Hey Everyone! For a little while I was tempted to delete this story and never finish it because I thought that what I was writing in chapter 5, chapter 6, and this chapter was so incredibly corny that there wasn't any point in bothering to complete the story. However, as you can very well see, the thought didn't stay in my brain long. The thanks for that are largely in part to a few family members. Oh and please forgive me for the terrible title. I couldn't think of anything else to put. Anyway, that's all I'm gonna say…for now. Thanks!

This chapter is dedicated to Kitsune and Sakura! Kitsune you're bitching has totally helped, not to mention your idea that broke me outta the writer's block vortex from hell. Sakura reading your fic was a total inspiration to get going with this one again. Arigatoo to you both. I love y'all so much for all your support and encouragement.

Disclaimer: See chapter one.

Authors Note: Blah Blah Blah Indicates a character's thoughts.

Chapter 7
Matchmaking & Discoveries

After saying goodbye to the guys, the scouts, making sure the guys were gone, sprinted out of school. India was leaning against the cherry blossom tree with a proud smile on her face when she noticed the girls rushing out of the school. India's smile widened as she glanced down at her watch and then looked up when she heard her four friends' heavy breathing. Her smile grew when she saw their curious stares.

"Took y'all long enough. I was beginning to think that you'd decided not to show." India said.

"Of course…we…would show." Serena said between breaths.

"Yeah…you can't…just do something…like that and expect us not to come." Mina finished, her breathing returning to normal.

India gave a small giggle. "Why, I haven't the foggiest idea what you're talking about, Mina." India replied, smiling innocently.

"Oh! Come on India!"

"What Lita?"

"Don't give me that fake surprised look. You told us that you'd explain to us why you spontaneously invited the boys and all of us to go to the palace."

"Oh that!" India said, trying to act like she had truly forgotten about it. "Well, nothing too major, other than the fact that I wanted to get a jump start on this dance thing. Besides, I knew that Raye would spit fire if we didn't bring her along so I said we should get her."

"Well, what about 'Study Buddies?'"

"Oh Amy, we're going to be doing school work so what's the problem?" Mina asked.

"How exactly can you call that doing school work? We all know that all Lita and yourself will do is flirt with Neph and Mal. You both probably won't even think about the homework assignment until tomorrow morning, and then you'll scramble to get it done."

"Now wait just a minute!" Mina said insulted.

"Amy, even though they will flirt, I'm pretty sure that Neph and Mal will keep them at bay and focused on the assignment. They seem more serious about things than these two hormone-driven friends of ours." Serena explained with a teasing grin on her face.

"SERENA!" Lita said absolutely astounded.

With that, everyone burst into laughter, except Lita and Mina. After a little bit Serena said, "Oh, calm down Lita. I was only kidding." Though it's mostly true.

"Good thing." Lita mumbled with a smile.

"Come on guys, we need to get going if we want to get Raye and meet the guys on time."

"India's right." Mina said. "Amy, will you let us go? I don't know about Lita, but I'll feel terribly guilty if you won't."

Amy chuckled happily and replied, "All right, but you have to promise to actually work and not completely flirt."

Lita and Mina simultaneously grinned and said, "We promise."

"Good. Now let's go meet Raye. I'm really anxious to see how gorgeous the Millennium Palace is up close."

India smiled and said, "Why Amy, are you saying that you're actually not wanting to study for a change?"

Amy blushed in response and the others laughed. The friends walked toward the temple chatting endlessly, unaware of what the future held in store for them.


A light breeze blew through the trees as the bell from Tokyo Private Junior High rang, marking the end of the school day. Raye stood up from her desk and began packing up her books while she listened to her teacher shout a reminder to the quickly diminishing class.

"Make sure to have your assignment on my desk before the bell rings tomorrow."

Raye sighed thinking about the "fun" afternoon ahead.

"Tired?"

Raye smiled. "No, just thinking about the rest of my day."

"What are you going to be doing?" Jed asked.

"Nothing too terribly interesting. I'll wait and do the homework assignment later tonight. As far as the afternoon's concerned, I get to work around the temple."

"Sounds like a fun filled afternoon." Jed said with a grin.

"Oh yeah! Let me tell ya!"

Jed laughed at her sarcastic tone and the look that accompanied it. "I'll take your word for it. Anyway, I better go. I have to meet up with a few friends. I'll talk to you later."

"Me too. I have to beet them to the temple or I'll never hear the end of it. See ya!" Raye replied as she waved bye to the retreating figure of Jed.

He turned and walked toward the door of the classroom, smiling contently. "Bye."

Meanwhile, Raye checked to make sure she had all her books, trying her hardest not to react to the feelings inside herself.

Right as Jed reached the door, he heard one of three nearby girls say, "Did you see that new kid, Jed?"

He proceeded through the door, smiling at the girls' quick silence and looks of hope that he didn't hear their comment. Instead of walking off down the hall, Jed stayed close to the door to listen in on what his three female classmates had to say about him.

Raye having heard the girl's comment, immediately dug out a spiral and began flipping through its pages. She then turned around, with her back to the girls, and acted as if she was concentrating on something vitally important, so she didn't alert them to the fact that she was eavesdropping on their every word.

After a sigh of relief, the girls resumed their conversation. "Are you actually serious!" A second girl asked astonished.

"She's right. Oh my goodness! How could anyone miss him!" The third girl exclaimed.

"Tell me about it. He was totally gorgeous!" The first girl drooled.

Meanwhile, out in the hall, Jed held a cocky grin. Gorgeous, huh? He chuckled. I bet Malachite, Nephlite, and Zoycite aren't being praised like this. As a quiet fit of laughter from the girls reached his ears, he tuned out his thoughts and continued listening, still possessing his cocky grin.

No doubt about that! Raye thought. I coulda told anyone that much when he walked through the door. She blushed and then quickly returned her thoughts to the giggling girls.

"I know what you mean. I doubt there is another guy as gorgeous as Jed." The third girl said.

Jed smirked and turned to leave with a satisfied ego. Raye quietly giggled as she turned around, put the spiral back, and started to leave when she heard the girl's next comment.

"Man! If you think Jed's gorgeous, wait till I tell you about the hottie I saw Friday in the park." The second girl commented.

Simultaneously, Raye and Jed froze and thought, The guy in the park! On Friday!

"What are you talking about?" The first girl questioned.

"Well, Friday after school, I decided to take a side trip through the park before I went home to do the homework assignment. Anyway, I was about halfway through when I heard a scream. I sped in the direction the scream came from, to see if I could be of some help. Instead of finding someone being mugged, like I expected, I saw five girls in sailor outfits, two of which were screaming, a hideous looking monster covered in roses, and the most handsome guy I've ever seen. He was wearing an all black suit-looking outfit that showed the guy knew what to wear."

"No way." The third girl stated.

"If I'm lying, I'm dying."

"You can't honestly say that he was more handsome than Jed?" The first girl said.

"It's hard to decide. They're both really yummy. Anyway, I looked at him for a few seconds, but that's all I got." The second girl said dejectedly.

"Why!" The third girl exclaimed.

"What was his name?" The first girl asked.

"I don't know. That grotesque monster gave a high pitched scream and I passed out. When I woke up they were all gone." The second girl finished.

She was there! Jed thought. How could I have missed her? She couldn't have been that hidden. Besides, my keen senses would have picked up her approach. Why hadn't I noticed her there? Jed leaned against the wall outside the classroom and crossed his arms attempting to find the answer to his question.

After a few strained minutes, his eyes grew large with surprise. As much as I hate to admit this, it was because of Sailor Mars. I paid more attention to her during the battle than I did on the battle itself. What was I thinking! He condemned. She's throwing this mission into the express lane to difficult and complicated as hell real fast. Jed, old boy, it's time to focus and get this over with. He coached himself.

The girls changed the subject and then left the classroom. They didn't see Jed, however, because, among the storm of thoughts in his brain, he heard the girls approach and quickly ran around the corner and waited till the girls passed him. I've got to be more cautious in the future. Not to mention keeping my emotions in check. I can't continue to let them rule over my actions. With a determined set to his jaw, Jed stepped back around the corner and walked right into Raye.

"I'm sorry." They simultaneously said.

Raye and Jed looked up into each other's eyes and stared. It seemed they were searching for something, but they didn't know what it was or where it could be found.

After a few awkward moments, Jed cleared his throat and said, "Uh…see ya Raye."
"Bye…Jed."

Jed quickly turned around the corner and searched for an empty room. He didn't know what was going on, but he knew he had to get away from Raye and fast. Once inside a classroom, he double-checked that no one was around and made sure no one was coming, and then disappeared.


Raye sighed as the gentle breeze blew across her face. She had been thinking back through her day and sighed again. How could I have been so foolish? I didn't even realize she was there. How could I have let Jedite affect me so greatly?

Raye, angered by her actions, began sweeping the temple grounds when she heard her friends coming around the corner. She stilled her sweeping, smiled, and thought Looks like Serena is on a roll. Guess she's enjoying the better grades. Well, at least Study Buddies will take my mind off things for a while. Besides, any afternoon with Serena is guaranteed to be entertaining.

Raye silently giggled as she looked up to see the girls ascending the stairs, all full of smiles and laughter. She smiled in return and said, "Hey there guys!"

"Hey Raye!" Lita greeted.

Before the rest could offer their greetings, a grinning Raye said, "Well, this is certainly a change Serena, two days straight now. I'll be utterly amazed if you can actually accomplish a whole entire week without detention."

"Ha ha ha." Serena unenthusiastically responded.

The girls then began laughing. "Hey Raye?"

"Yes India?"

"Are you busy this afternoon? Say about fivish?"

Raye held a questionable expression and replied, "Not really. Why do you ask?"

India glanced at the others and grinned. "Well, we volunteered to help with a dance at the Millennium Palace and the other girls' teacher said for their homework assignment they had to sketch an idea they had about the decorations. Anyway, none of us have seen it and we decided that we would go up there and check it out to see what we could come up with. You wanna come along?"

"Sure! I volunteered too so I guess I have no choice in the matter. Besides, I've wanted to go and see what it looks like from up close for the longest time. I gotta see if it's as gorgeous as the rumors say it is." Raye said with a wink and smile.

"Great!" India smiled.

"Just give me a few seconds to go change, okay?" Raye asked. She started to walk away as she saw the looks of approval on the girl's faces.

Within minutes Raye was changed and the group of friends was off to the Millennium Palace, right on schedule.

On the way there, the girls chatted about anything and everything. Among the constant gossip, Raye heard, "Hey Raye, did a new guy enroll at your school today?"

Raye was caught off guard by the question and the feeling it arose within her that it took a while for her to answer. "Why yes, someone did Amy."

"Was his name Jed Blaze?"

"How'd you know that Mina?"

"Well Raye, I don't know if Jed mentioned this or not, but he has three friends who also enrolled today at Crossroads and they're in our class." Lita answered grinning brightly.

Raye thought back to the beginning of the day and then she said, "Oh! I remember now! He mentioned three friends that enrolled at Crossroads, but he didn't say what their names were."

"Well, India invited his three friends to come along as well since they volunteered too." Amy commented.

"Just for helpful information, their names are Mal, Neph, and Zoy. Not to difficult to remember, huh?" Lita said.

"Not for me. Now Serena on the other hand…"

"Oh shut up, Raye!" Serena glared when the other girls started laughing. When the laughing subsided, Serena smiled and said, "Who knows, maybe they will bring Jed along. It'll be kinda cool to see all four of them together, since they've known each other since they were kids."

The other girls resumed chatting while Raye spaced. Oh I hope they do, but I pray that they don't. I mean I want to see him, not completely sure why yet, but at the same time I'm afraid that we might get into another tense moment like we did at school. I swear it was like he was trying to run away from me.

"Raye? Raye? Are you in there?" Serena said while waving a hand in front of Raye's face.

"Huh? What?"

"Is everything all right?" Mina asked.

"Yeah! Sorry I was just thinking about school for a sec. No worries!" Raye said.

"Okay then." Mina said.

The group of gossiping friends continued weaving in and out of fellow Tokyo citizens along the street to their destination.


RING RING RING

"Hello?"

"Darien?"

"Hey Andrew! What's up?"

"Not too much. Do you feel that?"

"You mean that nagging, uneasy feeling in the air?"

"Yeah!"

"I felt it when I woke up from my nap I had earlier in the park."

"Do you know what it is?"

"I think it might be a sign that the Negaverse is up to something."

"That's what I thought too."

"You have any idea where?" Darien asked stumped.

"Well, I was out walking around earlier and I happened to be near the place where the new Millennium Palace was built and…I dunno…something just didn't feel right."

"I guess we should go check it out."

"That would be my choice."

"So I guess I'll see you in ten to fifteen then?"

"I'll be there."

"Great! See ya in a few!"

"Later!"

The two hung up their phones. Darien grabbed his keys, jacket, and helmet, locked his apartment door, and went to the elevator. Once inside, he pushed the button for the parking garage and waited patiently. When the elevator stopped and the doors opened, Darien walked to his motorcycle, got on, started it, and then left the garage. Something is definitely going on. The feeling is stronger than before. He thought as he made his way to the Millennium Palace.

Andrew grabbed his keys and walked to his car. He went to open the door when he paused and looked up at the sky. I don't like the feel of this. We have to figure out what is causing this and stop it. He opened his door and got in. He then proceeded to start the car and sped off to meet Darien.


After what seemed like an eternity, the group of chattering girls had come into view of the Millennium Palace and was captivated by its spectacular beauty. They continued on, still chatting until they were within a few feet of the magnificent structure. As they were walking up to the palace, they noticed the four guys, Jed, Neph, Zoy, and Mal, standing and looking at the delicate structure.

"Hey there guys!" Lita greeted with a wave.

"Hi!" Neph said, turning and waving in return.

They also noticed two others standing nearby, talking quietly. They soon realized that the two mysterious guys were none other than Darien and Andrew.

"Darien!" India exclaimed surprised.

"Andrew?" Serena said puzzled.

"Hey you two! Hey girls!" Darien said holding a bright smile.

"What are you two doing here?" Serena asked.

"We were about to ask you guys the same thing?" Andrew replied also smiling.

"Well we're here because of a homework assignment. What about you two?" Amy answered.

"Oh us…" Andrew looked at Darien for assistance. "Um…"

"We're enjoying the scenery. I didn't have any classes today and Andrew was off so I asked if he wanted to go for a drive and see where we'd end up and here we are." Darien grinned foolishly.

"Oh…okay then. Well that's what we're pretty much doing as well. Why don't y'all come along with us?" Serena asked.

"Sure why not. Who knows, maybe we'll be able to help you on your assignments." Andrew said with a smile.

By this time, Neph, Zoy, Jed, and Mal had come over to the little group the girls and the two guys had formed. "Oh I'm so sorry!" Amy apologized when she saw the guys join them. "Darien Shields and Andrew Crown this is Zoy Waters, Neph Star, Mal Rose, and Jed Blaze." Amy said pointing to each guy as she introduced him to each other. "This lovely person here is the other friend we mentioned. This is Raye Hino."

"Hey!" Darien, Andrew, and Raye said.

"Nice to meet ya!" Zoy said on behave of himself and his other friends.

"Well, now since that's all settled, what do you say we start on the homework assignment?" Serena said all fired to go.

"Oh my goodness! I thought I'd never see the day that Serena is ready to do homework." Mina teased.

"Be nice Mina. Things and people can change you know. All though I'm sure this is just a temporary thing for Serena." Lita said in response.

"Thanks a lot Lita. You're a huge help." Serena said with a smile.

"I know this." Lita responded grinning.

The group started to laugh at the scene. "Okay, now really, we need to get started so we won't be here all night. This assignment is due tomorrow."

"Amy's is right. How are we going to go about this?" Zoy asked.

"He does have a point. This is quite a massive building." Mal pointed out.

"Well how about we spilt into groups?"

"Good idea Raye. Now the only question is who goes in what group?" Jed asked.

"Hmm…I know! Since the majority of us have the same assignment due tomorrow, let's split up accordingly: Jed and Raye, Amy and Zoy, Mal and Mina, and Lita and Neph." India said grinning.

"Okay, but then what about you and Serena?"

"Don't worry about that, Lita. We will all go together." Darien said happily.

"Yeah I'm sure we can accomplish this simple task with four heads." Andrew said suppressing a giggle.

Serena playfully elbowed him and then said, "Okay, let's all meet back here in about say an hour or two? Is that good for everyone?"

The unanimous reply was, "Yep!" With that established, the group of friends split and went their separate ways.

Unbeknownst to them, there were two sets of eyes lurking in the bushes watching everything that had just occurred.


What's with those eyes? Are they a good or bad thing? You'll have to read on if you want to find out. Take care everyone. Till next time, later!

Ja Ne
Duos Gurl