Morning Smile

Darien
I gently stroke my fingers through the messed-up hair of the woman I love
more than anything in the world.  When she’s asleep, she’s so beautiful 
and innocent, as though the evils she must constantly face in the waking
world no longer exist.  And when I watch her as she sleeps, for me those
evils are far away.
She lies curled against me, as we fell asleep last night, after I warmed her
up from her near brush with death by hypothermia.  I first made her soak in
a bathtub of warm water, then gently patted her dry with a towel which I had
put in the dryer for a minute.
Then we lit one another’s bodies on fire.  She was so creative that I would
hardly be surprised if she were drawing on her memories of the Moon Kingdom,
for we knew each other very well then/there.  She certainly surprised me 
with her passion, heart pounding feverishly into mine.  Dear God, I love
Serena so much that my heart aches just to hear her steady heartbeat, her
slow, gentle breathing as she lies asleep against my chest.
I see her as she has been, the graceful Princess Serenity, whose loving
nature and fine spirit attracted a Prince of Earth to fall hopelessly in
love with her, breaking every social rule of both their worlds in order to
be together, and I smile with love in knowing that nothing, from 
embarrassment to death, could have parted us.
I see her as she was, aggravating me with poor test papers and shoes from
overhead, and causing my errant heart to aggravate me by pounding so loudly
that the entire world could have heard it, and I smile fondly, thinking what
a fool I was to be so afraid of her everlasting, beautiful love.
I see her as she is, a girl approaching womanhood, becoming more confident
and mature, yet retaining her exuberant, loving nature: I don’t care if she
never stops greeting me by throwing herself into my arms at high speed, just
so long as she never stops loving me, and I smile peacefully, knowing that
the years ahead of us will only draw us closer together.
I see her as she will be, the wise and regal Neo-Queen Serenity, the
meatballs which make her cute now enhancing her royal stature then.  I see
myself at her side, and our beautiful daughter learning the ways of life,
love and laughter from the master teacher who taught me everything I know
about it, her mother.  And I smile with hope for the future, a future safe
in the hands of this beautiful warrior.
I see my Serena in all of her glory and beauty, and all of her humility and
humanity.  She is all of these things, and more.  She is the love of my life.
And I smile contentedly knowing that I will always be by the side of this
wondrous, beautiful woman so long as we both shall live,  so help me God.

Serena
As I lay in blissful torpor, feeling the hand of my beloved Darien stroking
through my long hair, I sigh and snuggle further into his embrace.  I love
to be able to spend a few hours with him here and there, and to be able to
spend even part of a night with him was wonderful.
When I set out from my home last night, after everybody else was asleep, I
paid no attention to how cold it was until my fingers failed to wrap around
his door key the first time.  Shocked, I looked at my red, chilly hands and
realized that they were nearly numb.  Slowly, I managed to get the key into
the lock, all the while acutely aware that I was FREEZING!  I got to
Darien’s door and rang the bell, shivering so hard I thought my body was
about to come apart at the seams.
God bless him, he took one look at me and helped me to get warm again, with
both warm water and his hot lips.  He made me feel good enough to come back
from the numb, dead woman that showed up on his front step.
Then we made love, and he made me feel like I was in heaven.  I don’t say
this as hyperbole (yes, yes, there is the lame joke about my vocabulary.  I
know more than I let on).  If heaven isn’t as wonderful as spending time in
Darien’s arms, I’m gonna want a refund.
I see him as he has been, the charming Prince Endymion, whose free spirit
and unquenchable soul won the love of Princess Serenity so thoroughly that
she would go willingly to her death rather than live without him, and I 
smile with love, knowing that death could never part us.
I see him as he was, aggravating me with his superior, abrasive attitude and
his snide comments about my grades, my eating habits and my coordination, 
and yet making my heart turn upside-down every time he was around, 
frightening me with how badly I wanted his lips to touch mine, and I smile
fondly, how naive we both were in those early days.
I see him as he is, the Prince finally reborn in the wonderful man that he
is now, the thorough, wonderful romantic who surprises me with flowers at
just the times that I need them the most, and I smile peacefully, knowing
that just as I will always be there for him that he will be there for me.
I see him as he will be, the wise King Endymion, his beautiful black hair
changed to purple but his love for me and mine for him unchanged over our
thousand years of life together.  I see our beautiful little girl growing
into a beautiful woman and a wise queen, and eventually taking over our
thrones when it is our time to step down.  And I smile with hope for the
future, a future that will be protected by my love and our daughter.