Bishoujou Senshi Sailor Moon : Shadow Plays ------------------------------------------- Vignette 6 : On A Winter Sky The midnight sky was beautifully clear, the myriad stars crystal-bright against the darkness. Rei sat alone on the front steps of the shrine, staring upwards with a strange mix of fear and wonder. The constellations glittered like a thousand tiny candle flames, childhood friends calling to her with wordless voices. There, in the muted red glow of the horizon shone the familiar line of Orion's belt; the faint band of the Milky Way arched like diamond-dust across the sky, and somewhere above her hung the silent desert plains of the new moon, invisible against the blackness of space. Without the moonlight, the darkness seemed almost palpable, a thing alive, cool, black tendrils wrapped softly about her. It felt almost as though she was the last person on Earth; this was her moment, its beauty for her alone to know. She stood slowly, the wooden steps creaking quietly beneath her bare feet as she walked out into the centre of the courtyard. The worn stones pressed coldly against her skin, feeling almost as though she was floating on water. In front of her the shadow of the torii stood starkly against the skyline, dividing the stars above from the burning, shifting sea of lights below. Rei pressed her hands against her chest for a moment, feeling the steady rhythms of her body beneath her fingertips as they traced slowly down towards her waist. She carefully untied her hakama, letting the heavy fabric drop to the ground around her feet, brushing roughly over her legs. Her jacket came next, falling quickly from her shoulders with a gentle shrug, leaving her shivering slightly in the chill air. Her thin t-shirt rippled in the slight breeze, slipping loosely around the curves of her body as she lifted it over her head. She let it go, fluttering silently to the ground as her long hair cascaded down her back, the sensation achingly delicate against her bare skin. Her hands shivering, she fumbled for a moment with the intricately knotted ties at her waist, the light cotton of her trousers eventually sliding to the ground, whispering across her smooth skin. Her naked form seemed almost translucent, wraith-like in the pale starlight as she removed the last of her underwear, gossamer silk flowing away like melting ice. The cold wind played gently across her body, a whirl of a thousand half-formed caresses. She closed her eyes, letting sensation drift away into the night, feeling as though she was flying and falling at once, drowning beneath cool, black waters. In her mind she could see the tiny, flickering lights of a thousand thousand souls, dancing beneath her like a galaxy of the memories of stars. One hand wandered slowly down her thigh, fingers beating gently against her cool skin, feeling the myriad rhythms of her dream-world. Many merged gradually into one, the simple pattern of a heartbeat, and the lights faded as she opened her eyes. Warm fingers pressed lightly on her shoulder, drifting teasingly across her skin, leaving a delightful trail of warmth along her arm. Rei made no reaction, listening silently to the whisper of hot breaths against the back of her neck. The fingertips came to rest next to her own, their delicate touches beating the rhythm of her heart. She smiled slightly, letting her mind relax slowly into concentration. The twinned rhythms seemed to flow through every fibre of her body, a shifting double-cadence, dancing, weaving. Here a fleeting counterpoint, a momentary offbeat, changing, unravelling... becoming one. Her breath caught suddenly in her throat, the world seeming almost to freeze about her for one endless, tantalising moment. Every nerve in her body came alive suddenly with an overpowering rush of sensation, two hearts, two bodies, two minds... and one burning, golden thread of ecstacy. Her legs collapsed beneath her, quivering muscles beyond her command as she fell backwards into trembling arms. Setsuna stared down at her face, eyes burning with some nameless emotion, their lips separated by nothing but the breadth of a dream. "What do you see when you look at the stars?" she asked. Rei's answer was the merest of whispers, lost in a kiss that was all of her body and soul. "Hope." FIN