Merry Christmas everyone! Or whatever it is you're celebrating. "Happy three days off in the middle of winter" as my mother phrased it when told by one person "I don't celebrate Christmas'. This serves a second purpose too. Quick story where I'm not trying to shoehorn unruly characters into my puppy story. These ones are being stubborn like that. After this I'm sure my muse, imagination, and writing will all be able to settle down and agree. I hope.

She stormed through the house, throwing anything he'd left behind at the walls. I said I loved him, and I meant it. Why isn't that enough for him? Why'd he go? She sighed and came to a stop. She needed to calm down. Having a fit, fun as it was, wasn't going to help her any. Plus she'd still have to clean it up, and that wouldn't make her very happy in the morning. One bad day was enough.

She felt tears burning in her eyes. She wiped them away quickly. Minako Sakura Aino, get a hold of yourself! She silently ordered herself, quite sternly. If he'd leave, he's not worth the tears. That thought had gotten her through heartbreaks before. Anyone who would leave obviously wasn't the real love she was waiting for. Her belief that real, true love was waiting was the defining factor in her life. She wasn't going to abandon it over some jerk that would abandon her.

She carefully began moving through a modified kata two of her friends had worked on together that worked kinks out of the system and taught self defence at the same time. She didn't really care about either of those effects, but she could always feel herself relaxing as she moved through it. It didn't matter what mood she started in, the kata always ended with her in a peacefully serene mood. She did it occasionally just because it took so much energy to be bubbly. This always left her calm as well as happy.

It didn't disappoint now, she was feeling nothing more than content when she finished. Ami said it was all in her head. That the only reason it made her calm was because she thought it did. Minako had come up the the only comeback to that Ami hadn't been able to refute. It was pretty simple, too. All she'd said was "So?". Once it was pointed out that she used it to calm herself down, so it didn't matter how it accomplished that, everyone just shrugged and accepted her explanation.

Once calm, she looked around, trying to decide on her next step. Her eyes fell on a new pair of bright red boots that she'd bought recently. Her eyes lit up.

She was going out dancing.

That was all there was to it. She was going dancing. She'd wanted to for a while, but loser there hadn't wanted to. Now that she didn't have him to worry about, she could go.

She just about bounced out of her skin with excitement. She had a new top... and those new boots... She ran to her room and pulled her favourite blue jeans on while wrestling with her phone one handed. She was just fumbling with her zipper when someone picked up on the other end.

*Hello?*

"Hey girl! It's me! Dig up your dancing shoes. We're going out tonight!"

*... We're what?*

"We're going out tonight. Or... are you busy?"

*Umm... well... kinda...*

"I see. Is 'kinda' at least hot?"

*Minako!*

"I'll take that as a yes. Never mind. Enjoy your 'kinda', 'kay?"

*What are you doing?*

"I'm going out."

*By yourself?*

"Apparently."

*I'll...*

"Don't you dare! I am a big girl and I can handle myself. Not to mention the bouncer adores me. I'll be fine."

*Well... if you're sure...*

"Good grief, girl. Your 'kinda' must be smokin' hot if you're being that much of a pushover. You love going out dancing."

She knew blushing didn't really make a sound, but the strange, muffled choking noises her friend was making were certainly as close as it could come. She grinned. It was so much fun to tease the other girl. "Either way, enjoy your night. I'll call you sometime later, okay?"

She hung up without waiting for an answer. She knew her friend wouldn't really mind. It was just how she was at times.

She blew into the bathroom to finish getting ready. It was Friday, and the bar would be filling soon. It was the only one in this little town, and everyone enjoyed a party on the weekend. She hadn't been in weeks, maybe even months. She was still sure she'd fit right in. Even if she was working out of LA now, this town was home and always would be. She'd always fit it.

She took her car, not worried about leaving it in the parking lot overnight. Everyone new the bright red mustang was hers. No one would hurt it. She could catch a ride with someone else's DD or crash on someone's couch. She'd done it before. She'd likely do it again.

She smiled and waved as she entered, more famous here for being homecoming queen three years in a row than for her movies. She knew almost everyone. There were a few new faces. Drifters, country cousins, new farmhands... and a few stuffy gentlemen that could only be the local faces of the oil well that was being drilled. Soon there would be even more new faces, as workers came from all over to take the oilfield jobs. For now, though, it looked like just some 50-something stuffed suits.

She sighed wistfully at that before turning her attention to the few unfamiliar faces. There wasn't a promising one in the bunch. They were the same old fumble-fingered good-ol'-boys that always filled the town. Fun to dance with and tease, but nothing to single them out. She watched them as music blared from the speakers, not quite ready to head onto the floor, despite her compulsion from earlier.

Then they played a song she'd known her whole life. Her feet started tapping and she jumped up. So what if it was only the plain old country boys here? She was here to dance. She did so with abandon, switching partners often and never refusing anyone. After all, being a cowboy made anyone a bit sexy. Just something in the outfit, the attitude... even ugly ones were kinda hot. She drank the shots others bought her like they were water, being careful not to tip over to fully plastered. She could feel the alcohol in her stomach, lying like fire and spreading out to her limbs from there.

A pair of blue-violet eyes caught her attention then. A younger man had joined the businessmen at their table. Well, younger than the rest of them. He looked a little older than her, maybe about thirty. His platinum blonde hair seemed to shimmer in the dark of the bar, giving him an almost fey look. The look he was giving her was enough to cause the fire in her belly to ignite her blood with it. She could feel her heartsong throbbing in her head as her blood poured faster and faster through her.

She looked away, her attention forcibly turned to the man she was dancing with. His movements suddenly appeared forced to her, as if he was pushing his way through water with his movements. Everyone around her looked like that. Muted, clumsy, and shallow.

Even though she couldn't see the stranger, she could still feel the heat of his eyes as she moved. Her movements beckoned, hinting at things left hidden in her psyche and body. She knew when he moved, despite all the contents of the crowded room being between them. She could imagine him moving forward. The crowd would part without seeming to move as he glided between the dancers.

This was no cowboy, but she didn't care. The man, who now stood before her, was sexy without flannel, leather, and denim. She had a brief flash of what he'd look like dressed for the west, and almost spontaneously combusted right there. He took hold of her with the feel of a born leader. She flowed gracefully into the moves he swept her in, melting as he whispered in her ear. His voice was as sexy as the rest of him.

"I was told you were born to two-step. Makes me glad my gym teacher made us learn back in high school."

She giggled, surprised at his little comment. She'd always loved this dance. No teacher had shown it to her, as far as she could remember. Her parents remarked fondly that she was dancing as soon as she could walk. She believed it. He led like he had, too. Together, they transcended her previous impressions of great partners. It was as if they weren't just made for dancing, but for each other as well.

"I'm glad you learned too." She told him, winking as she did. In the back of her mind she thanked Ace for picking this night to leave.

She had 13 messages on her phone. Not one was from anyone she wanted to talk to. One was from a co-worker that couldn't understand the word 'no' coming from a woman. The other 12 were from Ace.

She listened to them, still wrapped in the euphoria of two hours of perfect dancing on top of decently heavy drinking the night before. She'd hoped to hear from that blonde god from the previous night. Instead she got to listen to her ex whine. It was amazing how someone that she'd thought perfect 24 hours previously was now falling so short. He was to pale, to talkative, to annoying. His voice wasn't deep enough and he couldn't dance well enough.

She frowned at the machine before deciding to call Ace back. She didn't want him to keep calling. That would be annoying. She picked up the phone and dialled, not sure what she wanted to say. After a few rings, his voice came on, telling her to leave a message.

"Well, I'm not sure if that's lucky or not. All I have to say to you is this: Did you really think I'd stay lonely? Did you think I'd wait by the phone for you to call and say sorry? I went out dancing last night. It was great fun, and I didn't miss you at all. I still don't. Don't call me. You wanted over, we're over."

She hung up. It rang right after. Thinking it was Ace, she picked it up angrily. "Now listen, you. Didn't you hear what I just told you? I said..."

"That I'm not listening. I heard. Rather a confrontational way to start the morning, don't you think? I was planning on using 'good morning', myself." A deep, sexy voice cut her off mid-comment. He sounded amused, but she was mortified.

"Kunzite! Oh, I'm so sorry. I just got off the phone with my ex... well, his answering machine, at least. I told him not to call. You phoned so close after..."

He just chuckled, the rich sound causing her to shudder. "I see. Let's start over, then. Good morning, Minako. How are you feeling?"

"And a good morning to you too, Kunzite. I'm well, thank you very much. And yourself?"

"I'm well." he replied. "If you're feeling up to it, I was wondering if you might be persuaded to join me for breakfast this morning..."