Author's Note: Okay, so this is pretty much my first fan fic concerning actual canon characters in anything in a LOOOOOOONG time. This is my entry for the Galaxy Cauldron's June Writing Challenge, which centers around the Sailor Moon Crystal character songs. But my fan fic is based on the live-action series (because ZOMG IT IS SOOOOO GOOD!). I'm gonna try it out and do the best I can. I really hope I do this right and do the characters justice.

A Touch Of Rain

Mizuno Ami liked the rain. The cloudy days when the sun would be blocked out, the tiny water droplets falling onto the world as if God was crying in Heaven. In a way, the rain was her friend. The only friend she had. Next to AIno Minako's songs, books, and schoolwork, of course. The pitter patter of rain drops against her bedroom window always made her relax and calmed her anxieties.

For her long life, Ami didn't know friendship. In school, she focused solely on her books and studies. She had a dream she wanted to fulfill. To be a doctor just like her mother. To help those who are sick and find cures for terminal illnesses. She always thought that if she could fulfill her dream, she could be happy.

Talking to people wasn't her strong point. Nobody ever really bothered to talk to her or approach her about anything, so she never knew what to say when they did, and even when she tried, they would give up and walk away with angry sighs. With every step she took in school, she could feel her classmates' eyes on her. She would see their pointing fingers, their muffled, maligned gossip, the false rumors about her being a snob who thinks she's better than everyone else. Her response was usually to ignore them, keep walking, or pour herself into her books.

So it was natural for her to prefer going to the roof during lunch hour instead of sitting with her classmates. After all, who would want the company of the school's brainiac who couldn't make conversation for the life of her? The roof was peaceful. She could admire the blue sky, the blazing sun, and the fluffy white clouds, and read her books in the mean time.

Although she liked the rain, there was a big, black storm cloud raining buckets on her heart. Would she spend her entire life lonely like this? She had given up on making any friends long ago. Perhaps her destiny would be to find happiness through fulfilling her dream. And yet...a faint sunbeam appeared one day, breaking the first barrier in that storm cloud.

One her way home from school, something fell on her head and bounced on the bridge. She looked down to find a small, purplish blue cat plush with large, green eyes like a shoujo anime character. It had a yellow, upside down crescent moon on its forehead, along with a matching collar with the same symbol dangling from it. Her lips curled up as she found herself picking it up, examining it with her glasses obscured eyes.

"A kitty plush?" She murmured. "I wonder who it's owner is? It's pretty cute, though."

"Oh! That's mine, actually!" A cheerful, high pitched voice exclaimed. Ami turned around to find a girl her own age running over to her, taking the doll back with a radiant smile. "You're pretty funny. You talked to it so formally!"

"Well...I didn't know it...and who it belonged to."

"I'm Tsukino Usagi!"

"Mizuno Ami."

Something about this girl seemed warm to Ami. She didn't know what. She was certainly persistent, and tagged along with her without a second thought. But then she remembered. She needed to go to cram school. She found herself stopping right in front of a store, with an Aino Minako CD sitting on display.

"You're a Minako fan, too?!" She squealed before jumping up once. "Awesome! Oh! Here!" She rummaged through her bag and pulled out a CD, handing it to Ami. "If you want, you can listen to this!"

Ami's eyes widened with surprise. She couldn't believe it. Another Aino Minako fan? Oh, how she had dreamed to befriend someone else who liked her! But she was too taciturn to express her love for the up and coming idol. She wanted to thank her profusely, but the words were stuck in her throat, and they wouldn't come out.

"Umm...want to have lunch together next time?" Usagi asked.

Ami just nodded and left. Her heart grew just a little bit warm. Someone was genuinely interested in her! She was nice to her, even! When was the last time that had happened? Perhaps...was this her first friend?

But then again...the storm cloud came back. What if she wasn't actually interested in her? Perhaps she only wants to be friends so Usagi can use her for homework and passing tests? On impulse, she found herself bringing along a box of treats. But she couldn't bring herself to sit with Usagi and their friends. She had other friends chatting alongside her, and to disrupt their clique with a new member-whom her friends were convinced was a snob...Ami couldn't do that. Off to the roof once again.

What was this? She became a Sailor Soldier? Sailor Mercury? But Usagi tried to save her from falling, and from the youma. Nobody had ever done that before. Her heart was screaming, "I want to be a soldier! I want to fight alongside my friend!" Once she fell, the words just came naturally. "Mercury Power, Make...Up!"

It wasn't even hard to defeat the enemy. All she did was use Mercury Aqua Mist, and the youma dissipated. This was so strange. She had assumed magical girls and monsters were the products of fiction, nothing more. It was rather...fulfilling. She had a friend she could be with and protect. Perhaps...she could find happiness in something-or someone-else after all. Gradually, rays of sunshine pushed the storm clouds away.

Something else nagged at her mind, however: could SHE herself be a friend, too? As far as friendship went, Ami didn't know the first thing about it or how to interact with people her own age. She found a book on friendship and decided to follow its tips. She couldn't believe it when she called Usagi by her first name.

"Yeeek! You called me by my first name! That's soooo cool!" Usagi leaped on her and jumped up and down like an excited little kid. Was it really that big a deal? No matter. Usagi was happy, and Ami was on her way to being a friend.

"Hey! Naru-chan and I are having a party at my house! Do you want to come?"

A party? Ami looked down at her shoes. Wasn't cram school coming up later? But then again, friends did invite each other to their houses for fun. Perhaps a few hours wouldn't hurt. "Okay. I'd love to go."

She had expected to enjoy it, like how she enjoyed spending time with Usagi. But something about going to her house didn't sit right with her. She liked watching Usagi and Naru sing C'est La Vie, but… "Hey! Ami-chan! Sing with us!"

Sing karaoke? Ami wasn't sure if she could do it. But friends had fun, so she gave in and sang some notes. Her voice was shaky, and some of the lyrics were off, but nobody seemed to mind. Not even Usagi. However, when they were putting on makeup, Ami put some on herself and wanted to see if she got it right. As soon as she made eye contact with them, their eyes slammed wide open.

It was understandable, really. Ami had caked on too much makeup. The intense amount of blush on her cheeks made her look like she got sunburned, and the eye shadow seemed to overshadow her eyes in general. Usagi and Naru couldn't help but burst into laughter. Ami let out a chuckle herself, but the storm cloud in her heart returned in full force, and a downpour rained on her spirits. Were they laughing at her out of malice? Or was it just out of good fun?

"I'm...going to go wash up…" She washed off the makeup, but the storm cloud didn't go away. Somehow...this was tiring. More so than studying. Before she could do anything else, everything went black.

When she awoke, the first thing she saw was Usagi. "Sorry for ruining the party."

"It's fine, but…" Usagi showed her the book about how to make friends. "Don't force yourself like this."

"But weren't you happy? That I called you Usagi?"

"It only doesn't make me happy if it's out of a lie. Friends don't lie to each other."

Ami buried her face in the covers. She had a good point. Ami didn't truly want to be with them, but felt she had to because she didn't think friends rejected each other. Thankfully, a battle with a youma helped them reconcile, and Usagi didn't mind if Ami was in her old habits. Friends were considerate of each other, after all. Gradually, the storm cloud left some room for sunshine.

Day after day, Ami's bond with Usagi, Rei, and Makoto grew like a spring flower underneath sunshine. She never dreamed that this day would come. That she would enjoy doing things with them like shopping, studying, karaoke, fighting monsters. She thought she could only find happiness in her studies. Perhaps God smiled on her and thought she could use a different kind of happiness. Sunshine had warmed her heart completely, with only a touch of rain appearing every now and again.

That bond would be put to the test when Usagi was put under Kunzite's spell, about to be turned into a youma against her will.

A frigid cold Usagi lay dormant in Ami's bed, unmoving. Her skin was cold like ice, her cheerful smile frozen in a cold frown. Ami rubbed the comforter all over, hoping to warm her up somewhat. She couldn't let Usagi become a youma! Her bedroom was dark, and it would have been pitch black if not for the light of the heaters she had set up.

Riiiiiing

A guest? Who could it be at this hour? Ami walked downstairs and opened the door. It was Naru, Usagi's best friend. "Hey! Sorry for coming so late, but Usagi-chan's mom told me what happened. She's here, right?"

Ami froze. If Naru saw Usagi's current state...she didn't know what she'd do. "Why do you ask?"

"She was supposed to give back a CD I lent her. I need it for tomorrow."

Oh. So that was it. She could do that easily. "I'll be back," Ami got the CD and gave it back quickly, hoping that was it. But Naru donned a suspicious look on her face.

"Why didn't Usagi come to the door? She could have given it to me herself."

Oh no. This wasn't good. Naru stepped forward and tried to push her way into Ami's apartment. "Usagi? You're here, right?!"

No! No! She couldn't let her see Usagi in her current condition. If she found out, she would be heartbroken. Ami knew she had to spare Naru the pain, even if it meant being harsh. Finally, she pushed Naru out the door and closed it behind her. "Hey! What's with you?!"

"Usagi...she's sleeping right now. Look, I don't care if you think I'm lying...I don't even care if…" She struggled to form the words in her mouth. It hurt to lie to Naru like this, even though she kept telling herself it was for her own good. "...you think I'm being malicious. But please…"

It worked, as Naru simply left without another word. Thank goodness. Naru didn't have to deal with the pain of seeing Usagi in such a bad state. If Usagi really did turn into a youma, she wasn't sure what she or Naru would do. The pain would be just unbearable. For a moment, Ami's fears were realized when Usagi disappeared in a tornado of black flower petals.

"Usagi! No!"

She had to act fast. She ran through the darkness, her high heeled boots pressing against the concrete sidewalks. "Mercury Power, Make Up!" She became Sailor Mercury in a flash. 'I WILL protect Usagi!' She told herself.

She had to. Usagi was one of the first people who was genuinely interested in being her friend and didn't amuse herself with false rumors. She treated her like a human being. Adrenaline rushed through Ami's veins with the strength of Sailor Mars' flames.

It took her a while, but she somehow managed to track down the insidious Kunzite. Usagi laid on a bier, dressed in a filmy, transparent white dress, dormant and unmoving. The mark on her chest glowed an eerie purple. This was her chance to defeat him!

The fight with Kunzite was an arduous one. Despite trying to hold him off with punches and kicks, he was quick to overpower her, and he would have won, had she not made a blue sword out of water droplets. "Usagi...give Usagi back!" She roared. She didn't think her voice could go this high, or that she could be this angry. Anger was never an emotion she ever had to deal with. Perhaps this was what it meant to protect a friend?

Even with Sailor Mars and Jupiter backing her up, Kunzite still managed to overpower them all. For a brief but agonizing moment, their fears had come true. Usagi's finger nails had grown into golden claws, her eyes peeled open, and the smirk on her face wasn't the kind, cheerful smile she had always flashed. Instead, it spread out wider than a normal smile should, and she had a look on her face resembling that of a crazed killer out for blood.

"Usagi...no…" She couldn't protect her after all. She tried so hard to protect the first friend she ever made, but it was all in vain. The storm cloud returned in full force, causing a downpour strong enough to flood her heart with nothing but despair. Now she was going to lose Usagi and be powerless to change her back to normal.

If only she was...stronger…

"Be quiet! You're all so noisy!"

What was that? That was...Usagi's voice? A flash of light lit up the cave, and Usagi reawakened...but as Usagi, not the youma! The mark on her chest disappeared. The storm clouds were pushed away, making way for a bright sunshine. Usagi came back! Together with her friends, they held off Kunzite and returned home.

Ami couldn't believe it. She was so close to losing her friend. With the revelation that she and the others saved her just by making her hear the voices of their feelings...that was enough to make her smile the whole day. Now, she could spend her happy days with her friends for another day, maybe even more. She hoped these wonderful days would go on like this forever.

The storm cloud vanished completely, leaving warm sunshine, heralding only a touch of rain. Friendship was sunshine, with the occasional rain. Ami couldn't imagine her life without her friends anymore. She was a new Ami now, and she loved every minute of it.