Adventures In Time & Space

FF.net Version

@starlingsinclair - I have good news and bad news! 

Good news - I finished this chapter FINALLY! 

Bad news - The story is still not finished because this last bit just exploded, and I had to cut it. 

Anyway, I really hope you enjoy it!! I want to say thank you to @tinacentury and @floraone. This chapter would literally not exist without their support. I mean, really the whole story. Thank you ladies, for making everything I do a million times better. 

Preview:

Mamoru suspected he had been in love with Usagi long before he realized it. The question was when had it happened? Was it during their first date?

First fake date, his mind reminded him.

Had it been when her hands had enveloped his face and kept him calm when he panicked at Natumi’s unwelcome presence in the park? Or was it before that? Could his feelings have started as far back as her visits in the hospital when she had regaled him with one impossible story after the next about how he might have lost his memory? Could he have already loved her even then?

It seemed impossible. And it frustrated him that he couldn’t pick out a definite moment, or even a general timeframe. It was almost like his feelings had always been there, and it had just taken him time to recognize it. He was also sick of obsessing over it, but his mind refused to focus on anything besides Usagi for long.

Like right now, he was supposed to be eating his breakfast, but the miso broth with rice on the side had turned lukewarm, and remained almost untouched on his kitchen table. He sat lost in assessing every shared moment with his girlfriend.

Fake girlfriend.

He forced himself to shovel the food into his mouth. If he didn’t hurry, he would be late for their weekend date.

Fake weekend date.

Click one of the links above to continue reading. I recommend Ao3!! It doesn’t have stupid ads! 

FF.net Version

I’m so excited to finally post this!! This was written for @starlingsinclair for the Usamamo Spring Fic Exchange hosted by @uglygreenjacket (thank you for all your work, girl!!). She apparently is a sucker for the fake dating trope and particularly enjoys the Makai Tree Arc, so I bring you this fic where Natsumi is stalking Mamoru and in a moment of panic he kisses Usagi to make a point to his stalker. He didn't know Usagi was already in love with him, nor that she's Sailor Moon, nor that she would totally agree to do anything to protect him, including (but not limited to) pretending to date him for an indefinite amount of time. @tinacentury makes everything possible. She is the best beta and is so patient with my freak outs about deadlines and gets me writing again when I get stuck and gives such great insight on where I can flesh things out! ...

Preview:  Mamoru had always had more than his fair share of attention from the ladies (and a few gentlemen if he was being honest). He never really knew what to do with any of it. He had dabbled once with a girl he had met through a shared lab section, but although he liked and respected her, he had never really felt a connection. They had parted on friendly terms.

None of that past experience had prepared him for Ginga Natsumi. Natsumi was a blood hound and she made him feel like he was prey in an open field with nowhere to hide. She showed up everywhere. 

He had encountered her first at the student union at Tokyo University in between classes. She had plopped down next to him with a bright smile, and introduced herself as a freshman. 

“I’m new here,” she told him. “But you look like you know your way around. Would you mind helping a girl out?” 

He had smiled. Motoki had told him he needed to work on being friendlier so he was trying that out. He hadn’t thought sharing his name would be a problem. They had chatted for a few moments, before he had led her to the student information desk, so that she could get a more formal guide. 

Really, speaking to her at all was the worst mistake he had ever made. 

He hadn’t thought anything of it at first. The brunette had just started popping up into his path. She was outside his lecture hall when his anatomy class got out. She was at the train station. 

“Oh my god! You live in Azabu?! So do I! It’s such a small world Mamaru-kun!” 

He ran into her at the grocery.

“Mamoru-kun!” she crooned excitedly from behind him in line. “Fancy seeing you here. And we picked out the same ice cream flavor! Double chocolate fudge!” she exclaimed as if that alone was a sign of their everlasting compatibility. 

He had given her a polite smile, paid for his food, and while she was trapped in her own transaction, made a point of not going home. 

The next day, he had been in the library. He swung around between two shelves having retrieved four of the six reference books he needed for his paper, before he turned into her unfortunately familiar face.

“We’ve really got to stop meeting like this Mamoru-kun,” she had said coyly, her long lashes fluttering over her piercing eyes. “I’m going to think you’re stalking me.” 

And then everything got worse. 

...  Click the link to read more!