First meetings

Chapter one

Ami and Zach

By Cindra

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Disclaimer: I do not in any way own Sailor Moon I do this for my enjoyment and for the enjoyment of my readers…The original characters and the original ideas are mine and it's going to stay that way.

Notes: italics denotes silent thought

Okay here goes nothing this all about Ami and Zach. Oh and the other Generals and one senshi do make an appearance. ;;

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(Harvard University)

Ami sat in the courtyard and waited for Greg to arrive for their big date. He had said there was something important that he needed to talk to her about. She just assumed that he had finally decided, to officially, ask for her hand in marriage. He had just finished at Columbia and she was on the last year of her internship. Everything seemed to be going as planned. She was close to achieving her dream of becoming a doctor and she was in love with a Greg.

Greg forced himself to walk over to where Ami was sitting. He just didn't know how he was going to tell her that he could no longer see her again. He would rather stab himself in the heart than cause a tear to fall down Ami's face, but he had no choice his visions were never wrong. I'm just not in Ami's future. I see her happy with someone from her past someone who is eternally linked to her soul.

Ami felt that someone was behind her and glanced around to see Greg standing behind her. "Well hello there handsome come sit with me for a while." She was so happy that she was absolutely glowing.

Greg made no attempt to sit down beside the girl that he still loved. "I can't stay long. I have to catch the train back to the city."

Ami instantly knew that something wasn't quite right and called him on it. "I thought that you wanted to talk to me about something. You told me in your email that it was important."

"I've met someone at Columbia. She and I are going to continue studying abroad at Oxford. I've been meaning to tell you about her, but something kept stopping me from telling you. Her names Emily and she has the same freaky ability that I do." He had met a girl that did have similar abilities that he had and the rest of his yarn was not in all actuality lies. He just gritted his teeth and finished what he had to say. "I asked her to marry me and she said yes."

Ami felt as if the ability to breath had left her body. "YOU ASKED HER TO MARRY YOU?" She was about to do what was so uncharacteristic of her. She was about to lose her cool. "HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN GOING ON?" She was near hysterical now. This is not happening! I will not let this happen!

Greg had never seen her, this furious before or this devastated. "We've been together for about 6 months now. It really is for the best."

"FOR THE BEST! HOW CAN YOU EVEN THINK TO SAY SOMETHING AS HORRENDOUS AS THAT TO ME? I GAVE YOU OVER TEN YEARS OF MY TIME AND LIFE!" Ami was so furious that her mercury symbol was glowing on her forehead. I am not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry! I will see him freeze in hell first!

Greg knew her secret and knew that seeing that symbol appear was not a good sign. "I'm sorry Ami, but I have to live my life and you have to follow your destiny. Good bye." He fled the courtyard not noticing that someone had witnessed the entire scene.

The person in question was not very happy that Greg had just ripped out Ami's heart and then fled like a coward.

Ami bolted from the courtyard and made a beeline for the nearest building one that was having one hell of a party. Ami threw herself into the massive throng of weekend partiers and let the first sip of some frat boy's newest concoction deaden her mind.

Zachary Alan Powers swore under his breath. "I will be damned if I stand around and watch her self-destruct her life. The maggot wasn't worth the DNA that made him human. I couldn't say or do anything before, because my hands were tied and she seemed blissfully happy. I can however rescue her now when she needs me most." With that pep talk to himself, he headed into the ear shattering music of the frat party.

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Ami was having a drunken conversation with a drunk as a skunk frat boy. It had only taken one drink and she was completely plastered. "Will you take me home…I think…(she giggled)… that I am a little bit drunk." She giggled at the frat boy that was hanging all over her.

"Let's you and I go upstairs and get to know each other." The frat boy slurred.

"Let's not and call it a night." Zach pulled the kid off Ami and helped her to her feet. "Let's go get you some coffee to drink." He had to steady her, because she wasn't able to stand on her own nor was she wanting a knight in shining armor to come to her rescue.

Ami glared up at the familiar blurry image of someone from long ago. "I's…happy…right here!" She slurred her perfect linguistic skills seemed few and far between as she spoke. "Aren't you the gay one? Serena killed you with her wand thingy." She squinted at him in annoyance. "Your sssssposed to be dead." She broke into a fit of giggles.

The gay one! What the hell was that suppose to mean! Zach took matters into his own hands by sweeping her into his arms and carrying her out of the frat party. "Playtimes over Ice. its time to get out of here."

ICE? Ami couldn't help but feel safe and secure in this strangers arms. "You feeeeel soooo nice." She hadn't been called that since the Silver Millennium and only one man had the nerve to give her that nickname. A strikingly handsome blonde Adonis with startling green eyes named. "Zoisite…" She fought to keep awake. He had perished on Earth all those millennia ago. He had been called to battle hours after their wedding. She had never seen him again, until his likeness showed up on the moon, and ran her through with his sword. She hadn't thought about this in years! Why was this stranger causing all of her old emotions to emerge? all other thoughts blurred in her mind, as she succumbed to the darkness and passed out in his arms.

Zach did not even hesitate from his actions. He carefully set her in his prized corvette and securely buckled her into the seat. That done he quickly checked her pulse and vitals, before getting in and driving them back to his place. A penthouse that he shared with his friends Jared a writer, who was working on his next best seller. Nate a five star chef and owner of several five star restaurants, and Kevin who happened to be wooing his princess on the west coast. "Don't worry Ice, I will keep you safe no matter what." He reached over to brush her forehead with his hand and found that she was spiking a fever. "You poor baby you're going to wish the earth had swallowed you up whole when you finally wake up. I just pray that there weren't any toxins in that vial brew that you drank." The cell phone in his car rang and he pushed a device on the dash of the car. "Look I'm really in the middle of something at the moment and can't talk. Call my service and leave a message."

"I just wanted to personally talk to you about the patient that you emailed me about, but if this is a bad time I can go back to looking at the ultrasound of my unborn babies." Darien hesitated but sensing that something was up did not hang up. "Hey Zach is something wrong? Did something happen to Ami?"

Zach had never quite figured out how Darien could sense when something was wrong with them or one of the girls. "Ami is fine. She's still at the top of her class, the best intern at the hospital, and dating that moron who can see the future." Zach lied deciding it was not his place to tell him what had happened between Ami and her ex or the stupid thing that her crushed emotions had led her to do. "Are Sere and the babies healthy? There isn't anything wrong is there?"

"Serena and the babies are flourishing. I just wanted to fill you in on her condition and you seemed really concerned about that patient." Darien knew that he was hiding something from him, but decided not to push for and answer.

"He's taken a turn for the better and I expect that he will fully recover from his accident. I'll call you later with all the details. I just can't talk about his case right now." He glanced over at Ami's flushed face, her fever seemed to be getting worse. Shit! What in the hell was in that sludge that she drank!

"I can take a hint. I caught you out on a date…sorry about that. It's just that Serena has been going on and on about this feeling that something was wrong with Ami and she's never wrong about her feelings about her friends. Well tell the guys hello for me and I will call you later." He ended the call.

Zach pulled into the private underground parking garage and parked in his private space. Jared was not home, nor was Nate. This was fine with him, because he needed to focus on Ami and nothing else. "Here we are Ice, just hold tight while I get you upstairs and into a nice warm bed." He scooped her up into his arms and carried her to the private elevator that led up to the first floor and the only penthouse in the building.

A security guard on duty saw the situation and went to give Zach some assistance. "Good evening Dr. Powers let me call the elevator for you. It seems that you have your hands full at the moment." He ran his key card through and activated the elevator car.

"Thank you Stevens, my friend took ill and I decided that it was best that I bring her here where I could look after her." Zach knew that her temperature was over 101, because he could feel the heat that was radiating from her body. It took what seemed like an eternity, but the elevator doors finally slid open.

"I hope she gets better sir. If anyone can fix her up you can." He said goodnight to Zach and the doors slid closed.

Ami moaned in her sleep something that he could not quite make out.

"Hang in there love…" He willed the elevator to go faster and finally they opened to reveal the intricately carved doors of his home. "Just a few minutes longer and I can get you settled and then treat that fever." He carried her up the marble staircase and into what was going to be Mina's room. Kev had just had it redecorated for Mina and it showed. Everything was done in bright sunny cheery colors.

He contemplated his situation, as he set her down on the butter yellow down comforter of the antique four-poster bed. She needed to get out of her sweat soaked clothes, but knew that he would face hell if she woke up and found out that he had undressed her and put her in a fresh nightgown. He heard their housekeeper and Kevin's former governess bustling around downstairs and rushed to go get her.

"Marion thank goodness you haven't gone to bed yet!" He screeched to a halt in front of her.

Marion saw that he was upset about something and forgot about lecturing him about sliding down the banister. "Someone has to keep this place looking decent." Her Irish accent rang clear and true. "Now what's got you in such a frazzle?"

"I ran into one of Darien's friends on the campus and she was too ill for me to take back to her dorm room. I really do need to check her over. She's spiking a really high fever and I need to get her out of her sweat soaked clothes." He finally got out what he had been trying to say. "I can't undress her…Dare would skin me alive…So if you would please get her into one of Mina's nightgowns. I'll be in your debt forever."

"Oh the poor lamb! Of course I will. Is she in Mina's room?" Marion couldn't resist mothering anyone and Ami was going to be no exception.

Zach nodded and the woman bustled up the marble stairs. He went to go get his medical bag from his office. He was just about to head back up the stairs when the front doors opened. "Shit!" He muttered under his breath when Kevin and a worried looking Mina walked over to him. Now what genius! Mina is not going to react well to seeing Ami asleep in her room upstairs. Jared and Nate must have picked them up at the airport, because they were standing right behind them.

"What's up with you Zach? Did you get called in again?" Neph saw the medical bag in his arms and just assumed that he had been called to the hospital.

"You need a life buddy." Jared teased his friend. "After all you aren't the only surgeon in the hospital. What are they going to do when you transfer to Tokyo General this summer?"

Kevin knew Zach better than any of them did and his friend was wigged out about something. "Is there something that you want to tell me?" He arched a brow at him and waited for Zach to crack.

Zach had broken out in a cold sweat. How was he supposed to explain this with Mina standing there! "I was coming home from checking on a patient…when I spotted Ami sitting in the university courtyard." He started to explain.

Mina stalked over and grabbed him by his tie. "START TALKING!" She snarled.

Zach gulped nervously. "She was waiting for someone…" He gasped for air when Mina tightened his tie so tight that it was strangling him.

Kevin wrestled Mina away from her prey. "Calm down angel he can't finish his story if he's dead." He narrowed his eyes at Zach. "You were told to stay clear of her."

Zach gasped for air. "I was watching over her from the shadows…" He croaked. "She didn't even know that I was there. Her boyfriend finally showed his sorry ass and proceeded to dump her right there on the spot. The bloody coward said what he had to say and then fled!" Zach's temper was flaring. "I was going to murder the bastard, but Ami had decided to go running blindly into the nearest frat party!"

Mina felt her heart breaking for her sister. "You stopped her from drinking didn't you?" She knew that Ami was highly allergic to alcoholic beverages of any kind.

"I got to her after she had down her first glass of some god awful frat boy sludge." He dove for cover when Mina reached for the nearest vase and threw it at him.

"SHE HAPPENS TO BE SEVERELY ALLERGIC TO ALCOHOL!" She screeched at him and snatched up something else to throw, but Kevin pulled her back into his arms.

"Damn it Kevin call off the brat!" Zach made a run for the stairs. Shit that explains her fever! He kept his mind focused on Ami."I don't have time for one of your tantrums! Ice needs me!"

"What is going on down here!" Marion stalked down the steps. "There is a very sick girl up there and she doesn't need to be disturbed by all of this ruckus!" She snarled at them. "Up the stairs with you and help her!" She ordered Zach. "And you calm down Missy before I take you over my knee!" She glared at Mina.

Zach wasted no more time and rushed up the stairs. Not even two minutes later, he came running down the staircase. "I'm going need as much ice as you can fit in the trunk of your car! I need to get her fever down!" He turned to bark orders at them and then zeroed in on Mina. "Don't even think of calling the others! They'll run and tell Sere and that is the last thing that our pregnant mother-to-be needs right now!"

Jared, Nate, and Kevin grabbed their keys and ran out of the penthouse. Mina sat down on the overstuffed couch and burst into tears.

"She's going to be fine Mina. Ice is tougher than she looks." With that said he raced back up the stairs and to Ami.

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(Hours later)

Zach was napping in a chair by Ami's bedside and Mina was snoozing on the loveseat in Kevin's arms. Nate had gone to get more ice and Jared was prowling the outside hallway.

No one had dared answer the phone, in fact they'd unplugged every phone in the penthouse, and left their cell phones in the cars.

Ami woke up feeling like she was encased in glacial ice. She was so cold that her teeth were chattering and her body was one big ache. She longed for anything hot like sitting in a sauna. Her head felt like someone had chopped it off at her neck, it was hard to focus, and there was what had to be a hallucination napping next to her bed. Wait this wasn't her apartment and this wasn't her room! She swore under her breath when she remembered her foolish action the night before. Did some guy pick her up and take her to his place! She watched in apprehension when the hallucination opened his eyes and smiled at her.

"Welcome back to the land of the living, Ice." Zach reached over and took her pulse. "You gave all of us a scare."

"Zoizite?" Her voice was so hoarse she could barely speak.

He went about digging her out of the ice pack that they had used to break her raging fever. "Actually, I go by Zachary Powers now." He took her temperature with an ear thermometer and was relieved that it was back down to normal. "Can you tell me who you are?" He went about asking her the routine questions to see how her mental faculties were reacting.

Ami rolled her eyes at him, but went about answering his questions, "My name is Ami Elizabeth Anderson, I'm a med student at Harvard University, have six months to go in my internship, and you owe me one hell of an explanation." She winced in pain. "I don't feel so hot..." She was going to be sick.

"Hang in there Ice. I've almost got you dug out." He was finally able to scoop her up out of the ice and carry her to the bathroom.

"Tell me that I didn't drink last night." She croaked, as he gently led her over to the porcelain god and she proceeded to get sick.

"You were upset and weren't thinking and that is clearly understandable considering that the bastard clairvoyant dumped you and then left you by yourself!" He felt his temper rising again. "He should have at least offered to take you home! If I hadn't had to rescue you I would have forgotten my oath and murdered the little piece of cow dung!" He snapped out of his furious haze when she reached up and yanked hard on his hair.

"Do you mind? I happen to be dying here!" Her head was hurting so bad that she just wanted someone to shoot her and put her out of her misery.

"I'm sorry Ice and I will gladly get you some aspirin when you stop trying to make me bald." He gently tried to pry her fingers out of his hair, but she was stronger than she looked.

"I don't want any aspirin!" She seethed. "I want a gun!" Her stomach rolled again causing her to pay homage once more to the great porcelain god. "God's I hate getting sick!" She gagged.

"Well you're just going to have to settle for these aspirin." Mina walked into the bathroom with a glass of water and two aspirin.

Ami instantly clung to Zach. "No! Get her away from me!" Ami was in no mood to be nursed back to health or worse by Mina. "I do not need nurse Mina!"

Mina slammed the aspirin onto the counter and stalked out of the room. "I was only trying to help!"

Zach placed the pills into her hand. "It's either these or a shot of pain killer." He growled.

Ami popped the pills into her mouth and washed them down with the cool glass of water. "Did you put this nightgown on me!" She finally was coherent enough to realize that she wasn't dressed in he own clothes. "I would think very carefully about your answer, because your very existence depends on it." She glared murderously at him the symbol of mercury shown brightly on her forehead.

"You wound me my princess." He gave her a wounded puppy look.

"Well!" She growled.

"I am a gentleman…I had Marion get you dressed…You were spiking a fever of 103.5 last night and the last thing you needed was to get a chill." He wasn't used to being put in the spotlight. He was a doctor she was sick that is all there was to it. "You're lucky that I didn't have you admitted into the hospital for observation."

His tone was just too much, all of last nights emotions overcame her, and she just wanted to go somewhere and cry. "I'm fine now." She forced herself up to her feet and stood on unsteady legs. "Now if you will just retrieve the clothes that I was wearing last night I will be on my way." Her voice broke and she blinked back the tears that were threatening to spill out of her eyes.

"The only place that you're going is back into that bed." He was clueless at the moment his temper was blocking his mind from seeing that the love of his life was about to have an emotional meltdown. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her back into the other room.

Ami went from dossal to fighting mad. "LET ME GO! I JUST WANT TO GO HOME! I'M HURTING DAMN IT! CAN'T YOU SEE THAT! OR ARE YOU AS CLUELESS AS DARIEN WAS WITH SERENA?" She struggled in his arms, clawed at him, and even tried to bite. Still he refused to let her go.

He had never wanted to kill someone so much in his entire life. If that boy ever showed his sorry ass again he was going to wish that he were never born. "It's okay Ami, kick my ass if you want, but you aren't going anywhere. Hell I have watched that bastard fawn all over for you four years! Do you have any clue as to what that feels like?" He barely kept his temper in check. He was tired grouchy and her emotions were not helping matters. "It feels like someone is stabbing you in the chest with a surgical scalpel! Darien convinced me that Greg was this great guy and that you were head over heals in love with him!" He dropped her onto the bed and stalked over to glare out the window. "I dreamed about you all of my life! Find me Zoisite! You pled with me every night. Come to me Zoisite! Imagine my surprise when you show up here with jackass in toe!" He had finally let go of his iron clad control and voiced his true feelings.

Ami went to speak, but his glare silenced her. Memories of their past were flooding her mind.

"You ruined me for life! Do you know that! I compare every woman I meet to you and they never measure up! I bury myself up to my neck in patients, so that I don't have to think about my feelings for you!" He raked his fingers through his red gold hair. "I'm tired of this emotional rollercoaster! Have a nice life! I'm getting the hell out of this city! This country! And as far away from you as I can!" with that said Zoisite not Zach stalked out of the room.

Mina looked over at Ami and her heart went out to her friend. "Look Life sucks! Greg didn't deserve you! I always thought that the twerp was a wet blanket! But that Greek god that just stalked out of here happens to be your Soul Mate and that don't come around again, Ames. It's now or never." Mina decided that she could coddle her later and told the cold hard truth. "He has been the one that you kept thinking was guiding you through med school. He moved heaven and earth to make sure that you would get every class, every lab, anything that you needed. The time off to go see dweeb boy! The time to go see us last month for the holidays! That man worships you and I bet that you're going to do the Ami thing and just let him walk out of your life!"

Ami just need time to let Zach's words sink in. Her Soul mate?...She haunted his dreams? Watched over her for four years? Ruined him for other women? Now that one made her smile. The famous surgeon of Harvard University Hospital was her soul mate! The Dr. Ice, as the students called him, had lost his famous cool, because she had driven him insane. The hurt from her loss of Greg had all but faded and a new stronger feeling like noting she had ever felt was invading her senses. "Enough Mina I get it! Now stand watch while I transform into something a little bit more Mercury."

Mina had never seen that look of devilishness in Ami's arms. "Are you sure that you're up to it?" She winked at her friend.

"I haven't felt this alive in a very long time." Ami transformed into Sailor Mercury. "Excuse me while I go set my General straight." She went in search of Zoisite.

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"Where the hell do you think your going!" Kevin and Jared stalked after him.

"To pack! I've got to get out of this place!" He didn't stop until he reached his room and then slammed the door in their faces.

"Was that our Zach! Or was he Zoisite!" Nate had just walked in with more ice. "I missed something good didn't I." He frowned.

"Oh I wouldn't say that, Nephrite, the show is just starting." Sailor Mercury was standing at the top of the stairs.

"Ami you're awake and Zach must be a dead man." Nate smirked. "You know we should throw a party after the two of them go toe to toe. I mean we have more than enough ice."

"Which way did he go boys?" Mercury arched a brow at the three men.

"Zach's quarters are right through those two closed doors." Kevin pointed which way to go. "Why what are you going to do?"

"Stand back boys and watch the experts at work!" Venus had landed gracefully beside Mercury.

"Venus! I don't need any help!" She glared at the Senshi of Venus.

"I for one am not to going to face the wrath of his nanny. So I will use my crescent beam to blow open the door!" with that said she let her attack loose on the doors and they disintegrated. "Crescent Beam!"

Zach hit the floor. "What the hell is going on…" He stalked out of his quarters only to find himself face to face with Mercury. "ICE? WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!" Zoisite now in full General attire roared at his princess.

"I…um…uh…" Mercury forgot what she was going to say he was staring at her with so much loving concern that she wanted to run and hide. Not to mention that he really looked great in armor. "I am so not good at this…" transforming into mercury had really taxed her system, but she would be damned if she was going to faint before telling him how she felt. "I…dreamed of you too…don't' go…I need you to heal my heart." She managed to find her way into his waiting arms.

Zoi swept her up into his arms. "All that you had to do was ask. I would give you the universe if you asked me to."

Ami smiled dreamily up at him. "I'm going pass out now. Luv you."

Zoi went to head back into his quarters and the shot a glare at Venus. "You owe me a set of doors." With that said he carried his princess into his rooms.

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Well that's Ami and Zach…hope you liked it…Next will be five months later when Lita and Raye go and attend Ami's graduation. I can imagine that the sparks are going to fly.

©Cindra 2003-2006