Chapter 20: One World One Dream

Mr. Tatolow waddled down the corridor, the fat in his belly jiggling as his loafers hit the marble. He had a deep scowl in his dark purple face. People were tiptoeing by him as if any noise they made might crack him. A simple phone call had made this teddy bear of a man unbearable.

"Sir…"

"What?!" He shot, whirling around slowly to find his nephew looking at him strangely.

"You okay?"

Tatolow tried on a smile, but it looked like a grimace because of the coloring in his face. He was reining in the rage like one would rein in a bunch of raving hounds. It was not a pretty picture. "Zoicite-my-boy! Have you noticed how that girl's been gone for two weeks?" He suddenly asked, dodging Zoicite's question and neglecting the young man's nervous look on him.

"Yeah, she's been on vacation."

Tatolow grunted. "Yeah, that's what I thought, too, but it seems that she was actually out searching for a new place to relocate. Can you believe she quit over the phone?"

"What? Where? Why?"

"I don't know why and where! If I knew where, I'd be there this minute and in her face telling her that she can't quit because we need her here!"

"You could tell her that over the phone!" Zoicite shouted.

"I did, but she was so sweet and polite saying that she was grateful for having the opportunity to work with me. Wishing the company luck and such…"

"You should have threatened her. Tell her she wouldn't find a better place to work in a million years! You have connections. Make sure she won't be hired by some other rival company."

Tatolow flung his head about in a furious shake. "No, Zoi. One thing you don't do is close the back door on an ex-employee. Every head of the business knows that the ex can come back ex-ex and just making an enemy out of an ex-ex is the same as throwing gold away!"

"It's not about the business! I just can't lose her!" He cried, already turning away and making a dash toward the front of the building.

"Slow down, Zoi! I can always get you a new partner!" His uncle bellowed.

Zoicite reached her apartment building and bumped into the landlord. "I need to get into Anderson's unit? Perhaps you can help."

"Oh, the movers came by yesterday. You just missed them. It's not my business we're they're heading, but... Are you interested in the space?"

Zoicite's hopeful expression collapsed and he lost himself in his misery. Shaking his head at the landlord, he turned and made a dreary path back to work.

Several months later…

It was fate that allowed him to come upon the name, Mizuno.

The guys were meshed up in the doorway, barking jokes and spearing snide remarks at each other. They were watching something on the large screen. The afternoon news was talking about the charity ball held by the Mizuno family the night before. It was a popular event because politicians and celebrities were present.

"Gazillionaires."

Zoicite glanced over at George, who squeezed out of the group to join him at the side. "Look," George pointed to the screen and Zoicite's heart nearly jumped from his chest when he saw the close-up of Amy's glowing expression.

"Amy Mizuno, why is this night so important to you and the many guests?" said the reporter.

"The children are happy and that's what's important. We encourage the education and upbringing of these unfortunate children, so that they can be our future."

"And Alex, what about you?"

The camera panned to another face. "This fundraiser is a favorite of mine, but it's the same as every year. In this industry, we take pride in our work and provide every penny we make tonight for the benefit of orphans. Mizuno is dedicated to an effort to make it possible for children with nothing to have the toy of their dreams."

"What a nice looking chap," George said grimly. "Amy's got it good. No wonder she left without a goodbye."

Zoicite snapped to attention. "I'm going to her."

"Oh yeah? What about this Alex fellow?"

"What about him?"

"I hate to direct your attention to this, but please note the name change of our favorite blue-haired little lady."

………………

A delighted squeal came from her lips as she fell back. Amy came up from behind the silver machine that projected colors and looked at her friend in alarm. "Are you alright, Serena?"

Serena had just finished her backward roll and bounced her head against the couch. She was still laughing. "That was so fun, Amy! Do that again!" Serena came up to the machine and put her hands out, smiling. Amy's Imaticom was still in its developing stages, but like Alex, she tested safe prototypes of all her toys on real subjects. A bus load of lively children was not accessible on a desolate satellite.

The Imaticom brought dreams and imagination to life, testing the wildness and unexplored worlds of the soul. Serena had stuck her hands in the machine and thrown her self into a world of candy. Amy got glimpses of her dream through the spills of motley colors from the lights, but Serena had actually lived it. The machine uprooted the deepest emotions and needs in which even the test subject didn't realize existed.

"What were you imagining?" Darien, who had been watching the whole test run with his mug of coffee in hand, asked.

Serena beamed. "I dreamed Jimmy, in his prince uniform, took me on a stroll in candy land."

"Man! You're such a child!"

Amy nudged Serena playfully, "So?"

"He kissed me!"

"A kiss blasted you all the way to the other side of the room?" Alex questioned. He rotated from his desk and looked at Serena critically.

"No! I was on a swing set made out of licorice and taffy. He pushed a little too hard and I just flew off."

"You can klutz out of a dream pretty well, Meatball Head. You belong in virtual reality just to save you from bodily harm," Darien snickered.

"You sound delighted, Serena. Who's Jimmy?" Alex asked, cutting into the fight that was brewing.

"Just a teenage clerk who asked her out on a date when we were shopping at the market," Amy supplied.

"What'd she do? Offer the kid some candy?"

Amy ignored Darien's snide remark, sharing a girl-to-girl grin with Serena. "A flirt here, a flirt there."

"You were flirting with a baby?" Darien cried.

"For your information," Serena turned her nasty glare on him, "He's not a baby even though I'm older than him by three or four years. Anyways, he was a wonderful kisser."

"That was your imagination, Meatball Head."

"What makes you think that he didn't actually kiss me?"

Darien's face bubbled red. "Who would put their mouth anywhere on you?! You're a whining, annoying Meatball Head with no clue!"

Amy cleared her throat, sensing the conversation was going way out of line. In reality, it actually was getting out of line.

"I'm more kissable than you!" Serena retorted.

"How would you know if you've never been kissed?!"

Serena huffed and turned to Alex, "Boss, am I kissable?"

Alex groaned. "Don't drag me into this."

"That's a no," Darien confirmed for her.

Amy placed her hand on Serena's shoulder, an act of placating the housekeeper.

"I'll show you, Darien Shields!"

He recoiled. "I've had my share of experience with girls like you, so no thank you."

"Darien, don't say that. You know Serena's one of a kind…" Amy spoke, her voice was like a whisper compared to all the talking that was going on.

Serena inhaled, placing a hand over her heart. The look she gave Darien was a mixture of pain and resentment.

"Serena, you know Darien is saying all this stuff to steal your thunder. Come on."

Serena pulled away from Amy. "No, Ma'am! I know he means it, but his words can't hurt me. You know why? Because I hate you, Shields! I hate you!" She screamed, unshed tears glittering in her crystalline eyes. Serena hammered up the stairs to her room. They could still hear muffled banging for the next few seconds.

"Darien, can't you be nice to her just this once. She has a date with that boy, Jimmy tonight and you just had to go and spoil her view of life—I retract that—romance today. Why do you think I came up with the Imaticom if it wasn't to make people like Serena happy?"

"That's a child's toy. Happiness should feel real."

"We're all children at heart, Darien. What we feel is always real. Feelings just need that extra energy boost for shine, so don't make fun of the Imaticom."

Darien leaned against the wall. "I'm sorry, Ma'am."

"I think the one that you owe an apology to is Serena."

"Why should I? She always pisses me off!"

Alex slammed his palm into the desk and turned to his pilot in frustration. "You have the most potent method of expressing your jealousy for Jimmy." The sarcasm dripped from his drawl.

"The both of you are always on her side!" Darien called, storming out of the great room and making his way to the hanger.

Left alone with only her brother, Amy gave a thoughtful input into the situation. "They're childish. Maybe we should just lock them in a room together."

Alex snorted. "When pigs fly."

"Done! I'll have the blueprints of the project on your desk in two days."

Aghast, Alex squawked, "You can't be serious."

"It could be a simple side project. Now, let's play Fighter Airships," Amy said, shoving a headset with visors over her head. She grappled for the controllers and tossed the second set to Alex.

He lifted his hand and caught the thing hurtled at him without even looking up from his work. "In a minute when I finish these papers."

As Darien paced down the yard, his radio in his waistband beeped shrilly.

"This is satellite 829. State your business for landing," he spoke dispassionately. Darien looked up at the skyline and watched as the airship remained just above the atmosphere.

"This is Mike of Air Jet 001. Requesting landing for a visit with the Mizuno household."

Darien dumped his weight over a chair and processed the ship on his computer. As he scanned the incoming ship and the passengers aboard he asked, "Number of visitors."

"Just one."

Darien waved his hand over the computer, spinning through the bio of the visitor that wanted to pay this short and unannounced visit to the Mizuno household. Darien released a low and long whistle. "Begin descent, now. I'll inform my boss."

"Copy that."

Darien went over to the switchboard and touched the screen. He moved his finger on the focus controls and watched the airship land. While his fingers moved across the board, he called Alex and Amy on his radio.

"Hey, guys! You got company entering Entry 2. You should have told me you started having business meetings at home. I understand Amy is still on leave from office with her current state of health, so why the secrecy?"

Amy's voice was as clear as distilled water. "There is no secrecy and no business meeting planned for today."

"I doubt this is Serena's baby boyfriend. That fish is not even old enough to swim in the big blue, yet," Darien said, thoughtfully.

"He's not a boyfriend, Darien. And Jimmy could afford to arrive in style once in a while."

"Jimmy is a market clerk, Ma'am. This hotshot is riding a jet 001. Who's gonna answer the door?"

"On my way to Tower 2," Alex confirmed, stretching his muscles as he hobbled up the stairs to welcome the guest.

Amy was a few steps below Alex when she looked up at the monitor to see the face of the visitor. She froze, barely saying, "Don't open the door."

Alex was hitting the pad and asking loudly, "What?!" When he looked up the monitor, he only saw an unrecognizable man in a grey polo jacket. As the door slid open, he turned his head around to stare at his retreating sister. She was near the bottom when he mentally grasped who he had opened the door to.

"You're Zoicite!" He exclaimed. His sister had mentioned him some time ago. This was him? He looked like a playboy with murky, jade eyes and his golden hair twisted at the nape…

"Get out of my way," Zoicite growled, stepping over the threshold as Alex took a fumbling step back. Zoicite had glimpsed the blue hair flying behind the Mizuno brother. On instinct, Alex had spread his arms out, so that his arms and shoulders filled the tower. Zoicite adjusted his frigid glare on the blue-haired man. He assessed Alex and the flash in those green eyes told Alex that he was not satisfied with what he was examining.

Alex darted down the steps without looking back. He shouted a clear and firm order to the security system, "Initiate Towers Lockdown!" Alex was through the opening, but the door that slid down at the foot of the stairs in the tower grazed his hair as he passed.

Zoicite saw the opening and dove for it. He slid belly down and swerved out of the gap. The house reverberated with a, "Lockdown of Tower 1, 2, 3, and 4 Complete," just as the dropping door rumbled in contact with the floor the baby hairs hissed away from his scalp.

Zoicite jumped to his feet hearing Alex cry out, "Amy get to the bedroom and activate lockdown once you get inside."

"No you don't!" Zoicite couldn't quite see Amy blazing up the stairs, but he could make out the dorky man named Alex Mizuno.

Amy hobbled as fast as her added sixty pounds permitted, glimpsing her brother only ten steps behind. To her horror, Zoicite was only five steps behind Alex.

Amy turned, her expression worried. "Alex, he's right behind you!"

"I was the fastest guy in high school!" Zoicite shouted triumphantly as he tackled the lanky man to the floor by throwing his entire body forward.

Amy spun on her heels, bracing herself against the wall when she almost lost her balance. She eased her way toward Alex and Zoicite as the two men scuffled. Zoicite clipped Alex on the chin and Amy screamed as she watched her brother crumple against the wall. Her piercing scream caught Zoicite's attention and he looked at her for the first time.

When Zoicite turned his head to leer at her he saw that she was bigger; much bigger than the last time he had seen her. Her belly was round and bulging out of the blue dress she was wearing. She rushed to her brother's side, shouldering a stunned Zoicite away. "Alex?" She breathed. "Alex, are you alright?"

Alex touched his chin tenderly as he slowly sat up with Amy's help and Zoicite was gradually backing up against the top of the stairs again.

Amy turned her furious blue eyes on Zoicite, but the look on her face suddenly dissolved. "No, Serena!"

Zoicite rotated and found that he was facing a terrified blonde. Her eyes were wide and she gripped a broom between her small hands. "Hi-yah!" She squeezed her eyes shut and swung in a diagonal arc. Zoicite grabbed the broom and jerked it out of her hands before she could complete the swing.

Surprised, Serena popped opened her eyes. She was taking a hesitant step backwards not realizing that the stairs were right behind her. Zoicite made a grab for her, but she slipped away and fell over the banister.

Another voice was screaming Serena's name and this time it was Darien. Darien leapt into the air and landed just below Serena as she tumbled over the railing and fell like a load of bricks on the pilot. There was a loud cry that passed Darien's lips after she crashed into him. Then, the silence settled in the room.

Amy's weeping could be heard even as her brother held her face to his shoulder.

The housekeeper blinked up at the three people over her, vision disoriented from her fall. Something soft like human flesh was under her. Realizing who was underneath her, Serena scrambled from his chest and kneeled beside him. "Darien! What's wrong?"

He didn't answer.

"Darien, don't die! Wake up, please," she wailed.

Amy hiccupped as she pushed Alex aside. She got up on her buckling knees and pummeled towards Zoicite, her hands clenched in fists. She screamed at him, "You killed him! You killed him!"

Bewildered, he caught the girl in his arms and fell backwards, trying his best to cushion the fall for her womb. He didn't try to fend her off as she continuously hit him in the chest. Her fight was really running out of fuel because her fists didn't hurt him at all.

Another distant wail came from the bottom of the stairs. "Darien, please wake up! I'm sorry I killed you! I promise I won't have any more chocolate milkshakes, so I won't kill you with my over excessive weight the next time I decide to fall down the stairs and land on you!"

Alex, who was still rubbing his chin, leaned against the railing. He took a quick look at his pilot from the top. He saw a finger twitch ever so slightly and smiled coolly. "Serena, stop crying," Alex soothed.

"But, Boss, Darien's dead! All because I couldn't cut back on some guilty pleasures! I never got the chance to tell him that I wasn't imagining kissing Jimmy. I was actually imagining the prince was Darien! Darien was the one kissing me!"

"Meatball Head," Darien growled as he unhurriedly sat up to shut her up.

Ecstatic that he was alive, Serena threw her arms around the pilot. Darien cried aloud in shock. "I think you broke a rib!"

"Looks like someone doesn't like to display his affection in public," Alex sighed with relief, seeing that his staff was in better shape than him. He still felt as if his jaw had been cracked in two. He desperately needed pain killers for his jaw and head.

"I'm sorry," Serena whimpered, flinching away as if Darien had just slapped her.

Instead of making fun of her or laughing at her, Darien pulled her back into his arms for a tender kiss. They both sighed as they embraced each other.

Alex rocked back and landed on his bottom. His hands still clung to the banister. "Finally! Amy, are you seeing this?"

As the brother turned to see his sister, he noticed how she struggled against the blonde man, who seemed lost in the action of stroking her belly. The more Amy shoved at his shoulder, the gentler his touch grew and the harder he held her by the shoulders.

Alex's eyes flashed with anger. "Hey, you son-of-a-bitch! Let go of her!" He got up and stomped towards them, but stopped when he caught the look Zoicite sent him. Those green jewels glittered with primitive possession.

Amy's pride was what kept her from succumbing to his caresses. "Clark, I told you it was over the last time we saw each other. Get with the program." Amy stopped speaking to take a sharp intake of breath. His hand under her skirt slid up her thigh casually as if that territory belonged to him. Amy colored, thanking the luck of her fall that she was facing at an angle, so that neither her brother nor Serena and Darien could see what was going on.

He lowered his head and she tried to back away, but his hand on her back pulled her closer to him. His breath caressed the tunnel of her ear. "I told you if I didn't believe you when you told me to get lost, I would chase you to the ends of the galaxy. You didn't even look me in the eye, so here I am, Amy, even if it did take me about eight months to find you." Looking over her blue head his eyes met Alex's venomous glare. "I don't care if you're married and pregnant, I can learn to start doing married women just for you."

His vulgar speech thrust Amy into a full rage mode. Alex's fists were tight against his side. He was ready to kill just as Zoicite was ready for a homicide-suicide. Zoicite only saw one way out of this trip and that was a barbaric fight to the death with the half-pint.

"Varmint! Disgusting! Idiot! What the hell are you implying?"

Alex smiled like a snake. "Amy, let him think what he wants. He's as dumb as a knob anyway."

Amy grabbed Zoicite by the end of his ponytail. "You blind imbecile, look at the resemblance! The eyes and the face. His hair is darker, but look—"

Zoicite did look and relief dropped like bombs over his head. The explosive noise was the sound of his heart thumping at a quicker pace. He grabbed at her and kissed her like he hadn't touched her in lifetimes. Her hands tightened around the taut strands of gold as she instinctively returned his kiss, parting her lips beneath his. He angled his mouth and gave her kisses that sent lighting from her lips to her toes.

"Dammit, Amy! I'm so mad right, now! Don't kiss him!"

Amy genuinely missed him, but hearing her brother screaming at her and picturing him probably frothing at the mouth in full fury, she abruptly pulled away. It was her hormones making her act like a sex craving maniac.

"He kicked," Zoicite whispered softly, his hand at her stomach again. He couldn't hide the surprise in his voice or eyes, not that he wanted to.

"He's not yours, so don't act like you care," she said, her breath ragged from the kisses.

"It doesn't matter, Amy. I'll still take care of the both of you."

The hormones started making her act up again. Amy was shedding tears that could fill up pails to the rim.

"It's alright, Ames," he stroked her hair. "The man who left you like this must have been a complete idiot. I can make it better for the both of you, so you can forget that ass and let go of your pain."

"He didn't leave me. I left him! And he is an idiot and an ass."

Zoicite paused. His hand stopping in mid-stroke.

"Why can't you just be mean to me for one second? Why can't you just let me hate you and forget about you?" She begged, weakly.

"You can hate me if you will let me love you this close. I can't bear loving you at a distance anymore." Was he bargaining with her?

"Nancy won't accept this…"

"I don't give a damn what she thinks."

Amy's breath hitched. "Well, I care. It is because of the parents that my father was killed and my mother was ruined."

"Then, let's not repeat the past, Ames! My mother can't stand in my way. Let me be here! Let me be here to love you and our son."

Amy held his face between her hands. There eyes connected sharply. "I hate to admit that you might be right again. One lesson I wish to take out of this journey is to not repeat my parents' mistake."

"I'm glad you finally see it my way…" Zoicite breathed a sigh of relief.

She pressed a kiss to his temple. "You can love me on two conditions."

"Name them."

"You have to stop sleeping around."

"I stopped ever since I met you."

"Then, I get to love you in return."

Zoicite smiled. "That's a deal!"

Alex sighed again in defeat. Zoicite looked over at him again. "You sound like a lovesick girl."

"And you're a sick bastard. There is no way I will ever be satisfied with your flawed personality and I won't forgive you for the hell you've put Amy through. However, since Amy has accepted you, I am obligated to welcome you to our family."

Alex Mizuno crossed his arms over his chest and let his imagination soar to another time in the distant future, when Zoicite was bouncing a chubby infant on his lap and Amy was shaking a light-up rattle in front of his grubby, little hands. While Zoicite and Amy would play with their content, gurgling baby boy, Serena would be at the stove inside the kitchen searching her brain for the thing to put into the bowl after the flour and eggs. The machines would nudge the next ingredients one by one into her empty hand, surrendering her need to think. Her new husband, Darien would come up behind her and slip a hand in front of her to stroke her swollen belly. Alex would be over at his desk sketching the design of his latest invention. And as the baby chortled in the playroom, the light-up rattle sang, the oven hummed in the kitchen, and Darien murmured endearments to Serena, Alex Mizuno drew up the most brilliant idea of all time.

The End

Happy birthday, Sailor Mercury! My plan was to finish Ms. Smarts on the day of her birthday, so I did. Thanks to all who have stuck around to read. Please review and let me know what you think.

Will there possibly be another piece of fiction I might right for Amy? Possibly...

Until next time,

MistyWing