Minerva

It has been 3 years since Daria and Jane graduated college. Both have moved on and have adjusted to adult life. However as Daria moves into the famed city that never sleeps she finds herself entwined with old vices. (DxT)

Disclaimer: I don't own Daria and its characters and any Portishead songs.

Enter and rejoice this pedestal

Where the rainbows hide

Your destiny

Mystery of all time

Daria closed her eyes as the singer's voice hit the note perfectly and the song continued to blast from the speakers. A Portishead song always knew what she felt, she thought amused. She sunk her body further down the bathtub, the warm water effectively calming her sore body and inviting sleep. She shook of the drowsiness and took a sip of the wine she brought with her. It was nice to relax after a long day after all.

As a new song echoed through the now occupied apartment, Daria peered out the window. The city lights glowered on her bare face and body casting interesting patters. She had just moved in New York City and just got settled.

Jane had moved in the year before then spent the entire year trying to convince Daria to move in the city too. She had found a nice enough guy to share an apartment with, said guy coincidentally being her boyfriend of two years. Jane had met Austin at an art show in Boston and the two were immediately smitten with each other and Daria found the guy to be decent enough for her best friend. He was smart, inquisitive and just as artsy as Jane.

Daria subconsciously sighed, finishing the wine left in her glass. Why couldn't all relationships be as simple as her best friend's? She thought warily, reminiscing on her past relationships during college and after. She had dabbled on dating during college and wasn't as prude and uptight as she was in high school. Things were different in college but she never settled into anything serious, preferring to engulf herself in their presence rather than become a part of it. Guys had reached out to her all convinced they could undo her and make something of their acquaintance, drawn by her brains and unique charm.

During her last year, she had been in an on and off relationship with Clyde; a tall man with curly golden locks and smoldering green eyes that she met in one of her writing classes. To say the relationship was going nowhere was an understatement. It frustrated Daria to no end, finding his presence in her life soothing yet painful. Their relationship was a haze; they would go swell for a few months to a few weeks and then would hit a rough patch, fight then separate. Yet a week later they would be back again, their actions betraying the emotions that lay so evident in their eyes. It was a few months ago that the bitter reality had finally sunk in when they had not been back for almost a month. Clyde was someone she found comfort in due to familiarity and how alike they were. Both intellectuals who were skittish with human interaction yet bonded so well together. And that scared Daria, it scared them both, she believed. She admitted it to herself that their closeness physically had blinded her in a way, but refused to give in to that state anymore. So when Clyde had called her a week later to no doubt reconcile, she had agreed to meet him for dinner and some wine. She wanted closure, and her things from his apartment. They at least owed each other that after years of wasted time and interest on each other, but when he started to trail light kisses down her back and allowed him to ravish her, she knew it was over for good. She would never find comfort in this again, what they had was stained and could never be restored to its original spark.

Daria sighed once more and reluctantly got out her bathtub. She suddenly felt silly for thinking about some guy like that and wrapped herself with her towel. He had kept trying to call after that night, and when she wouldn't pick up the phone he left e-mails that went unanswered. Until a month ago Jane had informed her that she bumped into him in the city, which later Daria confirmed when she received an e-mail from him stating that he now resided in the big apple as well.

She brushed her teeth, her reflection giving her the same blank stare. She had grown into her looks and matured with elegance. Her wavy auburn hair flowed freely down her back, her bangs cut shorter than back in high school. The full bangs framed her face perfectly; her black glasses remained but now replaced with smaller, rectangular ones that suited her just as good as her old frames. She had grown into a respectable 5"4 and wore clothes that fit her better and was slightly different but still identifiable as Dariaesque. In college she had broadened her perspective on a lot of different things, like make-up for example. She wore the occasional eye shadow and blush but most days she wore light eyeliner and some neutral tone lipstick. There were times she opted for her contact lens when there were special events or she felt like wearing them. She had come to terms with her body and accepted her looks and she no longer feared what people thought of her and her self-importance eventually ruling it out as she didn't really give a fuck.

A small smile appeared on her lips as she dragged her tired body to her bed. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow would be another day.

Thanks for reading~