Winter had arrived in Tokyo, but its arrival was a calm one. A light layer of snow covered the city streets and while it was still weeks away, Christmas decorations and lights were abundant on every building. The snow was lightly falling now, and though it was cold there were still people out and about in the early night.
Tokyo Tower was especially alight and it was shining brightly amongst the city's skyline. Still a popular spot to hang out even in the cold of winter, it was the perfect spot for a group of friends to spend some time together.
Well, make that two groups of friends. Even better when, by some minor convincing, the tower was temporarily closed to allow them time to spend together. No one went into detail about how that was possible and no one really cared. Certainly not anyone in the groups.
Though they had arrived together, they broke off into pairs and went about the Tower grounds to enjoy each other's company once they had arrived. Now the time was quickly getting late and the time to leave was approaching...
At the base of the tower was one such pair near the area known as Foot Town.
"I hate to ruin the mood but I'm still cold," Rei complained. The normally hot headed Rei was enjoying her time with Jadeite. She didn't like the cold but even as warm as she actually was she still didn't feel it. Her companion, the blond Jadeite, knew exactly how to comfort her. He gave her his red scarf, which was the same color as the coat Rei wore.
She appreciated it. "Thanks, though I hate to see you cold because of me."
"Just being with you is warming me up," he replied before offering his arm. She took it and immediately wished she had done that earlier. He was very warm!
As for his words Rei looked up at him with a minor blush, "How sweet of you..."
He smiled down at her. Making Rei shy was easy for him but there were times even he couldn't help himself. She was cute when she was shy.
Those two had just left the tower after visiting the Shinto Shrine there. Rei had insisted on praying for a good year to come, as well as hoping for a merry Christmas to come.
Now he was escorting her home.
"Thanks for spending time with me tonight," Rei hugged Jadeite's arm tightly. He wore a thick winter overcoat colored ash grey.
"Glad to spend whatever time I have for you," he replied.
"You better not be lying just to make me feel better."
He knew what was coming. "I'm no fool Rei. I know what will happen if I ever do lie."
"I'll do worse than curse you."
Playfully Jadeite responded. "Oh?"
"I will chastise you. A lot."
With that Jadeite chuckled, "I know, Rei. I know."
Now that that was out of the way Rei calmly sighed, lost in content as they continued to walk.
In the second floor observatory where there would be more people on any given day, the rest of Rei's friends relaxed and enjoyed the company of their other friends.
In one corner of the tower's observatory, Makoto and Nephrite were overlooking Tokyo to the south and the sight was breathtaking. She wore a dark green winter coat while he wore a black overcoat. Nephrite had just returned from the United States and had wanted to see Makoto badly. It had been pure coincidence that Jadeite had asked them to join him and Rei at the tower with the others.
Leaning on the railing Makoto took in the beauty of the city amidst the snow, "This is great, isn't it?"
Nephrite agreed, "It is..." though as his gaze was on his lady friend, one could wonder if he meant the view or Makoto herself. Though if one were to say both they wouldn't be wrong either way. "Thanks for your welcome home gift, by the way."
"Not at all. It's fresh from the oven so you don't have to worry about how good they are," she was talking about the little red box with a green ribbon on the railing in front of him. Makoto had slaved away at a batch of chocolate chip cookies for not only her friends but especially Nephrite. He had already had a couple of them, and they had been better than he had expected. Makoto was a great cook and there was no way she would have made him not like them if she had tried.
"I don't think I would ever not like what you make for me," he said with a smile.
Turning her head in his direction Makoto's eye lids fluttered. "So, what is it you needed to tell me?"
With a sigh, Nephrite made the announcement he had not wanted to say, "I will be heading back to America sooner than I was initially told."
Makoto's heart sank into her stomach. "But..." she couldn't believe what she was hearing from him. She had expected him to leave again but not so soon, and definitely not this close to Christmas. His business dealings took him far from her and it was hard for either of them to have time to spend together nowadays.
He felt her disappointment and added it to his own. "My boss thought I did a good job on the last deal, and so he asked me to go back in a couple days." A couple of days. Not a few weeks like he had initially promised.
That had been a promise he had in retrospect wished he had not made. Especially not to Makoto. She didn't deserve that. "I'm so sorry."
Makoto didn't say a word to him. Instead she put her arms around him and hugged him tightly. Though he a few inches taller than she was, her strength was able to surpass his own. She drove the air out of his lungs with the embrace. He couldn't blame her.
"I...will be hone as soon as possible. I'll make up for this."
Resting her head against his chest Makoto almost cried but her pride prevented those tears from falling. "Promise me then."
Nephrite blinked once, "I'm not sure I can. I didn't keep the last one."
She didn't care. "Just do it. For me?"
He brought his arms up and put them around her shoulders, "Makoto, I promise I will return. To you."
"And I'll have a cake made to welcome you."
He closed his eyes, "Can't wait."
That promise made, Makoto finally let a tear fall.
In another corner of the observatory, Ami and Zoisite were enjoying each other's company. Sitting on a bench and enjoying the sight of the snow falling, Ami was resting her head on his shoulder while he held onto her hand. There was a couple times where he thought she had fallen asleep but each time he gently squeezed her hand she would squeeze back to clarify that she was awake.
The two had exchanged greetings earlier but once they had sat down on the bench words had rarely been said between them. That was fine by the both of them. Sometimes words weren't really necessary when they knew each other's feelings inside and out.
A large snowflake came and rested upon Ami's cheek but while she didn't move Zoisite took the action to run his fingertips on her skin. This caused Ami's eyes to open, fully awake.
"Hello there," he greeted her with a smile.
She smiled back and sighed, "Hi." Sitting up straight Ami looked around and noticed her friends were still around. Well, except for Rei and Jadeite. "Did Rei leave?"
Zoisite nodded, "Jadeite took her home."
"I should be going soon too. The university will be calling me in the morning. So I better get some rest." No surprise that Ami, the smartest one in her school, was a university professor in Tokyo. She was sought after all over the country but had insisted on staying in Tokyo because that is where her friends were living. That and Zoisite had recently moved back to the city. That helped make her stomp her foot down on ever leaving again. His loyalty to her was unrelenting as well.
Their fingers intertwined as they held hands, "You want me to take you to the station?"
"That leads you away from home, doesn't it? I live quite a ways out," she said turning her head to look him in the eye.
His facial expression didn't show an ounce of worry. "I can manage."
Still not sure Ami laid her head back down on his shoulder, "I want to believe you." She didn't want to be an inconvenience to him, even if his love went deeper than any ocean.
"Since when have I ever given you doubt?"
Hard to argue with him there. Still she felt a bit uneasy. "If you want, you could always come over to my place and we can talk more there."
"I wouldn't mind. I have nothing on my schedule."
"Odd. You seem to always make time for me. What's your secret?"
He held up her hand and brought his lips to her frigid skin. The contact was warm and comforting, "I would move mountains to be with you, Ami. If it's in my power, then I will make it happen, and you never have to worry about that."
Ami relaxed, feeling more committed to her relationship with Zoisite more than ever now. "Would you like some tea when we get to my place?"
"I think that would be lovely." Zoisite leaned onto her and also closed his eyes. The trip to her place could wait, just for a moment or two longer.
It had come full circle. Nearly a year ago this time, Minako had graduated from university and was looking into becoming an actress. Unfortunately the only option she had was to go overseas to America, and that meant she had to break up with her boyfriend.
Come the day she was to break up with him though, he surprised her by saying he was going with her. She didn't expect this, but he had told her that he was dedicated to her and would never leave her side.
Though she had a bit of hesitance initially Minako was glad to not break up with him. Then came the challenge of Hollywood itself. That might have been a disaster but Kunzite kept his word and never left her. When she applied for movies he was there to either support her or join her in the productions. If he was offered a role he requested one for Minako as well. That trading back and forth caused a few headaches but it had all been worth it in the long run.
Then a sabbatical was made for the two hard working actors, and they decided to return to Japan for a few weeks before they were to go back to the States.
Now, taking in the air of Tokyo once more, Minako and Kunzite walked together as the snow fell around them. She wore an orange sundress under Kunzite's coat. She had not expected it to be as cold as it turned out, and so he had given her his tuxedo coat. They had both expected to eat at the diner in the tower but it
"So, when do you think we should tell everyone?"
Minako, or Mina as Kunzite affectionately called her, raised an eyebrow, "About us?"
"Of course," he replied. "There's only so long we can keep it a secret and the longer we wait the more upset they will be."
He was referring to the rings they wore on their left hands.
"I know, but things are moving so fast I need to breathe before I tell them." She was referring to how out of nowhere he had asked her to marry him just outside the tower entrance. They had arrived first to meet their friends and thus no one had seen Kunzite propose to Mina. Thus, while she had said yes, she had yet to tell the others. She was so overcome with excitement that her face was still flush red.
Kunzite thought she was being cute in her nervousness. He didn't regret his decision. She was the perfect woman for him, and he loved her very much. There was no one else fit for him in the world.
Mina felt the same for him, though why he fell for her in the first place was still a mystery to her. Yet now that they were forever connected and to be married, she didn't want to ask. There was no need.
Instead she walked hand in hand with him while looking at the diamond ring on her left hand. She felt a never ending warmth in her chest whenever she looked at it, as well as what it meant for her future. "So this is what it feels like..."
Her heart was at peace, and Kunzite put his arm around her as they continued to walk.
Above the others, in the area of the Tower known as the Special Observatory, a young lady in a white dress and a young man in a black tuxedo danced slowly together in the falling snow. Being all alone they danced the night away, lost in the spectacle of the city in the horizon and the stars in the sky dressing the moon.
Usagi and her beloved Mamoru swayed slowly back and forth, silent ats the night itself and continued to do so for a long while.
The amount of emotion pouring out from both of them would wash away all the negatives of life from around them, and their feelings for each other would thaw a frozen heart.
A breeze came up, and Mamoru's red lined cape flowed with it as did the skirts of Usagi's dress and the twin tails of her blonde hair. Though her shoulders were bare and so were her arms she didn't mind the cold. Being close to her lover made her feel warm no matter how frigid it was.
Mamoru stopped moving and brought his forehead to touch Usagi's. She brought her hands to rest on his chest and smiled, "What are you thinking about, Mamoru?"
"Like we've done this before, but for the life of me, I cannot remember where," he whispered.
"Oh, well, maybe we did. In our past life perhaps?"
That had to be it, and Mamoru accepted it with ease. In the past life he had been the Prince Endymion of earth and Usagi had been Princess Serenity of the moon kingdom. Though their lives then had been tragically shortened, they had found each other once again in the present day. They had been together through thick and thin, and no obstacle could keep them apart. Not the forces of darkness nor death itself, or even the end of existence. That was why they were ready for marriage when Mamoru had asked Usagi to be his bride. She had accepted without a second thought.
"I do not know if that time could compare to now," he continued.
To Usagi she had little doubt. "This is better, for sure."
For that Mamoru could agree. "So much so..." He helped her up so he could kiss her, and after their lips met she melted into him.
The clouds had been sporadic before but as if supernatural forces were moving them they parted to fully reveal the moon. Full and shinning down on the city of Tokyo, its light a comfort in conjunction with the cold winter air.
When she was with him, she could fight the enemies of earth to her last breath.
When he was with her, he would never give up until he had used all his strength.
The kiss had lasted long but neither wanted it to end. Yet Usagi had been the one to pull back. She had something very important to say to her beloved.
"I love you, Mamoru."
Her words were filled with affection and warmth.
Putting his hands on her shoulders he leaned in towards her, an affectionate smile graced lips as he whispered into her ear. "I love you too, Usagi."
Overcome with passion and love, Usagi brought him close for another kiss.
And so they kissed under the pale, beautiful moonlight, and it was perfect.