Hello all!  Here's fanfic number two!  I hope everyone enjoys 
it,cause I've been slaving over this piece for weeks now.  <g>  Maybe
NOW my muse will finally let me sleep!  Anyhow, disclaimers.
I don't own Sailor Moon or any of her pals.  Never did, never will.  
All the poetry in this story, and the story idea, is MINE, however 
(and I can legally prove it, considering I'm getting one of them 
actually published <g>), and I will personally seek out and 
throttle anyone who dares use it without permission, capishe?  =)
	This story is set in the first season, around the beginning, 
and, as you will clearly see, it does not follow the original plot 
of the story at all.  But, what's the point of writing a fanfic if you 
can't have any fun with it, right?  <g>  (Oh, there is no Mina in it,
since it's toward the beginning of the series, but there's plenty of
Molly in this one.  She never got enough attention as far as I'm 
concerned.)  Anyhow, this is rated no higher than PG13 'cause it 
IS a romance, of course.  Serena and Darien, of course.  
	Well, I think I covered all bases.  Go ahead and read!  And 
by all means, let me know what ya think, right?  =)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Love Waits for You"
    by Stormlight
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter One
~~~~~~~~~~~

	"What am I doing here?" Darien Chiba asked himself for the 
hundredth time as he leaned casually against the wall, checking 
his watch impatiently.  He had a very important date this morning.  
It was the same one he had every morning, actually, but today she 
was later than usual.  He had been leaning against this same wall 
for the past half hour, and people were beginning to look at him 
strangely.  He checked his watch yet again and frowned irritably.  
What was taking that girl?  **Did she already go past, and I 
missed her somehow?** he wondered, hoping that it wasn't the case.  
His day just wouldn't be the same if he had to miss his morning 
run-in with...

	Wait!  What was that?  He listened carefully through the 
blood pounding in his ears, and sure enough he could hear a 
distinct wail coming his way at an alarming pace.  He peeked 
around the corner, just to make sure.  Pedestrians and vendors 
lining the sidewalks calmly stepped aside as a speeding bullet 
shot past, two streams of golden hair streaking behind her.  
Ah, his Meatball Head had finally decided to show up.  He 
grinned to himself, sagging in relief for a moment, before he 
took a deep breath and stepped out from around the corner, 
bracing himself for the coming impact.

	"Aaaaahhhh I'm so laaaate!  I'll NEVER make it before-OOF!"

	The wail was suddenly cut off as its owner, one Serena 
Tsukino, ran headlong into Darien's body, but he was ready and 
immediately reached out to steady her before she hit the 
pavement.  Step one completed.  Now on to step two.  He cleared 
his throat, then proclaimed, with as much indignity as he could 
muster, "Why don't you ever watch where you're going, Meatball 
Head?  You're gonna kill somebody someday!"

	Serena blinked and looked up at Darien, as though she was 
surprised to see him there (although after six months of this 
daily ritual she should not have been), who still had her arms 
in his grasp.  Her blue eyes began to spark with anger, making 
them light up oh-so-beautifully, and she opened her mouth to 
retort.  "DON'T CALL ME...ahhh, forget it!  I don't have TIME 
for this!"

	And, just like that, she was gone.

	Darien blinked down at the empty space where Serena had 
stood only one second before, then looked up in time to see the 
ends of her blond pigtails vanish like magic around the corner.  
He slowly closed his mouth, which had dropped open in 
astonishment at her disappearing act.  Then, once he realized 
that he was still holding onto thin air, he lowered his arms 
and nonchalantly stuffed his hands into his pockets, scowling.  
He felt incredibly insulted by Serena's rude departure.  She 
didn't have TIME for him?!  After all the trouble he took to 
run into her every morning (he didn't get up an hour earlier 
than he had to just for anyone, you know...)!  It 
was...unthinkable!

	Still frowning, he continued on his way to his morning 
classes at the university, thinking about Serena all the way.

*	*	*	*	*
	He was still thinking about her when he arrived at the 
college.  About how her marvelous eyes would light up when she 
was happy, and how they seemed to glow with fire when she was 
mad, which she usually was when it came to him.  As he ate a 
quick breakfast in the cafeteria, he thought about how sweet 
her laughter was, not to mention her voice (when she wasn't 
wailing), and about that incredibly beautiful hair of hers.  
He had always wanted to know if it was as soft as it looked.  
He resolved to find a way to get his hands on it and find out 
as soon as possible.  

	During his Advanced Physics class, he thought about the 
way she walked.  When she wasn't in the midst of a klutz attack, 
he had to admit that she was one of the most graceful people 
he'd ever known.  A regal bearing seemed infused into her very 
being, even though she hid it well with her timely trips and 
stumbles.  But she wasn't fooling him one little bit.  He knew 
a graceful person when he saw one.

	All through History and Calculus, he was thinking about 
the love she seemed to hold in regards to everything and everyone, 
and by the time classes were over and he was on his way home 
again, the thought had evolved from how much she loved life, to 
how much might she possibly be able to love him?  In fact, once 
THAT idea was imbedded into his brain, it would not be dispelled 
so easily, and he couldn't stop thinking, as much as he tried to.  

	A little obsessed was he?  

	Well, maybe.  Nobody had ever made him feel so crazy 
before.  So willing to risk everything and put anything on the 
line just so he could see her, talk to her (even if only to watch 
her get mad at him), maybe even touch her, if he had an excuse.  
This made him mad as much as it filled him with a strange joy 
such as he had never felt before.  He could not get the child out 
of his head!  There were a great many reasons why he should do 
just that, though, the least of them being that Serena was a 
child; a good six years younger than he was, although he, being 
only twenty, was not all that old.  Still, the term "robbing the 
cradle" fit very well with the situation. 

	Besides, she wasn't even his type, he told himself fiercely.  
She was nothing but a scatter-brained teenager in high school 
while he was a serious, studious college student who had learned 
long ago how to build walls around his heart to shut people out.  
Serena was the...the wrecking ball who would inadvertently end up 
knocking those walls clean off their supports, and not even 
realize that she'd done so, and that could be dangerous for him.  
Those walls were his protection against the pain he'd been dealt 
all his life, ever since losing his parents...not to mention all 
memory of them and his former life...in the accident that had 
claimed them all those years ago.  No, it was definitely the right 
thing to do to set all thought of Serena Tsukino aside and just 
get on with life.  Such as it was.

	Darien nodded to himself firmly, that settled in his mind, 
and looked up to see if he'd reached his apartment building yet,
as he had been only partly paying attention to where he was going.  
To his surprise, he saw that his feet had led him, not to home, 
but rather to the Crown Center Arcade two blocks in the opposite 
direction, where his best friend, Andrew, worked.

	Where Serena and her pals usually hung out after school.

	Darien scowled at his feet.  **Traitors!** he thought, 
miffed.  Even they had turned against him!

	He sighed, defeated, and turned weary eyes to the doors, 
which opened as though to welcome him inside.  Then, with a wry 
smile, he shrugged and stepped into the cool building.  He was 
there.  He might as well talk to Andrew, and besides, he could 
go for a chocolate shake right about then...

*	*	*	*	*
	"Hey, Darien!" Andrew called out cheerfully from his place 
behind the counter where he was busily taking orders from 
customers.  "Have a seat.  Give me a sec, and I'll be right with 
you."

	"I just want the usual.  Take your time," Darien replied, 
sliding onto a stool and casually looking toward the game area.  
Sure enough, the first thing he saw was a pair of golden 
meatballs parked in front of the latest Sailor V game.  He 
smiled at the sight, then frowned when he remembered that he 
wasn't supposed to care.  Her rudeness toward him earlier that 
day still had him slightly miffed, though.  So he stood and 
sauntered over to her, watching her face as she stared intently 
at the screen, her slender hands frantically punching buttons.

	"C'mon, come on!  Beat it!" she muttered to herself, her 
face scrunching in determination, and he had to hold back a 
chuckle.  She was just so darned cute when she was intent.

	"Fail any more tests in school lately?" he asked, standing 
right behind her and making her squeal in surprise and nearly 
leap out of her chair.  The computer-animated Sailor V went into 
death throes, and Game Over flashed across the screen.

	"DARIEN!  You creep!  YOU MADE ME LOSE!" Serena screeched.  
"And that would've been the best score yet!"  She turned to fix 
him with a positively evil glare.

	Darien merely smirked.  "You poor dear," he drawled, 
although he felt a little guilty about making her lose.  
Not that he'd ever let HER know that...

	Serena pouted and picked up her book bag, stomping over to 
Andrew.  "Can I have a soda?" she asked with a cheerful grin.  
"Playing games makes me thirsty."

	"No problem, Serena," Andrew replied with a friendly smile, 
filling a glass and handing it to her.  Darien nonchalantly slid 
onto a stool beside Serena, as if he made it a point to sit 
beside her every day, and Andrew handed him a chocolate milkshake, 
his eyebrow raised questioningly.  Darien wasn't inclined to 
answer any, however.  He merely gave his friend a "later" look 
and drank his shake.

	"So you never answered my question, Meatball Head," he 
finally said, in an attempt to get some sort of conversation 
going.  Andrew rolled his eyes heavenward, shaking his head 
and moving away...possibly to avoid the flames practically 
shooting from Serena's ears.

	"It just so happens I got a seventy percent on my math 
test yesterday!" Serena haughtily informed Darien, turning her 
nose up.

	"Oh, very admirable," he snorted, taking a gulp of his 
shake.  "So did your parents give you a medal, or what?"

	Serena shot him an angry glare.  "Who asked you, anyhow, 
creep?" she mumbled, turning quickly away from him.  He looked 
at her, astonished.  He couldn't see her expression very well, 
turned away as she was, but for a moment he could almost have 
sworn he'd seen her eyes shimmering with tears.  But that was 
impossible.  This was Serena!  They were always tossing insults 
back and forth at each other!  It was...it was a game, to see 
who could best who.  It wasn't meant to be serious!

	Serena, in the meantime, had finished her soda and now laid 
her money on the counter, bidding Andrew goodbye before turning to 
leave.  Darien wracked his brain, trying to quickly think up some 
way to say he was sorry without actually making it look like he 
was apologizing.  He really hadn't meant to hurt her...  

	Suddenly Serena turned back to him, a sweet smile pasted on 
her face, and his heart leaped with hope...that was quickly 
crushed a moment later.  "Oh, and by the way, Darien, if I really 
DO kill somebody someday, I hope it's YOU!" she stated, sticking 
out her tongue at him and running out the door before he could 
reply.

	Darien sighed as he watched her go.  Somehow, he wasn't at 
all surprised to hear that from her.  He swore once again to stay 
away from her, before he ended up hurting them both.

*	*	*	*	*
	He went back again the next day.

	Andrew waved to him from the game area, where he was 
helping a little boy get through a game.  He waved halfheartedly 
back before sliding into a booth, laying his books on the table.  
He mumbled to the waitress who had come over to take his order, 
then stared off into space, wondering what in the world he was 
doing there again.  

	It was to see Andrew, he told himself.  Andrew was his 
best friend, after all, and he worked here, so it was perfectly 
normal to be here.  He most certainly was NOT there to see a 
certain young lady with blond meatballs.  Nope.  Definitely 
not that.

	Suddenly, he heard her laughter bubbling as the main door 
slid opened, and his heart began to laugh at the logic his mind 
was spitting forth.  After all, Andrew was certainly not the 
reason his blood suddenly seemed too hot, or his hands suddenly 
felt too clammy, or his breathing too fast.  And if he was...well, 
then Darien needed some serious help...

	"Oh, Ryan, you're SO funny," Serena was cooing from behind 
him, and Darien froze in shock.

	**Ryan?  Who the hell is Ryan?!**

	Slowly, he turned in his seat until he could see 
Serena...and the tall, red-haired young man she walked beside, 
her arm sliding through his and her gaze locked adoringly on 
his rather handsome face.  "Ryan" seemed aloof as he gazed 
around, discreetly removing Serena's grip on his arm.  He 
spotted an empty booth, one built for two, and laid an arm 
around her shoulders as he moved toward it.  She followed 
him quite willingly, and they slid into it, smiling at each 
other.

	Darien saw red.  And it wasn't because he was looking at 
Ryan's hair.

	**Who IS this guy?!** he ranted silently.  **What's so 
special about him that he gets the privilege of sitting with 
MY Serena?!**

	Wait a sec... Since when was Serena his?

	"What's wrong, Dar?  You look like you just saw a ghost."

	Darien nearly leaped out of his skin at Andrew's quiet 
observation, and turned to face his friend, who had slipped 
into the seat across from him, setting two glasses of coke in 
front of them.  "Geez!  Ya scared me!" he grumbled, turning 
around fully.

	Andrew was looking from him, to Serena, and back again, 
his expression sly and pitying all at the same time.  "Anything 
wrong?" he asked.  "You can tell me, ya know."

	"Nothing's wrong," Darien replied casually.  A little TOO 
casually, Andrew noted with amusement as he took a sip of his 
soda.

	"That guy Serena's with is Ryan, her new boyfriend," he 
said calmly, as though discussing the weather.  

	Darien's reaction was anything but calm.  He sputtered 
on the swallow of soda he'd just taken, coughing in shock.  
"Her BOYFRIEND?!" he croaked.  "Serena doesn't have a boyfriend!"

	"She does now," Andrew replied.  "He just asked her out 
last week, apparently.  Haven't you wondered why she hasn't 
been at the arcade as much as usual?"

	Darien had noticed that Serena was missing several 
times, truth be told.  She used to come in every afternoon, 
but she had missed two days this week alone, which was highly 
unusual.

	"Well," Andrew continued, "she hasn't been in because 
she's been with him.  Actually, she didn't even tell me she 
had a boyfriend.  I had to hear it from her friend Molly.  I 
was a little surprised that she didn't let me know.  She used
to tell me all this stuff."  His tone was hurt as he gazed 
over to where Serena and Ryan were talking quietly.

	"But...but she's too young to be going out on dates!" 
Darien protested, which immediately sent Andrew into roars of 
laughter.

	"Too young?!  Darien, how old were YOU when you first 
started dating?  And what are you, anyhow?  Her father?" he 
gasped, wiping his eyes.  At Darien's glare, he calmed down 
a little and smiled at him apologetically.  "What your problem 
REALLY is, is that you can't stand the thought of anyone dating 
Serena...except for you."

	"And how do you know that?" Darien grumbled.  "Are you 
psychic or something?"

	"No, I'm your best friend, and best friends know these 
kinds of things," Andrew replied wisely.  "You've been sprung 
on that girl for months, and figured you were safe enough to 
ignore your feelings when she was still single...but now that
she has a boyfriend, are you gonna sit there and let her walk 
away from you?"  

	He stood and slid out of the booth before Darien could 
think up a suitable reply, clapping his shoulder fondly.  
"Serena's a wonderful girl, Dar, despite her faults.  I think 
she'd do you a world of good, if you'd just let her into your 
life, if even as a friend.  I promise she won't bite."  With 
that, he was gone, leaving Darien to ponder this somewhat 
alarming new development in the game of Darien VS Serena...round 
one hundred and fifty eight.  Or was it nine?  He'd lost count...

	"Hi, Darien!"

	He looked up to see Lita, Raye and Amy standing before 
him, returning their greeting half-heartedly.  "Have you see
Serena?" Lita asked.  "We were supposed to meet after school, 
but she hasn't showed up."

	"She's over there," Darien replied gloomily, "with HIM."

	The girls looked toward the bench where Serena and Ryan 
were sitting close together, talking.  Darien watched as her 
face lit up with laughter at something Ryan said, and his heart
twisted.  Why couldn't she ever laugh at any of HIS jokes?

	"Oh, it's HIM," Lita was saying, as though talking about 
something disgusting one might find stuck to the bottom of their 
shoe.  Darien, upon hearing the tone, immediately perked up.

	"What, you don't like that guy?" he asked curiously.

	"Oh, he's OKAY, I guess, but..."

	"He isn't exactly Serena's type," Amy finished for her, 
wrinkling her nose.  "He just transferred two weeks ago, and 
he's a senior, but already there have been wild stories about 
him all over school.  He's supposedly part of some gang in the 
city, who gets into a lot of trouble with the police."  Then, 
upon noticing the incredulous stares directed at her from the 
other three, she added hastily, "NOT that I actually believe 
these rumors or anything!  They probably aren't true."  

	"So, Ames, you aren't immune to gossip, after all," Raye 
teased.

	"Well, how can I be when it's all anyone ever talks about 
anymore?" she replied defensively. 

	"So," Darien cut in, more than a little interested in 
Serena's new guy, "what you're saying is that this guy is a 
troublemaker then?  What's Serena doing with someone like 
that?  She...doesn't seem like the type to be interested in 
guys like him."

	"That's what WE can't figure out," Lita replied gloomily.  
"He started charming her from day one, and she fell for it hook, 
line and sinker!  I always thought she'd be smarter than that."

	Darien frowned, glancing over at Ryan again.  He didn't 
have that gang look about him.  Of course, he was in a school 
uniform, but he looked like a nice enough guy.  Still...looks 
were deceiving.  His frown deepened.  And if Serena's best 
friends didn't like him, well, that said enough.  They weren't 
the kind to judge anyone by appearances alone, especially Amy.  
If SHE didn't like the guy, then there had to be something 
about him.  He resolved to find out, as soon as possible, what 
it was.

	Lita had stepped over to Serena's booth and was quietly 
talking to her.  Serena's eyes suddenly widened, and her hand 
flew to her mouth.  She turned to Ryan, looking apologetic, and 
said something.  His face immediately darkened, and he looked at 
Lita and said something to her in return.  Whatever it was, it 
was enough to make Serena gasp and Lita straighten up abruptly, 
her fist clenching at her side.  Darien watched Serena closely 
as she slid out of the booth, her hands resting on her hips as 
she spoke to Ryan, who merely rolled his eyes.  But when Serena 
grabbed her bag and started to march away, he reached out and 
snatched her wrist, scowling.

	"Let her go!"  Lita's voice had risen, and was now loud 
enough to be heard clear to the other side of the room.  Darien 
stood abruptly, sensing an impending argument as he and the 
other two girls hurried over to the booth.

	"What's going on here?" Darien demanded before anyone 
else had a chance to speak.  He shot a glance at Ryan's tight 
grip on Serena's wrist, then let his icy gaze travel up to 
Ryan's arrogant stare.  "Do you always manhandle little girls 
like that?" he asked coldly.

	"And who're you?  Her daddy?" Ryan sneered.  "This doesn't 
concern you, so back off, got it?"

	"Well, it concerns us!" Raye cut in, glaring at Ryan.  
"Let Serena go, before I'm forced to do something you'll 
regret."

	"Raye, it's okay," Serena said nervously, trying to 
break free from Ryan's tight grasp on her arm.  "Just let it 
go, all right?"  She gave one final tug, and Ryan released 
her arm, looking at her sulkily.  "Look, Ryan, I'm sorry, but 
I have to go.  I promised the girls we'd study at the temple 
tonight."

	He smirked.  "Like you'd actually study," he laughed.  
"C'mon!  Can't you just forget it for one night?  I'm your 
guy, ain't I?  Aren't we supposed to do things together?"

	Serena looked guilty.  "Well, yeah, but...I mean..."  
She paused, then brightened.  "Well, why don't you come with 
us then?" she suggested.  "I mean, I'm sure you could study, 
too, and it's more fun with a bunch of people than just alone!"

	Ryan sneered.  "Oh, that sounds like fun.  Sorry, I got 
better things to do than paint my toenails and stuff."  He 
slid out of the booth, then noticed the dejected look Serena 
was giving him.  He sighed, then leaned down to kiss her cheek.  
"Look, go to your little study session or whatever, okay?  I'll
see ya tomorrow."  He stroked her cheek and gave her a charming
grin, which nearly made her melt.  Then he picked up a black 
leather jacket, which had been laying on the bench beside him, 
and tossed it over his shoulder, heading out the door.

	Serena sighed, then smiled brightly and turned to her 
friends, who were watching her with unreadable expressions 
on their faces.  "What?" she asked.  "Quit looking at me 
like that!  What's your problem?"  She seemed irritated.

	"What are you doing hooked up with a guy like him?"  
Darien was the first to speak, much to everyone's (including 
his own) surprise.  At Serena's glare, he added, "I mean...he 
doesn't really seem like...your type..."

	"And what IS my type, Darien?" Serena snapped.  
"Some brainless twit who can't tie his own shoes, like me?  
Is that what you think?  That someone as cute and smart as 
Ryan wouldn't fall for a scatter-brained airhead like me?  
Well, you're wrong!  Just because you have to act like a 
conceited jerk towards me all the time, doesn't mean anyone 
else does!  You're the one with the problem, not me, so just 
BUTT OUT!" 

	Darien nearly staggered back at the force of her words, 
his heart twisting like she'd driven a knife into it.  "No, 
that's not what..."

	But Serena wasn't staying around to listen.  She had 
picked up her bag was already marching out of the arcade.  
"You guys coming or what?" she called over her shoulder.

	The girls were staring at her in astonishment.  They 
had NEVER seen Serena behave like that before!  Even to Darien!

	"I REALLY don't like that guy," Lita growled, slapping 
her fist into her palm and stalking after Serena.  Raye 
followed her, shaking her head.

	Amy looked at Darien, who was still watching Serena's 
form pacing outside the door, waiting for her friends to follow 
her.  "Are you okay?" she asked.  

	Darien blinked, smiling sheepishly.  "Yeah, I'm fine," he 
replied.  "I just...didn't expect that, is all.  She sure learned 
to bite back fast, didn't she?"

	Amy sighed.  "Ryan's a bad influence.  I think she's 
only acting like that because he's been telling her that she 
needs to show more guts.  You know how she is.  She always 
wants to please, even if it goes against her nature to do so.  
I wish she'd wake up and see the light, but I'm afraid to say 
anything to her in case she gets mad at me, too.  I don't want 
to ruin our friendship over this."

	She sighed, then smiled at Darien and bid him good day, 
following Raye out the door.  Darien watched them leave, his frown 
lingering, before he, too, left the arcade.  He had a bad feeling 
about this.  A very bad feeling...


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Two
~~~~~~~~~~~

	Darien saw Serena sitting alone on a bench in the park 
the next afternoon, and realized that now was a perfect time 
to confront her about Ryan.  He strolled casually over to her 
and sat down on the bench as if he had every right to do so.  
Serena glanced at him, her jaw tightening, but when he didn't 
say anything her look turned quizzical, and somewhat annoyed.

	"Um, 'scuse me, Darien, but I happen to want to be alone," 
she informed him stiffly.

	He didn't reply for a moment as he watched a squirrel 
scamper up a tree, but then he turned a deep sapphire gaze to 
her, and she was astonished to see concern shining in his eyes.  
"Serena..."  He paused, and she was even more surprised that 
he had actually called her by her name for once.  "Serena," he 
said again, firmly, "I don't think you should see Ryan.  
He's...he just isn't the kind of guy you should be with..."

	"WHAT?!  YOU TOO?!" Serena yelled, leaping to her feet.  
"Oh, this is just great!" she exclaimed angrily, looking up at 
the sky.  "First, my best friends, who're SUPPOSED to support 
me, turn on me, and now DARIEN CHIBA, of all people, is telling 
me whom I can and cannot go out with!  Is this some kind of 
cosmic JOKE?!"

	"Serena, this guy is a complete jerk!  I saw how he 
treated you yesterday!  I bet he treats his DOG better than 
you!  You...you deserve better!" Darien protested, frustrated 
at her refusal to see common sense.

	Serena turned on him, her eyes flashing blue fire through 
a film of tears.  "WHERE DO YOU GET OFF, DARIEN CHIBA?!" she 
yelled.  "Where do you get off, telling me what to do?!  Oh, so 
it's okay for YOU to make me utterly miserable, but no one else 
is allowed, is that it?"

	Darien, taken aback, stammered out, "No!  I mean...that's
not what I meant at all!  I just..."

	"Well, I have news for you, Mr. Conceited Jerk!  You go
home and you say all those things to your mirror, 'cause until 
you do you have NO RIGHT to say them to me!  Do you hear me?  
NO RIGHT!"  With a soft sob, she began to turn away.  Then she 
paused and looked back.  "And for your information, MR. Chiba," 
she added coldly, "Ryan doesn't HAVE a dog!"  With that, she 
turned and fled, leaving a bewildered Darien to stare after her.

*	*	*	*	*
	She was right.

	As much as he didn't want to admit it, Serena was 
absolutely right.  Darien had been wrong to accuse Ryan 
of doing the very thing he himself had done on countless 
occasions, and he began to feel incredibly guilty about it.  
**But we're hardly even friends, and this guy is supposed to 
be her boyfriend!** he thought.  **What does she see in him?  
Why won't she look for someone better?**  Serena never 
hesitated to defend herself against Darien, and yet for 
Ryan...she seemed willing to overlook the emotional abuse he 
put her through, and that was something Darien could not 
understand.  Didn't she think she could do better than Ryan?  

	It was a question he put to Andrew later on in the 
arcade, wanting to hear his best friend's opinion of this 
Ryan person.  Andrew's lips tightened at the mention of that 
name, and his hand stilled in polishing the glass he was 
holding.  He seemed to be looking for the right words to say.  
"Ryan...doesn't strike me as the type of guy...who knows how a 
girl should be treated," he began carefully.

	"Glad I'm not the only one who thinks so," Darien 
muttered, staring into his coke glass.  "But Serena won't 
listen to me."

	"Well...you can hardly blame her for that, can you?" 
Andrew replied with a slight smile.  "After all..."

	"I know, I know!" Darien replied, feeling his cheeks 
turn a faint red.  "Serena made it very clear to me earlier 
that I was sort of guilty of the same thing.  But...that just 
proves that she knows that Ryan is a creep, and she still won't 
do anything about it!"

	Andrew paused.  "Maybe...she doesn't believe that anyone 
else would be interested in her in that way, so she takes what 
she gets," he said slowly.

	"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" Darien 
snapped.  "Who WOULDN'T want to go out with Serena?!  Come on, 
you see all those guys watching her wherever she goes!  Any ONE 
of them would fall down at her feet if she so much as looks at 
them!"

	Andrew's smile was sly as he regarded his friend.  "So 
you noticed that, too, huh?" he asked teasingly.  "You wouldn't 
happen to BE 'one of them'...would you?"

	Darien blinked in surprise at his friend, then gave a 
sheepish grin.  "Up until a day or two ago, I probably would 
slug you for that remark," he replied dryly.  "But now..."  
He sighed and downed the last of his drink.  "Now I'm tempted 
to admit that maybe you're right."

	"Of course I am.  I'm your best friend.  It's my job to be 
right," Andrew replied good naturedly.  Then he turned serious.  
"Look, Dar, if you wanna prove to Serena just how much of a creep 
Ryan is, then you gotta start showing her how a real gentleman 
would treat his lady.  Start pouring on the charm!  Sweep her off 
her feet!  She'll never know what hit her!"

	Darien smirked.  "Oh, like Serena would ever believe that 
I'm interested in her!" he snorted.  "Not after the way I've 
treated her!  She'd probably fall over laughing."

	"Well, you never know 'till you try," Andrew replied wisely.  
"The worst that can happen is she'll ignore you."

	Darien hesitated.  "And what's the best that could happen?" 
he asked reluctantly.

	Andrew smiled.  "You just might get yourself the love of 
your life," he replied mysteriously.  He patted Darien's shoulder, 
put away the glasses he'd finished polishing, and headed over to 
the game area to help out a little boy playing Sailor V.

*	*	*	*	*
	Darien didn't sleep all night.  He was too busy thinking 
about Andrew's words, and the possibility that he might be 
right.  But no matter how much sense his logic made, Darien 
could not bring himself to believe that Serena would ever see 
him as anything more than an antagonist.  Which was why he was 
going to have to show her in some other way that there were 
nice guys out there and that she didn't need to be stuck with 
a self-centered creep like Ryan.

	He suddenly recalled a few years ago, when he'd been 
in high school, and had thought himself madly in love with 
the most popular girl in the school, who's name was Tiffini.  
He'd done everything possible to get the pretty brunette to 
notice him, but he was one of the "bookworm" types, and had 
hardly gotten her to bat an eyelash at him, even though other 
girls swooned at his mere glance.  Finally, he'd resorted to 
sending her anonymous gifts and love letters, and for awhile 
it actually seemed to work...until Tiffini's boyfriend 
inadvertently discovered that it was Darien sending all those 
gifts, and had sicced his pet lackeys on him, thus convincing 
him to turn his attentions elsewhere.

	Darien smiled to himself as he recalled how quickly 
he'd decided that he WASN'T in love with Tiffini.  He wasn't 
a coward, and he wasn't a weakling, but he'd known better 
than to take on an entire gang by himself...especially over 
one girl who obviously thought he wasn't worth the ground 
she walked on.

	He opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling, and a plan 
began to form in his head.  Until Tiffini had found out it was 
him sending those notes...she had been thrilled and flattered 
at the thought of having a secret admirer.  What if he tried 
the same tactics on Serena...only this time making sure she 
didn't find out who it was?  Would that be enough to make her 
realize that she could do better than Ryan?

	It was worth a shot, like Andrew said.  And it was a 
good idea, Darien had to admit.  He thought it over more 
carefully, discarding ideas and creating new ones, and by 
the time he finally fell asleep, he'd come up with a pretty 
soundproof plan to sweep Serena clean off her feet.

*	*	*	*	*
	"Hey, Serena, you wanna go shopping with me on Sunday?" 
Molly asked, looking at her best friend hopefully.  She and 
Serena were sitting on a grassy bank at school, eating lunch 
together.  For once, Ryan was not with them, and for that Molly 
was grateful.  It seemed like it had been ages since she'd been 
able to have her friend all to herself.

	Serena brightened at Molly's suggestion, but then 
her face fell a moment later.  "Gee, Moll, I...I'd love to, 
but...but I already made plans to see that new action movie 
with Ryan," she stammered.

	Molly's face fell and she looked away, but not before 
Serena saw the deep pain hidden in her eyes.  "Okay," she 
replied quietly.  "I understand.  He's your boyfriend.  I'm 
just your friend, is all."

	Immediate guilt flooded Serena, making tears spring to her 
eyes.  Molly was her friend, her very best friend, but ever since 
Serena had discovered that she was Sailor Moon, and had met the 
Sailor Scouts, she had been pushing Molly away.  Whether it was 
to protect the other girl, or her secret, Serena didn't know, 
but it had created a rift in their close-knit friendship that 
threatened to break it entirely, and it was all her fault.  
And now that Ryan was in the picture...

	**Got to mend this, before I lose her,** Serena thought 
sadly.  **Oh, Molly, I'm so sorry!  I hardly even realized 
what I was doing to us!  I don't want to lose you over some 
guy, even if it is Ryan, or even over the Scouts!  I can't 
let that happen!  I...I'd rather die first!**

	She sniffed and gave Molly a bright smile.  "Ya know, 
who wants to see a dumb war movie, anyhow?  I'd much rather 
go shopping with my best friend!"

	Molly's expression turned hopeful again.  "Do you really 
mean that?  Just the two of us?" she asked.

	Serena nodded firmly.  "Just the two of us!  I won't even 
invite the Scou...er...Amy or Lita or Raye!  It'll be just us!"

	"Oh, Serena!" Molly squealed, throwing her arms around 
her friend's neck.  "We'll have a great time!  Just you wait 
and see!  It'll be just like it used to!  We can rent videos 
and watch them on our new television and eat popcorn and my 
mom's great brownies and all sorts of stuff!"

	"Sounds like a blast!" Serena replied enthusiastically.

	"But wait..."  Molly's expression became pensive.  "What'll 
you tell Ryan?"

	Serena hesitated, then gave her a cheery smile and a shrug.  
"The truth, of course.  He's my boyfriend; he'll understand, I'm 
sure," she replied positively.

*	*	*	*	*
	She was wrong.

	Ryan did not understand.  At all.

	He glared at her as she stood before him in the arcade 
after school, looking anything but understanding while she 
explained the situation.  He sat there, tightlipped, and said 
not a word, which made her rather nervous.  "Come on, Ryan!  
Y-you aren't angry, are you?" she pleaded.

	"Angry?  Of course not!  Why should I be angry?  I mean, 
my girl goes and cancels our date 'cause she'd rather hang out 
with some little twit than with me, but so what?  I should be 
LEAPING with joy!" he nearly snarled.

	Serena felt her hackles rise.  "Molly is my best friend, 
and I've been practically ignoring her!  I'm trying to heal our 
friendship!" she defended.

	"Sere...sometimes, ya gotta let things go," Ryan replied 
soothingly.  "If you and-Molly, is it?-are drifting apart, 
well...isn't it for the best?  Sometimes ya gotta meet new 
friends and let go of the old, don't you think?"

	"NO!"

	Serena was horrified that he'd even MAKE such a suggestion, 
and tears sprang to her eyes as she stared at him in shock.  How 
could he be so...so callous?

	"Okay, okay!  Calm down, Sere," Ryan hissed, glancing around.  
"Don't make such a scene!  What are you, three?"

	"I-I'm sorry," she whimpered, struggling to hold back her 
tears; something she rarely ever did.  His words stung her, but 
she guessed that they were no more than she deserved.  She knew 
how much her immature outbursts embarrassed him.

	"Look, I gotta go, okay?" Ryan told her uncomfortably.

	"But...I thought we were gonna have dinner together," 
Serena stammered.  He had promised to buy her dinner, something 
he had not yet done since they'd started dating.  In fact...now 
that she thought about it, they hadn't even gone on any actual 
dates as of yet.  It was weird to her, but as she'd never had a 
boyfriend before, how was she to know what couples did together?  
Besides, they'd only been going out for a week.  She just needed 
to give it some time, is all...

	He was laughing at her lightly.  "Yeah, well, I figure that 
if you can cancel a date, then so can I," he told her.  "Besides, 
the way you eat, if I bought you dinner I'd probably go broke!"

	Serena felt her face flush with humiliation.  How could 
Ryan say such cruel things to her?!  And in front of other 
people, no less!  She watched, stunned, as Ryan slid from the 
booth he was sitting at, waiting for some sort of apology, but 
none was forthcoming, and she watched in numb bewilderment as 
he sauntered out the door, not even saying goodbye.

	Shaking her head to clear it, trying to ignore the 
stares she was sure were directed her way, Serena slowly turned 
around...and there stood Darien, not three feet away from her.  
Judging by his expression, he had heard the entire exchange 
between them, and he was NOT happy.  She met his gaze, and he 
returned it silently, his sapphire eyes filled with worry.  
Biting her lip against an unreasonable urge to break down and 
cry, she slowly slid into the booth Ryan had vacated, hoping 
that if she merely ignored Darien, he'd go away.

	It was not to be.  After a mere moment, she felt eyes 
on her, and glanced up to once again meet a deep, sapphire 
gaze, filled with concern.  Darien leaned closer to her, his 
eyes searching her own.  "Are you okay?" he asked, and the 
gentleness in his voice nearly made her break down, despite 
her firm resolve not to.

	"I'm fine," she stated in a flat, emotionless voice.  
"Just peachy."  She even managed a smile for him, suspecting 
it looked a bit mechanical, yet hoping it would be convincing 
enough to make him leave.

	It didn't fool him in the least, and the knowing look he 
gave her told her so.  "He didn't have any right to talk to you 
that way," he told her darkly.  "What do you see in him, Serena?  
Why are you with someone who hurts you like that?"

	"It's none of your business, Darien!"

	He sighed.  "Well, how about I buy you a hamburger?  
Would that help cheer you up?" he suggested, giving her his 
best knock-'em-dead smile that never failed to win them over 
in the past.

	Serena looked up sharply, her eyes narrowed.  "Why are you 
suddenly being so nice to me?" she asked suspiciously.

	He shifted.  "I...I just feel bad, about what Ryan said to 
you.  You deserved better than that."

	Serena looked away uncomfortably.  "I don't want your 
pity, Darien," she mumbled.

	He sighed.  "I'm not giving you my pity.  I just wanna 
know if you want a hamburger.  My treat."

	She hesitated, and he felt a tiny spark of triumph.

	"No thank you.  I'm not very hungry right now."

	The spark fizzled and sputtered out like a match in a 
monsoon.

	"Come on, Serena..."

	"I SAID I'm NOT HUNGRY!" Serena yelled, her patience 
finally at an end.  She leaped out of her seat and bolted from 
the arcade, leaving Darien to once again stare after her, 
thinking all the while that this scene was becoming depressingly 
familiar...


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Three
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	In school the next day, Serena sat idly doodling in 
her notebook, hardly paying attention to what Miss Haruna 
was teaching.  She'd not slept well the night before.  She'd 
told Luna it was because of a headache (and not because of 
Ryan, whom even Luna didn't care for).  It wasn't a lie, 
really.  After the buckets of tears she'd cried, a 
headache--not to mention her burning eyes--was only natural.

	She was listless over lunch, and Molly and Lita, 
who were sitting with her, kept shooting her worried glances, 
but she was too busy waiting for Ryan to show up and eat with 
her like he'd promised to really pay attention to her friends' 
concern.  When lunch had ended, Ryan had still not shown up.  
**Maybe he's studying in the library, like Amy always does,** 
Serena told herself.  It wasn't likely, but it was all she could 
come up with to excuse him.

	Fortunately, the large crowd of students that was for 
some reason gathered around Serena's desk when she got back 
to the classroom was enough to drive all thoughts of Ryan from 
her mind.  "Excuse me!" she proclaimed loudly as she squeezed 
through the mob, more than a little curious to know why her 
desk was suddenly so fascinating to her classmates.

	Of course, it might possibly have had something to do with 
the large vase of roses sitting on the middle of it...

	Her jaw dropped in shock as her gaze took in the roses, 
all half-opened buds, as fresh and dewy as though they'd been 
picked just that morning.  The roses were all snow white, except 
for a single rose of deepest, velvet red that stood out like a 
drop of blood on a field of snow.  A thin, white ribbon tied 
around the red rose held an envelope, with her name inscribed 
on it in beautiful calligraphy.

	"Open it!" Molly encouraged eagerly.  "See who it's from!"

	"Th-there's been some mistake," Serena stammered.  "These 
can't POSSIBLY be for me!"

	"It's your name on the card," a dark-haired girl named 
Robin pointed out.  

	With a shaking hand, Serena took the small envelope and 
opened it, reading the note silently.  Her cheeks began to burn 
as she read, and her eyes widened in astonishment.  "What's it 
say?" Molly demanded, then snatched the note upon receiving no 
answer and began to read out loud.

	"Beloved Serena,
	I can see the moonlight glowing
	in your beautiful eyes,
	like fragments of a memory,
	and I wonder, does that memory
	include me?

	In my heart I embrace you,
	and hold you close
	to taste your sweet lips,
	as I dare not in life.
	Is it possible to hope that you might
	dream the same dream?

	One day, our two souls will come together
	and be forever bound,
	entwined like two roses.
	When that day arrives, 
	the universe will be at peace,
	and I will finally be able to say,
	"I love you..."

*	*	*	*	*
	Molly finished reading and gaped at a glowing Serena, 
while the other girls all sighed dreamily and the few boys 
curious enough to gather around grimaced in disgust and quickly 
found more interesting things to talk about.  "WHO is it FROM?!" 
Robin asked eagerly, eyeing Serena enviously.

	"There's no name," Molly replied, checking the note front 
and back.  "Wow!  What a romantic poem!  Serena, you have a secret 
admirer!"

	Serena giggled, slightly embarrassed.  "Don't be silly!" 
she replied.  "How could I have a secret admirer when I already 
have a boyfriend?"

	Molly wrinkled her nose.  "Well...do you think maybe HE 
sent you the roses?" she asked.  "I mean...he doesn't strike me 
as a poetic type..."

	Serena hesitated, before slowly shaking her head.  In 
all honesty...she highly doubted that either the roses or the 
note were from Ryan.  She doubted that the idea to send them 
would have even occurred to him, as much as it pained her to 
admit it.  But the question remained...

	Who had sent them to her?

*	*	*	*	*
	"Let me get this straight.  YOU have a secret admirer?!" 
Raye yelped, plopping down in front of Serena in disbelief.  
"Is the world coming to an end or WHAT?!"

	"Ha, ha!  Veeeery funny, Pyro," Serena sniffed, 
snatching back the note Raye had grabbed from her.  She and 
the other three Scouts were once again sitting in the arcade, 
munching on French fries and sipping milkshakes.  Serena, of 
course, was dying to show off her mysterious gifts.  "You're 
just jealous 'cause my secret admirer writes better poetry 
than Chad does!" she added teasingly, ignoring her friend's 
glare.

	Chad was a young man who worked at the temple, and who 
had a huge case of puppy-love for the raven-haired priestess 
and insisted on announcing it to the world by writing bad 
songs for her...and singing them even worse.

	Raye glowered at Serena.  "Don't you ever mention that 
again," she growled.

	Serena giggled.  "Why not?  I think it's sweet," she 
replied teasingly.  "Raye and Chad, sitting in a tree!  
K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First come lovmmmph!"  She was rudely interrupted 
by Raye's hand clapping down on her mouth.

	"Finish that, and I'll break both your arms," Raye snarled 
at her, while Amy and Lita giggled at their squabbling.

	"Hey, girls!  What's up?"

	Serena stiffened at the sound of Darien's voice, but 
Lita didn't seem to care as she blurted out, "Serena's got a 
secret admirer!"

	Darien turned to give Serena a searching look, raising 
an eyebrow, and she squirmed under his silent scrutiny.  "Lita!  
Ya don't have ta tell the whole world!" she hissed, sinking 
further down into her seat as a blush covered her face.  She 
didn't know why she was so embarrassed about Darien knowing 
that she had a secret admirer.  After all, maybe once he saw 
how desirable she was to other guys he'd leave her alone.
	
	"I think it's great, though!" Lita was saying dreamily.  
"I wish I had a secret admirer who'd send me flowers and write 
me really romantic poems!  I'd die of happiness!"

	"Romantic poems?" Darien asked curiously.

	"Yeah, like this," Raye told him, snatching the paper 
from Serena, who gave a startled screech and attempted to 
snatch it back, but Darien held it just out of reach and 
scanned the writing quickly.  His eyebrows shot up and a 
grin spread across his lips as he looked at Serena curiously.  
She bit her lip, preparing herself for his next obnoxious 
comment.

	"Ya know, he got that part about your eyes right.  
They ARE really pretty, you know."

	Serena's mouth dropped open in shock, as did everyone 
else's, and her eyes went wide as saucers as she stared at 
him in absolute disbelief.  Whatever she had been expecting, 
it was NOT that!  He winked at her, so slightly that it was 
barely more than a twitch, but it was enough.  Then he bid 
her farewell, turned, and moved on, grinning to himself.

	"Well, well, well!"  Raye was the first to recover.  
"Did I actually just SEE that?!  Darien was NICE to you?!  
I'm shocked!"

	"You and me both, honey," Serena muttered, still staring 
after him.  "What's gotten into him, anyhow?"

	"Maybe he likes you," Amy teased.

	"Ha!  AS if!  He's probably just trying to come up with a 
new way to torment me," Serena grumbled.  "Just you wait!  He'll 
be back to normal in no time!"

*	*	*	*	*
	Darien smiled to himself as he watched Serena and her 
friends, sipping a cup of coffee contentedly.  The look on 
her face when he'd told her that her eyes were pretty had been 
priceless!  Like she couldn't decide whether to smack him or 
yell at him or hug him (although she'd probably deny that last 
one).

	"What're you so smug about?"

	Darien turned at the sound of Andrew's voice and shot him 
an innocent smile.  "I don't know what you're talking about," he 
replied cheerfully.

	Andrew's expression was skeptical as he regarded his friend.  
"And why don't I believe you?" he replied with a chuckle.

	"I'm just thinking about Serena's secret admirer, is all," 
Darien replied evasively.  "Did she make you read the note yet?"

	Andrew laughed.  "She nearly tied me to the chair 'till 
I looked at it," he replied.  "I don't think I've ever seen 
her so happy!  And that's saying a lot for Serena!"  He paused, 
then shot Darien a sly glance.  "But, ya know...I couldn't help 
but notice that the handwriting seemed a little familiar to 
me..." he added.  Darien returned his look, trying to appear 
innocent, but the slight grin that kept tugging at the corners 
of his mouth gave him away.

	"Ah-HA!" Andrew crowed.  "I KNEW it!  YOU'RE the one who 
sent the roses, aren't you?"

	"Keep it down, will ya!" Darien hissed.  "I'm supposed to 
be a SECRET admirer, remember?"

	"Er...right, Dar.  No problem."  Andrew's voice was 
considerably lower.  "One question though.  Why're you doing 
things this way?  I mean...why not just send her the flowers 
and sign your name to that poem, so she knows they're from 
you?"

	Darien snorted.  "Because the last time I checked, Serena 
can hardly stand the sight of me, and I haven't been too kind 
to her, either.  What do you think she'd do if I suddenly just 
started sending her flowers and writing her love poems?"

	Andrew thought for a moment.  "Hmmm...I see your point.  
I guess she might be a little suspicious of your motives," he 
replied slowly.

	"Exactly."  Darien took another sip of his coffee.

	"But are you ever gonna tell her, or are you just gonna 
make her insane wondering who's sending her these gifts?" Andrew 
asked.

	Darien bit his lip, turning his gaze to Serena, who was 
gazing at the flowers thoughtfully, one slender finger stroking 
the deep red bud.  "I'll tell her eventually, I guess.  But 
first I have to make her see that I'm not the bad guy.  I mean, 
if I can become friends with her, get her to know me...well, 
maybe then she'll realize that Ryan isn't the right guy for her," 
he said.

	"Oh...so this whole thing is about Ryan, huh?" Andrew 
replied dryly.

	"No!  Well...yes.  Sort of.  I mean, I saw how he treats 
her, Andrew.  He treats her like...like..."

	"Like you do?"

	Darien turned a startled gaze to Andrew, who returned it 
innocently.  Then he grinned a bit sheepishly.  "Well...yeah," 
he admitted.  "But not anymore.  I'm gonna prove to her that I 
can be everything she's ever wanted if it's the last thing I 
do!"  With that, he drained the last of his coffee, bid Andrew 
farewell, and walked out of the arcade.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Four
~~~~~~~~~~~~

	"Hey, Serena!" Molly greeted as she opened her front 
door.  "Ready to go shopping?"

	"You bet!" Serena enthused, grinning at her pal.  "Let's 
hit the shoe store first, 'kay?  I need a new pair of sandals."

	Giggling together, they headed down the street toward the 
nearest bus stop, talking about their plans.

	"Hey!" Molly suddenly yelped.  "Isn't that our bus?!"

	Serena looked, and sure enough, a city bus was just 
pulling away from the curb.  "Hey!  Wait for us!" she 
squealed, grabbing Molly's hand and sprinting after the 
vehicle.

	"Serena!" Molly gasped.  "It's too late!  We'll never 
catch up!  Will you STOP already?!"

	Serena slowed her pace to a walk, panting slightly.  
"Awwww!  Now what'll we do?!  It'll be hours 'till the next 
bus comes!" she wailed, ready to burst into one of her famous 
tantrums. 

	But before she could release the first wail, a male voice 
proclaimed, "Um...aren't you exaggerating just a tad, Meatball 
Head?"

	The two girls' reactions could not have been more 
different.  Serena stiffened in annoyance, as was normal, 
but Molly turned dreamy eyes to Darien, looking anything 
but annoyed, much to Serena's disgust.  "Hi, Darien," Molly 
gushed.  "Me and Serena are going shopping.  Ya wanna join 
us?"

	Serena's eyes widened in panic.  "Moll!" she hissed.  
"I thought you wanted it to be JUST US...REMEMBER?"

	"Well...yeah, but..."

	"Besides," she added smugly, "I'm sure Darien has much 
better things to do than hang out with a couple of teenagers 
at the mall!"

	"Actually, I'm on my way there, myself.  I have a few 
things to pick up.  Why don't I give you a ride there, since 
it'll be another half hour before the next bus comes by," 
Darien cut in with a small grin.

	"You'd really do that?" Molly asked.  "Wow!  That's 
really nice of you, Darien!  Isn't that nice of him, Serena?"

	"Yeah, yeah.  He's a saint," Serena muttered, pouting 
slightly.

	Darien chuckled, knowing he'd won.  "Well, c'mon, 
girls.  I'm parked over here," he told them, swinging the 
books he'd just bought at the bookstore over his shoulder.  
Serena reluctantly followed Darien and Molly down the street, 
wondering how she managed to get herself into these messes.  
Then she saw that they were heading toward a black convertible 
parked along the curb, with a small, green, nondescript car 
parked right behind it.

	**Hmmm...considering how much Darien loves green, 
that car's probably his,** she thought, eyeing the small 
car critically.  It looked like it had seen better days 
(**Kind of like his blazer,** she added snidely).  Honestly, 
she had to wonder how he managed to keep it running without 
the engine falling right out onto the street!  She couldn't 
resist teasing him, just a little.  "So, Dar, how many 
junkyards did you visit to find this little beauty?" she 
called out, peering in through the cracked windshield.

	Darien's voice was highly amused as he replied, "None.  
I got THIS little beauty right off the showroom floor."

	Serena looked up, and it was then she saw that he had 
paused in front of the black convertible and was holding the 
door open for her.  Molly was already inside, laughing 
hysterically.  

	"Oh."  Serena straightened up, embarrassed.  "I knew that!  
I was just...trying to get a rise out of you.  Wanted to make 
sure you were still the same old Darien, is all!"

	Darien gave her an odd look, one she couldn't quite 
place, before he flashed her a crooked grin and replied, 
"Give me a little credit, Meatball Head.  How d'ya expect
me to pick up any pretty ladies in a piece of junk like that?  
I have better taste than THAT, I hope!"

	Serena scowled at him before climbing into the car.  
She had to admit, it was a nice one; leather seats and a CD
player and everything!  "So, how'd you get the money for 
something like this?" she asked, her curiosity getting the 
better of her.

	"It's called a job," he replied, deadpan.

	"I KNOW that, dummy!  What KIND of job?  Embezzling 
money from the government, perhaps?"

	"Har, har," he replied, punching a button on the 
dashboard.  There was a soft whir, and the roof began to 
fold back.

	"Cool!" Molly exclaimed.  "I never rode in a convertible 
before!  Did you, Serena?"

	"No," she replied primly.  "Ryan owns a motorcycle, and 
he gave me a ride on it, remember?"

	"Yeah, I have one of those, too.  You know, for warm 
weather," Darien said casually, gripping the steering wheel 
a little too tightly.  Serena rolled her eyes and settled 
back into her seat.  After a moment of silence, Darien 
asked casually, "Speaking of your boyfriend, how's he been, 
lately?"  He was met with silence, and glanced over at Serena 
to see her staring out the window, her face expressionless.  
It was Molly who answered for her.  

	"She wouldn't know.  Nobody's seen him in days.  He wasn't 
in school or anything!" she announced importantly.

	"He doesn't have to know that, Moll!" Serena huffed.

	"You're saying he skipped school all week?" Darien asked, 
quirking an eyebrow.

	"He didn't skip out!" Serena protested.  "He...he was 
probably sick!  There's no crime in that!"

	"I never said there was," Darien replied.  "Don't get 
your skirts in a bunch!  I just think that it's a little odd 
that he hasn't called you or anything."

	"Oh, he doesn't call Serena at home!  Are you kidding?  
Mr. Tsukino would have kittens!" Molly cut in, laughing.

	"Your parents don't know you have a boyfriend?"  Now 
Darien was REALLY intrigued.  He shot a questioning glance 
at Serena, who shifted uncomfortably.

	"Well...they think I'm too young to have a 
boyfriend...but they know I like Ryan," she replied 
defensively.  "They...just...don't know it's official 
or anything.  And it's gonna stay that way, ya hear me?"  
And she glared at them both to drive home her point.

	"Uh, sure.  Whatever you say," he replied with a patient 
smile.

*	*	*	*	*
	**How do I manage to get myself into these things?** 
Darien wondered two hours later as he trudged wearily along 
after two speeding hurricanes from store to store.  It was 
his own fault, really, considering that Serena had made it 
very clear, once they'd arrived at the mall, that he was free 
to go his own way.  And he, being as stubborn as all-get-out, 
had blithely ignored her not-so-subtle hints and insisted on 
tagging along.  Only Molly's pleading had gotten her to agree.  
He was starting to like Molly...

	As it was, Darien had been worn out after the first 
hour, but of course he wasn't gonna let them know that, 
since they were still charging full-speed-ahead and weren't 
about to run out of steam anytime soon, by the looks of it.  
At the moment, they had paused in front of a small boutique 
called Moniqué.  

	"Isn't that a gorgeous dress, Serena?" Molly sighed, 
gazing at a pale lavender creation displayed in the window.  
"I bet it would look so pretty on you."

	"Me?  What about you?" Serena said.  "I bet lavender 
would look great on you."

	"Naah, green's more my color.  It matches my eyes," 
Molly replied.  "Some day, I'm gonna buy a dress in this shop 
and wear it out on the town and have all the guys drool over 
me."  They both giggled at that, and Darien rolled his eyes. 

	"But they're so expensive," Serena sighed, eyeing the 
lavender gown enviously.  "I could never afford a dress like 
that, no matter how long I saved my allowance."  She sighed 
again, but then her eyes lit up.  "Hey!  We should go in there 
and try one on!" she exclaimed.  "Wouldn't that be fun?"

	"Yeah!" Molly gushed.  "That would be way cool!  
Let's go!"  They started into the shop, but Darien's voice 
suddenly stopped them.

	"Uh...girls, I highly doubt that the salespeople are 
gonna let just anyone walk on in there and try on their clothes.  
At least not without buying anything," he told them wryly, 
eyeing a salesgirl who was eyeing them with more than a little 
suspicion.

	"Oh...you're right," Serena replied, pouting a little.  
Then her face suddenly lit up.  "But I know how to take care 
of that!" she cheered happily, giving Darien an evil smile.
	
"What're ya gonna do?  Go in and hold them up at gun-point 
while you try on a dress?" he asked with a smirk.

	"Chill out, Dar!  I got it covered!" Serena told him, 
giving him an "OK" sign.  She looked over at Molly and winked, 
then cleared her throat and gave Darien a mysterious 
smile...one which suddenly made him extremely nervous.  But 
before he could guess her intentions, she suddenly grabbed 
onto his arm and yanked him inside the shop, holding on tight.

	"Hey!  What's..." Darien yelped, but was immediately 
cut off.

	"Oh, Darien!" she squealed loudly.  "Will you REALLY buy 
me that dress?  It's so expensive!  But won't it look great 
when we go to Paris next week?  I'd better try it on, though, 
to make sure it fits right.  Hey, Sis, are you gonna use 
Daddy's credit card to buy one, too?"

	"Oh, sure.  Daddy said I could get whatever I wanted 
for my birthday," Molly immediately replied, jumping into 
her role with ease.  "I was gonna buy a new computer, but I 
don't know if I'll have room for it in my bedroom with that 
huge entertainment center in there.  I mean, you know the TV 
takes up half a wall, alone!"  She giggled a little, fingering 
a pale green, sequined gown priced at one thousand dollars.  
"Maybe I'll get a laptop, but I really like these dresses.  So 
many choices!" 

	"Well, why don't you buy both?" Serena suggested 
innocently.  "I'm sure Daddy wouldn't mind."

	Upon hearing this exchange, the salesclerk immediately 
perked up, and one could almost SEE the dollar signs appearing 
in her eyes with a near-audible Cha-CHING!

	Darien, for his part managed to get out an eloquent 
"HUH?!" before Serena continued on relentlessly.

	"Now, Darien, you do have the reservations made for 
that five-star hotel in Paris, don't you?  I mean, when Daddy 
forgot to make them before, we ended up having to stay in a 
FOUR star hotel!"  She shuddered.  "The bathroom was positively 
vile!"

	"Well...er..."  For some reason, Darien couldn't seem to 
collect his thoughts.

	"Well, never mind.  I'm sure you remembered.  You're 
very good at stuff like that."  She reached up and gave him 
a kiss on the cheek before releasing him and going over to 
the display of gowns, pulling a dress like the one on 
display from it and looking at the price tag.  "Oh, we're in 
luck!" she exclaimed.  "This one is on sale!  It only costs 
thirteen hundred dollars!"  Ignoring Darien-who nearly choked 
when he heard the price-she looked over to the salesclerk, 
who was hovering close by, practically leaping for a chance 
to help.  "Excuse me, Miss.  Where might the dressing room 
be?" she inquired politely.

	"Over in the corner," the clerk (whose name tag read 
"Amanda") replied helpfully.  "You wouldn't happen to need 
any accessories to go with that gown, do you?  We have a 
pair of satin shoes that are absolutely lovely!  Only three 
hundred dollars!  A real steal!"

	"Oh, tempting!" Serena replied cheerfully.  "I'll have 
to think about it."  She grabbed Molly's hand and yanked her 
back to the changing rooms.  "Just be a moment, darling!" 
she called back to Darien, giving him a positively evil smile.

	Darien merely stood there, desperately trying to recall 
exactly when he had lost control of the situation, and felt 
rather irked when he realized that he'd never had control of 
the situation.  Serena had shocked the wits right out of him, 
and they both knew it!  From the changing room, he could hear 
the two girls valiantly trying to muffle their hysterical 
laughter, and felt a small grin tugging at his own mouth.  
He had to admit...it was a pretty hilarious situation, and 
the fact that Serena of all people had come up with it 
surprised him.

	**Didn't know she was so sneaky,** he thought with 
grudging admiration.  **She's a lot smarter than people give 
her credit for.  Including herself.  I bet she could be an A 
student at school if she wasn't so lazy, or if she had more 
confidence in her abilities.**  His grin widened as he heard 
more muffled laughter coming from inside the dressing room.  
**So, she wants to play make-believe, huh?  Well, let's see 
who can shock whom here...*** he thought with a wicked chuckle.

	Amanda, in the meantime, had approached Darien, and 
now gazed up at him with admiration.  That girl sure was 
lucky to have found such a gorgeous, rich boyfriend, she 
thought enviously.  If only she could meet someone like that!  
Trying to make conversation, she asked casually, "So, you 
and your girlfriend are going on vacation to Paris next week, 
huh?"
	Darien raised an eyebrow, opening his mouth to answer, 
but then Serena's voice caught his attention and he looked 
toward the dressing room.  What he saw made his breath stop 
in his throat and his shirt collar suddenly seem two sizes 
too small.  It was Serena...but not Serena.  At least, it 
wasn't the Serena he was used to seeing; the one in a school 
uniform and knee socks.  This Serena was someone else entirely.

	The sleeveless gown was beautiful, and on her it 
seemed even moreso.  The neckline swept down daringly low, 
revealing just enough, and the material hugged her soft 
curves and slender waist and swept down to the floor in a 
soft fall of silk, surrounding her like a dream.  The soft 
color highlighted the brilliant blue of her eyes and the 
gold of her hair...which, he suddenly realized, she had 
taken down from its normal style so that it flowed softly 
down her back to her knees, shining like satin.  He had 
never seen her with her hair down before.  His long-hidden 
desire to touch it suddenly seemed overwhelming, and he had 
to clench his hands at his side to keep from doing just that.

	Oblivious to Darien's stare, Serena stood before the 
full length mirror, smoothing the material over her hips as 
she turned this way and that, smiling softly.  Molly stood 
behind her, looking quite the lady in the sequined, backless 
gown of pale green, with a short skirt and a collar that 
served to hold the dress up in front.  "Woah!" she exclaimed 
with a giggle.  "We look like a million bucks in these 
things!"

	Serena giggled.  "I know!" she said.  "Wow!  I love 
this dress."  She glanced over at the salesclerk and added 
in a whisper, "I wish I really could buy it.  I'd knock 
Ryan's socks off!"

	"Forget Ryan!" Molly giggled.  "Think of what Darien's 
reaction'll be!  He'll probably keel over from the shock!"

	Serena giggled and snuck a glance at Darien through the 
mirror.  To her surprise, his gaze was already fixed intently 
on her, and he seemed to be in some sort of trance.  Her brow 
furrowing, she turned to face him and padded on bare feet 
toward him.  "Hey!  Are you awake in there?  Hello!  Earth to 
Darien Chiba!" she called, waving a hand in front of his face.  
"Come on, Dar.  Quit staring at me like that!  You're starting 
ta scare me," she added with a nervous giggle.

	He blinked, and then smiled down at her, his eyes gazing 
into her own.  "You're so beautiful," he whispered, before he 
could stop himself.

	Serena's eyes went wide and a blush stained her cheeks 
as she gazed back in shock.  "B-beautiful?!" she squeaked.  
"ME?"

	Gulping, he stepped back, trying to fight down his own 
blush.  "Well...er...I mean, yeah!  Of course you are!" he 
stammered, shooting a glance at Amanda.  Recovering quickly, 
he smiled and added smoothly, "I mean, you're my fiancée, 
aren't you?  Of course I think you're beautiful!"

	"I'm your WHAT?!" she squawked, gaping at him in 
astonishment.

	"Awww...there's no need to be shy, sweetheart," he 
added with a wicked grin.  "We're getting married next week 
in Paris!  No need to hide it!  I, for one, am looking 
forward to it...especially the part that comes after the 
wedding!"  

	"I...uh..."  By now Serena's entire face had turned 
bright red with embarrassment, and behind them Molly made 
a sort of choking sound as she fought back laughter.  Holding 
both hands to her mouth, her shoulders shaking slightly, the 
redhead quickly vanished back into the dressing room.

	Darien, in the meantime, had wrapped his arms around 
Serena's waist--finally able to bury his fingers in that 
heavenly hair!--and now lowered his head in the pretense 
of nuzzling her neck, much to her discomfiture (and Amanda's 
enjoyment.  She was a romantic at heart, after all).  She 
stiffened in his arms, not knowing what to do next.  "Better 
play along," he murmured, his breath brushing past her ear 
and making her shiver, "or we've got some explaining to do."  
He pressed a soft kiss on her neck, just below her ear, that 
made her gasp softly, and his eyes were devilish when he 
raised his head.

	Serena, for her part, looked like she couldn't decide 
whether to slug him or to turn tail and run screaming in the 
other direction.

	Amanda discreetly cleared her throat, hating to break 
up a tender moment between two people so obviously in love, 
but wanting to make a sale, nonetheless.  She had a job to do 
and bills to pay, after all.  "So, would you like the dress 
gift wrapped?" she asked sweetly, smiling at Darien.

	Hmmm...now came the hard part.  Inventing a believable 
excuse to not buy the dress!  As much as he was tempted to do 
so...

	As it was, Serena came to his rescue.  "Oh, I don't 
know," she said quickly, turning back to the mirror.  "I 
have that pesky three pounds I have to lose yet, and this 
dress kind of shows the extra weight..."  She patted her 
stomach lightly, giggling a little.

	Darien stared at her in shock.  Was she joking?!  If 
she weighed any less, she'd blow away!  "I think it looks 
beautiful on you!" he exclaimed.

	Serena shot him an exasperated 
you-idiot-I'm-trying-to-help-you-so-shut-up look.  "Well, 
you know how picky I am about my weight!" she pouted.  "I 
have to think about it a little.  For thirteen hundred 
dollars, I want it to be absolutely perfect!  What do you 
think, Moll?"  she turned to her "sister", who had just 
emerged from the room, holding her dress.

	"Mmm...it does seem a little off on you," she replied 
carelessly, hanging her gown back on the hanger.

	"You didn't like your dress?" Amanda asked, a little 
desperately, sensing that her commission was about to take 
a flying leap out the window.

	"Oh, it was pretty, but the color didn't quite sit 
well with me," Molly replied with a giggle.  "Maybe if it 
was darker..."

	"Well, we have plenty others to choose from," Amanda 
suggested hopefully.

	"Well...maybe another time.  I...uh...think I'm gonna 
go look at those computers.  For school, you know.  Besides," 
she added with a wicked smile directed toward her friends, "I 
already have a pretty brides maid dress all ready to wear for 
the wedding.  Thanks anyhow."

	Amanda sighed, then turned to Serena.  "I think your dress 
looks exquisite on you," she told her.  "You'll be the belle of 
the ball!  Are you sure you want to pass it up?"

	Serena affected a sigh.  "It really is lovely, but I 
don't think it's for me," she replied with real regret, going 
back into the room and closing the door of her stall.  She 
sighed as she slipped out of the dress, wishing she was rich 
enough to buy it for real.  The way Darien had looked at her 
in it!  She shivered as she recalled the feel of warm lips 
against her skin and a heated, sapphire gaze sweeping over 
her body.  She had never had a guy look at her like that 
before; not even Ryan!  It made her feel wild and safe all 
at the same time, feelings that she liked...very much.  And 
Darien had called her beautiful, like he had meant it. 

	**Oh, get over it!  He was just trying to get you back 
for starting this whole thing in the first place...and he did 
a pretty darn good job of it, too!  He didn't mean anything by 
it,** she grumbled silently.  Still...he had been acting strange 
lately.  Ever since he'd first met Ryan, come to think of it.  
**Is that it?  Is that why he's been treating me nicer?  'Cause 
I have a boyfriend? she wondered, her breath catching.  Could he 
be...jealous?**

	Now that thought was almost too ridiculous to 
contemplate, but...she had to let herself daydream a little.  
What if, now that she had a guy, Darien was starting to see 
her through new eyes?  And what about her secret admirer?  
Now that she had two guys interested in her...did it mean 
that maybe he was starting to show a little interest, as well?
	
	She hung the dress back on its hanger and stepped out 
of the stall, looking toward Darien.  He regarded her silently 
as she thanked the disappointed salesclerk (who was bidding a 
sad bon-voyage to her commission) and walked out of the store, 
where Molly was already waiting.  They walked down the mall a 
little ways, waiting until they were a safe distance away 
before Molly suddenly burst out into hysterical laughter.  
"That was great, Sere!" she shrieked.  "I never knew you were 
such a great actress!  And Darien, that was so funny!  For a 
minute, I thought you were both serious!"

	Serena grinned, blowing on her nails and rubbing them 
against her shirt.  "Well...it was nothing, really," she 
replied smugly, looking quite pleased with herself.

	Darien chuckled.  "You weren't too bad yourself, 
Molly," he added.  "Serena's sister?  A rich father?  Now 
that was good!"

	Molly giggled.  "Well, I feel like Serena's my sister, 
anyway, so it wasn't hard to pretend," she said happily, 
throwing her arm around Serena's shoulders.  Serena blushed 
and grinned.  

	"All that acting made me hungry!  It must be after lunch!  
Let's go to the food court, okay?" she said.

	"Now that sounds like the Meatball Head I know," Darien 
replied, giving her an amused grin.  She pouted a moment, 
before sticking her tongue out at him and grabbing Molly's 
hand to drag her to the food court, the incident in Moniqué 
forgotten for the time being.  


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Five
~~~~~~~~~~~~

	"This is really good, Darien.  Thanks for treating us," 
Molly proclaimed cheerfully around a mouthful of eggroll.  
Serena was too busy inhaling her food to comment much, but she 
mumbled something that could pass for a "yeah, thanks" and kept 
right on eating.

	"No problem," Darien replied, smiling in amusement.  
"Not often I get to eat lunch with two pretty girls."

	Molly blushed and giggled a little, whereas Serena 
shot him a sharp glance, before deciding that he was merely 
teasing, and rolled her eyes.  "Oh, come off it, Darien," 
she snorted, pausing long enough in her eating to retort.  
"You probably eat lunch with a different girl every day of 
the week!  I see how they're always fawning over you!  It's 
kind of sickening, really."

	Darien's lips quirked in a smile as an eyebrow shot up.  
"Are you saying you're always watching me?" he teased.  "Are 
you jealous?"

	"HA!  Like even!" Serena yelped.  "I did not say that!  
But you shouldn't pretend to be so modest when we both know 
you're as arrogant as a tomcat!  Admit it!"

	Now both of Darien's eyebrows shot up, and he opened 
his mouth to make a sharp retort, but Serena's expression 
stilled him.  She was staring, wide-eyed, past him, looking 
absolutely stunned, frozen into silence.  Curious, not to 
mention a little alarmed, he glanced over his shoulder to 
see what had startled her so much...and there was Ryan, 
strolling through the food court like he owned the place, 
two of his pals swaggering behind him.  Darien scowled.  
Speaking of arrogant tomcats...

	"Hide me!" Serena suddenly hissed, looking around 
desperately.  "If he sees me here...with you...he'll 
think...oh, just hide me!"

	"Uh...hide you where?" Darien asked sarcastically.  
"Under the table?"

	"Great idea!" Serena yelped, and immediately disappeared, 
ducking beneath the table and shoving their packages in front 
of her to hide her from view.

	"Oy vey," Darien muttered, slapping his forehead.  
"I was being sarcastic," he added drolly, looking under 
the table.  

	Two large blue eyes glared up at him.  "Shut up!" came 
the sharp hiss, followed by a swift kick in the shin, making 
him yelp slightly. 

	"What was that for?" he hissed, glaring at her.

	"Just sit up and act normal!  He's heading this way!"

	"Look who's talking about acting normal," he muttered, 
straightening and shooting Molly an exasperated look, who 
merely shrugged in return and sipped her milkshake.

	Ryan reached them a few moments later, looking Molly 
over carefully.  "Aren't you Serena's little friend?" he 
finally asked, somewhat suspiciously.

	Molly eyed him coolly.  "Yeah.  So what's it to you?" 
she retorted, not even trying to hide her dislike of him.

	"Isn't she supposed to be with you today?  She canceled 
a date on me to hang out with you at the mall, and here you 
are with him, instead.  So...where's Serena?"

	Molly shrugged.  "She decided to go into the...um...video 
game store.  I said I'd wait here for her."

	Ryan raised an eyebrow.  "I just came from the video 
game store.  I didn't see her there," he said coldly.

	"It's a big store.  Must've missed her," Molly replied 
smoothly, shooting Darien a somewhat desperate glance.

	Ryan turned his gaze to the other man.  "So what're 
you doing here?" he asked.  "Serena told me that it was just 
gonna be her and Molly."

	"They missed their bus.  I happened to be nearby and 
offered them a ride.  So in return they said I could tag 
along."  Darien's voice was icy, as was his stare.

	"How convenient," Ryan sneered.  "Did you buy them lunch, 
too?"

	"Well, I thought I'd make it up to Serena for the meal 
you didn't buy her the other day," he replied with a smirk.  
For this he received a hard punch in the leg from under the 
table, and barely refrained from yelping.  He winced instead.  
Well, okay, he supposed trying to rile Ryan wasn't the smartest 
thing to do...

	Ryan was glaring daggers at him.  "Serena's my girl, 
got it?" he snarled.  "You keep your paws away from her!  
Nobody touches her but me!"

	Darien stood smoothly, towering over Ryan by a good 
foot, and glared down at him in a way that caused him to 
step back a pace.  "Last time I checked, Serena was a person 
who could choose to hang around with whomever she wants.  You 
don't have the right to tell her what to do."

	Ryan looked around nervously, noting that people were 
starting to stare.  He sneered and backed up, motioning to 
his two lapdogs to follow him.  As they started to leave, 
Darien got in one last word.  "By the way, Ryan," he added, 
glaring at him steadily.  "If I ever find out that you've 
hurt Serena in any way again...you'd better hope I don't 
find you, because you'll regret it if I do.  She's a sweet 
girl.  She deserves better than the likes of you."

	Ryan muttered something under his breath as he stalked 
away, and Darien sat back down again, heaving a sigh.  Then 
he leaned over and looked under the table.  Serena was 
staring after Ryan with wide eyes, but when she turned her 
gaze to him, her look turned furious.  "What were you 
thinking?!" she snapped.  "You didn't have any right to 
say those things to him!"

	Darien rolled his eyes.  "Get out from under the 
table," he sighed, gripping her arm and helping her to 
slide back into the seat.  "You should thank me for 
getting rid of him for you.  Would you rather I told 
him you were under there?"

	"No," she muttered, glaring down at her plate.

	"You're welcome," he said, slightly miffed.

	She sighed.  "Look, thanks for not blowing my cover, 
thanks for lunch, and...and thanks for...defending me."  She 
glanced over at him.  "It was nice of you to stick up for me 
like that, I guess.  Even though you still didn't have the 
right to say those things.  He's my boyfriend!"

	"Some boyfriend," Darien snorted.  

	"I'm not going to discuss it with you!  It isn't any 
of your concern," she retorted haughtily.  Turning to Molly, 
she fixed on a bright smile and added, "Well, I'm done eating.  
Wanna go to the video store next?"

	"Are you girls still not done shopping?!"  Darien's look 
was incredulous, and they giggled, standing up and grabbing 
their packages.

	"We can go on all day!" Molly teased.  "It's a shopping 
marathon!"

	"What's the matter, Dar?  Are we wearing you out?  Maybe 
you should go home and take a nap!" Serena added, laughing at 
his expression.

	"Very funny, Meatball Head," he replied, reaching over 
and lightly pinching her side.  She yelped and jumped, then 
glared at him and returned the favor, only harder.  Darien, 
suddenly feeling playful, grinned slightly, then reached out 
behind her and grabbed her sides with both hands, trying to 
tickle her.

	"Hey!" Serena squealed, pulling away.  "What's the big 
idea?!"  She glared at him, but he looked at her and smiled 
innocently.  

	"Is something wrong?" he asked, and her eyes narrowed.

	"Try that again, buster, and I'll give you a smack in 
the face!" she warned, brandishing her fist under his nose.

	"I'm so worried," he replied with a grin.  "Well, anyhow, 
the video store's this way.  Come on!"  Before he changed his
mind, he dared to reach out and grab Serena's hand, pulling 
her along.  She looked at him, surprised for a minute, until 
he grabbed Molly's hand on his other side.  For a moment, she 
felt almost...disappointed, but she quickly hid it and allowed 
herself to be led along.

*	*	*	*	*
	Serena was busy checking out the new releases when she 
suddenly heard someone calling her name.  Looking around, she 
saw Amy waving to her, followed by Raye and Lita.  "Hi, guys!" 
she chirped, waving back.  "Fancy meeting you here!"  She 
giggled a little at her own joke, and Raye rolled her eyes.

	"We've been looking all over for you," she complained.  
"Amy tried calling you on the communicator, but all she got 
was static!"

	"Oh, well, see...I kinda left the communicator at 
home," Serena said sheepishly, casting a quick glance at 
Molly and Darien, who were checking out the comedies.  
"Didn't want it to go off when I was with them around.  I 
wouldn't know how to explain it that I'm carrying around 
Sailor Moon's communicator."

	"Serena, you know you're to have it with you at all 
times!" Amy scolded.  "What if there's an emergency?  A 
youma could attack at any time!  We have to be ready!"

	"Relax, Ames!  There hasn't been an attack in weeks!  
I figured I could take a few hours off to go shopping!" Serena 
grumbled.

	"Look, speaking of the Negaverse, I'm having a fire 
reading at the temple in an hour.  I've been picking up some 
really weird vibes lately, and we need to check it out.  
We've been slacking in our duties," Raye stated.  "You better 
be there!"

	"But...I promised Molly we'd spend the whole day 
together!" Serena protested.  "I can't just up and leave 
her!  She'd never understand!  What am I supposed to tell 
her?"

	"Tell her something important came up and you have to 
go.  You can make it up to her later," Raye replied with an 
exasperated sigh.
	
	"But...you don't understand..." Serena stammered.  
"We've been...I mean...she's my best friend!  I don't want 
to..."

	"Just tell her that you have to go and come on!" Raye 
snapped, running out of patience.  "You're Sailor Moon, and 
Scout business always comes first!  You know that!  You're 
our leader, so start acting like it!"

	Serena turned a cold gaze onto her.  "I never asked to 
be your leader," she said in a voice gone deadly soft.  "But 
fine.  Since Scout business obviously means more to you than 
keeping a promise does...I'll come to your meeting."

	Before anyone could react, she turned and stalked 
over to Molly, speaking softly to her.  "Molly, I'm so 
sorry, but something important came up.  I really hate 
to do this...but do you think it would be okay to take 
a raincheck on those movies?  Maybe next Saturday would 
work out," she said, her voice laced with guilt.

	Molly stared at her, stunned and hurt.  "B-but you 
promised the whole day," she replied, her voice soft.  "I 
thought..."

	"I know, Molly.  I thought that, too.  But...sometimes 
things don't always work out how we think they will.  Do you 
understand?"
	
	Molly's eyes looked suspiciously bright.  "No.  I don't 
understand, and I don't think I ever will."  She looked to 
the Scouts, who lowered their gazes and refused to look at 
her.  "I don't know what's so special about them.  Why don't 
you ever let me come along with you?  Am I...am I not...good 
enough for you anymore?"

	"No!  Oh, Molly, no!  It isn't that at all!" Serena 
exclaimed, her eyes going wide.  "We'd love to have you come 
along...but you see...this is sort of a special club, and only 
us four are in it.  I'd love to have you come, but you could 
never be a part of it.  Don't ask me to explain, because I 
can't!  Just trust me when I say th-that you're much better 
off not being a part of this club, believe me!  It's nothing 
but trouble, but it's necessary!"

	"Serena...I don't know what you're talking about," 
Molly said worriedly.  "A-are you in some kind of trouble?  
I mean...you aren't involved in anything bad or...illegal, 
are you?"

	Serena gave a small, bitter laugh.  "If only it were 
that simple," she replied.  "Look...I can't tell you about 
it now, but I promise that someday I will!  I...I have to go.  
They're getting impatient."  She turned to Darien, who was 
listening intently while at the same time trying not to appear 
to be doing so.  "Darien, will you...will you bring Molly 
home?" she asked hesitantly.  "She lives down the street from 
me; she can show you the way.  I don't want her to ride the 
bus by herself."  Her gaze was pleading, and his own softened 
as he looked at her.

	"Sure, Serena," he told her.  "I'll be glad to take her 
home."

	She gave him a brilliant smile.  "Thanks, Darien," she 
replied, relieved, before turning back to Molly.  "I'll call 
you tonight, okay?  Tomorrow after school, maybe we can watch 
those videos!"

	"Yeah, sure," Molly replied dejectedly.

	Serena sighed, pondering on whether to say anything else, 
but an impatient cough from Raye quickly put an end to that 
notion.  "I'll talk to you later, 'kay?  See ya!"  She grabbed 
her bags and quickly headed over to the three girls with an 
annoyed, "I'm coming, already!  Don't get your panties in a 
bunch!"

	Molly watched her go, feeling a sense of foreboding 
fall upon her.  "Are you okay?" Darien asked from behind her.

	"No," she whispered.  "I'm not.  I'm losing my best 
friend...to something terrible...and I don't even know what 
it is!  And she won't tell me, and she assures me it's for 
the best that I don't know, but I just can't help feeling 
that something bad is going to happen to her!  A-and it all 
started since she met those three girls.  They're nice 
girls...but there's just something about them..."

	Darien stared after Serena, where she and her friends 
were just exiting the mall.  Truth be told...he'd often felt 
those same things himself.  A sense of danger, a need to 
protect her at certain times.  He'd merely written it off 
as hormones before...but now he wondered if it wasn't
something different...something deeper.

	It was a lot like the need he had as Tuxedo Mask to 
protect Sailor Moon, now that he thought about it.  It was 
imbedded into his mind that he HAD to protect that girl, no 
matter what the cost.  As soon as she was in danger, his 
sixth sense woke up, urging him to transform, to get to her 
before it was too late, and he didn't even know why.  At 
times, in the beginning, when it had happened, he had tried 
to ignore it, but the urge had just come more and more 
strongly until it was almost a physical pain, and he'd been 
forced to give in every time.  So eventually he'd stopped 
trying.

	Molly was still standing there, trying not to cry, and 
he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and gave it a friendly 
squeeze, smiling down at her.  She smiled back slightly, 
wiping her eyes.  "Well, anyhow, I guess I might as well go 
home," she said, trying to sound brave.

	"Yeah, same here.  Come on," he told her, leading her 
out of the mall to the car.  He drove silently, deep in thought, 
only half listening to the directions Molly gave him.  He 
pulled to a stop in front of her house, giving her a distracted 
smile.  "It was a fun day," he told her.

	Molly giggled.  "You don't have to say that.  It must've 
been boring for you, hanging out with a couple of teenagers."

	"Naah, I had fun.  It was...interesting, to say the least."

	"Well, in that case, you can come along the next time 
me and Serena go shopping," she giggled, getting out of the 
car.  "Thanks for the ride!"

	"No problem," he replied, waving and driving away.  
He didn't want to leave Molly, honestly.  She seemed so sad.  
But there was something else he had to do, and he knew he'd 
better do it before common sense kicked in and he changed his 
mind.  He drove a little way before parking the car and getting 
out.  He could see the Cherry Hill Temple, right down the 
street.  Where Serena and her friends were supposed to be 
holding their "secret meeting" or whatever it was.

	It was getting dark, luckily, and he was wearing dark 
clothes, so it wouldn't be any problem to sneak onto the 
temple grounds.  It wasn't that he didn't trust Serena, he 
reasoned, but if she was in trouble, he figured he'd better 
find out what it was, if only to put Molly's mind at ease.  
**Not to mention your own,** he told himself wryly, creeping 
up to the temple and peering in an open window.

	There were the girls, gathered around a fire, with Raye 
sitting in front of it, chanting something in a soft voice.  
The others watched silently, their expressions ranging from 
keen interest (which would be Amy) to absolute boredom 
(which was, of course, Serena).  Darien honed in on her, noting 
that she didn't seem particularly distressed.  But what was 
Raye doing?  It looked like...a fire reading.  He had always 
known Raye was a bit of a mystical person, but he'd never 
actually seen her at it before.  Had she always had such an 
affinity to fire?

	Finally, after long moments, Raye cursed softly and 
slumped down.  "I can't get any readings of the youma at all," 
she complained.  "It just...disappeared!  Are you sure you 
read that energy right, Amy?  I saw the youma in my vision, 
but it isn't there now."

	**Youma?  Reading energy?**  Darien's brow furrowed.  
What in the world were they talking about?  He leaned in 
to listen closer.

	"Do you mean to tell me that you dragged me from my 
shopping trip for nothing?" Serena was complaining.  "This 
is boring!  I thought you said the Negaverse was gonna attack 
again!"

	Darien's eyes went wide, and he barely held back a sharp 
gasp.  **Negaverse?  What does SHE know about the Negaverse?!** 
he thought in astonishment.  **What is going on here?!**

	"The Negaverse was acting up!  I saw a youma in my dreams.  
I know my vision was right!" Raye snapped, glaring at Serena.  
"Let me try again.  I'll get it this time!"  With that, she 
turned back to her fire.

	Darien was really confused now.  He glanced at Amy, 
seeing her movement, and his jaw nearly hit the floor when 
she suddenly pulled a small computer from midair and began 
to tap the keys swiftly.  **Wha...did I just SEE that?  How 
did she DO that?!  The only other person I saw do that before 
was...was Sailor Mercury...**

	"Well, we'd better make this fast.  Serena needs to get 
home to study for that math test," a new voice suddenly spoke 
up, and Darien's jaw did drop when he realized that it was 
coming from a small, black cat with a crescent moon on her 
forehead curled up beside Serena's knee.

	"Awww...Luna!  Let it go!" Serena whined.  "I'll study 
before school tomorrow, okay?"

	"I'll believe that when I see it," the cat replied wryly.

	**Luna...that's Serena's cat,** Darien was thinking, 
eyeing the feline suspiciously.  **But most cats can't hold 
intelligent conversation.  The only other cat I know that CAN 
talk is...**

	Sailor Moon's companion.  A small black cat.  With a 
moon-shaped mark on its head.  Named Luna...

	Like a bolt of Jupiter's lightening, everything suddenly 
fell into place.  All their secretiveness.  Their knowledge of 
the Negaverse.  Raye's fire reading.  Amy's magic computer.  
Serena's talking cat...who also happened to be Sailor Moon's 
talking cat...it was so obvious now!  The web of magic that 
kept their identities a secret fell away before Darien's very 
eyes, and he suddenly realized exactly who Serena's friends 
were.

	They were the Sailor Scouts.

	And Serena, of all people, was Sailor Moon...


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Six
~~~~~~~~~~~

	The world was coming to an end.  

	That's what it seemed like, anyhow, as Darien sat outside 
the window, staring blindly at the ground, trying to make his 
reeling mind understand what his eyes and ears could not deny.  
**Serena's Sailor Moon...Serena's Sailor Moon...Serena's Sailor 
Moon...**  That seemed to be the extent of his thoughts for the 
moment.  He took a deep breath, wiping the sweat from his brow, 
and stared up at the thin sliver of moon in the sky.  A wry 
smile crossed his face, and he fought back the ridiculous urge 
to laugh out loud.

	**She's Sailor Moon.  Who would've thought?  But...I 
guess it makes some kind of crazy sense.  Why she always 
drove me so crazy, from the first day she threw that math 
test at my head.  Why I always felt that crazy urge to 
protect her, even though I wouldn't admit it.  She's been 
the one I've been protecting all along...**

	But now that he knew...what was he gonna do about it?  
He doubted he could simply stroll on in there and announce 
himself.  They'd kill him.  He'd seen Lita--or was it Jupiter 
now?--fight, and knew she could easily kick his butt.  
**But...I'm on their side!  I'm Tuxedo Mask!** he told himself.  
**I have every right to go on in there and announce myself!**  
Not that they trusted him or anything.  He wasn't exactly 
buddy-buddy with the Scouts, and he'd never made his intentions 
very clear to them.  But he'd sworn to Sailor Moon--Serena--that 
he'd always protect her, and she seemed to believe him.  Still, 
the question remained...should he tell them, or not?

	As it turned out, the decision was made for him.

	Luna, who had been listening quietly as Raye once again 
called on the fire, suddenly perked up, her whiskers and ears 
twitching.  She looked around, a very human expression of alarm 
on her face, before staring out the window...right into Darien's 
eyes.  Startled, he quickly jumped back into the shadows, but 
it was already too late.

	"A spy!  We have a spy!" Luna yowled, leaping up to the 
window.  Serena, startled at her pet's sudden cry, squealed in 
alarm and scrambled backwards, looking around frantically.  
The sight might have been pretty funny if Darien hadn't been 
so intent on getting away before he got caught for good.

	He leaped up, preparing to make a mad dash for the wall 
surrounding the temple, no matter how ungraceful it might be, 
but Luna was too quick for him.  With a yowl, she launched 
herself from the window and landed squarely on Darien's back, 
claws digging in deep.

	"Yeeeowch!" Darien yelled, dancing around and 
determinedly trying to unattach a cat who seemed just as 
determined to remain attached.  Excited voices rose from 
inside the temple as the four girls all rushed outside to 
see what all the commotion was about.

	"Hey!  Luna caught a burglar!" Serena cheered.  "Way 
to go, Luna!"

	"Serena!  I'm not-Ouch!  I'm not a--OW!  Luna, that 
HURTS!--I'm not a burglar, Serena!" Darien yelped, swatting 
at the hissing cat.

	Serena's face registered surprise, which quickly turned 
to anger when she realized who it was.  "You!  What are you 
doing here?!  You were spying on me!?" she accused.

	"Molly was worried about you, so I thought I'd just 
make sure you were okay," he replied defensively.

	Now Serena looked worried.  "Wh-what did you hear?" she 
demanded.

	Darien decided that honesty was probably his best 
policy, in this case.  At least, judging by the look Lita 
was directing at him while she cracked her knuckles, it was.  
Besides...maybe then he'd be able to get that blasted cat off 
his back...literally!  "Besides your talking cat--WHICH, by 
the way, if she doesn't let go of me in five seconds is gonna 
get turned into a new hat--I heard...well...everything.  
Enough, at least, to know who you are...Sailor Moon," he 
replied.

	She winced.  "I was afraid of that," she whispered as 
she and the others exchanged uneasy glances.  Luna dropped 
to the ground behind him and calmly began to clean her fur.  
Darien shot her a withering glance before choosing to ignore 
her, rubbing his aching skin.  He was probably gonna have to 
go get rabies shots or something after this...

	"So what do we do now?  Kill him?" Raye was asking wryly.

	"Sounds good to me!" Lita exclaimed maliciously, still 
cracking her knuckles.  Darien shuddered.  How could anyone 
DO that for so long?  Wouldn't that start to HURT?

	"Come on, guys, you know we can't kill him," Serena 
whined.  Then she brightened.  "But I can use my powers, 
can't I?  Make him forget..."

	"NO!"

	Darien's reaction to that statement was so vehement that 
even Lita took a step backward.  "Nobody has any right to mess 
with my memories.  Even you, Serena," he continued on in a 
calmer tone, not ready to share exactly why he was so unwilling 
to let anyone mess with his head in front of the entire group.  
Only two people knew about his amnesia as a child and his life 
as an orphan, and Andrew was the other one.  "I have every right 
to know this kind of information," he added.

	"You have no right to know!" Serena cried, grabbing his 
arm and pulling him to the side, away from the other Scouts.  
"Look, Darien, thanks for being worried about me enough to 
check up on me...but I can't let you remember this!  Knowledge 
of the Negaverse is dangerous!  If anyone ever discovers that 
you know who we are..."  She shook her head, looking away in 
slight embarrassment, a faint blush staining her cheeks.  
"I...I care about what happens to you...and ANYTHING could 
happen to you if the Negaverse gets it into their heads that 
you know something!  I...I couldn't bear to see that happen," 
she whispered.

	Darien stared at her in complete astonishment.  Had he 
just heard right?  Had his meatball head actually admitted that 
she...cared for him?!  It was almost too much to hope 
for...but...

	"I care about you, too, Serena, which is why I don't 
intend to forget that it's you out there risking your life 
every time there's an attack.  I never knew why it was so 
important for me to protect Sailor Moon...but now that I 
know she's you...I'm starting to realize why...and it makes 
my job all the more important."

	There was complete silence on Serena's end, and it took 
Darien a moment to realize what he'd just said...that he'd 
just practically admitted to her that he was Tuxedo Mask...

	Her brow was furrowed; apparently she hadn't made the 
connection yet, he noted with wry amusement.  Not that he 
blamed her.  It was a shock for HIM to find out that SHE was 
Sailor Moon...no doubt her discovering that stodgy old Darien 
was her "dream hunk", as he'd heard her refer to him more than 
once (which was quite flattering, actually), was a little 
disconcerting.  "Wh-what do you mean, protecting me?" she 
finally whispered.  "I-I've never seen you..."

	Darien glanced at the other Scouts, who suddenly appeared 
to find the small, stunted trees growing around the temple quite 
fascinating, although he could practically see their ears 
straining to catch every soft-spoken word.  His smile was wry 
as he turned a gentle gaze back to Serena and placed his hand 
inside his blazer.  When it emerged again, he was clutching a 
beautiful red rose in full bloom, as fresh and dewy as if it 
had just been picked...or conjured, depending on one's viewpoint.

	Serena's gasp of shock echoed in the suddenly silent 
yard, and her wide-open eyes were fastened intently on the rose.  
"H-how did you...you can't be...but...Tuxedo Mask is..." she 
stammered, before finally giving up trying to form a coherent 
sentence and settling for staring at him with a dumbfounded 
expression, instead.

	"Now is it okay for me to know that you're Sailor 
Moon?" he asked her softly.  She looked at him, gulping 
slightly, before nodding her head.

	"Um...yeah," she replied in a whisper.  "I guess it 
is."  She turned to look at the Scouts, who were now busily 
inspecting the framework of the temple for any stray termites 
that might happen to be lurking about.  "So...think it's okay 
for him to be let in on the secret?  Seeing as how he's one 
of us, and all..."  She didn't sound too sure about that last 
part, but at least she wasn't going to string him up and burn 
him at the stake, as Raye was opt to do.  SHE looked positively 
furious.

	"All this time I've known you, and you never told me 
that you were Tuxedo Mask?!" she ranted, standing there with 
her hands on her hips.  "Was this subject ever gonna come up?!"

	"Oh, I don't know.  Probably when the subject of you 
being Sailor Mars was brought up, I might've mentioned 
something about it," Darien replied, deadpan.

	For once, Raye was speechless.  She blinked.  "Oh," was 
all she managed to squeak, before going right back to inspecting 
for termites.  There certainly seemed to be a lot of the little 
buggers tonight...

	"Well, as I might remind you all, this is a Sailor 
Scout meeting, and we should get back to discussing business," 
Luna reminded them primly.

	"Luna!  We are discussing business!" Serena pouted.  
"Besides, we've been here forever, and we haven't found that 
stupid youma that was supposed to have appeared!  Can't we go 
home now?  I'm starved!"

	Luna started to protest, but the other Scouts were, for 
once, agreeing with Serena, so she gave it up with a shake of 
her head.  "Oh, very well!  But you'll have to make it up, 
sometime.  We can't be too slack in our duties where the 
Negaverse is concerned!" she lectured.

	"Yeah, yeah!  Give it a rest already!" Serena interrupted.  
"I'm going home to eat!  See ya later, guys!"  With that, she 
turned and began to walk down the steps from the temple.

	"Hey, Serena!  Wait up!" Darien called, running to catch 
up to her, oblivious to the curious stares of the other Scouts 
as they watched him leave.  He slowed his pace when he reached 
her and walked beside her silently, his hands jammed in his 
pockets.  "Need a ride home?" he asked casually.

	Serena glanced at him, hesitated, shook her head.  
"No thanks.  I'll walk.  It isn't that far," she replied 
cheerfully.  "I usually take a shortcut through the park."

	"But it's getting dark, and my car's right over there," 
Darien insisted.  "Come on.  Let me give you a ride..."

	Serena sighed.  "Well, okay," she relented, walking 
across the street with him to the car.  She felt strange, 
walking along with someone who had, at the best of times, 
merely been a pest to her, and who now turned out to be 
the guy who was always coming to her rescue, who had swept 
her off her feet more than once, who had made her dream 
impossible dreams...

	**And I've told all this to Andrew before, and sometimes 
Darien was there, and all this time he's been listening to me 
raving over Tuxedo Mask and probably laughing his head off at
me...and...and I never even knew!** she thought furiously.  
**How dare he make a fool out of her that way!**

	"Penny for your thoughts?"
	
	Darien's quiet voice cut through her musings, causing her 
to jump slightly.  "Oh!  I...uh..." she searched for an answer 
to his question that wouldn't make her look like even more of 
an idiot than he already thought she was.  "I was...just...thinking 
that I can't believe that you're really Tuxedo Mask!" she finally 
blurted.  "I mean...you two are nothing alike!  He's...well...and 
you're...well, you're...you!"

	"Gee, thanks," he countered wryly.  "D'ya think it's easy 
for me to believe that YOU'RE Sailor Moon?  I mean, she's a 
super hero, and no offense, but you aren't at all what I'd 
picture as a hero!"

	"I'm not any different as a hero than I am in real 
life!" she protested angrily.

	A slight smile curled his lips.  "That's true.  Sailor 
Moon is kind of a klutz, now that I think about it.  I can 
see the resemblance there..."

	"Shut up, Darien!  Tuxedo Mask is a complete snob 
sometimes, and I can see the resemblance THERE!" she snapped.

	Darien scowled, feeling miffed at her words, and all of 
his old habits chose that moment to kick back in.  "Frankly, 
if it weren't for me, you'd have been killed long ago!  You 
know that as well as I do!  You should be thanking me, not to 
mention the other Scouts!  If it weren't for us helping out 
of every little scrape you get into, you'd be dead!" he told 
her harshly.

	She paused, frozen.  "Th-that's not true," she whispered.  
"I...I can take care of myself..."

	"Oh?  What about that last youma attack last month?  
Remember what happened?  You tripped on a root, right into 
the youma!  If Mars hadn't attacked it from behind and if I 
hadn't grabbed you, you would have been ripped to shreds!"  
He wanted to stop; honestly he did, but his mouth appeared 
to have developed a mind of its own, and he could not stop 
himself from blurting out one last accusation.  

"Sometimes...sometimes you're more trouble than you're worth!"

	Serena recoiled as though he'd physically struck her, 
which he may as well have as far as she was concerned, and 
drew in a sharp breath as her eyes filled with tears.  
"You...heartless...creep," she whispered in a choked voice.  
"You...you have...I never wanted...I..."  She paused as a 
sob escaped, shaking her slender frame like a leaf.  "I never 
WANTED to be Sailor Moon!" she suddenly screamed, clenching 
her fists.  "I NEVER asked to save the world!  I just want 
to be NORMAL!  I HATE being Sailor Moon!  I HATE IT!  And 
most of all...I hate YOU!"  With that she turned and bolted 
down the street away from him, sobbing softly.

	Darien stood where he was, feeling as cold and numb as 
a block of ice as he stared after her, shocked at her 
words...and ashamed of his own.  "Awww...cripes," he muttered 
softly, jamming a hand through his hair.  What had he been 
THINKING about?!  He'd never meant to say those things, but 
once again he'd thrown common sense--not to mention 
compassion--to the wind and had let his big mouth do his 
thinking for him.  Sometimes he wondered why he even had a 
brain, he failed to use it so often...
	
	"You'd better go after her, Darien," came Raye's cold 
voice from just behind him, making him jump.  He whirled 
around to see all three Scouts and Luna standing there, 
looking mad enough to kill.

	"You just did a lot of damage, and you'd better fix 
it...or else," Lita added icily as she cracked her knuckles 
yet again.

	"That was way harsh of you, Darien, not to mention 
completely untrue," Amy finished, looking extremely 
disappointed in him. 

	Luna merely growled, flexing her claws evilly.

	Darien sighed.  "I didn't mean any of it.  Honest," he 
said quietly.  "I just...it's habit.  I didn't mean to hurt 
her like that!"

	"You need to tell her that...not us," Raye said.

	"Yes, you REALLY put your foot in it this time!" Amy 
sniffed.

	"Hell, forget the foot!  He just shoved his whole damned 
leg down his throat!  I'm surprised he didn't choke!" Lita 
snarled.  "Well, what are you waiting for?  Go after her!"

	"We'd go ourselves, but this needs to be resolved 
between the two of you," Amy told him quietly.  "We're a team, 
and Serena knows that WE consider her to be a valuable leader, 
despite her faults, but if you expect to be a part of this team, 
she needs to know that you consider her to be a valuable part 
of it, as well.  It's time to put aside this childish squabbling 
and grow up."

	Darien flinched, knowing she was right and hating 
himself for being so cruel.  It was time to grow up, and 
it was time for him to stand up and be a man and pay for 
the mistakes he'd made.  "I'll make things right," he swore 
softly.  "I promise.  I care about her.  I really do.  And 
now that I know...I mean...I'll take care of her."  With 
that, he turned and sprinted down the street after her, 
leaving the Scouts to stare after him.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Seven
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	Darien ran down the street in the direction Serena had 
gone, towards the park.  He called her name, knowing that she 
wouldn't answer.  It was quite dark by that time; the moon had 
risen, casting silver shadows across the ground that made the 
blackness seem even darker.  He frowned, knowing that being in 
the park at this time of night was dangerous.  "Serena, where 
are you?" he called again, and paused to listen in case she 
decided to answer.  

	Presently, it occurred to him that he could use their 
link to find her.  She was Sailor Moon, he was Tuxedo Mask.  
It always worked during their transformations.  So why not 
when they were normal, as well?  He concentrated, reaching 
out with his senses and his heart towards Serena, and almost 
immediately a wave of heartache that was not his own nearly 
swamped him.  He staggered with a gasp, clutching his shirt, 
feeling Serena's hurt echoing inside of him so strongly that 
he was overwhelmed.  His heartless words had caused THAT?!  
The guilt he felt multiplied tenfold, and he could have ripped 
out his own tongue then and there.

	He blindly followed the link, knowing he was close when 
the pain in his breast became stronger, and finally a soft sob 
echoed faintly to him from the direction of the lake.  He 
veered left and sprinted toward it, his eyes scanning the 
darkness for any sign of golden hair.  There...on the shore 
of the lake she sat, a pathetic, huddled mass that quivered 
with her soft, intense sobs.  Darien slowed, then stopped 
only a few feet behind her, falling to his knees and gazing 
at her with an intensity that caused her to suddenly jerk 
around, wiping her eyes.

	Her eyes narrowed when she saw him sitting there on 
his knees, his head lowered and his hands resting on his 
legs, the very picture of humility.  "What are you doing 
here?" she snapped.  "Haven't you caused enough damage for 
one night?  Why can't you just leave me alone?!"

	"I'm sorry, Serena," he replied, his voice very soft.  
"I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am..."

	"Empty words!" she accused harshly.  "If you were truly 
sorry, you wouldn't have said it in the first place!"

	Darien shuddered, and his head sank even lower.  
"You're right," he whispered.  "You're right, but I AM sorry.  
And to prove it...I want you to hit me."

	Serena blinked.  Now this she had not been expecting.  
"Wh-what are you talking about?" she snapped.

	His gaze met hers, his eyes filled with sorrow and 
determination.  "I mean it, Serena," he told her earnestly.  
"I deserve to be hit, and it's only fair that you do so.  
Go ahead...right in the face.  I won't try to stop you."  
He raised his perfectly sculpted chin and closed his eyes, 
waiting.

	"Y-you're insane!" she stammered, standing up quickly.  
"I'm not gonna hit you!  Y-you'll probably use it as an excuse 
to hit me back or something!"

	Darien's eyes snapped open, and they burned into hers.  
"I would NEVER hit a girl," he told her fiercely.  "Especially 
not you!  How could you even think that?"  He closed his eyes 
again.  "So go ahead.  Give it your best shot," he added, 
although, to be perfectly honest, at the same time he was 
speaking the words, a part of him (most likely his ego) didn't 
really believe that the kind-hearted Serena would ever willingly 
strike another living soul, even if it was him.  She was too 
gentle.  It wasn't in her nature to be violent.  It wasn't-

	THWACK!

	A sharp, throbbing pain suddenly blossomed in his jaw, 
only moments after Serena's fist suddenly shot out from her 
side in a clean uppercut to connect with it...hard.  His 
teeth met with a snap, his head snapped back, and he could 
almost swear that those little cartoon stars were dancing 
around his head.  He gasped and staggered back, staring at 
her in shock.  She had actually HIT him!  She had...

	"You...you HIT me!" he stuttered, once he got his jaw 
to work again.  Saints, but that had HURT!  "You actually 
SLUGGED me!"  For some reason, it just didn't seem possible 
to him that his Meatball Head even knew what an uppercut was, 
much less how to deliver one.  Hmmm...she must've been getting 
some pointers from Lita...

	"Of COURSE I slugged you, you moron!  You just told me 
I could!" Serena was yelling.  "It serves you right, anyhow!" 
She crossed her arms and turned her back to him, tossing her 
ponytails haughtily.

	Darien reached up to touch his face, wincing when his 
fingers touched his lip, which he'd bitten when she'd hit him.  
It felt wet, and it throbbed almost as painfully as his bruised 
jaw.  He probably was gonna have to get that looked at...on top 
of the wounds Luna had inflicted.

	This just hadn't been his day...

	"Well," he said, somewhat awkwardly.  "Do you feel better 
now, at least?"

	Serena was silent for a long time, before she sighed 
and her shoulders drooped slightly.  "No," she finally stated, 
somewhat grumpily.  "No, I don't feel better!  My best friend's 
mad at me 'cause I broke a promise and I can't even tell her 
why, I'm doing not-so-great in school and I have a test tomorrow 
I didn't study for, I just figured out that the guy of my dreams 
is more like the guy of my NIGHTMARES..."

	**Ouch!** Darien thought with a wince.  **THAT one hurt!**

	"...and now my hand hurts 'cause I hit you so hard!  
I probably broke it on your stupid rock head!"

	"Can't help that," Darien cut in wryly.

	Serena glared at him and stamped her foot.  "Quit 
interrupting while I'm ranting!" she snapped.  "It's no more 
than you deserved, and you're lucky I am such a klutz!  I WAS 
aiming for your nose!"

	Darien rubbed his jaw gingerly.  "Have to say, I'm glad 
you missed," he replied with his most charming smile.

	"Quit doing that!" Serena huffed, pouting.

	He paused, looking at her cautiously.  "Quit doing 
what?" he questioned.

	"Quit smiling at me like that!  Y-you just make it worse!"

	"Make what worse?"

	"My GUILT!" she wailed.  "Now, on top of everything 
else, I have GUILT!"

	"Well...why?" he asked, astonished.

	"Because!" she cried.  "Because I...I HIT you!  
I actually punched you in the jaw!  I never hit anybody 
before, but now I'm...I'm a BULLY!"  And with that, she 
proceeded to break down and wail.

	Darien couldn't help himself.  He struggled for a few 
moments before giving it up and bursting into laughter.  
Serena stopped crying and glared at him through watery eyes.  
"What's so funny?" she snapped.

	He calmed himself down and sat down beside her, cautiously 
placing an arm around her shoulders.  "Serena," he began gently, 
"YOU aren't a bully.  I'm the bully, and what I said to 
you--everything I've ever said to you in the past--is inexcusable.  
I've treated you horribly, and I'm sorry.  I really am.  Do you 
think you can forgive me?  I'd really like it if we could be 
friends.  I mean...if Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon can do 
it...why not us?"

	Serena bit her lip thoughtfully as she gazed out over 
the water, and he began to worry a little.  Finally, she 
stirred and shot him a coy glance from the corner of her eye, 
smiling slightly.  "I guess that makes sense," she told him, 
"and since I've never heard you apologize to me before...I 
guess it means you're serious.  So..."  She took a deep 
breath and gave him a dazzling smile.  "I guess there's no 
harm in being friends."

	Darien nearly sagged with relief, grinning like a fool.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Eight
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	Serena was exhausted by the time she finally got home, 
but she was happy, as well.  Things were different now between 
her and Darien; she could sense it.  If not exactly friends, 
they were at least a little beyond being enemies.  He had given 
her a ride home, after they'd walked the whole way back to his 
car, and the entire way he had talked to her like she was a 
normal person, instead of just "Meatball Head."  He teased her, 
just a little, when she'd stumbled over some hidden root in the 
park, but it wasn't like his normal teasing.  Maybe it was 
because he had caught her and held her gently while she steadied 
herself, and maybe because his voice and smile had been so soft 
and kind as he spoke to her.  This time the teasing was like the 
kind very close friends often used.  

	Luna was there, and she fussed over Serena until she 
was tempted to throw the cat out the window.  "For the last 
time I'm okay, Luna!" she exclaimed, combing her ponytails.  
"Darien and I made up, and it's gonna be fine.  Besides...he's 
on our side!  And it wouldn't do him any good to have me as 
his enemy.  I could moondust him in a snap!"  She giggled as 
she climbed under the covers.  "But who would've ever thought 
Darien was Tuxedo Mask?  I mean...it's like some kind of 
freaky dream or something!"

	"I think you should be very cautious around him from 
now on," Luna replied seriously.  "We still don't know what 
his motives are..."

	"Awww...Luna, even NOW you still don't trust him?!  
This is Darien!  He may be a creep sometimes, but he's not 
a traitor!  Really, Luna, you never trust any of the guys I 
like!" Serena complained.  She snapped off the light.  

	Luna sighed, curling up at the foot of the bed.  "Maybe 
that's because she never likes a guy worth trusting..." she 
muttered to herself.

	"Did you say something?"

	"Wha...?  Er...no!  No, of course not.  Go to sleep, 
Serena," Luna replied with a nervous chuckle.  "Goodnight."

	Serena didn't answer; she was already fast asleep.

*	*	*	*	*
	A few days later, Serena went to the arcade after school 
as she usually did, and it was there she saw Ryan.  It had been 
the first time she'd seen him since the mall-he'd been out of 
school all that week and had not even bothered to let her know 
where he was--and she frowned to herself, feeling a little 
miffed.  He was sitting at a table and talking with one of 
the waitresses, who was perched on his lap quite cozily, and 
Serena felt a spark of jealousy flare within her.

	Play it cool, Sere, she told herself as she strode over 
to the table, fixing the waitress with a glare that could melt 
steel.  The waitress got the hint and hightailed it out of 
there, leaving a surprised Ryan behind.  "Hello, Ryan," Serena 
said coolly.  "Been awhile since I saw you.  Where've you been 
lately?"

	"Wha...?  Oh, Serena.  Hey, babe, how ya been?"  Ryan 
quickly covered up his surprise with a charming grin and a 
look that melted Serena's anger like butter.  "Have a seat, 
gorgeous.  Want a milkshake or something?" he nearly purred.  
Serena didn't stand a chance against that, of course.  
Forgetting the fact that the last time they'd spoken he had 
publicly humiliated her, she grinned at him in consent and 
slid into the booth beside him, where he greeted her with a 
soft kiss on her cheek, making her blush and giggle.

	"So...where've you been all this time, huh?" she asked.  
"I was starting to think you'd been kidnapped or something."  

	He gave a slight chuckle, tugging at the collar of his 
shirt.  "Well...I've...been around," he replied with a shrug.

	"Why haven't you been in school, though?" she pressed, 
not noticing the annoyance that briefly flashed in his eyes.

	"I didn't feel like going, that's all," he replied 
defensively.  "Gees, lighten up!  What are you, my mother?"

	Serena blushed.  "Well...I...just thought maybe you 
were sick or something, is all," she mumbled.  "I was kinda 
worried."  That wasn't an entire lie.  When she thought about 
him (which wasn't very much lately, she admitted guiltily) 
she did worry...at least as far as wondering where he might be.  
In truth...with the rift in her and Molly's friendship and the 
discovery of Tuxedo Mask's true identity, she hadn't had too 
much else on her mind lately.

	"Well, no need to panic," Ryan was saying.  "I got 
everything covered."

	"What about your grades?  Don't you worry about them?  
You're a senior, after all.  Shouldn't you be preparing for 
college or something?" she asked.

	He smirked.  "What makes you think I haven't been doing 
that?" he replied, deadpan.

	Now it was her turn to smirk.  "Come on, Ryan!  I'm no 
brainiac, but even I know that you do not prepare for college 
by playing hooky for over a week!  So where were you, really?"

	"Hey!  I said to lay off, okay, and I meant it!" he 
snapped, going from teasing to angry in a single moment.  
"I don't have to answer to you for anything, got it?  So drop 
the subject!"

	Serena, taken aback, stared at him with wide eyes for 
a moment, before she slowly stood and slid out of the booth, 
turning to leave without another word.  She walked slowly away, 
half expecting him to call her back, to apologize for his rude 
behavior.  She should have known better.  Ryan never apologized 
for anything.  He's sort of like Darien on that subject, she 
thought sadly, then abruptly shook her head.  **Not is...was!** 
she reminded herself fiercely.  **He WAS like Darien...but 
Darien's better now...**

	She walked slowly and dejectedly home, occasionally 
swiping at an errant tear that managed to escape.  **What's 
wrong with me?** she asked herself harshly.  **Why does 
everything involving relationships have to be so hard?**  
She sighed and sat down on her favorite bench that overlooked 
the lake in the park.  She barely noticed when another person 
sat down beside her, and when she finally did realize that 
there was someone sharing the bench with her, she was hardly 
surprised to find that it was Darien.

	Normally, had it been any other day, she would have 
chewed him out for daring to invade her space.  But not anymore. 
Now that she knew he was Tuxedo Mask...now that he had gone so 
far to make amends with her and become her friend, she felt 
almost...comforted...to know he was there.  They sat, side by 
side, for a long time, saying nothing, simply enjoying each 
other's company.  Finally, Darien shifted, then broke the silence.

	"Penny for your thoughts?"

	Serena blinked, as though waking from a trance, and 
glanced over at him with a slight smile.  "I doubt they're 
worth that much," she replied with a trace of humor.  "I was 
just thinking...why does love have to be so hard?"

	Darien sobered instantly.  "Another fight with Ryan?" 
he asked, grimacing with distaste at the name.

	She looked over again, the sunlight playing in her hair 
and turning it to burnished gold, momentarily stealing his 
breath away.  "How'd you know?" she asked.

	He gave a sheepish grin.  "I was...ah...in the arcade 
talking with Andrew," he replied.  "I overheard, and I thought 
maybe I could cheer you up.  I called your name three times on 
the way over hear, but I guess you didn't hear me."

	Serena's cheeks turned pink.  "I was...um...thinking," 
she mumbled, glancing away.  "About...things."

	"About why love is so hard?" he asked, repeating her 
earlier statement.

	She sighed, resting her chin in her hands.  "Is it 
supposed to make you crazy?" she asked wistfully, then 
straightened and stuck her nose in the air.  "If it is, 
then love is VASTLY overrated!" she added haughtily.

	Darien chuckled, before turning serious again.  "It's 
supposed to heal you," he replied softly, fixing her with an 
intense gaze.  "It's supposed to make you feel like you're a 
part of someone's soul, and they're a part of your's."

	Serena stared at him, obviously impressed.  "You seem 
like you know what you're talking about," she said.  "Have 
you ever...I mean..."

	"Have I ever been in love before?" he finished for her.  
She blushed again and nodded quickly, and he smiled, gazing 
back out over the lake.  **Yes,** he thought.  **I'm in love 
right now...with you.**  Out loud, he merely replied, "It's 
hard to know what real love is.  Sometimes when you think you 
love someone, it turns out that it wasn't really love at all. 
Love-real love-is something that happens to someone once in 
a lifetime, and when it does, those people will never be 
separated.  It's like...two souls spending their entire lives 
trying to find each other, and when they do..."  He trailed 
off, not knowing how to explain.

	But Serena seemed to understand.  She leaned back on 
the bench, linking her hands across her knees.  "That 
reminds me of how my mother used to tell me a story about 
how a soul was split in half, and how those two halves 
became two separate people who spent their lives searching 
for each other, and were never happy until they found each 
other and were made whole again.  I always thought that 
was so romantic...but sometimes I wonder if it's true.  
I mean...with all the people in the world, what if the other 
half of my soul is sitting somewhere in...in Australia or 
something?"

	**Or what if he's sitting right beside you...?** Darien 
thought sadly, gazing at her steadily.  "Whoever your soulmate 
is, I know you'll find each other," he told her.  "You'll be 
drawn to each other, no matter where you are."

	"Really?" she whispered, looking up at him hopefully.  
He nodded, smiling at her gently.  She seemed comforted 
somehow, but then a shadow passed over her face.  "What 
about Ryan, though?" she asked.  "I mean...isn't he my 
soulmate?"

	Darien winced.  "Serena...do you really love Ryan?  
Or do you just love the fact that you have a boyfriend?  
You two are so different...I just don't see how you managed 
to get hooked up in the first place!"

	Serena bristled, getting ready to chew him out, but then 
she suddenly deflated, like a balloon.  "I...I care for Ryan," 
she whispered.  "When he asked me out...it was like a dream 
come true.  No guy-at least no guy that age-has ever asked me 
to go out with him before.  So I...I guess I wanted to impress 
my friends, and Ryan can be really sweet...when he sets his 
mind to it..."

	Darien wasn't impressed.

	"Look, Serena," he began carefully.  "You shouldn't go 
out with someone just because you...you want to impress people.  
You'll end up being miserable."  Serena tried to protest, but 
he silenced her with a finger to her lips.  "Are you really 
happy, Meatball Head?" he asked softly.  "I mean, are you really, 
truly happy being with Ryan?  'Cause if you are...then I promise 
I won't say anything else against him, no matter how much I think 
he deserves it."

	Serena stared up at him, her brow furrowed.  "I-I'm 
happy," she said, a bit uncertainly.

	He raised an eyebrow.  "Really?  Are you sure?"

	She frowned and looked away.  "Of course," she replied.  
"Why wouldn't I be?"

	Darien fought the urge to grab her shoulders and shake 
her.  Instead, he took a deep breath and smiled at her, forcing 
his frustration aside.  "Well, then, I'm glad for you," he told 
her, hoping he sounded cheerful.  He stood up and looked down 
at her.  Then, as though just remembering something, he snapped 
his fingers and pulled a small package from his jacket pocket.  
"Almost forgot," he said.  "Somebody left this for you at the 
arcade with Andrew.  He asked me to give it to you since you 
left in such a hurry."

	"For me?"  Serena looked surprised as she took the 
small box and turned it around.  There was a slip of paper 
wrapped around the box, and she opened it curiously and read 
it.  Darien watched, his face expressionless, as her eyes 
widened slightly and a faint blush stained her cheeks.  
Glancing up at him, she quickly stuffed the note in her 
pocket, then opened the box.  Her mouth dropped open in shock.  
"Oh, my..." she breathed.

	It was an elegant bracelet.  A beautiful, silver bracelet 
with delicate charms in the shapes of crescent moons and roses 
dangling from the links.  Serena was in awe as she lifted it 
from its bed of black velvet, holding it up so that it caught 
the light.  "It's so pretty," she whispered.  "But...it must 
have cost a fortune!"

	"It suits you," Darien said quietly.

	She blinked and looked up at him as though she'd 
forgotten he was there.  "Yeah," she replied with a smile.  
"I wonder how...how he knew?"

	"He?" Darien questioned with a raised eyebrow.

	Her blush returned.  "M-my secret admirer," she admitted.  
"I thought...he'd forgotten about me or something, or that 
maybe it was some kind of joke..."

	"Who could forget you?" Darien asked teasingly.

	"Did...did Andrew say anything about who it might have 
been from?" she asked hopefully.  "I mean...was it anyone 
I know?"

	He hesitated.  "He didn't say anything to me," he replied.  
"I just got the gift, is all."  He took the bracelet from her 
and held it up.  "It sure is pretty," he added, trying to 
distract her from her curious inquiries.  "Hold out your wrist.  
I'll fasten it on for you."  She obediently held out her hand, 
and he carefully fastened the bracelet about her slender wrist, 
his fingers softly brushing her skin and making her blush even 
more.  When it was on, he slid his fingers from her wrist to 
her hand and gripped it lightly, looking into her eyes.  "It 
suits you..." he repeated, losing himself in her gaze.

	She seemed speechless as she gazed at him, then managed 
a smile.  "Um...thanks," she replied.  "I...I have to get home 
now.  Don't want to be late for supper."

	He grinned.  Well, that was normal.  "Aren't you going 
to let me read the note first?" he asked teasingly.

	She swallowed, her cheeks turning pink.  "Um...I don't 
think so," she replied with a nervous chuckle, tugging on her 
hand, which he refused to release.  "M-maybe another time..."

	"Awww...come on, Meatball Head!  Let me have a peek," 
he pleaded, just to see her blush.  It wasn't like he had to 
see the note.  He'd written it, after all, but it didn't hurt 
to help his innocence along.  The more he begged to see the 
note, the less likely she was to suspect him of writing it.  
Although...he had to wonder what her reaction might be now if 
she DID find out that he was her secret admirer.  No, he 
decided just as quickly.  It's not worth the chance.  
At least...not yet.

	"I have to go now, Darien, really," Serena was protesting, 
tugging her hand free of his grasp.  This time he let it go, 
grinning as she turned and ran home, calling a goodbye over her 
shoulder.

	**Someday, Meatball Head.  Someday you'll know...**


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Nine
~~~~~~~~~~~~

	In school the next day, Serena's classmates exclaimed 
over her latest gift, which she displayed proudly for all to 
see.  For some reason, Miss Haruna was late, and the students 
were making the most of it and having themselves a grand old 
time.  

	"What a pretty bracelet!" one girl sighed dreamily.  
"You're so lucky, Serena!  I wish I had a secret admirer!"

	"Hey!" a boy protested.  "What am I?  Chopped liver?"

	"Whoops!"  The girl glanced at her boyfriend sheepishly.  
"Heh-heh.  Didn't see you there, Jason..."  She left the group 
in order to soothe Jason's wounded ego, and Serena giggled as 
she looked on.  Then a familiar figure sitting by herself at 
a desk in the back of the room caught her attention.  Serena's 
smile faded when she saw Molly there, looking incredibly lonely.  
She walked over to the desk, standing before it to smile down 
at her friend.  

	"Hey, Molly.  How have you been?" she asked hesitantly.

	Molly looked up at her, her face expressionless.  "Just 
peachy," she replied.  Then promptly lowered her head and 
continued to read her book.  

	Serena's brow furrowed as she stared at her friend 
in confusion.  True, she and Molly hadn't been talking much 
lately, but Molly had never snubbed her like this before!  
"Molly...what's wrong?" she asked, seating herself at the 
neighboring desk and turning wounded eyes to her friend.  
"What did I do?  Talk to me, Molly!"

	"What haven't you done?" Molly snapped, slamming her 
book closed abruptly and turning angry green eyes to meet 
Serena's gaze.  "You've been ignoring me for weeks, and then, 
when we finally get to spend a day together...just like we 
used to do...you go and...and run off with those girls!  And 
you won't even tell me why you had to leave!  And you never 
even called to explain like you promised you would!"

	Serena flushed, knowing that this was true.  When she'd 
finally gotten home, she had gone straight to bed, her mind 
still reeling with her discovery to even think of calling Molly.  
She hung her head.  "I'm sorry, Moll.  I...something happened, 
and I forgot..."

	"I KNOW you forgot!  You ALWAYS forget!" Molly snapped.  
She clenched her fist.  "Lately...lately it seems to me that 
you've decided I'm not good enough to be your friend anymore, 
no matter what you say.  So...I don't think we should hang out 
together or anything.  I wouldn't want to make you look bad 
in front of your new friends!"

	Serena felt like she'd been punched right in the gut.  
Her chest tightened and her heart was pounding as she stared 
at Molly, barely able to breathe.  "Y-you can't mean that, 
Molly!  We're best friends!  You can't mean that..." she 
whispered in shock.

	"I mean every word!" Molly replied, turning her back on 
Serena...mostly to hide the tears that leaked from her closed 
eyes.  In truth...her heart was breaking to know that she was 
losing the best friend she'd ever had, but things had changed, 
and she didn't know what else to do.  Best she dump Serena 
before Serena dumped her.  At least that way she could pretend 
it didn't hurt so bad...

	"Molly...please...don't do this," Serena was pleading.  
"Whatever the problem is, we can work it out!  We always have 
before!"  She was about to say more, but Miss Haruna chose 
that moment to enter the classroom, yelling at everyone to 
take their seats before she gave the whole class detentions.  
Serena cast a pleading glance at Molly, but the redheaded girl 
refused to look at her, and she was forced to turn her attention 
to the teacher.

*	*	*	*	*
	Serena couldn't concentrate at all that day.  All she 
could think about was finding some way to sew up the gaping 
wound in her and Molly's friendship.  She tried to seek her 
out at lunch, but Molly had hidden herself away, and the 
period ended before Serena could find her.  It was funny, 
Serena thought.  She hadn't even eaten her own lunch trying 
to find Molly, and what was even funnier was that she didn't 
even care.  She had no appetite at all.

	She avoided Amy and Lita all day, just in case Molly 
saw them together and it made things worse, and as soon as 
the final bell rang she was out of her seat like a shot, 
racing to Molly's classroom before the girl could make her 
escape.  She was bound and determined to talk some sense 
into her even if it meant tying her to a chair!  She was 
in luck; Molly was just coming out of the room, talking 
animatedly to a girl Serena didn't know.  She felt a flash 
of jealousy hit her, before she shook it off and stopped 
right in front of her friend.  "We have to talk," she said 
calmly.  

	"Can't.  I have plans.  With my new best friend." Molly 
retorted, and moved to go around her.  But Serena wasn't about 
to be put off so easily.

	"I'M your best friend, Molly, and I'm not about to let 
you go without a fight!" she huffed, stamping her foot.  
"I...I really need to talk to you!  It's important!"

	The girl Molly was with glanced uneasily between them, 
sensing that there was about to be a huge blowup, and she was 
somehow in the middle of it.  "Um...actually, Molly, I just 
remembered that I promised my mom I'd pick some things up 
from the store for her, okay?  So...we can see a movie later."  
Before Molly could protest, she slipped between them and hurried 
outside.

	Molly turned on Serena furiously, ready to nail into 
her, but the sight of two huge, tear-filled blue eyes stilled 
her.  "Molly...please," Serena pleaded.  "I...I'm ready to 
tell you!  About...about everything.  But...it can't be here.  
Let's go someplace private, okay?  I'm not supposed to tell 
you; it'd be better that you never even knew, but if this 
secret means that I'll have to give you up as a friend...then 
I'd rather give up the secret, no matter how mad everyone gets 
at me!"

	Molly was silent for a long time, and Serena stood there 
feeling her heart pounding in her chest at what she was about 
to do.  She was risking everything to tell Molly her secret, 
but she had thought it over, and this was the only way she 
knew to salvage her friendship.  Sure, the other Scouts would 
be liable to toast her for it-especially Raye-but she was 
willing to take the chance.  **Besides,** she thought darkly, 
**the worst they could really do is kick me off the team!**  
But that would be okay by her.  In fact, she almost wished for 
it!  Sailor Moon was ruining her life.  She could not remember 
ever hating the heroine as much as she did then.  Was that normal, 
to hate oneself, she wondered.  She wasn't sure...

	"Okay," Molly suddenly said, her voice subdued.  "Let's 
go to my house.  Mama is away, so we'll have the place to 
ourselves.  And I want you to tell me everything you've been 
hiding from me these past few months...and if you even lie to 
me...even ONCE...then I swear I'll never speak to you again!  
Ever!"

	"That's only fair," Serena replied softly.  "Come on.  
Let's go now.  I...I don't want Amy and Lita to know about 
this.  They might not be very understanding..."  She turned 
and followed Molly from the building, feeling rather like a 
thief sneaking around, looking for any signs that they might 
be followed.  

	And then she remembered...there was supposed to be a 
meeting at Raye's temple that afternoon.  Her steps faltered, 
and Molly turned to look back at her.  "What's the matter?  
Change your mind?" she asked, and there was a definite 
challenge in her voice.  Serena knew that if she backed out 
now...well, she doubted she'd get a second chance to make 
things right...

	"No," she said firmly.  "I just remembered that there's 
a meeting at Raye's place...but I'm skipping it today."

	Molly looked surprised.  "Aren't you worried they'll 
come looking for you?"

	Serena hesitated, then shrugged, giving her a 
light-hearted grin.  "Well...I'm always late, anyhow.  
They probably won't even notice I'm not there 'till it's 
over!  Don't you worry about me.  I can handle Raye.  
Right now, this is more important!"

	Molly relaxed, and even smiled a little, and Serena 
felt encouraged.  "Hey, after this, how 'bout I treat you 
to a milkshake at the arcade?  Believe me...after what I'm 
gonna tell you, you'll need it!" she giggled.  

	Molly just looked at her, concerned.  Part of her was 
glad that Serena was finally ready to talk, but the other part 
was scared of what she might hear.  If Serena was involved in 
anything dangerous-or illegal-she didn't know what she'd do 
then.  But she'd never turn her back on her friend.  Not now 
that Serena was risking everything to tell her what the secrecy 
was about, the least she could do was support her.

	They continued on, walking mostly in silence, feeling 
the tension stretch between them.  Serena was nervous; she 
had no idea how to tell Molly about Sailor Moon, and she was 
afraid that once she did, Molly wouldn't believe her, anyway.  
Well, transforming would take care of any of those doubts, but 
how would it affect Molly?  And even more so, how could Serena 
trust Molly to keep her secret?  As much as she loved her 
friend, Serena would be the first to admit that Molly was a 
bit of a blabbermouth, and this was BIG news!

	And there was the OSAP jewelry store, which Molly's 
mother owned.  Above that was their small apartment, which 
Serena had practically grown up in, so much time had she spent 
there in the past.  It had been at least three months since 
she'd been there, since that time when the Negaverse had first 
attacked and she had become Sailor Moon.  She felt a lump in 
her throat as she recalled those innocent days, when she was 
just plain old, meatball-headed Serena.  A klutz and a ditz 
and not at all the super-heroine type.  What wouldn't she give 
to go back there again...

	**But then I would never have met the Scouts...or Tuxedo 
Mask...or Luna.  I...I would miss not ever knowing them.  Even 
Darien!** she thought sadly.  It was true.  She would miss Darien.  
She still most likely would have bumped into him...but she had 
no doubt that had she never discovered he was Tuxedo Mask, they 
would still be enemies.  So...at least some good things came 
out of this whole mess...

	"Are we gonna go in or just stand here all day?"

	Molly's voice, sounding somewhat bemused, jerked Serena's 
thoughts back to the present.  "Oh!  Um...sorry, Moll.  I 
was...reminiscing," she replied with a giggle.  

	Molly grinned.  "It's only been a few months since you 
came here last!  Not a few years!" she exclaimed as they walked 
into the store.  Molly waved to the woman behind the counter 
as she and Serena made their way to the back of the store, where 
a locked door opened to a flight of stairs that led to the 
apartment.  Serena gladly followed Molly up, her nervousness 
returning.

	"Want something to eat?  Mom baked cookies," Molly 
suggested once they reached the apartment.

	Serena hesitated, tempted to say yes.  She had skipped 
lunch, after all.  The truth was that she was just looking for 
an excuse to put off the inevitable.  "No thanks.  I'd better 
just get right down to business," she replied briskly, setting 
her school bag on the table.  Molly raised an eyebrow--Serena 
refusing cookies?!  This was serious!--then shrugged and pulled 
out a chair, sitting down and looking up at her expectantly.

	Serena took a deep breath.  "Molly...the reason I've 
been so secretive these last few months is...well, the thing 
is that...I've sort of started a new career..."  She paused,
 seeing the uncertainty on Molly's face, then decided that it 
would be best to quit beating around the bush.  
"Molly...I'msailormoon..." she let out in a big rush.

	"Huh?  You're what?" Molly asked.

	She sighed.  "I am the Champion of Justice, Sailor Moon.  
D'ya know my cat, Luna?  Well, she found me, and she gave me 
this locket I'm always wearing and told me that I'm supposed 
to be Sailor Moon.  I didn't want to accept it at first, but 
I guess I know now that this is my destiny.  Those girls I 
hang with...they're my Sailor Scouts, and I'm their leader.  
I know this sounds crazy and all that, but it's the truth!  
And now you have to promise me that you won't tell a living 
soul!  Nobody can know about this!  It's dangerous!  I didn't 
want to tell you because I knew I'd be putting you in danger 
if the Negaverse ever found out!"

	Molly was looking at her strangely, and Serena could 
almost see her face twitching.  "Um...sure, Serena.  No problem.  
I won't tell another soul about this."  Under her breath she 
added, "Believe me..."

	"You don't believe me, do you?!" Serena yelled.  "You 
wanted to know, and I told you, and you DON'T BELIEVE ME?!"

	"Well, how am I supposed to believe that?!" Molly yelled 
back.  "Serena!  You're a klutz!  How can you possibly be a 
super-heroine?!"

	Serena pouted.  "I'm not THAT much of a klutz!  
Boy...between you and Raye and Darien, I'm amazed I have 
any self-confidence at all!"

	Molly bit her lip.  "Well...okay, assuming what you say 
is true, can you...I don't know...prove it to me?"

	Serena sighed.  "I knew you were gonna ask me that," 
she grumbled.  "Okay, close the curtains and lock all the 
doors.  I don't want anyone to witness this, or I can kiss 
myself goodbye!"  Molly, shaking her head wryly, moved to 
close the shades on the windows and made sure the door was 
locked; not that anyone would burst in, anyway.  Her mother 
was out of town, and nobody else lived there.  

	"Okay, Sere.  All done.  Now show me this marvelous 
secret of yours."  She couldn't quite keep the trace of 
sarcasm from her voice.

	"Well, you did ask for it!" Serena replied with a pout, 
then assumed the proper pose and flung her hand dramatically 
into the air.  "MOON PRISM POWER, MAKEUP!" she yelled, and 
after a multicolored light show, Sailor Moon stood in all 
her beribboned glory in Molly's living room.  

	Molly's mouth dropped open, and her eyes grew impossibly 
wide as Sailor Moon smirked down at her, arms crossed smugly 
over her chest.  "Well?" she asked humorously.  "Is this proof 
enough for you?"

	"I...I..." Molly stammered, trying to get her brain in 
working order.  Then, suddenly, she leaped to her feet.  
"THIS IS SO COOL!" she squealed excitedly.  "My best friend 
is Sailor Moon!  I can't BELIEVE you never told me this sooner!  
What a secret!  How did this happen?  When did this happen?  
Can Luna really talk?  Say, do you think you could introduce 
me to Tuxedo Mask?  I'd LOVE to meet him..."

	Serena listened, a sweatdrop appearing on her forehead, 
as Molly went on and on.  Whatever her reaction...Serena had 
not expected it to be this!  Finally, she put out a gloved hand, 
effectively silencing her star-struck friend.  "Molly, this is 
not a game," she began seriously.  "This isn't a glamorous life, 
no matter what you think.  It's a dangerous job that I'd sooner 
do without, but since I can't...I just have to do the best I 
can, and hope I get through it in one piece.  I've nearly died 
several times, and all those times I regretted the fact that 
I've never been able to say goodbye to my family and my friends, 
that they wouldn't even know what had happened to me.  But it's 
better this way.  If the Negaverse ever found out what you 
know..."  She shuddered.  "Let's just hope I can be there to
save you, Molly."

	Molly, taken aback by Serena's uncharacteristic 
seriousness, listened silently, and felt ashamed when she 
realized that she was right.  Serena was Sailor Moon, and 
she was out there all the time risking her life to save the 
world, and all Molly could think about was that she had a 
famous friend?  She had even been picturing everyone's 
reactions when she told them she knew Sailor Moon...but 
now she remembered her promise.  She would never even 
consider betraying Serena's trust; not when she'd obviously
risked so much to tell her the truth.  "I'm sorry, Sere.  
I...I know how hard this had to be for you, and I was so 
selfish and jealous that I didn't even think about what 
it might cost you.  W-will the others be mad if they ever 
find out?"

	Sailor Moon-Serena-shrugged.  "Well, they will...if 
they find out.  But they don't have to know, as long as you 
don't tell them.  I...I'm assuming you can figure out for 
yourself who the others are..."

	Molly nodded silently.  Amy and Lita were two of them.  
And no doubt that beautiful, black-haired priestess that went 
to the private girls' school was the third.  Lita, she could 
picture as a Scout; the girl loved to fight, after all.  But 
it stuck her as odd that shy, quiet Amy was a Sailor Scout as 
well.  Well, she amended, no odder than it struck her that 
Serena of all people was Sailor Moon!

	"I'd better power down now," Serena was saying.  "When 
I turn into Sailor Moon...well, Tuxedo Mask has this link 
with me, see, and he can tell.  He'll feel that I transformed 
and come looking for me.  If he finds out what I've done..."  
She shuddered.  She'd been on the receiving end of Tuxedo 
Mask's temper before, and now that she knew he was Darien 
and that he knew who she was, she wouldn't be able to hide 
from him in plain sight anymore.  Heaven help her if he did 
find out about her big mouth!

	"Will he be real mad at you?" Molly asked worriedly.  
"I mean...he won't...hurt you, will he?"

	Serena stopped, startled.  "I...I don't know," she replied 
with a nervous laugh.  "Normally, I'd say no...but this is a 
little more serious than normal.  I mean...there has to be some 
kinda rule against super heroes telling people their true 
identities or something.  You'd never catch Superman going 
around telling everyone who he is!  Honestly, I have no idea 
how Tuxedo Mask'll react if he discovers what I've told 
you...and personally, I'd rather not find out!"  

	As she spoke, she gripped her locket to power down...right 
before a darkly furious voice, coming from outside the shaded
window, froze her in her tracks.

	"Too late."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Ten
~~~~~~~~~~~

	Darien felt the pull on his soul just as he was about to 
enter the Cherry Hill Temple.  Now that everyone knew who he 
was, he had been allowed to join in on the meetings, after a 
bit of haggling with a mistrustful Luna on Serena's part.  He 
quickened his pace, fighting the urge to transform then and 
there, and rushed into the temple.  "Serena's in danger!" he 
yelled to the startled Scouts.

	"Calm down, Darien!  What's wrong?" Raye asked, her 
brow furrowing.

	"Serena's transformed!" Darien replied urgently.  "I felt 
it.  We have to help her out."

	"Wait, that's impossible.  I haven't picked up any readings 
from the fire of an enemy attack," Raye said bluntly.  "Are you 
sure you aren't imagining things?"  

	"I never am wrong about things like this!" Darien snapped.  
"It's the link!  I felt her transform, so I know there's trouble!"

	"Wait, let me call her on the communicator," Amy said 
practically, pulling out a small gadget about the size of a 
calculator from her pocket.  "Serena, are you there?  Darien 
says he felt you transform.  Are you okay?"

	There was nothing but static on the other end.  Raye 
frowned and sighed.  "She probably left it at home again.  
That girl will never learn!" she complained.  "Well, Darien, 
are you sure you felt her transform?"

	"POSITIVE!"  Darien was nearly frantic with worry.  "We 
have to help her!  What if she's hurt?!  Are you just gonna 
sit there and let her get killed?!" he yelled.

	"OKAY!  JUST SHUT UP, ALREADY!" Raye bellowed, pulling 
out her pen.  "We'll go with you to see what the problem is!  
Yeesh!  Have a coronary, why doncha!"

	They quickly transformed and the Scouts followed Tuxedo 
Mask as he followed the link toward Serena, bounding over high 
rooftops to avoid attention.  They headed unerringly toward 
the OSAP jewelry store, pausing on the roof of the building 
across from it to assess the situation.  

	"Ya know," Jupiter commented snidely, "for a huge fight 
going on, it sure is quiet down there."

	"Tux, if you dragged us all the way out here for nothing..." 
Mars growled, gripping his lapels threateningly.

	"Calm down!  I know what I felt!" Tuxedo Mask snapped.  
He narrowed his eyes and gazed down at the store.  "That...that's 
not where she is," he muttered, more to himself than anyone.  
"She's close..."  His gaze traveled upwards, to the story above 
the store.  Molly's house.  Everything was calm and quiet; the 
apartment looked to be all in one piece.  He frowned.  Now, this 
didn't make sense.  Why would Sailor Moon be...?  His eyes 
widened as a sudden realization hit him.  **Serena wouldn't...she 
couldn't have...**

	"Serena, what have you done?" he growled, and in one 
incredible leap had cleared the rooftop to land safely on the 
other side, above the store.  

	"HEY, where's he going?!" Jupiter protested.  "Wait up!"

	"Wait, Jupiter.  I think he's found something," Mercury 
said quietly.  "That's Molly's home.  I think maybe Serena's in 
there."

	"But why would she turn into...?" Jupiter began, then 
trailed off as the implications hit her.  "Uh-oh.  You don't 
think..."

	"She was awfully upset about Molly," Mercury said sadly.  
"I heard about their fight this morning, and she was avoiding 
us today.  She probably felt guilty.  This might be the only 
way she knew to save the friendship."

	"I'M GONNA KILL HER!" Mars bellowed, starting forward.  
"THAT MEATBALL HEAD!  WHAT DOES SHE THINK SHE'S DOING!?!"

	"Hold on there, Pyro," Jupiter interrupted with a chuckle, 
grabbing the irate Scout in a headlock.  "For one thing, there's 
no law that says she can't tell anyone.  For another...you'd have 
to get through Tux there to get to her, and I bet he wants the 
first shot!"

	"Shouldn't we be stopping him?" Mercury asked worriedly.  
"I mean...he looked mad enough to kill!"
	
	"He won't hurt her.  Besides, he's only Darien, and you 
know as well as I do that Serena can hold her own against him.  
She won't let him chew her out, especially in front of Molly.  
Not only that...but isn't HIM chewing HER out over letting loose 
the secret kinda like the pot calling the kettle black?  I 
mean...he wasn't supposed to know, either.  He spied on us to 
find out!  Sailor Moon won't let him forget that!"  Jupiter 
grinned maliciously.  "In fact...I wanna be over there!  No 
WAY am I gonna miss out on this!"  She released a fuming Mars 
and leapt over to the other roof, noticing that Tuxedo Mask 
had already crept down to the fire escape on the side of the 
building and was peering in the window, which had been closed 
with the shade drawn down.  The other Scouts landed beside her, 
grinning eagerly at the upcoming event.  They heard Molly and 
Serena talking from inside, and then they heard Tuxedo Mask's 
cold, angry voice chiming in.

	"Too late..."

*	*	*	*	*
	"I am SO dead..." Sailor Moon muttered as she discreetly 
attempted to hide behind Molly.  Tuxedo Mask didn't look happy.  
In fact, one could even say he looked just a LITTLE ticked off...
	
	"I need to talk to you," he growled, and even through the 
mask Sailor Moon could feel his eyes burning into her.  

	"Um...can I take a rain check?" she asked with a nervous 
glance toward Molly, who was staring at Tuxedo Mask with 
something akin to awe.

	"We need to talk...NOW."  His tone brooked no room for 
argument, and the stubborn set of his jaw told her all she 
needed to know.  Namely...that he was MAD.

	Hmmm...tough choice.  Go with Tuxedo Mask and risk her 
increasingly short life, or use Molly as a human shield and 
plead the fifth.

	She chose option two. 

	"Aarrgh!  Molly, hide me!" she yelped, gripping the startled 
girl's skirt and holding it up to her neck like a shield...in 
the process giving the fuming Tuxedo Mask a first-class view of 
Molly's...unmentionables.

	"YEEK!  Serena!  Are you NUTS?!" Molly squealed, snatching 
back her skirt and smoothing it down quickly, her face almost as 
red as Tuxedo Mask's.

	"I'm not nuts!  I'm afraid!" Sailor Moon protested, powering 
down into Serena again.  "This guy is scary when he's mad!"

	Molly looked at Tuxedo Mask doubtfully.  "What's so scary 
about him?  He looks normal enough to me," she replied.

	"Hmmph.  Get him mad at you, and you'll be singing a 
different song!" Serena grumbled, keeping a wary eye on Tuxedo 
Mask as she attempted to sidle toward the door.  "How could he 
get in here, anyhow?  Didn't you lock the windows?!"

	"You said to lock the door!  Nobody ever said anything about 
locking the windows and anyhow, I doubt a locked window would stop 
him," Molly replied with a sniff.

	Serena merely whimpered.

	"Oh, come off it!" Tuxedo Mask yelled, finally fed up 
with Serena's hysterics.  "You act like I'm gonna kill you or 
something!  I just want to talk to you!  Sheesh!"

	Molly drew herself up and stared at him boldly.  "Well, 
whatever you have to say to my friend, pal, you have to get 
through ME first!" she challenged.

	Tuxedo Mask stared at her, then suddenly his frown gave 
way into chuckles.  "This is cute.  You're actually defending 
the Champion of Justice against her own defender.  I admire your 
loyalty, Molly, but this doesn't concern you.  Stand aside."

	Molly glared at him.  "Kiss my..."

	"MOLLY!"  Serena stared at her in openmouthed 
astonishment, but Molly only looked at her innocently, 
completely unrepentant.

	"Boy, I didn't know she had such a pottymouth on her!"

	This statement came from a maliciously grinning Jupiter, 
who was proceeding to crawl through the window, followed by 
Mercury and a rather steamed-looking Mars, who gave Serena a 
withering stare.  Serena gulped and once again attempted to 
use Molly's skirt as a shield.

	"STOP THAT!" Molly hollered, slapping her hand away as 
Mercury and Jupiter grinned.

	"Well, this has all been very interesting," Jupiter 
drawled out, "but, Tux, if you do anything to hurt my friend 
here, I'm gonna have to kill you.  You know that, don't you?"

	"WHY DOES EVERYONE ASSUME I'M GONNA HURT SERENA?!?" 
Tuxedo Mask bellowed, glaring at them.

	"Maybe 'cause you look like an escaped tiger cornering 
its prey," Mars replied wryly, raising a delicate eyebrow.  
"Calm down.  This can't be good for your blood pressure, you 
know..."

	"Oh, YOU'RE one to talk!" Tuxedo Mask snapped, crossing 
his arms.

	Serena and Molly watched the two of them bicker with 
abject fascination, before Serena suddenly shook her head and 
scowled.  "EXCUSE ME!" she yelled.  "But Molly and I just HAPPEN 
to be in the middle of an important conversation...AND NOBODY 
INVITED YOU!  So would you all mind just LEAVING for awhile?!"

	The bickering stopped as five pairs of astonished eyes 
turned to stare at her.  "Well, fine then!" Mars huffed 
indignantly, tossing her hair.  "We'll leave you two alone!  
There's no need to be RUDE, Meatball Brains!"

	Serena's eyebrow started twitching and her teeth grated 
together.  "This.  Is.  Really.  Important," she bit out.  
"Leave.  Now.  BEFORE I MOONDUST THE WHOLE LOT OF YOU!"

	Apparently realizing that their beloved leader was about 
to lose what was left of her temper, Jupiter clapped a hand over 
Mars's mouth and dragged the growling Scout back out the window, 
chuckling all the way.  Mercury did the same with a struggling 
Tuxedo Mask--quite a trick considering he was nearly twice her 
size!--and Serena and Molly were left alone once again.

	They stared at the window, neither one speaking for a 
moment.  Then, finally, Molly spoke up.  "You have some weird 
friends."

	"Yeah," came Serena's reply.

	......

	......

	......

	"So...how about them cookies now?"

*	*	*	*	*
	Serena hummed happily as she skipped into the arcade, 
waving to Andrew on her way to the Sailor V game.  It was 
Friday afternoon, three days since her revelation to Molly, 
and things were going great!  She and Molly were closer than 
ever, and now she had someone else to talk to about all her 
fears of being Sailor Moon.  Someone who actually listened, 
who understood.  The Scouts were great pals, of course, but 
she knew she could never tell Raye half the things she told 
Molly and not have Raye accuse her of being a baby.  Amy and 
Lita might be slightly more understanding...but they both 
LIKED their jobs.  They still wouldn't fully comprehend the 
fears she kept hidden behind her mask of carelessness.  
Or maybe they would...if they'd take half the time to actually 
listen for a change!  Even Luna wasn't much help in these cases.  
So, Molly was Serena's new sounding board, and she was taking 
this whole thing very well, and if she worried, she didn't 
show it.  She'd even managed to keep Serena's secret.

	So, needless to say, Serena was in a pretty good mood.  
Not only did she get her best friend back, thus ending one of 
her worries, but there was no school for two whole days!  This 
was cause for celebration!

	"OHHH...It's a beautiful day in the NEIGH-borhood, a 
beautiful day in the neighbor-YEEK!"

	She hadn't noticed Darien standing there...

	"Hey, Meatball Head!  Been awhile since I've seen you.  
How's Molly doing?" the upperclassman asked, a slight grin 
twitching on his lips.

	"Uh...she's fine...Gotta go!"  

	Serena beat a hasty retreat, almost running backwards 
out the door again with another nervous wave to Andrew, before 
turning tail and racing down the street again.  At least...she 
WOULD have raced down the street, had not Darien reached out 
and grabbed the back of her shirt.  As it was, she made about 
ten frantic paces before she realized that her feet weren't 
taking her anywhere...

	"Hey!  Let me go!" she squealed.  "HELP!  POLICE!  I'M 
BEING KIDNAPPED!"

	Strong hands clapped over her mouth and she was abruptly 
pulled back inside the arcade again.  "Geez, Serena!  Are ya 
trying to get me arrested?!" Darien growled, turning her around.  
"Quit that!"

	"Hmmph!  Serves you right!" she exclaimed sulkily.  "The 
nerve!  Manhandling me like that!  You ought to learn some 
respect for other people!"  She shook a finger in his face to 
emphasize her point, until he relented and grinned down at her.

	"You're right, Meatball Head," he replied with a teasing 
smile.  "To make it up to you...let me buy you a soda."

	She pretended to think it over, then shot him a cunning 
glance.  "I don't know," she told him slyly.  "I was pretty 
embarrassed.  I think something more along the line 
of...say...an ice cream cone, would be a more sufficient 
apology..."

	Darien had to crack a smile at her cleverness; she was 
just too adorable!  He reached out and affectionately ruffled 
his hand in her hair, calling out to Andrew, "One chocolate 
ice cream cone with sprinkles, bud!"

	"Coming right up!" Andrew replied cheerfully as Serena 
looked on with astonishment.

	**That actually WORKED?!** she thought.  **Hmmm...maybe 
I'll have to try a guilt trip on him more often...**

	"So, how was your day?" Darien was asking as he pulled 
out a chair at a table near the window for her to sit in, 
before taking the other one for himself.  "Have any tests 
lately?"

	She shuddered.  "Please.  Don't mention school on a 
weekend.  It'll disrupt my karma," she replied with complete 
seriousness.  

	Darien smothered a laugh.  "Do you have any idea what 
you're talking about?" he asked, his voice muffled by his hand.  
But his eyes were sparkling with wicked humor, and they sent a 
little thrill of pleasure down her spine when they met her own.  
To cover up her sudden, strange feeling, she stuck out her 
tongue at him and then concentrated on licking her cone, which 
a waitress had just handed to her.

	Darien watched her eat; something that she made seem 
almost like a religious ceremony, so serious did she look as 
she struggled to catch every stray drop of the melting ice 
cream on her tongue.  Eventually, he began to feel a little 
uncomfortable.  **Does the child even realize how stimulating 
she makes the simple act of eating ice cream look?!** he wondered, 
tugging at his turtleneck.  That little pink tongue, darting 
in and out, her eyes taking on a dreamy, thoughtful look as 
she concentrated...

	He took a deep breath, then let it out slowly, running 
his hands through his hair as images of Serena filled his head.  
He'd always had a vivid imagination...

	"Hey, that looks good!  Mind if I have a bite?" he suddenly 
asked, trying to break the tension he felt.

	Serena glared at him, holding the cone possessively.  
"Get your own," she sniffed.  

	He stifled another chuckle.  Rule number one: Never try 
to get between Serena and her food.  Then, as a wicked idea came 
upon him, his grin widened.  "Now, considering I paid for that 
cone, don't you think it's only fair to give me one little bite?" 
he asked, and before she quite knew what he was about, he angled 
his head and leaned over to take a nip off the top of the 
cone...just as she did the same.  

	The result of that little idea: Neither one of them 
actually managed to touch the cone, because their lips 
inadvertently ended up connecting right above it...

	Now...this had NOT been part of Darien's plan...but he 
certainly wasn't about to complain...

	Serena, on the other hand, froze, her eyes going wide at 
the unfamiliar feel of warm lips brushing her own.  It took her 
a moment to realize that, yes, she was being kissed, and yes, 
it was Darien who was doing the kissing.  Well...at least she 
THOUGHT he was... At least, she didn't think she was kissing 
him back... Although...the experience was not 
exactly...unpleasant...

	Darien closed his eyes, fighting the strong urge to turn 
this chaste kiss into something deeper and much more wild.  Her 
lips were soft and cool on his, slightly sticky due to the ice 
cream, and he held them to his own for as long as he dared 
before pulling away, licking his lips carefully.  He could taste 
the sweet chocolate on his tongue.  Serena was staring at him, 
her eyes wide and somewhat frightened, and bright color had 
bloomed in her cheeks.  He cleared his throat, wondering how 
to break the tension, then grinned and shrugged lightly.  
"Thanks for the bite, Serena.  It was...delicious," he said 
softly.

	Serena blushed even more and turned away to stare out 
the window, shaking her head slightly and muttering something 
about being crazy...but he could see a slight smile pulling at 
her lips, and her eyes held a dreamy expression.  She continued 
to eat the cone, not bothering to reply, and he smiled and sat 
back in his chair, now content to simply watch her.

*	*	*	*	*
	Serena didn't go to sleep until well after midnight that 
night.  She sat up at her window with her knees drawn under her 
chin, staring at the moon as she absently fingered her silver 
bracelet.  What a weird day, she thought, her mind replaying 
the scene in the arcade, when Darien had kissed her.  **What 
possessed him to do it?** she wondered.  **It's not like him 
to be so...forward!**  Not that she had minded it, granted.  
In fact, the more she remembered it, the more she realized 
that she had actually liked it.  He had been so gentle, his 
kiss so soft, and not intrusive in any way, although she had 
been a little startled at first.  

	She sighed, looking down at her wrist where the bracelet 
shone softly in the moonlight.  What struck her as odd was that 
Darien hadn't reacted to the kiss.  She'd feared that for sure 
he would have some snide comment about it, even though he had 
initiated it, if even by accident.  She knew she'd had ice cream 
all over her mouth, but he had looked at her, and there had been 
such an expression in his eyes as he licked his lips...and then 
he had told her...that it had been delicious?  In that 
moment...she had thought she could almost love him...

	"Arrrgh!  This is so confusing!" she complained, thumping 
her head against the wall.  "I'm not supposed to be in love with 
Darien!  I'm SUPPOSED to be in love with Ryan!  He's my BOYFRIEND 
for pity's sake!"  Although...Ryan had never actually tried to 
kiss her like that before...

	And what about her secret admirer?  She glanced at the 
bracelet again, fingering the moon and rose charms.  Moons and 
roses.  Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask.  She sat up with a gasp, 
her eyes going wide as a realization hit her.  The 
implications...suddenly they were so obvious!  Did...did her 
secret admirer know about her alto ego?!  But...she'd been so 
careful, and she knew that besides the Scouts and Tuxedo Mask 
and Molly, nobody else could possibly know!  Still...

	**What if...Tuxedo Mask is my secret admirer?**

	She blinked.  Where had THAT thought come from?  It was 
utterly ludicrous, of course.  If Tuxedo Mask was her secret 
admirer...then that would mean Darien was her secret admirer, 
as well!  She shook her head, smiling wryly.  And that was 
nothing more than wishful thinking on her part!  It was 
coincidence, and nothing more.

	**But what about RYAN?!** the annoying part of her 
conscience whined.

	She frowned, looking up at the moon again.  What ABOUT 
Ryan?  The truth was...Ryan just didn't seem so important 
anymore.  With everything else going on-with her developing 
friendship with Darien--he was nothing more than...than a name.  
A stranger, really.  How well did she know him, after all?  He 
was never around lately, and she had not known him all that 
well in the first place.  The truth was...she was almost tired 
of thinking about him.  

	"So...that being the case...the only fair thing to 
do...is to break up with him..." she whispered, and waited 
for the pain of that realization to swamp her.

	She waited...  

	And waited...

	Hmmm...shouldn't she be feeling a LOT more pain than this?

	Apparently not, because there was nothing inside her but 
a sense of...was it relief?  She sighed and closed her eyes.  
Yes, it was definitely relief.  Which could only mean that, 
as much as she didn't want to admit it, dumping Ryan would be 
the right thing to do.  She tried to think up every good memory 
that they'd had together, and was slightly miffed to find that 
there weren't that many to recall.  He'd been a boyfriend in 
name only, it seemed.  They'd rarely gone out on any real dates, 
except to the arcade, and when they were together they'd ended 
up in arguments that ended with him insulting her in one way or 
another and one or both of them storming off.

	"I've been such a fool..." she whispered, tears leaking 
through her closed eyelids.  "I never loved Ryan.  I guess 
everyone was right.  The only thing I loved was the fact I 
could say I had an older boyfriend.  He's brought nothing but 
misery to me the whole time."

	And now that she knew this...she also knew that there 
was another man that she'd much rather be dating.  One she 
knew she could easily fall in love with, if she hadn't already.  
Her and Darien's discussion about soulmates came back to her, 
and her smile was bitter.  She'd suggested, half in jest, that 
maybe her soulmate lived in Australia.  But now she was almost 
certain...he had been sitting right beside her the whole time, 
and she hadn't even realized it.  Now she wondered how she could 
have possibly missed it.  She smiled softly as she pictured 
Darien's handsome face and his beautiful blue eyes.  Imagine that.  
Darien had ended up being the man of her dreams, after all.  
Whoever would have thought?  

	"Wonder what his reaction would be if I came up to him 
and told him that we were destined to be together," she 
commented wryly.  But she knew what it would be.  He'd fall 
over laughing, and then never speak to her again.  He'd 
offered his friendship, but if he thought he'd given her any 
wrong signals he'd end it in a snap, she knew.  He was too 
honorable to lead her on, and she was only fourteen.  She was 
jail bait, basically.  Darien would avoid her like the plague, 
and that thought made her unbearably sad.  No...best he never 
found out about her growing affection for him, not if she 
expected him to stick around.

	Serena sighed and stood, pacing over to her desk.  
A sheet of paper lay on top of it, and a pen lay beside it, 
winking up at her as though daring her to pick it up.  There 
was an assignment due for her Literature class.  She had the 
weekend to write a poem or short story about something that 
was important to her.  Up 'till then she'd had no idea what 
to write about, being rather un-poetic by nature, but now... 

	She gazed down at the pen, then moved her hand to answer 
the challenge and pick it up.  She sat in her chair, feeling 
inspiration flowing through her, and slowly began to write.  

	It was a very good thing, a part of her thought wryly, 
that Luna was out of the room.  Otherwise the cat would 
probably keel over from the shock of seeing Serena actually 
doing her homework.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Eleven
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	The weekend passed with little mishap.  Serena tried to 
seek Ryan out several times, feeling that it was urgent to talk 
to him and let him know right away where things were 
leading--namely nowhere--but he was nowhere to be found, which 
frustrated her to no end.  She and Molly spent the whole weekend 
together, and she confessed her changed feelings about Ryan, 
whereas Molly squealed and nearly knocked Serena over with her 
enthusiastic response.  Apparently relief didn't even begin to 
cover it.

	On Monday, Serena stood before her class and read the 
poem she'd written the night she'd realized her true feelings 
for Darien, trying her best to keep her knees from knocking 
together as she poured out her heart to the class.  When it 
was over, she received a standing ovation with Molly acting 
as head cheerleader, and Miss Haruna looked like she was about 
to go into cardiac arrest from the shock.  

	Serena got an "A" on the poem.

*	*	*	*	*
	Molly cornered her in the arcade after school, and the 
decidedly determined gleam in her green eyes was warning enough 
for Serena that she was about to be interrogated.  "Hey, Moll!  
Want a burger?  My treat!" she suggested nervously, trying to 
distract her friend, who was now circling her like a vulture.  
She forgot, of course, that using food as a distraction was 
something that generally only worked for herself.  

	"Okay, Sere.  Who is he?" Molly asked, completely ignoring 
her question.

	"Who's who?" Serena asked innocently.

	"Don't play innocent with ME!  You know who I mean!" 
Molly pouted.  "The guy in your poem!  Who is he?  Do I know 
him?"

	Serena giggled, a sweatdrop appearing on her forehead.  
"Get real, Moll!  It was a stupid poem!"

	"Nu-uh!  The assignment WAS to write about something 
you care about...and you wrote about a boy!  So who is he?  
And DON'T tell me it's Ryan, or I'll knock you into next week!"

	Serena gulped.  "Well...uh...you see..." she stammered, 
not sure how to get out of the trap she'd walked into.

	"Let me see it," Molly commanded, holding out her hand 
and wagging her fingers.  Serena pouted and slumped down into 
her seat.  "Come on.  Let me see the poem," she demanded again.

	"No," Serena replied sulkily.

	"Serena!  Show me that poem!"

	Serena huffed, then reached into her bag and yanked out 
a slightly crumpled paper with a large A scrawled in red ink 
on the top.  "Fine," she grumbled, shoving the paper at Molly, 
who scanned it with keen eyes.

	"Ah-HA!" the redhead crowed, pointing to a certain line.  
"You mention black hair and...and BLUE eyes!  It's DARIEN, isn't 
it?  ISN'T it?!"

	"Shut up, Moll!  D'ya want the whole world to find out?!  
Geez!" Serena hissed, snatching back the paper and shoving it 
back into the bag, glancing around nervously.  There was no 
sign of black hair and blue eyes in the arcade, but one never 
knew... "Come on, let's go to my place and watch a video, okay?"

	"Only if you'll tell me all about Darien!" Molly sang, 
her eyes sparkling wickedly.  

	Serena clapped her hands over her friend's mouth and 
practically dragged her to the door.  "Okay, okay!  Just hush 
up already!" she nearly snarled, smacking her across the back 
of the head.  Molly squealed and laughed as she ran out of the 
arcade, taunting Serena all the way. 

	Things were definitely back to normal between those two...

	Neither of them noticed a slip of paper, shoved halfway 
into Serena's bag, fall from its resting place and flutter 
quietly to the floor behind them.  

	But somebody else did, and when he picked it up and began 
to read it, stormy blue eyes slowly widened with wonder. 

	"I thought I had found someone
	to care for me,
	but I was wrong.
	Our love was an illusion,
	like the image in a mirror,
	and when I looked into that mirror
	it cracked...

	My world was dark,
	Aloneness my only companion,
	until you came;
	my dark, beautiful prince.
	Hair like polished ebony,
	eyes like the mysterious sea,
	so dark and turbulent and passionate...
	How can I keep from drowning in them?
	
	How can I keep from
	hoping,
	dreaming,
	that someday those eyes
	might look to me with love?
	Because only your love
	will drive away my dark companion
	and let Wholeness take its place...
	
	It is your love I crave,
	no matter how cold and aloof you seem.
	Aloneness is your companion, too.
	Will there be a time
	when you'll allow my love
	to warm your heart?
	Will your mirror crack
	if you see my image within it?
	Can you accept
	that I love you...?"

	Raising his eyes heavenward, a soft smile tugged at 
Darien's lips as he clutched the poem to his heart...

*	*	*	*	*
	"Where IS it?!  I can't find it ANYWHERE!" Serena cried 
as she proceeded to turn her empty book bag upside down yet 
again and shake it over her bed.  Its contents were already 
spread out all over the place, but among the books and pens 
and pencils, there was no sign of a certain piece of paper 
anywhere.  She'd already turned the rest of the house into 
a hurricane disaster area searching for it there, as well, 
but it had not turned up.  "If Darien gets a glimpse of that 
poem I'll just DIIIEEE!" she wailed, causing Luna and Molly 
to cover their ears at the sound.

	"I'm sure it'll turn up," the cat began comfortingly.  
Now that Molly knew the secret, it was okay to talk in front 
of her, although Molly had just about died of shock after the 
first time Luna said hello to her.  Even now she still looked 
a little uncertain about a talking cat.  "You probably dropped 
it in the arcade.  Somebody will find it and turn it in..."

	For some reason, this only made Serena wail louder.

	Finally, Luna had had about all she could take.  "All 
right!  Quit wailing!  Let's retrace your steps to the arcade 
and see if it's still there!  Maybe nobody found it yet!"
	
	Serena sniffed.  "Really, Luna?" she asked.  "Thank you!"  
She picked up the cat and gave her a tight hug.  "Let's go right 
now, okay?"  She put Luna on her shoulder and grabbed Molly's 
hand, racing out the door and calling goodbye to her mother.  
It had only been a half hour since she'd come home and discovered 
the poem missing.  Maybe nobody had found it yet...

	"Serena, slow down!  If it got dropped out here, you might 
miss it with all these people around!" Molly panted.

	Serena slowed her pace.  "What if somebody threw it 
away?" she cried.  "That's the only copy I had of it!"

	"Well...least you know Darien won't be reading it then," 
Molly replied helpfully.  

	Serena brightened.  "That's right!  If I had a choice, 
I'd rather it get trashed than have Darien read it and laugh 
his lungs out over it.  Hey, there's the arcade!  Let's go in, 
quick!"

	She raced across the street, leaving Molly to follow her, 
and burst into the arcade, looking for Andrew.  He was at the 
counter, polishing a glass as he talked in a low voice 
to...Darien.  That brought her to a screeching halt, and she 
cast a panicked glance to Molly.  Now what was she supposed to 
do?  Molly merely shrugged, offering no help.  Luna wasn't much 
help, either.  She had been left outside, since pets--even 
talking ones--weren't generally allowed in the arcade.  Serena 
took a deep breath, walking slowly up to the counter.  Somehow, 
she had to get that poem back...

	Andrew gave her a surprised glance.  "Back again so 
soon?" he asked with a grin.  "Want a milkshake?"

	Serena shook her head, casting a nervous glance toward 
Darien.  He was watching her, his face expressionless...but 
had that been a flicker of...amusement in his eyes?  **Oh no!** 
she thought.  **Does he know something?!  Did Andrew find the 
poem and let him read it?  He wouldn't be that cruel to me, 
would he?  But...Darien's his best friend...**  Aware that they 
were both waiting for her to speak, Serena blinked to clear her 
thoughts, then took a deep breath.

	"Um...Andrew, I was wondering if...ah...if anyone had 
turned in...a piece of paper," she said slowly, cursing her 
fair skin that allowed the whole world to see her blush.  
Even her toenails were turning red!

	Andrew's voice was neutral as he asked, "What kind of 
paper, Serena?"
	
	**He knows something,** Serena thought darkly.  **He's playing 
with me, the rat!**  That might have been a little unfair on her 
part, but she was too panicked to care.  

	"It's...um...a homework assignment.  I got an A on it, 
and I wanted to show my mom, but I can't find it.  I 
thought...I thought maybe it got left here..."

	Andrew smiled at her gently.  "Nobody turned in anything 
like that to me," he replied, and she nearly sagged with 
relief...until her eyes fell upon a slip of notebook paper 
tucked neatly under Darien's coffee cup, with her name and 
the beginning of a red 'A' showing clearly on the top line...

	Her face went from red to deathly white in a single 
moment, and for a moment she feared she was going to pass out.  
Darien was looking at her with concern, reaching out to her to 
keep her from collapsing, but she stepped away from him.  
"Th-that's mine," she whispered, pointing to the paper.

	"I know," he replied quietly, taking the paper and gazing 
down at it.  "It's a beautiful poem, Serena.  You deserve that A."

	**Is he mocking me?** she thought dully.  **It would be 
just like him.**  She held out a trembling hand.  "I-I'd like 
it back please," she whispered.  Maybe...maybe he didn't know 
that he was the subject of her poem...

	Of course he was smarter than that.  "Didn't you write 
this poem for me?" he asked, meeting and holding her gaze 
steadily.  There was no sign of mockery on his face, but he 
was an expert at hiding emotions, after all.  "I think...maybe 
we need to talk," he continued gently, taking her hand and 
tracing her palm softly with his thumb.

	**And let you walk all over my heart?  Not in THIS lifetime, 
you won't!** she thought angrily, tugging her hand away.  
"I...have to go now.  Mom's expecting me.  Bye!"  In a sudden 
move, she snatched the paper from his hand and turned and bolted 
for the door, ignoring his plea for her to stop.

*	*	*	*	*
	"What just happened here?" Andrew asked as Darien watched 
Serena run off, tempted to follow her, but knowing it would do 
no good.  

	"She got scared and ran," he replied softly, turning back 
to the counter.

	"Well...aren't you gonna go after her?" Andrew demanded.  
"Sweep her off her feet!  Tell her you love her!  Kiss the sweet 
breath out of her, for pity's sake!  Don't just let her go!"

	Darien smiled wryly.  "It isn't that simple, Andrew," 
he replied.  "If it was anyone else, I'd do that, but this 
is Serena.  If I go to her now, she'll just think I'm making 
fun of her, like I always do.  She wouldn't believe me."

	"Well...haven't you tried to change?" Andrew asked, 
scratching his head.  "Why not admit you're her secret admirer? 
She'll have to believe you, then!"

	Darien sighed.  "Oh, I'm gonna admit it, all right.  
But it has to be special.  She deserves something special," 
he replied.  "Right now, I think it's best that I let her 
alone, until she calms down.  Besides...I have a feeling 
she still has some things she needs to work out yet."

	"Like what?" Andrew challenged.

	Darien shrugged and replied simply, "Ryan."

*	*	*	*	*
	"Blew it, blew it, BLEW it!" Serena growled, bonking 
her head against the wall until she saw stars.  "He'll never 
talk to me again!  I've ruined everything!  Why did I ever 
write that stupid poem?!"

	"Calm down, Serena," Molly said soothingly.  "I'm sure 
things aren't as bad as you're making them out to be..."

	"You don't understand!" Serena wailed.  "He'll stop 
wanting to be my friend!  Do you think he'd want to risk 
going to jail for having an underage kid love him?!"

	Luna snorted.  "Serena, it would take a lot more than 
you just loving him to send Darien to jail," she replied.  
"There's no crime in loving someone older.  Just in acting on it."

	"I KNOW!" Serena wailed.  "Which is why Darien won't 
return my feelings, 'cause it's against the law!"

	Molly giggled as a sweatdrop appeared on Luna's forehead.  
"Silly!" she tittered.  "That's not what Luna meant!"

	"Then what DID Luna mean?" Serena asked sulkily.

	Molly rolled her eyes, then leaned over to whisper in 
her ear.  Serena's eyes went wide, and her face turned bright 
red.  "Eeeewwww!" she squealed.  "Wash your mouth out with soap, 
Molly!  That's just GROSS!"

	"Dummy," Molly giggled, smacking her friend lightly 
across the head.  "Don't let Darien hear you say that!  He'd 
be mortally insulted!"

	"I didn't mean it like THAT!" Serena muttered, pouting.  
"Oh, everything's a mess!  I just want to curl into a little 
ball and disappear!"

	"Well, there's no sense in worrying about it," Molly 
said practically.  "Nothing we can do now."

	"You are so not helping," Serena grumbled.  Then she 
sighed.  "Well, let's go see if dinner's ready.  I'll figure 
out what to do about Darien later.  I can't think on an empty 
stomach!"

	"Or do anything else, for that matter," Molly teased.

	"Hey!  What's that supposed to mean!" Serena protested, 
snatching at her friend, who ducked and ran, laughing, down 
the stairs.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Twelve
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~
Three a.m.
~~~~~~~~

	The beeping of her communicator woke Serena from a deep 
sleep in which she'd been dreaming that she had been dancing 
with a handsomely-dressed Darien, who was gazing into her eyes 
with adoration.  In fact, he'd been just about to kiss her when 
that blasted device finally managed to bring her back to reality.  
More than a little annoyed, Serena snatched it from its place on 
her bedside table and turned it on, glaring at the image of 
Sailor Mars that filled the small screen.

	"WHAT?!" she snarled.

	"It's about time you woke up!  I've been calling for 
ten minutes, Meatball Brains!" Mars snapped, ignoring Serena's 
glare.  "Get your tail out of bed already!  We have a bit of a 
pest control problem at the Royal Crown Hotel!"

	"So call the exterminators," Serena growled.

	"We ARE the exterminators, you dope!" Mars retorted, and 
the screen went blank.

	"Why can't we have mutant cockroaches and jumbo-sized 
sewer rats like NORMAL cities?!" Serena grumbled as she 
untangled herself from the sheets and climbed out the window.  
After running a safe distance down the street, she paused and 
threw her hand into the air.  "MOON PRISM POWER, MAKE-UP!" she 
yelled, and in a flash of light and a few twirls later, Sailor 
Moon had taken her place.

	Using her extra stamina, she took a leap into the air 
that landed her on a nearby roof, from there bounding easily 
from one building to the next until she came within range of 
the brightly-lit hotel.  Sailor Mercury was just arriving, 
she noted smugly, pleased that, for once, she wasn't the only 
one who was late!  "Hey, Mercury!  Ready to kick some Nega-butt?" 
she called out cheerfully as she caught up to her pal.

	"I wish the Negaverse would choose more appropriate times 
to attack the world," Mercury replied grumpily, and Serena 
grinned.  Apparently even perfectly-composed Amy wasn't THIS
much of a morning person.  

	The two girls crept into the hotel, heading for the 
ballroom, where faint shrieks drifted through open doors.  
The site that greeted them was horrible.  Bodies littered 
the floor, all decked out to the nines, completely drained 
of energy, and in the center of the huge room the other two 
Scouts were busily dodging blasts of energy from a hideously 
disfigured youma.  "How come I never get invited to any of 
these fancy balls?" Sailor Moon complained as she eyed one 
of the expensive evening gowns-the very one she'd tried on 
at the mall all those days ago-enviously.

	"Quit whining and get over here and HELP us!" Mars 
bellowed from across the room as she dodged a particularly 
nasty blast that left a hole the size of a Mac truck in the 
wall.  

	The hotel was gonna have some pretty expensive insurance 
disputes after this little fight was over...

	Sailor Moon smirked.  "SOMEBODY sure is cranky without 
their beauty sleep...and believe me, you need all the help you 
can get!" she hollered back...then yelped and ducked as a 
"stray" firebolt hissed past her head.  "HEY!  WATCH IT!"

	"Soorrry!" Mars sang, sounding not at all in the least 
repentant.

	Sailor Moon growled, then prepared to give the speech.  
Mercury had already joined in the fight, but as leader, Sailor 
Moon felt she had to let the Negaverse know what was coming to 
them.  "For daring to ruin this lovely party...and for destroying
my beautiful dream...I WILL PUNISH YOU!  I am Sailor Moon, and 
you are MOON-DUSTED!"

	"Very impressive.  Shut up and FIGHT, already!" Mars 
snapped, barely dodging another attack as she released one 
of her own, which missed.

	"Great aim, Pyro!" Sailor Moon taunted, removing her 
tiara.  "Now watch a pro do it!  MOON TIARA MAGIC!"

	The glowing disc flew from her hand, arching gracefully 
toward the youma...who calmly sidestepped it and continued to 
pound the living daylights out of Jupiter.

	"Now who's got lousy aim?!" Mars sneered as she rushed 
to help poor Jupiter.  

	But Sailor Moon wasn't done yet.  She narrowed her eyes 
and concentrated on bringing the tiara back around, boomerang 
style.  It might have worked, had the youma (literally) not had 
eyes in the back of its head.  Once again it sidestepped, and 
Sailor Moon nearly screamed in frustration as she concentrated 
on bringing it around yet again!  "Hold still, will ya?!" she 
yelled impatiently.  "I can't keep this up forever!"

	"I'm SO sorry," the youma sneered, and leaped to attack, 
claws extended.  Sailor Moon shrieked, not sure which way to 
dodge, but suddenly something warm and solid slammed into her, 
knocking her out of the way.  She landed with an "OOF!" as 
Tuxedo Mask landed on top of her.

	"Are you okay?" he asked, his face so close to her own 
that she could see the deep blue of his eyes through the white 
mask.

	"I-I'm fine," she stammered, momentarily forgetting 
where she was.  Then he moved off of her, giving her a 
wonderful view of the youma hurtling at them full-speed-ahead, 
and her wits came rushing back.  She rolled them both over, 
just as the youma struck, razor claws leaving deep gouges in 
the floor right beside their heads.  Sailor Moon yelped and 
scrambled back, but Tuxedo Mask used the youma's proximity 
to bury a razor-tipped rose into its chest.  It reared back, 
howling, clawing at its chest.  Tuxedo Mask looked to Sailor 
Moon, opening his mouth to command her to dust it, but she was 
already moving.  

	This time, when the tiara flew at it, the glowing disc 
connected, slicing the creature neatly in half before it 
crumbled into dust and vanished.


*	*	*	*	*
	"Are we awesome or WHAT?!" Sailor Moon cheered later 
on from the roof of the hotel.  "What a rush!  But I'm beat, 
so I'm going home!  See ya later!"  

	"Wait!" Tuxedo Mask suddenly commanded gruffly, reaching 
out to grab her arm.  "You can't leave yet."

	She looked up at him, surprised, and more than a little 
annoyed.  "Well, if it isn't tall, dark, and obnoxious," she 
snorted.  "And why, pray tell, is that?"

	He seemed taken aback at her sarcasm, but she was tired, 
and cranky, and more than a little afraid to face him in her 
weary state.  He was Darien, after all...the Darien who had 
discovered her love poem about him...

	"I...we really need to talk, Serena," he told her softly, 
ignoring her disapproving glare at his use of her name while she 
was transformed.  His voice extremely gentle as he added, 
"Please...can't you stay for a while longer?"

	Ohhh...this was NOT good!  No way would she be able to 
resist him when he used THAT tone on her!  Better he continue 
to act like a macho egotist; THAT was a little easier to get 
mad at!  "I'm really tired, Tuxedo Mask, so..."

	"Please," he pleaded, his voice a near whisper.

	Sailor Moon gritted her teeth against the urge to give 
in, knowing he was only trying to make her melt into a puddle, 
as probably every other poor sap did when he so much as glanced 
at them.  She cast a pleading glance to the other Scouts, but 
they suddenly seemed to find the roof much more interesting 
than the little drama being played before them...  

	She scowled.  Some friends they were!  She used her 
irritation to her advantage.  "Look, I have school tomorrow, 
and I'm tired, so we can talk another time," she snapped, 
yanking her arm away from his grip.  Or tried to, anyhow.  
He didn't let go.  Now he was mad!  His eyes were practically
smoldering, even through his mask.  **What's HE got to be mad 
about?!** she thought resentfully.  **I'M the one who's being 
harassed, here!**

	"Look," he growled, his patience at an end, tightening 
his grip on her arm even more.  "You and I are GOING to have 
a talk!  Even if I have to tie you to a CHAIR to do it, you 
WILL listen to what I have to say!"

	She stared up at him through wide eyes, her anger 
vanishing as uncertainty gleefully took its place, then 
turned to once again look at the Scouts.  But she saw, 
to her dismay, that they had vanished!  They had left 
her alone with him!  How dare they do that to her!  
**Somebody is going to find something warm and squishy in 
their beds tomorrow night...** she thought sourly, then 
powered down.  There was no sense wasting energy, after all.  
She couldn't escape from this guy even if she tried.

	Apparently taking her transformation as consent, Tuxedo 
Mask suddenly scooped a startled Serena into his arms, cradling 
her close and leaping from the rooftop.  She squealed into his 
cape as she suddenly found herself airborne.  "What are you 
doing?  Did you suddenly revert back to a Neanderthal?!  PUT ME 
DOWN!" she hollered.

	"Don't think that would be a good idea right now..." 
he retorted, sounding more than a little amused.  

	Serena glanced over his shoulder, at the city that 
stretched far below them, and heartily agreed.  She had 
known he could take inhumanly-long jumps in this form, of 
course--they all could--but apparently...he could also fly!  
What was he?  Superman?!  "When you put me down again, you'd 
better hope you have your will written up, 'cause I'm gonna 
kill you!" she growled, but to her extreme agitation he merely 
chuckled in reply.  He finally landed, on a large balcony 
with a superb view overlooking the park, which was slowly 
growing lighter with approaching dawn.  He gently set Serena 
on her feet and powered down into Darien, keeping his arms 
lightly around her waist, as though afraid she'd run off.  
**And where does he think I'm gonna run off TO?** she wondered 
sourly.

	"Where are we?"  She tried to keep her voice as flat 
and uncaring as possible, but the truth was that she was 
actually dying of curiosity.  From what she could see of 
the dark room behind them, it was somebody's apartment 
balcony they stood on...and she had a sneaking suspicion 
she knew whose it was.

	"My apartment."

	Bingo.
	
	"Um...and why are we at your apartment?" she asked 
suspiciously.  Hero or not, she was not about to trust going 
into ANY guy's apartment at this time of night--well, morning, 
technically--without some sort of chaperone.  She'd heard 
stories about things like this... **You dolt!  This is Darien 
for pity's sake!  He wouldn't even THINK of hurting you like 
that!** she scolded herself for her uncharitable thoughts.  
Still...

	"And exactly why are we here?"

	"Because it's private, and I need something to eat.  
It's nearly dawn, after all.  Might as well make some 
breakfast, right?  Do you like pancakes?"  The incredulous 
look she cast at him made him chuckle.  "Right.  Stupid 
question," he added as he slid open the glass doors.  
"Well?  Are you coming in or not?"

	Serena hesitated, torn between wanting food and wanting 
badly to make an escape before things got too serious and he 
remembered their "talk".  She could see the front door from 
where she stood... She began calculating the speed at which 
she'd need to move in order to cross that wide expanse of 
carpet before he caught her and tied her to a chair like 
he'd threatened.

	"Want some hot chocolate?  It's homemade."

	Well...there went that idea...

	"You always know just what to say to make me submit, 
don't you?" she complained as she marched in and sat down 
with a little "hmmph" on his dining room table.

	He grinned at her and ruffled her hair.  "Call it a gift."

	"I can think of plenty of things to call it, but 'gift' 
isn't one of them," she grumbled, swinging her legs in the air, 
seriously tempted to "accidentally" kick him in the knee...or 
a little higher, maybe...

	"Well, anyhow, while I make the chocolate, how about 
we start our talk," he suggested, his voice carefully neutral.

	Panic immediately set in.  **What'll I do?  What'll I 
do?** she thought frantically.  **I can't let him mention that 
poem!  I don't want to know what he thinks of me!  I...I don't 
want to hear that he doesn't love me!**  Then an idea hit her 
that was so simple, she wondered why she hadn't thought of it 
before.

	Change the subject.

	"Look, Darien," she began in her best annoyed voice, 
"I know you're ticked off that I told Molly about me being 
Sailor Moon, but it was my choice, and it's really none 
of your concern, anyway.  So drop the subject, already!"  
**Don't really do that now, though,** she pleaded silently.  
**Better this subject than that one...**

	Thankfully, the distraction--and the reminder that, yes, 
Darien WAS mad about that little incident--seemed to put any 
other thoughts aside for the time being.  He looked 
momentarily startled, but then he frowned and turned away 
from the stove to face her, fists resting on narrow hips.  
"You don't even realize the danger you put Molly in by 
telling her this!" he scolded.  "Remember what you told me?  
Well, it applies to her, too, you know..."

	"HA!"  Serena seized upon his words.  "And YOU aren't 
supposed to know, either, are you?!" she crowed, triumphantly 
pointing a finger at him.  "You followed me and SPIED on me!  
If YOU weren't who you are, you'd be in as much danger as Molly, 
so don't you go yelling at ME, Jack!"

	"BUT I AM TUXEDO MASK!" he yelled right back.

	"WE DIDN'T KNOW THAT AT THE TIME!"

	"WHO CARES?  I KNEW, AND THAT IS WHAT'S IMPORTANT!"
	
	"YEAH?  WELL, I-"
	
	Their deafening bickering was suddenly cut off by the 
shrill ringing of the telephone, startling them into silence.  
Even the phone sounded pissed off.  Darien picked it up after 
the third ring.  "Hello?" he asked cautiously.

	"WILL YOU PEOPLE SHUT UP?!  SOME OF US ARE TRYING TO 
SLEEP HERE!"

	Darien winced and held the phone well away from his 
ear as the caller continued to rant.  Finally, he managed 
to say, from a distance of five inches, "I'm terribly sorry, 
Mr. Yamota.  Th-the T.V somehow turned on and was turned up 
full blast.  I-I'll have it looked at tomo...this morning."  
He slammed down the phone and heaved a sigh of relief.

	Serena was staring at him, her lips twitching slightly.  
He raised a questioning eyebrow at her as she began to giggle, 
then to outright laugh, doubling over and clutching her stomach 
with both arms.  Slowly, as their absurd situation hit him, 
he began to laugh, as well, until both of them were nearly 
rolling on the floor in hysterics.  **We are definitely losing 
it,** he thought as he calmed himself down, afraid his landlord 
would call again.

	"Well, that was...fun," he said, still chuckling a 
little.  "Hold on a sec.  I'll make breakfast.  Then..."  
He looked at a still-grinning Serena over his shoulder, 
"...we'll talk about what I really want to discuss with you..."

	Serena suddenly didn't look so amused anymore.

	"Don't go anywhere," he called, disappearing into the 
kitchen.  He hurried to heat the water, knowing that every 
second counted.  He doubted she'd leave with the promise of 
food, but still...

	**Click.**

	He froze, his eyes going wide.  That had sounded like...

	Forgetting the boiling water, he turned and raced from 
the kitchen.  The table where Serena had sat was empty.  So 
was the apartment...and the front door hung open slightly.  
He raced from the room and down the hall in time to see the 
elevator door close.  

	"Serena!" he cried, slamming his fist into the wall 
in sudden fury.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Thirteen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	Serena felt like a rabbit.  A rabbit that was being 
stalked by a VERY pissed-off wolf.  She knew that she was 
only making a very difficult situation worse by running away 
from it, but she just couldn't bring herself to face him.  Not 
yet.  She slowed in front of the arcade, peeking inside to 
make sure the coast was clear, knowing that people were giving 
her strange looks, but not really caring.  She was far more 
worried about the looks she'd be getting from someone with 
"eyes like the mysterious sea" if he found her.  

	"Blech!  Did I really write that?" she asked herself, 
wrinkling her nose.  "Boy, if someone had written me something 
that sappy, I'd probably laugh my head off, too!"  She sighed, 
bowing her head, but brought it up a moment later when she saw 
a familiar figure sitting in a booth inside the arcade.  It 
was Ryan.  **Now's probably a good time to tell him that I 
don't want to see him anymore,** she thought nervously.  **Even 
though I know Darien won't ever love me, I still don't think 
it's fair to lead Ryan on when I obviously don't love him...**  
Before she could change her mind, she straightened up and 
walked into the arcade with her head high.  

	Too late, she forgot that Darien was probably waiting 
for her inside.  And indeed he was.  She saw him with his 
head bowed over a magazine, facing the door; no doubt awaiting 
his chance to corner her and wring her neck for abandoning him 
that morning.  Well, she'd just tell him that she had to get 
home before her mom realized she was gone.  It was true, after 
all, and no sooner had she made it back into bed then her 
mother had knocked on her door to wake her up.  She'd managed 
to get out of going to school by pleading she was sick, and her 
pallid complexion and the dark bruises under her eyes had been 
enough to convince her mother to let her stay home.  She might 
have enjoyed it more, of course, had Luna not decided to go all 
mother hen on her and scold her for going off alone.  She 
finally solved that problem by tossing the cat out the window.  

	Luckily there was a tree outside for her to land in.

	At any rate, as soon as the doors of the arcade whooshed 
open, Darien raised his head from his magazine, and ended up 
looking Serena straight in the eye.  She gulped.  He did NOT 
look happy.  Frowning, she raised her chin as he stood up and 
turned away from him, heading as fast as she could to Ryan's 
booth, sliding into the seat and shooting a triumphant glance 
at Darien, who clenched his fists.  For a moment she feared 
that he'd actually go over and drag her away, but suddenly he 
relaxed, and his tight expression became serene.  He met her 
gaze, his own filled with a strange knowing, and nodded his 
head once.  Then, to her utter surprise, he sat down again and 
began to read once more.

	**Well, THAT was weird!** Serena thought in confusion.  
**What was all that about?**  Her brow furrowing, she turned 
around again, and realized that Ryan was staring at her with 
a raised eyebrow, glancing back and forth between her and 
Darien.  She laughed nervously as a sweatdrop appeared on her 
forehead.  "Er...good afternoon, Ryan!" she chirped.  "Lovely 
day, isn't it?"

	"Hmmm...so what do you want, Serena?" he asked, putting 
down his fork.

	She bristled.  "Well, it's nice to see you, too.  I'm 
fine, thanks for asking!" she snapped, glaring at him.

	He snorted.  "Chill out, babe," he replied, taking 
another bite of pancakes.  "So what's on your mind?"

	Serena hesitated before deciding that the direct 
approach might be best.  "I don't think this relationship 
is working out, Ryan," she began stiffly.  "I tried, but 
you just don't seem to care, so I think it's best that we 
don't see each other anymore.  We can be friends, of course, 
but..."

	"WHAT?!" Ryan interrupted, sputtering.  "Y-you're breaking 
up with ME?!"

	Serena blinked.  "Well...yeah," she replied.

	To her shock, he began to laugh.  She stood up abruptly, 
clenching her fists.  "What's so funny?!" she yelled.  "You 
think it's funny that I want to break up with you?!  Well, 
fine!  I'm outta here!"  She turned to march away, but he 
reached out and grabbed her wrist.  "Let go!" she snapped, 
trying to yank it away.

	"C'mon, Serena.  Don't be like this," Ryan said, his 
voice soothing.  "Sit down and let's work this out, okay?  
Whatever got you mad at me...well, I'm sorry.  We can work 
things out, right?"  His voice lowered into a seductive purr.  
"You know you mean the world to me..."

	Serena felt her anger draining away as he looked at 
her through lowered eyelids.  It was that look he'd given 
her when he'd first asked her out, and that he sometimes 
used to calm her down when she got mad at him.  She could 
never resist that pleading gaze.  She felt it working now, 
and she half moved to sit down again, ready to talk about 
what she felt.  He could make things better...he always could...  

	But something stopped her.  She felt someone watching 
her, and turned her head just enough to see that Darien stood 
there, his eyes burning into her, looking mad and worried all 
at once.  When he saw he'd caught her attention, he shook his 
head slightly, as though begging her not to give in to Ryan's 
manipulation.  She hesitated, and he shook his head again, 
mouthing something that looked like, "Don't do it..."

	"Serena, are you even listening to me?"

	Ryan's voice cut through her confusion like a sword, 
making her start with surprise.  She blinked, then looked 
down at Ryan, who was glaring at her with open annoyance.  
As soon as she looked at him, however, that secretive, 
seductive mask slipped back over his face, hiding his 
irritation easily.  It seemed that Darien wasn't the only 
one who hid emotions well...

	"Ryan, I have to go," she told him firmly.  "I'm sorry, 
but I just can't take this anymore.  Everyone kept trying to 
tell me...but I wouldn't listen.  But I've thought it over, 
and I've decided that I don't love you, and I don't think you 
love me, either."

	"Love?!"  Ryan burst into laughter again.  "Who said 
anything about LOVE?!  Is that what you thought?  That I loved 
you?  Boy, you sure have this whole dating thing wrong!  It 
was just for fun!" he exclaimed, shaking his head.  "Boy, you 
are a kid, aren't you?  Don't you know anything?"

	It was no more than she'd expected, but it still hurt 
like the dickens.  She could feel Darien's eyes burning into 
her, and it only made the humiliation worse.  She sucked in a 
sharp breath and stared at Ryan through tear-filled eyes.  "No, 
I don't guess I do," she replied, her voice gone deadly soft as 
she fought to hold back anger.  "I'm sorry I wasted your 
time...but I'm even more sorry I wasted mine.  See you around, 
Ryan."  With that, she turned and walked away.

	"Yeah, well, good riddance!" Ryan sneered.  "You were 
too immature for me, anyhow!  Go back to your dolls, kid!  
Who needs ya?!"

	Serena felt herself go stiff with anger at his insults, 
but she refused to stop, to go back and deck him one in the 
jaw like he deserved.  It would only prove his point.  She 
wasn't grieving that she'd lost him; she was relieved...and 
she was also mad as hell.  Who did that creep think he was?  
Just 'cause he couldn't handle being dumped!  And he was 
calling HER immature?!  **Guess it proves that all guys are 
a bunch of hormone-driven morons!  I'd rather do without any 
of them, if that's how they all act!** she thought furiously.

	"Serena."

	She stopped, wincing.  Oh, yeah.  She'd forgotten about him...

	"Serena, maybe now we can talk, huh?  Don't know why 
you ran out this morning.  I'm assuming you had a good reason, 
right?  So...want to go to the park?" Darien asked quietly.

	"I...um...not right now," she replied carefully.  "I'm 
going home.  Promised Molly I'd study with her.  See ya later!"

	"Not if I can help it."

	Before she could jump away, he'd reached out and 
grabbed her arm, then proceeded to drag her to the back 
of the arcade.  "HEY!" she yelled, digging in her heels.  
"What do you think you're doing?!  I'm getting a LITTLE bit 
tired of you treating me like a little kid all the time!  
Hey!  Are you listening to me?  Hel-LO!"  Darien ignored her 
protests as he dragged her through a door and slammed it 
behind him.  Serena stopped yelling long enough to take note 
that they were in the employee lounge.  "Hey, we're not 
supposed to be back here!" she yelped.

	"I asked Andrew earlier if it was okay.  He's in full 
support of me, so begging him for help won't do you any good, 
either," Darien replied, steering her to a stool pushed against 
a corner of the wall and forcing her to sit down on it.  She 
did so with great protest, glaring up at him.

	"I should've known!  Men are all alike!  Of course you'd 
stick together!  I don't see why us girls put up with any of 
you!  We'd be better off on our own!" she snapped, crossing her 
arms.  She would have said a lot more, but Darien's hand over 
her mouth silenced her.

	"If you would shut up and listen to what I have to 
say for ONE MINUTE...then maybe we could resolve a lot of 
misunderstanding," he told her darkly.  "I've been trying 
to talk to you for days, but you keep running away!  Why, 
Serena?  What are you so afraid of?"

	"I'm not afraid of anything!  Least of all YOU!" she protested.

	He quirked a smile.  "You're also a lousy liar," he 
replied playfully, ruffling her hair.  She flinched under 
his touch, and his teasing smile faded as he brought his 
hand down to cup the side of her face.  "Talk to me, Serena," 
he commanded.  "Tell me what you wanted to say in that poem.  
I want to hear it from you directly."

	"So you can laugh at me about it?  How stupid do you 
think I am?" she retorted.  "You weren't ever supposed to see 
that poem!  I-it was nothing but a stupid homework assignment 
for school!  I didn't mean a word of it!"  The lies slipped 
heavily from her tongue.  "Well?  Are you happy now?  We talked, 
and now you know the truth. I'm going home."

	His jaw tightened, and he took a step back away from 
her.  But he was still too close for comfort.  When she stood 
up, her body just touched his own, making shivers run up and 
down her spine as he gazed down at her.  He obviously wasn't 
about to move, so she took a sidestep, and ended up against 
the wall.  Now she knew why he'd sat her there instead of the 
old couch on the other side of the room.  Less room for her to 
run away.  Typical manipulations...

	A hand smacking the wall beside her made her jump, 
and Darien lowered his face to her own until he was just 
inches from her.  "I don't believe you," he whispered, 
his eyes burning straight into her soul in a very unnerving 
manner.  Gathering her courage, she started to tell him that 
she didn't care, but his mouth suddenly darted in to cover 
her own, effectively silencing her protests.  

	She was in shock.  He'd moved so quickly, and now the 
feel of soft, warm lips once again moving against her own was 
enough to send her reeling.  She whimpered slightly as he 
suddenly increased his assault on her lips, pressing her head 
back against the wall in his fervor, and in reply to her slight 
cry, he slipped a hand up to cradle the back of her head while 
his other arm slipped about her waist to pull her close to him, 
enveloping her in warmth.  His kiss went from fierce to gentle 
in a single moment, turning from something wild and untamed 
into something tender and protective.  He whispered her name 
tenderly against her lips as his hands stroked softly through 
her hair, up and down her back... Serena, for her part, was 
not sure if she should kiss back or knee him.  It was like the 
other day all over again...only moreso.  At least, the kiss 
Darien was giving her now was making the other one look like 
a peck on the cheek in comparison.  She had never been so warm 
in her life...

	Finally, he lifted his head and gazed down at her, 
his eyes gentle and his breathing somewhat ragged.  "Serena," 
he whispered, closing his eyes.  His hands trembled slightly 
where they rested on her back.  "Serena, what you don't 
understand is that..." he began again, but was suddenly 
interrupted when the door crashed open with a loud bang and 
three waitresses barged in, laughing and gossiping among 
themselves.  They stopped dead in their tracks upon noticing 
Darien and Serena, still locked in their somewhat compromising 
position, and one of the girls raised an eyebrow.  

	"Um...are we interrupting something?" she asked coyly, 
taking keen note of Serena's flushed cheeks and quick 
breathing, the way Darien held her so possessively close.  
Darien let Serena go and reluctantly stepped back, telling 
himself QUITE firmly that it was not the waitress's fault 
for interrupting them...after all, it probably wasn't every 
day that she came into the employee lounge to catch two 
customers in the middle of making out...

	"No, nothing," he replied quickly, glancing at Serena, 
who seemed only too happy to let him do all the talking.  
"Andrew gave me permission to be back here.  We had some 
things we...needed to work out."

	"I see."  The leader of the group seemed highly amused, 
and her companions giggled and shot each other sly glances.  
"I take it you two have...worked everything out then?" one 
of them asked.

	"I have to go now!"  

	This sudden shout came from Serena, who took the 
opportunity to dart past Darien and flee from the room, 
not even bothering to glance back.  Darien called her name 
(as though that would actually have any effect!), then 
muttered an embarrassed farewell as he followed her from 
the room, leaving the girls to whisper behind him.  He was 
gonna have a lot of explaining to do to Andrew later 
on...but he'd cross that bridge when he came to it.  
As for now...

	She had been just about ready to give in before those 
blasted girls had burst in on them, he thought in annoyance.  
Another moment, and he could have told her everything!  Even 
now he could be back there with her, kissing the sweet breath 
out of her and listening to her tell him what he most wanted to 
hear.  Even the thought was enough to send his heart pounding 
in his throat.  He knew she loved him, but she was afraid to 
admit it, and he could hardly blame her, after everything he'd 
said and done to her in the past.  But if she would just sit 
still long enough to let him prove how much he loved her, then 
it would all work out, and by golly, he was not going to give 
up so easily!  He'd chase her all over creation if he had to, 
but she was going to hear him out if it was the last thing she 
did!

	He sat down on a stool at the bar and absently ordered 
his usual cup of coffee, not even noticing that it was Andrew 
who gave it to him.  "Boy, somebody sure is depressed today," 
the young man joked as he slapped Darien on the shoulder to 
wake him up.  "Clare told me about the little...um...scene 
in the room.  I take it you didn't win her over yet, huh?  
Although scaring the girl half to death probably wasn't the 
best way to go..."

	"Oh, shut up," Darien muttered with a half-hearted 
smile.  "It was the best way I could think of to shock her 
into silence."

	Andrew snorted.  "You were just looking for an excuse," 
he teased.  "So did you get to tell her anything?  Did she 
admit anything?"

	"No, and I think she was too shocked to speak," he 
replied with a chuckle.  "But...it was close.  If we'd been 
left alone a little longer..."

	"You might've had the poor girl down on the floor by 
then," Andrew replied with sly innocence, and received a 
knock upside the head by Darien's hand for his pains.  "OW!  
Okay, that was low!" he replied, laughing.  "Look, it's obvious 
she's not gonna come to you willingly, okay?  So...you gotta 
lure her to you.  Trick her into meeting you someplace.  
Say...the gardens in the park?  Someplace where there won't be 
other people, and where she won't be able to run away so easily.  
Or...do something that'll capture her attention enough so that 
she won't want to run away."

	Darien looked skeptical.  "Like what?  Threaten to throw 
myself off a roof if she doesn't hear me out?" he asked wryly.

	Andrew laughed.  "That...would be a little TOO dramatic," 
he replied.  He paused, rubbing his chin in thought, then a 
sly smile crossed his features.  "Say...has Serena heard 
anything from her 'secret admirer' lately?" he asked.  Upon 
receiving Darien's curious glance, his grin widened.  "I 
think...maybe it's about time she finds out who this guy really 
is..."


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Fourteen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

	"Okay, I am officially going insane!" Serena ranted as 
she paced the length of her bedroom.  "Darien did NOT lock me 
in a room and kiss me like there was no tomorrow!  That was 
just something my brain thought up...probably due to lack of 
oxygen after taking that killer math quiz today..."  She cast 
a disparaging glance at the thick text book laying innocently 
on her desk, before turning her back on it and continuing to 
spew forth explanations as to why she appeared to be going 
off the deep end.

	Molly, sitting cross-legged on the bed, looked on with 
amused interest.  She HAD come over to study with Serena, due 
to the fact that they both did less-than-well on that selfsame 
quiz, but since watching her best friend having a nervous 
breakdown was way more fun than going over fractions, she wasn't 
about to end the party yet.  "Maybe he really DID kiss you in 
the employee lounge, though," she suggested, just so she could 
see Serena keel over in shock.

	"Not funny, Moll," the blond muttered from her sprawled 
position on the carpet.  "I appear to be going mentally unstable, 
and all YOU can do is make crazy suggestions?  Some help you are!"

	Molly giggled.  "I know what you need!  A nice long 
shopping trip!  Obviously this whole studying thing has made 
you a little stressed out!"

	"That's just it, Moll!  I haven't studied a single 
wink!" Serena wailed, leaping up.  "If I had, then I wouldn't 
need to be so worried, 'cause I'd know what the problem's caused 
by...but I haven't actually done any real studying for the past 
week--thus the terrible score on my test--and so that means I 
have NO conceivable reason to be making up such realistic 
daydreams unless I really am going crazy!"

	Molly cocked her head to the side, not at all certain 
that this explanation made any real sense, but willing to give 
her friend the benefit of the doubt, nonetheless.  "Well, if 
you say so," she agreed amiably.  

	They were interrupted by a knock on the door, and Sammy 
poked his head around the corner, a mischievous smile on his 
face.  "Well...looks like SOMEBODY actually has a boyfriend!" 
he teased, holding a small bouquet of flowers out toward Serena.  
"These just came for you--special delivery--although who would 
want to send a bunch of weeds to my ditzy sister is beyond me!"

	"GIMME THOSE!" Serena hollered, lunging at her brother, 
who gave a little squeak and dropped the bouquet as he turned 
tail and ran for his life.  "Dweeb!" Serena shouted after him 
as she snatched up the flowers.  They weren't roses this time, 
but it was a lovely bouquet of pure white lilies and baby's 
breath, with a card tied to it with a crimson ribbon.

	"Another note!" Molly squealed.  "Open it, Serena!  Hurry up!"

	"Gimme a sec, will ya?" Serena replied with a giggle as 
she opened the envelope with trembling hands.  She withdrew the 
small card, holding her breath as she opened it up.

	"Dearest Serena,
	How can I ever tell you what you mean to me?
	Into my life you came, like a dream.
	Though times and circumstances kept us far apart,
	you're always in my heart...
	
		And now...it is time that we met face to face.  I 
	want to look into your eyes as I tell you what is on 
	my heart.  If you have any interest in meeting me at all, 
	please come to the gardens in Fairview Park at midnight, 
	tonight.  I will be waiting for you there."
	
	"THIS IS SO COOL!" Molly shrieked, grabbing Serena's 
hands and jumping up and down.  "He want's to MEET you!  In the 
PARK!  At NIGHT!  Ohhh...I am SO jealous!  Why can't I meet 
someone romantic and mysterious like that?"
	
	"This is so not happening," Serena murmured, sinking down 
onto her bed.  "I mean...why ME?  Why now?  It's too soon!  I 
don't think I want to meet him..."

	"Are you NUTS?!" Molly yelped.  "Of COURSE you want to 
meet him!  Don't be insane!  You really HAVE gone crazy, haven't 
you?!"

	Serena giggled.  "Well...there IS the little problem of 
me sneaking out of the house at night," she replied.

	"HA!  Don't give me that!  You do it all the time as Sailor 
Moon!" Molly exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger.

	Serena sweatdropped, scratching her head.  
"Yeah...well...sneaking out to fight evil and save the world 
and sneaking out to meet a strange man I've never seen before 
in my life are two completely different things!" she protested.  
"And I'm sure Luna would heartily agree with me!"

	"You're just afraid!" Molly taunted.  "So, what?  You can 
fight off monsters any time of day without batting an eyelash, 
but when it comes to guys you're just a big scaredy-cat at heart, 
is that it?"

	"NO!" Serena yelped.  "I'm not afraid!"

	"Then prove it!" she challenged.  "Go out there and meet 
this guy!  Serena...if you don't go, you'll break his heart!"

	This gave Serena pause.  She had not looked at it that 
way before.  But...she guessed Molly had a good point.  If she 
didn't meet this guy, it probably would break his heart, and 
she didn't want that guilt weighing on her conscience on top 
of everything else!  Besides...she really was dying to find 
out who her mystery man really was.  "Oh, all right," she 
grumbled.  "I'll go to the park and meet this admirer of mine, 
if only for his sake!"

	"Great!" Molly cheered, clapping her hands.  "Now...how 
about we hit the books now, huh?"

	Serena shot her friend an incredulous glance.  "Me?  
Study?  NOW?" she yelped.  "Are you nuts?  If I wanna go 
meet this guy, I have to look my best...and that means...I 
have to plan for it!  Forget studying!  You're giving me a 
makeover!"

	Molly shook her head hopelessly, raising her eyes skyward.  
"Of course," she replied with an amused smile.  "How silly of me 
to suggest otherwise..."

*	*	*	*	*
	Serena was very nervous as she climbed out her bedroom 
window at approximately eleven forty-five PM and carefully 
climbed down the tree to the ground below...a task that was 
so much simpler in flannel pajamas than in the white skirt 
she was wearing.  Maybe she should have stuck to pants and 
a shirt, but she wanted to look her best; she'd even done 
up her face with makeup, with Molly's help, which was 
something that probably would be lost on her admirer 
considering it was so dark outside.  But at least she FELT 
pretty...

	Serena made her way down the dark street toward the 
park, running lightly and quickly.  The shadows seemed 
ominous tonight; probably because she wasn't in her Scout 
form.  She comforted herself by clutching the locket at her 
throat, knowing she could transform in a moments notice if 
she had to.  If her being Sailor Moon didn't scare off any 
unwanted guests...maybe the light show she gave off while 
turning into her alter ego would.

	The gardens in the park were close by, thankfully.  She 
knew them well, having spent many a spring day there picnicking 
with her friends.  She slowed as she reached them, wondering if 
maybe it had been such a good idea, after all, to come.  After 
all...despite who she was, she was still just a girl alone in a 
park at night going to meet someone who could just as easily 
turn out to be a murderer or something as a secret admirer.  
**Maybe I should just go home,** she thought uneasily.  **Luna 
would be furious if she knew I was here, and she'd have every 
right to be.  I'm stupid coming out here by myself at this 
time of night...**

	She had just about convinced herself to turn tail and 
run back home again when the soft strains of a guitar drifted 
to her from just ahead, freezing her in her tracks.  **A guitar?  
Out here?** she wondered, moving silently ahead in spite of 
herself, praying that she wouldn't have one of her famous klutz 
attacks and trip over a hidden rock or anything.  Not the most 
demure way to announce her arrival...

	"Um...hello?" she called out softly, nearly jumping out 
of her skin at the sound of her own voice, seemingly deafening 
in the still night air.  The guitar stopped playing, and she 
hesitated, wondering if it was too late to make her escape.  
She would find some way to tell this guy that meeting strangers 
in the park at night was just not her idea of fun...

	"Serena?  Is that you?" a familiar voice called out.

	Serena froze, her eyes going wide.  **I...I know that 
voice!** she thought.  **But...it couldn't possibly be...**  
She took a step forward, and then another one, until she came 
to the edge of a low wall and took a peek around it, expecting 
to see the owner of the voice sitting there.

	There was no one there at all.

	She frowned.  "Girl, you are losing it!  Get out of here 
NOW!" she muttered, and turned to leave, but suddenly the guitar 
started playing again, making her pause and look back.  A figure 
was detaching itself from the shadows, the moonlight gleaming 
softly on polished wood of the guitar and the jet-black hair of 
its owner.  His long fingers moved easily over the strings, and 
Serena found herself watching those hands, remembering how they 
had felt running through her hair...

	"I thought it was you," Darien was saying quietly as he 
stood before her, still stroking the strings of the guitar in 
a haunting melody.  "I wasn't sure you were going to show up 
at first."

	"I...this is...you're here..." she stammered, trying 
desperately to recall something that resembled speech.  "I'm 
supposed to meet my secret admirer here!  What are you doing 
here?!" she finally blurted out.

	Darien smiled softly.  "I should think that would be 
obvious," he teased gently.

	Her eyes widened.  "YOU sent the note?!" she yelped.

	His smile widened slightly.  "And all the others...and 
the flowers...and the bracelet," he added, looking at her 
wrist where the silver bracelet gleamed.  "You haven't taken 
it off since I gave it to you.  I'm flattered."

	"I need to sit down before I fall down," Serena 
muttered, rubbing her temple.  She lowered herself onto the 
empty park bench, staring up at him cautiously.  "So...you 
are telling me that you are the one that's been sending me 
all these notes?" she demanded.  "Why would you do that?  Is 
this some kind of cruel trick or something?"

	"No trick, Serena," he replied quietly.  "I have 
something I've been trying to tell you, but you haven't 
been listening to me at all, so I thought...maybe a 
secret admirer would be the way to let you know what's 
been on my mind and heart for so long."  He began to 
play the guitar again, the same strange melody as before, 
and before Serena could say anything, he began to sing to 
her softly.

	"How can I ever tell you what you mean to me?
	Into my life you came, like a dream.
	Though times and circumstances kept us far apart,
	you're always in my heart.

	And even though I told myself to hate you,
	and even if I never let my feelings show,
	and even though I tried to forget you,
	in my heart I knew I'd never let you go...

	So now I just wonder what the future brings.
	Love found a way to bring us together.
	So come to me, my love; let me kiss away unhappy tears.
	Let the rhythm of my heart soothe all your fears.

	Take my hand, my love,
	and together face our destiny.
	Together...we will find Eternity."

*	*	*	*	*
	Serena listened to the song, amazement slowly dawning 
on her face.  She had no idea that Darien could SING!  And he 
was good, too!  She gazed up at him with rapt attention, letting 
his soothing voice wash over her, and letting his words sink 
into her heart and wrap her in warmth just as his arms had before.  
This was how he felt about her?  He had written this beautiful 
song...just for her?

	**It could still be a trick,** the practical part of her 
mind warned her, but the romantic part of her quickly squashed 
that annoying little thought.  Besides...the way he was looking 
at her...as if no one else existed on the planet...it left very 
little room in her heart for doubt.

	When he finished singing, he knelt in front of her and 
took her trembling hands in his own, gazing deeply into her eyes.  
"Now do you understand what I've been trying to say all this 
time?" he asked.  "Are you still going to run away from me?"  
Before she could answer, he continued, "I wouldn't blame you if 
you did; I've been pretty nasty to you.  But I want a chance to 
make it up to you, Serena.  I don't want to hurt you, and I want 
to protect you from everything that does hurt you.  When you were 
with Ryan it tore my heart out, because it was so obvious that 
you were so wrong for each other, and because it was becoming so 
obvious to me that WE were so right for each other--especially 
after I found out that you were Sailor Moon, whom I was already 
half in love with.  But in my arrogance and stubbornness I 
almost lost you.  I guess...it was then I started to truly 
see exactly what you mean to me, and that was when I decided 
to try to win you over.  I figured...a secret admirer would be 
the best way to go...at least until you learned to trust 
me better."

	Serena was listening to all this with her eyes closed, 
but he could see a film of tears shimmering on her lashes.  
Somewhat concerned, he raised a hand to brush them away.  "What 
do you say, Serena?" he asked nervously.  "D'ya think you could 
give a big-mouthed, arrogant jerk like me a chance to really 
win your heart?"

	Serena choked on a short laugh, and when she opened her 
eyes, they were shining through the tears.  "Oh, Darien," she 
whispered.  "Don't you know...you've always held my heart, 
even when I didn't want you to!  The poem...it wasn't JUST a 
homework assignment!  It was something I had to write...about 
something I really, truly cared about, even loved, and I 
chose you.  I'm sorry if I hurt you when I said otherwise."

	His lips quirked in a smile as he leaned his forehead 
against her own, his hands cupping her face softly.  "That's 
sweet, Serena, but I already knew that," he confided in a 
smug whisper.  "I just had to get you to own up to it."

	"WHAT?!" she yelped.  "Why, you..."

	She was abruptly cut off by warm lips darting in 
to cover her own, and her anger flew like so much dirty 
water out the window as his arms surrounded her and pulled 
her into a tight embrace.  She sighed blissfully as she 
allowed herself to sink into his loving touch, closing her 
eyes and returning the gesture with all her heart.  He was 
so warm...he smelled so good...like roses and chocolate.  
**I'm kissing my dream hunk,** she thought dazedly, stifling 
the urge to giggle.  

	Darien sighed softly through the kiss, and then 
Serena felt herself being pulled even closer to him, being 
lowered to the ground as he fell to his knees and bent over 
her possessively, and her head was tipped back until it rested 
on his shoulder as he delved into her mouth with all the 
passion he could muster.  She had no choice but to allow him 
entrance...not that she wanted to stop him.  One arm looped 
about his neck, and her other hand, resting softly on his chest, 
could feel his heart beating furiously through his dark sweater 
in perfect rhythm with her own.  She realized, suddenly, that 
she felt...whole. 

	**My soulmate...** she thought.  **I've finally found my 
soulmate...**

	They remained locked like that for quite some time, and 
might have continued to do so had not they been interrupted by 
someone loudly bursting into applause.

	They leaped back with startled squawks, only to be 
confronted with four pairs of eyes belonging to three curious 
girls and one extremely pissed-off cat.  "So!  This is where 
you sneak off too!  I wake up to find you're gone, and the 
girls have no idea where you are..." Luna immediately began to 
rant once she saw she had gained her arrant ward's attention.  
"Honestly, Serena!  Don't you have any more sense than to go 
sneaking off in the middle of the night to meet a boy in the 
PARK?!  What would your parents think?!"
	
	"They don't have to know," Serena replied smugly.  "Who's 
gonna tell them?  You?  I'd love to see their reaction to that!"  
She giggled at the thought of her father--or even better, her 
brother!--being confronted by the family pet.  It was almost 
too hilarious to think about.

	"THIS IS NOT FUNNY!  THIS IS A SERIOUS SITUATION!" 
Luna yowled, and was abruptly picked up and tossed over 
Lita's shoulder into a clump of bushes.

	"Well, now that the truant officer has been taken 
care of...what say you and us have a little talk," Lita 
suggested, smiling evilly.  Serena gulped, shrinking back 
into Darien's arms.  She would've almost rather taken her 
chances with the cat...

	"What's to discuss?" Darien was saying calmly, sliding 
both arms around Serena's waist and pulling her close to him.  
"We've worked out our differences, and that's all you need to 
know about it."

	"WRONG!" Raye replied smugly.  "As Serena's best friends, 
it's our job to dissect every little aspect of her love life 
until she's nothing more than a quivering mass of jello begging 
us for mercy!  Let the fun begin!"  She laughed somewhat 
maniacally and rubbed her hands together with vicious glee.

	"Help," Serena whimpered.

	"Now, look here, girls," Darien began gruffly.  "We were 
in the middle of an important discussion here, and you're 
interrupting!"

	"Oh, don't let US stop you!" Lita replied in a sweet 
voice that belied her bloodthirsty smile.  "Go right on 
ahead and...discuss away."

	"GO AWAY!" Serena yelled, standing up and placing her 
hands on her hips.  "HONESTLY!  You don't see ME barging in 
on any of YOUR dates, do you?!"  Then she paused, and a smug 
grin crossed her features.  "Oh, that's right!  You don't 
HAVE boyfriends, do you?  My mistake!" she added gleefully.

	"One more comment like that, and I'm gonna knock you 
into next month!" Raye growled threateningly, and Lita glared 
her agreement with that statement.  Serena merely giggled and 
hid behind Darien.

	Amy, bless her, decided that enough was enough.  "All 
right, everyone.  I'm exhausted, and I say it's time we went 
on home to bed and allow Serena and Darien to...er...talk.  
Come on," she said briskly.  When Lita and Raye merely ignored 
her, she sighed, shot Serena and Darien an apologetic smile, 
and grabbed both girls by the hair in a surprisingly strong 
grip, proceeding to drag them backwards out of the park 
despite their loud protests, picking up a complaining Luna 
on the way.  

	Amy certainly did have an aggressive streak when she was tired...

	Serena cleared her throat, then turned her gaze to Darien, 
suddenly shy.  "Well...as you were saying before we were so 
rudely interrupted...?" she requested coyly.

	He smiled and slipped his arms around her waist again, 
pulling her close.  "I was saying..." he replied in a whisper 
as he lowered his head, "...that I love you, Meatball Head, 
and I will continue to love you until the day we both die, 
and beyond.  Nothing will ever change that."

	"I'm glad," she whispered as she closed her eyes to 
receive his kiss, and nothing more needed to be spoken.

	
					~~End~~