Hey there, minna-san!  Just letting ya know, I don't own these characters, and figuring as how this story is about Haruka and Michiru it will contain homosexuality.  If this offends you in any way, stop reading now.  But if you like this sort of thing it'll be a pretty neat story, so sit tight and enjoy!

"Michiru's Melody"

            I saw her walk into the classroom, alone as usual, her long wavy hair bouncing gently as she walked, as if imitating the sea.  She took her seat, so far away from mine, and sat quietly waiting for the teacher to start the day's lesson.  I watched her, not trying to be discreet in any of my actions, just trying to take her all in while I had the chance too. 

            She began to shift uncomfortably at her desk, and I could tell that she felt the hungry gaze from my eyes towards her beautiful form.  Again, I did not try to mask my staring.  Just looking at her made my heart race faster than any speed my racecar could possibly hope to achieve.

            I smiled, lips slightly parting, and shook my head slowly; her nervous squirming did not suit her mature features.  She was too elegant to act even slightly childish, and I removed my eyes from her and ran my hand thought my short, sandy hair, sighing.  What I wouldn't do for her…I thought to myself.

            The class that day went by too slowly, Mugen Gauken Academy held very high standards, so there could not be any distractions from the teacher's lesson, but as hard as I possibly tried I could not get hold of my mind.  It wandered all the thoughts and aspects of Michiru, all the possible ways to initiate a conversation, and where the relationship would go from there.

            I concentrated my eyes hard on the teacher, for if I didn't, they would wander over to Michiru again.  If the teacher caught me I would never hear the end of it, and there would be endless griping about how the molecular structure is so much more important than a beautiful girl.

            Uncontrollably, my eyes wandered over to her again, and I blinked in amazement.  She moved her eyes quickly away from mine, panicked that I caught her looking at me.  With a boosted ego, I sat up tall in my chair and moved my eyes back to the teacher, unaware that two of his students were not paying any attention to his lesson.

            Now trying to be cautious in all my actions, I pretended to take notes, making sure my head was hidden by the person sitting in front of me.  I gazed at her, from afar, wishing with all my might that I could become closer to her.  Slowly, she brushed the hair from her right shoulder, allowing her to gaze in my direction for a moment.  Looking directly in my eyes she blushed and gave a quick, thin-lipped smile, and turned towards the front of the room once more, obviously afraid of being scolded from the teacher.

            I grinned faintly, and ran my hand though my soft hair again, unaware of my right hand's actions.  I glanced at the paper containing the phony notes and noticed that I had written 'Michiru' on it several times. Under one of the names I slowly drew an '&' and carefully placed my name under it. 

Michiru

&

Haruka

           

It had a very nice ring to it, bringing a bigger smile to my face.  Just something about the thought of our names…no…us being together made the world seem peaceful.  Nothing could ever calm my yearning soul besides the thought of Michiru, not even being the first at the finish in a big race, or the breeze that would whip across my face when I would speed down the highway in my convertible.

Eternity after long eternity, class was finally over.  I stood up casually stretching my aching muscles, and glanced at Michiru once more before bending over, grabbing my school bag, and flinging its heavy weight on my shoulder.  She got up from her desk slowly, as if waiting for something.  Waiting for me, I thought to myself, amused.  After all this time is she finally waiting for me?

Enchanted with her every movement, I stood at my desk and pretended not to notice the beautiful girl walking to me.  Standing in the middle of the room, I shot a sexy glance at my beloved, making her stop in the front of the classroom, and gently blush as the other students pushed past her.  I couldn't help but notice her delicate hands clutch harder around the handle to the violin case that she was carrying.

The rest of the class had left, leaving Michiru and I to stand awkwardly in the silent room.  I heaved my bag on my shoulder once more and left my desk to stand next to the girl in the front of the room.  I approached her, scooping all the confidence from my soul and trying to put it in my nervous strides, but from the way my knees where shaking, I'm sure she could tell I was as nervous as her.  As I stood in front of her, she brushed her ocean colored hair behind her shoulder, and gazed sincerely into my eyes with hers.

"I heard you play," Michiru started, voice wavering.  "The piano that is.  You know I play the violin, right?" She asked holding up the thick, black case slightly.

"I have all your CDs," I commented, stuffing my hands in my pockets, to keep them from fidgeting with the strap of my school bag.

"Oh…well, thank you," she did not sound like her normal intelligent self.  Her voice shook slightly, and her grammar was less than perfect.  I thought this was incredibly sexy.  "I've seen you race. You're very good."

I shrugged my shoulders slightly, wanting to tell her all my feelings when I was racing, and how that feeling could never be compared to the feeling she gave me, but I clutched my fist tightly and accepted the complement.  "I enjoy it.  So is there something in particular you wanted to talk about?"

"Yes, actually there is.  I was hoping you could help me with something.  Do you think you could help me?"  She asked cocking an eyebrow; never losing the contact our eyes were locked in.  At that point in time, no matter how hard I tried, I could not turn my eyes away from hers, because when I tried, she wouldn't let me.  I was excited because I was normally so dominant, but she had complete control of me.

"Anything for you," I whispered, inching my head closer to hers.  I don't care what she asked of me, she could ask for the world, she could ask for my life, and I would give it to her without a second thought.

She lowered her head, breaking the contact with my eyes, and my body felt weak, as if I had been released from a spell.  "You see, I have a concert coming up," she glanced over at the chalkboard, where the teacher had once been standing, and then back to me.  "I was hoping you could accompany me with the piano.  I don't want anyone else but you."

No body else but me?  The thought rang in my ears, and I was pleased.  Trying not to show how thrilled on the inside I was, I bit my bottom lip to keep from grinning ear to ear, and clenched my sweaty fists in my pocket even harder than before.  "I would love to," I said, happiness creeping into my voice uncontrollably.  I cleared my throat and waited for her response to my answer.

Her blue eyes lit up and a smile crossed her face.  She tucked in her lip's edges, trying to conceal her emotions.  She had a great way of doing that, but still for a split second, I caught site of her true feelings.  "Thank you so much.  I have the music in my bag," she grabbed her bag and opened it nervously.  "If you want me to give it to you now…"

She tugged at a huge folder, causing all of her belongings to come crashing to the floor, and her face went crimson.  She collapsed to her knees to pick up the mess.  Me, being the gentleman I am (or perhaps being the gentlewoman I am), I helped her pick up her papers and folders and handed them to her, gently brushing against her soft hand as I did so.

"I'm sorry about that," she apologized, putting her possessions away quickly. 

"Can I see the music?"  I asked, curious to see what she wanted me to play for her.

"Of course," she removed the folder she had intended to the first time, and opened it deliberately, pulling out a thick stack of papers and handed them to me, this time brushing her hand against mine.  I smiled at her and had a hard time shifting my gaze from her to the music.  Despite wanting to stare into her eyes, I looked the music up and down.

"I don't think I've heard this song," I commented, looking at the title and not recognizing it.

"I wrote it myself," Michiru stated, proud of her work.  Of course I don't blame her for being proud, just upon my first inspection I could tell the music was well written, and playing the notes over in my mind, liked the melody instantly.  I let a stifled little laugh escaped my mouth as I thought to myself, Michiru's melody.

"Your very talented," I said out loud, but mostly just thinking to myself.  "Do you need a ride home?"  I asked eagerly, and blushed, quickly realizing the desperation in my voice.

Michiru's eyes softened, disappointment written in their beautiful depths.  "No, I don't.  I have practice with the school orchestra today.  Thank you very much for the offer..."  I could tell Michiru was looking for something else from the tone in her voice in her last sentence.

"Then sometime else?" I guessed at what she wanted, and from the look in her beautiful eyes, I could tell I guessed correctly. 

"That would be great," she gushed, and then looked at her feet, obviously ashamed of her vast excitement.  She tucked a fold of hair behind her ear and lifted her violin case slightly, noticeably disappointed to back to the subject at hand .  "So would you consider playing the piano for me?"

"Consider?" I smiled and inched my way closer to her, and as gently as a mother with her very first child, brushed her hair with my long fingertips.  "I will be on stage with you the night of the concert.  I wouldn't have it any other way."

She bowed to me graciously, and exited the room.  Despite leaving me behind, the thud of her beating heart followed her all the way to the auditorium in which she was to practice in.  I stood for an eternity in the desolate room, gazing over the papers that Michiru had handed to me, and could hardly contain myself.  Michiru is trusting me to go onstage and to accompany her with the song that she wrote herself!  This is such a great opportunity.   

I do not use this word often, but I merrily walked to the staff's parking lot to get my car.  It could not be trusted to stay in the same parking lot as the uncouth students' of this school.  Given that the school was for fine, outstanding students, I just would not want anything to happen to my precious car.  The only thing that could ever reach beyond the pedestal my car held in my heart, was her...only her.

In my huge mansion of loneliness, I practiced the piano.  Instantly, my fingers danced over the keyboard of the grand piano, making relatively few errors.  But it wasn't good enough.  Even perfection was not good enough for Michiru.  It had to be above and beyond any normal standard, and even through the ach in my fingers, I played for her.

My fingers played major and minor octaves, flats and sharps.  They gracefully flew past changing key signatures and time signatures.  Even the most difficult of rhythms seemed easy for my weary fingers.  Michiru's music was a masterpiece.

Through the late night hours I played the music, swaying my head to feel the beat, maintaining correct posture at all times, despite my back's horrific scream of pain.  Even with it's protests to rest, I sat upright and perfectly erect.   Without even looking at the long pages of notes, my fingers played the song, almost as if I had been practicing the song since I was a small child, and finally got the hang of it.

But that wasn't right.  It's not as if I really knew the song; knew the notes, the rhythms, or the accidentals.  No, it was more like the melody was coming from my soul and was pouring out through my fingertips against the cold ivory keys of the piano.  Every moment of that night I can no longer recollect.  It went past like a dream.  A sweet, slow moving dream.  Everything that was in my mind was forgotten, left behind in the lonely walls of my house and all that existed to me was my fingers, the piano, and Michiru's melody.  

            The weeks that passed were almost as blurred as that one sleepless night.  Happiness had filled my heart just having Michiru part of my life.  I drove her home every day from school, and eventually she began coming over my house, practicing the song she had gave her heart to write.

            The walls of my solitary house were overflowing with our laughter as we talked together and made music together. Light seemed to engulf my house the moment she walked in, and it could almost be mistaken for the glow of heaven, for Michiru was an angel.  My angel.

            Despite our closeness and happiness together, life seemed so much darker than it ever had been after she left.  The warmness was gone as soon as her foot left the door, sucking out any previous joy that had once been there.  I would sit alone in my piano room hours after she left.  The only thing left to hold on to was the thought about the time that I could be together with her again.  I held on to that thought, afraid to let go, for if I did I might be thrown into some dark abyss for the rest of my life.

            Sitting silently, I realized just how much I loved her, and just what I would do for her.  But none of my feelings matter if she did not return my love.  As far I knew she just thought of me as a friend.  But I had plenty of evidence to contradict that thought.  Just the way she would fidget when she felt my eyes on her, or when she would blush when I got near.

            When my mind got on that particular heart-maddening topic I would get up uncomfortably from where I was sitting (or in most cases where I was sleeping) and play the piano until my fingers could no longer play or I could no longer hold the weight of my own eyelids.  Normally, falling asleep against the frozen blackness of the grand piano, only to be woken abruptly by the harsh sun only a few hours later.

           

After endless nights of my tormenting routine, the night of the concert finally arrived.

Gracefully and elegant, Michiru walked into our dressing room, wearing a long, sleek black dress,  showing all of her curves.  She had such a lovely figure, men wished their lovers could look more like her, while women whispered to their friends in jealousy.  As she entered she carried a bouquet of red roses, tucked under one arm, and held her violin case in the other.

She stopped, and blushed turning around quickly when she saw that I was barely dressed, the upper half of my body only covered by a lacy white bra.  I turned to her and smiled, tapping her shoulder playfully.  She covered her eyes with her hand, roses almost falling over her shoulder. 

I reached for the flowers and her case and whispered, "It's ok.  We're both girls, right?"

Reluctantly, Michiru uncovered her eyes and smiled weakly,  "Right."

Once I had my shirt on and my tux coat over it, she seemed to turn into her normal, wonderful self.  She looked over at the roses I had placed on the huge vanity, and picked them up quickly and walked towards me, regaining her nervous features once more.

She handed the roses to me and smiled graciously.  "I wanted to thank you.  I bought these for you, to show you how much this means to me."  I accepted the roses silently.  This sort of thing was not my style, but I was thoroughly enjoying it.  I brought the roses to my nose and smelled their sweet nectar, never taking my eyes from Michiru's.  "Thank you." She whispered gently.

"No thank you," I whispered back, biting my lips trying desperalty not to let any other words escape my mouth. If I said anything else, I wouldn't be able to hold anything back, I would end up releasing all the passion I had for her, and I could not risk making a big confession like that right before Michiru's big concert.  It could end up hurting her performance and there was no way I could ever possibly stand in the way of Michiru's music.

I adjusted my bowtie as Michiru rosined her bow and tuned her strings.  The high-pitched sound of the E string cut through my endless whirlwind of thoughts, making me realize just how close the performance was.  I swallowed hard, trying to make the words on the verge of my tongue disappear, but they could not help but grow bigger with each passing second.  My hands shook violently from the confession I was about to make.  I knew I could not play if I didn't say it now, and in all my selfishness I bent down to face Michiru, who just finished adjusting her strings.

"Michiru," I said, startled by my own voice.  "There's some thing I wanted to tell you."

The door opened quickly and a middle aged woman with wrinkles from a very difficult career poked her head in and smiled and said, "We're ready for you two!  The audience is packed!  Get on stage!"

She closed the door and Michiru stood up, obeying the woman's orders.  I held on to her hand, refusing to let her out of the room before I told her what needed to be said.

"Haruka!" she gasped in surprise. 

"Please listen to me for a minute!" I begged, now holding on to both of her hands, and pulling her closer to me.  "These past few weeks have been the best in my life.  My heart went from being cold, dark, and utterly empty to feeling so full of life it's about to burst, and it's all because of you.  Your song is what keeps me going when I'm alone.  It fills me up, because you wrote it.  I love you Michiru, and I always will.  Please, give me a chance.  Give my love a chance!"

Michiru's eyes filled with tears painfully, and she hung her head, hair covering her face.  Desperately, I tried to see her eyes, but the were will hidden.  I had to find some sort of expression from my love, to find out how she felt, or at least to just look at her once more before we went on stage, to give me the strength to go on with the performance.

She faced me once more, and I searched for the emotion displayed in her eyes.  She let go of my hands and let the tears run down her face, in slow, thin rivers.  "What you don't know about that song," Michiru started, closing her eyes and letting a sob escape her beautiful body.  "It that I wrote it for..."

The middle aged woman opened the door nearly knocking over Michiru in the process.  She looked a Michiru in dismay, displaying the look that had engraved wrinkles in her face.  "Everyone's waiting for you! You're coming with me now.  You!"  She yelled at me, and I was caught off guard, wanted to hear the rest of what Michiru had to say.  Who did she write the song for?  Whose song have I been playing with all of my heart? 

"Go down the hall and to your left.  You'll go on stage after Michiru.  Now, got it?" she yelled as if I was a child that could not understand her words.

"Yes, I understand," I said almost too quietly to be heard.  The woman grabbed Michiru, despite her open protest and dragged her down the hall, leaving me alone, once again.  I gathered my thoughts and walked out the door, chest out, posture stiff, determined not to let my emotions get to me.  Despite the fact that she had wrote the song for someone else, it was still her melody, and I knew I would play it perfectly for her, to prove my undying love for her.

I entered the door to my left and could hear the crowd cheering for Michiru through a thick black curtain.  A stage director patted my back and screamed to be heard through the deafening roar of the audience.  "It's time for you onstage!!!"

I nodded an entered the stage, momentarily blinded by the stage lights.  Through the white lights I could see Michiru's silhouette.  I could not make out any of her features except the glistening of her teary eyes.  I was stunned by the sheer beauty of the girl standing on the stage, and hurriedly took my place on the bench of the piano.  Michiru held her violin in the resting position, waiting for the audience to become silenced once more.

With the audience as silent as a night before the earth was created, we started playing, and it was truly extraordinary.  We played perfectly together, rolling gently over the sweet notes and changing dynamics, playing from our hearts.  Any past worry of mine was put on hold, as I poured my love for Michiru onto the keys of the piano set before me.  Our parts blended faultlessly and our intonation was superb.  We played the music as if there was nothing else in this universe for us to worry about.  Cares, fears, pains, everything was gone for the short period of time that we played.

Memories of the past lonely nights fled from my brain as I played, and all that was left was the sweet melody that seemed to take me into my own little world.  Her song was like a drug to me; highly addictive.  It brought me to extreme happiness only to leave me feeling more empty when it was over.  It left me all alone, in a cold, dark world, shaking for more.  And the only antidote to Michiru's melody was Michiru herself.

It was over all to quickly.  Before I could register what was happening, the crowd was cheering and applauding, giving us a stand innovation.  I stood up and joined Michiru in the front of the stage, in a thick fog, and took a bow.  The curtain closed in front of us, and I knew it was time for me to leave Michiru to face the audience she had worked so hard for.  I gently touched her hand, and began pacing off stage.  The flood gates of my mind had broken open and the harsh memories from the dressing room filled my mind.

Michiru caught my hand before I could leave and pulled me closer.  She yelled in my ear trying to be heard over the roaring crowd.  "I wrote the song... for you."

I stood stunned for a moment, trying to put together the words of her sentence.  The song?  Was for me?  I looked into her gorgeous eyes, threatening to cry once more.  I held her hand tighter and kissed it gently, never taking my eyes off hers the whole time, before running off stage, letting the composer and artist get the credit she deserved. 

There I stood, off stage but still close enough to keep an eye on my love, watching her lovely figure take a graceful bow.  She waved and stood in the bright lights of the stage, and glanced at me, eyes shimmering, and smiled.  I smiled back, grateful for the wonderful gift she had given me, knowing now that we could be together, as she lipped the words, "I love you."

Ok, that's my story!!!  I hope you liked.  Yeah, I know it's sorta sappy, but they make such a cute couple!!!  I want to be like Michiru so much!  (Except the whole Sailor Neptune thing.  I wouldn't want to be a Sailor Seishi.  I'm not up for the responsibility.  But if I had to be one, I'd be Sailor Pluto!!!  Dead Scream.  Hehehe...)  Anywayz, I know this story goes against the way the series portrays them getting together, but if it wasn't original than it wouldn't be called a fanfiction.  Anyways, please tell me what you though!!!  Until next time!

Amazonness Ryoga