Thanks to those that have conatcted me in whatever way to ask about this story. I appreciate it a lot. Standard diclaimer still stands. I'm hoping i'll be able to finish this story.
For any who wanted to know my Gundam Wing story "Codename: Eclipse" is on standby. I've been put off it for various reasons and now have major writer' block as a result. I will try to get it going again soon though. Same with "Ginkiri". I'm in an exam period of the college year so updating isn't my first priority unfortunately; getting onto my university course is. Thanks for being patient with me and i will update as soon as i can.
Enjoy pplz! ~Eb~
"So, I heard that the Astronomy class is getting a new student next week." said Rei quietly.
Serena felt like an outsider, observing through a window. She didn't know why and it bugged her.
"That's funny, I heard the same thing about the Drama course." Mina said, her tone puzzled. Mina didn't believe in coincidences anymore, not after everything that had happened to them. Serena privately agreed with her.
"Weird, two in one week." Lita breathed in the deep hazelnut scent of her coffee. Serena picked up one of the shortbread rounds and nibbled it.
"I heard its four. One transferring into the Politics class, another into the Music course." Amy added. Trust Amy to know the ins and outs of the college's traffic.
Serena finished the shortbread and sipped her coffee, the smell of it soothing. She wondered about Seiya and the others, whether they were ok. Whether they missed them as much as the Senshi did. Although the Senshi had invited them to come back and visit, the Starlights had never taken it up since they'd left. She felt kind of hurt by that.
'Am I not good enough?'
His voice echoed in her head. She'd been hearing him a lot lately. Had been thinking about him a lot. Maybe too much. Maybe Trista was right and it was time to let go and move on. Their not visiting was probably a sign that they had. Not for the first time Serena wondered if she and the other Senshi, at least the ones that didn't want to kill them outright, were a good enough reason to come back and visit.
"Serena?"
Serena blinked and realised how close Amy's face was to hers, a faint flush rose in her cheeks.
"Serena are you ok? You've been awfully quiet ever since we got back from the airport." Amy sounded concerned.
"Yeah meatball head, what's wrong with you? You're so spacey all of a sudden." added Rei. "Is it because Darien wasn't there to meet you at the airport? Are you worried that he doesn't love you or something again?"
Serena scowled at her. While it was true that she was a little worried about her boyfriend's behaviour of late, it annoyed her to think that everyone thought he was always on her mind. She had been thinking of Seiya, not Darien. Darien hadn't been on her mind since they'd left the airport. Seiya had. That's why she'd been so quiet.
"She's gone again." observed Rei. Amy and Lita sighed and shrugged, resuming their conversation with Rei for the moment. They knew from recent experience that if Serena wanted to confide in them then she would talk to them in her own time.
Mina silently watched her friend with concern. She was the soldier and protector of love and beauty, and as a daughter of Venus could sense other's emotions. She could tell that Serena was deep in thought about someone and it troubled her. The way that her princess and Darien had been acting together lately troubled her. It wasn't like Serena to be so secretive.
Darien was acting strange as well. He seemed jumpy around the Senshi lately. Was he hiding something?
Mina sighed and re-entered the conversation half-heartedly. Though her thoughts were really on a young man with starlight for hair.
Serena stood at the counter with her hand resting on her chin as she surveyed the café. Her part-time job could be so interesting and then it could be so dull. It was a pain but as a student she needed the cash.
It was a small café, one that had opened a little over a year ago. It wasn't always very busy nor was it the best job in the world, but the pay was good enough and she didn't have to wear a ridiculous uniform like some cafés insisted upon. It was near to her house that she shared with the girls as well as a park.
A young woman walked in and Serena watched as she took a seat near the window. The Moon Princess watched as she picked up the plastic menu on the table and glanced at it before walking over to her.
"Is everything alright miss?" Serena asked kindly, all too aware of the boredom evident in her voice. Looking closely now she saw that her hair was naturally crimson and that her eyes were only a shade or two darker. The girl's hair was long, pulled into two elegant loops either side of her head and then left to trail behind her, and looked shiny and silky. Her skin was pale, her figure willowy. She wore dark jeans and a pretty white blouse trimmed in lace.
"Yes, I'd just like a . . ." she paused as she scanned the menu again, and Serena got the impression that she had no idea what she wanted. "What would you recommend here?" the girl asked finally. Putting the menu down and resting her chin on both hands as she gazed up at Serena.
"Well, the coffee here is always good, and we serve the best green tea for several blocks. The milkshakes are good too." Serena paused as she considered. "The coffee-and-walnut cake is good too."
"Perfect." the girl smiled. "A coffee and some of that cake you mentioned would be nice." Serena nodded obligingly and went to fetch the requested items from behind the counter. She brought them back and the girl thanked her.
Serena glanced at the clock behind the till. 2:55. Five more minutes until her shift ended. She lost herself in her thoughts again as she resumed her place behind the counter.
Why Seiya? Why now, when she had been moving on with her life at last? She'd thought she'd gotten past all that. Didn't his continued absence - his three year long absence - prove that he had moved on? And now that Darien was acting so weird and almost avoiding her she had no choice but to think. Her stupid brain wouldn't let her do anything else!
She only just realised that the red-haired girl from before was standing in front of her. Serena blinked a few times and straightened up when she realised that she was being spoken to.
"I asked if you were alright. You've been staring off into space for ten minutes now." she explained quietly.
Serena blinked again. Ten minutes? Then that would mean . . .
"Ack!" she cried suddenly. She'd been so into her own head that she hadn't seen her shift end. "I'm so sorry but I've gotta go. My shift's ended without me and I have something that I need to-" Serena broke off as she ran into the corner of the shelf behind her and hit her head. The sudden pain made her eyes tear up. 'I thought I'd gotten past all the klutziness too.'
"Are you alright?" the girl asked in concern. Serena looked at her to see actual worry in her eyes.
She smiled and replied "It's alright. I used to do this all the time when I was younger. I can be such a klutz sometimes that it's almost unreal."
The girl smiled and then looked her up and down. Serena couldn't help but wonder what she was looking for. Then she couldn't help but wonder why this girl looked so familiar. Maybe the knock to her head had affected her more than she thought. Maybe she was going crazy. Maybe she -
"Come on, you can sit with me for a bit. Just until I'm sure you're ok. You can have a drink on me." the girl watched her with warm eyes and waited for Serena's response. Again Serena experienced a sense of déjà vu but ignored it.
"Really I'm ok, it's not the first time it's happened."
The girl tsk'd her. "No, I insist, please humour me. I've seen really bad things happen to people who've only received a tiny knock. Five minutes and then I promise you can go, alright?"
Serena relented and went to fetch herself a green tea. The girl's eyes had shown so much concern for her - a total stranger - that she hadn't the heart to refuse. Though she didn't let her pay; as a staff member here she could get free drinks and meals.
The sat in silence for a while before Serena's curiosity and déjà vu got the better of her.
"So, you don't sound like a local. Where do you come from?" she asked lightly. The girl looked at her oddly but the expression vanished almost as soon as it had appeared.
"Out of town. I'm visiting friends and was hoping to run into one of them today." she took a sip of her coffee, watching Serena over the rim of her mug all the time. "My name's Blaze. Blaze Phyre."
"Serena Tsukino." Serena rubbed her temple, thinking. She looked so familiar.
"Nice to meet you."
Serena smiled. "How are you liking it here so far?"
"Alright, I think I may have a problem with these friends of mine though." she paused, studying Serena again, and her eyes narrowed. "Are you sure you're alright? You seem . . . sad."
Serena twitched. How could a complete stranger read her so easily?! "My life's just . . . complicated, right now."
"I understand the feeling." Blaze said sympathetically. Then she leaned foreward, "How so? Want to talk about it?"
Serena was saved answering when her phone vibrated, signalling a text. "That'll be my friend. I'm sorry but I've got to go. It was nice meeting you Blaze. Maybe I'll see you around sometime?" Serena called over her shoulder as she left.
Blaze watched her with her eyes as she walked out the door and down the street. She was met by the traffic lights a few metres away by another blonde and they walked away arm in arm. She sighed and pulled out a slim black mobile from her purse and flipped it open. She dialled and waited for the other person to answer.
"Yes?" the answering voice was male, deep. She envisioned violet eyes and smiled.
"I've found them. They're still here."
After dinner Serena tried calling Darien. There was no answer so she left him a message. She sighed long and deep as she put the phone back on its cradle.
"Darien still not answering?" asked Ikuko. When Serena nodded her head and walked away she frowned. That boy had seemed so nice but lately something was going wrong. Maybe she should do something.
She took a phone book from under the telephone and flipped through it absently. Now, what was his last name again? Shields? She scanned the page. Nothing. He must be unlisted. She'd need to be more creative.
Kenji walked past with a mug in his hands and paused when he saw his wife scowling at the phone. "Everything ok honey?"
She jumped and then turned to smile at him awkwardly. "Don't scare me like that!"
He chuckled and then nodded to the phone. "What did the phone do to offend you?"
"Oh, nothing much, just a friend who changed his number without telling me. I need to get through to him but I can't." she lied easily. Kenji still didn't know about Darien and Ikuko intended for it to stay that way for a while. Ken could get really overprotected over Serena. It was ridiculous.
"Not in the phone book?" he frowned to when she shook her head. "Try asking someone else who knows him then." he walked on.
Ikuko smiled after him, her eyes closed. 'I would but the girl who's got his number won't give it to me.' she snapped in her mind.
He stared out the window, watching the moon as it rolled its way slowly across the sky. It looked different somehow. Duller.
He wondered if she was ok.
The green-eyed boy walked into his room and closed the door quietly. Although the other heard the click of the door closing he didn't acknowledge the newcomer for a while.
"Our Princess called earlier." the second boy had a lighter voice than his brothers that still somehow sounded masculine. "She found the Moon Princess."
The one with blue eyes finally stirred and looked at him. "I know." his voice was deeper than the other's. "But I don't know what to do."
The green-eyed boy tossed a lock or silver out of his eyes. "Seiya, I know what you're going through is . . . hard, but you can't keep yourself locked up forever. She'd want you to let go."
Seiya sighed. "I know she would. And yet . . . I can't. Not until I know for certain that she's happy."
It had taken them so long to get here. He knew the others were worried about him. He hadn't been the same since he'd left here. Where once light lay in his eyes now there was only shadow. Once it had gotten too much to bear and he had tried something he had regretted ever since. Seiya had the feeling that his friends and Princess were waiting for him to try it again.
Yaten looked away. He knew what Seiya was going through, as did Taiki, but they were handling it better than Seiya. Or so they believed.
Turned out that coming here was reopening some old wounds.
Rebuilding Kinmoku had been difficult, a challenge, one they'd all embraced on their return. The days kept them busy, stopped them from thinking too much about the things and people they'd left behind. The nights had been . . . strange. Full of half-dreams and restless sleep. But nothing had bothered them really. Starfighter had been the hardest worker, making sure that she had no time to think at all. She was first up in the morning and the last in bed at night. She worked herself to exhaustion and then slept until sunrise, when the cycle would start anew.
But the work could only last so long.
The rebuilding had only taken a year and a few months in Earth time. After that life went on around them as normal. At first so did Starmaker and Starhealer; 'Fighter was quieter than was normal but still continued on.
And then they'd realised just how much they missed that ridiculous little planet.
After that Starfighter had started sinking. Slowly at first. Little things like being quiet for long periods of time, or sleeping for longer than normal. She began to move differently, more lethargic, and she began turning up late to meetings and college.
Then she stopped sinking. Instead 'Fighter plunged. One stupid little comment from a total stranger and 'Fighter had gotten into a fight in a street at night. The next morning 'Healer had gone into her room and discovered her lying across the bed with a red rose in her hand, an empty crystal bottle lying beside her.
That had been a close one. 'Healer still dreamt of it at night. The thought of getting there too late always woke him in a cold sweat. And then he started wishing that he had the scent of sunshine, vanilla and fresh air lying next him to cheer him up.
That had been confusing. When he had realised that that was how Mina had smelled it had broken his heart. But at least his memories of her, and Taiki's of Amy, didn't slowly kill them.
"Well, we launch our careers again next week." Yaten said in what he hoped was a helpful voice. "They'll definitely realise that we're back then. Even if they have moved on they'll want to see us."
Seiya nodded and resumed staring at the moon. Yaten came over to join him.
He guessed that the three of them were simply a bunch of hopeless fools.
