I want to thank to Astraearose-silvermoon for betaing the story for me.

I am sorry for the delay, I've had really bad writer's block.

This chapter will be mainly about Takeo with him also being a very important character in this story. Other OCs of mine will play an important role in this chapter as well. Let's say that this chapter, and probably the next, are an opportunity to get to know them better and explore their personalities and lives. Maybe even unveil some secrets and mysteries!

Also, this chapter doesn't have any action or fights, its more centered on one of the main romances in this story. After all, Sailor Moon isn't only fights against the evil!

I hope you enjoy it and please review.


Chapter 7 – Who is the Target of the Cupid's Arrow?

Takeo was in his class, still dazed with his encounter with that beautiful maiden. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't pay any attention to class, although that was not that unusual. After all, he was never what teachers call a 'model student'. His grades were enough for him to pass the year, but were not that spectacular. The only subject he was truly good at was design, since he was excellent at drawing. Maybe that ability ran in the family, since his dear cousin, Michiru, was also very good at it.

"Hi." Says a voice beside him. Takeo stops drawing in his notebook and roses his head, coming face to face with Momoka. The girl with long straight blonde hair and green eyes. She was known in the whole school. They said she was very beautiful (that he could confirm) and smart. She didn't reach Ami in grades, but was almost there. And, according to what he had heard, she seemed very lovely and sociable.

"Hello." He greets.

"You're the new student, right?" Momoka asks.

"Yes. I am Takeo Kaioh. It's a pleasure to meet you!" He replies.

"You too. I'm Momoka Hoshino." Momoka presents herself, her name rung a bell in Takeo's head.

"Hoshino? Ah! You must be from Akiko's family!" He supposes, excited.

"Akiko? Yes, she's my younger sister. A clumsy head, actually!" She confirms, laughing quietly. "Do you know her?" Momoka asks.

"Hai, I already had the pleasure of meeting her. Your sister is a very charming girl, you are very lucky." Takeo answers.

"She is, isn't she?" Momoka says politely and with a proud face, but drops that topic of conversation very quickly. "Well, it's lunch time. Do you want to have lunch with me and my friends? I am sure you will like them and you surely need some friends." She offers.

"Yes, sure. Thank you very much!" Takeo thanks her, at the same time that he roses from his seat, giving Momoka a chance to see the drawing that was on the page of his notebook.

"Wow! This is really good! You do have talent, Takeo!" Momoka congratulates him, taking the sheet of paper in her hands, in order to see the piece better.

"Oh, that? That's just a rough draft. Nothing special." He says, a little embarrassed.

"Who is it?" She asks, curious.

"Just a girl. I really don't know who she is either. That image just came to my mind." Takeo answers, praying she will not find him crazy. In the draft long wavy brown hairs and the facial expressions seemed to indicate the girl was with a neutral expression. But who was really that girl, he didn't know.

"It's very good." She insists.

A week later, Takeo is walking through the schools garden, when he sees a group of people, that he recognizes as being some of Momoka's friends, kicking a little black and white kitten. He looks around: his cousin and the rest of the girls weren't there, maybe they had gone to the bathroom or they were in other part of the school. As for the other students that were there, none of them did anything to stop it. Some of them didn't even care, others were afraid that, if they tried to rescue the poor kitten, they would be beaten as well.

Unable to allow that brutality to continue, Takeo took a step forward but before he could reach the group of guys, some other person did. It was Akiko.

"Leave him alone!" She yells, with rage, putting herself between the guys and the cat.

"And who is going to stop us? You?" One of them cockily replies.

"Don't think you can get rid of us only because you're Momoka's little sister." Threats another.

"Leave him alone. He did you no harm." Akiko repeats, with a defiant look.

"From what I can see, you also didn't do any harm to us." Affirms the first, getting to close to her.

Akiko just bits her lip and continues to face them, even when the guy grabs a strand of her blonde hair and smells it. Upon seeing that, Takeo's blood boils and without thinking he runs to her and grabs the guy's arm, pulling it way from Akiko.

"Get your filthy hands off of her!" He warns, with pure rage in his eyes. "Leave now!"

"Akiko!" Resounds Momoka's voice, while she approaches the scene. "What are you doing here?"

"Momoka, tell your stupid friends to leave before I finish them all!" Takeo suggests, trying to calm down, while Momoka gives him a curious look and Akiko just stares at him, astonished.

Momoka stops for a minute to analyze the situation, but in the moment after she signals with her head to her friends, telling them to go away. They all obey, and she also began to turn around in order to follow them but, before that, she looks at her sister in the eye.

"We will talk about this at home." She says and leaves.

When they are out of sight, Akiko goes to the little kitten. The cat, at first, draws back, but Akiko gives him a warming and soothing look, grabbing him gently and putting him on her lap, caressing him on the back, using that to also check for injuries. Takeo goes to her silently.

"You two are alright?" He asks.

"Yes. Thank you." Akiko replies, with a sincere and admired expression.

"Sure. I'm glad." Takeo murmurs seriously and turns around, in order to go away, but the sound of Akiko's voice stops him.

"No, not that. Thank you for helping me. Facing that man and telling my sister to tell them to go away." She explains, with her voice down, but a sincere look of gratitude. One that Takeo can't resist, so he sits beside the orange eyed girl.

"It was the least I could do." Affirms the boy, with a smile that is rewarded with a kind smile from Akiko.

"Still. Thank you." She says. They both smile to each other, but after some seconds the blonde breaks the change of looks and sighs. "I am so screwed when I get home."

"You really think your sister wants revenge or something?" Takeo asks, shocked.

"I don't know. I don't know how many lies her friends already told her." The girl confesses, shrugging.

"Why did you do that? Endangering yourself for the cat." Takeo asks. He actually knew the answer, but wants to hear it from the blonde's mouth.

"If he is a living being like us, he also feels like us. Then, why should he suffer just because of the badness of the man?"

"You are the most kindest soul I have ever seen." Takeo says, staring lovingly at the girl and, for a moment, Akiko holds his gaze with a gentle smile, but seconds after she advertises his gaze, looking to the cat with happiness, seeing the kitten is already sleeping peacefully in her lap.

"In that case, I can say the same thing about you." Affirms Akiko, looking at Takeo with a smile. "You also defended me without a second thought. Maybe the reason why you did that it's the same reason why I helped this cat."

The boy smiles at her. She had no idea of how wrong she was by supposing he only act in her defense because she was a human being like him and, because of that, she didn't deserve to be in pain. Well, partly may be truth, but he actually didn't have difficulty to realize he had done that because he was jealous, because he couldn't bear to see someone else touch her. And, it was in that moment that he realized he was in love with that girl. Takeo was so distracted with Akiko that didn't noticed Momoka watching them.

Some days passed, rather calmly, actually. Some battles for the Sailor Senshi, with a few appearances of Sailor Sun, although they did not see the lion again. But, with their new powers, the girls managed to defeat the enemy without the help of the other mysterious Sailor.

The class was very boring, if you asked Takeo. They were in chemistry and the teacher was giving an exhausting explanation about acids. Most of the students, like Takeo, were almost asleep, others were just praying she would shut up and let them finally mix the chemicals, and there was one student who was paying attention and taking notes. Takeo knew that girl: it was Momoka.

Momoka was really a loving girl and all the rumors in the school were true. But, as the others saw her as the perfect girl every guy wanted to date, he, on the other hand knew her as Momoka, his class colleague and Akiko's older sister (it was curious because, in school, Akiko was only known as Momoka's sister).

It was in those moments, that everything he saw he connected it to Akiko, that he really realized that he really was falling for the girl. Of course he didn't knew her very well, actually he had seen her only a few times, but she was always so nice and kind! He just didn't want to know what people thought of her, for him she will always be the finest girl in all the land, with her gentle soothing voice and tender welcoming smile, and he swore he would always give her his love, no matter what.

Truthfully, he hadn't fell for her in the day he meet her officially, two weeks ago. That day, when he met her at the school gates, he had, indeed, felt attracted to her. That he could not deny, after all, the girl was attractive. He only asked himself how is it possible that anyone else couldn't see her beauty.

It was four days ago that he really started fall in love with her, when he saw her treating that little kitten that everyone else had mistreated. She truly had strength of character, to stand up to those idiots. Since that moment, the boy had absolutely fell for Akiko and here he was, in his chemistry class, thinking about the girl that had stolen his heart. Well, if you analyze this carefully, he was thinking about chemistry: the chemistry between him and Akiko.

"So, how was school today?" Setsuna asks at the Outers house.

"It was awesome! We built a volcano in science class! And we saw it explode!" Answers Hotaru, excited about her day, with her eyes shining.

"Well, our day was simply boring!" Says Haruka, with her head resting in her hand and a sleepy face.

"C'mon, Ruka! You say that every time we have math." Teases Michiru, smiling.

"What about you, Takeo? Takeo?" Asks Setsuna, but doesn't get any answer, since Takeo is in another place and had a dreamy expression on his face. And Michiru knew there is only one cause for that look.

"So, how is Akiko?" She asks, hoping he would come back to the real world.

"Oh… Hum… What?" Takeo asks, making the others laugh hard, while he just puts a confused face as to why they are laughing. "What is so funny? Guys?" He asks.

"You are completely taken by her!" Explains Haruka, between the laugh.

"Takeo and Akiko, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!" Jokes Hotaru, to what Takeo reacts by tickling her, trying to hide the blush.

"Don't be stupid! There is nothing between me and Akiko!"

"I can tell you're lying!" Teases Michiru, smiling at her cousin's embarrassment.

In that moment, the door bell rung. Michiru got up and goes to the door, opening it to see who is it.

"Hello Michiru. May I speak with Takeo, please?" Asks the voice, to which Takeo and Haruka recognize as being Momoka's. Haruka and Michiru also knew her, since they were in the same class, but they never really talked to her. They only knew her voice because they've heard her speak to others or answer the questions the teacher asked.

"Sure. Come in." Says Michiru, politely.

"Actually I prefer to speak to him alone. Is that possible?" Asks Momoka, with a gracious smile.

"Sure." Conceded Takeo, making his way to the door and leading Momoka to the garden. "So, what do you want to talk abo-"

When the boy spins around, to be face to face with Momoka, he can't say another word because the girl pressed her lips to his, in a longing kiss.