Usagi wasn't sure where exactly she was headed. It was getting late and cold, she hadn't eaten a real dinner, and her school bag was heavy because she'd shoved in more than a few photos and letters from Makoto's, with the intent to take them home. Which is exactly where she should go - home. To grab some leftovers from the fridge, make sure her mother knew she was alive, and see if Luna could shed any light on the details of what Usagi had forgotten.

But instead she ended up walking aimlessly through the streets, her mind whirling. How could I forget something like that? She concentrated on her memories of 'meeting' him earlier, to see if thinking back on that moment would spark anything, but her traitor mind instantly went to the way his hair fell across his forehead, the twist of his mouth when he smiled ... and her heart thudded in her chest. Ugh, no help there.

Usagi shook her head, regrouped. Instead, she thought back, back to her first battle as Sailor Moon. She tried to examine every moment of that night: the feeling of transforming, the fear when she heard Naru's voice, her scraped knee, her tears - high pitched and heaven sent - shaking the entire store.

Makoto told Usagi that Mamoru was there from the beginning, as Tuxedo Kamen. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to remember. It was like listening to a song and suddenly the radio cuts out and there is nothing but static before the song returns. She remembered standing there in her unfamiliar senshi uniform, with her unfamiliar weapon, lost and so, so alone. Then then... less alone. But nothing bridged the two thoughts. Maybe-

Usagi collided with someone at such force she would've fallen backward if his hands hadn't instinctively grabbed her upper arms, keeping her upright.

She looked up at Mamoru in shock.

"Are you okay?" he asked, releasing her arms now that she was steadied, trying not to show his reluctance to let her go. He reminded himself to keep her at a distance, at least until she was more comfortable with him. Funny how he'd spent his entire life keeping people at distance, and how difficult he was finding the idea now.

"I'm so sorry," Usagi said, stepping back.

"It's okay," he said, with a half-smile. "We actually do this a lot."

"No, I mean," Usagi sniffled and shut her eyes against the burning tears, her voice a hoarse whisper. "I'm so sorry." She put her hand to her mouth, as if the would keep her sobs at bay.

"No, don't-" he curled his hands into fists to keep from reaching for her. Doing so felt familiar in such an awful way.

"It'll all be okay," Mamoru said, automatically. It was a stupid platitude, he knew that, but he had to do something. Her tears were breaking his heart.

Hesitantly, he reached out and put a hand on her arm. In response, Usagi stumbled forward and wrapped her arms around his waist, still crying.

"I don't know what to do," she said, and he put a hand on the top of her head and shut his eyes. She tightened her grip on him, buried her face in his chest, and suddenly dropping everything and flying thousands of miles was infinitely worth it.

"We'll figure it out," he said. "We always do."

"Welp, we found her," Minako said, rounding the corner and spotting them. She pursed her lips and shook her head.

"I'll let Mako-chan know," Rei said, pulling out her communicator while she muttered, "How many people live in Tokyo? How many streets are there? Those two are like magnets, I swear."

"Hmm," Ami put her finger on her chin, "they really are, aren't they? I mean, statistically, even if you consider we all live and spend time in the same general area, the amount of time they've 'coincidentally' ran into each other certainly defies a certain logic."

"Ami, I love you, but you are making eavesdropping really difficult right now," Minako said, waving her hand at her friend and leaning forward toward Usagi and Mamoru. "Note to self, learn to read lips," she said. "I think it will come in so handy."

"Anyway," Usagi was saying, stepping away from him and rubbing her hand over her eyes. "Heh, sorry I'm kind of a mess right now."

"I can sympathize," he said, with a small smile.

"At least you had dinner," she said. "I mean, Mako-chan gave me some cake but-"

"C'mon," Mamoru said, turning back the way she'd come, "let's see if we can get some meat buns or something at the convenience store. It's better than nothing, right?" While in their current state, he couldn't fall back on most of the ways he knew to comfort his fiancee, but the favorite standby was always there - when it doubt: food.

Usagi gave a watery smile. "I love those things."

"I know."

"So I'm assuming you got her, or what?" Minako shouted as they started to walk away. "Keep us in the loop, please, jeeze."

"Some dinner a la Family Mart, and then I'll walk her home," he called back to her.

Minako gave him a thumbs up. Then she shifted her gaze to Usagi and her face melted into a sympathetic smile. "Hang in there, girlie."

Usagi nodded, but she was still sniffling.

It wasn't long before Usagi was perched on a stone wall near the bright lights of the local convenience store, making her ravenous way through her third meat bun.

"Better?" Mamoru asked, and she nodded.

Something about warm food was insanely comforting. She felt more full and, well, if not happy, at least more optimistic. She turned to Mamoru and noticed he was stifling a yawn, his eyes blinking slowly.

"Are you okay?" she shifted and looked at him, closer. Even in the dim streetlight, his eyes were rimmed in red.

"Yeah," he said, putting his fingers on the bridge of his nose and shaking his head a little. "It's just been a while since I've slept."

"You... Ami said you are visiting from America? You just flew in?"

He nodded, yawning again.

Usagi was silent for a bit. "You aren't really on break, are you?" she said softly.

He shook his head.

"You flew back for me," she demanded, "didn't you? You heard what happened and-"

"Don't worry about it," he told her, smiling in that way that made her heart do strange things in her chest. He reached out and brushed some hair back from her face. The brush of his fingers on her cheeks made her melt, just a little. "You needed me, I came. It's always been that way."

"Mamoru, I'm-" Usagi swallowed, bit her lip. She thought for a moment and then looked up at him. "I'm not... I don't remember but I'm ... still..." were words always this difficult? "Never mind," she mumbled. How could she tell him, even if she never remembered, she already didn't want to give him up? No matter what, she wanted to see that smile and know it was only for her. But that was stupid, he'd never believe she could fall that quickly. Anyway, if she never remembered, who's to say he'd still even want her?

"I'm good," Usagi said, jumping down off the wall. "I will eat the rest at home."

They walked in silence, past quiet streets and familiar homes. The sky was empty and dark. "Turn here-" she started and then stopped. "Oh, but you know that." It felt so strange. He'd probably been to her house before. She wondered if her parents had met him. Probably. Did they like him? Even Shingo probably knew him better than she did right now. That was depressing.

Usagi noticed Mamoru trying not to yawn again, and felt a rush of sympathy. "Get some sleep," she ordered and he jumped a little sheepishly.

"Okay, okay," he said, "Good night, Usako." He brushed his knuckle over the tip of her nose making her wrinkle it in response. Mamoru smiled. Despite it all, it was good to be around her again. He'd missed her so much.

"'Night," she said, making quick face at him to hide her blush, before turning and running for her house.

"So, any luck last night?" Minako asked, saddling up to Usagi in the hallway between classes the next day. "Was Mamoru able to get you to remember?"

"No," Usagi said, swinging her school bag a little, thinking. "But, Mina-P, I- I kind of like him."

"I am shocked," she said, not sounding shocked at all.

"But, I mean, we have years of history I don't even know!" She turned and looked at Minako mournfully, "What if I never remember? Would he even want to start from scratch with me? What if we don't get along anymore? What if he just thinks it's easier to... I dunno, go back to America and date some gorgeous college movie star or whatever they have there, I don't know. I wouldn't blame him for cutting and running fr- what?" She just noticed her friend was looking at her with a strange expression.

"Usagi," Minako said, "I say this with love but, wow, you really are an idiot, you know that?"

"Hey! What do y-"

"Oops! there's the bell," Minako grinned and squeezed Usagi's shoulder. "Gotta go. Don't worry, hon, it'll be fine! Byeeee!"

That afternoon found Usagi hesitantly lingering around a tree in Juuban park, picking idly at the bark and contemplating the person in front of her.

So far, he hadn't seemed to notice she was there, he was deeply involved in scribbling on a notebook resting on his knee, every so often glancing at a textbook perched on the bench next to him. Usagi had to walk this path on the way home from school, but noticing Mamoru had pulled her to a stop. She didn't want to interrupt him, it was probably important work - after all she knew he was missing classes because of her. But jeeze, she really wanted to talk to him.

"That's bad for the tree, you know," he said with a smirk, not looking up from his notes. Usagi jumped and dropped her hand guiltily.

"Uh- sorry..."

He laughed then, as he looked up at her.

"I didn't want to bother you," Usagi said as she walked up.

Mamoru closed his books put them away in his bag.

"It's just... I walk this way back from school so-"

"I know," he said, taking off his glasses. "Why do you think I'm here?"

She desperately tried to fight the blush she felt rising to her cheeks. "Oh. I thought maybe you just liked the park." She sat next to him on the bench, gingerly.

"I do," he said, and she felt like maybe she was missing something behind his words, the way he was looking at her.

"Stop doing that," Usagi said, pouting a little.

"Doing what?"

She waved her hand at him, "Saying things that mean things."

He smirked again.

"You know what I mean!" Usagi said angrily, her eyebrows knitting. "You know I don't remember! Don't tease me about it!" Her anger faded as quickly as it came and her voice broke with her last few words.

All mirth drained from his expression and Usagi hated herself.

"Usako, I'm sorr-"

"No, don't apologize," she said, looking at her hands. "None of this is your fault. I stayed up last night, reading through your letters, looking at photos, talking to Luna... but... there is still so much I don't know. Hearing something tell you - oh, this is Prince Endymion, this is Tuxedo Kamen... this is what happened, here, here, here..." Usagi pushed her fingers into her other palm as she talked. "It's not the same as knowing."

"No," he agreed quietly. "It isn't."

"But I wanna know some things," she shifted her legs, sitting up on her knees. "Can I ask you?"

"Shoot." He looked at her and for a moment she lost herself in how blue his eyes were. Like, damn, he's good looking, she thought, feeling a little annoyed. How was that even remotely fair? She was sure he couldn't possibly be similarly distracted by her.

"Uh... How did we meet?" she asked, "In this lifetime, I mean."

It must have been the right question to ask, the sadness in his eyes seemed to fade, and his forlorn expression was replaced with a mischievous look.

"No!" Usagi cried, at his answer. "That's not true, you have to be making it up!"

"What part of that sounds implausible to you?"

He had her there.

"Well, and then- what about Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor Moon?"

"Same day, slightly different circumstances."

Usagi settled back onto her knees, crossed her arms and looked at him expectantly. "Go on."

He launched into a very condensed version of their interactions in battles with the Dark Kingdom, and Usagi had to interrupt him once, "Okay, come on. There is no way I was that ridiculous about you. I mean, we had rainbow crystals to find, senshi to train, there was a lot going on, you can't tell me I was that lovesick!"

"I'm just telling it like it was," Mamoru said.

"And what about Tuxedo Kamen? You are telling me you didn't feel similarly about Sailor Moon?"

"Let's just say I had much more self-control," he said with a mock-arrogant voice. Then he paused. "In the interest of full disclosure, there may have been some minor lapses in said self-control, though."

"Whatever!" Usagi cried, "I'm confirming with everyone later, just be warned."

"There are things they don't know," he said, with a look that made her heart do a double beat.

Usagi shifted a little, breaking his gaze and swinging her feet below the bench. "Uh... what do we like to do for fun?"

"Like our dates?"

"Y-yeah..." she said. The word made her stomach flutter a little.

"Lots of eating," he said, and she grinned at that. It sounded about right. "Sometimes shopping around town, simple things like that. Our favorite is movie night at my place, with Chibi-Usa, too."

"That sounds nice," she said, sincerely. Usagi twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "What else?"

He told her some of the funnier stories of their misadventures in everyday life, some sprinkling of antics from the girls or Chibi-Usa, or some particular interesting battle or event that her corrupted memories had changed slightly. Mamoru kept it lighthearted, and made Usagi erupt in giggles or gasps many times.

"Anything else you want to know?" Mamoru ran a hand through his hair. The fact remained that he'd missed her terribly these past few months and it felt good just to be in her presence; see her smile and the sparkle of her eyes - even if she wasn't completely his. Just cheering her up felt like the most important thing in the world. But that didn't mean he wasn't just aching to touch her, to kiss her, the way he'd been able to until so recently.

"Do we ever argue?" she glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Not really anymore but when we first met...," he trailed off, thinking. "I made you angry a lot. Mostly for calling you 'odango atama'."

"That's it?"

"Well, maybe there were other things," he put his hand on his neck, sweat dropping a little. "But to be fair, you were always hitting me with shoes or papers or running into me on the street... so maybe I ... said some things that in hindsight, might've been a little on the harsh side of teasing..."

She raised her eyebrows at him and he smiled again. "Hey, I got your attention, didn't I?" he said.

"I'm sure in a negative way!" Usagi was giggling despite herself.

"It must not have been that negative," he said, looking at her warmly. "Eventually I won you over."

"So you say," she said primly, pulling a strand of hair out in front her eyes and pretending to be very interested in checking for split ends. "I'm just here, taking your word for it."

"You'll just have to trust me," he drawled, leaning back against the bench. "I promise I meet your approval, Tsukino Usagi."

Usagi dropped the strand of hair and bit down on her lower lip again. Hearing him say her full name reminded her... "And you call me Usako?"

"Yup... well, and Odango agama, still," he grinned, "sometimes."

"Have we kissed?"

Her sudden question startled him, and for a second he was the one fighting a blush. Usagi looked at him with an openly curious expression, as if she'd merely asked their favorite restaurant. "Yes," he answered. "We... have."

"Oh," she nodded. "I guess that would make sense." Idiot, you've been together for a couple years now. Obviously you've kissed him. She pressed her fingertips to her mouth for a moment, deep in thought. But even searching her mind, it still came up blank. "Am I good at it?"

"W-what?" Mamoru forced himself to stop staring at her lips.

"At kissing," Usagi rolled her eyes and sat up on her knees again, facing him. "Am I good?" She didn't seem to care at all about embarrassing him, for all her shyness earlier. But Usagi could be like that, he reflected, once she set her mind on something.

"Yes," he said, finally. "Very good at it." His cheeks were warm and he knew he'd long since given up on trying not to blush. But Usagi didn't seem to notice.

"Hmm," she said, a pleased expression on her face. "Good." There was a beat. "I wish I remembered," she sighed.

"It-"

"Will - will you kiss me now?" she asked, suddenly. Her voice was timid and she was half cringing away from him, as if she expected him to say no. Instead, he gently took her chin in his hand and turned her head toward him. Usagi met his eyes for a moment, before they fluttered shut and he brushed his lips against hers in a soft kiss.

Oh my god. It was only a second or two, and Usagi was so overcome with the feeling of what was, for all her present experience, her first kiss, that it took her until it was over to realize that she hadn't been flooded with memories.

For a moment she didn't open her eyes, or say anything at all, just stayed where she was, with his hand still on her chin. Finally, she lifted her eyelids and looked at him. "I half expected that to work," she murmured.

"Me, too," he admitted, softly, not fully opening his eyes, or pulling away at all.

"Maybe we should try again?" she said. "I mean, just in ca-" and his lips were on hers again, with slightly more urgency this time. His hand moved from her chin across her face, catching in her hair, brushing down her neck.

After a few moments, Usagi found herself opening her mouth under his, winding her hands around his neck- when a familiar beeping sound made them both jump.

"Oh!" Usagi pulled back and nearly tumbled off the bench, catching herself just in time. "The communicator!" She pulled it out of her bag.

Ami's tiny face looked out at her. "Usagi, can you come to Rei's right now? We have some things we want to try and some brainstorming to do, regarding your memories."

"Y-yeah, sure," Usagi said, hoping her face wasn't so obviously flush on the small screen on Ami's side. "Can Mamoru come too?"

"Yes, of course. He's a part of this, as well." Ami didn't seem surprised they were together, "See you both soon."

There really needs to be a different ring for non-emergencies, Usagi thought with an internal sigh.

"Well," Mamoru stood up first, and held out his hand. "Shall we?"

I know, I know, quite a tragic lack of the girls in this chapter, but next one should be full of various antics. :)