AN: OK here is another story from me! I got this idea a little while ago, but it took me a while to think about how the story would start. The story starts off a bit slow, but believe me it gets better later. I hope.

Summary: Rei moves to the U.S. after her grandfather dies. She now has to live with her long lost father in a strange new world. She's torn away from everything she knows and everyone she loves and reluctantly starts a new life, but true freindship can last over anything, including vast oceans and continents.

The Beginning Part 1

It was a beautiful Monday morning. The birds were chirping, the flowers had bloomed, a cool breeze blew ever so gently, not a cloud in the sky. Yuuichirou had been up early to meditate before training, but was now preparing breakfast. Grandpa wasn't his normal perky self this morning and Yuuichirou figured a good breakfast would make him feel better. Grandpa had been acting slightly odd these past few days and it seemed like nothing Rei or Yuuichirou was did put him back to normal.

Yuuichirou looked at the kitchen clock. It was 7:15. Yuuichirou whipped his hands with the kitchen towel and walked out of the kitchen. He checked the bathroom to see if Rei was in there getting ready for school. Rei normally wakes up at six in the morning to do some quick chores and make breakfast for Grandpa. When he saw that she wasn't in the bathroom, he walked over to her bedroom. It was very unlike her to sleep in late, but he knocked on the door just in case.

When Rei didn't answer, Yuuichirou opened the door ever so slightly and peeked in. To his surprise, Rei was still asleep. He opened the door further and walked into the room. "Rei-chan, wake up. You're gonna be late for school." He gently shook her shoulder.

Nothing happened.

"Rei, wake up!" He shook her harder. Still nothing. Wow, Yuuichirou thought. She's one deep sleeper. Rei was normally a morning person and he usually never had to worry about waking her, mainly because she woke up so early anyway. But when he did, he'd practically have to set a bomb off next to her to wake her up. Today was one of those days and he figured it was because she'd stayed up late the previous night fire reading.

Yuuichirou sighed. Here we go again. He walked over to her windows and opened the curtains, flooding the room with light. He then remembered the wonderful weather and decided to open the windows too. A cool breeze blew into the room. He walked out of the room and came back almost instantly with a tray filled with pancakes, toast, eggs, sausage and orange juice. He set it on the table right next to her bed. Its delicious smell instantly filled the room. He tried one more time to wake her, but still nothing. You want to do this the hard way? Fine, he thought. He took her covers and threw them off her bed and just then, another breeze entered the room. It felt good and soothing, but to someone wearing only a tank top and boxer shorts who'd been bundled up in a cozy bed all night, it was freezing. She shivered and curled up into a tight ball.

"Rei, time to wake up!" He shook her again. Nothing.

I guess I have to pull out the big guns, Yuuichirou thought. Not being able to find any other alternative, and it getting later and later, Yuuichirou jumped on her bed and began jumping up and down like a ten year old.

"Rei-chan, WAKE UP!!!" Yuuichirou hollered in between jumps.

Rei began to bounce around from the force of Yuuichirou's jumping. She began to wake up just in time to realize she was about to fall off her bed.

"AGH!" Rei cried as she bounced right off the bed and hit the floor. "Baka, what the hell are you doing?!" Rei cried. She sat on the ground, resting her weight on one hand, knees touching and ankles spread apart. She rubbed the back of her head where she hit the floor, hair in disarray.

I had to wake you up. It's 7:30. You're gonna be late for school." Yuuichirou said, still standing on her bed.

"What?!" Rei looked at her clock. "Crap! Why didn't you wake me up sooner?!" She got up in a frenzy.

"I tried to, but. . . Whoa!" Yuuichirou was cut off by having Rei grab his arm, pulling him off her bed, almost ripping his arm out of its socket, and throwing him out of her room.

"Get out! I have to get ready for school!" Before Yuuichirou knew it, he was standing in the hallway staring at the door. He shook his head, smiling slightly. He rolled his eyes and walked back to the kitchen.

Fifteen minutes later, he heard crashing from Rei's room, followed by slamming doors and running noises.

"I'm going to school! Bye everyone!" More ruckus was heard, then silence.

Yuuichirou began to chuckle to himself softly. He remembered when he was that old and running late to school. It seemed like such a long time ago. He walked over to Rei's room and saw that her breakfast was eaten.

Rei full out sprinted to school. She didn't want to be late for her first day as a junior in high school. She couldn't believe she slept in! She even told herself to wake up early, just so she would be in this predicament, but last night, an unexpected youma attack occurred in the park in the other side of town and she had to go. She got home late that night and instantly went to bed exhausted. Killing monsters completely drained her. Not only that, but she had to run to these random locations. What was the point in being able to conjure up huge fireballs to hurdle at half naked female monsters if she had to run in stilettos to get there first? Now, running down the street to get to class, her legs screamed at her to stop, but she ignored the pain. She needed to get to school.

Finally rounding the last turn of her route, she heard the warning bell go off. She pushed herself to run faster, making the final mad dash to her homeroom. The final bell rang and Rei sat in her assigned seat; hair in disorder, forehead dampened with sweat, breathing heavily, and heart pounding a million beats a second. This was worth it though. She made it to class on time.

Rei still attended the all-girls Catholic school her father insisted she attend. She liked her school, although she wished she went to the same school her best friends went to. She always felt a bit lonely, being the only one of the senshi to go to a different school. She always felt left out whenever they would talk about the people in their class. They would laugh and joke about what someone did at school and talk about who was dating who and Rei could never quite keep these people straight. This made their homework sessions at her house a bit boring for her. Not only that, but whenever there was an attack in the city, Rei would usually be the last one at the scene because her friends' school was in the middle of the city, while the T*A Private Girls School was located towards the edge of town.

Rei's heart was beginning to calm and her breathing was becoming more normal. She was wiping her brow with the back of her hand when the teacher walked in the room.

"Good morning, ladies," she said, silencing the class immediately. "Welcome to your first day of your junior year! You have just one more year before graduation, then to a university for some of you." The girls were torn between excitement and anxiety. "Now that that's been said, let's begin our lesson."

The end of school finally came and Rei was now walking home, even more tired than before. She let out her millionth yawn of the day. Why does math have to be my last class? She thought. It's so boring and I'm so tired! The usual fifteen minute walk back to the shrine took almost forty-five because she dragged her feet across the pavement. When she finally reached the shrine, Yuuichirou was sweeping the entrance and humming to himself.

"Hey Rei-chan!" He greeted her with a big smile. "How was school?"

"Fine," She grumbled and pointed at the broom Yuuichirou held. "Are you doing my chores?"

"Yup. Well, I got done with mine early today and since you were so late coming home, I thought you were going somewhere or had something to do, so I thought I'd help you out. This way, you won't stay up late again doing chores and homework and fire reading."

"That's really sweet of you, Kumada-san." Rei smiled at him. He would do this every now and then, especially when she needed it the most and today the gesture was greatly appreciated. "Thank you very much. I'll help you do the rest of this and I'll do whatever you haven't done."

"Oh, well I'm almost done here, so you don't need to help with this." Yuuichirou indicated the large pile of leaves he'd made. "And, I kinda already finished all your chores." Yuuichirou rubbed the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.

"All of them?" Rei gaped. Yuuichirou just nodded. "How is that even possible?"

Yuuichirou chuckled. "Like I said, I got done with mine early. Today was just such a good day! I woke up completely rejuvenated. I had so much energy and focus today that I guess I got a little carried away." He chuckled again.

Rei blinked at him. He had just about the exact opposite of her day. She felt completely drained of all her energy and she lacked any sort of concentration while at school. Last night's little battle had really taken its toll on her.

"Well, I. . ." She didn't know what to say. "Thank you, I guess." That's all she could think of. "Are you sure there isn't anything left for me to do?"

"I'm sure. Trust me." He began sweeping again.

"Well, about dinner?" Rei asked, taking a step closer to him. "I know it's your day to make it, but let me do it. I feel bad not doing anything for the shrine today and it will be my way of saying thank you for doing my chores for me."

Yuuichirou stopped sweeping and looked at her. He thought for a moment. "No, that's alright. I'll cook." He put his hand up to stop Rei from protesting. "But if you really want to make it up to me, I'll think of something you can do for me later."

"What is it?" Rei furrowed her eyebrows and asked suspiciously.

"I don't know yet." Yuuichirou shrugged and began to sweep again. "I'll tell you when I think of something."

"Alright." Rei looked at him oddly for a moment. "Thanks again." She turned and headed to the house.

Thanks to Yuuichirou, Rei was able to finish her homework before dinner, something that rarely happened. After putting the last of the dishes away, Rei went straight to bed. She insisted that she do the dishes and practically had to kick Yuuichirou out of the kitchen to let her do it. That man really did have a lot of energy today. Rei felt like such an old woman for going to bed at such an early hour but she was too tired to care and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she fell into a deep sleep.

The rest of the week passed by without a hitch. The girls survived their first week of school and now walked back to Rei's house to celebrate and to have their usual senshi meeting.

Just as they reached the top of the steps, they saw Yuuichirou jumping up and down screaming and hollering, with Grandpa standing in front of him, hands together and a smile on his face. In his spinning of celebration, Yuuichirou saw that the five girls stood there watching them and he ran over to them, a smile from ear to ear.

"Rei-chan, guys, you won't believe what just happened!" Yuuichirou screamed as he ran towards them. "Grandpa told me that I'm ready to be a full time priest! I'm finally a Shinto priest!"

"Wow, Yuuichirou-san, congrats!" Minako cried, giving him a big hug.

"Way to go!" Makoto punched him in the shoulder.

"That's wonderful!" Ami said.

"I'm so happy for you!" Usagi cried, giving him a hug too.

"Thanks guys. That means a lot." Yuuichirou let go of Usagi, his smile hadn't faded in the least.

"Kumada-san, I'm really proud of you." Rei smiled. "I remember when Grandpa told me I was ready to me a miko. It was one of the happiest days of my life."

Yuuichirou's smile, if it could, grew even wider. Rei was proud of him! He couldn't believe it. He'd spent so much time trying to get her approval and this one comment made what had just happened to him even more amazing. He held out his arms. "Don't I get a hug from my roommate?" He thought for a second. "I mean fellow Shinto worshipper. You know what I mean!" Rei rolled her eyes and chuckled, but walked right into his open arms. He held her tightly in his arms. "I wouldn't have been able to do it without you," he said. He gingerly let her go. Rei blushed and looked at her feet.

"We should celebrate!"

"Great idea, Usagi-chan!"

"I'll get the drinks."

"I'll make the food!"

With that, the girls began to prepare for Yuuichirou's party. In a few short hours the girls and Yuuichirou sat around a table packed with enough food to feed an army, or maybe just enough for Usagi.

The party was in full swing when Rei noticed Grandpa wasn't with them.

"I'll be right back guys," she said, getting up ad leaving the room. She made her way through the hallway, looking into the fire room and Grandpa's bedroom but he was nowhere to be found. Huh, I wonder where he went, she thought. She headed back towards the party when, through the window, she noticed a short man sitting on a bench by the cherry tree. "There you are," she whispered at the figure.

"Grandpa, what are you doing out here?" she said as she walked over to him. "We're celebrating Yuuichirou becoming a priest. Why aren't you there? Mako-chan made a big feast and Usagi's about to eat it all. Don't you want to come celebrate with us?"

Grandpa looked up at his granddaughter, who was now standing in front of him. "I'll be there soon." That's all he said.

"Is something wrong, Grandpa?" Rei asked becoming more concerned.

"No, nothing's wrong," he replied, giving her a warm smile that eased Rei's worry. He patted the bench in the spot right next to him. "Have a seat. Sit with me for a while."

Without a word, Rei sat on the bench were indicated and looked up at the cherry tree. Next to her, she heard a small sigh.

"You know," Grandpa said, still looking at the tree, "your grandmother loved this tree." Rei turned to her grandfather, giving him her full attention. "She'd spend hours out here in the garden raking, taking the weeds out and pruning. She made it look beautiful. Because of that, your mother fell in love with this tree too. She would help Grandma with the gardening, but would just end up playing. She'd climb the tree and hide, then scare people who passed by." Grandpa smiled at the memories. "I remember one time the two of them ended up playing chase around and around this tree." He chuckled at himself and Rei smiled at the thought of her mother as a little girl being chased by her grandmother and almost laughed at how rambunctious her mother was as a child.

"Did you know that your father first saw your mother sitting right at this very spot?" He asked, now looking at Rei and smiling.

"Really?" She never actually knew how her parents met, only that it was at the shrine.

"Mm-hm," he nodded his head. "He was just starting his political career and he came here to pray for success and to get his fortune read. When he found out his future would be filled with success and that he's have a good year, he was so excited. He started to leave and that's when he saw her. She was sitting right here, reading and the flowers had all blossomed. I'm sure at that moment he fell in love with her."

"How do you know all of this?"

"Because I'm the one who read his fortune," he laughed. "And I saw the way he looked at her and he walked right over to talk to her. A year later, he proposed to her on this bench."

"Really?" Rei asked again in disbelief. She hadn't seen her father in years and it was hard to imagine him younger and in love with her mother. "Why didn't you tell me this before, Grandpa?" She didn't realize how special this tree really was.

"Because you would have been too young to understand, but now, you've grown to be a fine young woman." He held her hand in his and smiled at his granddaughter, who smiled back. "I want you to know something. You're a beautiful lady, Rei, but as beautiful as you are, you're that stubborn. You don't admit to anyone, not even yourself that you have feelings for someone when everyone knows you do. You're afraid to fall in love. Why?"

Rei looked at her lap. She could have lied and told him that she wasn't, but this moment made it impossible for her to lie to him.

"I don't know," she mumbled.

"Are you afraid that after you do, that that person will abandon you and leave you all alone?" he asked softly, still holding her hand in his. Rei didn't respond. "Well, Rei, not everyone's like that. If a man is worthy enough to get your love, he would be a fool to leave you." He put his arm over her shoulders, leaned over and kissed her on the cheek.

The two of them shared a quiet moment together, one touched by the kind words spoken and the other hoping his words got through. The moment would have been perfect, if Grandpa didn't start laughing.

"It's ironic you know," he said. "You fight monsters that suck the life out of people on a regular basis but you can't face your own emotions. Most girls your age would be the other way around." He laughed even harder.

"What?!" Rei cried. Her body froze with fear. Grandpa knew! He knew her deepest, darkest secret on the face of the earth and he was treating it as if it was a joke, but she tried to stay calm. She needed to make sure he really knew.

"W-what are you talking about?" Rei asked, trying to keep an innocent face.

"Oh, don't give me that." He waved his hand at her. "You know exactly what I'm talking about, Rei, or should I call you Mars?" Rei could have been knocked over by a leaf. Not only did he know that she was a scout, but he knew exactly who she was and from the way he said it, he'd known for a while.

"How did you find out?" Rei whispered.

"I wasn't born yesterday. I knew something was different about you since you met Usagi. Your aura is different. Plus, Mars is always the first one to show up whenever the shrine gets attacked. Is that a coincidence? Not only that, but whenever any part of Tokyo gets attacked, you'd mysteriously have to go somewhere in a complete rush and whenever you did get back, you'd be injured. Then you'd give some half-baked excuse for what happen by saying that tripped or ran into something, when you are the most graceful person I know. Besides, you aren't the best liar." Rei blinked. She had no idea he was that observant. He figured it out all by himself and Rei was torn between awe and guilt. "And it doesn't help you any when your friends come over and talk about it in your room. You girls are SO loud!" Rei face faulted. He figured out her secret because he was ease dropping on her friends. She looked at him with disgust and shock. "It's not my fault you have beautiful friends, Rei, and I can't help myself." He started to laugh at her as she shook her head at him.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about it sooner, Grandpa," Rei mumbled. "I thought it would be better if you didn't know and I was trying to protect you." Rei was looking at her lap.

"It's alright, Rei. I'm not angry about you not telling me. I knew you had your reasons."

"Does Yuuichirou know?" Rei was now looking at her grandfather.

"I don't know. I never mentioned anything to him. I thought it was supposed to be a secret!" Grandpa laughed. "You should ask him."

There was no way on earth she was going to do that. If he didn't know, then she would probably end up giving her own secret away, and if he did know, then he hadn't told anyone, not even Grandpa. No, things were going to stay the same as they were now.

"Come on, Rei." He had changed the subject so suddenly; it was like they had just discussed the weather or something. Grandpa stood up and held out his hand to her. "Did you mention a party? What are we doing out here if all the fun is inside?"

"You're the one being all weird and cryptic, Grandpa," Rei said standing. "I came out here looking for you!"

"Well, let's go then. We don't want Usagi to eat all the food before we get there." Grandpa hurried to the house, leaving Rei behind. He was always weird like this: serious one moment, light-hearted the next. Rei still felt a twinge of guilt from keeping a secret from her grandpa, but also felt relieved that the truth was finally out and that he was not angry with her. She could feel a small weight being lifted from her shoulders.

She looked up at the cherry tree again and smiled. She was glad to have learned something so precious and was also glad to know that her grandfather would always support her.

AN: I was going to add more to this chapter but it was running way too long. But don't fret! The second part of this chapter will be up in no time. I'm finishing it up as we speak! Please, PLEASE review!!! Let me know what you think!