefully she always carries herself.

"Everybody paid attention to you," she explains. "I could see it from 
the moment I got here that you took them all for granted so I did the 
opposite." She shrugs and her eyes are laughing. "It seems to have 
worked."

You've fallen for an evil, evil woman and it ought to bother you more 
than it does. "Manipulative," you murmur as you join her on the couch.

She just pulls you closer and claims your lips, one soft kiss soon 
joined by several more, each growing longer and deeper. Your hands take 
on a mind of their own and Rei doesn't seem to mind, even responds in 
kind, though you're both careful not to let your touches roam too far. 
Rei parts her lips to you and for a few minutes you lose yourself and 
every thought in your head to the taste and the receptive warmth of this 
girl you love. Wanting more but not ready to pursue it, you pull back, 
ending with a few light kisses and staring down at Rei's dark eyes. At 
some point, both of you lost your vertical positions and ended with Rei 
half-pinned to the couch beneath you.

"Don't ever take me for granted," she says softly. The way she looks up 
at you, there's a vulnerability to her that you've never noticed before 
and it occurs to you that maybe she values you're attention as much you 
do hers.

"Don't ever ignore me again," you fire back, softening your retort with 
a kiss that, despite the newness of your relationship, feels comforting 
and familiar.

"I won't. I couldn't," she replies.

You've waited so long to hear that. There are no words for how happy, 
how utterly complete this girl makes you. "Good," you sigh. "And I 
promise I will never take you for granted. I want to be with you 
everyday."

She smiles, something she seems to be doing a lot lately and you're 
arrogant enough to believe it's because of you. "It could happen"

The next few minutes are lost to a kiss that is at once a thrilling 
exploration and a solemn promise. It's a commitment deeper and more 
meaningful than any you've ever made and here it's only the second day 
you've been together. Being the Senshi of love does not make you much of 
a matchmaker, or even give you much of an edge when it comes to dating 
but it may be thanks to this power that you can tell, through and 
through, that you will never love anyone else. Not like this.

It's not such a bad realisation, you figure as you draw back and watch 
Rei's eyes flutter open, a little dazed, very dazzling and utterly 
yours. Not now that she won't, she couldn't ignore you.

You'll have to talk to Rei about how sometimes she 'just knows' things, 
because there's something you just know yourself. You and Rei are going 
to be together for a very long time.

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