Tengoko: Really needed to edit this chapter. No more plot holes! Everybody cheer with me. YAY! Well, the more I expound on and fix each chapter, the more I grow attached to this story. I think the biggest problem with this chapter was some inconsistencies with names and formal and informal etc. But, it's better now. I promise. Anyway, please review and enjoy. UPDATE: JUNE 27, 2009 - Found some more inconsistencies with the honorifics. I think I caught them all now. Also, just added here and there.

Rated M for language and romance

Chapter 2: Small World
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"Damn!" Minako cried out, pounding her fist on the desk. Her face was red with anger, her body shaking. And yet, he appeared to be so calm. Actually, he seemed very amused by the entire scene. He leaned back in his chair, his muscled arms crossed over his massive chest, and a smug smile on his handsome face. That only seemed to amplify the anger she was feeling. How dare he look so entertained by this!

"It's not my fault, Aino-san," he said, looking down at her papers. "I believe the professor gave all students ample time to finish the project and organize their results. In my opinion, your work is sloppy and less than mediocre. It was a simple assignment, and you should have done better." He said that as though it were the end of the discussion. No more room for argument. This had been his tone for the entire month she'd been dealing with him. And she was sick of it. Just because he was some fancy schmancy teacher's assistant didn't mean that he had the right to lord over people lives the way he seemed to do.

"Well that's easy for you to say!" she yelled, crumpling the papers up and tossing them at that large chest of his. "You don't realize how hard I worked on this. I prepared this for weeks. And yet you can so easily fail me?"

"I find it difficult to believe that you put that much effort into it," he said, his smile not faltering, not even when the papers bounced off of him and onto the desk. He did look down at them though not quite able to believe that she'd just thrown them at him. "Your thesis makes little sense, if any at all, your research is sketchy and vague, and your conclusion was irrelevant to the topic. Over all, you should be grateful I gave you any credit."

"Listen to you, all high and mighty. You've been the teacher's assistant for a month, and already you are sitting high on your stool!"

He looked confused for a moment, and then he chuckled. "Do you mean, pedestal, Aino-san?"

"Listen, Yamamoto-sensei," she shouted, not wanting to admit that she'd gotten that saying wrong, "I cannot fail this class. This is already my second time to take it. Please, reconsider."

"I will do no such thing," he said quickly. "It would not be fair to the other students to change only your grade. Your paper was graded fairly, and that is all there is to it. Now, unless you have something further to discuss with me then I…"

"Well, actually, I do have something further to discuss with you."

He leaned forward, slightly intrigued, and motioned for her to have a seat. She obeyed, setting her bag on the floor and then looking up at him. Damn, the man was too handsome for words. Too bad he was an arrogant know-it-all. His name was Yamamoto Kenji, and apparently, he'd just transferred into their college and was working on his second degree, focusing in physics. Of course, right away, all the girls in the class were abuzz, falling head over heels for him. Who wouldn't? He was extraordinarily tall, broad at the shoulders, narrow at the waist. He had a strong jaw, masculine features, long, platinum blonde hair that fell just below his shoulders and the most haunting eyes Minako had ever seen. All the girls argued that they were purely gray, but Minako could swear that there were flecks of green in them. There was no doubt that he was intelligent and knew his stuff. For the past week, the teacher had Kenji doing all the lectures and going over the assignments. Again, he gave the girls reason to swoon when he spoke for the first time; his voice sensually deep. Unfortunately for Minako, his strictness left little time for her to notice any attraction.

Truth be told, this wasn't their first encounter. His first day there, she'd fallen asleep in class. Usually, nobody would care, but at the end of the hour, he assigned a pop quiz. The way he glared at her let her know that it was because of her. Of course, she didn't know the answers to the questions he'd asked and got a zero. Afterward, he'd held her back and discussed with her the classroom etiquette, saying that if she was going to sleep, she should do it on her own time and not in the classroom.

"How may I help you?" he asked, grabbing a pen from the surface of the desk and entwining it between his fingers.

She had to take a deep breath to calm herself down. She hated that he was just brushing the previous conversation aside like it didn't matter, but there was nothing she could do about that. "I was wondering if maybe you could set up a study session. Only between students, though. That way, we could maybe help and learn from each other without any pressure."

"It sounds like a good idea," he mused. "Though, I'm not sure it would generate enough interest. It seems you are the only one struggling."

"That's a horrible thing to tell me," she scolded trying her best to look angry to hide the embarrassment. "If I knew you were going to be rude about it, I wouldn't have asked." She jumped up from her seat and went towards the door.

"Aino-san…rude would be storming into my office, guns blazing and waving your fist and your pathetic papers in my face. Rude would be you yelling at the top of your lungs about how incompetent you think I am and what a snore my lectures are. And of course, we mustn't forget you pounding on my desk like a mad woman, demanding me to change your grade. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to have sympathy."

"I hate you," she muttered, yanking the door open. "Go to hell!"

"Even if I did," he started coldly, "it wouldn't help your grade." He could have laughed at her scandalized face. In fact, he nearly did until the door opened. Minako turned to see Mamoru standing in front of her, a smile on his face. "Ah, Mamoru-san, I'm sorry that I didn't call to tell you that I would be late. I had a meeting with…"

"Minako-chan?" Mamoru said with a smile. It had been a while since they'd seen each other.

"What are you doing here, Mamoru-chan?" she asked, surprised to see him. "Is Usagi-chan here to talk about her grade, too?"

"No," he answered absently. "Should she be? I was under the impression she was doing okay in this class."

"She's making a solid C plus," Kenji assured him, rising from his chair. "I'm sure if she just worked a little harder, she could get a B by the end of the term. But that's her deal. Not mine."

Minako glared at him, but Mamoru just smiled and nodded. He turned back to Minako. "I'm here by myself. Usa-ko is visiting her mother. Actually, Kenji-san and I were going to join some friends and go to dinner tonight."

"How do you know him?" she demanded. She didn't want Mamoru to be his friend. That would mean she might have to suffer seeing him even after this term was over.

"Met one of his friends in a class, and it went from there," he said, as though it had been inevitable that they would one day meet. "Well, at any rate, Minako-chan, how are you?"

"Why don't you ask the scum bag?" she yelled, pushing passed him and storming down the hall.

"Is she always like that?" Kenji asked, looking a little insulted by that comment. "Or is it a special privilege reserved for me?"

Mamoru laughed as Kenji gathered his papers and started putting them into his briefcase. Mamoru waited quietly at first, but finally decided it was time to come to Minako's defense. "She's not usually that temperamental, I suppose. According to my wife, she's just been having a difficult time lately. On normal occasions, though, she really is a pleasure to be around. She happens to be one of my wife's best friends."

"So…it is reserved for me," Kenji laughed, ushering Mamoru out the door and then locking it behind them.

"Well, it is easy to tick her off. But, she's not one to hold a grudge for long, so just give it time and it'll blow over."

"You're late," came a new voice. The two tall men looked down the hall. A tall man was leaning against the wall, a smug smile on his face. Next to him was a shorter man, standing straight with his arms folded across his chest. They were both handsome; one had long, wavy brown hair and blue eyes. The other was blonde, his hair was tied back into a ponytail, and his eyes were green. "I know we were supposed to meet you at the Student Union Building, but we figured if we walked this way, we'd meet you along the way. Didn't think we'd actually make it to the Physics building before finally seeing you, but whatever."

Kenji smiled at him. "Sorry. I had a meeting with a student that went longer than I thought it would." He looked around as though looking for somebody, and then asked, "Is Jed-san not joining us today?"

"He is," said the brunette, pushing himself off the wall. "He's already left to reserve us a table. How are you, Mamoru-san?" he asked, looking away from Kenji.

"I'm well, Norio-san," he smiled. "And you, Zen-san?" he asked the blonde man who was staring absently at the ground.

His words shook the young man out of his daydream and he smiled. "I'm very well, Mamoru-san." Out of all of them, he knew Mamoru the best so far, though admittedly, Kenji and Mamoru were becoming very close. They'd met in their literature class, both new students, and both eager to meet new people. Mamoru confronted him first, and a friendship blossomed. Sure, they hadn't known each other long, but that seemed irrelevant. For some reason, it felt as if they'd known each other for years. "I trust you've finished your paper?"

"Just last night," he answered as the four men walked down the hallway. "I'll probably wind up proof-reading it tonight. Which reminds me…I was going to ask you to do just that as a favor. After all, you do have the best grades in the class so far."

"I will if I have time," he replied thoughtfully. "The thing is, the professor came and asked me if I'd like to be a TA for one of his English classes. It really would give me the experience I need to pursue the career I want, so I'm going to jump at it."

"It's not all it's cracked up to be," Kenji muttered, his mind still on the previous encounter with Minako. "But, whatever suits you, my friend."

"Damn it," Norio shouted, his eyebrows furrowed. "We aren't in class anymore for crying out loud. Why the hell do you three insist on dwelling on school? Can't we have a normal conversation for once?

"Typical outburst for a business major," Zen teased, earning him a punch on the shoulder.

"Oh!" Mamoru suddenly said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his cell phone. Smiling, he looked up at the guys. "Pardon me for a second. I have to take this." Turning away from them, he walked a ways down the hall and began talking quietly to the person on the other end.

Kenji watched him for a moment before Norio tapped him on the soldier. "He could be the one," he whispered. "I feel the positive energy coming from him. It's possible that Mamoru-san is Prince Endymion."

"I've been thinking that myself," Kenji said, nodding. "It's not everyday you find somebody with that much of a noble atmosphere."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Norio asked.

"We have to be sure," Zen answered, putting a hand to his chin. "If he's not Endymion-sama, it could jeopardize everything. No. He'll reveal his power to us on his own time. We just have to watch him closely."

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Minako waited in the elevator, leaning against the wall miserably. Angry tears still lingered on her blonde lashes, and her heart still pounded furiously. Why did Kenji have to be so hostile towards her? She was sure it had nothing to do with the project. Ever since he'd stepped foot into the classroom, she'd sensed that he disliked her. She just didn't know why. Maybe it was just that their personalities clashed. He was always so serious and stuck up. He hardly ever smiled, his humor was dry and sarcastic, and he seemed so rigid all the damn time. Whereas, Minako smiled all the time, she hated people who were sarcastic and mean, and she was usually pretty optimistc. The semester had been hard on her though, and even she had to admit that her life wasn't exactly where she wanted it to be right now.

The door slid open and she made her way to her room. The moment the door was opened, Makoto, her roommate, jumped up and screamed happily. "Minako-chan! You'll never guess what I just saw!"

"Seeing how I'll never guess, why don't you just tell me and save time?" she grumbled, throwing her bag onto her bed and kicking her shoes off.

Makoto paused for a moment before shaking that off. "I was just watching the news, and they said that the Starlights are getting back together. You know what that means, right? It means that Seiya-san, Yaten-san, and Taiki-san are back. We might get to see them again. Wouldn't that be great? And maybe, if you play your cards right…you and Yaten-san could…"

"They're really back?" Minako asked in surprise. "I wonder why." Minako knew that they last time they had come it preceded the battle with Galaxia, and that was no picnic. In fact, if Usagi hadn't been able to defeat Chaos within Galaxia, Minako would still be dead.

Makoto stared at her best friend for a moment, trying to figure out what she was thinking. It was strange how much Minako had changed through high school. Physically, she was the same, not counting those two inches she grew and her bust size increasing slightly. It was more her personality that underwent the transformation. Though she was still somewhat spacey, boy crazy, and a blast to be around, she was prone to frequent pensive moments and fits of depression every now and again. The girls blamed this on the responsibilities of being the leader, and it seemed plausible enough. Minako usually refused to acknowledge when she fell into these moods. Makoto figured it was because Minako loved thinking of herself as the bubbly one of the group.

"I'm sure if they came back for something sinister, they'd contact Usagi-chan right away. Anyway, they showed them on the news. Yaten-san's grown a few inches since the last time we saw him. And, he's just as handsome as he was before."

"If this is your way of telling me to cheer up…it's working a little bit," she smiled, and plopped down on the bed. She looked up at Makoto and smiled. How was it that she was always able to read her mind? Well, it was probably because they'd been best friends for years. Makoto never changed. She was the same old Makoto.

"Are Ami-chan and Rei-chan aware of this?" she asked, pushing her bag off of her bed and laying down.

"Hell, Rei-chan called me the second the news report was over. Ami-chan called me right after, though I have a feeling she tried to call at the same time as Rei-chan because I kept hearing the phone trying to beep over. I wonder if Usagi-chan knows. I'd call her, but she's visiting her mom."

"Do you feel like getting out of here?" Minako asked, sitting back up. "I just feel like doing something. I'm so bored out of my mind."

"Don't you have a physics exam coming up?" Makoto asked her. "Shouldn't you be studying for that? You don't want to have to take the class three times, do you?"

"Of course I don't," Minako said sourly, hating that Makoto took it upon herself to be mother to her. "Especially not with Yamamoto-san as the teacher's aid. But I have a feeling I'm not going to pass no matter how hard I study. He just hates me."

"I don't think he just hates you," Makoto said encouragingly. "I actually think he's fond of you. That's why he gives you a hard time." She said that with confidence, considering she sat next to Minako in class and had experienced Kenji's personality firsthand. "He expects more out of you. You just wait. You'll see that I'm right."

"Okay, sure," she said, unconvinced. "But, in the meantime, let's go out and do something."

"Fine, fine," Makoto gave in, slipping her shoes on. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"Anywhere but here."

"Well, that does remind me. Ami-chan got reservations at the new restaurant that opened yesterday. She invited us and I was going to tell you yesterday, but with all this stress for the exams, I guess it slipped my mind. I hope we have time to get a hold of her and let her know we can make it."

"Cool. I'll get dressed."

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They two girls stood against the wall. One of them was talking on her cell phone while the other just stared down at her black shoes. They'd been waiting for about ten minutes now, and were getting pretty bored. Rei only half-heartedly listened to Ami's conversation. She was too busy going over in her mind what the news report had said: that the Starlights, after four years of being apart, were uniting and were going to start their comeback tour in Feburaury of the following year. Sure, she was excited about Minako and Makoto coming to join them for dinner, but she saw them everyday. When was the last time she saw the Starlights? When the door opened, the black-haired girl looked up and smiled upon seeing who had come in.

"Mamoru!" she gasped, rushing forward to greet him in a consuming hug. She and Mamoru had gotten even closer since he'd married her all time best friend. She had been Usagi's maid of honor at her wedding and had given a touching speech about how some people were destined to fall in love, and how some loves transcended time and were bigger than both people. She liked to think her speech touched Mamoru more than he ever said out loud which is why he seemed to insist that she come over all the time.

"Rei? Ami-chan?" Mamoru said happily. "What are you two doing here?" he asked. He turned around with a smile and explained, "Guys, I want you to meet two very good friends of mine. Rei and Ami-san." Ami hung up the phone when she realized that introductions were taking place. She smiled when she said her name and waved. "Ladies, these are some friends of mine. Suzuki Zen, Yamamoto Kenji, and Sato Norio."

"Nice to meet you," Norio said, taking Rei's hand and kissing it, and then doing the same to Ami. They both blushed which had Kenji and Zen rolling their eyes. They always were embarrassed by the constant flirt of the group. At least when the others flirted, they weren't so damn obvious about it. "You never told us you had such cute friends, Mamoru-san."

"My way of protecting them," he joked, making everybody laugh. Ami covered her mouth as she giggled, but stopped when she realized that she had actually met one of the men before.

"Suzuki-sensei?" she asked, stepping forward, and looking at him closer. He looked surprised for a moment. "Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. It's just that I am in the English class that you'll be assisting. It's a pleasure to have somebody as brilliant as you helping out, if the professor's kind words about you can be believed. I'm looking forward to your lectures, Suzuki-sama."

"Oh that's right," Mamoru laughed, looking at the stunned Zen. "Ami-chan is taking that class. It must have slipped my mind when you mentioned it. Well, you are very lucky, Zen-san. Ami-chan is one of the most intelligent people you'll ever meet."

If they thought Zen was standing stunned because she surprised him by her forwardness, they were only half right. The other half of him was mesmerized by her deep, blue eyes. She was the sweetest woman he'd ever seen, and he wondered why he hadn't noticed her when he introduced himself to the class earlier that week. He reached his hand out and shook hers. "Well... if Mamoru-san is right, I think you and I should get along just fine, Mizuno-san."

She actually blushed. He'd never seen anything so cute. He wanted to reach up and brush some of her hair out of her eyes, but that would be to bold. "Please," she said, waving her hand. "When we're not in the classroom, you don't have to call me Mizuno-san. It makes me feel old."

"What the bleeding hell took you all so long?" Everybody whirled around to see a, not angry, but irritated none-the-less, blonde approaching them. "I've had the table for fifteen minutes now. I'll bet the wait staff is beginning to think I made you guys up so I wouldn't feel bad about not having friends."

"You should still feel bad about not having friends, whether we're real or not," Zen teased, glad that Jed wouldn't actually throw anything at him in such a public place. As childish as they could be, Jed was all about appearances.

"We are just getting acquainted with some of Mamoru-san's friends," Norio told his best friend, but he seemed not to be listening at all.

"Hino-san," he smirked. "I trust that you have finished your History assignment."

She smiled wickedly and answered, "Yes, though I'm sure you won't like it anyway."

"Why do you say that?" he asked, his blue eyes glowing with some kind of fiendish delight.

"Because I criticize the feudalistic way you talk about women." She sounded angry when she said it, but Mamoru and Ami recognized it as one of her more playful tones. "And then I went on to say how archaic and repressive men like you are, and how you are stifling the woman's suffrage movement from making further progressions."

"I believe the equality you speak of, Hino-san, has already been achieved. Though I might agree that women aren't necessarily equal in the work force yet as far as pay and opportunity and we need to work on reforming that, I don't think that's what you're talking about when you mention further progressions. What women like you want is to hear that they are better, and that, to me, is archaic."

"I take it she's one of your students?" Norio asked dryly. Jed only nodded to confirm it. "What is it with everybody today? This is supposed to be our relaxation time. Why must we always talk about our studies?"

"Because... we're trying to become professors, so technically we're devoted the rest of our life to our studies," Zen answered. Kenji actually laughed at the look Norio gave him. Zen was not intimidated. "Norio... just let it go. We are relaxing... go with the flow, man."

"Are you waiting for you table?" Mamoru asked Ami, thoroughly ignoring Norio's impending tantrum.

"Yes. At first, it seemed like only Rei-chan and I would be eating today, but Makoto-chan just called and it seems they'll be joining us."

"Kino Makoto?" Norio asked, his eyes flashing towards her. It was possible that they were talking about another Makoto. The name wasn't exactly uncommon. But the run-in that he'd had yesterday with that particular Makoto was enough for him to attribute the name specifically to her. It took him four hours to get his papers in order after she'd slammed into him. He told her he wasn't angry about it, but that was before he sat for four hours trying to get his papers in order. From what he could tell, though, it hadn't been her fault that she'd trip and fallen into him. She'd been with Mamoru's wife who'd tripped before she had, pushing Makoto by mistake, and that was why she'd bumped into him.

"Yes," Ami said. "Tall girl, brown hair... looks like she could rip your head off if she wanted to."

Yep. That was the one. "Well, it is a small world after all," he chuckled. "She's in the class I assist."

Kenji didn't like the sound of that. Kino Makoto was in his class, too. And there was one thing that he learned he could count on. If Makoto missed class... so did Minako. If Makoto was there, so was Minako. They seemed inseparable. But, for right now, he hoped they were. He decided the only way to find out was to bring it up. "Great," he said to Mamoru. "The only person we're missing is Aino Minako."

Mamoru laughed and then looked at Ami before she said, "Minako-chan? Oh, she'll be coming, too. She's one of our friends."

"I have a brilliant idea, then," Zen said, grinning deviously. Kenji didn't like the sound of that either. "Why don't you lovely ladies join our table? And before you protest," he said, cutting Ami off, "it wouldn't be any bother to us at all. In fact, I think you and I should get to know each other a little better Ami-san. And, we wouldn't want to deny Jed-san and Hino-san the pleasure of continuing their spirited debate."

"Zen-san…" Kenji growled in warning.

"I can see how this could become interesting," Norio smiled.

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Tengoko: Yes, I am aware that I went Japanese suffix crazy. But, I figured if I'm modeling this story after the better Japanese version and not the crappy American dub, then I might as well go all out and use them. Also, I thought about including the scene at the dinner between them, but suffice it to say... Minako and Kenji did NOT get along. :)