CATCH A SHOOTING STAR

RATING: R

By Jeanne Stumbaugh

CHAPTER: One



Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and characters from the Sailor Moon continuum belong to its creator. It is not my intention to gain any profits from the characters.

Sorry, guys, but my email is down!!! You won't be able to reach me if you want to comment on my story for a little while anyway. My motherboard had gone south on me (Something about the way it communicates with my modem is messed up. "AAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!" to quote Lucy from Peanuts.) and it'll be a little while before I can either bypass the problem or, heaven forbid, replace the motherboard (Which will take even longer.). Anyway, if you really want to send something to me, I'm pretty sure that if you ask her really nicely, my sister, Michelle Harris here, will find some way of getting it to me.

PLEASE ALSO NOTE: The format on the story has changed!! If you're reading this revised chapter, you will notice that there are only six chapters posted. This is because my sister is a little impatient and had wanted to merge all twenty-five chapters into one file (Good grief, can you imagine!). Anyway, I've persuaded her to combine them into smaller files. To wit, here's the breakdown:

Chapters 1 thru 5 are now Chapter One
Chapters 6 thru 10 are now Chapter Two
Chapters 11 thru 15 are now Chapter Three
Chapters 16 thru 20 are now Chapter Four
Chapters 21 thru 24 are now Chapter Five
Chapter 25 is the Chapter Six

I hope that's not too confusing. Anyway, the chapters will be segmented into they're original parts (1-25), so if you know where you were the last time (Hopefully at the last chapter), then you should be able to find them more readily.

Part One

The sun was shining softly down on the Tenth Street High School, luring many a student out into the quad and grassy areas of the campus. It'd been raining off and on for the past few days and it had made the air clean and sweet, even for Tokyo.
This was lost on the girl walking slowly through a grassy patch between buildings, heading for a set of trees on the far side. She had her nose buried in a thick book, deeply engrossed in the subject matter. Dressed in the standard sailor uniform for Tenth Street High School and other than the fact that her skirt was a little too short, she was no different than any other young high school girl. Except, most young high school students in Tokyo were Japanese. This girl was of Caucasian ancestry, with gleaming hair a color darker than true red and lighter than auburn, confined in a tight braid, falling past her waist, and deep, smoky violet eyes framed with dark curling lashes. Average height and weight, a wiry muscular build disguised by the uniform.
There was nothing very spectacular about her appearance. She wasn't beautiful in the conventional sense of the word but neither was she plain. Striking had been one of the words used to describe her although the girl tended to disagree, honestly not believing she was anything other than ordinary.
She was definitely not paying any attention to her surroundings, which is why she ended up sprawled across the lap of a very surprised Japanese high school boy. Whipping her head around to stare over her shoulder, she saw that she had tripped over the boy's schoolbag. With her cheeks flaming in embarrassment, she slid off his lap and turned to apologize him.
Her breath caught as she took in his beauty. Brilliant peridot green eyes gazed out at her from a face more pretty than handsome. A face framed by long silver hair, pulled back and fastened at the nape of his neck with cording rather than a rubber band. He wore a stylized black high school uniform with lots of banding and zippers over the collar and pockets; there was a little golden star on the center front of the collar. And, of course, sneakers completed the uniform.
She wasn't expecting the bored contempt she read in his eyes and clamped down on her reaction, slipping an unemotional mask over her own face, "I'm sorry about that. I'm afraid I wasn't watching where I was going."
"Oh, it's all right," a new voice answered, making her realize the boy wasn't sitting alone. "We understand."
There were two other boys there, dressed in the same fashion as the other. One boy with dark brown hair and the other with black hair. Both had long hair as well, and pulled back in the same manner as the silver-haired one. The one with black hair was sprawled back, leaning on his elbow with a cocky grin on his face. The one with brown hair was seated lotus-style, an open book in his hands and a slight smile on his face.
Seated next to both of them was a girl with blond hair pulled up into a ball on either side of her head and pigtails trailing down from them. Wide blue eyes and a friendly smile lit up her face. She was dressed in the high school uniform with a pair of non-regulation, bunny-cartoon socks.
The last thing the boy had said suddenly had her frowning."Wait, I seem to have missed something here. What do you understand, exactly?"
"Oh, that you were so impressed by my friend here, you lost your footing and, of course, it was the perfect way to meet him," the earlier voice belonged to the black-haired boy, who was answering her now. "Happens to all three of us all the time."
"Is that what you thought?" she looked at the silver-haired one quizzically.
"Yes," he raised an elegant eyebrow at her. "Because it's true, isn't it?"
"How crushed would you be if I said no?" Her lips twisted as she turned to the other girl, "Are they always like this?"
The girl nodded, an amused grin lighting her face, "I'm afraid so."
"I see." The girl stared at the black-haired boy for a moment before asking, "Would you mind explaining why I'd be impressed with him? Or even why anyone would be impressed by and want to meet such a huge bunch of self-impressed ego-maniacs such as yourselves?"
That got their attention right quick, the girl noted with some satisfaction. The brown-haired one stiffened, indignantly huffing and opened his mouth to retort when the black-haired one sat bolt upright, demanding, "Hey! Who're you calling an ego-maniac?!"
But the silver-haired one latched onto the point behind her question and asked, "You don't even know who we are, do you?"
"Yes!" The girl grinned, clapping her hands daintily. "He can be taught! And you're right, I don't know who you are. You see, I tripped on your schoolbag because I was too interested in reading than in watching where I was going."
The brown-haired boy retrieved the book and frowned down at the cover, "The Gestalt of the Killer's Mind: A Study in the Psychology of a Serial Killer. This is some serious reading."
He handed her the book as she nodded, "I'm taking come Criminology courses out of the University of Berkeley over the Internet. This is required reading for one of the classes."
"What a blow!" The black-haired boy flopped onto his back. "Upstaged by a book about criminals. Figures," he laughed then rose back onto his elbow, turning a teasing eye on the blond girl, "You know, this is all your fault, O-Dango. You started a trend."
"Oh, no. Don't blame this on me," the girl rolled her eyes. "It's not my fault if not everyone in the world knows who you are," she pulled up a handful of grass and tossed it at him. He laughed lightheartedly, dodging the blades of grass as they showered onto him and brushing the rest out of his hair and off his clothes.
"Well," the girl admitted, readily, "I haven't been in Japan for very long, you know. Just since the beginning of the school year. "I take it that you boys are some sort of celebrities?"
"They're the Three Lights," the girl answered for them. "They're a 'Super Idol Group'. The loud mouth here," she pointed to the black-haired boy, "is Kou Seiya. This one," she pointed to the brown-haired boy, "is Kou Taiki. He's a major brain. And the one you tripped over is Kou Yaten. And I'm Tsukino Usagi."
"Oh, I'm pleased to meet you," there was a distinctive twinkling in smoky violet eyes. "I'm Tia MacKenzie. Wait a minute! Did you say Three Lights? Now there's a name I've heard before. But where? Hmmm.... Oh! Now I remember! My brother, Brian, likes to collect
popular music from different parts of the world. The salesclerk at the music store I went to recommended one of your albums."
"So?" Taiki raised a brow at her.
"So? So what?" Tia grinned at him, impudently. "You guys are all right. I've heard better though," she suppressed a bark of laughter at the outraged expression which crossed over Yaten's face. "May I ask you guys something?" She waited until they all nodded. "Well, I remember thinking while I was listening that you were trying to send some kind of message. That much I heard," she was staring downwards and so didn't see the startled glances the boys exchanged with each other, although Usagi did and was puzzled over it, "but, I can also remember wondering if you enjoyed singing at all. Do you?"
"What do you mean?" Seiya asked his brow furrowing in puzzlement.
"Just what I said. Do you enjoy singing? Do you have joy in the music? Or are you just singing to try and get that message sent?" She tilted her head at them, "I mean, I can't say I know who the message is to or what exactly the message is, since you weren't sending it to me, but is that the only reason you're singing? Cause if it is, I think that's why you're not as good as you could be."
As she spoke, she wondered if anyone had ever asked them this. From the surprised looks they shared with each other, she suspected no one ever had. She also suspected hardly anyone had ever been critical of their style. She knew she'd gotten Yaten's back up, from the way he was stiffening. She stifled her grin, knowing he wouldn't receive it very well. Not that she'd mind going head to head with him; she enjoyed a good dust up now and then.
"Why should we care about what you think?" Yaten retorted, tension underlying his voice. "We got plenty of people who think we're great."
"There's great," she smirked at him, irking him to no end, "and then there's phenomenal. Besides, who wants to just stay as you are? Don't you want to be better? You know, if you don't strive to be better, you won't go anywhere. Anyway, I know my opinion doesn't matter to you. It's just what I think. You go you're own way. Just think about it."
Yaten sneered back at her, "Why should we? Like you said, your opinion doesn't matter to us."
"You know," she retrieved her book from Taiki, and stood up in one smooth motion, "you got way too much attitude in that little body of yours, BOY. Maybe you ought to work a little more on your manners, rather than your style." She pivoted around on her heel, throwing over her shoulder, "I'll see you around, Yaten-kun...maybe."
Yaten ground his teeth together, in angry frustration. Tia had got the best of him on this round and he didn't like it one bit. He glared at her as she moved away. He'd tell her a thing or two the next time they went at it. Then what he was thinking hit him. The next time? What was he thinking? There wouldn't be a next time, not if he could help it.
Seiya was laughing his head off at him, "She sure put you in your place, didn't she? That was priceless!"
"Oh, right," Yaten tossed the other boy a disgusted look. "Like I really care."
He opened his mouth to say more, but he stopped at the sound of Tia's voice. The others apparently didn't hear it as they were speaking quietly to each other. He did, though, and his peridot eyes widened as he realized she was singing.
Her voice, low and clear, reached out to him and wrapped itself around the base of his spine like a lover's silken caress.

. . . Who can tell me if we have heaven,
Who can say the way it should be
Moonlight holly, Sappho Comet
Angels' tears below a tree. . .

As her voice faded away, Yaten shivered slightly, although he had no idea why.


PART TWO

A large crowd gathered around the posting board of the Tenth Street High School. The new test results were up and students were eager (or not) to see their scores. As the students perused the scores, they groaned or nodded, satisfied (or not) at their marks. Then they continued reading, picking out the names of friends or rivals, and of course, the top students.
This time there was a three-way tie for first place. A rare event, since most students hadn't realized there were more than two real brains in the school. It set the students buzzing. Ami Mizuno and Taiki Kou both placed first, of course. But this third person was spelled out in English, since she was an American exchange student. And that really set the other students buzzing; not only was this person a new student, but was a foreigner as well.
Yaten, standing in front of the board, ignored the buzz around him, his eyes flicking over his marks and those of his friends. His eyes paused on the English name posted next to Taiki's, his face going wooden.
So. Not only was she a smart-aleck but she was a brain also. Too bad she didn't use it for much. He was being totally unfair, of course, but then when someone rubs you the wrong way, you don't tend to be very fair.
He elbowed his way rudely past the throng. Free of the crowd, he breathed in deeply and, with a backwards glance, walked towards home room. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going and walked smack into the one person he wanted to avoid.
Tia.
Who was grinning impudently at him. And standing way too close, he realized, staring at
her silently. Inexplicably, he had a sudden urge to close the distance between them. Close the
distance and---he caught himself.
Close the distance and what, fool? He thought, savagely. Sweep her into your arms and kiss her? Like one of those idiot heroes in those silly romance novels Usagi likes so much?
The thing of it was, that was exactly what he wanted to do, he realized, shocked. It shook him badly, this urge. As if he'd discovered that the control he'd prized so highly was an illusion, subject to odd fits and starts with the most peculiar timing.
"What is it? From the way you're scowling, it can't be any good. And I'll bet it's about me, too," if anything, her grin became even more impudent.
Which made him more irritated, especially since it was true, "Why would you think that?" He hadn't meant to snap, but there was something about her that got under his skin.
"Well, you'd just run into me. I'm probably your least favorite person after what I said the last time we saw each other," she shrugged, a slight movement of her shoulders that made his hands itch. "So, that was probably it. You don't like me, although I really don't have anything against you, except maybe your manners."
"What an argument. I hope you don't plan on being a lawyer."
"Nope. And I'll admit that it wasn't much of an argument, so don't hold it against me."
"Maybe I will, I haven't decided," he raised a brow at her a way she found most annoying. He grinned, inordinately pleased he'd gotten a response out of her.
She shook her head, unnerved at the way she had reacted to the grin he'd tossed her way. It had made her stomach flutter and her breath catch. It peeved her, but she was honest enough to recognize her attraction to him. This disturbed her. It meant she was vulnerable. Dangerously so. She didn't know what she could do to change it; and worse, she didn't want to. It meant that she'd close him out; and the possibilities were very intriguing and what she could gain far outweighed any potential pain.
She bit her lip, then slid a sly look at him, "Whatever. Makes no never mind to me."
The smile that curved her lips, was mysterious, faintly knowing and a challenge, did she but know it. And it captivated Yaten immediately, far more securely than any net or trap could.
Darkness had fallen over Tokyo and she'd put on her twinkling jewels of light when Tia wandered through the labyrinth-like corridors of Galaxy T.V. She'd come with dinner for her elder sister, Nikki, who worked as a technician in one of the production departments. She'd chatted a few minutes, delivering a message from her brother-in-law, Takumi.
"Oh, now, that's odd," she murmured quietly, sighting a production studio ahead of her. "I must've took a wrong turn somewhere. This studio's not anywhere near the exit, I don't think."
Flashing strobe lights caught her eye and she spied a crowd of reporters clustered around
someone. Curious, she rose to tip-toes, trying for a glimpse of their victim. She saw a flash of silver hair making halting progress through the throng of reporters. Then a familiar voice cut through the reporters' shrill ones.
Well, that figures, a wry smile curved her lips. Only he would have a crowd of reporters around him in a television studio and not know how to get away from them. And why I'm going to save him from those reporters is beyond me. I'll figure it out later.
She trotted towards the group. She had just about reached it when Yaten finally burst from the group. He whirled to face them, abruptly, "Look, I don't have anything more to say to you. Would you please go away?"
There was a spate of questions and shouts from the group. Not exactly the response he wanted. She'd always found that reporters were normally very dense. And even more dense when it was really important. But then, reporters were a separate species from humans, as far as she was concerned.
She grinned as she felt Yaten stiffen in surprise when she took his arm. Still ginning, and quite impishly at that, she exclaimed, "There you are! I'd almost given up finding my way through this place. Boy, it sure is like a maze in here isn't it?" She started, as if noticing the reporters for the first time, then smiled hugely, "Oh! Hi, there."
She could almost see the little cogs and wheels in their minds start spinning at warp speed. She knew what they were thinking and was going to put them in their place right quick. Her experience with the press wasn't very nice, but it'd taught her how to deal with them at any rate. She repressed the predatory smile trying to surface. It might scare them off and she didn't want them to run before she could have a little fun.
"What the heck are you doing here?" Yaten hissed in her ear, his warm breath doing wonderfully tingly things to her knees.
"Idiot," she whispered back, her smile plastered on. "Don't fight with me. I'm gonna get you out of here, okay? I'll tell you later what I'm doing here."
"Yaten! Yaten! Who's the lovely lady?" A particularly loud voice rose above the throng.
"Yes, introduce us," an elegant female reporter held out her microphone, smiling charmingly.
Despite himself, Yaten found himself responding to the her smile. He'd just opened his mouth when, to his utter shock, he felt Tia's fingers slip under the back of his jacket and under his shirt. They danced a short way up his spine then down again, trailing goosebumps as they went. He sucked in his breath, silently, and stared into deep violet eyes inquiringly.
Quietly, she whispered, "Typical male. Let me handle this." She raised her voice to its normal pitch, turning towards the crowd of reporters, "Sorry, folks, but we don't have time for intro's right now. If you'll excuse us?"
"But who are you?" The elegant reporter cried out. "Are you his girlfriend?"
"Even if I was," there was steel in the girl's voice now, "it would be none of your business."
"The Three Lights' fans have a right to know," the female reporter countered, determinedly.
"Hmm, so they do," violet eyes gleamed, mischievously. "I suppose I can tell you. In fact, I'll tell you everything," she beckoned the woman over, leaning close. "Well, the truth is...," she paused long enough to make the woman squirm, "we go the to the same school." The woman glared, and Tia feigned astonishment, "Well, you wanted to know everything. Don't be mad at me if what you find out disappoints you," she grinned, lightly slapping the woman's cheek. She turned, taking Yaten by the arm, steering him away from the crowd of reporters, "Come on, you. I'll treat you to dinner." She grinned wickedly, whispering, "Oh, man, I haven't had that much fun for a while."

"Here," Yaten caught the helmet Tia tossed him. "Hop on. I'll run you home."
"You don't need to," he stared as she mounted her sleek, black racing_type motorcycle. "I can call a taxi."
"Oh, yes I do. Those reporters come out and see you waiting for a taxi, they'll descend on you like a pack of wolves."
"Why did you help me get out of there anyway?"
"Couldn't help it, you looked like a deer caught in headlights."
"Thanks," he couldn't keep sarcasm from his voice. "You didn't have to help me you know."
"Oh? I should've just left you to those hyenas then?" There was no answer to that, so she
continued, "Especially Miss Wonderful in there. My God, you fell for her like a ton of bricks."
"I could've handled her."
"Oh sure, that's why you had that dopey look on your face when she smiled at you. Face it, she'd've chewed you up and spit you out," she started the engine to the motorcycle. "Get on. Before they come out."
Jamming the helmet on, he mounted the motorcycle behind her. A moment later, he clutched her waist tightly as the bike lurched into motion. They cruised down the dark streets of the city, moving adroitly in traffic. She handled the bike as if she were a real pro, moving deftly through traffic.
They were in a darkened section of town where a lot of small mom-and-pop businesses were located, when Tia came across a mystery, although she didn't know it, consciously, at the time. They'd stopped at an intersection, waiting for the green light, when Tia glanced to her right and saw a large, white delivery van being unloaded. The store it was in front of was a very small business which wasn't open, like almost every other business in the area, except a few convenience stores. Something didn't seem quite right to her but now wasn't the time to go into it. The light changed and she drove on.

Yaten was puzzled when they stopped in front of a large house surrounded by a high wall. While these types of houses weren't uncommon in Tokyo, he didn't live in one. Tia dismounted and motioned for him to do so as well.
"What're we doing here?" He demanded as soon as they'd removed their helmets.
"Have you eaten yet?" She ignored his question, shaking out her braid.
"No, but--."
"Neither have I. So let me treat you to dinner. Come on inside, I promise I won't jump you."
They passed through the inner courtyard, crossing to a small building, brightly lit from within. What Tia called "in-law" quarters. It consisted of a living room, den, bedroom and a kitchen/dining room and two spare bedrooms. The quarters had been specially made up for her when she decided to transfer to Japan.
"This is where you live?"
"Yeah, the house belongs to my brother-in-law, Miyake Takumi, and my sister, Nikki Miyake. They and their family live over in the main house. This is all mine, even down to the utility bills," she gave a mock sigh of dejection.
A weird roiling sound interrupted them and they both looked in the direction it had come from. Yaten in Tia's direction and Tia downwards at her abdomen. She blushed quite prettily and burst out laughing, "Well, I guess someone was trying to tell me something! So was that 'I'm hungry,' or was that 'Hurry up, you moron, feed me!'?"
"Oh a definite 'Hurry up, you moron, feed me!'," Yaten laughed, not even concealing his
amusement.
"Here," Tia picked a flat, plastic box from the table and flipped it at Yaten. "Put that in the CD player, please. Then you set the table."
Inserting the CD and hitting play, he stood listening to the music coming from around him. Rock and roll, but not the hard stuff. The beat was infectious and he found himself moving to it. The voice, when it came, was as smooth and warm as a fine brandy. Yaten admired the singer's control and smooth delivery. Whoever he was, he was very good.
He studied the album cover. Staring at the man pictured, Yaten grinned. He never would've figured she'd listen to his guy, but it took all types, he guessed. He assumed, of course, she'd bought the CD because the singer was cute and not for any other reason.
He wandered into the kitchen, and leaned against a counter, crossing his ankles, "Like the music."
"Oh, good," she smiled at him, chopping an onion. "You can't get that here, yet. My older sister, Trina, sent it to me. My brother'll be pleased to hear you like his music."
"Your brother?"
"Yes, that's his CD we're listening to. His latest. It's not in stores until next month."
"He's your brother?" Yaten couldn't have been more surprised than if a cat came up and spoke to him.
Tia grinned, knowing his thoughts a tee. She admitted that had she been anything other than Brian's sister, she might have. She wasn't immune to the good looks of singers and superstars; she'd be blind and dead if she was. But she loved the music best of all, and she wouldn't buy any album on a singer's looks.
"He sure is. Brian MacKenzie, lead singer of Whiplash. Probably one of the most arrogant men on the face of this planet, second only to you and your two buddies."
"Look here, don't you go...," Yaten stopped as she playfully waved the chopping knife at him.
"Ah, ah, ah. Never upset the cook. I offered to make dinner. Don't tempt me to make you dinner. Go set the table."
"Geez, the way you order me around," Yaten sighed, as if greatly put upon. "You'd almost think I'm your wife."
"Wife? Oooooo, now there's an interesting notion. But aren't you overlooking one little detail?"
"Oh, yeah? What's that?"
"Well, if you're my wife, I'd be your husband. Don't husbands have to be men? In case you hadn't noticed, I'm not a man."
"Oh, I'd noticed," Yaten said to himself under his breath, flicking a sly look over her, admiring the backside presented to him in worn jeans. "Oh, yeah, I've definitely noticed."
"What was that?"
"What was what?" Yaten raised his voice loud enough for her to hear. "I didn't say anything."
They passed a pleasant time over dinner. They bantered about this and that, argued about
important issues and surprised each other by agreeing on a great many of them. Yaten couldn't
remember when he'd laughed as much. Tia was pleased at his sharp-as-a-tack wit and intelligence. She couldn't remember the last time anyone had engaged her in a verbal battle as readily as he had and gave as good as he got.
Tia found herself staring at him, pondering the twists of life. She'd never really had much time for boys before transferring to Japan. Her life had been focused on studying, on learning to be the best investigator she'd could be. She'd always thought that they were more trouble than they were worth, truth to tell. And now a twist of fate gave her this young man.
And she wanted him, she admitted to herself. She hardly understood why, she'd just met him. And she didn't really get along with him. She wanted to lose herself in him and never come out. It scared and elated her at the same time.
There was only one problem. Yaten was so wary of the female populace and their feelings, he'd run a mile before facing someone with romantic feelings towards him.
The trick is, her lips quirked in a smile, to chase him so hard, he'll catch me, as Grandma says. And I'll do it, too

After dropping Yaten off at home half an hour later, she zoomed home, taking the same route as before. She stopped at the light, glancing down the street. The delivery truck was gone, but she expected that. There was a car parked there and lights shown in the upper storey, where the stock rooms were located. Something niggled at her again, something she couldn't quite put her finger on. Again she stored the details in her memory for perusal later.

Hours later, she jerked upright with a gasp, emerging from sleep instantly, "Dammit! That's what it was!"
The thing that'd been bothering her when she'd seen the delivery van and the car sitting out in front of the store had finally hit her. The van had been making a delivery at the wrong time. Usually deliveries were made sometime during business hours or before business hours.
As it so happened, she was a patron of the store and she remembered seeing a small loading dock in the rear, near the store rooms. But the delivery made was through the front of the store. She remembered two men who'd been standing to one side of the van, watching the unloading. They'd been speaking with one another, one with his hands in his pockets and the other had been smoking. And both had been wearing suits. Not exactly proper uniforms for delivery men. And since when did two delivery men sit out the unloading of a van?
Then there was that car. She knew she'd known what kind of car it was. Her brother, Michael, had a similar model. It was a Bentley. She knew the owners of that establishment and knew that their budgets didn't run to expensive cars. They'd have to take out a mortgage just to for the down payment on that car.
Those lights in the stock rooms were unusual, too. Mr. and Mrs. Nakamura, the couple who owned the store, never did any kind of inventory work at night. They had two part-time employees do it sometime during business hours. Mrs. Nakamura told her once that her husband never let anyone do anything after hours because he worried that some night, a ruffian would break into the store or assault them outside.
She wanted to turn over and go back to sleep. She wanted not to worry over it. She never expected she'd have to take up the role of defender again so soon. More than anything, she wanted to be just relatively normal gain. To just have to worry about what she was going to get on the next test or homework assignment.
Then she smiled, sadly, softly and most of all in resignation, as two well-remembered,
much-loved and missed voices suddenly scolded her for her self-pity. They told her what she had to do, why she had to do it and to stop being such a ninny. There was no point in whining about it anymore. She would start digging tomorrow.



PART THREE

Tia was leaving school the next day when Usagi hailed her. She grinned as Usagi hurried up to her. She really liked Usagi, not only because she was delightfully zany, but because she had a generous heart.
"Hey, come on!" Tia suddenly found herself being dragged willy-nilly behind Usagi.
"But, what--? Hey, where are we going?" Tia regained her balance enough to stop. "Geez, girl, where's the fire?"
"Huh?" Usagi, not used to American idioms, gave her a strange look.
"What's the rush?" Tia grinned, hands on her hips. "You're running at full speed like a fire company rushing to put out a five-alarm fire."
"Oh! My friends are meeting for coffee and I wanted to introduce you," she put a hand to the back of her head, a sheepish look on her face, "and I'm late."
"I'd love to meet them," Tia grinned, pointing over her shoulder, "but we need to go that way."
"Yeah, but the restaurant is that way," Usagi pointed in the opposite direction.
"Yes, but I left my wheels in that direction," Tia laughed, letting the other girl in on the joke. "Come on, I'll give you a lift."
When she saw that Tia's 'wheels' was a motorcycle, Usagi eyed her warily.
"It's perfectly safe, you know. I'm a good driver," Tia caught dubious look the other girl had on her face. "I trained with a stunt rider who was the best in the business. I promised to learn from her or my brother would never have let me climb onto one. He thought I was crazy to want one," she plunked her spare helmet on Usagi's head.
They made good time. So good they beat the others to the restaurant by a good five minutes. They made small talk while they waited. Minako was the first arrival, bubbling and sparkling as usual, and she stopped in her tracks when she saw that Usagi was already there and waiting. Well that's a first, the surprised thought drifted through her mind, Usagi's actually here and waiting for everyone else.
Introductions were made, and Tia found herself deluged with questions about her life in the U.S. She was hard put keeping up as the other girl fired off questions like bullets out of an machine gun. Several times she laughingly asked the other to slow down.
Ami and Makoto came next, having walked over together. Ami had a black cat draped over one shoulder. Introductions were made again ending with the introduction of the cat, Luna. If Tia thought being introduced to a cat was unusual, she didn't show it. She merely extended her fingers, palm up, and allowed Luna to introduce herself to the girl's scent. Then she allowed Tia
to caress her briefly before sitting in Usagi's lap.
"Hi guys!" A new voice drew their attention. "Look who I just ran into."
Rei had arrived and with her was a tall young man with shaggy brown hair. Draped over Rei's shoulder was a white cat. She stopped, staring at the stranger sitting amongst her friends, then marched forward, allowing herself to be introduced. They also introduced Yuichiro Kumada, the young man who'd come in with Rei. The last to be introduced was the other cat, Artemis. Tia extended her hand again as she'd done with Luna. She smiled as Artemis
delicately sniffed at her fingers and allowed himself to be caressed.
Tia, staring at the crescent-shaped patch on his forehead, asked, "Are Artemis and Luna twins?"
"No," Usagi shook her head. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, Artemis and Luna both have these moon-shaped patches on their heads," Tia stroked under Artemis's chin. "And their names, of course. Luna is the Latin for moon, which was the symbol for Diana, the Roman Goddess of the Hunt, and Artemis is the Greek for Diana. I thought that maybe if they were litter mates that you might name them like that. Come to
think of it, Usagi, doesn't your last name, Tsukino mean 'of the moon'?" she'd looked up at the girls, missing the startled looks the cats threw at each other.
Luna and Artemis weren't ordinary cats by any means; they were quite intelligent, perhaps even more so than most humans. Most people didn't make the connection between their names or even Usagi's, which made her question all the more startling. Perhaps this girl warranted closer scrutiny.
The girls were a lively group and, as the subjects became more general, Tia found herself laughing a great deal. Like Minako, the other girls had many questions about living in another country. Makoto and Rei both asked if they could practice their newly learned English skills on her. Then Usagi and Rei got into an argument over something one or the other did. Tia, watching the two arguing, let loose a peal of laughter that stopped their argument dead.
"What in the world are you laughing about?" Usagi gaped at the laughing girl beside her.
Tia, wiping tears from her eyes, gasped, "You two sound just like sisters."
"Sisters?" Rei was plainly outraged at the comparison. "No way! I don't sound that way."
Usagi snorted, contemptuously, "You've got to be kidding! If I were related to her, I'd secede from the family."
"Well, good," Rei snorted back, folding her arms under her chest. "I wouldn't want to be related to a crybaby like you anyway."
"Who're you calling a crybaby, you nit?!"
They fell back into their argument and had Tia laughing even harder than before. They turned on her and she threw up her hands in surrender, "No, no, don't eat me! Besides, you're embarrassing Yuichiro here, the way you're going at each other."
"No, they're not," Yuichiro grinned, leaning his elbows on the table, steepling elegant fingers. "They do this all the time at the Temple."
Tia stared at him, hard, suddenly reminded of someone. She put it in the back of her mind to stew a while, eventually it'd come to her. If she concentrated, the name would escape her.
She suddenly went still. She didn't know how she could know Yaten walked into the room, but she did. She raised here eyes to the door and the three now standing there. Yaten's eyes found hers immediately and they stared at each other for a long time, feeling as if a great hand had wrapped itself around their chests and was squeezing tightly.
Their fascination with each other hadn't gone unnoticed. Seiya and Taiki exchanged surprised glances. Usagi, while generally considered quite unworldly, was sharper than her friends gave her credit for, hid a smile. Rei clenched her fists in her lap, envious of what passed between Tia and Yaten. And Yuichiro, sitting across from her, watched Rei with a slight smile on his face and a gleam in his eye. Minako and Makoto, busy talking between themselves, missed the look. Luna and Artemis looked at each other in an oddly knowing way.
Usagi broke the tension by calling out loudly enough to make Tia jump, "Hey guys! Come on over." She bumped Tia with her hip, "Hey, move over and let them in."
Tia looked sharply at Usagi, but slid over with a low grumble. Seiya and Taiki slid into the opposite end of the booth, forcing Yaten into sitting right next to Tia. They eyed each other warily, like wild beasts circling the unknown. They silently came to the same conclusion that the other wasn't going to jump them and relaxed a little.
"So...," Seiya cleared his throat, drawing attention to himself. "What's up?"
"Oh, you know, same thing," Usagi grinned, eyes dancing from Yaten to Tia and back. "Oh, do you guys know Yuichiro-san?"
The boys shook their heads and, of course, introductions had to be made. The males fell into talking about music. How could they not, when the boys were celebrities and Yuichiro was a musician, albeit a bad singer, but a musician nonetheless. Taiki, Seiya and Yuichiro were surprised when Tia broke in with some insightful remarks on the music business.
"Tia-san, how do you know so much?" Yuichiro asked.
Tia grinned, propping her chin on a fist, "My brother, Brian, is in the biz, you know. He's lead singer in a band called Whiplash. It's not difficult to pick up on things about the biz, if you listen carefully."
Tia glanced at Yaten through her eyelashes. Yaten, enchanted with that glance, got distracted. Taiki, Yuichiro and Seiya all stifled their smiles. The girl got him hooked right and tight. And she wasn't even trying very hard.
"Your brother's in a band?" Usagi broke in suddenly, impressed, "You're joking right?"
"Nope. Here, I'll show you," she scrounged in the backpack, extracted two CD jewel cases, and handed the bottom one to Usagi. She grinned and pointed to the man sitting in the foreground, "That's him."
"How do we know this guy is your brother?" Rei gave her a suspicious look, her suspicions were unfounded; they stemmed from a little green-eyed monster.
"Oh, don't take my word for it," Tia was digging through her backpack again. "But pictures speak a thousand words. There's a family portrait we did a couple of years ago in there. I'm the cute one in the corner."
"Oh, god," Yaten rolled his eyes, flipping open the photo album. He raised his eyebrows at the sheer size of the family, "Wait, all of these people are your immediate family?"
"Yep," she leaned close, pointing to different people in the picture. "These two gorgeous people in the middle were my parents. And the rest are my brothers and sisters."
'Were her parents?' Yaten wondered silently, then the rest of what she'd said hit him, "All these people are your blood? You've got to be joking!"
"No. Some are adopted and foster brothers and sisters. I've got, let's see, six natural brothers, four natural sisters, three adopted brothers, two adopted sisters, two foster brothers and a foster sister. That's eighteen brothers and sisters all together," she grinned hugely at their dumbfounded expressions. She leaned close to Yaten, naming the people in the picture.
Yaten turned his head slightly her scent filling his nostrils, and desire shot through him. He leaned closer filling his senses with her. Sensing his feelings, she leaned closer, lifting her eyes. He fought the urge to drag her into his lap and kiss her senseless. He smiled slightly and she answered with one of her own, a predatory thing which made him swallow. He leaned over and whispered in her ear, totally oblivious to the rest of the world, "You'd best be careful, I might just take you up on that."
She hissed in surprise, her cheeks pinked delightfully, but she whispered back, gamely, "Oh, I'm not worried about that. And watch it, or I may just do something highly outrageous."
"You wouldn't dare." Then he sucked in an astonished, shuddering breath as she raked her fingers up the inside of his thigh.
"Oh yeah?" her eyes were half-hooded, but gleamed mischievously, as she ran he fingers up and down his leg again, dangerously close to a part of him that was suddenly, painfully hard. "Careful, or it might become highly embarrassing for you to stand."
The others watched, fascinated at the byplay between them, but thankfully they couldn't see what was going on underneath the table. They strained their ears to catch the two were saying to each other but only caught a word or two. This was very interesting.
"Oh, my god," Yaten's whisper was ragged as he grabbed her hand, flattening it against his thigh. "Don't do that," he whispered something in her ear, which made her go a fiery red.
"Oh, my god," her whisper was just as ragged as his had been. "Okay, you win this time. But don't think you've beat me. Not yet."
"Wouldn't dream of it," he jumped in shock as, when she withdrew her hand from his thigh, she brushed it straight over his crotch. "Oh, god."
"Just a little reminder." She raised her voice now so the others could hear, "Now, where was I?" She talked about her family for a few minutes more then, "Okay, now, turnabout's fair play, guys. You've had me running my mouth off for five minutes. Your turn," she turned to Makoto. "Tell me about yourself so I can ask you questions."
Makoto laughed lightly. They fell to talking about her passion: cooking. And so it went, she drew each out, learning a little about them. She spoke intelligently of the things she did know, and asked questions about what she didn't know. She was amused by the incongruity of Rei, who went to a Catholic-run school but wasn't a Christian herself. She argued with Ami and Taiki about recent technological breakthroughs and discussed the finer points of football the Seiya. She had Usagi and Minako giggling over her impressions of some heroines in some of the more recent romance novels. Even Yaten came out of his shell, contributing to the conversation.
Throughout this, she kept giving Yuichiro small, puzzled glances. There was something about him, something she recognized and it was driving her crazy that she couldn't figure out what. Five minutes later, she brought her fist down on the table, making everybody jump, "That's it! Yuichiro-san, you come from Kobe, don't you?"
Mystified, he nodded and she hooted, triumphantly, "I've met your parents! Akira-sama and Sayaka-sama right? You look like your mother," she grinned at his flabbergasted expression. "I met them last year, at a charity fashion show in Los Angeles. It's the way you move, it's just like your mom. And certain facial features too, I think."
It took a moment for Yuichiro to come to grips with how small the world could really be, sometimes. For a while, talking of his parents, he became what he was, a well-brought-up young man, witty and sophisticated. This was a side of him that none of the others had ever seen of him. While open and guileless, he was remarkably closed-mouthed about his past and family. They were quite fascinated about what he was revealing about himself.
Rei looked down at her clenched hands, just as fascinated by Yuichiro's past as the others. She was upset and not a little jealous at the ease in which the other girl had drawn him out. She was so used to the Yuichiro she knew and saw at the Temple everyday, she didn't really know what to make of this other Yuichiro, the charming, witty young man who was sparkling under the attention of this other girl. She'd seen glimpses of this face of him, glimpses so fleeting she'd easily forgotten about them.
Yuichiro stifled a grin; he'd noticed how tightly Rei had been holding herself as he and Tia talked. He'd liked her from the moment he'd met her and had been trying for months, it seemed, to get her to notice him. Then Tia came along and whammo! She'd gotten jealous. It showed she had some feelings for him. He had to stifle the urge to get up on the table and do a little dance.
Yaten, meanwhile, struggled against the need to leap over the table and beat Yuichiro to a bloody pulp. He'd never felt jealousy before and it was hard keeping it in check. He had to content himself with casting ferocious glares at the young man. How dare that neolithic barbarian show such interest in his woman?
His woman? The thought caught him up short and he stared at Tia in a stunned fashion. But he couldn't deny he now thought of her as his. It was a primal sort of feeling, which was why he was having such trouble controlling himself.
He leaned in close to her, whispering, "Could I speak with you in private, please?"
She glanced up in surprise and nodded. They excused themselves, moving to the hallway near the restrooms, affording them some semblance of privacy. She turned to him, saying, "There, now we have some privacy. What did y---," she broke off with a muffled yelp of surprise when he yanked her into the men's room and pulled her into one of the stalls. She demanded, in a whisper, as he locked the stall door, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"What the hell do you think?" He demanded back, yanking her to him, crushing her mouth under his.
Well, this is a surprise, she thought hazily, as his lips moved over hers. Better than that, this is HEAVEN.
Desire rushed through both of them and the need to get even closer had them pressing themselves even tighter against each other. Tia parted her lips, under Yaten's urging and his tongue slipped past her teeth to twine with her own. Heat exploded between them and they moaned and clutched each other even more tightly.
They'd forgotten where they were, of course. That is until someone came into the bathroom. The bathroom door opening brought them back to their senses as quickly and shockingly as having a bucket of ice water dumped on top of them would have. They froze, as the person who'd come in went about his business. Tia was never so glad as when she realized the walls on the stall they were in went all the way to the floor, rather than just being partitions. She didn't know how they'd explain two sets of feet. A toilet flushed, water ran down a drain and a paper towel crumpled. Both of them relaxed as the sound of a closing door came to them.
Tia became aware, then, exactly where his hand was and where hers was. Now that passion had been supplanted by reason, she blushed three shades of scarlet, easing her had away from him. Clearing her throat, she glanced pointedly downwards, saying, "You know, as much as I enjoy that, now isn't the time--?"
It took a moment for her meaning to sink in, and when it did, he snatched his hand away, blushing just as furiously as she had. She grinned at his discomfiture, leaning against the stall, folding her arms, "So is that the reason you dragged me in here?"
"Ah...," he looked a little embarrassed, scratching at the back of his head. "No. That was a spur of the moment thing. Maybe it was the way that Yuichiro was slobbering all over you...."
"He wasn't slobbering over me," she grinned even wider. "He's interested in Rei- chan. He looks at her in such a way...."
"You mean--?" Now he looked nonplused.
She smiled slightly. "Not that I minded, of course, but you could've chosen a more romantic place to try this."
They made it out of the men's room without anyone else the wiser. Yaten acted as point man, making sure the way was clear before motioning her forward. As they reached the open restaurant area a harsh beeping startled both of them. Tia reached round back to her waistband, coming up with a small, blue pager. Pressing the retrieve, she stared at the number a moment and a strange shuttering expression closed over her face. He raised a questioning brow at her but she smiled thinly and shook her head.
"Look, I gotta go," Tia said when they'd reached the table. "Sorry, but something just came up. A call came through that I've been waiting on. I have to call this guy back right away. Usagi-chan, you can find another way home right?"
She picked up the photo album and retrieved her brother's CD and shoved them into her backpack, zipped it shut and slung it over her shoulder, "Sorry again about cutting this short. I'll see you tomorrow. I've got to get kicking. Bye!"
She was out the door, before anyone could tell her she'd eft one of her CDs behind. Yaten picked it up, "I'll get it to her tomorrow."
"Hey, I thought you didn't like her!" Seyla gave him a supercilious smile.
"Never said that," Yaten gave the other a hard look. "Just didn't have much to say about her."
"Then why did you--?" He pointed to the hallway they'd disappeared into.
"I didn't have much to say about her. Another thing altogether than having to say anything to her," Yaten congratulated himself on telling the truth, if not the whole truth.

Tia picked up the phone on her desk and dialed an out-of-country number. She waited a moment then the line began ringing. She let it ring twice, hung up, then dialed the number again, let it ring twice, hung up again then dialed the number again. This time she let it go; it was picked up on the third ring.
"Yeah?" a brisk voice, not at all friendly, answered.
"Ronnie. It's me. What've you got?" She answered, briskly; pleasantries were wasted on Ronnie.
"Tia? Dammit, girl, I paged you an hour ago."
"I wasn't at home. Did you want me to call you on my cell phone?"
"Hell no. You know how I feel about those things."
"Yeah. So don't complain when I have to find a land line," she grinned at the horror she'd heard in his voice. "Besides, you probably wanted me near my PC anyway."
"Yeah. You up?"
"Just coming up," she typed her password and turned on her modem. "There, I'm online."
"I must say, you set me a tough task," now Ronnie's voice was almost friendly. But then when he was talking about the one thing nearest and dearest to his heart, he could almost sound lover-like. "I've never broken into anything in Japan before. Though why you wanted me to hack into every bank and the utilities company in Tokyo is beyond me."
"Did you get what I needed?"
"Yeah, I'm downloading it into your system now. What're you up to?"
"I got a hunch. Want to find out as much about the situation as I can before I jump in."
"Glad I'm not there. Your hunches are dangerous."
"Oh, poor baby. Don't tell me you're still holding a grudge about the last time are you?"
"Not a grudge. But you almost got me busted by the FBI the last time, hacking into their database. Dammit, why didn't you tell me that Nancy was in the Computer Crimes Division?" Nancy was one of Tia's foster sisters.
"At the time, I didn't know she'd been moved to that division," her computer played Beethoven's Symphony No. 5. "Okay, I've got it. I'm going to need the password."
"Your measurements."
"God, you're such a pervert."
"Well, can I help it? You've got a great bod."
"Okay, I'm up. Thanks for the help."
"No prob. Gimme a call later, tell me how it went on."
"Oh, by the way, Ronnie?"
"Yeah."
"Please tell me you didn't leave any 'flags' in their systems."
"I didn't leave any 'flags.'"
"How come I don't believe you?"
"Cause you'd be right," Ronnie laughed and hung up before she could scold him.
"Jeez, boy," She muttered fiercely under her breath. "No wonder Nancy nearly caught you."
She read the files thoroughly making comparisons and what she found disturbed her. The Nakamura's energy bills, to their store, had gone way up. Nearly double the normal use from the previous years. Just within the last three months.
The bank statements, their personal ones, were more disturbing. The business bills were the same as they'd been previously. With larger expenses when they made special purchases. But the personal bank accounts had undergone major changes. Deposits made in them recently were almost staggering. Hundreds of thousands of yen each week. Nearly three-quarters of a million yen in the last three to four weeks alone. And nearly four million in the last three months.
It was up to her to find out if they were a willing part of this or not and why. This definitely called for a personal visit. Maybe she could find out something. Tomorrow was going to be very interesting.


PART FOUR

Yaten saw Tia's CD lying on top of his stereo, when he got home from school. He would've listened to it the night before, since he'd been intensely curious about it, but he'd been late for rehearsals and rushed back out the door after dumping his school things and changing into casual clothes.
Now he placed the gold disc into his CD-player and hit play. Soft guitar sounds filled the air. Then a voice, her voice, blotted everything else out for him. She was expertly trained, anyone listening casually to it could tell she'd been trained to use her voice for years. She had complete control over her voice and her pitch was perfect. There wasn't an off note. But it wasn't her control that shook him. No, it wasn't that at all.
Her voice, though, rose over the music, pure and true. The sound of it, seized you by the throat and didn't let go. It was the kind of voice that inspired composers to write songs. That could with the tiniest inflection bring you to laughter or tears. The kind of voice you could lose yourself in forever.
Stunned at the power of her voice, he sat down hard, his chest tight with a feeling he wasn't ready to name.


"Okay, showtime," Tia looked at the front doors of Nakamura's store, assuming a pleasant, expectant look. She pushed open the doors, searching the store as if expecting something new.
"Ah, Tia-chan," the voice came from behind her and she turned to Mr. Nakamura. "What can we do for you today?"
"Oh, well, I thought I saw a delivery being made a couple of days ago," she gave him a bright smile. "I thought I'd come and check out what came in. But I don't see anything new."
His eyes flickered, a slight shifting to the side, then was gone. His mein was just as cheerful as before, "No. We haven't finished inventorying it yet," he pointed over her shoulder and she saw the docking port open and a delivery being made. "When we finish, we'll stock the shelves."
"Oh," she contrived to sound disappointed, then brightened. "Well, in that case, let me get a case of that wickedly decadent chocolate you import," she stopped, genuine worry on her face now. "You're not out of that are you?"
Mr. Nakamura laughed, shaking his head, "Oh, no. I've got plenty."

Strapping the package to her bike, she mused over the look which had crossed Mr. Nakamura's face. An ordinary customer wouldn't have even noticed it, but she'd been looking for it. He knew what was going on. That knowing look had contained something else. Fear. So, he might be a participant, but maybe not a willing one.
She needed to snoop some more. She'd call Ronnie, have him hack around Tokyo's computer systems, looking for signs. She'd study the Nakamura's bank statements again; she might see something she missed the first time. And tonight, she was going "fishing."

In the shadows of an alley, a man watched Tia, a stony expression on his face. His eyes narrowed, there was something not quite right about her. The owner had accepted her explanation. But it seemed more like she was snooping.
First thing was find out who she was. The owners of this place seemed to know her. Second, he'd find where she lived. That wouldn't be too hard, there weren't that many gai-jin living in Tokyo. He'd watch her, follow her patterns, and if she was only a customer then he wouldn't worry over her. If not, well, he'd do something about her.
At that happy thought, a very nasty smile appeared on his face.

In the deeper shadow cast by a garbage receptacle, a living shadow crouched golden eyes gleaming. When the man left, Luna rose to her feet and padded out of the alley. A slight frown narrowed her eyes. What was that girl up to? And what had it to do with the man who had stood watching the girl?

"Yeah?" Tia picked up her phone.
"You rang?" Ronnie didn't do Lurch imitations very well, but he tried.
"Jeez, what took you so long?"
"You don't want to know."
"You're right, I probably don't."
"Oh, really funny. What do you need?"
"I need you to find out if Hideo or Yuki Nakamura have been having any spending sprees."
"You don't ask for much, do you?" Ronnie sounded disgusted. "That could take days."
Tia was noting figures on the bank statements she'd been reviewing when he called, "I've got to do some digging here. That'll take a few days. That'll give you some time to snoop. Don't leave any tracks this time, I gotta feeling about this and I don't want anyone gunning for you."
She heard a particularly virulent curse on the other end, "What the hell are you doing there?"
"Don't know yet. Something big, I think. I dunno, call it a hunch," she paused, thoughtfully. "Just nose around some of the more exclusive stores' mainframes or credit cards, car dealerships, that kind of stuff."
"Got it."
"Oh, yeah and one more thing. See if you can't track down any purchases of a new Bentley in the last couple of years. In the Tokyo area, in the last six years or so. And see if you can't connect them with people who are known criminals or are criminal suspects or have ties in the criminal world."
The next string of curses blistered her ear, "You don't know what kind of trouble, but you get me a list of 'to do's' like that? Just be very, very careful, you understand?"
Touched by the concern in his normally sarcastic voice, "I will. I didn't know you cared."
"I care, girl, I care. You didn't give up on me when everyone else had," his voice was gruff. "I'm warning you, if I find something I don't like, I'm gonna tell your Grandfather, or your sister or that brother-in-law you're living with, you understand?"
"Yeah, I understand. Look, I gotta head out. Call me when you find something."
"I will. Watch your back."
"I will. And Ronnie?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks."

Four hours later, Tia conceded defeat. She'd sat outside the Nakamura's residence and the family hadn't stirred from home. There'd been visitors, mostly teenagers, one or two older folks she'd recognized as regular customers and friends of the family. No suspicious visitors.
She thought they were probably unwilling participants in the situation. There had been large deposits going into their bank accounts, but they weren't spending any of the money. She recognized profits made by the store; they'd been deposited by transferring funds from their business account. All the others had to be money paid to silence them. None of those amounts had been spent. All debits and withdrawals had stopped short of spending any of the additional deposits. In light of the fear she'd seen in Mr. Nakamura's eyes this afternoon, she guessed it was a deliberately defiant gesture. A small defiance, certainly, but a defiance nonetheless.
Sitting in the dark doing nothing but staring at the house, she'd caught herself nodding off twice in the last hour. Her stomach grumbled, reminding her she'd skipped dinner. She'd wait until the house was dark before leaving for the night.
Three hours later, the last light was extinguished. Fifteen minutes later, when there was no further activity going on in the house, she started up her bike and left for home. Five minutes later a small cat-shadow detached itself from a larger tree-shadow and disappeared silently into the night.

"Got you," the man stared at the name and address on the slip of paper he held in his hand.
He'd extracted the name from the store owner that afternoon. The old man hadn't known where she lived but that didn't concern him. He could easily find out. He had a contact search for her address, coming up with license and registration for her motorcycle. He had her address, and vital statistics.
"Well, Ms. MacKenzie," he murmured quietly to himself, smiling into the shadows that cloaked the room around him like a shroud, "we'll just see what you're up to."

"Luna, you're late," Artemis chided his partner, as the black cat padded silently into the control room. "What have you been up to?"
"Tia Mackenzie. I've been following her. She's been acting rather suspiciously. Last night I followed her to someone's home and she sat and watched the house for hours on end before she left," Luna sat down, and frowned. "Do you think you can dig up some background information on her?"
"Sure, I can do a general computer search on her tonight, give you the results tomorrow. Anything else, will take a little longer," Artemis was frowning now too, already plotting out how he was going to do his research. "Is it urgent?"
"No, not right now," Luna gave Artemis an arch look that sent the white cat's heart racing, "but be sure that I'll let you know when it does become urgent."

Tia fought a losing battle against sleep in class the next day. When she'd gotten home the night before, she'd done some homework she'd forgotten about and didn't get to sleep until 3 A.M. When her alarm clock had gone off two hours later, she'd been tempted to go back to sleep. But her sister would've killed her. So she got up, stumbled to the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee, double strength. She gulped down three cups of coffee, wrinkling her nose at its strength.
It hadn't helped, and Tia waged the battle of the nod all day, relieved when last period became study hall. She put her head down and promptly fell asleep. This was looked on with amusement by Usagi and her gang.
"Now, what could she have been doing that had her up most of the night?" Usagi slid a glance at Yaten. He caught the question and gave her a I-wouldn't-know glare. Usagi giggled, "Well, I guess that answers that." She and the others huddled, murmuring and giggling and casting knowing looks Yaten's way.
Tia was so deeply asleep that she didn't even hear the last bell when it rang. Yaten waited till the other students cleared out of the class room before poking Tia in the back. She woke with a startled jerk so violent she was a good two feet from him before her desk stopped its skid.
"I hope you're happy," Yaten said sarcastically, folding his arms across his chest. "Because of you, there are now going to be rumors flying all over the school about us."
"What?" She blinked at him again, quite uncomprehending of his sarcasm. "What rumors?"
"The ones I'm sure Usagi-chan and her gang are speculating about right now."
Tia clenched her teeth, exasperated, and half stood over her desk and stabbed a finger at him, snarling, "Look, you, I was up till 3 AM doing homework. I had maybe two hours of sleep last night and that makes me really cranky. Since I don't know what the hell you're talking out, I would appreciate it if you would make things clear for me before I rip your head off."
Completely taken aback at her tone, he held his hands up, "Hey, look, I'm sorry about that, but Usagi-chan was messing with me earlier about you falling asleep."
"Why would she do that?"
"Maybe she was implying something?"
"What the hell would she..." at this point her sleepy mind caught up with her. "Oh. Oh, I see. So what's the problem?"
He colored up slightly, "Look, if I haven't been doing anything, I don't want to be accused of doing something I haven't been doing."
It took her a moment to digest and translate what he'd just said, "Oh. Well, okay," she scratched her head, frowning in concentration. "I think the girls are over at the Crown today. Maybe I'll head on over there and drop some clues."
"You do that," he looked up at the clock. "I've got rehearsals, so I'll see you later."
She nodded, gathering her books. His voice made her look up, "Tia-kun?"
"Yes?"
"Get some sleep."
She gave him a tired smile, "I will, thanks."

"Hey, Usagi-chan," Tia smiled wearily at the girls. "Scoot over, dear, and give me some room." She smiled at the red-headed waitress, "Espresso coffee, please. I need the caffeine."
"Must've been an interesting night," Usagi gave her a sly smile.
"No, not really," Tia glanced at the other girl under her lashes. "It was all right in bits and pieces but it really wasn't something I want to repeat."
Makoto, taking a sip of her soda, choked. Tia bit back a wicked grin. Usagi was astonished. Ami was blushing furiously as were Minako and Rei.
"No. It was a big yawner," she grinned, wickedly. "Finishing up forgotten homework is such a bore."
This time it was Usagi who choked on her soda. Rei glared at her suspiciously. Ami, Makoto and Minako slapped their hands to their foreheads in exasperation, while Tia, amused, pounded Usagi on the back until the other girl waved away her "help".
Tia gave Usagi an astonished look, "You didn't think I meant something else did you? Now, now, Usagi-chan, if I'd done that all night long, I wouldn't have even bothered to come to school this morning."
At this the others burst out laughing.

A man standing at the window of the restaurant, staring in at the girls. He was taking deep drags from a cigarette in his left hand. Flicking the ashes away, his gaze narrowed on the auburn-haired, Caucasian sitting with the other girls.
"So a little school girl are we?" he murmured sardonically, taking another pull at the cigarette. Finished with the cigarette, he dropped it on the pavement, grinding it out with a toe. "Well, better watch your step, little school girl, or you'll be deader than a doorknob."
He continued watching until the girl headed for the door. He hid, peering around the corner until the girl headed the other way. He hurried after her to the parking lot. As Tia got on a motorcycle, he slid into a car parked nearby. He pulled out of the parking lot just seconds after her. He trailed her to her sister's house, and smiled nastily, "Well, well, little miss. I know where you live. You need to watch your back better," he pulled slowly away from the walled house, watching Tia in his rear-view mirror until he was beeped from behind by an impatient motor scooter deliveryman.

Tia decided to walk this time. Maybe she'd catch a little more action at the store than at the Nakamura's home. The almost-full moon would cause her some problems if she had to hide, but nothing she couldn't handle. She hurried down the street as quickly as possible, glancing this way and that, and behind her, making sure she wasn't being followed. The only sign of life she
spotted following her as a small black cat.

Usagi, having seen the man following her friend and gotten bad vibes, decided a little judicious snooping might be a good idea. As she'd gotten to Tia's house, she spotted Luna running full-tilt down the street towards her, "Usagi! Tia's doing something suspicious. I've got a bad feeling about what's going to happen. She might be one of the enemy! Come on!" Luna
spun on her hind feet and started back the way she came.
"Where's Tia?" Usagi was running now, long legs easily keeping pace with her mentor.
"Last I saw of her, she was conducting surveillance on a small store in the shopping district. Hurry!"
They skidded around the corner into the shopping district. Halfway down the block, Usagi spotted the other girl flitting from shadow to shadow. Keeping to the shadows, Usagi trailed her. Tia stopped in front of one, which had lights on in several of the upper story windows. She slipped around the side of the building. Usagi kept to the shadows behind her, watching as the other girl climbed up a large dumpster and, quietly, pulled down the fire escape ladder. She climbed cat-foot up the ladder, so quietly Usagi was amazed. She reached the top then disappeared onto the roof. Usagi knew better than to follow her, knowing that she'd make too much noise. Luna indicated that she would follow the girl up top. She jumped silently up the fire escape after Tia. There was nothing for Usagi to but wait and find out what was going on from Luna. So she waited, more patiently than her friends would've given her credit for.
Tia, meanwhile, moved to the skylight over the storeroom. She wiped at the glass, which was nearly opaque with dirt, hoping it wouldn't squeak. When she'd cleared the glass enough, she peered down into the room. Most of the men in the room were hard-faced. They moved with studied efficiency, unpacking the crates surrounding them. The shrill whine of a table saw could
be heard, and a great deal of loud thumping and metallic clangs reverberated through the room below. Others noted things on clipboards and some examined the crates' contents for defects.
Tia couldn't help but gasp when she saw their contents clearly for the first time. She swallowed, fear shooting through her, adrenaline pumping in her veins. The "merchandise" these guys were handling were weapons. Fully-automatic machine guns from the looks of them. American made or old Soviet made. She notices that there were several cases with loose parts
packed in them; gun and rifle barrels, stocks, bullet chambers for revolvers, those kind of things. They were building these things as well as moving fully assembled weapons. These guys were gun runners. And very well-organized from the looks of them.
Hastily, she backed from the skylight and went over the edge of the roof, down the fire escape. A movement in the shadows caught her eye and she froze. The person in the shadows moved forward just a little into the moonlight and she recognized who it was. Cursing silently, mindful of the situation, she hurried down the fire escape. She didn't even bother using the
dumpster when she leapt from the bottom of the fire escape ladder.
She landed quietly on the balls of her feet and rushed Usagi. She grabbed the startled girl's arm and whispering vitriolically, "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Following you," Usagi whispered back. "I saw somebody following you and got bad vibes, okay? I wanted to make sure you were all right."
"Someone was following me?" Tia's eyes narrowed. "When?"
"This afternoon, after school. What are you doing? What're you involved in?"
"The less you know the safer you'll be. Don't ask any more questions. We've got to get out of here before someone spots us. I only hope that guy you saw earlier hasn't followed me."
Tia peered, cautiously around the corner at the store front. She turned back to Usagi, "Okay, the coast is clear. I want you to get the hell out of here, as quickly as you can. Stick to the shadows. Double back on yourself a couple of times to make sure you're not being followed."
"Who's there?" A male voice from close by made them jump. "Show yourself."
"Damn. You stay here, I'll draw him away. Get him to turn away from here. When his back is turned, you beat feet, quietly as you can. Stay in the shadows, got it?"
Usagi nodded, her eyes wider than saucers.
Tia grinned tightly, then let out a string of curses hot enough to curl wallpaper from walls. Producing a heel from her pocket and affecting a hobble, she moved from the alley. Usagi peered around the corner as Tia hobbled towards the man who had called out.
"Damned high heels," Tia began cheerfully, and Usagi frowned at the way the other girl had changed how she spoke, making it difficult to understand.
"What were you doing there?" The man demanded roughly, seizing her arm. "Who are you?"
"Now, now, don't get your panties in a bind," Tia had affected a cockney accent, which helped her butcher her Japanese. "Just a little accident here," she showed him the heel. "One of them came off and I was just taking care of it. As to who I am, that's none of your business."
The man's eyes narrowed, "I don't believe you. What were you really doing over there?"
"Just what I told you," Tia's voice became hard. "Fixing my shoes."
"Don't lie to me," he grabbed her other arm and shaking her. "You'd better tell the truth or it won't go easy on you."
"'Ey," Tia still in her British role, squirmed, and broke into English. "You'd best be lettin' me go, you blooming nit. You've no call to be grabbing me like this."
Usagi decided to help Tia, rather than making her get away. She called the other Sailor Soldiers, for back up, then transformed into Sailor Moon, "MOON ETERNAL MAKE-UP."

Once transformed, she tore around the corner of the building, pulling one of the spikes from her hair and tossed it at the man still holding Tia captive. Her aim was good, the spike found his wrist and he shouted in surprise and pain, letting go of the girl to clutch at his injured hand. Tia, meanwhile, staggered as he let go and, losing her balance, fell flat on her fanny.
"What the-?" he pulled the spike from his wrist, the twisted about, trying to find who'd thrown it. "Who threw this?"
"I did," Sailor Moon had leapt atop a car parked nearby. "I won't allow you to harm that girl!"
"What?" The man stepped back, a mix of surprise and fear flitting across his face. "Oh, no."
Tia, who'd never even heard of Sailor Moon before, stared at the girl standing on top of the car with an astonished look, "Now, who do you suppose...."
"Oh, yes. How dare you treat a girl like that? What kind of man are you? I, the Agent of Love and Justice, Pretty Sailor Soldier, Sailor Moon. On behalf of the Moon, I shall punish you."
By this time, the man had recovered his wits enough to snatch a .45-caliber gun in the shoulder holster under his jacket and point it at the Sailor Moon. Tia cursed, jumped to her feet and delivered a round-house kick to his mid-section. Surprised, his arm came up and he squeezed the trigger, a muffled thwipping sounded and Tia heard the bullet ricochet off one of the buildings.
Rather than fighting the man, she sprinted for Sailor Moon, leapt from the ground to the car's hood then to the roof of the car, grabbed Sailor Moon around the waist and pulled her off the car, just as another bullet ripped through the space they'd been a moment before. A string of virulent curses filled the air.
"Thanks for trying to help," Tia looked at her be winged would-be savior. "But, we gotta get out of here."
Sailor Moon nodded, watching as Tia peered through the side windows of the car. Tia couldn't see where he was. Then she heard him yelp in surprise and pain. She dropped to all fours, peering under the car. He was crouched on the other side of the car, struggling to detach the sharp teeth of a small black cat from one of his ankles.
Seizing the perfect opportunity to get away, Tia sat up and crouch-crawled towards the front of the car, motioning Sailor Moon to follow. Sailor Moon nodded, falling in behind her. She slipped around the front of the car, heading for the nearest car as quickly as she could while crouched over. They made it without being detected. A second later, they heard a soft thud
then the distinct sound of a cat's hiss.
"You need to get out of here," she whispered to Sailor Moon. "No sense in you getting hurt."
"No way," the other whispered back furiously. "I'm not leaving you here by yourself. Besides, all we have to do is wait him out so the others can get here."
"Others? What others?"
"The other Sailor Soldiers. I called them for back-up before trying to help you."
"Well, thank goodness for small favors. Now all we have to do is....!" she cursed unexpectedly as the man loomed over them, gun leveled at them in a rock-steady grip.
"Now, the game is up and I win," a cruel smile curved his lips, turning a handsome face into something akin to a monster's.
"SPARKLING VITAL PRESSURE."
Tia gasped as a ball of what appeared to be lightning struck the man full force. He jerked twice, a weird kind of croak emerging from his mouth. Then he dropped at their feet. She whirled, still crouching, in time to see four uniformed young women emerge from the shadows.
All were dressed in the same type of uniform; Tia was irrationally reminded of her school uniform. Each wore a different color. The one still crackling with electric energy wore dark, forest green. One wore red. Another, blue. And still another, gold. All wore the same determined look.
"Boy, am I glad to see you," Sailor Moon collapsed against the car they'd been hiding behind.
Tia grinned, for a moment there, Sailor Moon sounded almost exactly like Usagi, "I appreciate the help. Ya know, if you're gonna deal with crooks, posturing'll get ya killed. Something tells me you don't normally deal with average creeps, do you?"
"No, not really," the scout in gold admitted. "We don't know what to do with this guy now. Usually when we hit something, it stays dead."
"Well, I know how to deal with it," Tia was grim, but resolute. "All we have to do is get him to his place as quickly as possible," she glanced up at the lights in the store. "At least get him out of here before anyone else comes outside. And we definitely need to get him away from here without drawing any undue attention to ourselves."
They managed to do just that. The man had his wallet with his address in it; Tia thought he wasn't your normal crook to go around carrying identification on him. told her he'd done this kind of thing before and had never been caught.
He had a nice place, she noted, looking about the condo in admiration. Atrocious taste, however, in home decor; she found herself wincing at animal print pillows on his couches and chairs, neon colored feathers in some sort of purple vase and, of all things, a blue lava lamp.
Yuck.
"Thanks for your help, girls," she turned to the Sailor Soldiers. "But you need to go now. There are certain things that I need to arrange and the less you know about them, the better."
"What about you?" The one in red, who, Tia had learned, was Sailor Mars.
"This won't work if I don't stay behind and explain certain facts to our wonderful host," Tia smiled, a grim, determined smile. "Now go on. I have a black-belt in jujitsu; I know how to handle myself. The quicker I do this, the less danger I'm in."
The others left, though clearly reluctantly. When they'd gone, Tia searched the premises. She turned up a pair of handcuffs, thick cord and a large handkerchief which would make splendid gag. She found the cord and handcuffs in a drawer full of other items, some of which she didn't recognize and others were recognizable enough to make her blush. Her host had some
rather naughty tastes.
She bound the man to a chair in the dining room, where she could keep an eye on him. She gagged him, securing the gag tightly just as he came around. She stepped back and around him, so he could see her. His eyes, dazed at first, became clear the moment he recognized her.
"Oh, good," Tia's voice took on her Cockney accent, "you're up. Now listen 'ere, boy, I'm gonna make some calls and don't you make any trouble for me."
She went to the phone and dialed a number, spoke briefly with an overseas operator, and asked for another number. It rang once, picked up, there was a moment of silence, a garbled computer sound and then it began ringing again. It went through the same procedure twice more before someone picked up on the other end.
"Yeah?"
"It's me again," Tia didn't dare drop her accent and hoped Ronnie would know it was her.
"Who?" Ronnie didn't apparently. "Lady, I don't know you from Jack. How'd you get this number?"
"You gave it to me, luv," Tia cooed into the phone. "You know, that day on the beach."
"Tia? That you?" Ronnie's voice was tentative now.
"Too right, luv."
"I take it there's someone there?"
"Yeah," she paused as if listening to an answer. "Did you find anythin'?"
"Not on the cars. But the Nakamura's haven't been making any luxury purchases. In fact, when I compared their financial records, they haven't increased any of their monthly purchases. The only thing that's changed is their deposit sizes and their utilities records."
"Just as I thought. 'Ow 'bout that other thing?"
"There have been six purchases in the last several years. Those cars are expensive to import. Haven't got any names yet. It's just a matter of hours."
"Well, you need to 'old up on that for a little bit. You up for a little computer mayhem?"
"You best believe I am."
"I need you to make a crook look like a turncoat."
"Ooo. Sounds like fun."
"Mess with his bank deposits, make him look like 'e's been takin' 'uge payoffs in the last few months. You know that little organization I 'ad you make up two years ago?"
"Yeah."
"Well, they're into gun runnin' now. Big time. Leave a paper trail for the others to follow. Phone records, too. And book a flight, usin' this number as call source, from Japan to Canada. Charge it to this credit card number." She read off the name, number and expiration date.
"Good way to ruin a man's life."
"Well, 'e nearly killed a friend of mine tonight, so I'm lettin' 'im off easy."
"A friend? Or you?"
"Both, actually. But I got things under control now so don't you dare tell my family, got it?"
"I gotcha."
"Call me at this number when you got everythin' set up."

Two hours later, she had everything done to incriminate the fidgeting man. She made notes and letters so his erstwhile companions could find and read them. She had made up phony bank records in his computer, and using the hacking skills Ronnie taught her, falsified the system dates to make it seem as if the entries were input at various different times. She packed his bags, and discovered a small fortune that she put in his wallet. Then she sat back to wait. Fifteen minutes later, the phone rang twice, fell silent then rang twice before she picked up, "Talk to me."
"It's done."
"Good job and thanks. I'll call again later tonight, er, today, whenever."
"I'll be waiting."
She smiled rather nastily, as she hung up the phone, at the thug seated not far from her, "Well mate, here's the sitch. You messed up a major deal for me tonight. Nearly two hundred million yen down the tubes for me," she removed his gag as he glared up at her.
"Why should I care?"
"You shouldn't, tweren't none of your business in the first place. But you messed up the deal right well. You and that costumed freak. But I'm a nice gal, so I'm not going to kill you. Bad for business, you know. Word would get out."
"What are you planning to do with me?"
"You're going to leave the country, lad."
"And if I don't?" he wasn't intimidated by her or at least making an effort not to show it.
"Then you're as good as dead," she told him flatly. "And by your own mates at that. Me and my pals have made some right incriminating evidence against you for your pals to find. Even if you got rid of the physical evidence here, your bank records will show a different story. I 'ad my pal leave a mysterious tip for your friends to check on. They already think you've sold
out to another organization. Your life here is already over," she gave him a truly scarey smile. "Welcome to the wonderful age of technology."
The thug already had a panicked look on his face, "They'll kill me!"
"Oh, I'll let you go. I've booked a flight for you on New Japan International Airlines to Canada. Canada's a good place to live. Nice and big. Don't think they'll follow you there."
"Why?"
"Like I said, I'm a nice enough gal. I'll see you to the airport and see you on board."

"He's away," Tia spoke into the phone at the airport.
"So what now?"
"You still got access to all that stuff you used to alter his files?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I think that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police should know about this suspected international gun smuggler who just might be moving to Canada."
"You're evil."
"So is he. Just give them an anonymous tip. And hope that he doesn't disembark at Fiji."
"Always a danger."
"Thanks for the help."
"No problemo. I'll keep looking for those records on the cars. It'll be a couple of hours."
"Don't call til after noon, Japan time. Tomorrow's Sunday, I can sleep in as long as I want."
"Gotcha."

The shrill ringing of the phone woke her two hours later. She groaned, rolled over, squinting at the clock. She grabbed the receiver and snarled into it, "This had better be good, dammit."
"Tsk, tsk, little sister," a mellifluous voice said in her ear. "Watch the language when you're talking to me."
"Big bro," Tia growled at her brother, Brian, "it's four in the morning here, Sunday morning, the only day I don't have school, and I didn't get to bed until two hours ago. You'd be just as grumpy if this were you and you know it. Now, to what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"
Brian laughed, delightedly, "Well, little sister, I'm going to be there in a few hours. The club is in the completion stage. All the equipment should be installed by next week and the club will be open the week after. I'm coming over for the grand opening and throw a huge party."
"Oh," Tia said, nonplused. "Where will you be staying?"
"Oh, a hotel. I'm bringing Whiplash and the crew. Are you going to meet the plane?"
"What time are you going to be here?"
"Arrival time is 10:00 AM, your time."
"Oh, well, yeah, I'll meet you. That's six hours from now, so I'll have time for more sleep. See you then."
Brian laughed again, "See you."
Tia replaced the receiver and stared up at the ceiling, blankly for a moment. Then she groaned, her brother was going to be in Japan for a few weeks. The man who was better than the best CIA interrogator at getting information out of her, was going to be in town for a few weeks.
Great, just great.



PART FIVE

Tia waited for the passengers on her brother's flight to disembark. She leaned her forehead, tiredly, on her brother-in-law's shoulder, since it was a handy place to lean on. Takumi glanced over his shoulder at her, a fond smile lighting his beautiful face. A slight tensing of his shoulder muscles made her look up. Her brother, Brian, and her niece, Q, were walking toward
them. Tia stepped from behind Takumi, raising an arm in greeting.
When Q saw Tia, she let out a whoop, tossed her carry-on to her father and raced toward Tia. Tia laughed and gave her a rib-cracking hug, then released her to Nikki, who hugged her, then introduced Q to her new uncle. While Q was a normally outgoing person who had no problem relating to strangers, this was different. These people were her new family, and it was
important for them to accept her. Knowing this made her unaccountably shy. But her new uncle was having none of that. Takumi pulled her into a tentative embrace which had the girl hugging him fiercely. Tia turned to greet Brian, grinning past the lump in her throat.
Brian hugged her tightly, "God, it's good seeing you. I've missed you rattling about the house."
"Well, if you think I miss you ragging on me, you've got another think coming," her misty smile belied her words. It was good having more of her family around.
"Hey, Tia!" A new voice intruded on the reunion. Tia grinned, recognizing the members of the band and the road crew. She exchanged greetings with each. Brian was constantly amazed that his sister was friends with most of his road crew. Especially since she wasn't a member of the crew or the band, although she was under foot on tour and at shows a lot.
"All right, everyone," Nikki raised her voice to gain their attention. "Baggage claim is that way. And there are buses out front to take you to your hotel. Just tell the drivers which hotel and they'll get you there. And you," she pointed to her brother and Q, "are coming with us."
"Oh, thanks," Michelle, one of the singers for the group, smiled happily at Nikki. "Now we don't have to try and hire a fleet of taxis."
"Don't thank me," Nikki shook her head. "I didn't find out anything about this until this morning. Tia arranged for it all."
"You should've seen how much it cost, too," Tia winced, imagining her next credit card bill.
"Hey, I thought you didn't get to bed until late last night," Brian frowned down at her.
"I didn't. But after you called, I only got two more hours of sleep and figured on doing some hustling before you got here," she shrugged, then went over to collect Brian's and Q's baggage. She spoke briefly with some of the road crew before coming back, "I'm starving, let's go home and eat."
"Oh, yeah! Me too," Q grinned, taking her back from Tia.
"Q," Brian scolded, exasperated. "You ate on the plane not an hour go!"
"That was food?" Q rolled her eyes. "No, that was an appetizer. Anyway, you know it ain't a meal if it don't end in chocolate."
"Well, she's gotcha there, bro," Tia grinned over her shoulder as her brother looked down at Q. "So how about I make my world famous chocolate chip pancakes when we get to the house?"
"All right!!" Q actually jumped in her enthusiasm.
"Chocolate chip pancakes?" Takumi murmured in a low aside to his wife. "Is that kind of bad taste legal?"
"Not to a kid," Nikki took his arm, patting his hand indulgently. "And definitely not to a chocaholic like Q."
They stowed gear and people indiscriminately in Nikki's minivan. As she buckled her seatbelt, Tia grinned as she imagined how it would have been had they brought Takumi's car. The car had a back seat, barely, and Q would've had a problem finding leg room in it, much less Brian with his six-four frame.
"So what's been up with you guys lately?" Brian asked, a twinkle in his eye.
'Well, now there's an open-ended question,' Tia thought wryly. Then she caught the amused gleam that entered Takumi's eye as he looked over his shoulder. 'Oh, no. He's not going to....'
"Well, there have been some things coming down the scuttlebutt about your sister, lately," there was laughter in Takumi's voice and Tia groaned when she realized what he was up to.
"Oh? And that would be?"
"Well, it seems that our little sister has got herself a boyfriend," Takumi grinned mischievously over his shoulder.
"I'll kill him,' Tia promised silently.
"A boyfriend," Brian was frowning now, his fraternal instincts kicking in. "He'd better not be in show business."
Brian had told her, when he realized that she was finally noticing boys, that he wouldn't let her date anyone in show business. Friendship or a business association was fine, but not dating or going steady. When she asked him his reasons, he'd gotten this odd, strained look then had asked her to remember whom she was speaking with and to leave it at that. And she'd
understood. After all, Brian had been in the entertainment industry since he was in high school and she remembered certain stories she'd "overheard" her brother telling his friends about certain male-female interactions.
"Well, as a matter of fact...," Nikki's eyes were twinkling now as she looked back at her sister. "He just happens to be in Japan's premier idol group, the Three Lights."
'I'll make their children orphans,' Tia vowed, glaring at her sister, who stuck out her tongue.
"Tia, I thought....," Brian started, scowling now but stopped when she held up her finger.
"Before you go any further," she said forcefully, glaring at Takumi and Nikki, "let me make things perfectly clear. Yaten is my friend not my boyfriend."
'Yet,' she added silently, catching the knowing look on her sister's face. She rolled her eyes and grinned, making sure Brian couldn't see it. Her brother could be such a prude.

'He may be a prude, but he's one hell of a martial artist,' she conceded, as she lay panting on the floor of Takumi's dojo, later that day. 'Either that, or I'm getting soft.'
"Oh, man," Brian rolled over, reaching for a towel. "I must be getting soft."
"What makes you say that?" she sat up, reaching over and tweaking a towel into the range of his straining fingers. "The fact you can't even get up to reach that towel?"
"Hey, I'm the one who taught you all those moves you were using today," he scrubbed the sweat from his face, still lying on his stomach. "So you'd better watch it, or I'll trounce you."
"Promises, promises. You keep making those promises, but you never deliver," she heaved her way to her feet. "Come on, lover boy, we're not finished yet. That was just the warm-up."
"The warm-up?" He groaned, laying his head on this forearms. "I must be getting old. Do me a favor? Go easy on me, will you? If you don't, I won't be able to perform at the opening."
"Don't worry," Tia grinned. "I'll make sure the bruises won't show."
"Thanks so much," his voice was a study in sarcasm.

Later, Tia had just finished bathing when there came a booming knocking at the door. Securing the towel around her head, she rushed to the door and looked out the peephole. She groaned when she saw who was standing on the stoop.
Yaten. With a furious expression on his face.
She yanked open the front door then yanked him into the house. She stuck her head out, peering cautiously about, making sure there was no one lurking about. She closed the door, locking it behind her. It would give Yaten time to escape through a window if Brian took a maggot into his head about Yaten.
"What the hell was that all about?" Yaten asked, as she leaned with her back against the door.
"It's about my brother, Brian, that's what," Tia shook her head. "My brother is a little uptight. He might think you're my boyfriend. And that would be a problem for you."
'Not to mention, it might become extremely painful for you too,' she almost winced at the image of her brother beating Yaten into a pulp.
"Oh, great," Yaten rubbed his forehead with his fingers. "First Usagi, now your brother," then he stopped, the angry look returning to his face. "But that's not what I came here for."
'Oh, boy, here it comes,' Tia braced herself for a lecture.
"I heard from Usagi that you've gotten yourself involved in things that don't involve you," his voice was cold. "Just what did you think you were doing?"
"I am involved, Yaten, whether or not I, or you for that matter, like it," her voice was tight. "Those people need my help. No one else has seen what's going on but me. So no one else is gonna help. I have to."
"No you don't," Yaten said, his voice as tight as hers. "There are people whose jobs are to help people. Like the police. You should let them know what's going on and leave it to them."
Something inside Tia snapped at those words and fury whipped her head up and had her shouting, "DON'T YOU DARE TELL ME TO LEAVE IT TO SOMEONE ELSE, DAMN YOU! Don't you dare! I'm doing what I should've done two years ago! I lost the two most important people in my life because I was weak," her voice became raw, almost savage. "Never. Never will I allow what happened to me happen to anyone else, not if I can do anything about it."
"Dear god," Yaten whispered, as he watched her face crack, the raw anguish written on her face nearly breaking his heart. He reached out and pulled her into his arms, holding on to her even though she fought him. He held on tightly, whispering comforting words until her struggling ceased and the tears began. Her body convulsed as she cried out her anguish and guilt. Cried like she couldn't two years before. Eventually, her sobs diminished, then stopped, but she stayed in his arms, her fingers clutching at the lapels of his suit.
"My father was a law enforcement officer," she murmured into his chest. "Two years ago, he had been working on a case involving an organized crime ring. And he got too close for comfort. They decided they needed to do something about him. They tried intimidating my father into backing off his investigations. When that didn't work, they tried my mom. Of course, they hadn't counted her being a law enforcement officer, too. Neither of them would give. So they decided to try another tactic.
"A friend and I were walking home from school, you know, totally oblivious to the rest of the world, when they came up on us. They got us. I mean, they were grown men, and there were five of them and we were just kids.
"I tried to get us away, I really did," she gave a shuddering sob at this point. "They knew they weren't going to get me to do anything for them, if it was just me. But, Stacy wasn't like us, she didn't understand. And when I wouldn't give, they started hurting her. And they wouldn't stop until I'd agreed to do what they said," her fingers tightened convulsively on his lapels. "Oh, god, I'll never forget the sound of her screaming. It seemed to go on forever.
"They let me go, but they kept Stacy. They knew I'd keep my mouth shut if they still had her. And they were right. They used me to get information about my parents habits. Stacy was their insurance to keep me in line. As long as they had her, they knew I'd cooperate.
"I was too afraid, for myself and for Stacy, to think straight. Three weeks later, my parents were killed when a bomb planted in their car exploded," her breathing was ragged now, almost raw. "A bomb planted undetected because of information provided by me. Because of my fear, I didn't tell anyone about this, even though I should have. My only consolation is, Stacy was taken back alive and relatively unharmed," the tightness was back in her voice now. "But
I'll never forget, that it was because of me. . . ."
"No, it wasn't you," Yaten said fiercely, tilting her face up with a knuckle. "It wasn't your fault. You were only thirteen, Tia. It wasn't your fault. It was those monsters. The ones who killed your parents. No matter what anyone else says or believes. Do you hear me?"
She gave him a sad, misty smile, raising her hand to brush his cheek with her fingers, "I wish I could believe that. I really do. But. . . ."
"But nothing. It's not your fault, and I'll keep telling you that until you believe me."
He captured her hand in his, pressing his lips to her palm in a tender gesture that took her breath from her.
Their eyes met and held, both surprised by the sudden jolt of desire each felt. He lowered his head, his lips capturing hers, gently. Her lips parted as his lips slanted more firmly over hers, his questing tongue meeting hers.
Her hands slid up his shoulders to tangle in the hair at the nape of his neck, then loosened the tie which held his long hair back. Released, it fell in a silvery curtain down his back and she reveled in running her fingers through the silky mass. His hand came up and pulled the towel from her head and the damp locks of her hair fell in dark tendrils.
His mouth came down over hers again. His last rational thought he was to make sure Tia didn't get hurt as he lowered her to the floor. . .

Yaten stared at the sleeping form of Tia with a languid kind of wonder. That she would have given him the gift of her first time awed him. But slowly, as he watched her, he came to realize that it had also been a mistake. And he cursed himself for being weak enough to take it.
With the war with Galaxia and the search for their princess, it was a bad idea to get involved with anyone. His being of another planet was the least of it. He needed to break from her before they both got hurt.
Slowly, he eased away from her, careful not to wake her. Quietly he got dressed, searched for some note paper and a pen and sat down and composed a short note to Tia. He left the note on the dining room table. He paused at the door to look back at her, lying in a pool of sunlight, the fiery tendrils of her hair creating a luminous glow about her, then silently left.

Tia resisted the urge to rip the note in her hands to shreds, the paper crumpling in her hand with the effort.
She'd never been more furious in her life. It was bad enough that she'd woken alone, but to be met with this note.

Tia,
Laying there beside you, I've come to realize that what we'd just done was a mistake. It's not that I wasn't pleased that you'd chosen me as your first and I'm truly honored, but there is no room in my life for a relationship. There are a lot of reasons why, and I'm not at liberty to reveal them but I just needed to tell you. I think it would be best if we avoided each other from here on out. I'm sorry.


Yaten

"You're sorry are you?" Tia snarled at the note. "Well, if you think that I'm going to take this from you, you're sadly mistaken."
She set the note on the table, and stared down at it for a moment. Then the look on her face turned to shock, "Oh, glory. I forgot all about that," then a nasty little smile shaped her lips. "And I'll bet he hasn't even thought of it, either. Well, Mr. Kou, just because you left me this little note doesn't mean I'm going to do what you tell me to. Whether you like it or not, I'm going to be in your face until you give me a damned good reason for it."
Fifteen minutes later, she stepped out of her house and headed across the courtyard to the parking garage.
In the main house, her family was gathered in the family room, the adults seated around a coffee table, quietly conversing, and the children gathered around the entertainment center, playing video games, Q having established her superiority early on.
Takumi suddenly snapped his fingers, "You know, I almost forgot..."
"What's that?" Brian looked at his brother-in-law, inquiringly.
"Oh, my Chief's been hearing so much about Tia, that he asked if he could meet her," Takumi grinned as he confessed to bragging about his family. "I should go ask her now, while I'm thinking about it."
Nikki, who'd been looking out patio doors, started abruptly then grabbed her husband's arm, "That would be a very bad idea right now."
Takumi, frozen in a half-risen position, raised an eyebrow at her, Why?"
Nikki pointed out the patio doors. Takumi, glancing out saw Tia and became even more puzzled. He sat down again and asked, "So why would it be a bad idea? How do you know?"
Q, who'd just died in her game, leaned back, looked out the patio doors and gave a low whistle, "Oh, man. Who pissed her off?"
"Pissed her off?" Takumi was totally lost now. "How can you tell she's pissed?"
"It's the way she's dressed," Q stretched out her long legs. "If she's dressed like that you'd better get out of her way. It's sort of like battle armor."
"Oh boy. Maybe we ought to stay away from her for the next couple of days."
"That's a good idea."
Takumi looked at Brian and asked in a fondly, exasperated voice, "Are the all women in your family totally wigged out, or is just these three?"
"It's all of them," Brian grinned indulgently. "Don't worry though, you'll get used it. You're gonna have to with those two," he pointed at Takumi's daughters.
"Oh. Thanks for reminding me," Takumi sat back with an exasperated sigh as Q and Nikki tossed throw pillows at a grinning Brian.

When Seiya opened the door to the apartment, he gaped for a moment at the person standing there. Then he realized who it was and shut his jaw with an audible snap, "Tia-kun. What an unexpected surprise this is."
She smiled at him, amused, "Save the charisma for someone who it'll work on, dearie. You'll be a lot better off. Is Yaten in?"
"No. He's running some errands with Taiki. You want to leave a message?" Seiya motioned her into the apartment. He gaped again when she sashayed past him. Then shook his head at the affect she was having on him, clad in a leather dress with the shortest skirt he'd ever seen.
"No, I don't. Is he going to be long? Would you mind if I waited?" She turned back to him, smiling slightly.
"No, no. Not at all. I don't think they'll be gone for very long. Please have a seat."
"Good," she sank into the leather chair that Yaten habitually sat in when he was home. She looked over her shoulder, "Seiya-kun?"
"Yes?"
"Do me a favor, will you? When Yaten gets back, do you think you could contrive to find something that you and Taiki could do somewhere besides here?"
A knowing look came over Seiya's face, "Sure, no problem."
"Thanks, I appreciate it."


Continued in Chapter 2