A/N Hey everyone! I was just sitting around on this incredibly dreary and rainy day, working on my next chapter for Bad Boys. I was growing frustrated with it though, so I decided to take a break from it for a few minutes and pulled up the next chapter of this story and did some quick editing to give my brain a chance to simmer down. And since so many of you seemed to like the first chapter, I thought I'd go ahead and post this. Big hugs and thank yous to everyone that reviewed Chapter 1. Forgive me for not taking the time to list each of you individually, but I hope you all know how much I appreciate each and every one of you. Now, moving on!

ENJOY!

A Star-Crossed Love

Chapter 2

Family Ties

15 Years Later – Present Day

"I don't know why I keep coming back here year after year," Darien grumbled as he weaved his way between the headstones in the cemetery. "It's not like I can remember them anyway."

The blonde woman beside him nudged him with an elbow to the ribs. "You may not be able to remember your life with them, but they were your parents. It's a sign of respect to leave some flowers on their graves once a year to at least acknowledge them."

"It's a crappy thing to do on my birthday though," he muttered under his breath. When he heard a growl next to him he quickly amended, "But I get what you're saying, Serena. When did my little Meatball Head get to be so smart?"

Serena's blue eyes flashed in annoyance. "Watch it with the Meatball Head comments, buddy! You know, it's not too late for me to return your birthday gift and get my money back."

He smirked at her. "What? So you can spend it all on milkshakes and video games at the arcade instead? Andrew would be thrilled."

She sniffed imperiously. "I won't deny my weakness for Drew's milkshakes, but I have hardly touched a video game in almost a year. Besides, my money is no good there. I don't think I've paid for anything there since I was fourteen."

Darien chuckled. "That's only because you saved his life. What kind of man would he be if he made the great Sailor Moon pay for all of the food she inhales?"

"You are determined to push my buttons today, aren't you?" she demanded with a barely suppressed grin. "Besides, it's all your fault anyway. Drew wouldn't have needed saving and wouldn't have found out everybody's secret identities if you hadn't let Beryl monkey with your head and almost blown the arcade up looking for the scouts' control room."

He conceded gracefully. "Okay, I have to give you that one, even if you are evil to bring up that subject." He tugged on one of her golden pigtails with his free hand. The other one was full of the red roses that he had used his powers to conjure earlier.

Serena squealed and danced slightly away from him. "Maybe I am evil sometimes. But that's why you love me."

His dark blue eyes lingered on her beloved face for a moment before he grinned. "I do love you. How could I not? I think you had my heart from the moment you hit me in the head with that crumpled up test paper. Hell, I may have even been in love with you long before that. When I was growing up in the orphanage I always remembered the little girl that gave me a rose while I was in the hospital."

Serena wrapped both of her arms around his and sighed happily as they continued to walk. "I still can't believe that we were together for a year before we figured out that we had met each other before."

Darien chuckled. "It's not that hard to believe. You were only three, and I was a six year old recovering from head trauma. Sometimes I'm surprised that we remember that day at all."

"It was fate," she declared. "I may have barely been more than a toddler at the time, but something pulled me to you that day. After all, where would the moon princess be without her prince?"

"Now you're just being silly," he told her teasingly. But his steps slowed as he reached the monument that bore the name Shields. Under it were the names of his parents, their dates of birth, and their identical dates of death…which also happened to be his sixth birthday.

He stepped forward cautiously, laying the roses at the base of the stone before quickly retreating back to Serena's side. Her comforting presence soothed him like nothing else could.

Then he sensed someone else join them, and he turned to look at the man who was slowly approaching them. "Rick," he greeted him warmly.

"Darien. Serena," Rick returned just as friendly. "I was hoping to find you here."

"Hi, Rick!" Serena gushed in her normally enthusiastic way. "I haven't seen you in a while. How is Jill doing?"

Rick grinned broadly. "She's good. Busy at work like always. But she loves her job."

A few months after Mamoru and Bridget's death, Rick had finally asked Jill to officially become a couple. To his surprise she had said yes, and the couple had embarked on a whirlwind romance. They had married only six months later. After their wedding they had tried to gain custody of Darien and Dani. But by then Dani had been taken in by a loving foster family and had come out of her shell. Darien, on the other hand, had still been dealing with the after effects of his amnesia and had required counseling. Thanks to the money left in trust to him by his parents, he had been placed in an orphanage that was more like a boarding school than an orphanage, and he had been making decent progress. So the courts had ruled for the children to remain where they were.

That had ended up being for the best, because a few years later Jill had been diagnosed with leukemia, and it would have been a struggle to try to raise two children while she had been going through treatment and the sometimes long hours that Rick had to work. It had been a long, hard battle, but eventually she had gone into remission. They had tried to start a family of their own after that, but after three miscarriages they had stopped. The pain was just too much.

But, with the blessing of the courts, they had stayed active in both Darien and Dani's lives. Although Darien was still unaware after all of these years that he had a sister, a person that was actually a true blood relative. He had found a way, early on, to deal with the disability that his amnesia had given him. True, he had been quiet and quite reclusive, but he had found a stability that he could live with. And his therapist had thought it wise to leave him be until he was older.

But Darien was a man now, twenty-one years old, and he deserved to know the truth. Rick laid the bouquet of assorted flowers that he had brought next to Darien's roses before turning to look at the younger man.

"Can you and I have a talk?" he asked quietly.

Serena read the seriousness in the older man's face. "I think I'll just pop over to the arcade for a chat with Drew and a milkshake. The girls are supposed to be meeting me for a late lunch there anyway."

Darien gave her a crooked grin. "I just hope that you're not planning some big surprise for my birthday."

"Nope!" she chirped, giving him a big hug. "You already know about the party tonight. We are just finalizing the details. But I will tell you that there will be two birthday cakes. Lita and Drew both insisted on making one for you."

"Then I'm sure you'll be in seventh heaven, Meatball Head," he teased. "You could probably devour one of those cakes by yourself."

"Jerk!" Serena replied, but in a playful tone. She gave him a quick hug before she twirled away. "I'll see you later!"

Darien watched her as she scurried away.

"You love her a lot, don't you?" Rick asked, ignoring the flush that stained the younger man's cheeks. "Don't get embarrassed. There is nothing wrong with loving a woman. In fact, I understand that you proposed to Serena and are now at the top of Ken Tsukino's hit list."

"Then you heard wrong," Darien growled back. "I did ask Serena to marry me on her eighteenth birthday a little over a month ago. But I went to Ken first and asked for his permission. He was hesitant at first, but he gave us his blessing. I have to admit that I was kind of shocked. He has always been so overprotective of Serena."

Rick had to bite back the words that bubbled to his lips. Just like Darien had been denied the existence of his sister, Ilene and Ken Tsukino had decided to not share the existence of an older brother with their children. As far as Serena and Sammy knew, Serena was the oldest child.

Rick pushed those thoughts away as he focused on Darien. "Do you remember when you were ten, and you asked me about your parents' families?"

Darien nodded. "Yes. I remember. I was curious about whether I had any extended family at the time. You told me that my parents had both been orphans and that we had no family."

"That's true," Rick agreed. "I also told you that there were things that I would tell you when you were older. You are now twenty one, and I think you are ready to know the whole story." He reached into a pocket of his jacket and pulled out a thick manila envelope.

"This is for you," he told him. "This holds the answers to some of your questions. I sealed it up tightly; so only open it if you want to know some about your past. I'm leaving the decision in your hands. If you have any questions I will be around."

Darien hesitated for a moment before he took the envelope. "I'll think about it. I'll let you know if I have any questions."

Rick nodded. "Okay. I assume, in the meantime, that Jill and I will see you at the party tonight."

Darien grimaced. "I'm sure you will. Serena always makes a huge production out of this."

Rick chuckled. "It's big deal. It's not everyday that you turn twenty-one. You should enjoy it."

"I'll try," Darien told him. "I guess I'll see you later."

Rick patted his shoulder. "Go on and find Serena. And tell her that I'm sorry for interrupting you two."

Darien grinned. "I'm sure she didn't mind. She's always very understanding about things. Knowing her, she's probably already polished off two milkshakes by now."

Rick laughed humorously. "Tell Drew to put whatever she ordered on my tab."

"The tab that you never pay?" Darien returned slyly with a raised brow.

Rick shrugged. "What can I say? I'm family. My big brother makes enough money off that arcade to be able to afford to give me a free meal every now and then."

Darien snorted. "You're hardly in the poor house either. You are a senior detective and your wife is the assistant chief of emergency medicine. My whole apartment would fit in your living room."

"It is a lot of space for just two people. But Jill and I had different plans when we bought that house," the older man murmured, a sad look flashing briefly in his green eyes. A moment later it was gone and replaced with a smile as he shooed Darien away. "Get out of here, kid, and enjoy the rest of your birthday!"

Darien laughed and turned to leave, absently sliding the envelope into an inside pocket of his jacket as he went. Rick wasn't sure what Darien would do with the information that was inside it, but it was his decision. He couldn't force the younger man to know the truth about his family, but he had at least put the ball in his court.

"He looks really happy," a soft voice spoke up behind him.

Rick turned and smiled when he saw the young woman that had just stepped out from behind a large monument a short distance away. She was tall, with a slim, athletic build. Her long chestnut ponytail would appear dark brown, almost black in dimmer light. But under the bright sunlight it gleamed with warm, reddish-copper highlights. Her dark sapphire eyes shown wetly in her delicately boned face as she stared after Darien, who was almost out of sight.

"Hey, Dani-girl," Rick greeted her softly. "He is happy. I think Serena has a lot to do with it, though."

Dani smiled gently. "I'm sure she has. He's seemed a lot less melancholy when I've caught glimpses of him the past few years. He smiles a lot now instead of always looking so serious like he did when we were little. I was already here when I heard him and Serena coming, so I hid so they wouldn't see me. I couldn't hear them well, but I could tell that they were teasing each other though. They sound so in love."

Rick smirked. "And what about you? You're nineteen now. I bet you have the young men lining up at your door."

"Uncle Rick!" she gasped in surprise. "You know I don't date. I'm far too busy with school and my dancing to have time for men. Momma-Belle would be thrilled if I did. But Papa-Phil would probably have a heart attack."

Rick threw back his head and laughed. He didn't doubt her words though. Her foster parents, Belle and Phil Richards, had taken Dani in immediately after her release from the hospital, and they had treated her as if she was one of their own. They had even tried to adopt her when she had been seven, but adoption requirements were hard to meet and they hadn't qualified. But they had raised Dani to adulthood, and looked on her as their daughter.

Dani loved them in return, but she had never forgotten her real family. Everyone had thought that they would fade from her mind in time, but she had made sure to think of her parents and brother every day of her life. And remembering those memories had kept them bright and clear in her head.

She walked forward now and laid a bouquet of white roses next to the red ones that Darien had left. She knelt in front of the stone marker as she reached out with trembling fingers to trace their names.

"Mommy. Daddy. I still miss you so much," she whispered shakily. "I hope you're proud of me, though. I'm about to start my second year of college, daddy. And mommy, I'm still dancing. I've got a small dance part in a musical that's coming up soon at the community theater, and I'm even teaching part-time at my old dance school."

She broke down then, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I know I can never get you back, but if only I could have Darien in my life, I would be happy. It's been so hard all of these years, living so close to him, but being so far away at the same time. I'm happy for him though. His fiancée seems like a wonderful girl, and he has lots of friends."

She felt hands under her arms, lifting her to her feet. And then she was sobbing into Rick's chest.

"Shh…" he tried to soothe her. "There's no sense in getting yourself worked up like this. I know you miss them. I do too. Your parents were two of my closest friends. And you may have your brother back in your life soon."

She hiccupped as she looked up at the man who had been like an uncle and the only tie she'd had to her family for years. "But what if he doesn't want to know? What if he never opens that envelope? Or worse, what if he does open it and doesn't want to have anything to do with me? I don't think I could handle that kind of rejection."

Rick hugged her close and smoothed a hand down her wavy ponytail in a fatherly gesture. "Let's give Darien some credit here. He's not a stupid boy. He'll do what he feels like is right for him. It just may take a little time."

She squeezed him tightly around the waist. "I hope you're right."

Neither one of them noticed Darien standing several yards away, watching them with shocked blue eyes. And neither of them heard when he spun on his heel and ran.

Andrew leaned against the counter of the arcade and grinned at the girl across from him. "Another?"

Serena nodded eagerly as she slurped the last bit of milkshake in her glass up through the straw. Then she smacked her lips together. "You bet! I never get tired of your milkshakes, Drew."

He laughed as he moved to scoop ice cream into the blender. "You better be careful, or you won't have any room for cake tonight."

She stuck her tongue out at him. "Remember who you're talking to here. Some people may pride themselves on being able to hold their liquor. I, on the other hand, pride myself on being able to hold my milkshakes. Besides, the party is hours away. I'll burn off what I've taken in by then. We still have the decorating to do. I just wish the girls would hurry up and get here. Raye and Mina were supposed to go to the party supply store to pick up balloons, streamers, and stuff."

Andrew chuckled as he popped the blender onto its base and started it. "You actually trust your friends to shop for decorations for your man's birthday party?"

She rolled her eyes. "Of course I trust them. Raye and Mina both have excellent taste and a great eye for detail. Granted, Mina can go a bit overboard, but Raye will keep her in line and within budget. Anyway, they know what Darien likes and dislikes."

"Which means this place will be decorated all in red and black," Andrew muttered as he poured the shake into a glass. "Doesn't that seem a bit depressing for a birthday party? It sounds more like Halloween."

Serena waited until she had her new treat in front of her and had taken a large sip before she replied, "Well those are his signature colors. Could you see us throwing a party for Mr. Tuxedo Macho surrounded by pastels?"

He held his hands up in surrender. "Okay. You win. Far be it for me to question the judgment of the sailor scouts."

He was literally saved by the bell, or at least the chime that rang when the glass doors of the arcade opened and four women walked in.

"The party brigade has arrived!" Mina sang as she held up bulging bags that bore the logo of the local party supply store.

"Ditz!" Raye growled next to her. Then she gestured to the similar bags she carried as she smiled at Serena. "I know it looks like a lot, but I kept Miss Shopaholic on a tight leash. They had a major sale going on at the store, and we got some great deals. So where should we stash this stuff?"

"Just set it in the office until later," Andrew told them. "We really can't do anything until business starts winding down. Amy, you can put those gifts you're carrying in there too."

The blue haired girl looked grateful behind the stack of wrapped gifts she carried in her arms.

"This cake has to be refrigerated," Lita announced, holding up the fairly large, decadent looking chocolate cake in her hands. "I hope you have room for it."

"I saved you a spot," Andrew reassured her. "Just slide it into the big fridge in the back of the kitchen next to mine."

"Will do," Lita chirped as she started for the swinging door to the kitchen.

What happened next happened so fast that no one saw it coming. Evidently, one of the arcade patrons had spilled some soda on the floor and it hadn't caught Andrew's notice yet. Lita stepped in it, and her slick soled shoes caused her to start slipping and sliding…right toward the counter.

SPLAT!

Serena squealed in surprise as she suddenly found her face full of what had been, until just a moment before, one of Darien's birthday cakes. She blinked slowly, chocolate dripping from her lashes and sliding down her neck as she tried to process what had happened. Then noise erupted around her.

"Omigosh! Serena, are you okay? I'm so sorry!" Lita exclaimed.

"Oh dear," Amy murmured as she grabbed a handful of napkins and began trying to wipe most of the mess from Serena's face.

"Oh for crying out loud, Andrew! You're making it worse! Give me that!" Mina snapped at the blonde man as she snatched the towel he had been using to swipe at Serena's hair. The golden strands now looked like they were streaked with mud.

Raye was bent over at the waist, chortling gleefully. "That's a good look for you, Meatball Head."

Serena's big blue eyes filled with tears and everyone braced for her shrieking wail. She was normally the happiest, perkiest person in the world. But when she got upset she could shatter glass with her voice.

But she surprised everybody when she only moaned sorrowfully, "All that glorious chocolate…ruined. This has to be a bad omen." Then she looked down at the pretty pink blouse and white capris that she had chosen to wear that day because Darien always said he liked that outfit on her, and she burst into tears. There was no way the stains were ever going to come out of her clothes.

"What happened?" Darien growled as he stalked up to them. Everyone had been so occupied with Serena that they hadn't seen him come in. He now stood with his arms folded across his chest as he eyed his fiancée cautiously.

Raye was still gasping with laughter. "Serena decided to get up close and personal with your birthday cake."

"Raye!" Amy and Mina admonished the dark haired girl in shocked tones.

Now the wailing started.

"It wasn't my fault!" Serena shrieked.

"No it wasn't. It was mine," Lita quickly spoke up. She glared at the puddle on the floor that had caused the problem. "I slipped in that puddle and went sliding. Serena was just sitting here on the stool, but it was like she was a magnet or something. The cake just went right to her."

Darien sighed heavily as he ran his fingers through his hair. "Come on, Serena. We should probably get you home so you can shower and change."

"That will take forever," she moaned. "You know how long it takes me to shampoo and condition all of this hair. And it will take longer than ever since I've got to scrub the chocolate out of it. Then I'll have to dry it before I can put it up again. I'll never get the decorations for your party done in time if I do all of that."

"Don't worry about a thing," Mina exclaimed, slipping into her Sailor Venus, former leader of the scouts mode. "Raye, Amy, and I can handle decorating. And I'm sure Lita can fix the cake problem."

"Are you kidding? I could whip a chocolate cake up in my sleep," Lita announced.

"I don't see what the big deal is. We still have my cake," Andrew grumbled.

Lita swatted his arm. "And do you really think that one cake is going to be enough to feed everybody that will be here tonight?"

"Let's get while the getting is good," Darien said softly, taking Serena by the hand and tugging her to the door as bickering broke out among their friends. Then he steered her into a side alley. "We'll take the back way as far as we can so you don't have to parade down the sidewalk, covered in chocolate, for everyone to see."

His voice was gentle, but there was a brittleness to it that prompted Serena to ask, "Sweetie, is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine. I'm just a little tired. I didn't sleep well last night," he told her with a smile. But it wasn't his usual smile. His eyes didn't light up the way they normally did when he smiled at her.

This worried Serena. "Are you sure? Did something happen during your talk with Rick?"

"I don't want to talk about it," he snapped, much harsher than he had meant to.

She flinched at his tone. "Okay. We won't talk about it."

He stopped walking and pulled her toward him to kiss her sticky forehead. "I'm sorry, Angel. I don't mean to sound like such an ass. I just have a lot on my mind right now."

She gave him a hesitant smile. "It's okay. I understand. I love you, Darien."

Those words always sent a thrill through him. "I love you too, Serena."

Thirty minutes later Darien stomped into his apartment and banged the door shut behind him. He had delivered Serena home and into the capable hands of her mother. He had hung around for a few minutes, listening to Ilene assure her daughter that her outfit wasn't ruined and would be good as new if they got it into the wash quickly. And as Serena was preparing to bustle off to the shower he had told her that he was feeling really tired and was going to run home for a quick power nap.

She had looked a bit concerned at his words, but had sent him off with a smile after he had promised her that he would pick her up later so that they could enjoy a quiet dinner together before they headed to his, and he shuddered at the thought, birthday party.

He had walked slowly through the park after that, on his way home, as he tried to sort out what he had seen earlier.

Flashback

He was walking across the cemetery, and he was acutely conscious of the weight of the envelope that rested in the inside pocket of his jacket. He wasn't quite sure if he wanted to open it or not. When he had been younger he had been naturally curious about his deceased parents. Despite living at the orphanage, Rick had been a constant visitor to him, just as he had been while he had been in the hospital.

Rick had been his parents' best friend, and he had been like a doting uncle to him over the years, breaking him out of the orphanage whenever he could to take him to the zoo, amusement parks, and museums. And that had happened quite often since Darien had been allowed a certain amount of freedom since his behavior and grades were always so good.

And once Rick had married Jill, she had become a member of their group as well, and he had come to think of her as a favorite aunt. As he had gotten older he had been allowed to spend some weekends and holidays at their home, and she had fawned over him in a motherly way. During the years that she had been sick, Darien had devoted his free time to visiting her and doing things around the house, like vacuuming, washing dishes, doing laundry, and cutting the lawn. That had been when he'd first discovered that he had a green thumb, and he had even planted a small flower garden in a shady corner of their backyard where Jill could sit and enjoy it on days when she felt like going outside. He thanked god everyday that that special woman had beaten her illness, and he prayed that it never returned.

During all of this time, Rick had always answered any questions that he'd had about his parents, and had been full of funny little stories about them both. Rick had met both of them their first year of high school, and they had immediately clicked. They had been together all through high school and had even shared an apartment during college. Later he had stood as witness when Mamoru and Bridget married, and they had named him Darien's godfather when he was born.

The three of them had gone on with their lives, but had remained extremely close. Rick had joined the police force and had climbed the ladder to detective in an astonishingly short time. Both of the Shields' had been attorneys, and they had built a booming practice almost as soon as they had accepted their law degrees.

Darien even had several of their possessions and a slew of photos, thanks to Rick. He had been responsible for packing up their things and selling the house after their deaths. Most of the furniture and such had been sold, and the clothes given to charity, but there were several things that had personal meaning that he'd held onto. And when Darien had filed for his emancipation at fifteen, he had given him several boxes that he had saved for him.

This thought brought Darien up short. There had been something that he had wanted to ask Rick about, but he had forgotten it in the aftermath of laying hands on that envelope. He had been digging around in the closet of his guest bedroom several days ago, looking for a book he thought he might have packed away by mistake, he was a horrible bookworm, when he'd opened a box that had been full of odds and ends that had belonged to his mother. He had just been about to close it when something had caught his eye. He'd reached in and pulled out a tiny little ballet slipper.

He'd recognized what it was because a couple of years before, when Rini had been there for a visit and it had been Halloween, she had wanted to dress up as a fairy princess. Serena and Ilene had taken her to a shop that sold second hand costumes and such, and she had bought a complete ballerina outfit, leotard, tutu, slippers and all. Serena herself had painstakingly sewed the gauzy wings onto the costume herself, and her fingers had been covered in band-aids from pinpricks for a few days after that, but Rini had been thrilled with the outcome, and she had been a beautiful fairy princess.

Thinking that his future daughter must have left the slipper behind and it had ended up in there by accident, he started to toss it back in the box. But then a thought had struck him. Rini had been ten years old that Halloween, and this slipper was much too small to have fit on her foot. It was meant to be worn on a much younger girl's foot.

Darien figured it was probably nothing. Maybe it had been his mom's when she was little. But for some reason he wanted to ask Rick about it. And he really didn't want to do that in the middle of the crowd at tonight's party. So he turned back around and headed back the way he had come. It wouldn't take a minute to ask the man.

But when he drew close to where his parents' graves were, he pulled up short and gaped in shock. There was Rick, embracing a woman as he stroked her hair. The woman was plastered against his chest with her arms around his waist.

They appeared to be talking, but he couldn't hear what they were saying. He also wasn't close enough to see the woman clearly, despite having excellent vision, thanks to his alter ego. But he could tell that she was young. If he had to guess, she might be in her early twenties at most. But whoever she was, Rick seemed to know her well. He was holding her as if she were someone precious to him.

Anger sparked deep inside him at the sight. He had never in a million years dreamed that Rick would ever cheat on Jill. They had been through so much together, and they always seemed to be so in love. How could Rick be standing, in the middle of a graveyard of all places, embracing a woman who looked young enough to be his daughter? He was a forty-three year old married man.

Darien's hand twitched toward the pocket where he kept his transformation rose. He was tempted, oh so tempted, to transform into Tuxedo Mask and intervene, for Jill's sake. But in the end he simply turned and ran away, hurt and disillusionment pounding through him as he thought that he didn't know the man, who had been the closest thing to a father that he could remember, as well as he'd thought.

End Flashback

Darien stalked across his spotless living room and flung himself down on the couch, his mind reeling. He still couldn't quite wrap his head around the thought that Rick would be screwing around on his wife. It just didn't make any sense.

He was surprised to feel that the tiredness that he had made up as an excuse to Serena earlier was now a reality. Maybe if he caught a quick nap he would be able to think clearer. He set the alarm on his cell phone to wake him up in an hour and lay back on the couch as he closed his eyes.

"Doesn't the moon look pretty, Darien?" Dani asked as she lay beside him on a blanket spread across the grass of their backyard. "It looks like a giant snow globe."

Darien chuckled as he cast a glance over at his younger sister. "Yeah, it's pretty. Too bad it's just a chunk of rock floating around in space."

She sat up to glare at him. "It is not! My teacher told us a story the other day about how there used to be a kingdom on the moon. There was a king, a queen, a prince, and a princess, and they lived in a big, shiny castle."

"They tell you too many fairytales in preschool," he snorted in return. "I've looked at books in the library. The moon is a lump of rock and dust with very little gravity."

Her dark blue eyes widened. "What is gravity?"

He smirked. "It's an invisible force that holds you down so you don't float away. You'll learn about it when you start real school."

She jerked her chin at him. "Just because you're older and starting first grade doesn't make you smarter than me."

He tugged playfully on her dark, wavy, chestnut hair. "Don't worry. You'll catch up to me eventually."

"Darien. Dani," a female voice called to them. "It's time for bed, sweethearts. What are you two doing out here?"

Both children turned to see a woman with long chestnut hair and warm brown eyes walking toward them. At her side was a tall man with midnight black hair and glittering sapphire eyes.

"We were watching the sky, mommy," Dani squealed excitedly. "Isn't it pretty?"

Bridget tilted her head back to look. "Yes it is. But the moon is so bright tonight that it is drowning out the stars."

"But the moon is the prettiest of all. Right, Darien?" she insisted.

He rolled his eyes. "Only if you believe in fairytales about people living on the moon."

"Everybody needs a fairytale or two to believe in their lives," Mamoru told his son. "Sometimes I think the world could use a few more fairytales."

"Maybe you'll dream them up tonight while you are sleeping," Bridget giggled. "In the meantime it's time for you two to get your baths and into bed. Tomorrow is a big day. Our Darien turns six, and we are going to a festival."

Then the dream morphed into another scene.

"Did you two have fun?" Bridget asked as she turned to look at the children in the backseat.

"I sure did," Darien exclaimed. "I still can't believe that dad knocked down all those milk bottles with just one little ball."

Mamoru caught his eye in the rearview mirror and winked. "What can I say? When you've got it, you've got it."

"What do you have, daddy?" Dani asked innocently. Then she screeched, "Daddy, look out!"

There was something large and black looming in the road ahead of them. Mamoru cursed and slammed on the brakes as he jerked the wheel to avoid it. Then there was the grinding of metal on metal as the car slammed into the guardrail.

Soft, tiny fingers gripped Darien's hand as a childish voice screamed, "Darien!"

Darien jerked awake on his couch, sweat streaming down his face and into his eyes. He took several moments to catch his breath and get his bearings. After that, he checked the time on his cell phone. He had only slept about half of the hour he had allotted himself.

He pushed himself up from the couch and stumbled into the bathroom where he washed his sweaty face in cold water. Afterward he stared at his reflection in the mirror. What had that dream been about? He'd recognized his parents from the pictures he had of them. But who had the little girl been? She'd seemed so familiar.

He made his way from the bathroom to the kitchen, where he pulled a bottle of water from the refrigerator. He was gulping down the cold liquid when his eyes landed on his jacket that he had thrown across a chair in the entry hall earlier. The edge of the manila envelope peeked out at him.

He set the bottle of water aside and walked toward the jacket like he was in a trance. Did the key to his dream lie within that envelope? What's more, did he have the courage to open it?

He pulled the envelope out of the pocket and walked back into the living room, where he sank to his knees beside the coffee table and set it on the glass top. He stared at it for a full five minutes before he reached for it with shaking hands. Rick had seemed to think that there was something important inside that he should know. So maybe he should open it.

He took a deep breath and ripped away the tape that sealed the flap shut. Then he reached inside and pulled out a small stack of papers and photographs.

The papers on top were copies of the official police reports that had been taken the night of the car accident that had made his mind a blank slate. He glanced over the reports quickly. The car had crashed through the guardrail and been discovered halfway down an embankment. Two adults, later identified as Mamoru and Bridget Shields, had been found in the front seat and pronounced dead at the scene. A boy, later identified as Darien Shields, age six, had been unconscious in the back seat and transported to the hospital.

Darien was scanning all of this, barely reading the words. He was about to set it to the side when the next few lines caught his attention, making him read on.

He murmured out loud as he read, "A second child, later identified as Danielle Shields, age four, was also discovered unconscious in the back seat of the car. At the time of transport, both siblings were unresponsive but stable…Siblings?"

Darien's mind whirled. Did he have a sibling? Was the little girl he had seen in his dreams really his little sister? He pawed through the stack before him, noting that they were official looking documents that had been issued by the courts. But he wasn't interested in those.

He finally found what he was looking for at the bottom of the pile. It was only a handful of photos, maybe a half dozen in all, but they told the story of a life he'd never known existed.

There was one that showed him at about three years old, standing next to his mother as she balanced a toddler girl with chestnut hair like hers on her hip. There was another one that featured him, his mom, his dad, and the girl on what looked like Christmas morning. Wrapping paper was strewn all around while a gigantic Christmas tree gleamed in the background. Another showed him next to the girl while she blew out four candles atop a birthday cake.

There were a few more showing the entire family, but what made him catch his breath was the one on the bottom. It was obviously a high school graduation photo. And the young woman in it beamed a smile at the camera as she held her diploma up proudly. Her dark hair gleamed with reddish tints under the sunlight and her dark blue eyes sparkled like sapphires.

Darien stared in shock. This was his sister, the sister that he didn't remember having. But his disbelief went even further when he realized that she was the woman that he had seen Rick with earlier. That meant that what he'd witnessed hadn't been a tryst between lovers, but a man offering comfort to a grieving young woman.

Darien jumped to his feet. He had a sister! A real life, breathing, blood relative! He wondered if she remembered him and their parents. Or had she suffered from the same amnesia that he had? Earlier he hadn't known if he wanted to know the truth that the envelope held. Now he wanted to know it all. He wanted to see his sister with his own eyes.

He jumped up, running for the door. He paused only long enough to shove his feet into his shoes and grab his keys, and then he was gone. There was one person who could give him the answers that he was seeking. And it was time for him to talk.

Barely two minutes later, Darien roared out of his parking garage on his blue motorcycle. He had paused only long enough to pull on his helmet before firing the bike up and taking off.

Less than ten minutes later he pulled up in front of a modest, two story home in one of the more residential districts. He whipped his helmet off and hung it on the handlebar before stomping up to the front door and ringing the doorbell. He tapped his foot impatiently as he counted off the seconds until it was answered.

"Darien, what a surprise," Jill greeted as she opened the door. "I figured you and Serena would be busy with all sorts of plans today."

Darien stepped by her into the foyer before asking, "Is Rick here? I really need to talk with him."

Jill's look turned apprehensive. "Yes he is. He just came in a little while ago and was going to take a shower. What's the matter honey?"

Darien whirled on her with frantic eyes. "I know about Danielle. And I need to know where I can find her."

Jill gasped as her hand crept up to her throat. "You know about Dani? I guess you must have opened the envelope. None of us expected you to do it so quickly. You better let me get Rick. He can explain things better than I can."

"I'm already here," Rick said as he came down the stairs, his hair damp from his shower. "Let's go into the living room and make ourselves comfortable."

The three of them filed into the living room and took seats. But the air around them was thick with tension. Rick and Jill sat together on the love seat while Darien took the chair.

After several long, silent seconds, Rick sighed heavily. "I imagine you have a ton of questions, Darien."

"Is Danielle truly my sister?" Darien fired off, not wasting any time.

Rick smiled wryly. "She prefers to go by Dani. And yes, she is your younger sister by almost two years. From what I understand she wasn't a planned baby. But your parents were just as thrilled about having her as they had been when they had you."

Darien swelled up angrily. "Why was I never told about her before? It's been fifteen years since the accident. Did no one stop to think that I should have been told that I had a sister in all that time?"

"Darien," Rick began cautiously. "None of us ever kept Dani a secret from you out of meanness. I don't think you fully understand how messed up you were after the accident. You couldn't remember anything, and Dani was so traumatized that she didn't speak for over a month afterward. She had lost her life as she knew it. Do you think it would have been good for her to be confronted with a brother who didn't even remember her name? No. It would have put undue stress on both of you that you didn't need at the time. You both needed stability to cope with the trauma that you had suffered. So under the advice of your doctors, we decided to keep you kids apart."

"So what happened to her, afterward?" Darien asked. "Was she adopted?"

Rick shook his head. "No. She was put into the system, the same as you. But, because of her age, she was put into foster care instead of an orphanage. And she was lucky enough to be placed with a very nice couple. They were patient and loving with her, and eventually she broke her silence and became a normal little girl again. Luckily, she was never removed from their care. Most foster children get moved around every so often, but she stayed with them until she finished high school. Then she used some of her trust fund money to get herself a small apartment closer to the university. As a matter of fact, her place isn't all that far from yours. And she attends the same college you do."

Darien thought hard about the young woman that he had seen in the graduation photo, trying to remember if he had ever seen her. He shook his head. "I've never seen her around campus that I can recall."

"I don't guess you have," Rick chuckled. "Thanks to you graduating high school early, you are already a med student while she is just a sophomore. Besides, she only takes general classes because she can't decide on a major. Her one true love is dancing, so she focuses most of her time on that."

Well that explained the tiny ballet slipper in the box, Darien thought. "So does she remember me? From what you said, I'm assuming that she didn't suffer from amnesia like I did. But she was so young at the time…"

"Oh, she definitely remembers you," Jill spoke up. "She refused to let herself forget her family. And she's caught glimpses of you over the years. Every time she does she calls me up and gushes about it for at least an hour."

Darien felt tears prickle his eyes as he thought about the sister who had remembered him all of these years, and had seen him while he had been oblivious. "Can I see her? I would really like to meet her in person."

Jill reached forward and patted his hand. "Let me make a phone call."

She stood up and walked a short distance away as she pulled a cell phone from her pocket. Darien waited with bated breath as she dialed a number.

A few moments later she grimaced. "Voicemail. At this time of day I bet she's at the dance school." Then she spoke into the phone, "Hey, Dani. It's Aunt Jill. Give me a call when you get this message, sweetie. I have something I need to talk to you about."

She disconnected the call. "Now we wait for her."

Darien jumped as his own cell phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and glanced at the screen, which showed Serena's number, before answering it hastily. "Hello."

"Hey honey," her cheerful voice came over the line. "I just wanted to make sure that you woke up from your nap. You did still want to go have dinner, didn't you?"

He checked the time and bit back a curse when he saw that he had spent a lot longer talking to Rick and Jill than he'd thought. On one hand he wanted to sit here and wait for Dani's return call. On the other hand he didn't want to disappoint Serena either.

"Uh, yeah. Sure. Dinner sounds great. Just give me about a half hour or so." He'd have to book it to make it back to his apartment, change, and get to her house in that time. But it could be done.

"Great! See you then. I'll be waiting for you," she told him. Then she hung up.

He jumped to his feet, feeling torn.

Rick laughed. "Don't keep the beautiful lady waiting. You go ahead and enjoy your dinner. We'll let you know if we hear from your sister."

Those words sent a shiver of happiness through him…his sister.

He had a sister!

A/N So Darien now knows that he has a sister, and he hopes to meet her soon. Talk about a birthday gift, huh? And don't forget about Serena's missing brother. We'll be getting to him eventually too. The plot will soon thicken, but I don't want to give too much away. So I hoped you liked this. Please, feel free to drop me a review and tell me what you thought. I always get a kick out of reading your reactions and responses. Anyway, now that my break is over, it's back to work. I am almost back on track with updating my stories, and I'm loving it. Later gators! Lots of love and hugs!

~Sere~