Blueeyeddevil06, thank you for being my beta!

Lita stood in front of the wedding dress shop, looking at the dress in the window. The perfect dress didn't make her smile. It made her angry. She had a soulmate, the perfect man to marry, and right now, he was being such a jackass. He even tortured her friend. She wanted to beat the dark energy out of him.

That thought made her smile. Could she beat him so severely that the dark energy just slipped out? She really wanted to try.

"There you are, Lita."

She turned, and Andrew was standing there, staring at her, with an odd look in his eyes. They almost looked hazy to her. She couldn't tell for sure since it was getting dark, and her eyes hadn't quite adjusted.

"Is your shift over at the arcade?"

"Yes." He stepped towards her and suddenly swept her into his arms then caressed her face tenderly. "I'm so happy I ran into you, Beautiful."

She blushed under his praise. She knew she had a soulmate, but she was furious with him, and she'd had a crush on Andrew for years. "What are you doing?"

"Right now, I'm holding you. Soon, I hope to be kissing you, Lita." His hand slid from her face to the center of her back, holding her there.

"W-what about Rita? I thought you were dating her."

He gave her a strange smile and said, "I forget all about her when I'm holding you."

He leaned forward and kissed her lips. The moment they touched, disappointment spread through her body. She felt nothing from his kiss. Yet that quickly changed. Quickly she felt drained. It was pervasive, and she struggled to keep her eyes open.

When Andrew's kiss ended, she was unconscious in his arms, drained of energy. He then laid her on the sidewalk and smirked. The specter that inhabited him was pleased that they claimed her energy for the Dark Kingdom.

Nephrite was watching his plan work perfectly from the dark evening shadows caused by the moonlight. He was across the store and watched as everything went as it should.

Why he wanted to go over and rip out that boy's throat as he kissed that woman, he didn't know. He struggled to control the fury in him as he watched the kiss. He wanted to be the one with his lips pressed to hers.

Nephrite used his power over the specter in the boy to twist it and render him unconscious. He wanted him to suffer for touching that girl. He'd think about why later when he was back at D Point. Right now, he needed to focus. It was time for the youma bride to appear soon.

He was already pleased with the energy he'd been draining from the men that were trapped unconscious in the back of the bridal shop. He was serving his Queen well.

Why did that suddenly not please him as much as it had just prior to seeing that kiss?

Again, he pushed that out of his mind, for now.

His eyes locked on the woman lying unconscious on the sidewalk. She was just so beautiful. He wondered what her life was like and if she was happy. He found he hoped she lived a full wonderful life, and he knew that he'd restore her energy before he went back to Beryl. After all, she would never find out.

He looked around and worried suddenly that Zoisite might be around watching as he had been. Surely he would report to Beryl if he saw Nephrite healing her.

Except, he hadn't told her about Kunzite and the sailor scout having crazy sex after each battle. Neither did he, though. He was the one who tried to use it against Kunzite. The question was, why didn't Zoisite?

Damn, that man was a puzzle to him. The more he thought about him, the more questions he had. And why the hell was Zoisite glad he started asking questions?

Was he playing some weird mind game, or was there something to discover?

His eyes slid back to the unconscious girl again. She looked so fragile lying there on the sidewalk. Something told him that she would be horrified by that. He just had a feeling that she was strong, a fighter. That thought made him smile.

The thought of Kunzite brought him back to Sailor Venus' words of love. It had seemed like that was a trigger for…something. It had horrified him at the time that Kunzite proved weak for another woman. They served Queen Beryl. Now, for the first time, looking at the beauty before him, it didn't leave him disgusted. It left him questioning what was going on.

He ran his hand harshly through his hair and commanded himself to get it together. He had a job to do. That was the only thing he was sure of right now.

Much to his frustration, his youma bride failed like all the others. Most of the Sailor Scouts and Tuxedo Mask had appeared and made annoyingly short work of her.

When he stepped out of the shadows to face the Sailor Scouts, he bent down at the last minute and brushed the cheek of the unconscious woman, restoring her energy with a single touch. He then kicked the unconscious man in the stomach and turned to face his enemy.

He was incredibly confused why Sailor Venus was smiling at him when he turned to face them. He'd just tortured her. He expected hate in her eyes.

He sneered at her and said, "Damn, you lived."

Sailor Moon smiled at him. It kept getting weirder for him when she said, "One day, you'll be glad she did."

He scoffed and said, "I wouldn't hold your breath."

"You healed me?"

He turned and looked into the eyes of the beautiful woman. He was right. She didn't look vulnerable now. She looked him in the eye, not flinching.

"What makes you think that? You were unconscious."

She surprised him by stepping toward him. "I'm right. Why deny the truth?"

He heard Tuxedo Mask grumble out, "What do you think you're doing? He's dangerous, and you're here like… that." He was pissed that she was facing him as Lita, leaving herself vulnerable.

"He won't hurt me."

"How can you know that?!"

"He healed me. That I'm sure of." She then looked back at Nephrite. "You did, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I felt like it. And don't fucking ask me why. I don't know!" He roared. He didn't like having to face his reasons. For some reason, they left him agitated.

She reached out and caressed his face. "That's enough for now, then." His eyes slid closed, and he lightly smiled. Her caress felt magical.

"You should just go now," she added. "There is nothing left to do but fight them, and I don't want you to."

He felt his hands trembling. "But I serve Queen Beryl, and I have to fight them."

"Go and live to fight another time. I don't want you to die. I need you safe."

"On one condition. Kiss me." He wanted to erase that kiss he saw the unconscious boy give her. He wanted to replace it with his own. At this moment, he didn't care why.

"Happily."

He then leaned forward and claimed her lips. She then deepened it, and he felt as light as air. It was incredible and left him adrift.

When they parted, she was smiling at him, and her eyes were misty. "Perfect," she breathed out in a whisper.

He bowed to her and disappeared back to D Point.