It wasn't a part of the city Mamoru was used to frequenting - a large park quite outside the circular 'city center'. Mercury waved him over from where the four senshi were standing, already transformed, among thick trees and small pathways.

Thinking that he'd rather not have his civilian self spotted in close quarters to a sailor senshi again, he transformed quickly into Tuxedo Kamen, and jogged the last few steps to where the girls were standing.

"This is pretty far out in the middle of nowhere," he commented, glancing around.

"Only a city boy like you would call a small clump of trees in one of the most urbanized areas on the planet the 'middle of nowhere'," Mars huffed and Mamoru, wisely, decided not to point out that Rei, too, was born and raised in Tokyo proper.

"But I thought the point was to be seen?" he continued.

"Bird watchers," Mercury said, primly.

"Come again?"

"This time of year, bird watchers flock-" Mercury paused as Venus gave her an appreciative grin and finger guns in her direction at the unintentional pun. Mercury cleared her throat and continued as if the interruption hadn't happened, "to this area of the city to spot the herons roosting along the lake."

They looked at her. She explained, "Bird watchers tend to be very observant, likely to spot things, and, most importantly, have cameras with telescopic lenses."

"Smart, right?" Jupiter commented, with a grin.

Mercury beamed a little. She ran down the plan one more time, to the nods of the girls.

She looked at Mamoru. "Ready?"

"Aren't you worried this will seem... quite obviously staged?"

Venus shrugged, giving him a grin. "Guess that depends on your, ahem, acting skills."

He sighed, looking uncomfortable.

"Don't worry, we won't be spying or anything, you'll have total privacy."

"Right," he said, "just us and the birdwatchers' cameras." A pause. "And everyone who reads the tabloids."

Mars looked up from her communicator, all business all of a sudden. "The rabbit is in the den! I repeat: the rabbit is in the den!"

Venus frowned. "I thought we decided on 'the odango has landed'."

"That makes no sense," Mars said.

Jupiter knitted her brows, "Wasn't it, 'the moon is out tonight'?"

Mercury threw up her arms. "PLACES!"

Usagi pocketed her communicator after confirming with Rei that she'd arrived, and looked around for any signs of her friends. "Guys?!" she called out.

"This really is the middle of nowhere," she muttered. "I bet this was Rei's idea, to meet for training all the way out here, why e-" Usagi jumped when Mercury landed before her.

"Ready?" the blue-suited senshi said. "We are just going through some simple formations today. Transform, okay?"

Obediently, Usagi did so, and then followed Mercury as she ran from the woods to a clearing, off the path, by a small lake. Then, Mercury leaped up into the shadow of the trees and was gone.

Suddenly, a flash of lightning - Jupiter, she thought- clapped through the air and Sailor Moon watched, wide-eyed, as a flock of birds rustled from the branches of the trees surrounding the lake in a cloud of wings and feathers.

When she turned back around to see Tuxedo Kamen standing behind her, she didn't even startle - she was, by then, used to him appearing out of nowhere. Sailor Moon opened her mouth to question what was going on, and he just shook his head quickly to quell the concern in her eyes.

"Just follow my lead, okay?" he said, under his breath, and somehow she gathered from his tone of voice he was only a partially-willing participant in what was happening.

Well, until she was gathered up in his arms and kissed breathless - then it quickly became clear that he had suddenly gone from partially to fully, one hundred percent invested in the execution of the plan. That, or the plan had slipped from his mind the minute his lips caught hers'.

It was different, kissing her when they were transformed - he always felt a little bolder, forgot whatever part of him wanted to hold back, to keep cool. Their extrasensory connection heightened every sensation, his mind and body responding instinctively to her feelings and movements - just like in battle. Only, now, every synchronized synapse was sparking passion, desire, all of everything exploding under each brush of her gloved fingers against his neck. He coaxed her lips open beneath his and she responded with her usual unbridled enthusiasm, sending him spiraling with every flick of her tongue, with the delicious sweetness and heat of her mouth. His arms tightened, fingers spread open, skimming along the fabric of her suit, tangling in the bow at the back of her skirt.

It was only later Usagi recognized the whir and clicking sounds in her ears were cameras, and that it was flashbulbs she saw behind her eyelids.

Sailor Moon had her arms flung around Tuxedo Kamen's neck and shoulders, letting him bend her slightly backwards, her golden hair spilling almost to the ground. His arms wrapped around her upper and lower back, steadying and supporting her. Somehow (Mamoru always figured magic had something to do with it, he didn't spend much time overthinking it, especially not in moments like this) his hat and mask had stayed in place, and that didn't seem to bother Sailor Moon one iota. She had her arms flexed to pull herself up and closer against him, his cape blew behind her in the wind, and they were quite obviously locked in a very passionate embrace, their mouths pressed together in a way that was anything but chaste. And that, that exact moment, was immortalized in the photograph that would grace the lower racks of the newsstands within mere days.

"Check and mate," Mercury said, smugly.

Usagi was, once again, staring at her math homework before the teacher arrived. Pencil resting between her lips, she looked at the (mostly blank) paper without really seeing it. Instead, she listened to the murmurs of her classmates.

"Well, I guess they got back together or something." A rustle of newsprint.

"I'd think it was staged, except... I mean..." an embarrassed giggle, "that's some kiss, you know?"

A sigh, and the voice grudgingly conceded, "Yeah, I don't think you can fake that." A pause. Then she added hopefully: "I mean, unless they are really good actors?"

Someone laughed, Usagi heard the sound of a hand clapping onto a shoulder. "Sorry, girl, I think you're just going have to accept he's officially spoken for."

Usagi bit back a grin, digging her teeth a little into her pencil eraser - but not enough to break it, this time. Already, three copies of the tabloid in question were safely in her schoolbag (per Rei's advice: one to read, one to keep, and one to display). And this was definitely one for the was a very flattering picture, for one thing, her legs looked smoking, not to mention she had been having a fabulous hair day. Her boyfriend, too, looked very good. Super dashing and very obviously completely and totally enraptured by her. On second thought, forget the scrapbook, Usagi wondered if she could get it blown up to poster-size and hang it on her wall.

She'd have to thank Ami and the others later... and definitely swing by Mamoru's if he wasn't too busy. It'd be nice to get a repeat performance... without the cameras this time.

Unfortunately, her daydream was interrupted when the teacher entered the classroom, (almost startling Usagi out of her chair) but even the evils of mathematics couldn't dampen her good mood that day.

"Looks like you got thrown over," Rei said, with mock-sympathy as she dropped the tabloid on the table in front of Mamoru. Ami had been right about those telephoto lenses - the picture was in full color and detail, thrown across the front page with a screaming headline that promised further details inside.

"So it would seem," he said.

"Definitely makes that peck you got at the library look like nothing," Minako said, sliding into the booth across from him without waiting for permission. Rei followed.

"I mean, anything would be, compared to 'the kiss that almost set the woods on fire'," the blonde continued, looking at the cover with a pleased expression.

Mamoru looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"It's a direct quote from the article," she said, tapping it with one sparkle-polished fingernail.

"Wonderful."

"Oh, here come the Juuban girls," Rei said, waving Ami, Makoto and Usagi over.

The latter bounded in and slid next to Mamoru, latching onto his arm and peering over to the newspaper on the table. "Oooh good, you saw it!" she squealed. "It's it amazing?! I bought three. Do you want one?"

"Hmm, no thanks," he said. "I have one."

Makoto pulled two chairs over from another table for her and Ami.

"Did you want her to autograph it?" Makoto asked, with a cheeky grin.

Usagi looked thrilled at the idea. "I could sign the other one, too!"

"Maybe later."

Minako snickered a little. "Maybe later," she said under her breath, in a pretty spot-on imitation of Mamoru's voice. Makoto pressed her lips together to hold back a giggle and Rei huffed and rolled her eyes.

"Be mature, please," Ami said, delicately.

Usagi looked between her friends with a wide-eyed, confused expression. "What?"

"Nothing," Minako said. Then: "Parfaits all around! On you, of course," she turned to Usagi, who looked surprised.

"As a thank you," Rei agreed.

"Bu-but I spent all my money on the newspapers today," Usagi said, crestfallen. She looked up at Mamoru, with impossibly large eyes and a sheepish smile. "Um, Mamo-chan, can I borrow some money?"

Once again, Makoto recognized his defeated sigh and grinned despite herself.

Later, as they all had their desserts in front of them and Mamoru had left for an evening class, Ami looked at Usagi very seriously. "I hope at least," she said, "you learned some kind of lesson from this whole thing."

Usagi took a long, thoughtful sip of soda through her straw. Then she looked right at Ami and shrugged cheerfully.

"Nope!"

She was the only one not to fall off her chair in exasperation, and she took the opportunity to take a few spoonfuls from Minako's sundae, smiling fondly at the tabloid cover the entire time.