Hey guys! I'm Mizz Faery Cakez. Yeah, silly name I know, but I came up with it while drinking cranberry juice and watching The Justice League. Don't laugh at me. I'm a dork, I know. --;; Anyways, feel free to submit and suggestions//comments. Please be kind! This is my first story.

Oh, I don't own any of the characters in this story.

A fierce alarm sounded. Ami was already in the shower. When she came back she switched off the alarm. Towel wrapped around her almost bare body, she slid her closet door open and rummaged for clothes with one hand, and kept the other on her towel. That morning was cool - and her normal clothes seemed to have vanished. Retreating out of the closet she found an outfit laid across her bed. Suspiciously she strode across the room to look at the items. With her free hand she turned over each piece of clothing. She sighed at her mother's attempt to reach out to her. She found many large bags of new clothes by her bed. All of them were too revealing (at least in her opinion), and completely not Ami's style. At least she got the size right, she sadly noted.

Left without a choice, Ami pulled on the items: a mini jean skirt that ended five inches above her knees, and a blizzard blue polo that ended four inches above the hem of the skirt. Finding a pair of shoes that would cover as much of her legs as possible (there were no socks or stockings or tights), Ami pulled on her deerskin boots, which stopped right below her knees. The result flattered her lean body well, but it was entirely not her style. Noticing the time, she left the large empty house, with her messenger bag full of textbooks.

xXx

It's casual day!! Mina's mind buzzed. What do I wear, what do I wear? Anxiety tickled her stomach as she pictured the cute new boy in her geometry class. She silently screamed at her memory of the beautiful brunet. He had piercing eyes, and trademark bangs... Only he could pull off a look like that. Digging through her closet AND the dirty hamper, Mina remained indecisive. Getting desperate, she searched her mother's drawers. Eyebrow raised at the risque 'naughty maid' costume, she despaired and hurriedly shoved it somewhere, and tried her luck at the closet. Squealing with glee, she pulled out a black halter set with rhinestones all over. She donned the designer shirt and her favorite skinny jeans. Usa would be soooo jealous of the shiny!

Glancing at her watch, her eyes widened. 7:15. Let's hope I beat my old record! And drop those few extra pounds on the way, added the small self-conscious voice that most 14-year-old girls have.

xXx

Rei ran into Mina, and Mina fell on her butt. Rei, glancing over Mina's overzealous attire, shot her a questioning look. Curls bounced as Mina helped herself up.

"Curls too? Don't we look ravishing..." The priestess's smug look tempted a backlash. Looking up, Mina noticed Rei's black skirt-pants and a fancy red tank top. She eyed cute but uncomfortable looking flats.

"Nice shoes", she retorted, " - and don't tell me you're dressing up for Motoki!"

Blushing furiously, Rei defensively replied, "Just thought I'd try them out! They're new...", she finished lamely.

"That may be so, but you've got pounds of make up on... and if not for Motoki - it's that new boy, isn't it?" Grinning wickedly the Goddess of Beauty flicked the flaming priestess's nose and sped off. "You'll never catch me in those shoes!" she cried from a far and safer distance.

xXx

Blonde hair was flying everywhere. She hurriedly tucked in her shirt. Wheezing, she pulled one strap of her backpack over her arm. Rushing, she fumbled with the other strap. The evil - beckoning to her - the evil gates of the confining prison called school - she had to be there, despite her weariness from her long trip (she had just returned from Tokyo).

Rushing down the hallways and winding staircases, the busy blonde failed to notice that she was the only one not in casual clothes. Heads turned as she rushed, a trail of fire lingering behind. Her destination in sight, she pumped her arms and charged at full speed, looking mad as a bull, at the door. She readied herself to open the door, victory singing in her ears, when the bell rang. Pure madness flared behind her eyes. She ran faster. The girl shot out her arm to turn the knob when the door was thrown open as if someone had kicked it.

Fuck it.

xXx

First came the pain. She didn't know where it hurt, just that if hurt like Hell, inside and out, top to bottom, ears to toenails and ankles to eyebrows. There were no voices of sympathy - only mean jokes and insults. Eh, figures. Back from the dead, and they wish you were dead. Finally deciding where she hurt, she counted her wounds: basketball-sized lump on the head, strawberries on her elbows, various scrapes and bruises, and a lot of weight on her. Had someone thrown her backpack on her? She opened her bleary eyes and winced at the light. She closed her eyes.

"Ow ow ow ow papercut!!" came a cry from above.

I hope that's not God; he sounds annoying. And all high-pitched-like.

"I think I'm bleeding! Someone save me!" The loud voice sounded next to her ear.

"Ow, dammit bitch! Ya don't have to be so fucking loud!" Complaining, she went on, "There's like, a billion pounds on me.. take it off..."

The annoying voice responded in a suddenly seductive voice, "With pleasure..."

The weight suddenly lifted off of her body, and someone reached around her waist. She instinctively slapped at large hands, but instead of being raped as she thought she would be, she was instead pulled up to her feet. The support suddenly disappeared, and she felt herself falling backwards, when those same strong hands snaked behind the small of her back, catching her again.

Opening her eyes, Usagi's vision slowly cleared, and she found herself leaning against a well-muscled, gorgeous dark emerald-eyed brunet. Suddenly, the pain went away. Tilting her head waaay back so she could get a good look into his eyes, a jolt that went through her body when they made eye contact. What's up with his hair? she thought, seeing that half his face was covered with bangs. Her attention was ripped away when the owner of the annoying voice appeared before her.

"Hey, are you okay? Sorry about that... That was me that fell on you. I was taking the attendance form to the front office." He held up a bloody hand and a crumpled piece of paper. His voice no longer annoying, filled with genuine apology, went on, "But uhh, I'm kind of new, so could you help me out here? I kind of just took the chance to get out of the room the moment I could."

"Umm, sure..." she replied, no longer angry or in pain. Hell, she was being held by a hot. Tie. (not hot tie, hottie!) Her wounds disappeared, and she took a moment to look the boy in front of her over. The boy had piercing cobalt blue eyes and soft-looking chestnut brown hair. He had a wiry build, all lean and muscle. Even he wasn't in uniform; he donned black slacks and a black button down shirt. On anyone else, the outfit would make the wearer look like a vampire wannabe, but on him, the look worked. His clothes were starched and ironed - Probably by his mom, she noted to herself. Or maid. He looks rich.

Usagi looked back up at the boy holding her, and noticed that he was also new. She continued her inspection, finding nothing to criticize. He was at least ten centimeters taller than her. He had a gymnast's body, and she wondered what he was capable of. His graceful and fast movements proved that he was trained, either in dance or fighting skills; she didn't know. She cloaked her admiration with a frozen mask. She pulled herself gently and politely out of his firm and protective hold (with much sadness). Turning back towards the other boy (who she now noticed wore his hair in a waist-long braid), she excused herself. After speaking with her professor, she explained the reason for her tardiness; this time her excuse was veritable: she had just flown in from Osaka that morning. The man gently let her go, though disapprovingly, with the braided boy, after she promised to attend tutorials to catch up on what she'd missed.

xXx

USA'S POV

"M'name's Maxwell." The boy had no accent; his Japanese was perfect but she could tell he was foreign. The way he walked clearly showed he was confident, maybe even cocky. "But you can call me Duo. You?"

"I'm called Usagi, among other.. names.. I prefer to be addressed as Usagi though." Her voice was soft, sadness momentarily flickered behind her eyes. The shadowed look didn't go by unnoticed.

"Usagi huh? Nice to meet you." Duo stopped walking and held out a hand. Uncomfortable, Usagi took it. He noticed her reluctance. Not giving a last name huh? What's there to hide? They kept walking in silence. (In other countries when introducing yourself, it's considered polite to give your last name also..)

"So how long have you been attending this school? Been here long?"

"Since it opened, which was about six years ago. I'm one of the school's senior students. By that I mean not many kids have been here as long as I have." She kept her voice low, and as the pair walked; Duo walked closer in order to hear her. To others, it looked like they were a couple.

"Ah. Well, by now I would have expected you to have more friends." A blush came over her while she thought quickly. Who was he to judge her so soon?

"What happened to your hand?"

He looked down at his bloodied hand.

"Oh, this? Papercut." He winked, and she dismissed it.

His hand was still bleeding. Eyebrow raised, she questioned further.

"Do you have hemophilia or something?"

DUO'S POV

"Do you have hemophilia or something?"

"Me? Nah. The cut just reopened an old battle scar."

She smiled at what seemed to be an exaggeration. Duo waved his hand proudly.

"I've got a lot more, if you'd like to see them..."

He suggestively untucked the front of his shirt and pulled it up to reveal a long and thick slash across his belly. She has no idea, he thought, with sudden disappointment, surprising himself. If only I really could tell her everything. He caught himself before he sighed. She slapped his arm and made a move to show one of her own.

"Oh yeah, well, check this out."

Without realizing how much she was revealing, she pulled up her skirt almost all the way up to expose a large number of what used to be scratch marks all over her thighs. They looked as if they'd been painful and deep because of their size and length. He was struck at her beautifully pale skin and shapely legs. I wonder how soft her skin is. Looking up before he thought a nasty thought, he admired her smile. She dropped her skirt and her triumphant look amazed him. She probably has more beneath her socks, he thought, glancing for a moment at her knee highs.

"How did she get them?" He thought aloud.

Damn, stupid Maxwell! He mentally slapped himself.

"You mean, how did I get them? Guess you could say I got caught in a bunch of thorns in the woods one day."

USA'S POV

She thought back to the day when her team fought a prickly prissy youma in the park. She wasn't caught, she was being strangled. Her whole body was bloody and raw for weeks; the cuts had been so deep. She used the transforming pen to cover up most of the scars on the upper part of her body - she didn't show her legs much and using any amount of energy to use brooch, wand, or pen was exhausting nowadays. She didn't dare answer if someone asked. They'd probably think she was being abused by her parents, and take her away. She couldn't even let her own parents know - her powers were known only to her team and their cats. The danger of knowing such a secret put everyone she cared for at risk. No one could understand that. Duo wouldn't understand that, so why should she tell?

"That's pretty dumb. Thought you were mauled by a bear or something."

She winced at his harsh answer, instantly offended at his scornful tone.

"What do you mean dumb?! I had to freakin' fight - " She quickly cut herself off before she revealed anything. Still offended, she could only answer with her prepared excuse. " - those nasty thorns. I was playing "capture the flag" in the woods, and someone shoved me into a bunch of thorny vines and bushes. I had to fight for a way out. I was stuck for hours. No one heeded my call for help."

She'd put extra emphasis on 'fight' to explain her use of the word, but only drew more suspicion to her answer.

DUO'S POV

Feisty. I guess it sounded pretty mean coming out. Her story's too - what is it? Prepared. Like a story she wrote for an excuse. What's she hiding..

"Sorry", he apologized, the word oozing with repentance. "I didn't mean it that way. They look like they hurt. Badly."

"Just drop it", she replied, her voice scratchy and soft.

Their competition between the "biggest scar" ended before it really began. After a few minutes of silence, it broke:

"That other guy, well, we call him Trowa."

He mentally cowered from his random attempt to break the uncomfortable silence.

"Who's we?"

Duo dumb! Duo dumb! Duo Dumbo! Dumbo Duo! Damn, first day here, and someone already finds out we're connected!

Uncomfortable, he reached an arm behind his back to scratch a non-existent itch.

"Well, ah... Guess I'll be needing to introduce you to the others."

"Um, others?"

Looking around nervously, Duo spotted a sign that read "Attendance".

"Hey, we're here! Damn, that took a while. This school's pretty big..."

Suspicious, Usagi dropped "Twenty Questions" and they both walked in the office.

xXx