AN: Let's continue to write drowning ships lol As of August 2016, I've edited and spruced up chapters 1-5 a bit and wonder if this ship will gain any traction.

Inspired by Hinder's song, "Better Than Me"

"I see you're as angry as ever."

Rei didn't turn, she knew Minako's cheery voice anywhere. A sigh escaped her, but she gave no other indication of hearing the woman as she stared over the balcony. Unfazed by the woman's indifference, the blonde joined her at the balcony to look out over the palace gardens.

"You're as irritating as ever." A glance showed that Minako's eyes were closed as a gentle wind tugged at her hair.

"I'm not irritating."

"And I'm not angry."

"Bitter, then?" When Rei laughed, it brought a slight smile to the Venusian's face. "I suppose that was a stupid question." Silence followed before she quietly added, "You were always bitter."

"Tch."

Minako felt the need to say something, but didn't know what would be best. Hell, she couldn't think of anything good to say. And so the two stood there, just short of their elbows touching as they leaned on the railing, looking out at the gardens.

"What made you think breaking into my room was safe?"

"I can't 'break in' if you leave your door unlocked." At a chuckle from Rei, she continued, "Besides, you're not an idiot."

Violet eyes finally trained on her. "Meaning?"

"Meaning that even though your first instinct is to incapacitate a perceived threat, so is mine."

"Are you challenging me?"

Minako couldn't help the smile that came from the amused glint in those intense eyes. "Not the week before a ball, I'm not." She shrugged a shoulder. "Either way, you'd likely tense up but then relax as you instantly realize it's me."

"And you?"

"Me," she laughed. "I'd probably freak out when you tense up and try to hit you."

A rare, genuine smile came to Rei's face. "That might have been true years ago, but not now."

Minako landed a gentle punch on her shoulder. "Maybe I want to do it for fun."

"You're terrible," came the reply, complete with a roll of her eyes.

"Just a little. You know, I didn't think you'd come to the ball."

"No more civil war, just a few issues every now and again."

The disappearance of Rei's smile and playful tone left Minako with a small frown. She sighed quietly, her shoulders sagging. "I didn't think there'd be four years of war."

"Heh, Martians are stubborn."

"So I've realized." Minako smiled faintly.

If Rei noticed, she didn't give any indication of it. "Half the planet wanted me dead for removing Ishvar from the throne and sending Mars into a war that wasn't its business."

"But it was its business," Minako objected, slamming her hand onto the rail in frustration.

Rei chuckled as she examined the hand her companion used for emphasis in her outburst. "Well, my father was a disgrace so that probably had something to do with it." She released the blonde's hand with a quick nod.

"Stupid barbarians," Minako muttered.

Rei's gaze travelled back to the gardens. "Unfortunately."

Whatever Minako had to say, if she had anything to say, slipped her mind completely when Rei's breathing stopped and her back straightened almost imperceptibly, her eye giving the smallest twitch. If she hadn't spent years of her life arguing and fighting beside the raven, she wouldn't have noticed. Her blue eyes followed Rei's stare and caught sight of a pair strolling down a path in the gardens.

Given the distant smile on Michiru's face, as if she was trying to be polite, Minako guessed she wasn't paying complete attention to whatever the tall blonde beside her said. Minako cast a glance at Rei's face, finding what she knew to be a mask of indifference, as Haruka's voice became audible in slightly raised and forced tones.

Minako looked back in time to catch Michiru's lips curving into a small but genuine smile when she noticed their presence on the balcony. Haruka saw the smaller woman wave and her face contorted into a scowl, but she threw a quick wave to Minako before her eyes burned the Venusian's skin and she felt a blush. Haruka continued on with Michiru, but her voice became a bit louder and aggravated like her gestures.

"There's only two reasons for leaving your door unlocked," she stated in a quiet voice.

It took Rei a moment to realize the woman spoke. "There are," she corrected distractedly.

"Oh shut up, Rei." When the Martian tore her gaze away from Michiru's retreating form to look at her, Minako held up a finger. "You weren't sure if you were actually going to stay, which is a valid guess since everyone's been here for about a week, but you just got here today and you didn't unpack anything."

"I thought you were giving reasons, not explanations."

A second finger. "You hoped Michiru would check to see if you came." Rei's hand twitched to grip the rail tighter, but she relaxed it, checking herself. Minako didn't miss it. "Perhaps both, then." She moved away from the balcony and stopped just inside of Rei's rooms, her voice soft and somewhat pained. "You're an idiot, Rei."

It wasn't until she heard Minako leave that she sighed. Rei forced herself to abandon the balcony before she could decide to torture herself by searching for the pair in the gardens. Searching for Michiru. The Martian made sure to lock the door before sitting in front of the fireplace. Her eyes closed and a gentle fire came to life. After some time, its color became a dark red and it danced erratically, though it remained in the confines of the fireplace, much like the memory in her mind.

An elegant eyebrow arched, but it didn't affect Rei. She just gave a small smile and crouched to offer her hand. "Trust me."

She stared a moment, as if deciding whether or not to turn around and leave, and nodded once. "As if I could refuse such a lovely smile." Michiru vaulted onto the ledge without assistance.

The Martian's face stained with a faint blush as she straightened. She didn't spare the other woman a glance as she ventured forward, holding branches out of the way as she went. Following close behind, Michiru knew that even though Rei wouldn't look at her, she was completely focused on her. In fact, she was so focused that while holding a branch out of the way for Michiru, her hold slipped on the one in front of her and it promptly slapped her across the face. Rei grumbled something and moved it once more, stepping to the side to reveal that they were near the edge of a cliff.

Michiru took little notice of it, however, as she stumbled out the tree line with a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles. Feeling Rei's glare, she looked up, though it only increased her amusement. Half of the proud Martian's face was veiled by her dark hair, but the visible half already had slight, red welts. It took a moment to calm herself, but another fit of giggles threatened to seize her as she noticed the laughter hidden in Rei's eyes.

"I had no idea you were so silly," the raven remarked drily.

"No more silly than you are."

"I am not silly."

"No, you just get distracted by pretty women and let trees assault you."

"I do believe you just complimented yourself." When Michiru's eyes narrowed, she continued, "Pretty women do not distract me."

"Then what distracts you?"

"War, but only the way it should."

Michiru tilted her head, thinking for a moment, and focused her eyes on Rei once more. "So things distract you in a way they shouldn't?"

Rei nodded and counted off on her fingers, "Idiots, the matters of idiots that bother me, spiders." A scowl crossed her face. "I could murder Minako."

"Minako just enjoys irritating you, don't murder her." She shoved the Martian's shoulder. "And I won't let the spiders get you." A smile answered Michiru and she asked, "Anything else?"

"Don't you want to know what I dragged you out here for?"

"You make it sound like kidnapping."

With a roll of her eyes, Rei gave a short, mocking bow. "Forgive me, my simple, barbaric self is not capable of your political and elegant ways."

"You're not simple or barbaric and you could be political, you just don't care for it." Michiru slapped Rei's arm. "Also, I'm not sure if I should feel complimented or insulted, so I'll choose to feel complimented."

"As you should." At the questioning tilt of Michiru's head, Rei wandered away from the tree line, closer to the cliff's edge. Aqua eyes followed the woman and Michiru's breath caught in her throat. She stepped up to Rei's side, admiring the full view.

The cliff provided sight of the sun peeking out from the edge of the horizon. Its light danced on the gentle ocean waves and fell upon the Neptunian castle in an array of blues and reds resembling some kind of surreal painting. From here, they could hear the waves crashing against the back half of the castle in a distant echo and the lulling pulse of fading waves meeting the shore.

Words made themselves known to Michiru once more in a subdued tone. "It's almost as if the castle's on fire."

Rei stole a glance at Michiru but said nothing.

"Water and fire," she mused.

Rei lifted her shoulders slightly. "Something like that."

She turned to Rei. "How did you know I prefer sunrises?" A shrug answered her. Michiru rolled her eyes but otherwise let it go. She linked her arm through Rei's, resting her head on the slightly taller woman's shoulder. "It's a wonder I've never seen this before."

Rei smiled at the woman's unspoken question. "You've been under a lot of stress lately and we've got to fight the-" The sudden tension in Michiru's form gave her pause. Then, "I thought you'd like it."

Michiru slid her hand down Rei's arm until she could lace their fingers together. The action made the woman stiffen ever so slightly, but she didn't resist and instead gave her hand a small squeeze. "I like a lot of things, Rei."

Amethyst eyes shot open. Sweat burned in her eyes as she waved a shaky hand at the unstable fire, causing it to die immediately. Rei tried to regulate her breathing as she pushed herself off the ground. However, her legs gave out and she lay on the floor, demanding her body to right itself, her mind to calm itself and her heart to banish the ache.

The day was half over when Rei finally left her rooms. There was a slight tremor in her hands that she did her best to ignore. Try as she might, the warrior couldn't settle her nerves, so she treated it the only way she could-like war. When weak, appear stronger; when stronger, appear weaker.

However, Rei stopped midstride at the sound of a polite laugh that was all too familiar to her. She ducked into the nearest room, shutting the door as quietly as possible. Before she could scold herself for such stupid behavior, it dawned on the woman that the room had Neptunian design. As that horrifying realization set in, Rei heard Michiru remind someone to walk slower. Haruka. Rei's eyes cast about the room anxiously, settling upon the window. She darted to it as quietly as possible and vaulted over the sill, keeping hold of it. Her body made a solid noise as it crashed into the wall, but she suppressed the grunt of pain because the pair entered the room. So as to avoid being seen or falling to her death, she lowered herself until her hands didn't rest on the sill and she had footholds.

Haruka's voice drifted out the window. "Michiru, did you hear me?"

"My apologies, something distracted me," came Michiru's somewhat troubled voice.

If Haruka noticed, she gave no indication of it as she launched into some story, likely trying to entertain the woman on some level.

Having heard more than enough, Rei looked down. Too high up to land safely. She sighed inwardly as she climbed down. However, she didn't get more than a few feet before she realized there weren't any more footholds. And Michiru's voice was becoming louder. Nearing the window.

Rei mentally cursed herself and looked down once more. Taking a deep breath, she drew her dagger and released her grip on the wall. She gritted her teeth in preparation of pain and as soon as she saw the opening of a window, threw her arm out. Her blade caught in the wall, awkwardly jerking her arm, and broke out a portion of it, but the stall was long enough for her to throw herself into the room.

"You're lucky you didn't rip it out the socket."

All the woman could do was lie on the floor, trying not to move her arm, as she regulated her breathing and ignored the throbbing as she recovered. Finally aware of her surroundings, she wasn't too surprised to find herself in a small library.

Ami continued, "Shall I take a look?" Rei grunted in answer and finally let go of the dagger, moving her arm about as Ami turned a page in her book. "Michiru, I assume?"

"Tch."

"I figured as much." She closed her book and Rei allowed her to examine her arm. "You've had worse, though it'll definitely be sore. If you were falling from a greater height, you wouldn't have an arm anymore."

"Nice to know."

"Proud Martian ruler loses arm hiding from a Neptunian queen," Ami mused.

"I'm not hiding!"

"I wouldn't have known," Ami replied evenly, returning to her book.

With a huff, Rei made her way out the library, but not before mumbling a form of thanks, to which Ami nodded. Rei stopped at the kitchens before disappearing to her rooms. Meditation crossed her mind, but remembrance of the morning made her cringe.

"Idiot," she muttered as she sat to sharpen her sword.

The Martian's internal clock woke her before the considered dawn on the Moon. She dressed, stretched and padded to the kitchens. Given the time, Rei didn't expect to encounter anyone. Serenity proved her wrong with fierce hug and squeal. Regaining her ability to breathe, though only slightly, Rei somewhat returned the hug.

"I had no idea you arrived! How long have you been here? I didn't think you'd come, though you know I hoped you would. Oh, I heard that the civil war was over, but balls aren't…" She trailed off as she released Rei.

Her brow furrowed. "Are you alright?"

The blonde blushed. "I was rambling."

Rei chuckled and patted her friend's head, amused that she was still herself despite becoming Queen of the Moon Kingdom. She answered the posed questions as they ate and asked for discretion, to which Serenity nodded. The blonde went off in search of someone while Rei returned to her rooms. She stayed there all day, except for some time after dinner when she went for food, and cursed herself for her behavior. As if Rei Hino needed to hide from anyone.

Again, Rei awoke before dawn. As she dressed, she considered returning to Mars, but Serenity wouldn't take it well. She couldn't help the bitter laugh that escaped her. Serenity wasn't her reason against leaving and she knew it.

Not too long afterward, the Martian was at the archery range. The decision to use an actual bow came from not wanting to draw attention to herself. Plus, she didn't feel like replacing the dummies. Not today.

Rei nocked an arrow with a small growl from the pain it caused. Her brow furrowed and she relaxed, lowering the bow. She set it and the quiver down before walking toward the dummy. Damn thing was too close, too easy. She moved it further, grumbling as she did so. Before she set it down, an arrow buried itself in the dummy. Between her fingers.

Amethyst eyes settled on the Neptunian holding her bow. When the woman waved, Rei huffed and yanked the arrow out before walking back. She focused her gaze on the bow as she held out her hand instead of on Michiru. "I suppose there's no point in attempting to make it difficult."

"We have a certain skill for making things difficult, I believe." A green eyebrow raised as Michiru scrutinized the Martian's outstretched hand.

Remembering the last time she offered her hand made Rei shove it in her pocket, though it led those intense eyes to focus on her. "Yeah, we all make a lot of things complicated."

Michiru's eyes almost imperceptibly narrowed. "You reflect the temper I control."

"Your temper is as bad as mine and you make me sound unstable," Rei joked with a shrug.

"Precisely."

She turned back to the dummy. "Then I feel bad for Haruka."

"I wouldn't."

The conversation wasn't going anywhere she expected, so she summoned a bow of flame, aiming as if she had an arrow. One came to life and it flew just past the dummy's head. "Why is that?" She fired again, the arrow striking her target this time.

"Her antics with Minako seem to give her pleasure." She inspected the bow she'd appropriated.

Another flaming arrow pierced the dummy. "Antics?"

"Don't insult my intelligence."

Rei stared at the dummy, not trusting herself to look at the woman beside her. "Haruka flirts with any girl that will listen."

"True, though not on the level she does with Minako." Michiru took the flaming bow from Rei's hand to examine it. "She still seems rather attached to you."

"That could have burned you," she remarked absently, finding that she was staring, captivated by the curious look in Michiru's eyes and the way the dawn light played across her hair.

"I like playing with fire." Her gaze travelled upward, holding Rei's gaze.

She couldn't avert her eyes fast enough. "I remember," she replied evenly.

"Since when did we switch roles?" Rei faced her again, brow furrowed, and Michiru halfway smiled. "You evasive, me blunt."

"Tch." The bow winked out of existence.

Aqua eyes stared at her now empty hand as she flexed her fingers. "I'm sorry for running you off."

The softness of her voice startled Rei. "There was war," she stated somewhat stupidly.

Michiru's voice regained its composure, but she wouldn't look at Rei. "Of course." Her expression was breaking Rei's heart, but before she could find neutral words, the usually collected woman walked away. She stopped a ways off, however, and said simply, "I looked for you here yesterday."

Rei watched Michiru walk away. She stood there, hating herself, until the dummy was nothing but ash. The rest of her day meant little to her.

Each morning, she went to the range, but Michiru never arrived. Though they were on the same floor, Rei didn't see her in the halls and, as much as it infuriated her, she lacked the courage to knock on her door. Each night only held fitful sleep.

The day of the ball was happy chaos, though Rei only knew from experience since she didn't leave her rooms. She sat in front of the fire or stared outside until a little before the beginning of the well-anticipated event. Her eyes travelled to her clothes as she recalled what Serenity told her of the ball. Some time was spent staring at the clothes, enough so that the ball started half an hour before she dressed. After four years of war, it felt odd to wear such casual clothes. A fine, black shirt with the insignia of Mars on the shoulders in red and equally black pants with red fire crawling up the right leg to just above her knee-all odd. Being weaponless was even stranger and she almost constantly tried to rest a hand on the hilt of a sword or dagger that wasn't there as she made her way to the ballroom.

The Martian slipped in quietly and scanned the room. It wasn't long before she spotted Makoto not bothering to urge Ami to dance and Serenity happily dancing with Endymion. Anger surged through her, however, when she sighted Haruka dancing a little too seductively with Minako. Another few minutes of searching guaranteed that Michiru wasn't in the room, but Rei had a gut feeling and made her way through the crowd toward a specific balcony.

"I'm as surprised as when I realized you were in my rooms," Michiru stated as soon as Rei stepped onto the balcony.

Unsure of what to say, she simply joined Michiru at the railing and did her best to refrain from reaching for the comfort of a sword hilt that wasn't there. They stood side by side in momentary silence.

"Rei?"

She began to turn, but a fist connected with her face rather solidly and she stumbled backward. Rei's vision blackened briefly as she rubbed her jaw. When it returned, she discovered Michiru staring over the balcony as if nothing happened. "Nice shot."

"It didn't make me feel better."

"Tell that to my jaw." Rei moved beside her once more. "You didn't run me off. I did." Michiru finally turned to her. "I was afraid," she admitted, managing to hold the woman's gaze. "And I'd say I'd always felt Haruka was better for you, but I honestly didn't think I'd survive either."

A fine eyebrow rose.

"I'm an idiot," she huffed.

"I've always known you were an idiot."

Rei smiled at her teasing tone. "Dance with me?"

Michiru tilted her head. "I thought you didn't know how."

"One of my soldiers did."

"You learned to dance," she quirked an eyebrow, "during a war."

Rei grinned. "I had reason to." A hand smacked against her forehead, effectively ripping the grin off her face and she blinked a few times. "Feel better this time?"

"No, but you could begin making it up to the both of us." She held up a finger as if remembering something. "And stop jumping out of windows."

She smiled sheepishly, but offered Michiru her arm and the two returned to the ballroom as a new song began. The two danced almost uncertainly and distantly at first, but Rei pulled Michiru closer, earning a light laugh from her.

"You know," Rei drawled and met aqua eyes. "I haven't been assaulted by a tree lately."

Michiru raised an eyebrow. "It just so happens I know a place where pretty women can distract you and trees could assault you."

Rei shook her head. "The one woman that distracts me is more than pretty, but she has a habit of complimenting herself."

Michiru laughed.

A/N: Trivia: I wrote this in my frustration of not being able to write fluffy Reinako.

(Today I learned this site doesn't like em dashes, but I don't want to throw this into a word doc and mess up the formatting issues I've just fixed.)