………………………

………*sigh* Sorry for not getting the chapter out quickly.

I am going through a small bout of depression at the moment.

Why, you ask?

I'll tell you why.

I just finished Final Fantasy VIII, after playing well over 100 hours of it (to some people, that's nothing, but I consider it an achievement) and now…

… well, what do I do now?

The dream's over.

I mean, I've got Final Fantasy X at my other house, but I won't be there until the end of the week.

………………

 I sat for twenty minutes after "The End" came up, hoping something else would happen.

………………

…Obsessive, you say?

Yes! I am!……… *sigh*

*ahem* Anyway… It was pointed out in a review that I made Wufei an idiot. It was intentional but not in that way… it's kinda hard to explain. Wufei isn't actually an idiot it just that… hmm. Well, you'll see. I've had this chapter planned out for a while so there'll be some stuff……… I'm sorry. My brain hurts. And I'm so depressed……… damn you Final Fantasy VIII and your addictive-ness!!

(My mum (Yes, M-U-M. That's how we spell it in Australia. Land of the skips.) said that I was starting to show aggressive tendencies due to my excessive game-playing. (I play at least 5 games at any one time. My mum believes that this is strange whereas I believe it to be completely normal.) She said that if it continued she would have to ban me… Well, she can't ground me because I've grounded myself. In a way.)

Disclaimer: I don't own SM or GW. But in an alternate universe I do…………… I'm serious.

Key:

Bold        = emphasis

Italics     = thoughts

Awaiting Good Fortune

*******Chapter Five: Once they get to know each other…

Rei briefly looked over at her alarm clock.

Lime green digits that read '9:48' stared at her.

She sighed.

She didn't feel accomplished. She didn't want to gloat. She didn't feel victorious…But she had won.

Argh! This is so infuriating!

She wasn't quite sure whether that was because she didn't feel as if she had won or if Wufei only had 12… no, now 11 more minutes to show up.

She needed him to show up so that she knew she had won. She didn't know why she was in doubt but somehow found herself there.

Is it possible to defeat an opponent yet still lose?

She stewed on the thought for a little while.

No. It wasn't. She had defeated him, fair and square.

And he deserved it too! He's a sexist, chauvinistic, ignorant idiot of a boy and he needed to be put in his place!

Her mind raged furiously. Soon she felt better and she looked over to her alarm clock with renewed confidence. '9:57' greeted her unemotionally. She stood up and brushed the small fibers from the carpet off her robes.

Her door then opened in a controlled but loud manner. The reason for her previous mental turmoil the one who opened it. He took two steps into her room (completely uninvited!) and glared death at her.

"Onna, what you did was undignified and weak. You had me fooled that you were worthy of victory," Wufei said tonelessly. Rei could feel her anger literally boiling at the pit of her stomach. "You are a priestess and a guardian of your temple. You talk to the spirits. These things require great strength and stamina. And yet, onna, you are one of the weakest people I have met," he stated matter-of-factly.

"And why is that?" She asked, as calmly as she could… through gritted teeth.

"You used the spirits to empower yourself."

Rei crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. Plainly asking 'why is that such a terrible thing?'

"You obviously know how the spirits work, onna, otherwise they would not have aided you. But I'm not sure if you do or don't know that when fighting spirits empower you, they are actually stolen from another, living, person. More often than not the closest." His voice was becoming angrier.

Her eyes widened slightly. She hadn't ever delved into the world of fighting spirits before… but she had just assumed that it would be just as simple! Spirits weren't of this world they were of the next!

But it is possible for spirits to exist in a body of this world…

 Her thoughts were broken as the Chinese boy pointed an accusing finger at her.

"Woman! You stole from me and you insulted me, and there must be repayment!" His eye seemed to flame and bore holes into her own, but she tossed her head nonchalantly and stared defiantly back.

"What kind of repayment?" She asked in a clipped tone.

"Another match. One week from now, without spectators. Come as you are, and without the spirit of others, onna." His accusing finger dropped and he turned and walked towards the door. Before he stepped out into the corridor, he turned and looked at her. "And your repayment for your dishonorable insults will come in time, weakling."

"I did not insult you, you idiot fool!" He flinched and marched right up to her, staring down at her with flaming eyes.

Rei aggressively fought the urge to shrink away.

"It is taught in the teachings of martial arts to believe in the abilities of yourself, your opponent and your weapon, onna, or you will surely fail. You, a dishonorable woman of all people, stole from me and insulted me after you defeated me with my own strength. Woman, that will not go unpunished."

Rei narrowed her eyes and tried to stand at her full height.

"I accept your challenge… But I warn you, chauvinist, you will still lose to me." He glowered at her, then left the room.

So it is possible to lose and win at the same time…

Quatre walked a snuffling Ami to her door. She laughed a soft, strained chuckled and stared at the floor.

"I'm sorry. I'm just acting silly… don't mind me," she tried as hard as she could to smile, but failed miserably, ending up looking like she was about to cry.

"I don't think you're OK. Ami, what exactly is making you upset?" Quatre asked gently.

"I'm not so sure. I've been thinking about it, and, maybe…" She trailed off uncertainly. He waited patiently for her to put her thoughts into words. "I… I think it was because I was seeing a different side of Rei. Usagi and Rei have a lot of fights, but they're all in jest… this time… this time Rei was in a real fight, and I saw a graceful but violent side of her. I suppose we all have a side of ourselves like that… but… it was just a bit scary at first when I actually witnessed it."

"I see," Quatre said, giving an understanding nod. Ami smiled. "Do you want to talk about it or do you want to go to sleep?" He asked.

"I… I'm not sure. I think that maybe I should get some rest... But thank you anyway for putting up with my sniffling."

"Oh, no, It wasn't any--… I mean, um, you're welcome," he said, smiling unsurely, not really knowing if what he said was a polite answer or not.

They both stood in the corridor for a few seconds longer. Quatre looked at his hands and began to fidget and Ami looked off to her left briefly. She then clasped her hands in front of her and began to toy with her fingers uneasily.

A few more endless moments passed until she decided on what to say. She looked up and was surprised and the blonde in front of her did exactly the same.

"W-well, I'll see you at breakfast tomorrow, Quatre…!" She chirped. The slight flush that crept across his face seemed to be infectious, as she could feel her own cheeks heating up. Why? She wasn't really sure.

"Y-yes. I guess I'll see you then."

The both stared at each other then looked at their still fidgeting hands. A few minutes passed.

"So… I guess… um, goodnight, then," Quatre said with a crooked smile.

"Oh, yes, g-goodnight. Sorry. I'll see you in the morning." She speed into her room in less than a second, leaving a still (slightly blushing) Quatre to walk into his own room, very confused and very flustered.

"Man, that was COOL!" Minako yelled as she ran into the Lounge room and pounced onto a nearby couch. She snatched the VCR remote ((AN: I hate remotes. They so convenient yet you need to have something like SIX of them so you don't actually have to leave the couch)) from the floor and began to jab at the air with it, imagining it to be sword.

"I KNOW! They were so COOL!" Duo ran to the television and grabbed the remote from on top of it, swiveling around and pointing it at Minako. "They were like THIS and THIS and THIS!" He screeched excitedly, striking a pose with each 'this.'

"Yeah! And then they were like THAT and THAT and THAT!" Minako squealed, jabbing at Duo with each 'that.'

"Hey, you nearly hit me!" Duo squeaked as he bounced behind a sofa.

"I was trying to hit you! I'm winning!" Minako said heatedly as she jumped onto the sofa Duo was hiding behind, proceeding to lean over the back and jab at the braided boy who was vainly trying to block her. He jabbed at her hand (temporarily disabling her) then sprung up and leaped over the back of the chair and knocked away her weapon.

"Ha ha HA! Super Duo has emerged VICTORIUS once again! He has beaten the evil Empress Minako in savage remote warfare! Mwa ha ha!"

Minako narrowed her eyes and pounced at him, snatching his remote out of his hands.

"But the Empress Minako (who isn't actually evil but was just possessed by Duo's evil and oversized ego) makes a come-back! She has stolen Duo's—"

"SUPER Duo's…"

"—SUPER Duo's weapon, thus making him… um, turn into…um… HEERO! HA HA HA !"  Minako cackled at her insane genius. Duo screwed up his nose.

"How am I meant to be Heero?"

"I dunno HOW. You're his friend right?" Minako asked, whacking him on the head with the TV remote. Duo seemed immune to the pain.

"I'm not sure…" He frowned. "I guess so. Although he does throw death-threats at me…But not as much as Wufei does, though." Duo looked thoughtful for a moment. "I'd say about half as much. But that's not including Wufei chasing be with his katana."

"Fair enough." Minako jumped down from the sofa then clapped her hands together. "I'm hungry! Let's go make something! Ooh! I know how to make the best thing in the world next to choc-strawberry milkshakes! Follow me!" Minako sprinted into the kitchen and began to empty the fridge, freezer and cupboard of all their contents.

"That went quickly, didn't it? I didn't really expect Rei to lose, but I didn't expect her to win so rapidly," Makoto said as she walked into the backyard next to Trowa.

"It did go fast. I have never seen Wufei in such bad form," Trowa said briefly, almost to himself.

"What do you mean?" The tall boy turned around and looked at her, seemingly only realizing she was there for the first time.

"Wufei is a great swordsman. He looked like a novice in there. Your friend is good, but there is something wrong with Wufei, he could not possibly have fought so badly, otherwise."

They both walked in silence through the back garden until they reached the back door of the boarding house. Trowa got to the door first and opened it for her. Makoto uttered an embarrassed 'Thankyou'while her thoughts blushed.

Oooh! He's so gentlemanly! He's like my old boyfriend Yuusuke! Aaah…

Makoto floated inside, an indifferent Trowa following her and closing the door behind him.

Usagi frowned as she brushed her teeth. She still couldn't work out why she had a bad feeling. It was gone now, but why it was there in the first place baffled her. She'd decided it was something about the duel, but she didn't know enough about swordfights or swords or anything in that category, so she wouldn't be able to see if there was anything wrong when Rei and Wufei had fought.

She spat out the froth in her mouth inelegantly and gargled water in frustration. She hated being confused; it made her so angry. (Which, she supposed, was why she was so angry most of the time)

She snatched her toothbrush and toothpaste and put them in her pocket, pulling out her hairbrush in the same movement. She brushed her knee-length hair ((AN: Have a good look at a pic of SM. It really is that long. lol)) as quick as was possible and deftly pulled each pigtail into a bun at the top of her head, securing them with pins and allowing long streamers of hair to hang down in her normal hairstyle

She exited the bathroom and began to make her way to her room when she noticed that Rei's door was open and loud voices were drifting out of it. Her curiosity got the better of her, so she crouched down and put her head near the door.

"Woman! You stole from me and you insulted me, and there must be repayment!" That was obviously Wufei.

"What kind of repayment?" That sounded like Rei with a failing hold on her anger.

"Another match. One week from now, without spectators. Come as you are, and without the spirit of others, onna." There was a small silence before he continued. "And your repayment for your dishonorable insults will come in time, weakling."

"I did not insult you, you idiot fool!" Rei's hold on her anger was evidently beginning to fail.

Wufei then rambled about teachings of martial arts (Which Usagi only paid half a mind to) and finished icily with, "That will not go unpunished."

"I accept your challenge. But I warn you, chauvinist, you will still lose to me."

Usagi wanted to shiver as she heard Rei's voice. She had heard many emotions in preistess' voice (mainly anger, frustration and all out rage) but she had never heard cold contempt. It didn't suit her.

Is this the other side of Rei I'm hearing? The one who wields a sword? Is this how she's always been? Is this who she will become?

Usagi became insanely worried. She then shook her head.

No. It's nothing. I'm over-reacting.

Wufei stormed out of Rei's room and gave Usagi the fright of her life. She clapped her hand silently over her mouth to stop herself from screaming. He was grumbling under his breath as he marched over to his room and aggressively kicked open his door. She waited in silence until Rei closed her door (Correction – slammed her door shut) and walked towards her own room, her thoughts stewing on the events she had just listened to. She walked passed Heero's door then stopped and backtracked until she was facing it.

 She knocked three times. And got no answer, as per usual. She knocked another three times.

She gave up any hope that he would just be polite and continued to knock without stopping. After a while, the door opened swiftly.

"What?" Was his rather impatient and annoyed greeting.

"Hey, I was wondering… have you figured how I can repay you yet?"

Hey rolled his eyes and glared in response.

"So I guess that's a Heero 'no,' then?" She invited herself in and bounced over to his laptop and plonked herself down in his chair. "Well then I have another favor to ask, if it's not too much trouble…"

"No," he said bluntly as he walked behind her, put his hands under her arms, lifted her off his chair and onto to floor. He sat back down in front of his laptop and began to ignore her while he typed.

"Hey!" Usagi's shocked and delayed yelp came from the floor. After getting no response, her eyes narrowed. She looked around his room and… well, didn't see much, really. Despite the fact that it was dark, he had barely any belongings. "You know, you really should have more light in here. You'll ruin your eyes."

She walked over to his desk-lamp and switched it on.

"There, much better. Now you can see around you," she chirped. Not that there's much to see. She added at the back of her head. "Anyway, about that favor… I was wondering if you knew anything or could find out anything about spirits, and in particular how they could aid a swordfight…or ruin it. Oh, I mean spirits as in ghosty things not achoh—"

"I know what you meant."

"OK, OK, no need to get snippy," she said, waving a finger.

"Hn."

"You know, you should stop this whole 'hn' thing. I'm beginning to wonder if you actually know how talk."

She could just tell he was restraining himself from grunting another 'hn.'

"Ok, let's see. Ooh! I have an idea. It's a game. It's to see if you actually know any other words apart from 'no' or 'hn,' OK?" She waited for a response but didn't get one, as she expected. "I'll use your dictionary, open it to a random page, and read out the meaning of a word, and if you know the word, you say it? OK? OK. First word…" She stole the dictionary from on top of his desk and flipped it open. "It's a musical adverb and adjective that means 'with a gradual decrease in speed.'" She looked up from the book and stared at the back of his head. She frowned and moved to his side so that she could see his face. "There's no shame in admitting you don't know what it means," she baited.

"Rallentando," he grunted.

"Correct," she said happily. "OK, next one… It's a noun which means 'the space in an infant's skull, which later closes up.'"

"Fontanelle."

"Correct. Next one is another noun.  It means 'surgical experimentation on living animals for scientific research."

"Vivisection."

"Noun. Means 'sleepwalking.'"

"Somnambulism."

"Argh. OK, next one. Noun. 'Plant or micro-organism living on dead organic matter."

"Saprophyte."

"Adjective. 'Of or containing calcium carbonate.'"

"Calcareous."

"Noun. 'One-humped camel bred for riding.'"

"Dromedary."

"AHH!" She threw the dictionary to the ground. "What, have you memorized this or something?!"

"Correct."

Her eyes narrowed (again) in another glare. He wasn't… He was!!

"I can see that smirk, Heero."

The tiny smile dropped as quickly as it had appeared. She frowned. He looked like a human when he smiled.

Oh well, easy come, easy go.

He clicked something on the laptop and leaned back in his chair. His printer started to make noises as ot began to print a document. She continued to frown as he collected a stapler from his top desk drawer and stapled the pages he had just printed.

"Here," he said, handing it to her.

"Wha…?" Usagi looked down at the sheets of paper in her hand and flipped through them quickly. It's all info on spirits… "Th-thanks…" Come to think of it, he was typing this whole time… She grinned and looked up at him from the small booklet in her hands. "Well, I guess I owe you two favors, then. G'night, Heero! Thankyou!" She walked out of his room and closed the door behind her.

I can't believe he got all this stuff in that short a time… wow.

Usagi flipped through the book, briefly reading some paragraphs that caught her eye.

OK. I get it know. So Rei chanted to the fighting spirits and they empowered her with Wufei's fighting ability and spirit… so that was what he meant by the whole 'stealing' accusation…

"Oh Usaaaa…"

Her head snapped up from the booklet to see Minako and Duo, both staring at her with conviction and both holding large bowls filled with bananas, strawberries, ice-cream, chocolate sauce, nuts and whipped cream.

Ah. 'Minako's special.'

"Wh… what?" Usagi asked carefully, not liking the look of glee that was creeping over Minako's face.

"Oooh! She just came out of Heero's room!" Duo began to bounce up and down excitedly.

"Aw, they were being all romantic! How cute!" Minako looked over at the bouncing Duo. "Hey stop that! You'll spill my Special everywhere!" She looked back to Usagi and grinned. "Don't mind us, Usa. You can go back in Heero's room…"

"Ha ha! Usagi and Heero sitting in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes the—" Duo began to sing.

"Oh, yes of course. I've known him for like a day and I'm already madly in love and about to marry him and kiss him in a tree. Sounds great. And logical." Usagi rolled her eyes and went into her room, but could still hear Minako and Duo's conversation through her door.

"Oh my gosh! They're madly in love!" Minako squealed.

"And they're going to kiss in a tree!"

"And get married!"

"Don't you think they're rushing things a bit?"

"Maybe. But love knows no bounds, you know?"

"You don suppose she was joking?"

"Couldn't be… well, maybe. That makes more sense."

"But love makes you do crazy things."

"That's true. So when do you think they'll get married?"

"Well, after they get to know each other, I'm sure they'll set a date."

Usagi sighed from her place in her room and shook her head.

I have to live with these two?

*******End chapter 5

Yeah… um. Hm.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas! I did! I got some REALLY cool stuff! (Eg; Ranma 1/2 manga volumes 3 to 12, End of Evangelion on DVD, Neverwinter Nights, Kingdom Hearts, Peach Girl 4, Utena book 2, a stereo, etc.! YAY!)

As this chapter was written over a few days, I'm no longer depressed over finishing FF8, however I am now depressed 'cause I watched End of Eva…

Oh well.  I know that a whole lot didn't happen, but I had to get the whole Wufei-not-being-stupid thing before people started to think I'm a Wufei hater. He's my least favourite of the 5 G-Boys, but I don't hate him.

Anyway, I must fly… *cough*to my PS2*cough*

Lots o' luv,

Jemjols ^_^

(Please leave a review :D)

PS: Doesn't Quatre remind you of Miki from Utena? I was reading Utena over the weekend and I was astounded at how similar they look and act! Agree? Don't agree?