Hey everyone! I'm back again, this time with something totally different than the Alliances story. This one, well, the title is still kind of up in the air, but for now, I'm just going to call it Follow. Let me give you a little bit of background on it, now. I watched this film on www.bmwfilms.com called "The Follow" (ok, ok, so the name i chose isn't original at all...just give me time, people!!!), and it was awesome. If you have a broadband connection, I would TOTALLY recommend you going and watching it. It's a short film that talks about this guy following this chick, it's his job, kind of like a private investigator almost. But anyway, I was totally inspired, and I was going to just make this a short fic that did kind of the same thing...but then a muse came up and kicked me in the ass. Anyway, no matter what happened, the story spread into something I didn't know it was going to turn into, and now I've been graced with another multi-chaptered fic begging for attention. But I like it!! Ok, ok, too much talking. Read and Review, as always!!!!! Much love, Diamond Thank You's/Disclaimers: Thanks to everyone who's reviewed me, again, esp. VO1, thanks for reading this one first and making sure it was good! Thank you to the guy who directed "The Follow" (i should know his name) that was AWESOME!!!! And now, I DO NOW OWN Sailor Moon, its characters, or any sort of rights regarding it and the things surrounding it. I sure as hell don't own "The Follow" on bmwfilms.com, and in no way am I trying to plagiarize the director's work on his INCREDIBLE short. I am borrowing the title TEMPORARILY until the Title Muse hits me over the head, and once this story gets going, there will be no more connection between the film that was the inspiration. PLEASE DON'T SUE ME!!!!!! That said, on with the show! *********************************************************************** Follow (temp. title), Chapter 1 Diamond Rouge *********************************************************************** Silence pervaded her thoughts as she scanned the room, winding through the crowd with an air of nonchalance. Her senses were in overload, each sight, smell, and sound amplified until it was all she could feel. The added mask of her relaxed facial façade made it hard to maintain her focused state, but she did. Always focused, never losing sight of the goal, she was a wolf. Tracking her subject as a wolf tracks its prey, she followed him. Always out of sight, always 3 steps behind. It was enough, as he never got away from her sight, not for a moment. He seemed almost too at ease, not on edge at all. More than likely he still wasn't expecting her, otherwise she knew he would prove to be a more formidable opponent. Ms. Tsukino never sent women, much less rich, beautiful women to do her work, but there was no denying her abilities in stalking. She wouldn't fail her boss. This was an easy job. Simply find the suspect, track his actions, and see where he lives. Surely he was expecting someone, though, she thought as she watched him from the door. Ms. Tsukino had warned that he would be suspicious, though she wasn't straightforward as to why, except it being in a crowded room at the most cheerful, unsuspecting time of the year. Yet he walked casually around the party, holding a drink loosely, stopping and chatting occasionally. She busied herself, too, carrying a drink of her own, talking to people, pretending to be interested in the lavish decoration of the huge hotel ballroom where the Christmas party was going on. -Things need to pick up,- she thought as he continued his casual meandering. -This is too easy, and it's taking too long. He is expecting this, isn't he?- She began to notice things about him, studying him. The black tuxedo he wore was classic, traditional. It fit him well, and was obviously expensive. Armani, Valentino, maybe Versace? She mused about who made it, contemplating his financial status. He was definitely rich, he positively reeked with the air of it. None of the designers would have surprised her. She continued her hunt, playing a little game with herself. She always played this when the evening would slow down, it made her stay focused on her job. What could she pick out about her client? What slight discrepancies could she detect? She loved to note the little things...it made the connection more personal, almost. She peered intently at him from about 15 feet away, making sure to break the connection on occasion, never making eye contact, never lingering. It was an added challenge. Not only did you have to keep the subject oblivious, you also have to keep the rest of the room oblivious, too. She watched as he smoothed his hair with his hand. It was tanned, but not too dark; strong, but not too rough. It flowed through strands of an exquisite silver, a dramatic yet comfortable contrast to his medium complexion. Not silver from age, she noted, he was certainly no more than 30. It was almost platinum, and seemed completely natural, trailing down the back of his neck where it was secured back in a loose ponytail. -Lovely hair,- she thought to herself before glancing back away, busying herself by looking through her purse. She "found" what she was looking for, a compact, and sauntered to an empty circular table near him. She sat facing away from him, quickly opening her compact, faking concern for her still flawless makeup. She mussed with her golden blonde hair aimlessly, focusing the mirror behind her. She watched him from a clear front view now, as he spoke with a young girl with long black hair. He was obviously comfortable around her...maybe she worked with him? His expressions relaxed, and he allowed himself to smile. His hands hung loosely in the pockets of his jacket, and she took note at the way he relaxed back into his left hip as he talked to the woman. She acted extremely professional, yet friendly, leading her to believe that perhaps this woman was a co-worker. She focused in on his eyes as he spoke to her. -Must be interesting conversation,- she thought, observing the twitch of fervency that caused his blue-gray eyes to squint slightly. No wrinkles, she noticed, also piqued by the subtle sparkle in them. A tease of blue, just barely enough to even be noticed. The woman responded to whatever it was he had said, and his expression relaxed again. She saw his mouth curve slightly upward, full lips pressed taut together, locked in a position of amusement and intent, listening as his coworker responded to whatever he had said. He most certainly was interesting to watch. She realized how long she had her compact out, and quickly put it away, abandoning it for other methods. She stood and decided to go get another glass of wine, leaving her current glass at the table. She kept him in the corner of her eye as she went to the bar, getting a glass of fine Merlot and sitting down on a stool. They were still talking, her subject and the raven haired woman, and she allowed her attention to momentarily drift to the bartender as he chatted with her politely, obviously wondering why a woman like herself was alone at the party. She answered him politely, flashing a stunning smile at the young man. He practically melted. -How cute,- she thought as she took a sip of her drink. Vanity was her biggest weakness. She looked back in the direction of her platinum-haired friend, smiling idly as she scanned for him. Her eyes passed over the spot where he and his friend were talking, but he was gone. She spotted his coworker sitting with a table of people, but he wasn't anywhere to be seen. Panic washed over her body immediately, her head becoming hot with shocked adrenaline. -Shit!- She cursed herself. I let my guard down. Damn it! She continued searching frantically, or as frantically as she could sitting at a barstool holding her calm composure. Her eyes darted over everything, the dance floor, the tables, the crowds, but she couldn't find him. -His hair,- she thought, -look for his hair.- It should stand out. But if he was there, it wasn't standing out at all. He had effectively disappeared. She moved to get up from the barstool, paying the bartender and tipping him with a 50. He gawked at her generosity, but she didn't have time to notice. She gathered her purse and stepped down from the tall stool. "Excuse me," a deep voice from behind her said. She jumped in shock, expecting to see some fool that wanted to make a pass at her. She readied herself in defense and wheeled around, only to confront a pair of deep blue-gray eyes. -Oh fuck,- she thought as she looked into his almost timid looking, smiling face. -This is NOT supposed to be happening.- "Hi," he repeated. "I didn't mean to shock you. Are you okay?" -Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit...- her mind raced with urgency. In 6 years of investigating, this had NEVER happened. -Play it cool,- she reminded herself. -Don't let him see you falter.- "Oh, I'm sorry," she said, smiling gently. She recalled all her acting lessons in England, pulling into her skills. "You just frightened me. I was getting ready to go." "That's a shame, I was hoping you would let me have this dance." Any woman with half a brain would have fainted at the proposal, but instead she was about to faint from nervousness. Had he seen her watching? This was bad, way bad, and now she was in a situation she couldn't get out of. If she danced, she risked ruining the entire evening's work of staying out of sight. If she refused and left, she would be glaringly obvious, not to mention she wouldn't be able to follow him anymore. What to do? She needed an answer now. She suddenly wished she had been told how to react in this situation, but she hadn't. "Well, I was about to go..." she stammered nervously. -Good job,- she thought, kicking herself mentally. -Way to sound like you know what the hell you're doing.- "Oh come on, I haven't seen you dance all evening. Surely you were wanting to," he pushed. -AAAAH!- she screamed in her head. -Damn it, why now!?- "Well," she replied coolly, "I suppose I could, just once. If you're sure, that is." -That's right,- she told herself, -Play naive.- She smiled brightly at him, matching his expression. He offered his arm and she took it, him leading her out on the dance floor. The live violin accompaniment was already partly into a song that she didn't recognize. The floor was hosting about 10 couples already, but he led her past all them to the back of the floor, finding an empty area. Without speaking, he pulled her close to him, the black satin of her dress almost touching the black of his tux. With his hand placed around her waist and her arm resting on his shoulder, they began moving to the slow waltz. -I guess he went to his cotillion lessons,- she thought as they moved gracefully to the music, him leading her with confidence. She looked up into his eyes and smiled. "You're an excellent dancer," she complimented him. He had to be oblivious, why would he be doing this otherwise? It was entirely too bold, even for someone like Ms. Tsukino described. The look on his face told him that he had no clue who she was, but was just another man happy to have the opportunity to dance with her. "Thank you, I was forced to learn when I was young," he replied, and then laughed quietly. "My parents were all for teaching me to be a little gentleman." "They did an excellent job," she told him as he spun her out, pulling her back to him and continuing their slow three-step. She smiled again; the acting was getting easier by the moment. His obvious cluelessness was helping; there was no way he knew who she was. She relaxed. After this dance, she would say that she had to go, and then just wait in her car for him to leave and follow him. Ms. Tsukino would understand why she had to leave early. She would definitely see him go, that hair would give him away in an instant. -Ah yes, his hair,- she thought as she glanced at his silvery locks, the way they flowed back into the ponytail like a ribbon of moonlight. "Its natural," he said, reading her expression. "What?" "My hair," he told her, "It's naturally this platinum." "Oh...it's really quite beautiful." After another moment she asked, "How did you know I was thinking about it?" "I saw you looking at it, and I figured you were wondering. I get asked about it a lot." -He's intuitive,- she noted. She just smiled and continued dancing. The song eventually ended, leaving her feeling relaxed and almost comfortable. Had he not been her prey, she would have been inclined to learn more about him. They hadn't talked much more during the rest of their dance, he had simply inquired as to why she was alone, and she made up a quick lie about meeting someone that hadn't showed up. They had finished the dance in silence, closer than when they started. Their bodies were now pressed together as the song changed into a more upbeat foxtrot, his arm now completely wrapped around her waist, their hands interlaced gently. Her eyes were at his shoulder level, and the top of her head just reached his chin. -Song's over, girl, its time to move,- she reminded herself. She began to put space between them, getting back into her made up character, preparing to tell him that she had to be going because she had more presents to wrap, or some other lie that would maintain her innocent look She was unpleasantly surprised when he pulled her back to him, though, closer now, with a tighter grip that let her know she wasn't going anywhere. "I really need to be going now," she said softly, sweetly, wondering what the hell had gotten into this guy that he suddenly became so out of character. She gasped as he tightened his grip on her, still dancing with the same relaxed pace. "Why do you want to go?" he whispered harshly, "The night is still so young." The quality in his voice had changed. His words now hung with a hint of malice, his breath hot and threatening. "I- I...need to get home," she stuttered, trying to preserve her last shred of the façade. -Fake it. If he knows, fake it.- "Oh but why? We've only just met, Ms. Aino." -Oh shit,- she thought, as he continued to move to the music, leaning his head down to where she could feel the breath on her ear, -He knows.- Her body tensed and she stopped dancing, trying to pull away from his tight grip on her waist. In response, he smiled evilly and stopped dancing, too, placing his other arm around her waist, pulling her even closer to him. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said desperately, her adrenaline rushing and mind racing. Her arms were on his chest now, trying to escape his grip. -What is going on? This isn't supposed to happen like this. Ms. Tsukino said it wouldn't happen like this, I'm just supposed to follow him, not even make contact! This was supposed to be easy!- her mind raced desperately as her hands continued to push in vain. He spoke a little louder, but still softly, and his voice had now completely hardened from the warm, rich tone it had been before. "I suggest, Ms. Aino, that you play along, unless you want to end up dead," he said, smiling pretentiously, removing one hand from her waist just long enough to show her the silver glint of a gun handle in his jacket pocket. Her arms went slack. "Pretend, darling, that we're together, and put your arms around me. There are too many people around here for you to be making a spectacle. We need to get out of here without anyone noticing us." She obeyed quickly, placing her arms around his neck, her eyes darting around the room with fear. "Listen you little shit, I don't know who you are or-" "I know you can act, you've been doing a marvelous job of it all night," he interjected, ignoring her attempted interrogation, "So do me a favor and look at me, only me. We're together now, or at least we need to look like it." She fixed her gaze on him, but couldn't bring herself to act like she was anything but frightened out of her mind, which wasn't acting at all at this point. She didn't know what was going on, how he knew her name, why he was doing this, or what he wanted with her. She had been on a hundred jobs more dangerous than this one had seemed and she had handled all of them smoothly...what went wrong? His face was a shocking contradiction to the tone of his voice. He looked down on her with a soft expression, his mouth curved in a gentle, gorgeous smile. The only thing that mirrored his voice were his eyes, which looked at her sternly, maliciously, with angry intent. He pulled her closer to him, whispering in her ear again. "Come on darling, lets leave," he said, "And if you try to fuck with me, I'll kill you, right here and now. You don't want that, do you?" One hand trailed through her long blonde hair, and his voice mused almost comically, mockingly, in her ear. When she didn't respond, he moved his hand to the side of her face and smoothed her skin, trailing down to the back of her neck. "Do you?" he asked more firmly, and dug his nails into her soft skin. She almost cried out but feared what would happen if she did, so instead she shook her head quickly. "That's what I thought, Minako," he said, and pulled her face to his. They were inches apart. "Now, love, lets go home. Its almost Christmas, you know." He kissed her gently on the lips before leading her off the floor. "And remember," he said quietly as they walked through the crowd, him behind her, leading her with both hands on her waist, "I'm not afraid to kill you." He escorted her sweetly out of the ballroom, abandoning his stern voice of moments ago for the soft, warm, voice he had used when he danced with her, changing the conversation from death threats to Christmas. His arms were warm and encircling, and his acting superb. He looked at her with, to Minako's dismay, the most gorgeous smile she had ever seen, and an expression that radiated with love and concern. Had she not be so frighteningly aware of the gun in his pocket, she would have been tempted to fall into his little act. "We'd better be getting home, love," he told her as they walked through a crowd outside, "The children will be wondering where we are." She cursed him silently for being so wicked, but agreed emotionlessly out loud, keeping up her appearance that nothing was wrong. She was surprised at how effective the threat of death was in getting people to do was you wanted. As they wandered out of the crowds and down the darkened street, her mind again turned to the fear that surrounded getting in this stranger's car. Now that they were relatively alone, the lingering feeling of dread rose in her stomach, making her almost sick. As they walked down the sidewalk, though, a small trace of something akin to amazement and hope seeped into her. -Fuck a duck,- she thought as they stopped at his car, a sleek new Porsche Boxster, shiny and black, pulled into a parallel parking spot about 100 yards away from the hotel. -He parked right in front of me.- She tried to contain her gaping expression as he ushered her in the passenger side, she thinking of whether or not he knew her car was right next to his. -This is too weird,- she thought. -I'm so close.- Suddenly, a dangerous thought crept in her head, and she gripped her keys in her purse, hitting the auto unlock button quietly. She had to try this, lest be carried off to who knows where by a man she didn't know that had intentions of killing her if she didn't obey his every command. Her head filled with a nauseating fear as he shut the door, walking around the front of the car to the driver's side. -Not today, asshole,- she thought as she looked at him, and with a sudden burst of speed coupled with a combination of adrenaline and insanity, jumped back out the door. He yelled at her and slid over the hood of the Porsche to cut her off, but was too late. Minako already had the keys out and jumped in the drivers seat of her Lotus Elise, shutting the door and starting the engine. It started easily and she began to peel out of the parking space, but was suddenly dismayed when the passenger's door opened and he jumped inside. "God DAMN it!" Minako yelled, infuriated by her forgetfulness in locking the doors. -Oh god, he's going to kill me, oh god,- she thought as he shut the door coolly. She slammed on the brakes with intentions of getting out and running. "Don't you dare, you little bitch," he said, pulling out his gun and pressing it to her temple. He hit the lock button on the car door and with a disturbing click, she was trapped. "Don't...move," he said through gritted teeth, cocking the gun. She breathed hard and fast, her mind numb and her stomach turning. "Isn't it convenient that I park my Porsche, a more than capable getaway car, next to your beautiful, exotic Lotus? How do you suppose that happened? I suppose you just wanted to take your car, is that all? Your Lotus really is quite lovely. Its so fast, so beautiful...much like it's owner, I might add. Must have cost you a pretty penny...unless Miss Tsukino bought it." She didn't move. Her knuckles were white from her grip on the steering wheel, and she felt close to crying. She couldn't even think of how he knew about Ms. Tsukino, so absorbed were her thoughts in the gun that was pressed so tightly against the side of her head. She was going to die. She was only 28 years old, and she was going to die in the driver's seat of her car on Christmas Eve. She didn't answer him. She looked at her odd position halfway into the road, her back end still partly in the parking spot. There wasn't much traffic on this road, so they hadn't been seen by anyone yet, to both her relief and dismay. "Really, I'd love to say I planned this whole little inconvenience, but I didn't. I don't suppose I accounted for the fact that my stalker would be driving a fast foreigner, that's quite a bold choice...but then again, I didn't suppose my stalker would be you, Miss Aino. Guess luck was just on your side today." He pressed the gun harder into her temple. "Or was it, really?" She swallowed nervously, pushing back the tears and vomit that both threatened to come up. Minako had never been this close to death, and the prospect wasn't sitting nicely on her stomach. "Now, Miss Minako, the way I see it, this is really even better. I didn't much feel like driving tonight anyway, so instead, you get to do the honors. And if you're good, I won't kill you. No more fucking around, I'm serious this time. I need you for some information, but I don't need you that badly. You are expendable, so remember that next time you try a daring escape. Do you understand me?" She nodded, trembling. "I didn't hear you," he said gravely, again reminding her of the presence of the gun by pushing its cold barrel into her skin. "Y-yes," she stumbled over the word nervously. "Good. Now, you are going to drive exactly where I tell you to. If you fail to do so, I will shoot you. If you try to jump out of the car, I will shoot you. If you try to harm me in any way, I will shoot you. If you so much as breathe the wrong way, I will shoot you. My finger is on the trigger, and trust me, this gun is loaded. I don't think you need to flirt with death any more than you already have. Now put the car in drive, and lets go." Minako did as she was told and peeled out a little abruptly into the road, her nervousness affecting her driving skills. "W-...where are we going?" she asked timidly, approaching a red light. "Left at this light," he answered coldly, and said nothing else. She turned left once the light turned green and drove through the heart of the downtown area for about ten minutes in silence. A few times he told her where to turn, slowly leading her into a part of the town she wasn't familiar with. She dared not ask, though, she was too fearful of the gun still digging into her temple to even do so much as look over at him. She was almost sure he was taking a long route to confuse her...and was doing a marvelous job of it. "Turn here," he said, indicating to another road on the right. She did as she was told silently, very much afraid of the repercussions of noncompliance. "Park here," he ordered. The street they had turned on was surprisingly clean in comparison to the rest of the grimy metropolis, lined by ice-covered trees that reflected orange in the light of the streetlamps. -Does he live here?- Minako thought as she looked at the ritzy apartment buildings and penthouses that lined the road. She didn't even know this neighborhood existed back here, tucked in the middle of the downtown area. -Motherfucker's richer than I thought he was.- She pulled into a spot next to the sidewalk and put the car in park. The gun slowly lowered from her forehead, as if he was testing her to see if she would dart. She didn't move. -Okay, what does he think, that I'm really going to try anything at this point? I don't know where I am, I'm unarmed, it's freezing cold outside, and I'm wearing a tight dress and four-inch high heels.- The only reason she had run before was because her car was so close; she thought she could make it. Actually, she reminded herself, she had made it, only so had he. But now, well, she had more sense than to try to be daring now. The fear had somewhat subsided in her; it still flowed through her veins but wasn't pressing at her head now, making her dizzy and nauseous. It suddenly occurred to her that she didn't even know her captor's name...Ms. Tsukino had purposefully not told it to her. This was an anonymous assignment, obviously confidential. Slowly, she became aware of how much this case was shrouded in mystery...but she wasn't sure why. She didn't even know his name...she had dared not ask Ms. Tsukino then, and she certainly dared not ask now. "You're being very good," he told her as he returned the gun to his jacket pocket. "Now do you see the house in front of us with white columns on the porch? That's my house. Do you think I can trust you to walk with me to it, and not try anything?" Minako didn't know how to respond. If she agreed, that meant she was going into this strange man's house alone with him, and that thought scared her. If she said no, though, well, she wasn't sure what he'd do, but she didn't put it past him to make use of that gun. He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and shook it open while he waited for her response. "Cat got your tongue, Minako?" he asked sarcastically. She still didn't answer. "I'll take that as a "no", then." With that, he lunged at her, grabbing the back of her head with one hand and pressing the handkerchief over her mouth with the other. She gasped for air and tried to scream, but he simply pressed it tighter to her face. Involuntarily she inhaled the fumes that were emitting from the small piece of cloth, her large, panicked breaths simply speeding up the process. Her mind slowed down immensely, and her vision got blurry. Her head relaxed against the driver's window, and her fear suddenly subsided. Conscious thought was getting harder by the moment, and she found herself wondering about less important things. -Did I get milk from the grocery store today?- His grip didn't loosen on her at all, even as her breaths became more relaxed and her attempts to thwart him more futile. -This is ether, I suppose,- she thought weakly as the area became darker. -That asshole. I don't think ether kills, though, that's good.- Minako let her arms fall to her sides, and opened her eyes back up weakly. He was staring at her intently, waiting for the ether to do its job. She wanted very, very badly to say something cutting or do something offensive, but she was too weak to even lift her middle finger. Her thoughts continued to slow. -I hope he locks the Lotus...I'm gonna be pretty pissed if it gets stolen. I wonder if...- But then everything went black.