AN: If anyone is looking for major waff, I'll just tell ya right now, 
I'm not sure if this is the right place to look for it...Right now, 
this story is in 'romantic tension mode', which means that it's not 
full blown...yet... I'm kinda on a see-saw with the whole romance/plot 
deal...Gomen, but please read this anyway, if you want to keep up to 
date with plot (believe me, you'll need to in order to understand the 
next chapter). Thanx ^_^

I hope you like it...please tell me if you do/don't...

A MAJORLY HUGE BIG ENORMOUS Arigatou to Sakura, my prereader. You're 
the best! Thank you!

Disclaimer: 'Guess Who?' belongs to..erm...Milton Bradley? Am I wrong? 
I do know one thing- Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi ^_^

************************
The Game Is the Mystery
Day 4- Guess Who?
By April Rayne 
Startear42@aol.com
************************

	"IIE!"

	The shrill scream sounded in the midst of the darkness, its 
shroud descending on the room like a hawk going after its prey. Usagi 
wrapped her arms around herself, the temperature in the dark void 
dropping drastically. 

	Gone.
	
	Everything she had ever counted on, everyone she had ever 
loved...

	The laughing grew in intensity, crackling, gnawing at her 
insides. She was alone, and terribly afraid. "Leave me! Go away!" she 
cried out, falling to her knees onto the cold floor. She tried to 
huddle herself into a ball, then covered her ears...But that was when 
she realized that the laughing was coming from her head, her fear. 
"Help..." she murmured weakly.

	Warmth...

	It came from behind her suddenly, and she opened her eyes with 
caution. But as the warmth built up, Usagi began to relax, and soon the 
laughing faded to a serene calm, the only sounds to be heard coming 
from her beating heart. There was a presence...She turned around 
swiftly, before her savior could escape.

	'Who are you?'

	The mask waited for her amongst the shadows, beckoning for her 
to follow, to find out the truth... Mustering her courage, she stepped 
forward, each step bringing her focus of the man into the light.

	'Why do you save me?'

	Her footsteps began to speed up, but when she came close enough 
that the scent of roses reached her, he moved back. One step 
forward...two steps back. Again...and again...

	Gone.

*****
	Azure blue eyes snapped open to find the light of sunrise 
filtering in through the window. Usagi gasped, her breathing labored 
and slow. That same dream... Only this time it continued, opened 
another chapter to the story...Only added more questions. 
	Usagi squinted at the light, and her eyes strayed around the 
room until they came across her hand. She grasped the picture tightly,
to the point where it shook slightly. Still lying down, she brought it
closer to her. 'How can this be...?'
	With further scrutiny, she examined the photo. This couldn't 
have been a fake, and the people in it were as real to her as could 
possibly be. But her mother...? Mamoru...? It didn't make any sense. 
Her mother never mentioned any connection to the Chiba family, to 
him... And yet, here he was, plain as day, ready to embrace her mother. 
	Usagi looked at her alarm clock. 6:09 A.M. Knowing that she 
wasn't planning on going back to sleep anytime soon, she shut off her 
alarm and sat up in bed.  
	'A picture is worth a thousand words...' Now if she could only 
find the right ones...

<10:10 A.M.>

	Usagi walked down the hallway, her steps faltering. She had 
made up her mind. All she had to do was tell him the truth... She had 
taken his keys, done the forbidden, opened the locked drawer. 
	'I'm not completely at fault anyway,' she argued to herself. 
'He lied to me about it being broken, and the key being lost... But he 
also told me not to open it, didn't he?'
	"UGH!!!"
	"Something wrong, Tsukino?" A male voice called out from the 
open office door at the end. 
	"Oh, no," Usagi mumbled. "This is *not* going well...Chiba!" 
she practically yelped as she saw him appear in the doorway. Mustering 
her strength, she walked up to him, lifting her chin so that they met 
eye to eye. "Can we talk?"
	He nodded, and she walked into his office, her hands 
protectively going around her purse. Inside, the box of pictures was 
hidden. She could hear his footsteps behind her, and then saw him sit 
down. "Chiba, there's something we need to talk about..."
	"Go ahead."
	"Well, you see..." she looked down, and took a deep breath. 
'Now or never...' "About what we have planned for today... You talked 
to Rei about it already, right?" 'Not again,' she thought to herself. 
'Why can't I just tell him?'
	"You didn't ask her?"
	"Huh?" She drew her gaze to the window. "I was really... 
distracted...this morning."
	"I see..." Mamoru raised an eyebrow, then sat forward in his 
seat. 'She's thinking about it..' "Yes, we talked about it last night. 
Didn't she say that she was going to pick up her client now?"
	"Distracted..."
	"Tsukino, what's wrong?"
	"I...don't know. Couldn't really get any sleep last night."
	"Insomnia?
	"...Probably," Usagi sighed. "Chiba, I'll be upstairs if you 
need me, okay?"
	He nodded, and Usagi slowly exited the room, her hands still 
around her purse. She mentally scolded herself for not trying to tell 
him the truth. But there was still this uncertainty in her heart... she
 wasn't sure of what to do, and with the box at her side, going about 
the daily routine wasn't going to be easy. She climbed up the steps, 
and as she did, slowly undid the clasp to her purse. When Usagi reached
the door, she opened it quickly and shut it behind her. Walking with 
cautious steps towards the locked cabinet, she knelt down and slid it 
open. The board was still there; nothing was touched. She let out the 
breath she had been holding. Mamoru hadn't said anything to her about 
it this morning, so he probably didn't know a thing about it.
	Probably...
	
	Meanwhile, Mamoru sat back in his chair, and reached into his 
pocket. Taking out his keys, he took the smallest one in his hands, the
one with the small blue jewel embedded in it. His mind traveled back to 
that first day when Usagi had shown up and turned his world upside 
down. Unused to all the changes that day, he had uncharacteristically 
forgotten his keys in the research room. When he was outside at his 
car, he finally realized his mistake, but Usagi was out the door behind
him, keys in her hand. He couldn't forget the look on her face, the way
she had slowly lowered her eyelids, avoiding his gaze. For some strange
reason, she looked...guilty... That was when he noticed that her grasp 
was on one particular key...
	The detective shook his head. He shouldn't be doing this, 
leading her into a trap... But if he was going to learn anything about 
the mystery girl that had popped up so quickly into his life, he had to 
test her... Getting up from out of his seat, he proceeded out of the 
door and up the steps.

	Usagi pulled out the box from her purse, but paused before she 
put it back into its original spot. Putting it back would be like 
leaving everything behind her, as if nothing had ever happened...Was 
this what she really wanted? Usagi placed it in the drawer with a 
slight clang, and replaced the black board.
	She had something to remind her...
	
	The door opened, and Mamoru's eyes traveled around the room to 
find Usagi sitting at the desk they had talked at yesterday, aimlessly 
looking out the window. He tried to suppress the frown that made it's 
way to his face. She looked so confused...
	Feeling his presence in the room, she turned to him and smiled 
brightly. "It's so nice outside today, ne?" she nearly whispered. "Sit 
down, Chiba..." He obliged, and took the seat across from her. The 
atmosphere suddenly changed to that of last night. They both felt it. 
"So, how are you, Chiba?"
	He sent her a quizzical look before responding. "You're not one
for small talk, Tsukino. What's going on?" 'This is it,' he thought to 
himself. 'Is she going to pass the test?'
	"I was just thinking about yesterday... And I wanted to say 
thank you."
	'Thank you?' "For what?"
	"For...for telling me what you did. I'm sure it wasn't easy, 
and it isn't something that I should have made you say, the way I did. 
I think... we learned a bit more about each other than we had expected, 
ne?" Usagi murmured, a shadow of memory passing over her eyes. She 
laughed quietly to herself as the irony of her words sunk in. "Much 
more..."

	"But I still don't know about you..."

	"Eh?" Usagi's eyes opened slowly, turning to face him with a 
blush staining her cheeks. "I..."
	"I hope I'm not interrupting anything..." A familiar voice rang
 in.
	"Rei-chan!" Usagi called out, hesitatingly leaving the eye 
contact and swerving her head towards the door. Rei stepped inside, 
jacket still on, with another person behind her.
	"Minna, I'd like to introduce Hikarino Jadeite," Rei said, a 
slight blush tinting her cheeks as she stepped aside. A tall, blond man 
with eyes that blazed blue fire stepped forward, cordially bowing to 
the two detectives. "Hajimemashite." 
	So...this was the man that Rei had been working with for a 
while now... For some strange reason, his name sounded familiar to her 
somehow. Usagi and Mamoru noticed that he was wearing a deep grey 
business suit. "Jadeite-san, may I ask what your occupation is?"
	"I work with the government...with Rei's father, actually." 
	At this, Usagi froze. She knew that Rei and her father were 
never on good terms... "Is that so?" Mamoru interjected, obviously 
aware of the same news. 
	Jadeite shook his head. "Don't look at me as if I'm out here to
spy on Rei-chan."
	'Rei-chan?'
	"Rei-san," he corrected himself quickly. "I'm here on a 
personal agenda. I've been particularly suspicious of what's been going
on behind closed doors as the Azabu Medical Affiliate building myself. 
I know a few people that have been there, and... They haven't been 
quite the same ever since."
	"And this is why we're here today- To work together. Who would 
have known that our cases would come together like this..." Usagi 
mentioned.
	"Too coincidental," Mamoru muttered to himself underneath his 
breath. "Rei, you've been undercover at the AMA building as a 
physician's assistant in training for how long so far?"
	"About 3 weeks, but I haven't been able to really pinpoint 
what's wrong until now. This will help both of our cases."
	Usagi and Mamoru nodded. "Now all we have to do is plan 
everything out. Rei, do you have the maps?" The lady nodded, pulling 
out a folded piece of paper from out of her purse, and placing it on 
the table. 
	"All right then, let's get to planning this out...Do you have 
the carnations?"


<2:30 P.M.>

	After having lunch and planning out everything at HQ, they 
decided to go ahead to the Azabu Medical Affiliate building...

	The engine came to a stop, and Mamoru sat back, handing over 
the binoculars to Usagi. Taking a look from outside the windshield, he 
gazed at the fairly modern building, and then at the red car parked 
across the street, followed by a gray one. Both driver's side doors 
opened to reveal Rei and Jadeite, he still in his suit while Rei had 
her hair up in a high bun, dressed in a lab coat, with a red and white 
carnation in the front pocket. Looking at Usagi, he found her doing the 
same thing. Her brow was furrowed. "What's wrong?" he asked.
	"The training I went through didn't go over stakeouts as much 
as I wanted it to..."
	"It's simple, Tsukino. We just wait for the signal from Rei 
while she goes and talks to the suspects themselves. Remember, white 
means that everything's all right, and red means that we should go in 
and investigate."
	"It doesn't seem too suspicious to them that Rei-chan is going 
in to meet with three different types of doctors?"
 	"She's in training- this'll just be considered diversifying. 
And if her inside connection doesn't leak out any info, she should be 
fine. All she's going to do is talk to each of them individually, as we 
have planned. Remember, I told her yesterday to set up appointments 
with each of the suspects. This way she can snoop around for any hard 
evidence, like the chemicals. Here," he added, taking the binocular 
strap and gently placing it around her neck. "You deal with this, and 
I'll deal with the transmitter."
	"The walkie talkie?"
	"Yeah, that thing," he replied, a slight smile appearing on his
face. Suddenly, the transmitter began to buzz, and Mamoru immediately 
clicked the receiving button. "Hai?" He looked across the street, and 
saw the other duo waiting outside, Rei speaking into a mock cell phone.
	"Mamoru-kun...Right now, I'm headed for Dr. Kawazaki's office...
I'd leave this on, but we can't risk any noise..."
	"All right. Just be careful." Mamoru shut it off, and turned to 
Usagi to find her already looking at the map. "Kawazaki...Second 
floor... second to last window on the left..." she murmured to herself 
before bringing the binoculars to her eyes to focus. "Why is everything 
so small?"
	Mamoru smiled. She was a natural at getting the job done... 
except for one problem. "Tsukino, you're holding them backwards..."

*****
	Rei let go of her hold on the transmitter and carefully placed 
it in her purse. "So, Jadeite-san, you can go back to work. I can do 
this on my own."
	A frown marred his features, blue eyes questioning. "Why the 
formalities, Rei-chan?"
	"We're not kids anymore, Jed... Now I have to get back to work.
I'll get in touch with you as soon as I get any results, I promise."
	"Rei..."
	"Goodbye," she whispered, swiftly turning away from him to walk
down the street and into the building. Dejected, Jadeite walked down 
the street and entered his car. Taking one last look back at the 
building, he sighed and sped off.

<3: 07 P.M.>
	
	"How long is she going to be in there?"
	"Patience is a virtue, Tsukino."
	"Well, it's a virtue I don't have!" Usagi sighed, laying back 
in her seat. "I just wish I knew what was going on in there...Wait..." 
she murmured, taking the binoculars in hand. "Here she comes." Rei came 
up to the window, pulling aside the vertical blinds. Looking down at 
the busy street below her, she took another cautious glance behind her 
before displaying a white carnation.
	The sign... "It's not him," Usagi sighed, defeated.


<3:17 P.M.>

	Usagi looked up. "And what room is she in now?"
	"According to the map...If she went in to talk to Dr. Houji 
Fuu...Last window to your right, second floor."
	Usagi adjusted her binoculars, scanning the building until she 
found a window with green curtains. Focusing in more, she found Rei 
walk to one side of the room, and then back in, disappearing from view.
For a moment, a woman with short blond hair and glasses appeared at the
window, only to pull the curtains farther out, and turn back to Rei. 
"So all we can do now is wait..."


<4:01 P.M.>

	"There she is!" Usagi motioned to Mamoru while keeping the girl 
in view. Rei went up to the window, and noticing the black sportscar 
parked across the street, pulled a white carnation from behind her back
and held it up to the window. 
	That knocked another suspect off the list... 


< 4:44 P.M.>

	"I wonder what Rei-chan is doing..." Usagi mused, looking up at
the third story window. She took a sip out of her cup of coffee. "She's 
been in there for so long and she still hasn't gone to the window. I'm
getting a little worried..."
	"Don't worry about Rei. She's been in this business long enough 
to know how not to get herself in trouble."
	Usagi nodded, trying to force a smile onto her face. "I...I 
guess you're right. Ne, Chiba, why don't you take the scopes for a 
while?" she added, taking the strap from around her neck and tossing 
the pair to him. 

<6:15 P.M.>

	Usagi sat listlessly in her seat. They had been sitting 
together in the car for hours, and they had not mentioned any words to 
each other past Usagi worrying and he reassuring her. It was silent
enough to hear a pin drop, and what annoyed her the most was that, when
she usually found silence unnerving, she felt strangely...comfortable. 
They had gotten themselves more coffee along the way, and Usagi took 
another long sip from out of her cup. One bad thing about silence was 
that all her thoughts came in loud and clear. And right now, her 
thoughts consisted of one word: guilt. 'That picture....'
	"Ne, Chiba..."
	He put the binoculars down into his lap. "Yeah, Tsukino?"
	"I was wondering...about that woman from before...when you were
at the orphanage." She wanted to take the words back as soon as she 
said them, bringing her hand to her mouth, and then looking down. 
"Gomen, I didn't mean...I'm sorry, I should start learning how not to 
think out loud..."
	"What do you want to know?" Mamoru smiled to himself at the 
mention of one of his happier, if more confusing memories. Lately, when 
he thought about it, his thoughts strayed to something else...His smile
widened.
	"Eh?" Usagi looked up, puzzled. That certainly was 
unexpected... He trusted her with his memories... She gulped, and drove
the thought out of her mind. "Well...Do you remember what she looked 
like?" she asked slowly, leaning in towards him. 
	A knowing smile played on his lips, and moving closer to her, 
he mumbled, "To tell you the truth..." he trailed off, his face coming 
close to hers, blue locked with blue. Usagi tried to read his eyes, but
there was something that she couldn't quite decipher. A glint, 
something hidden in their depths... The rhythm of her heart began to 
speed up as she felt the distance between them close, feeling the 
warmth coming from him. 
	"She looked like an angel...long, shining hair, these crystal 
blue eyes...beautiful..." His voice was deep and husky, and Usagi's 
head was reeling from trying to figure out what was making her feel so 
dizzy, what had made him act like this...
	"She looked...like you." Usagi's heart froze in her chest. What
was going on? She couldn't break eye contact with him if she had willed
to, but she couldn't help but be a little scared. When her heart began
to pound and she swore that she was gonna go out of control, out of the 
corner of her eyes, she noticed the rearview mirror at the side. 

	"There she is!" Usagi cried out, nearly choking on the words. 
She pulled the binoculars from around Mamoru's neck and put them in 
front of her eyes, making Mamoru fall forwards into her. There, they 
were caught in a very...erm, compromising position... Mamoru found his 
arms going around her to steady himself, Usagi leaning back against the
car door. Their faces came within inches of each other, Usagi blushing 
a very rosy pink. "Eh...Gomen, Chiba..." she muttered, barely daring to
move. His blue eyes met hers again, and slowly, Usagi felt her eyes 
becoming heavy. Her heart, beating furiously at the contact, was, she 
realized with a sudden panic, beating just as fast as his... Their 
lips came closer together as she tried to sit up again...
	"Rei..." Mamoru mumbled as he quickly shifted, arms disappearing 
from around her. 
	"Huh...Right...." Usagi stumbled over the words as she 
carefully took the strap from around Mamoru's neck and brought the 
binoculars back to her eyes again. She could still feel the marching 
band beat within her chest... She saw Rei's figure disappearing from 
the window, and groaned to herself. "She's not there... Wait... Here 
she is again," she mumbled as she saw another body move towards the 
window. 
	Usagi froze. Instead of Rei, a thin redhead with long, wavy 
burnt auburn hair approached the window, a pale hand coming to rest on 
it. A wry smile appeared on her lips, somehow twisted and bent, as if 
thinking about a menacing thought, conjuring a sort of scheme... The 
lady appeared to be laughing, looking back into the room and then back 
out the window...

	Only to look down directly at Usagi with a gaze that could make 
hell freeze over.

	Usagi's muscles began to lock up, beginning to shake with a 
greater fear than she had experienced within the confines of her 
nightmares. Trying to break out of the incriminating gaze that she had 
received from the woman, she sat back, the binoculars dropping into her
lap. Her chest heaved up and down, her breathing rugged...never in her
life had she felt such a force...
	Mamoru tensed with worry the second that he noticed Usagi 
freeze. He shifted to move closer to her. "Tsukino? Tsukino, what's 
wrong?" When she didn't answer and only looked forward, he took her 
face in his hands and made her face him. "Tsukino..."
	That same warmth... Usagi was slowly aroused out of her trance, 
and looked into Mamoru's face, awakening at finding the fear and 
confusion she had felt reflected in his own eyes. "Tsukino, snap out of 
it," he murmured gently, softly patting her cheek, then using the pad
of his thumb to caress her cheeks.
	"Mamoru..."
	He paused for a moment. 'What had she just called him?' 
"Tsukino...What's wrong?"
	"At...at the window...a woman...she..."
	"She what?"
	"She saw me...looked directly at me...she knows..."
	He froze as well, but with the realization, he moved to take 
the binoculars, and brought them to his eyes, all the while, keeping 
his hand over hers in her lap. He slowly put the object back down, and 
turned to his partner. "Tsukino...No one's there..."
	"No...Before...a lady..."
	"What did she look like?"
	"Evil..." Usagi mumbled. Realizing how ridiculous she sounded,
she continued, "Long, auburn hair...thin..."
	"Tsukino...You're probably just imagining things...There's no 
way that anyone could have spotted us from up there-"
	"But she did! I swear, she looked directly at me!" His 
expression was unreadable as he solemnly looked into her eyes. Mamoru 
was torn between two factions, what he knew was possible and what Usagi 
was saying... One was the dogma he had followed throughout his career, 
the other... The other was unbridled, wild, new... and scared him, the 
way it controlled what had always been his serious life...the way it 
began to control his heart just now...
	"Usagi..."
	The girl froze at the sound of her name. This was the first 
time that he had ever addressed her by it...But this was no time for 
questions. "You...You have to believe me...please."
	This was ridiculous. She had to be hallucinating, or something.
It would be foolish, brash to just believe something like that...There 
was just no way that he could-

	"Of course I believe you, Tsukino."

	"But what do we do now?" she asked worriedly. "I missed the 
sign from Rei-chan and she won't be able to come out because her 
'shift' isn't over until tonight..."
	"We don't want to go inside, in case this was just a false 
alarm and she showed up with a white carnation. I'm sure that it can 
wait."
	"Can't we just use the transmitter?"
	"No, someone else in the building might pick up the frequency."

	RING! RING!
	Mamoru sat back and reached into his pocket, trying to push 
back all that had happened within that last ten minutes. Pulling out 
his cell phone, he pressed the receiving button. "Chiba here."
	"Chiba-san? This is Dr. Ono from the BioChem lab that you went 
to yesterday."
	"Right. Hi."
	"We have the results of the lab test. Would you like to hear 
them over the phone, or-"
	"We'll be right over. Arigatou," he said, shutting the cell 
phone off. He sat back and turned on the ignition. 
	"Where are we going?" Usagi asked, putting on her seat belt. 
What about Rei?"
	"Don't worry about that. There's not much we can do about it 
now anyway. We have something else to look into," Mamoru said quickly 
before stepping on the gas.

<8:15 P.M.>
	
	Both detectives were frustrated when they reached the brick 
building. Too much traffic...
	However, they weren't too disappointed with the results. Neph, 
Phobos and Deimos had tested positive for the chemical. The only 
problem was, it was still so new to the lab technicians that they 
weren't able to figure out exactly what it did, what most of it's 
properties were, or what it originated from. Mamoru ran a hand through 
his hair. Usagi slumped down into her seat.

	They had their work cut out for them. 

	The only ray of light lay in the fact that all three of them 
had some sort of connection to the AMA building. Now another problem...
After getting...distracted, they weren't able to find out much about 
that last suspect, Yamino-san. 

	Mamoru and Usagi walked back to the car,  ready and waiting to 
meet up with Rei outside the AMA, and then get back down to business.

<9:15 P.M.>
	
	They pulled up to the sidewalk, by the lampost where the lady 
was waiting. "Rei-chan!" Usagi called out. She rolled down the window, 
and Rei leaned over to talk to them.
	"What happened?"
	"What do you mean?"
	"I waved the red carnation in the window when I was in the room
with Yamino-san!"
	Usagi and Mamoru looked to each other guiltily. "Something came
up... We missed it. It doesn't matter now, because she's still in 
there, isn't she?"
	"From what I know, her shift doesn't end until 10:00. There was 
something suspicious about her... It was strange, because this was the 
first time I ever saw her... And there was this strange flower..." She
pulled out a plastic container from her pocket, and inside lay a small 
flower petal, shaped like a dagger, and of the deepest color purple. 
"Call it a hunch, but I thought there was something strange about this- 
the flowers were all over her room, but the other doctors had lilies...
I can take it to the BioChem lab right now while you talk to Yamino-san. 
Mamoru-kun, you just have to drive Usagi home for me."
	The tall man nodded. "Wait one second," Usagi interrupted. "I 
just want to check something." Taking out her cell phone, she dialed 
one number... "Hi...Yup, it's me, sorry to bother you...I just have one
quick question. Do you know a woman by the name of Yamino Beryl-san?...
I see...Arigatou." Usagi shut it off and turned to Rei. "Can you do me 
a favor? Just call the twins for me...I think I know what's going on."
	Rei did as asked, and Mamoru's eyes widened as she realized 
what she was doing. After speaking to the twins after Rei called them,
Usagi turned to the others. "Both of them saw Yamino...they were 
suggested to her, Phobos and Deimos by their mentor, Kawazaki, and 
Zoicite-kun from Dr. Houji...all at about a few days before the 
robberies."
	Mamoru nodded. "So it's settled then. It's time that we meet 
Yamino Beryl-san."

<9:23 P.M., inside the building>

	"What do you mean, she's at a conference?"
	The receptionist forced a smile onto her face, the presence of 
the two pushy people agitating her. "I'm sorry…?"
	"Midorikawa." Mamoru repeated. "Midorikawa Keisuke*." Usagi 
stood by his side, playing along with the charade. The name just seemed 
to roll off his tongue naturally, and Usagi found it both funny yet 
disturbing. Did he always fool everyone with this much ease?
	After deciding on following Yamino-san, their first option was 
to visit her at her office. They were in for a surprise when the 
receptionist said that she left early for a conference, up in northern 
Japan. It would be for 3 days, and the receptionist, giving them a 
stern look, told them that they had no other choice but to wait.
	Not if Mamoru had anything to do with it.
	"I'm so sorry, but this is an emergency, we really need to see 
her," he pleaded.
	Usagi stepped even closer, adding, "Yes, we can't really wait 
that much longer." 
	The mousy haired receptionist pushed her falling glasses back 
up the bridge of her nose. "I'm sorry," she said for the fiftieth time,
"but you're just going to have to wait, just like all the others."
	Mamoru groaned inwardly. "Can you at least tell us *where* she 
is?"
	"I'm sorry, I can't do that. I'm not allowed to give you and 
your wife private information."
	'Wife?' Usagi's mind screamed. "Eh, wait a second-"
	"Shh, Odango." He silenced her. He looked back at the 
receptionist. "But…Mayumi-san," he added after a quick glance at her 
name tag, "It would really be of help to us if you did." He bent over, 
his face only mere inches away from hers. She began to blush profusely,
caught up in his deep blue eyes, his voice, his face… His voice taking 
on a richer, huskier texture, he drawled, "You see, we're no typical 
couple, Kaori and I…" his face moved in closer to the receptionist 
while his arm snaked around Usagi's waist, pulling her closer to him. 
He paid no attention to the slight yelp of surprise that escaped 
Usagi's mouth. "I know that Yumino-san bears a special interest in 
marriage counseling, and I think our case would…interest her very 
much." The glasses on the bridge of her nose slipped again, but this 
time, Mamoru took them and delicately fixed them himself. "Ne, 
Mayumi-chan?" 
	The receptionist was so red she could have passed for a stop 
sign. With a far off, dreamy look in her eyes, she nodded. 'They *must*
need help if he likes to flirt *this* much.' "Hai…" came out in a quiet
whisper. She scribbled a number and address out on a sheet of memo 
paper, ripped it off, and gave it to him. 
	Mamoru took it, making sure that his hand brushed against hers. 
With his arm still around Usagi's waist, he sent her his most dazzling 
smile and said, "Arigatou gozaimashita, Mayumi-chan. Ja ne." With that, 
the couple walked out of the door and back into the night sky.
	Usagi looked up at him, a blush tinting her cheeks. That, in 
addition to a weird sensation in her heart, had been present since his 
little ploy to play her off as his wife, including his little gesture 
of putting his arm around her waist. She was lucky that he had been 
focused on Mayumi, or he would have noticed her telltale blush and the 
outward looks of jealousy her eyes expressed. "Ne, baka! Just what was 
that?"
	"Stop complaining," he said gently, slowly releasing his grasp 
around her waist. An unrecognizable emotion flew past his features. "It
got us what we wanted, didn't it?" He walked forward and made his way 
to the drivers side while she stood there, mouth slightly open, but not 
in preparation of a response. "Mamo…" she mumbled. Blinking her 
eyes to 'wake up' she followed him to the car, opened the passenger 
side door, and got in without a word.

	They proceeded out of the parking lot, Usagi stretching her arm
to turn on the radio. Music flowed in the air, taking the place of the 
stuffy silence that they started the ride off with. Taking one hand off 
the wheel, he reached into his pocket and took out the piece of paper 
that the receptionist had given him. He handed it to her, keeping his 
eyes on the road. 
	She winced at the cold shoulder her was giving her. Why the 
change from earlier? If he would just look at her, listen…Gingerly 
taking the paper and unfolding it, she scrutinized the scribbled 
writing. "The Fifth Annual Psychotherapist Conference, Kyodai." A hotel
name, address and number were printed beneath it. "Geez, Chiba, you 
didn't have to daze her to the point where she couldn't write," she 
commented stiffly. 
	To her surprise, a small smile broke out on his face. It was 
contagious. She smiled too, and looked forward at the road.
	The drive continued for another ten minutes, music trying to 
lift the spirits of the people in the car. Mamoru had not brought up 
what to do next, and Usagi didn't want to attempt it either. They came 
to another stop light, and Mamoru took the chance to lower the volume 
of the radio. 
	Usagi turned to him to find his blue eyes gazing directly into 
hers. She gulped. "So, what do we do now? Call her and wait for her to 
respond?"
	"Even better. We don't wait for her, she waits for us."
	"Eh?"
	"We're going to the Conference." He stepped on the gas as the 
light turned green, and they sped off further into the night.

	"What?!" 

	"What do you think I got the address for? Doing this over the 
phone isn't going to be very pleasant." 
	Usagi groaned. "But…Minako-chan… her protection…"
	"Don't worry. Like she said, her protection comes in the form 
of us finding out just who's in charge of these burglaries. And, she 
has an extensive security system. She'll be fine." 
	His partner leaned back in her seat. "I guess… I just don't 
know… We're not getting in too deep?"
	He shook his head, and they parallel parked in front of her 
apartment building.  Both of them had decided not to go back to HQ, 
because nothing was left behind. They were back where they had been 
their first night together... Usagi got out of the car, waved to 
Mamoru, closed the door behind her, and faced the structure. "It's 
late…I just think I'm gonna go sit and think for a while," she mumbled 
to herself.
	"If you're thinking, it'll take *more* than a while," Mamoru 
commented, coming from around the front of the car. He walked up to 
her, and she froze at his proximity. Gathering her wits, she playfully 
stuck her tongue out at him and turned to face the building. When he 
was this close, she began to think about the reason why they had missed 
Beryl in the first place... Usagi became glad that it was night and 
that he couldn't see the rising blush on her face. "You forgot this," 
he murmured, taking out her purse from behind his back. 
	She took it slowly, avoiding his eyes, and tried not to let her
disappointment show. So he hadn't just had the whim to walk her to-
	"You're gonna get cold standing out here, Tsukino. C'mon." Taking 
her hand lightly, he began to walk forward, and she took a few 
quick steps to catch up to him. When they were side by side, he let go 
quickly. They reached the entrance to the lobby, and stopped. 
	"Here."
	He held out another perfect red rose, and she took it, eyes 
moving upwards to meet his. 'Where did he get this from?' 
	He smiled but a thousand secrets were kept locked behind his 
eyes. "To keep you focused..."
	Usagi nodded, eyes shining. "Right..."
	"Oyasumi, Odango." She awoke at the sound of the nickname, and 
blushed a little more. 
	"Oyasumi, Mamoru-baka."
	With that, she walked into the building. Pausing before she 
reached the elevator, she turned back to find Mamoru returning to his 
car. She turned the rose in her fingers, a sweet smile playing upon her 
lips.

*****
	Usagi toweled her hair dry, and lay down in bed again. For the 
fourth night in a row, she found it difficult to sleep. She took the 
rose, and placed it on her night table. Sure, this had been a strange 
day...first with the stakeout...what happened in the car... There was 
no explaining what was going on with that woman that she saw in the 
window...Usagi shuddered. She reached over into her purse, and took out
a special sized envelope that she had found around the house the night 
before. Taking out it's contents, she felt her heart somersault again. 
She traced the smile on Mamoru's face, then his arms, reaching out to 
her mother. At the same time, the burden in her heart grew. He had the 
right to know the truth. He had come to trust her with so much, and 
yet... She looked down at the locket around her neck, and back at the 
picture. The necklaces were identical...
	"Mother, I wish you could just tell me..." she whispered, 
laying down and placing the picture beside her so that she could look 
at it. Gazing into his past, she began to think of her own, and soon 
sleep began to take claim to her...


	RING! RING!

	"Hmm?" She absentmindedly waved her hand around until it 
reached the source of the noise. Picking up the receiver, she put it up 
to her ear, eyes still closed. "Moshi moshi?" she mumbled.
	'Good one, Chiba, she's fast asleep.' "Odango Atama?" 
	"Mamoru-baka?" she mumbled, sitting up halfway. "What's wrong 
with you? It's…" She squinted to see the blur of the alarm clock digits
in the dark. "2 in the morning, Chiba…" She laid down on her back, and 
again waved her arm around until she found the speakerphone button. 
Clicking it, she put the phone back and turned over to the side, 
eyelids still heavy. 
	"You're the one that told me that you deserved the right to 
know if anything came up," he smirked.
	Usagi groaned. "Didn't Rei-chan ever tell you *never* to listen 
to me?" she grumbled. 
	He laughed. "On more than one occasion, Tsukino."
	A little smile played upon her lips and her thoughts headed 
straight towards dreamland. "So tell me, Chiba…" She yawned. "What *new
development* did you come up with to call me at such a lovely time?"
	"Pack your bags tonight, Tsukino, we're going to the Conference
*tomorrow morning.*"
	Her eyes shot wide open. "What?!" 
	Mamoru pictured her right now, sitting straight up in bed, hair
in disarray, mouth formed into that cute pout that she always had when 
she was annoyed… 
	Man, it *was* late, for him to be thinking like that. Before he
could think about it any more, Usagi interrupted. "Tomorrow's too soon,
Mamoru-baka! Don't you think we should plan things out a bit first?"
	"I already did, and I'll explain the details tomorrow morning. 
Just have your bags packed for a 2 day trip, and explain things to Rei 
if she happens to ask anything."
	"It's not *that* simple, Chiba. Does the word *partner* ring a 
bell? It should, we could've come up with a plan *together*."
	She had a point.
	But to him, right now, when they were so *close*, he just 
didn't have time to consult her. He didn't have to respond, though, 
because she continued, "Besides, I want to tell a couple of people that 
I'm leaving."
	He'd forgotten about that…She had a family; friends to worry 
about… "I'll give you until 11:00 a.m. tomorrow, is that all right?" He
said coolly.
	She shivered at the change in tone of his voice. "Okay…yeah, 
that's fine."
	An awkward silence followed, and Usagi leaned back against the 
headboard. Mamoru, meanwhile, sat still on his bed, quietly 
contemplating his idea. When nothing else was said, he mumbled, "So 
I'll see you in the morning then-"
	"Wait!" 
	Silence ensued, and Usagi dared to break it. "Are you all 
right, Chiba?" 
	"Eh?"
	"I don't know what it is…but you just sounded so…sad…and I-" 
She paused. "I'm sorry, Chiba, I really shouldn't-"
	"I'm actually feeling better now, Tsukino. Arigatou." He was 
grateful to hear her concern. More grateful than he cared to admit. 
	She smiled. "I don't know what for, but you're welcome." The 
quiet that followed after that was comfortable and warm. Quietly, as to
not interrupt it, she whispered, "See you tomorrow?"
	"Mmmhmm."
	"Oyasumi."
	"Oyasumi, Odango."
	Mamoru and Usagi both clicked the button. Usagi took a deep 
breath and yawned. Mamoru moved from his sitting position on the bed 
and lay down, his hands behind his head. Usagi then lay down on her 
side, head resting comfortably on the pillow. 
	
	"Oyasumi…Mamo-chan…" she mumbled.
	
	For the first time since they had met each other, they fell 
asleep easily.


**********

	"Did you give it to them?"
	"Of course I did. Have I ever let you down before?"
	"Don't make me answer that," the lady at the end of the line 
spit out, tossing her auburn hair over her shoulder and scoffing. "You 
gave the hotel number, address...You didn't forget anything? I'll be 
very upset if you did...And you know what I do if someone upsets me..."
	The girl sat at her desk, and gulped. Her glasses fell down the
bridge of her nose, and she quickly scrambled to fix them. "Hai... 
Hai...Of course..."
	"Good... So the fun begins tomorrow then...Oh, and one more 
thing..."
	"Hai?"
	"You're fired."

	Click.


********************
End Day 4
********************
More AN:::audience groans::

Yamino-Of the darkness
Hikarino- Of the light
Midorikawa- Fiore and Tamahome's (from FY) seiyuu's last name.
Keisuke-For anyone that's seen FY...

Now I take Usagi's locket and begin to swing it back and forth in 
front of everyone until they all get those cute little swirlies in 
their eyes...@_@

Liked it or hated it...FEEDBACK PEOPLE, FEEDBACK!!!!! I *LIVE* ON 
THIS STUFF!!! NOW!!!