" Well, it sure is a problem I'd like
to have, getting a love letter," said Mako.
"No doubt," agreed Usagi.
"It's not like I've received a lot or anything," stammered Ami, "but...
...it's just that I get this horrible reaction to them!"
   "Ami, "admonished Minako, "you know what they say: Life's short and love's a battle."
Everyone slumped.
"Was that wrong?" asked Minako.
"I think the correct saying is: Life's short, love while you can." moaned Artemis.
"I guess that's another way of putting it..." said Minako.		  
     
  "You know," laughed Ami, "I think there's only one thing we should be passionately doing in our last year of junior high school, and that is..."

Everyone: " Studying, right?"

   Ami pulled out her glasses and put them on. "That's right!  Right now, in my dictionary,
there's no such word as love!"

The wind whistled.

"She's scary..." quipped Chibi-Usa.

"Is there... something wrong?" ventured Mako.

  
     
  "Take a look at this." Ami handed Mako a book, "Look on page 42."
"Page 42..."
"It's the rankings for the national practice exams," explained Ami.
Mako read out loud, "First place: Mercury,
100% in all five subjects!?"
"That means a perfect score on every exam!" exclaimed Usagi.
"Mercury... that's you, right Ami?" asked Chibi-Usa.
"That's right," replied Ami, "You send the results in under a pseudonym and they rank you accordingly.  The problem is that person!"
" There's another perfect score!" exclaimed Rei, "Mercurius."		   "Mercurius?" wondered Minako.

"That's "Mercury" in Latin," explained Artemis.

Ami continued, " Lately that person has been keeping first alongside me in every exam... they may be challenging me.  
Perhaps it's a new type of enemy!"

Everyone looked at Ami.

  
 

"Ami, I think you're overanalyzing things!"

 

  
    However, at school the next day, Ami couldn't stop thinking about it.  "I wonder what kind of person this Mercurius is..."
Amy walked down the hall and saw some posters for tutorial seminars.
"That's it!" thought Ami, "If I take more exams, and go to more tutorial seminars, maybe I'll meet this Mercurius!"  Ami was pumped.
"I've never felt so passionate before... it's so thrilling to have a rival!"
Ami shouted out loud "All right then, I won't back down from this either!"

All the other students were staring at Ami.

Continue...!