SailorStar9: After getting Chapter 10 out, this is Chapter 11 of this fic and the end of Season One. (Sighs) Guys and girls, is it too hard for you to leave a review, instead of just putting this fic up on your favorited list and story alerts?

Pairings: Tieria/Sasha between Season One and Season Two. Allelujah/Marie and Lockon (Jr.)/Anew in Season Two.

Chapter Summary: Tieria has always been awkward with feelings and interacting with Sasha Peacecraft in close proximity on the Krung Threp Space Colony during the four-year timeskip forces him to admit that his feelings for the Peacecraft heiress may not be platonic; or aka, the 5 times Tieria isn't sure about how he feels about Sasha and the 1 time he is.

Standard BS Disclaimers: I do not own Sailor Moon, Gundam 00 or the pairings. If I did, the other Senshi would be as powerful as Sailor Moon and kicking MOTD ass more often and VEDA would have least an anti-hacker program installed. The only thing I do own is the plot.

Chapter 10: Interlude: Tieria Dealing With Feelings During Timeskip

An an Innovator (undisclosed, of course) created by VEDA, Tieria Erde had treated all his comrades with professionalism. When the Trinity siblings and Sasha Peacecraft were introduced, he worked with the two older brothers with relative success. However, it was Sasha Peacecraft that left him in a quarry: her blunt honesty had astounded him when she just freely handled access to VEDA's restricted levels to him with no strings attracted; them being comrades-in-arms were more than reason enough. She further proved that she was firm in upholding her ideals when she successfully negotiated a ceasefire with the UN forces at the end of Operation Fallen Angels.

~Five~

Roughly four months after Operation Fallen Angels...

An utterly distraught Sumeragi Lee Noriega has fled to Earth two months earlier after Operation Fallen Angels and leaving Sasha Peacecraft as the default commander of the Krung Threp Space Colony.

With the massive duty of rebuilding falling on her shoulders, Sasha took over the command reigns as effectively as she could. She designated as much non-essential work to Johann and Michael as she could, but she was still overwhelmed by the sheer amount of work she had to undertake, and that's on top of worrying about Ribbons trying to hack his way into VEDA a second time.

Ian had more often than not found her pulling more all-nighters than her time on the Infinity. It became so bad that Johann had literally marched Sasha to Dr Moreno when she almost collapsed from sheer exhaustion. The bespectacled doctor then ordered her to take what he referred to as 'Mental Health Day'.

Ian and the other technicians could only look on in half amusement as either Johann or Michael pulled Sasha away from her office and kept her in the recreation sector of the space colony whenever they felt she was too mentally taxed for work.

Sasha had been on one of her 'Mental Health Day' when Tieria, who had been heading out of another simulation test, walked past the music hall and heard the faint strumming of a harp.

The purple-haired Innovator paused in his steps and silently made his way towards the music hall. There, he saw Sasha seated beside a standing harp, playing the stringed instrument to the chords of 'Fields of Hope'.

Sasha was too into her 'performance' to notice she had an impromptu audience, until she heard the accompaniment of a violin.

"I didn't you know you played." Tieria spoke after the final notes died off.

"Neither did I." Sasha returned.

"Who kicked you out of the office this time?" Tieria inquired, the pair were making their way to the recreation sector's pantry/kitchen.

"Michael." Sasha pouted. "Those two are too over-protective."

"They care about your well-being." Tieria reasoned. "No caffeine for you." he poured out a mug of hot chocolate for his companion. "Dr. Moreno's orders."

"I so hate you, you should know that." Sasha struck out her tongue.

Tieria just snorted behind his steaming tea cup. It's going to be one of those days. He mused as the pair settled into a comfortable silence.

~Four~

Year Two on St. Valentine's Day...

Tieria blinked as he looked up from his reports as he watched Sasha flit around the production section of the space colony, handing out wrapped plastic bags of chocolate to every working technician.

"Looks like Princess is at it again this year." Johann noted, floating beside the befuddled Tieria, a bag of chocolate in his hands.

"Johann Trinity." Tieria nodded. "May I inquire what this is all about?"

"Saint Valentine's Day." Johann replied. "Princess hands out a bag of Valentine's chocolate to everyone she knows every single year. It's become a tradition of sorts."

"Here you are, Tieria." Sasha floated up to the two males. "Here." she thrust a bag of chocolates into the confused pilot's hands and floated off.

"Ah..." Tieria looked at the deposited bag of candy, then at Sasha's retreating back, then back at the bag again.

"First time you got something like this?" Johann joked, seeing the other pilot's expression.

"Yes." Tieria nodded.

"Don't worry, you'd get used to it." Johann patting Tieria on the shoulder.

"Right..." Tieria muttered.

~Three~

Year Two, on Emancipation Day...

With the Trinity siblings out on their own separate missions, Johann volunteered Tieria to chauffeur Sasha to the Russian Moskva Space Colony debris.

Steering the shuttle close to where the destroyed space colony used to be located, Tieria pulled on the brakes and opened the back door hatch.

A quivering Sasha exited the hatch, a pair of entwined pink carnations in her hand. A safety rope secured around her waist, the Peacecraft heiress tossed the flowers into space. Observing a moment of silence for the departed souls of a decade past, Sasha let Tieria pull her back to the shuttle.

Hearing the young female's sobs, an awkward Tieria took the weeping girl into a loose hug.

~Two~

Year Two, mid August...

Tieria was taking a water break in-between his training simulations when he noticed Sasha busily working in the kitchen, whisking batter in a medium-sized mixing bowl. "Are you baking... cupcakes?" he spotted the two cupcake trays on the counter.

"Birthday cupcakes for Johann, Michael and Nena." Sasha answered, lining the cupcake trays with cupcake liners. "To be honest, I don't even know when their birthdays are. To make things simple, I just dub the day I met them as their birthdays." she proceeded to scoop out the cake batter into the baking trays. "Say Tieria," she added, popping the baking trays into the oven. "When is your birthday?"

"What brought that on?" Tieria asked.

"Just wondering." Sasha answered, turning back to the counter to prepare the cake frosting.

"I don't know, honestly." Tieria admitted.

"Ah, you're like the Trinitys then." Sasha nodded. "Understandable."

"Wait..." Tieria frowned. "You know... about me?"

"Right from the first time I saw you." Sasha replied. "But that isn't important, is it?" she gave the stunned Innovator a smile before pouring the colored frosting into the frosting piping bag.

~One~

Year Two, New Year's Eve...

As per Krung Threp Space Colony tradition, it was a two-day holiday on New Year's Eve and the New Year, with every personnel on the colony being expected to stay up til midnight to usher in the New Year.

"They do remember we have minors here, right?" Sasha reminded, pairing a slice of citrus-roasted salmon with a side of horseradish sour cream mash potatoes.

"Isn't this why we have mock cocktails, Princess?" Michael asked, bringing the blond Peacecraft a glass of pineapple mint mocktail.

"Rather true." Tieria agreed, a glass of snapdragon in hand. "Cheers."

"Cheers." Sasha and Michael repeated, the trio crinkling their glasses together.

"I thought you didn't like sweets." Sasha noticed the chocolate coconut truffles on Tieria's plate.

"Your Valentine's chocolates changed my mind." Tieria explained.

"Brussels sprouts, Nena?" Sasha noted amusedly, seeing the redhead pile her plate with brussels sprouts coupled with pickled shallots and hazelnuts.

"Hey, I like hazelnuts." Nena whined.

"Sure, sure." Sasha giggled. "Might want to get the roasted chicken with garlic and rosemary before it runs out."

"Eek!" Nena squeaked and hurried off.

"Come on, we have to get moving." Johann pushed his siblings, Sasha and Tieria off to the gathering point. "The New Year countdown is starting."

"15 seconds and counting." Michael looked at his watch.

"12." Nena begun.

"11." the countdown begun.

"10."

"9."

"8."

"7."

"6."

"5."

"4."

"3."

"2."

"1."

"Happy New Year!" Ian declared loudly, prompting the unison cheers from everyone gathered.

"Happy New Year, Tieria." Sasha raised her glass to her companion.

"Happy New Year, Sasha." Tieria returned the gesture.

~Zero~

Year Three, Christmas Day...

With half of the recreation hall decorated for Christmas, the colony's annual Christmas party and dance was well underway.

Tieria and the Trinity siblings hung in the background as they watched Sasha mingle with Celestial Being's agents and observers.

Johann let out a small amused smirk when he saw Tieria stiffen as a middle-aged observer lead Sasha to the dance floor as a slow dance number started.

Said red-eyed pilot's eyes narrowed when the much older man rested a hand on Sasha's bottom.

Michael gritted his teeth when he saw Sasha's dance partner trailed his hand up and down Sasha's bare back, his fingers twining themselves around the straps that held up her party dress.

"Michael, relax." Johann held his agitated brother's fist down. "Tieria's got this."

"About time he got some balls." Nena took a bite of the gingerbread man cookie she snitched from the dessert table.

"Bets on whether he actually confesses after this?" Johann smirked.

"I don't take sucker bets, Johann-nii." Nena snickered.

"Sucker bet machine broke." Michael grinned.

"OMG, Michael-nii." Nena shook her head.

"Excuse me, may I cut in?" Tieria requested, approaching the uncomfortable Sasha.

Sasha just beamed at her rescuer, gave her former dance partner a somewhat apologetic nod and took Tieria's offered hand.

"Are you alright?" Tieria asked worriedly.

"Yeah." Sasha nodded. "Thanks for that."

"No worries." Tieria assured. "Let's go somewhere more private; there's something I want to tell you."

"Okay." Sasha nodded and allowed Tieria to pull her off to a quiet spot at the perimeter of the makeshift dance hall.

"I think... I'm in love with you, Sasha Peacecraft." Tieria confessed.

Sasha just gave him a sweet smile and a brief kiss on the cheek. "What took you so long, Tieria Erde?" she pulled back and saw the look of amazement on the Innovator's face and knew they were going to make it; together.

SailorStar9: Any OOC-ness is regretted. *Sighs* Don't you just love plot bunnies sometimes? Read and review.