Once again I'm sorry about the extremely long wait for updates. You can blame my muse. I killed her. All she did was bring me pictures of Orlando Bloom. Not good when I'm trying to concentrate on this story. So I starved her thinking she would bring me pictures of Matt, Ken and Tai...but she died. So I was idea-less. Actually, I still am, so if this chapter seems a little forced, it is! Oh yeah, someone 'kindly' e-mailed me and told me that I had never put up a disclaimer, so here it is. I don't own Sailor Moon or Digimon and am making no money of this project, however, I do have Ken Ichijouji hand cuffed to my bed! (He's right next to Orlando, Aya, Youji, Zechs, Auron, Hotohori and the Backstreet Boys!)Hehehehe. And a special thank-you goes to Renicia, for giving me the push I needed to get this story back on the road. THANK-YOU!!!!!! Anyways, this chapter is called Love Is In The Air and is the beginning of Rei and Ken's relationship and a little quiet time between Matt and Leta. We also get a little bit of Ken's past and why he is the way he is. Hope you guys enjoy. But if you don't, don't worry, I didn't enjoy writing it.

*Sarah*

"So, where did you go last night?"

Rei looked up at the sound of her friends voice. "What?"

"I asked where you went last night." Leta repeated.

"Oh." Rei smiled, remembering the nights events. "Nowhere, I was out back."

Leta raised her eyebrows. "So you sat in the backyard all night?"

Rei shook her head, sending raven locks flying around her face. "No, we came in at about one o'clock." Rei stopped, realizing that had said 'we'. She pushed her chair away from the table, stood up and picked up her cereal bowl, heading towards the kitchen. She pushed open the door, rinsed her bowl and turned to leave, only to find Leta standing in her way. "You know," she said sarcastically, "I'm sensing a little hesitation. We both know I'm not gonna drop this, so why don't you just save yourself the frustration and tell me who you were with." Rei frowned. "Or I could follow you around all day and ask you every five minutes. What do you think I should do?"

"I was with...." Rei paused, searching her mind for anyone's name, "Sora."

And exactly as Rei said her name she walked into the kitchen, opening the cupboard and pulled out a bowl. "What?" She asked, glancing from Rei to Leta curiously.

Leta turned to Rei, her eyebrows raised and a small smile on her face. "Do you wanna tell me the truth now?"

Rei sighed, admitting defeat. Sora, who was still looking around in confusion asked, "Did I miss something here?"

Leta nodded. "It seems Rei was out last night 'till one in the morning with some mystery person and is completely unwilling to tell me who it was, which, of course, makes me all the more determined to find out." Sora laughed, but turned to Rei, waiting to hear her response.

"Ken." Rei replied .

"What about him" Leta asked. "Are you trying to get out of telling us, cause if you are-"

"No, I was with Ken." Rei said, interrupting her friends tirade. "But you can't say anything to anyone, okay?" They both nodded, shock written on both of their faces. "And I suppose you wanna know the details?"

Once again they both nodded. "Of course we wanna know!" Sora answered. "I've been meaning to talk to you. I've known Ken for three years and he's never acted like this."

"Like what?" Leta asked.

"Like he has feelings." Sora answered. "He's normally so withdrawn and depressed, but for the first time he seems to enjoy life, to be aware of other peoples feelings." Sora laughed, throwing her arm across Rei's shoulder, "Maybe you aren't so bad."

Rei smiled, "Thanks, I think." The three girls went back into the dining room and sat at the table, both of the flanking Rei. "Let's see, where to start?" Rei paused for a moment, trying to decide where to start her story. "After the whole, power-negating collar business I was obviously a little distraught. And you guys were just making things worse by asking me if I was okay. It got so bad that I couldn't hold my tears back any more and had to get away, so I went outback." Rei paused to catch her breath. "Well, I sat out there alone for a while, crying, self-pitying, I think I even threw a few things. Not a pretty site." Her friends stifled their laughter. "Anyways, I was alone until Ken came up and tried to comfort me."

Leta and Sora both raised their eyebrows, each trying to imagine the cold and unfeeling Ken trying to comfort the emotional wreck that Rei was the day before. "I would have paid to see that." Sora laughed.

"It gets more unbelievable, just wait a few minutes." Rei countered. Both of the girls quieted down and waited for Rei to continue. "Like I was saying, Ken tried to comfort me, but I was a little...inconsolable, and I yelled at him and told him that he would never understand. And then he said that he might not understand, but that he wanted to help. And then-" Rei paused, reliving the moment in her head, "He kissed me."

She glanced up at Sora and Leta, waiting for one of them to say something, anything.

Leta was the first one to start laughing. "Very funny!" She said in between giggles, "Seriously, what did he do?"

Rei frowned at her friend. "He kissed me." She repeated. Leta started to laugh again, but the look in Rei's eyes made her stop. She was serious. Leta's eyes widened and her expression changed from humorous to amazement. "at first I was shocked and I didn't know how to react, but then as soon as I realized I was enjoying it, he pulled away, apologizing for doing it."

"What did you do then?" Sora asked.

"I told him not to be, and then I kissed him."

"You kissed him." Leta repeated. Rei nodded, a slight blush creeping up on her cheeks. "You kissed Ken Ichijouji!"

"You say it like it's a bad thing."

"Not bad," Sora interrupted, "Just...weird. Really weird, I didn't even think he liked girls." Rei and Leta both stared at Sora in shock. "I didn't mean that." she said quickly, "He just never shows any interest in anything except that computer of his." Sora poured cereal into her bowl and grabbed the milk out of the refrigerator and emptied the container into the bowl before tossing it into the garbage. "You deserve an award for bringing that boy out of his shell." Sora picked up her cereal and walked to the door, but before she left she turned around and asked "What about Tai?"

Confusion flashed in Rei's eyes. "What about Tai?" she asked.

Sora frowned and glanced at Leta, who was shifting her feet and looking at the floor nervously. "Forget I said anything." she told Rei hastily before exiting the room.

Rei turned to Leta who was still looking at the floor as if it held something of great interest to her. "What about Tai?" Rei repeated.

Leta looked at Rei and pulled the sleeve of her shirt up, exposing her bare wrist. "Look at the time." She laughed nervously, heading towards the door. "Matt and I have plans today, we're trying to teach Jupymon some manners, so...uh....I'll see you later. Bye!" Leta rushed out of the door as fast as she could, telling herself to remember that she was staying out of it. 'It's not my business.' she thought, 'If Tai stands a chance he's gonna just have to tell her himself, ....but it might be too late.' Leta shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. 'Besides, I have more important things to worry about, like an over active bouncing head.'

*****

Ken sat against the wall. His knees were up and his elbows were resting on them, his hands pushed carelessly into his hair, pushing the blue locks out of his azure eyes. His laptop sat on the floor next to him, on, but unused. His eyes were focused on the wall across from him, staring listlessly at the smooth white surface. He wore light gray slacks and a crisp, white button up shirt. The buttons were half-way undone and a thin silver chain dangled around his neck. He dropped his hands to the ground and sighed. "What am I doing?" he questioned himself. "I can't afford to get involved with the enemy...I can't afford to care...' But no matter how hard he tried he couldn't get her tear filled eyes out of his mind. He pushed himself up from the floor, walked to his desk and opened the drawer, pulling out a small, framed picture. He set it on the desk gently and stared at the image. It was a picture of two boys, both standing outside in the middle of a soccer field. Both of them had dark hair and blue eyes, the only obvious difference was age. The younger boy held a ball in his hands and was looking to the older boy with a look of awe on his face. A look of complete and total respect. Ken slowly reached out his hand and ran it across the photo. Then, suddenly, he picked it up and threw it at the wall, the glass shattering onto the floor.

He slammed his desk drawer closed and threw himself onto his bed, but his eyes drifted back to the broken picture on the floor. Anger swelled inside him. 'Why should I care about her...in the end she'll be just like him...she doesn't care...no one does...they don't understand...' Ken sat up, once again resting his head in his hand. 'She fights with them, against me...' Ken sat like that for a while, trying his best to convince himself that he didn't care, that Rei wasn't important, but every time he closed his eyes he saw the image of her crying in the backyard, he felt the gentle pressure of her lips against his, the way her hands wound themselves in his hair. He had felt secure in her arms...safe. And that thought scared him. He hadn't depended on anyone since Sam.

Sam....

Ken closed his eyes and traveled back to his past....

*****

A boy of about six or seven ran into the kitchen of his house carrying a small glass jar. "Mommy! Daddy!" He cried, running to where his parents were sitting. "Mommy, look!" He pushed the glass jar into her eye sight and waited. His mother pushed the jar out of her face and turned to him. "Ken, be quiet, can't you see we're talking to your brother."

Ken lowered his head, trying to hide his now tear-filled eyes. "But Mommy, I caught lightening bugs." Ken said softly, gesturing to the small, glowing insects inside of the jar."

His mother grabbed the jar and walked to he window where she opened the jar and released the fireflies into he night. "I don't have time for you right now." His mother said angrily, "Were having an important conversation about your brother's future, no go away!"

Ken stepped slowly out of the room, silent tears streaming down his face. He climbed the stairs and walked towards his room. While walking down the hall and he passed his brothers room, and in a fit of curiosity pushed to door open and walked in.

The room was impeccable. The bed was made and everything was in it's proper place. Books lined the shelves and framed pictures stood at their ends. Ken walked to a picture of him and his brother on his last birthday. It was the day that he had gotten his first soccer ball, and his older brother Sam had taken him to the park to play with it. Their parents had snapped this picture just before they started to play.

Ken would never admit it, but he had always been jealous of his brother. Their parents always paid more attention to him, because he was a genius and Ken was just a normal little boy. Regardless of that fact, Ken and Sam got along quite well. Sam never treated his brother the way their parents did, and often stood up for him when things at home got their worst.

Ken smiled at the picture and turned to leave when something caught his eye. It was a small, gray device sitting next to his brothers computer. Ken picked it up and turned it over in his hand, wondering what it was. He was about to put it down when a bright light flashed from it and the world around him melted.

Ken appeared on the banks of a small lake. The waves lapped gently against the shore and a slight breeze blew. Ken pushed himself up from the sand and looked around. He was completely alone, or so he thought. "Hi Ken, my names Wormmon." At the sound of the voice Ken turned and found himself face to face with a small green creature. He jumped back with a startled cry and prepared to run. "Don't be afraid." Wormmon said, "I'm not going to hurt you, I'm your friend."

Ken looked at the small animal in confusion. "What's a friend?" he asked.

Wormmon crawled to ken's leg and smiled. "You know, someone to talk to, someone to play with. A friend."

Ken frowned. "I've never had a friend before." he said quietly. "Only my brother, Sam."

"Well, I'm your friend now!" Wormmon said happily. "You'll never have to be alone again." Ken spent the rest of the night with his new found friend and for the first time in his life he felt like he was wanted, like he truly belonged.

When the night was over and the sun began to rise Ken used the device to return home, anxiously awaiting the time when he could tell his brother about Wormmon. But when Ken got home his brother was already waiting for him. Ken ran to him, a smile on his face, but when he neared his brother the device was slapped out of his hand and his brother roughly grabbed his shirt. "What do you think your doing?" He asked forcefully.

"I was just-"

"You were just what?" Sam yelled. "Taking things that don't belong to you?!" Ken tried to say something but his brother wasn't finished. "I never want to see you in my room again, you hear me! And this is mine, so don't touch it again!" With that, Sam threw the Digi-Vice in his drawer and threw Ken out of his room.

Ken stood in the hallway, unable to believe that the only person who had ever cared about him just treated him that way. He retreated to his bedroom, crying silently on his pillow, wishing that Sam would just disappear.

Five days later Sam died in a car accident. Ken found out when he got home from school. When his mother told him that Sam was gone and would never be coming back Ken immediately knew that it was his fault. He had wished for Sam to disappear and his wish had come true. Ken threw his backpack on the ground and ran to his room, guilt clouding his senses. All he could think about was the fact that he killed his brother. Ken sat in his room for a week, only leaving when he was forced. He became silent and withdrawn, spending all of his time in the silence of his brothers old room, staring at the picture of the, on his desk.

Ten years later Ken was still the same. He went to school, did his homework and performed all the functions a normal seventeen year old would do, but when the sun went down he could always be found in his brothers room, staring at the same picture. The other world was never far from his mind and he knew that one day he would return.

One night, Ken entered the room, as usual, but this time things were different. Sam's old computer was on. A small red light was flashing on the bottom corner of the screen, indicating that there was a message waiting to be read. Ken used the mouse and clicked on the link. When the new screen popped up, this message flashed across the screen.

Why do you still care? Sam is dead. He is

free. He has been given release. You can

also be free, but not in this world. This is

not where you are meant to be . There is

another world. Your world. It is waiting

for you, waiting for it's Emperor. You know

where you should be. Be free...be free....

Ken read the message twice.. How could anyone possibly know about the other world? Ken pushed the chair back from the desk and reached to open his brothers bottom desk drawer. Inside, on top of everything, lay the Digi-Vice. Ken looked at it for a few moments before reaching into the drawer and pulling it out. He knew that this day would come, the day when he could finally return to his world. He had waited for ten years, and now he could go claim what was rightfully his.

*****

Ken fell back onto his bed, tears in his eyes. He angrily wiped them away, cursing himself for being so weak. He pushed himself of the bed. 'Rei's not like Sam.' He told himself. 'She sees me for what I am-' he stopped. 'She does see me for what I am, but she only likes what I pretend to be. If she knew what I really was, who I really am...This is pointless. She's beneath me, it doesn't matter what she thinks. She's inconsequential, she's insignificant, she's...' Ken stopped, not being able to believe the things he was thinking. 'I have to get her out of my system, I can keep everyone else at a distance, why should she be any different, I'll just walk right down stairs and tell her that the kiss meant nothing and she was right, I don't understand, I don't care.' What Ken wouldn't admit was that he did care, the fact that he was the reason for her pain bothered him more than he'd care to admit. 'But the collar was for her own good' he reminded himself. 'That would ensure that she would stay out of the battles and she wouldn't get hurt...she wouldn't disappear...'

Ken was working up his determination when he pulled open his bedroom door and found himself staring into the amethyst eyes that haunted his thoughts. "Rei..." he breathed.

Rei smiled nervously and ran her hand through her hair. "Hi," she started timidly, "I was just...walking by and I thought I'd stop and see what you where up too." She said hesitantly. "I was wondering if you wanted to go out to lunch with me." Ken didn't say anything, only stared into her eyes. Rei took that as a no. "Okay...well, I was just wondering. I'll be going now. Bye." With that she turned on her heel and walked as fast as she could to the stairs, getting as far away from Ken as she could. When she reached the stairs she raced down them, moving for the door as fast as she could manage. She was so embarrassed. Sora was right, he wasn't interested in her, he was just...just...'Just what?" she asked herself. 'He seemed so sincere last night. I guess it was just a charade.' Rei turned the door knob and opened it. She was about to step outside when she heard quick footsteps and someone call out her name. She turned to find Ken standing in front of her, his normally empty eyes filled with unaccustomed warmth. She stared at him, unsure of what to say.

"I'm sorry." he said softly, searching her face for any signs of forgiveness. "I was just..." 'just what?' he asked himself, 'admit it, you were trying to find a way to push her away but all she had to do was smile and you melted.' "I'm sorry." he repeated. It had been twelve years since Ken had said those words and he felt somehow, relieved. "I would love to go out to lunch with you... if the offer still stands that is."

Rei flushed, a smile forming in her lips. "Of course it still stands. Come on." She said walking out the door and motioning for him to follow. Ken smiled and grabbed her hand, entwining his fingers with hers. Rei looked at their hands, shocked by his sudden display of affection. She looked up at him and smiled, pulling him to her side and out into the sunlight.

*****

"No, no, no." Leta said, shaking her head. "It's not polite to jump on people when they walk into a room." Jupymon sat on the floor, looking up at her in confusion. "Now, Matt's gonna be here any minute and when he comes in I want you to greet him like I told you, okay."

The Digimon nodded it's head enthusiastically. "You do know she's never gonna get it right, don't you?" Came a sarcastic voice from above. Leta looked up and saw Marsimon hovering above her.

"Yes she will." Leta said hotly. "Now here he comes Jupymon, show this stupid cat what your made of."

Matt walked into the room and smiled when he saw Leta. He looked on the floor at Jupymon, who looked as though she was fighting with herself. He looked at Leta, pride showing in his eyes that she was able to tame the wild Digimon. Just as he was about to complement her out loud Jupymon screamed his name and bounced towards him at a high speed. Matt tried to move out of the way but it was to late. Jupymon collided with him, sending him flying to the ground with a painful 'thud', then she jumped on his chest, crying out his name and how happy she was to see him. "I told you she couldn't do it." Marsimon said haughtily.

Jupymon looked up at Leta after that comment. " Did I mess up?" She asked sadly.

"Of course you did." said the ill mannered Digimon hovering above her. "Did you honestly think you wouldn't? You'll never be anything but a second rate Digimon." With that she flew out of the room, followed closely by Jupymon who was demanding an apology.

Matt pulled himself off the floor, dusting himself off. "I thought that cat's attitude improved?" He questioned.

"It did." Leta replied, "To Rei. She's decent to Rei now, but completely rude and sarcastic to everyone else." She sighed, "I guess it could be worse though, at least she doesn't pounce on you the second you enter the room."

Matt smiled and pulled Leta into his arms. "Your Digimon's not that bad." He assured her, "But I think she hurt me that time, I guess you'll just have to kiss me and make me feel better."

Leta giggled and placed a small kiss on Matt's lips. "Better now?' she asked him.

"Almost," he replied playfully, "One more and I should be perfect." Leta kissed him again, this time letting her arms wind around his neck and pull him close. Matt smiled against her lips. "See, I feel wonderful now."

"I'm sure you do." Leta laughed, pulling away. "Now help me find those Digimon before another fight breaks out and something gets broken." Just as she said that they heard a loud crash from the next room. Running in, they found Jupymon smiling while Marsimon was trapped underneath a large vase. Leta and Matt both Laughed. Matt picked the vase up and looked down at he flustered Digimon that was beneath it. "You okay?" Leta asked.

"Fine." Marsimon snapped, "But maybe you could kiss me too." Leta blushed red and the small animal laughed. "I'd be just perfect after one kiss." she teased. "On second though, I wouldn't want your lips anywhere near me. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go find Tai."

"I think he's with Rei." Leta said casually, secretly hoping that it would be true and Marsimon would be upset.

"No," Said Marsimon swiftly, "She just left with the blue haired boy." With that she fluttered out of the room in search of the object of her affection.

"Rei left with Ken?" Matt questioned.

"That's not our business, remember." Leta said, pushing him out of the room. "What Rei does with Ken isn't any of our concern."

"But what about-" Leta silenced him by placing a kiss on his lips. He protested for a second but then admitted defeat and gave into her kiss. "Glad your seeing things my way." Leta laughed.

"Yeah, well, you gave me an offer I couldn't refuse." Matt replied, "But now, your gonna see things my way."

"And what's your way?"

"The wet way!" Matt exclaimed, grabbing her and throwing her over his shoulder. Leta pounded her fists on his back, but he refused to let her go. He carried her to the back yard, where he pushed open the screen and threw her into the swimming pool.

She landed with a splash and when she reemerged there was a large smile on her face. She waded to the steps and climbed out, ringing the water out of her clothes. "I suppose you think that was funny?" she asked him. He nodded, his blue eyes twinkling with mischief. "And I suppose you like the wet look?" This time he let his eyes travel over her body, taking in her clinging gray shirt and tight pants. Once again, he smiled and nodded. "Then you'll love this!" She cried, rushing forward and pushing him into the pool. He pushed his head above the water and swam to the edge. Leta walked to him and knelt down, her hand outstretched, ready to help him out of the water. Matt grasped her hand, but instead of pulling himself up, he pulled her down and back into the water. "I surrender!" Leta cried, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him close. "You win." she laughed.

"And what did I win?" He asked brushing the hair of her face.

"This." she replied, gently pressing her lips against his.

*****

"Thanks for going out with me," Rei said when they finally returned home. "I had a really good time."

Ken smiled. "Me too." He admitted honestly. "Thank you for inviting me." He lowered his eyes, fearing she would be able to read them and see how insecure he felt. 'Why do I feel this way?' He thought to himself. 'Insecure. I've never been insecure, but for the first time since Sam, I feel like maybe, just maybe, this girl might be my equal.'

Rei looked at him. "I've been wanting, to get to know you better since that night we played soccer," she said shyly, "But the chance never really presented itself...until now." Ken stumbled and turned his back to her. 'She wants to know about me. My parents don't even care, why would she?'

Rei noticed his hesitation. "If you don't want to talk, it's okay." she said, gently laying her hand on his shoulder.

Ken hand, moving before he could think twice, reached up and placed itself over hers. "It's not that I don't want to, it's just that..." Ken trailed off, turning to face her and staring into her eyes, searching for anything that could make him stop. Any trace of hate or distrust. All he found was confusion and kindness. 'I've never told anyone about myself, but I feel like I can trust her.' "no one's ever wanted to know." he finished quietly.

"Well, I guess that makes me the first, because I want to know." Rei smiled and ran her hand through his hair. "I wanna know what makes Ken tick. What he likes, who he likes..."

Ken smiled and grabbed her hand. "Who Ken likes, huh." He repeated, lowering his head and brushing his lips against hers. "I think we both know the answer to that one."

Rei flushed at his comment, but let her hand lightly caress his face. "I guess we do." she replied, standing on her toes, reaching her hand behind his head to pull him down and into her waiting arms.

Well, there we go, the next chapter. Are you happy? Is anyone even reading this? I hope so. But you know what, after I finished it, I don't quite hate this chapter so much, in fact I kinda like it. Weird. Anyways, Rei and Ken are officially and item now. Wonder what Tai's gonna think about it? And weren't Matt and Leta cute. Next chapter, Everyone goes to the Digital world, but Rei stays behind and snoops around the Ken's room.

Stay tuned for chapter 17: Missing in Action