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Hearts Afire
A Sailor Moon Original Flavor fic
By: M.H. Torringjan

Usual disclaimers here.  I don't own Sailor Moon.  Naoko Takeuchi does.  I 
created the characters of Michael Cross, Sailor Europa, and Jennifer Hino.  
Sure, one of them hasn't even appeared that much in the fics, as such, but I did 
still come up with the character.  So there.  This fic takes place before Uranus 
and Neptune's identities are revealed and after Lita meets Amara and Michelle.  
Europa's meeting them for the first time in this fic (yeah, it's taken him long 
enough; he doesn't get out much  ;-).  And because I say so, Rini isn't there 
yet.  It's between episodes 97 and 98 (Japanese; yeah, I got the info from a 
website that based its information on the Japanese episodes).  Yeah, I'm still 
using the American names.  I'd prefer to stick with what I know, thank you 
kindly!
	And BTW, I swear, there is actual Sailor Moon stuff in here.  It's just 
way far down the pages.  Trust me, it's there.

	Michael Cross lounged on the bench outside of the door to his family's 
apartment in the outskirts of downtown Tokyo.  It was a calm Saturday; sunny and 
fairly warm.  He was trying to relax because at any moment, he could be called 
into action to fight the Heart Snatchers.  He should actually probably be 
studying, but it was too nice of a day to waste inside.  And with such nice 
weather out, he wouldn't be able to get any of studying done outside.  His 
dutiful side was fighting a losing battle against his lazy side.  He could 
almost see the angel and devil duking it out on his shoulders...
	He listened to the traffic on the street below him as he watched the 
horizon, small birds flying around from building-top to building-top.  He had 
left the door to the apartment open at his mother's request, and he could hear 
her cleaning inside.  It was all almost enough to lull him off to sleep.
	The newest enemies had hit them hard and fast less than a month ago.  They 
had been lucky that Uranus and Neptune had been along to lend an assist.  He was 
surprised that they had actually targeted the others for stealing the heart 
crystals.  Michael had been hoping that they would get a nice, long vacation 
after they had taken care of the future and sent Rini back to her parents.  
Nothing doing.  Such is life...
	Their newer powers were very helpful, but these heart snatchers were kind 
of tough to take on.  They had already almost gotten Michael twice.  A lucky 
shot or two from the mysterious Sailor Scouts had just barely pulled him out of 
it.  They were almost as bad as Tuxedo Mask, except that they knew where 
Tuxedo's loyalties lay.  They had a nasty habit of saving the Scouts' lives 
(except, according to Lita, for when a crystal was on the line).  He wasn't sure 
how much he wanted to trust them if they had almost let Lita die.
	Inside, the phone rang.  After a couple of rings, his mother picked up the 
receiver and spoke a few moments before bringing the cordless phone to him.  
"Hello?" Michael greeted.
	"Michael?  It's Serena," Michael heard the voice at the other end say.
	"What's up, Serena?" he asked.
	"Not much.  I was just calling to remind you about the study group 
tomorrow at the Temple," Serena said.
	"Wow, you remembered that?  On your own?" Michael asked.
	"Actually,  Amy just called me to remind you," Serena replied.
	"When is it?" he asked.
	"Amy said it was from ten to noon," Serena said.
	"Well, thanks for reminding me, Serena," Michael said.  "Anything else 
interesting going on?"
	"No, not really," Serena said, sounding bored.  Michael suspected that she 
wasn't doing much, either.  That, or Luna was making her study.  Maybe the two 
of them could get together and do something that afternoon.  He ran the idea 
past Serena.  "Sure, Mike, I'd love to!  What would we do, anyway?"
	"Ah, I don't know.  Something more than I'm doing right now," he replied.
	"Sounds good to me!  I'll meet you at the arcade around about 3:00!" 
Serena said.
	"Okay!  See you later!" Michael said, hanging up the phone.  His stomach 
growled and he looked at his watch.  It was already lunch time; he must have 
lost track of the time.  He walked inside, made himself a bit of lunch and went 
to start cleaning his room like he had been told the day before.

	Lita stood at the doorway of the Tiara Game room, waiting for Serena to 
arrive.  Serena had called her up a while ago and told her to come to the arcade 
at three o'clock.  It was already quarter past, and Serena wasn't there yet.  
Lita decided to go inside to wait for Serena.  It was hot outside, and she'd 
much rather be in the air conditioning than standing outside in the hotter-than 
usual weather.  She walked inside and sat down at the snack bar, where Jennifer 
was on duty.
	"Hi, Lita!  How's it going?" Jennifer asked.
	"Well, pretty well, I suppose," Lita said.  "Just waiting for Serena."
	"Lemme guess- she's late," Jennifer said.  Lita nodded.  "Well, at least 
you're here on time."  She looked behind Lita and quickly back.  "Well, here's 
someone you might enjoy seeing."  Lita looked around to see Michael walking 
around the corner and to the snack bar.
	"Well, I didn't expect to meet you here," Michael said as he sat in the 
chair beside Lita.
	"Neither did I," Lita replied.
	"Didn't expect to see you?  Having some out-of-body time?" Michael asked.
	"No, I meant-"
	"I know.  I was kidding.  Well, all good jokes..." Michael said.  He 
ordered a coke and turned around in his seat, leaning back on the counter.  "So 
what're you doing here?"
	"Just waiting for Serena," Lita replied.
	"What a coincidence," Michael said.  "So am I."  Jennifer handed him his 
drink and walked off to help someone else.  "I get the feeling, Lita, that 
Serena isn't going to meet us for a while," Michael said.  "Unless..."
	"What's wrong?" Lita asked.
	"I don't know," Michael said.  "I'll be back in a minute."  Michael walked 
down the row of video games and hung a right.  He paid attention to the people 
at the games, watching for meatballs.  As he reached the Sailor Moon video game, 
his watching paid off.  Serena sat in front of the start screen, pretending to 
play.  "You know, I thought as much, Serena," Michael said.
	"Oh, there you are, Michael," Serena said in a nervous voice.  "I was 
wondering where you had gotten to!"
	"I was wondering the same thing about you," Michael said.  "And so was 
Lita.  Kind of funny we'd both meet up right where we were supposed to be 
meeting you, and you nowhere in sight."  Serena had been pulling this sort of 
thing from time to time since he had admitted to her that he was attracted to 
Lita.  "Really, Serena, would you please stop playing matchmaker?  It might have 
worked with someone else, but it's not doing me any favors at all."
	"Are you sure it's not doing anything?" Serena asked dejectedly.  A moment 
later, she looked up in determination.  "Then I must be going about it the wrong 
way!  I'll just have to try something else-"
	"No, Serena," Michael said sternly.  "Nothing else.  Please, just let me 
go about this my own way."  Serena's face became dejected again.  "Thank you for 
trying, but really; I want this to be my own work.  Now, let's go and spend some 
time with Lita.  Together."  The two walked back to the snack bar, where Lita 
was still waiting for Michael.
	"Oh, there you are, Serena!" Lita said as the two sat down.  She handed 
Michael back his drink.  "Where were you?"
	"She just got here," Michael said.
	"But the door is that way," Lita said, pointing the opposite direction 
from where they had come.
	"Yeah, I mean she just got here, as in caught up with us," Michael said.  
"She actually got to the arcade before you did, and got bored waiting.  She was 
at the video game when I found her."
	"Serena early for something?" Lita said disbelievingly.  "Well, why didn't 
you come to look for us?"
	"I was caught up in the game," Serena said.  "So, anyway, what do you guys 
want to do?  I've got most of the afternoon, but mom wants me back by 
nightfall."
	"I've got as long as I want, basically," Michael said.  "But I suppose 
that when you go home, I should, too."
	"We could go out to a movie," Lita suggested.  "I heard that a good comedy 
came out yesterday, 'What's My Name?' or something like that."
	"Sounds good to me," Michael said.
	"I'd love to, but I'm out of cash right now," Serena said.
	"Don't worry, I can lend you some money," Michael said.
	"Thank you, Michael!" Serena said, clenching her hands together in joy.
	"Sure, any time I've got a bit spare," Michael said.  "Someday, I'd hope 
you to do the same for me.  Or something similar."  They made their way towards 
the nearest theater, Michael trying to forget what Serena had done.  He had so 
wanted to have a calm, stress-free afternoon.  He had found that it didn't 
happen too often hanging around with this crowd.

	Michael stood in the lobby of the theater, waiting for Serena to get some 
snacks with yet *more* borrowed money.  He didn't mind it that much, but he 
wouldn't be able to lend her any more money.  He and Lita stood off to the side 
of the room, a stream of people passing them into the theater.  If they didn't 
get moving soon, the movie would start without them.
	"If she doesn't get out of the line soon, we're going in without her," 
Michael said to Lita.  Looking over to her, he noticed that she wasn't there 
anymore.  She had walked to talk to a pair of people that he didn't recognize.  
He probably should go meet the new people.  One was slender with oddly-colored 
hair.  It wasn't often that you saw ocean-blue hair on a person.  Her taller 
companion, though, had simple blond hair.
	Lita turned around as he walked up.  "Hey, Michael!  Have you met Amara 
and Michelle?" Lita asked.
	"No, I don't believe I have met them," Michael said, extending his hand 
for a shake.  Amara, the tall one, was the first to take it.
	"This your boyfriend, Lita?" she asked.
	"No, it's nothing like that!" Lita said in an almost panicky voice.  
Michael looked at Lita, who had her eyes locked on Amara.  Michael felt an odd 
twinge in the back of his mind.  He wasn't sure what it was; he had never 
experienced it before.  He took Michelle's hand and shook it as well.
	"Too bad, you make a cute couple," Michelle said, smiling.  "I wouldn't 
rule him out yet!"  Michael smirked and shook his head.  People said that too 
often for his liking.  The twinge in the back of his head bothered him.  He 
decided to ignore it for the time.  Serena walked up to them, carrying an armful 
of snacks.
	"I love this place.  Their snacks are so much cheaper than other places- 
oh, hi, guys!" Serena said to Amara and Michelle.  She frowned, bobbling a pack 
of candy.  Michael grabbed the bag of popcorn from her.
	"We should head in now," Michael said.  "The movie'll be starting soon."
	"What movie are you guys here for?" Serena asked.
	"Some of my friends made an independent film, and it's showing here," 
Michelle said.
	"I thought it might be nice to join her for something," Amara said.  "I'm 
usually pretty busy, so I wanted to take some time with Michelle when I could."
	"She usually doesn't go out for art films much," Michelle said.
	"I don't like art films," Serena broke in.  "Movies are supposed to be 
entertaining, not bore your socks off."
	"Action isn't everything in films, Serena," Michelle replied.  "Movies are 
also a way to communicate points to other people.  You can send messages to 
people that they hadn't ever thought about before."
	"Well, if it's all the same, I'll stick with comedies," Serena said, half 
to herself.
	"Hey, we've got to get into the theater!  Do you guys want to do something 
after the films are over?" Lita asked them quickly.
	"Well, Amara and I were going to go out to dinner after the films, so if 
you three want to tag along, you're welcome," Michelle said.  Amara frowned 
slightly.
	"Dinner, we'd love to!" Serena said.
	"Don't you have to be home at sundown, though?" Michael asked.
	"Well, sundown is a pretty vague concept," Serena said.
	"How about this, do you have any money?" Michael asked.  "I don't have any 
more spare that I can lend you."
	"I suppose I can pay her way this time," Lita said, looking through her 
pocket for money.  This time, Michael frowned slightly.  The movie wasn't quite 
as fun when he knew that these girls would be waiting for them at the end.

	As the five of them walked down the street to a nearby café for dinner, 
Michael held Serena back to talk with her.
	"Serena, who are those two?" Michael asked.
	"They're just some girls that we met a while ago at the arcade.  I'm 
surprised you haven't met them," Serena said.
	"Well, I don't get out much, other than missions, school, and study 
sessions," Michael replied.
	"And you really should get out more, especially if you want to have a 
chance with Lita," Serena said.
	"I wouldn't really say that," Michael said.  "I think that if I let things 
run their course, things will turn out the way they turn out."
	"All right, if you say so," Serena said.  "But remember, if you want a 
little help or advice, I'm here for you."
	"Thanks, I guess," Michael said.  "Now, do you know why Lita looks at that 
Amara like that?"
	"I really don't know why," Serena replied.  "It started after she almost 
ran us over with her motorcycle a couple of weeks ago."
	"You two were almost run over by a motorcycle?  Why didn't I ever hear 
about this?" Michael asked.
	"Probably because you were staring at Lita at the time," Serena said.  
Michael whistled innocently to himself.  "It wasn't anything, really.  I just 
stumbled out into the road and Lita pushed me out of the way."
	"You're not going to forgive me for that, are you, Meatball-head?" Amara 
said.  She had dropped back to hear what they were talking about.
	"Oh, no, Michael was just asking.  That's all,"  Serena said nervously.
	"Don't worry about it," Michael said.  "Considering it's Serena we're 
talking about here, it could happen to anybody."
	"Hey, I'm not a complete clutz!" Serena yelled.
	"No, of course not!  Just enough of one to wander out in front of a 
speeding motorcycle," Michael said, grinning.  Serena paused for a moment before 
starting back up with defending herself.  "All right, all right!  Sorry!"
	"I could just go and spend my day with Darien, you know," Serena grumped.  
Michael was starting to wish that she would.
	They got to the café and sat at an outside table.  Where they were sitting 
had a nice view down the street upon the park.  The afternoon sun had already 
sunk below the line of the umbrella, creating a nice atmosphere where they were 
sitting.  After the waitress took their orders, they were left to talk amongst 
themselves.  Michael liked the way that the light shone on Lita's face.  She 
seemed to like the way the light shone on Amara's.
	"This is the best place to eat at this time of the day," Michelle said.  
"I really love the way that the lake reflects the setting sun.  It's really 
peaceful, even with the traffic running past."
	"I can see what you mean," Michael replied.  "It's almost like a Parisian 
café.  I feel like I'm sitting on the Champs Elysees."
	"It's not all it's made out to be," Amara said.  "Trust me, this is much 
better."
	"I think it's more just the concept of just being in Paris than being on 
the Champs Elysees," Michael said.  "It's always more exotic where you aren't."
	"I think that may be more of a personal opinion," Amara said.  They sat 
for a moment in silence, looking at the scenery.  Soon, their food was brought, 
and they ate while talking about the movies that they had watched.
	"It seemed like they were making the usual point," Michelle said.  "You 
know, truth, beauty, and love."
	"Sounds familiar," Michael commented.  "I rather didn't like our film.  
Just a bunch of bad body jokes.  But then, it did come from America."
	"They're pretty bad about that, yeah," Amara said.  Serena ate at her 
usual speed.  Michael wondered, as usual, if she tasted the food.  Lita seemed 
more reserved than usual around Amara and Michelle.  The feeling from before the 
movie flared up stronger than before in him as Lita watched Amara across the 
table from her.
	"Lita, you've been really quiet," he said.  She gave a jump, as though 
she'd been startled from some deep thoughts.
	"Oh!  I've just been enjoying the scenery," Lita said.
	"The scenery inside the café?" Michael asked.  She was facing inside the 
building, not down the road.
	"Well, it is pretty interesting in there," Lita said.
	"Yeah, about as interesting as a fish-bowl," Michael said.
	"Fish-bowls can be pretty interesting," Lita argued.
	"Only if you live a really dull life," Michael replied.  The others just 
watched on quietly.  They were used to Serena and Raye arguing; they'd let the 
two wind down a bit before jumping in.
	"Michael, what's wrong with you?" Lita asked.  "You've seemed really tense 
for most of this trip.  You really need to calm down."
	"I'm not the one who's staring at 'nothing' for hours on end!" Michael 
exclaimed.
	"No, you're the one who acts weird thinking that it's funny!" Lita 
exclaimed.
	"It entertains me.  Anyone else, I couldn't care less," Michael said.
	"That's a good thing!  I don't think anyone else does think that it's 
'entertaining!'"
	"About as entertaining as betting who's the next 'old boyfriend!'"
	"All right, look, I'm not sure what's wrong here, but I seem to be the 
cause of it," Lita said.  She took the money for her and Serena's share of the 
tab from her pocket and placed it on the table.  She said, "Later, guys," stood 
up and walked away towards her house.
	"You know, Michael, I think that wasn't the smartest thing you could have 
done," Serena said gently.
	"I don't care," Michael replied.  "Right now, there's not much that I do 
care about."  He crossed his arms and slumped back in his chair.
	"Michael, it's getting late," Serena said.  "Amara, Michelle, I'm really 
sorry about this.
	"That's all right, Serena.  This sort of thing happens," Michelle said.
	"Come on, Michael, let's go," Serena said.  Michael stood up and walked 
away with Serena after giving his share of the tab to Serena.  When they were 
out of earshot of Amara and Michelle, Serena asked, "Michael, what went on back 
there?"
	"I don't really know," Michael said.  "Something about that girl Amara set 
me on edge."
	"You know, you really were mean to Lita," Serena said.
	"I know."
	"We've probably got time to go and see her tonight if you want to," Serena 
said hopefully.
	"I don't think so," Michael replied.  "Tonight, I'm just going to go home 
and get some sleep."
	"That's a good idea," Serena said.  "It'll help you calm down a bit."
	"Yeah, something like that," Michael said quietly.
	"Look, I'll talk to you later, Michael," Serena said.  "I'll see you 
tomorrow."
	"Yeah, later," Michael said.  Serena turned around and started walking 
towards her house.  It was only about seven, and Michael didn't really feel like 
going home yet.  He wasn't sure what he really wanted to do right then.  There 
was only one person whom he really felt like talking to that night.  He stepped 
into the nearest phone booth to see if that person would mind seeing him.

	Darien sat in his apartment, reading an introductory physics book.  
Michael had called a while ago to see if he could come over, and he hadn't 
sounded too happy.  Darien wasn't sure what was going on, but he hoped that 
Michael didn't try to involve him.  It wasn't his place to meddle there.  A 
knock on the door drew his attention from the book a few moments later.  He 
marked his place and opened the door.
	"Hey, Michael, what's up that you didn't want to talk about over the 
phone?" Darien asked.  Ever since Darien and Serena had gotten back together, 
Michael had become good friends with Darien.  Of course, the late appearances 
still didn't help that much.  "You don't look your usual cheerful self."
	"I had some troubles this afternoon with Lita," Michael replied.
	"Oh, boy.  This'll be fun," Darien said, rolling his eyes.
	"I suppose you know these people, Amara and Michelle?" Michael asked.
	"Yes, I've met them," Darien replied.  "I've seen them around.  I've been 
to one of Amara's races with the girls."
	"Man, why haven't I met them before this?!" Michael exclaimed.
	"You don't get out much," Darien said.
	"Well yeah, but still.  Have you noticed how Lita acts around them?" 
Michael asked.
	"No, I haven't seen them together," Darien said.  "Why?"
	"I don't know, really, but Lita's got this way of looking at her that just 
really sets me off," Michael replied.
	"Oh, I see.  You're jealous of Amara?"  Darien said.
	"That may be it.  But why would I?  Amara's a girl!  What about her could 
make me jealous about her?" Michael wondered aloud.
	"Some girls can be even better friends than a couple," Darien commented.
	"Even after all that we've been through together?  She'll just disregard 
that for a pretty face?" Michael said.
	"Have you told her how you feel?" Darien asked.
	Michael paused to think.  "Well, no...  I never thought the time was 
right."
	"Maybe this is the right time," Darien said.
	"You may be right," Michael said.  He turned to the door to walk out.
	"Hey, you haven't been here long," Darien said.  "You want to have a 
little something before you leave?  Some tea or something?"
	"I wouldn't want to be more of a burden than already," Michael said.
	"Oh, it's all right.  I was fixing it up for myself when you called, and 
I've got some left over."
	"All right, then, I think I will have some," Michael said.  He took a seat 
in Darien's living room and waited for Darien to bring him the tea.  He supposed 
that there was something to that "feeling better talking about stuff" thingy.
	There was still a sinking feeling in the bottom of his stomach, though.  
The full force of the night hit him hard; he had just gotten into a big fight 
with Lita!  She surely wouldn't accept his feelings if he tried it!  Not after 
the way he had acted earlier!  God, he *had* been an idiot!  He'd have to think 
about this much later.  It was getting to be nearly eight at night, and he'd 
have to get home soon.  His parents hated when he was out past sundown, but he 
had thought that this was more important.  Darien returned and gave Michael his 
tea.
	"So, what're your plans?" Darien asked.  Michael sipped on the tea.  It 
was very well done; not very strong, but strong enough to leave a nice 
aftertaste.  Not quite sweet enough for his likes, though.  At least it was 
still hot.
	"I really don't know," Michael said.  "I'd feel really awkward talking to 
her tonight, and besides, I've got to get home soon."
	"Yeah, phoning her tonight doesn't seem like that good of an idea to me," 
Darien said.  "Do you know when you're going to see her next?"
	"No, I don't know," Michael said.  Technically, it was true.  He wasn't 
sure if either of them would be at the study session the next day.  He was 
fairly sure that he wouldn't.
	"Well, you may want to give it a while," Darien said.  "Let both of you 
cool down for a while, figure out what you're going to do."
	"Yeah.  You're right," Michael said.  "Thanks, Darien.  You're probably 
the coolest guy I know."  Michael extended his hand to give Darien five.  Darien 
stared at the hand for a minute before taking it in a handshake.  "Okay,  not 
quite what I meant, but it'll work."  Michael smiled as strongly as he could, 
but he didn't feel much better than he had before coming in.

	Doctor Tomoe stood behind his desk in the darkened lab working on another 
diamond pod for Kaorinite's project.  The flame from the Bunsen burner reflected 
off of his glasses and the test tubes around the room, giving the lab a blue 
tint.  The eerie sound of breathing and the flame filled Tomoe's ears.  He 
preferred silence, but this much noise would have to do for the time.  He was 
getting impatient with Kaorinite's constant failures, but there was nothing he 
could do about it but keep making pods.  The Sovereign was becoming even more 
impatient than he was, and that would spell Kaorinite's downfall.  The pod would 
be ready for input into the machine soon.
	"Kaorinite!" Tomoe called.  The red-dressed woman appeared beside him, 
arms crossed as almost always.  "Have you located a new target for the heart-
snatcher?"
	"Yes, Professor, I have," Kaorinite replied.  "I have decided to try 
looking for a trait we had originally overlooked, pure intentions.  I have 
chosen a boy who exemplifies that trait very well."
	"I will supply you with another crystal pod.  You're on thin ice, so don't 
mess this one up!" Tomoe said.  He pushed the button that started up the Demon 
Machine, rotating test tubes and loading a new diamond pod into the machine.  
Flashes of light came from the oven, followed by a burst of steam and a loud 
whistle.  The door of the oven opened, and the diamond pod flew to Kaorinite.  
She quickly teleported from the lab to find the target.

	The next morning, the study session began at ten as usual.  Or it would 
have, except that Michael wasn't there.  They opened the door to let the warm 
weather in.  Serena had suggested that they have the session outside, but the 
others didn't want her falling asleep during the session like she had the other 
time that they had tried studying outside.
	After a while, Amy said, "Okay, so I think we should start on math," said 
to the four others at the table.
	"Amy, you always think we should start with math," Raye said.
	"Well, math is usually the most difficult subject for you all," Amy 
replied.
	"Shouldn't we wait for Michael to get here?" Lita asked.  She had dark 
rings under her eyes.
	"Oh, you just want an excuse to get a nap," Mina teased.
	"Well, it would help," Lita said.  "Besides, Serena's already getting 
one."  Serena gave a jerk and lifted her head from the table.  The two had been 
talking into the night before about what had gone on with Michael.  Serena had 
been careful not to let anything important slip.  She'd have to tell Michael and 
have him thank her when he got there.
	"Hey, I'm kind of tired, Lita," Serena said.  She looked at her watch; it 
was ten thirty already.  "Anybody know where Michael is?"
	"No, I haven't heard anything from him," Raye replied.
	"I'll go give him a call," Serena said, standing up.  She walked inside 
and to the phone and dialed Michael's number.  A few rings later, Michael's mom 
picked up the phone.
	"No, Michael isn't feeling too well today," Michael's mom said.  "He was 
going to stay home today to study."
	"Can I talk to him?" Serena asked.  She waited until the phone had been 
handed off to Michael and asked, "So, are you really sick?"
	"Serena, this is not what I need right now," Michael said.
	"Michael, this isn't about Lita, is it?" Serena asked.
	"Look, the way I treated her last night, I really don't think she'll want 
to see me," Michael said.
	"Michael, I've talked to her, and she does want to talk to you," Serena 
said.
	"Serena, I'd like to handle this my own way, if you don't mind," Michael 
said.
	"If you keep on handling it like you have been, I doubt you'll have very 
much to handle for long!" Serena exclaimed, slamming the phone down.  She took a 
moment to compose herself before walking back to join the others.  Amy had her 
book open in front of her, ready to start.  Raye had grabbed a comic and was 
leafing through it quietly.  Serena hoped that they hadn't heard her outburst.  
She was going to take things into her own hands if Michael was going to be like 
that.
	"Is he coming?" Lita asked.
	"No,  he isn't," Serena said.  "He's feeling sick, and he wanted a couple 
of us to come by to study with him."
	"Well, it would be nice to get a little bit of a change of environment," 
Amy commented.
	"No, he only wanted two of us to come!" Serena quickly exclaimed.  Raye 
raised an eyebrow.  Serena had doubted that she would fall for it.  "He said 
something about his mom only letting two of us come over, since he was sick."
	"Oh, come on, Serena!  You're just trying to get out of studying again!" 
Raye exclaimed.
	"No, I'm not!  This is for real!" Serena said.
	"You're just going to walk away and go to Darien's to 'study,' and 
Michael's going to walk in ten minutes after that!" Raye exclaimed.
	"Hold it, why would I want someone else to come with me if I was just 
going to Darien's?" Serena asked.
	Raye thought to herself for a moment.  "I suppose you're right, Serena.  
Sorry 'bout flying off like that; I've just been missing a bit of sleep 
recently."
	"Nightmares again?" Serena asked.
	"As always," Raye replied.  "Nothing important, though."
	"Are you sure?" Amy asked.  "We've thought that before and we were caught 
by surprise then, too."
	"No, I'm pretty sure that these were nothing," Raye said.  "They were just 
too weird to be anything else."
	"Well, all right, Raye, but just tell us if you think it's anything 
important," Mina said.
	"We're going to go now," Serena said.  "Come on, Lita."
	"Hold it, why do I have to go?" Lita asked nervously.
	"He asked about you specifically," Serena said.
	"Well, all right," Lita said, picking up her books.  The two walked away 
towards the nearest bus stop.  "So, he wanted to see me?" she asked when they 
got to the bus stop.
	"Yeah, he told me that he wanted to talk about last night," Serena said.  
"I think he wants to apologize, or something like that."

	Michael sat in his room, staring at his computer screen.  He had been 
trying to think of something to write all morning long.  He had been trying 
recently to write something philosophical, after having read some of the 
philosophy books that his father had written.  Only one had been published, but 
it had been enough to give his father some opportunities and the chance of a 
better job in Japan.  Needless to say, his dad had jumped at the chance.  The 
position was supposed to only last for a couple of years, so they would be 
returning to the States in time for Michael to go to college.  He wasn't sure 
what he would do when that came around.
	He typed down some words about metaphysics, hoping that something would 
jumpstart his mind, but they didn't help.  He couldn't think about anything 
other than the others.  He had hated to blow them off like that, but at the 
moment, there wasn't anything that he would do with them.  He was sure, judging 
by Serena's abrupt end to the phone-call, that he would regret not going that 
day.  Then again, he really didn't need to study.  After all, he knew basically 
everything that was on the test.  He'd only be there to throw words at Serena 
and Mina with them not understanding a thing.  Amy could take care of the just 
fine...
	Then, an idea came to him for something to write about.  Perhaps he would 
write about the nature of friendship or something like that.  He didn't remember 
reading anything about that sort of topic in any of the books that he had read.  
Of course, there were lots of books out there, so it would probably be somewhere 
or another.  Might be a good idea to look it up.  He logged on to the Internet 
and looked up the Stanford Dictionary of Philosophy.  He scrolled down the list 
of topics to see if there was anything like what he was looking for.
	As he looked over the list, he heard someone knock at the front door of 
the apartment.  He waited for his mom to get the door.  He had a bad feeling 
about who was there.  That was one good thing that he liked about living in 
Tokyo over America, though; fewer door-to-door salesmen and preachers.  Those 
people got on his nerves.
	As his mother opened the door, he heard Serena walk in and ask if he was 
there.  He suddenly wished that he wasn't.
	"Well, of course he's here.  He's sick, remember?" Michael's mom told 
Serena.
	"Yeah, I thought so," Serena said.  "We just thought that we would drop by 
to kind of cheer him up, try to make him feel better."
	"I'm sure he'll be glad to see you, Serena.  And you, too, Lita," 
Michael's mom said.  "He's in his room, working on the computer."
	Michael winced.  He hadn't expected Serena to do this, although he really 
should have.  Maybe he would have been well-served to go to the arcade for a 
while.  Well, it's a bit late for that, he told himself.  He closed his door 
quietly.  A moment later, someone knocked on his door.  He opened it and Serena 
walked in alone.
	"Serena, I thought I had gone over this with you," Michael said.  "I want 
to take care of this myself.  Wasn't I perfectly clear?"
	"No, you made it perfectly clear that you were being a stubborn, Raye-
headed jerk who didn't want to listen to any advice," Serena said.
	"Look, I really don't want to talk about this right now," Michael said.  
"I'm not very happy with you at the moment, and we all know how I can get when 
I'm not happy with someone."
	"Will you at least talk to Lita now that she's here?" Serena asked.  
Michael thought for a minute.  He really wanted to talk to Lita, but he was 
afraid of doing the wrong thing.  He didn't want to act like he had the other 
night.  So, if he'd just control himself, then there'd be no problem.  Right?  
If he'd stay away from Amara, he'd be fine.  Right?  Just keep telling yourself 
that, he told himself.
	"Look, just tell her that I want to talk to her.  Alone," Michael 
emphasized.  Serena walked out and Lita walked in soon after.  "Hi, Lita," he 
greeted.
	"Hey, Mike," Lita said.  Michael stood beside his desk for a few minutes, 
trying to think of how to say what he wanted to.  "Look, I know why you wanted 
me here," Lita said.  "And you don't have to say it.  I don't know why you said 
the things that you did, but I said some pretty bad things myself.  I suppose 
you've got your reasons.  I did, too.  I forgive you, if you'll forgive me.  
We're friends, so we shouldn't be fighting, right?"
	"I don't think so," Michael said.  "Then again, look at Serena and Raye.  
They fight a lot, and they're better friends for it."
	"Yeah, but I don't work like that," Lita said.  "I like smooth sailing.  
Why should you fight when you can get along?"  She paused to think.  "Let's just 
move beyond this and try not to let it happen again, okay?"
	"Okay," Michael replied.  He couldn't think of anything else to say to 
her.  He wanted to take Darien's advice, to tell her how he felt, but he wasn't 
sure how to say it.
	"Now, Serena said that you wanted some study buddies for the afternoon," 
Lita said.
	"What?" Michael said.  Serena must have used it as an excuse to get her 
here.  He made a mental note to hurt Serena later.  "Oh, yeah, that.  Well, I've 
figured out the problem that I had, and I'm done studying for the day."
	"Well, we haven't even started," Lita said.  "You wouldn't mind helping us 
to study, would you?"
	"I guess not," Michael said.  He'd put his feelings off until later.  "Why 
don't we start with English?  Serena always has trouble with that."  Lita opened 
the door to call Serena in, only to have Serena fall onto the floor face-first.  
"You know, Serena, you don't have to lean that hard against the door to hear 
through it," Michael commented.
	"That sounded like it hurt," Lita said.  "You okay?"
	"Yeah, I'm fine," Serena said as she picked her books up from outside the 
door.  Lita walked out of the room to get her books.  "So, why didn't you say 
anything?" Serena asked.
	"I really don't know," Michael replied.  "I wanted to, but my mouth 
wouldn't go with my mind."  He smacked himself softly on the forehead.  "Darien 
even told me to give it a shot."
	"Then you definitely should have said something," Serena said.
	"Yeah, I know," Michael said.  "And what about you?  Why did you want to 
do this, even after I told you not to?"
	"I know better than to leave a situation like this alone," Serena said.  
"And I wanted to help you out, Michael.  Both my heart and my head were telling 
me that you needed help, no matter what you said, and I know to trust it when 
both of those say the same thing."
	"Well, thank you, Serena," Michael said.  He extended his hand for her to 
shake.  She took it gladly.  "I'll know to trust you a bit more in the future.  
Maybe I'll ask for your help when I finally get up the nerve to talk to Lita."

	Outside of the apartment building, Kaorinite floated effortlessly, looking 
at Michael's window.  This was the boy who was the target for the heart-snatcher 
that day.  One of the earlier targets was in the house, too.  That interested 
Kaorinite.  Why would these two targets be drawn together in such a large place?  
She'd have to report that to Doctor Tomoe after she got her hands on the 
crystal.  It might lead to some interesting information about the pure heart 
crystal holders.  But that was information for another time.  She threw the 
diamond pod towards the apartment, where it passed through the window and landed 
on one of the boy's books, the chemistry book.  She floated up to the roof of 
the nearest building to watch the fun ensue.

	Lita walked back in with her books and sat down beside Michael's bed,  
opening her books to the page that they had stopped studying at last time.  The 
room seemed too quiet to Michael, so he turned on some music to study to.
	"Michael, could you take a look at this paragraph that Amy had me write?" 
Serena asked.  She handed him a sheet of paper.
	"I don't know how anyone can read your hand writing," Michael replied.  
"But I'll give it a shot."  He skimmed the paragraph about what she did in her 
spare time, making a fair many corrections.  He thought to himself that she 
might do well to try and read some of his English books if she wanted to get 
some practice.  Then again, he was hardly perfect at Japanese, so he wasn't one 
to talk.
	"So, how did I do?" Serena asked.
	"Well, better than last time," Michael said.  "I could read it all the way 
through this time.  But you keep making the same mistake about possessives.  
Here, let me show you."  He reached for his English manual (he usually didn't 
use it, but he liked to keep it around for laughs) to show Serena what he meant.  
She usually understood the book better than she did him, since he usually gave 
some answer like, "That's just how it is," or, "Darned if I know."
	As he reached for his English manual, his hand brushed up against the 
Chemistry book that was on top of it.  A sudden rush of energy came from the 
book as it began a transformation, thanks to the diamond pod that Kaorinite had 
placed in it.  Michael, Lita, and Serena backed away from the book as it became 
a full-fledged heart snatcher.
	"Man, and I was just starting on Boyle's Law!" Michael yelled.
	"Who's it after?" Serena asked.
	"Well, it's not me!" Lita exclaimed defensively.  A moment later, the 
transformation was complete, and the book had grown to the size of a human, 
sprouted arms and legs, and had a head with a woman's face.
	"Meet Chemistrina, everybody!  I'm here for that boy's heart crystal!" the 
monster exclaimed, turning itself to page four hundred and sixty-eight.  The 
black star tattoo on the page shot a beam at the astonished Michael, who arched 
his back stiffly but stayed in the same place, as though his whole body was 
being pulled and pushed at the same time.  Michael's mother ran through the 
hallway to the door, just in time to see Michael's heart crystal appear in front 
of his body and the heart snatcher to grab it and jump through the window to the 
street six floors down.
	Michael slumped to the floor, weakened by his lost heart.  His mother 
screamed and rushed to him.
	"Serena, we've got to do something!" Lita exclaimed.
	"Yeah, let's go!" Serena said.  The two ran out of the door and down the 
stairs as quickly as they could to catch up with the heart-snatcher.

	Chemestrina landed in the alleyway below Michael's window and took a 
moment to recover.  She hadn't expected such an easy getaway as that.  Not that 
she was complaining.  Kaorinite appeared in front of her in the alleyway.
	"Give me the crystal," Kaorinite said.  Chemestrina handed the crystal to 
Kaorinite so that she could test it.
	From behind her, the call of an attack interrupted her.  "Uranus World 
Shaking!" Sailor Uranus called out.  Kaorinite flew quickly out of the way of 
the blast, but Chemestrina wasn't as quick to react.  She received the full 
force of the attack.
	From the other side of the alleyway, Neptune exclaimed, "Neptune Deep 
Submerge!" sending a spray of water like a wave crashing over Kaorinite.  She 
lost a hold of the crystal, and it went flying towards Uranus, who deftly caught 
it in midair.
	"You can't have this crystal as long as I live, trash," Uranus exclaimed 
to Kaorinite, who was floating closer to the ground than she had been.
	"We can fix that easily, Uranus," Kaorinite exclaimed.  "Chemestrina, get 
them!"  Kaorinite quickly teleported out of harm's way.
	"All right, then, let's start off with a couple of combustion reactions!"  
Chemestrina exclaimed, opening herself to page three forty-two and taking out a 
giant Bunsen burner.  "What products do we get when we burn two Sailor Scouts!"  
A long, blue flame shot from the tip of the Bunsen Burner towards Sailor Uranus, 
who jumped over the heart snatcher to join Sailor Neptune.  She handed the 
crystal to Neptune, who started to test it for purity.  To buy her some time, 
Uranus let loose another attack, which the heart snatcher tried countering with 
another flame.  The blast of energy cut easily through the flames, breaking the 
Bunsen Burner.
	"It's not what we're looking for," Neptune said just as Sailors Moon and 
Jupiter ran around the corner.  Jupiter gave a start at the sight of the two 
Scouts holding Michael's crystal.
	"Neptune!  Uranus!  Give us that crystal now!" Jupiter exclaimed.  She 
jumped at Neptune's arm to try and grab the crystal.
	"You can have it, Jupiter, but you might want to consider being more 
careful with it," Uranus said.
	"Shut up, and get out of here!" Jupiter exclaimed at the two rogue Scouts.
	"Well, if that's how you're going to act, then we will," Uranus said.  The 
two Scouts jumped to the fire escape of the building beside Michael's apartment 
building and climbed to the top.
	"How do they get such good height?!" Moon exclaimed as she watched the two 
climb away from the scene.  The sound of pages turning turned their attention 
back to the heart snatcher, who had just pulled a large beaker of some liquid 
from one of her pages.
	"Beaker, beaker, what's in the beaker?" she taunted as she threw the 
beaker at the scouts.  Both of them jumped out of the way in time, sending the 
beaker out into the middle of the road, where it shattered, sending the liquid 
splashing on nearby cars.  Soon, the bodies of the cars were eaten through by 
whatever was in the beaker.  "Wow, it was acid!  Now, let's see what's in this 
one!" Chemestrina exclaimed, throwing another beaker at the Scouts.  Moon and 
Jupiter jumped back, and the beaker landed where they had just been standing.  
The liquid inside exploded, sending the Scouts flying into the cars in the 
street.
	"Jupiter, we've got to do something!  If he stays in there, he's got us 
beat for sure!" Moon exclaimed.
	"If only Europa was here!" Jupiter exclaimed back.  "Let me see what I can 
do with this sword."  She held the sword up so that the light shone off of it.  
"Jupiter sword, give me the power to defeat this enemy!  Jupiter sword, SLASH!!"  
she exclaimed.  The sword lifted itself from her hand and flew towards 
Chemestrina, intent upon slashing her to bits.  Before it could reach her, 
though, she flipped to the page on metal corrosives.  Taking out another beaker, 
she doused the sword with a greenish liquid, causing it to fall to the ground.
	"This is an interesting little solution that Doctor Tomoe fixed up special 
for me!  It's a holy sword repellant," Chemestrina called to the Scouts.
	"Well, that's not fair!" Moon exclaimed.
	"All's fair in heart snatching!" Chemestrina exclaimed, throwing another 
beaker into the crowd of now-stopped cars.  People were running in any way that 
they could to escape the dangerous down-pouring of chemicals.
	"Sailor Jupiter, you get Michael's heart back to him!  I'll keep this 
monster occupied!" Moon exclaimed.
	"No, Sailor Moon!  I won't leave you, or you might get hurt!  And besides, 
this is personal!" Jupiter exclaimed.  "Jupiter Shield, Defend!"  The energy 
shield formed on her arm, and she ran towards Chemestrina at full speed.  
Watching through the translucent shield, she could see Chemestrina pull another 
beaker from her pages and throw it at her.  She ducked down behind the shield 
and watched the liquid smear across the shield, blinding her momentarily.  Her 
sword was laying in front of her somewhere.  If she could just get to it!  As 
she reached it, she dropped her shield and brandished the sword, running for 
Chemestrina.  The heart snatcher froze in shock as the enraged Sailor Scout ran 
towards her.  "Repel this!  Jupiter Holy Sword, SLASH!"  She brought her hands 
back with the glowing sword gripped tightly and brought it down through the 
middle of the heart snatcher.
	A brilliant light shone from the cut that Jupiter's sword left as it came 
out of the other side of the heart snatcher.  Jupiter jumped back to the entry 
of the alleyway and turned around to pose as the monster faded back to its 
original form.  "Now, to get these back to Michael!" Jupiter exclaimed.  She ran 
around to the front of the building and up the stairs to Michael's apartment, 
reverting before walking in.  Michael's mom was on the phone, apparently calling 
for help.  Lita ran into Michael's room and placed the crystal on Michael's 
chest.  His pale skin quickly regained its color as the crystal returned to his 
body.  Michael gasped as though submerged in a cold pool and opened his eyes.
	Shaking his head groggily, Michael tried to sit up.  "Now, that wasn't any 
fun," he said.
	"Yeah, tell me about it," Lita said.  "You okay?"
	"I need some sleep," Michael said.
	"Well, you can have some," Lita said.  She helped him up onto the bed and 
laid him down.  "I'll go tell your mom that you're okay.  You rest well, Mike.  
Maybe we'll be able to study tomorrow."
	"Yeah, maybe," Michael said weakly.  "Lita, thanks for helping me."
	"Hey, it was nothing," Lita said, smiling.  "Anything for a friend."  She 
stood up and turned towards the door.
	"Wait, Lita," Michael said.  She stopped and turned back towards him.  
"I've been wanting to say this for a while now, but I haven't known exactly how 
to say it.  Actually, I didn't even think that I should until Darien and Serena 
both told me to.  I just want to say that... I think of you as more than a 
friend."
	"Trust me, Michael, I've realized it by now," Lita said.  "And I feel the 
same way.  I just don't think that we should let it get in the way of our 
mission.  When we're not on duty, though, I think that we can work something 
out."  She smiled and wrapped her arms around Michael's neck and arm with her 
head on his shoulder.  "I'm glad that you're safe.  I know what it feels like, 
and I don't want anyone else to have to feel it.  I didn't want Uranus and 
Neptune to get their hands on your heart, because they might keep it.  I had to 
have it."
	"And you do," Michael said.  He acutely felt the warmth of Lita on his 
shoulder and around his chest.  A calm feeling overtook him as Lita held him 
closely for the longest time that anyone had ever touched him.  Looking at the 
door behind Lita, he saw Serena and his mom walk in and quickly walk away again.  
"Lita, I think that you should go and check in with my mom and Serena," Michael 
said, wishing that she didn't have to.
	"Yeah, that's a good idea," Lita said, standing up.  Her eyes were 
slightly red, and Michael felt a moist spot on his shirt cooling against the air 
of the room.  Lita walked out, and a few moments later, Serena walked in.
	"So, how're you feeling, Michael?" Serena asked.
	"Extremely tired," Michael said.
	"What happened with you and Lita?" Serena asked.
	"We worked out the problems," Michael replied, smiling.
	"Then you two are together?"
	"Yes, as you so quaintly put it, we are together," Michael replied, 
exhausted.  "And I suppose that I should be thanking you for all of this.  If 
you two hadn't been here, then I'd be without a heart right now."
	"You should be thanking Lita for this," Serena said.  "She's the one who 
risked herself to beat the monster."  Serena explained about the battle, and 
Lita's rush to defeat the creature on her own.
	"It's a good thing that she didn't get hurt!" Michael exclaimed.  "She 
didn't get hurt, did she?"
	"No, she's fine," Serena replied.  "Now, don't worry any.  Just lay back 
and get some sleep.  We'll talk to you again tomorrow."
	"Thank you again, Serena," Michael said.   Serena walked out of the room 
and into the living room, where Michael's mother was wrapping Lita's left hand 
in a bandage.
	"Lita, are you all right?" Serena asked.
	"Yeah, I just got hurt a bit," Lita said.  "I'll be fine."
	"Michael won't like that I lied to him," Serena replied.  "Mrs. Cross, 
don't worry about him.  He should be fine in a little bit.  Just let him rest 
for a while."
	"All right, Serena, thank you," Mrs. Cross said.  "I've got the doctor 
coming by later on to look at him anyway, just to be sure."  She finished 
bandaging Lita's hand and the two returned to the Temple to tell the others what 
had gone on at Michael's apartment.  Serena excitedly informed the others about 
Michael and Lita's pairing up, much to Lita's annoyance.  She wouldn't hear the 
end of this for a long time...

The End

	Well, that's the end of this fanfic with Michael Cross.  I'm glad I've 
finally gotten this off of my plate so that I can get on with some of my other 
projects that I've had sitting around for a while now.  As I said at the 
beginning, I don't own Sailor Moon, and I did make the character of Michael 
Cross/ Sailor Europa.  Well, that's all for this fic!  I'm going to bed...