Title: Twilight
Author: Tapestry
Email: Shaddow_Cat@hotmail.com
Rating: R
Standard Disclaimer Apply
*...* denotes mind speaking
28/01/03
"Woman was created from the ribs of man
Not from his head to top him
Nor from his feet to be walked upon
She was made from his side to be his equal
From beneath his arms to be protected
From very near his heart to be loved."
--Anonymous--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~ Chapter 2: Revelations ~
She was running. Her feet barely touched the ground before it was off the
earth once again. Running. She felt as if she were flying with the wind,
free of all constraints.

Of course, at these times, her long hair was usually an encumbrance. She
had intended to cut it. But she loved her hair. Her long silver blonde hair
that shone in the moonlight like platinum.

She'd been wrong to come to this forest. Here she was being hunted again.
How was it her instincts had failed her this time? She had felt safe here
except those few times when she'd felt eyes boring into the back of her
head. She had always trusted her instincts. They had kept her safe.

But this time, they were wrong. She'd felt drawn to this place for some
reason. Had felt a kinship with the land that she'd never felt before. She
had left the bustling city to find peace.

She's been in the city for five years. Spent those years hiding, moving
from home to home. She hadn't felt safe in the city and yet, for some
unfathomable reason, had been unable to leave unlike the other places she
had left. Perhaps because the city had been her birthplace. She never knew.

And now, she was racing through the forest, her feet, bare as she made her
way towards her camp. She needed to gather her things and leave before the
man caught up with her.

That was the one good thing about her abnormality. She was fast. She had
been faster than any other child. She had also been stronger, smarter and
her senses more acute than any other being she had encountered. She also
had a strange uncanny ability to tell what others were feeling. She was
already twenty-seven years old but her features had stopped aging the
moment she'd hit twenty-one.

Not a single wrinkle or gray hair. She'd been the envy of girls
everywhere. She had stood out among the crowd, attracting attention from
all eyes. She was different. And she was hunted.

She remembered her childhood well. She'd been happy in the city with her
beautiful mother and her handsome father that came very often to see them.
She could still remember their faces with amazing clarity. Her mother had
said it was a gift she had inherited from her father. Her mother had been
beautiful with a kind loving face. A wealth of platinum blonde hair
tumbling over her shoulders with sapphire eyes. Her father had been stunning
with dark hair and moss green eyes.

Then her mother had been murdered. She'd witnessed her father's insane
rage with death of her mother. She'd been twelve then. She could still see
the anger on his face, the despair. He had looked at her with such pain in
his eyes that she had cried.

He had disappeared promptly after that...along with her mother's murderer.
The body was never found.

She never saw him again. The social services people placed her in a foster
family. They left the city a year later, moving to the south. She remembered
the spiteful taunts of girls.

Freak.

Witch.

Demoness.

Weirdo.

Then she'd turned fifteen and her foster father's best friend had tried to
rape her. He'd underestimated her strength. She had beaten him off and left
him unconscious. She had left her foster home, but not before calling the
police and reporting the man.

She never knew if the man had been convicted or not. Probably not. She had
headed north, unknowingly back towards the place of her birth. She had
traveled with circuses and carnivals. That was when she discovered her
ability to communicate with cats. She had almost felt a part of them,
somehow.

She laughed to herself as she rushed about packing her things, dumping
items into her knapsack in a hurry. With her abilities, she could have been
a thief, a police officer or perhaps, even a lion tamer. But she couldn't
forget she was different. And right now, she had to leave this beautiful
place because a starkly beautiful man in a handsome way had seen her
weirdness. Her inhuman abilities.

She shouldn't have run. Now the man was suspicious. She didn't know why
she had run. The man had called to her in some elemental way, had
frightened her. In all her life, she had only run from one thing. This made
it the second thing. Was she turning into a coward?

She shook her head. Serena Ferale was no coward. She wasn't going to start
being one. But she was still leaving these woods. She really didn't want
to go round two with him.
Suddenly, a pair of hands wrapped about her waist, lifting her off the
ground. She gasped and struggled, trying to get free. Those powerful arms
merely tightened, stilling all movement. She wriggled to no avail.

"If you do not want to face the consequences, you will cease your infernal
wriggling." came a soft voice, whispered in her ear. She shivered, a sudden
chill mixed with fear and excitement shooting down her spine.

"Wh-what? How did you get here so fast?" she gasped out breathlessly. The
man was making it a little difficult for her to breathe. Especially since
he was plastered all along her back, something hard prodding at her
derriere. She had a faint inkling of what it was before dismissing it as
ludicrous.

He purred next to her ear seductively. "I'm a sprinter."

Was the man's voice for real? Could anybody's voice be that sexy and
sinful? If possible, it should have been outlawed. Her face was flushed with
colour. Her body was reacting to the man, embarrassingly. She didn't even
know him!

"Ah, but you know me..."

She turned to look up at his face. He had a smile that made her feel
hunted. A predatory aura surrounded him, making her feel very small and
fragile. Like prey. Only one person had ever made her feel like prey, but
this man....

This man amplified the feeling over a hundred times.

Her eyes narrowed suddenly. She hadn't said anything aloud a moment ago.
How was it, he had answered her unspoken question. Focusing on her empathic
ability, she tried to pick out any emotions he was feeling. Maybe she should
have practiced the talent more....

Right now, the only thing she picked out from him made her face bloom the
colour of a red rose.
He chuckled as he watched the girl's face that suddenly turned bright red.
He had felt her untrained mind reach out to read his emotions. He had, on
purpose, amplified his feelings of lust and desire. Inside, he studied this
strange girl-child. She was older than she looked, that he had sensed.

His body had reacted embarrassingly like a youth to her wriggles. As if
he were a mere cub, feeling emotions of lust and desire for the first time.
Experiencing sexual attraction for the first time. His soul roared with
joy and possessiveness.

On the run, he had inhaled her scent, watched her flurried movements. He
was not wrong. This was the one...his true mate. Something had shifted
within him, within his very soul. A possessiveness and a feeling of jealousy
had consumed him at the thought of her escape.

In retaliation, he nipped at her ear, then lapping it with his tongue.
Her yelp of surprise made him feel smug. She wasn't going to be escaping
him. He was Darien Praedari. No one could escape him, and she was his. He
buried his nose in her hair and inhaled, taking her scent into his lungs.
He would always know her...always be able to track her scent no matter where
she went.

It was part of a male Panthera's abilities. Where the Panthera male could
not track any female or male outside his pride, the Panthera male would be
always be able to track and find his true mate anywhere in the world once
her scent tag was embedded into his memory.

"You are mine." he whispered into her ear.
Serena could not believe her ears. Had the arrogant man just said she
belonged to him? She was no one's property, least of all some bossy
good-looking male's.

"Look, I don't know who the hell you are and what crazy idea you have in
your head but-" she began her tirade, glaring up at him. He was looking at
her but then, he lifted his head as if scenting something in the air. Like
a predator.

Her words froze in her mouth as her nose picked up something. Her ears
pricked, trying to pick out the sound. Padded feet. Many feet. Animals.
Wolves? Or perhaps cougars? Most probably wolves. Cougars were solitary
animals.

She heard the man give a little growl of warning. She could almost imagine
him with fur, his hackles raised in threat and warning. Like a wolf...or
maybe a cat. A big ferocious feral cat.

The sounds got closer. The animals were running. Then, she heard them
slow down until she could hardly hear them anymore. Her jaw nearly dropped
as five large black cats emerged from the darkness.

The man holding her snarled, tightening his grip and pushing her behind
him. Everything within her cried out in denial as she tried to shield this
beautiful man. She couldn't let those large cats eat him from dinner. After
all, she was the one who spoke to cats. After all, a large Siberian tiger
had bonded to her once.

The man merely hissed at her in warning. A demand that she stay back. Her
heart nearly stopped when she looked into his eyes. They almost seemed to
glow eerily.

Her lips thinned. Was she a cat or a mouse? She wasn't going to be cowed
by this man. She wasn't going to let him be eaten even if he was being a
jerk at the moment. Touching the minds of the panthers, she was startled to
discover she could not speak to them. In fact...

She was TOTALLY blocked from them!

Okay, now she was scared. She really didn't want to get eaten by these
great big black cats.

"What are you all doing here?" snapped the man irritably.

She frowned at him. Was he mad? Or were these his cats? Staring intently
at the cats, she frowned. They were black all right, but not quite. Two had
a brown sheen to their coats. Another had a slight silvery strawberry blonde
sheen. Which was odd. The other two were definitely black.

Turning her attention back to the man beside her, she felt sort of safe
already. After all, it was a big plus in his favour if these cats didn't
straight away all out pounce on them and feast.
Darien sighed. This wasn't the way he had planned to initiate his true
mate into the workings of his world. Unfortunately, the untimely arrival
of his pride just wasn't something one was going to forget.

"I suppose this is your doing, Jadeite, Lita."

The two panthers merely tossed their head. The other three were warily
eyeing his mate. Their noses twitching and ears pricked forward. They were
waiting for one wrong move by her. One.

He glared, his eyes gleaming like a panther's for a moment before they
dimmed to their normal human look.

"She is my true mate, there is no danger. Now, I tire of talking to you
as cats. You all aren't so witty when I'm the one talking." he said
mockingly.

That got a rise out of the males. They were quickly growing in stature,
shifting into that of their human form.

He smiled in amusement as his true mate gave a startled sound, her hand
catching hold of his sleeve. He tightened his arms in reassurance.

"Oh, you are so funny, ancient one." jibed Malachyte.

They had long hoped for this day. Had hoped Darien would find his true
mate as they had. They all had known he was growing weary and tired of the
responsibilities thrust upon his shoulders. Knew he was growing restless
with the world.

Malachyte could not be anything but happy for his friend. And yet...the
woman puzzled him. Jadeite had said the girl was human. How was it she was
Darien's true mate? Never in their history had a human become a true mate
to a Panthera. Also, there was something not quite kosher about her scent.

His eyes fixed on her, trying to puzzle out this enigma who had Darien
plastered to her side.
Serena shivered, unknowingly moving closer to the man's side. His arms
squeezed her shoulders in comfort. Maybe she really needed to go see a
shrink. She was probably losing her mind. There were no such things as
humans turning into....well, really really big cats. She was truly going
psycho after all these years.

She wanted to jump out of her skin and run screaming. The men were giving
her the heebie-jeebies. It was as if their eyes locked on her face were
trying to see into her soul, trying to determine her worth. An attempt to
look past her façade and see all the things she had ever done wrong. They
made her feel small.

And dammit, she didn't like that!

"Who the hell are you people? No, scratch that! WHAT the heck are you
people!?" she exclaimed.

"We are Panthera, little one...and you," smiled Darien, "-are mine."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Darien could hardly keep his grin from showing at the mutinous expression
pasted on her face. Anger and violence were rolling off her in waves,
assaulting his psychic senses.

"You keep saying that, and so I'll just have to keep repeating it." hissed
the blonde.

The little kitten was using her claws.

"I," she began struggling out of his grasp, "-am NOT YOURS! Get that into
your remarkably thick skull why don't you? And get your hands off me,
lecher!" she snarled, one of her hands curling into fists to aim a solid
swipe at his face.

Thank God for Panthera reflexes.

He dodged the blow easily, her knuckle missing his cheek by a hairs-
breadth.

Catching her wrist, he scowled at her. She met his gaze head on, with an
evil glare of her own. By the stars, the little cat was feisty. A smile
curled his lips. He liked that.

His eyes lifted, gleaming at his pride. Sending them a clear warning to
back off. He did not miss their posture, ready to attack if the impertinent
little witch struck him.

"Are you finished, pig?"

He returned his gaze on her face, staring hard at her until a bloom of
colour rose to her cheeks. Still she met his gaze. He admired her defiance
and spunk. She was a fitting mate. Nature could have chosen no better.

"Not really. Come now, little cat..." he grinned his devil's smile at
her as he lifted her hand to his lips. His tongue came out to lap a wet
caress over the smooth milky skin. Her eyes watched his actions as if in a
trance. He smiled when he felt the little shiver run down her spine.

A howl broke the tranquility of the woods.

His mate started from her trance-like state and looked about the woods,
trying to pinpoint the howl.

"I suggest we leave, Darien. The wolves are restless with so many of us
together." murmured Malachyte.

He nodded, capturing the woman's hand more carefully. That action quelled
any further attempts to retrieve her hand from his grasp.

"Come, my little cat. I offer my home as sanctuary from the night."

She sent him a wry look.

"Sanctuary? With you people no doubt prowling about? I'd be safer with
the wolves." she smirked.
Jadeite laughed. Their mask and appearance of civility did not fool this
outrageous woman. Darien glared at his brother-in-law.

"This one who is meant for you has a mean tongue, brother. She is not
taken in by your handsome face." grinned Jadeite.

"And I wonder how you tricked my sister into the false sense that she
had more authority than she really does?"

Nephlyte sighed. "IF we may continue this back home? There's a piece of
buffalo rib calling to me in the oven." he voiced loudly, picking up the
knapsack on the ground and slinging it over his shoulder as if it weighed
nary a pound.

"Hey! Wait one darn-" exclaimed Serena.

"Hush, little one. They will see to your belongings. We shall go ahead to
my home."

"Like hell! I didn't agree to go anywhere with you!"

"Your impudence is beginning to annoy me. What you need is a good
spanking as a lesson in manners."

"YOU spank ME?! MANNERS!?? Why, I'll show YOU manners you arrogant, no
good, mangy, ill-mannered lout!" she hissed, her ire sparking once again.
She swung her fist again, this time lashing out with her feet as well.

He ducked and dodged her attempts to do his bodily injury.

"Mangy? In what way am I mangy?"

"You're infuriating you blasted cur!"
Lita and the men watched in amusement and surprise. "My, she's got a
temper on her."

"Oh aye, I'll enjoy seeing Darien try to master her." snickered Zoycite.

"Ah, she's a spitfire this one. They'll always butt heads with no victor."
grinned Nephlyte, rubbing his hands gleefully.

"Who wants to bet?"
He held the little furious woman tightly to him, her hands bound as he
walked towards his home.

Her eyes blazed sapphire with fury at him. He knew if he hadn't gagged
her, she would probably be spitting insults and curses at him.

"It's your fault you know, you could have come quietly along."

He picked up an image of her knocking him flat on his back.

"Violence, my little cat...you have a penchance for violence." he chuckled
to himself. He kissed her cheek and forehead in affection.

He felt her relax slightly, becoming silent and subdue. He picked up her
sulkiness at the situation. Her sullen mood made him grin.

Oh yes, she was a perfect mate. All the attributes he wanted passed on to
his children.

Well, maybe not her evil tongue and temper. But he did want his children
to have most of her feisty characteristics.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He entered his home and made a beeline for the sitting room. He settled
her down lovingly onto the couch, removing her gag.

Silence.

Looking at her face, he saw a child-like joy and sense of awe spreading
across her face. He watched her eyes roam the room, flitting at every piece
of artwork, sculpture and furniture.

He smiled as he began untying her legs and hands.

Her expression reminded him of the joys of a true mate. He could teach
her and experience the feeling of wonder through her once more. He had had
all his artwork for decades.

The joy and wonder had long since faded. But now, he saw new delights
to share with a mate. To display his collection with pride and watch the
light shining in her eyes.

After the last rope was unraveled from her feet, she got up and walked
towards a wall filled with paintings. She reached up a curious hand before
dropping it and looking over her shoulder at him guiltily.

His heard skipped a beat. She looked like a child then. Looked as if she
had done something wrong. He wanted to hug her and tell her it was all
right. He wondered if she had experienced nothing but censure.

"Go ahead. Touch it, little one. It's alright."

She turned back and stared at the painting. Her fingers running reverently
over the picture like a caress.

His skin tingled as if he was the one being touched.

Unable to bear the torment any longer, he walked towards her and wrapped
his arms about her waist, pulling her into the cradle of his hard muscled
body.

Her hand stilled and a fine tremor went through her.

"Touch the painting, little one. Let your fingers see for you." he
whispered seductively into her ear. He felt the heat in her face. Her scent
wreathed his senses, drowning him in euphoria.

He could wallow in her scent all day. He WOULD wallow in her scent. For
all time as was his right.

His tongue lapped her ear, much as he had done earlier tonight. She
trembled again. He placed a teasing kiss on her neck, his hands rubbing
slowly on her tummy in a hypnotic rhythm.

Heat and desire flared. At once, he was kissing her. Ravaging her mouth.
He wanted to sink into her. Taste her lips forever. A growl erupted from
his throat as he crushed her to him. She whimpered.

A cough froze them.

Darien lifted his head, his eyes blazing. He was going to rip whoever's
throat out...

His sister and niece stood at the entry of the sitting room. His pride
appeared behind her minutes later.

"I can see you're enjoying yourself Darien, but I believe introductions
first before wild sex." coughed Raye trying not to grin.

The woman in his arms stiffened and tried to push him away. He snarled
a warning and she hesitated before she relented.

"If you were not my sister, Raye..."

"I know. I'd have had my throat torn out and the carpet would have to be
changed." finished Raye.

He glared.

"Introductions, Darien." reminded Lita.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She felt like sinking into the floor. She couldn't believe she had done
that. She could still feel his lips on her, his tongue and taste within her
mouth. Okay, she was getting mushy.

She never got mushy! For God's sake, she sounded like some weepy heroine
in a romance novel!

Whatever had flared between the dark-haired man and her had been wild and
uncontrollable. Like a blazing fire eating both of them. She could feel the
tension in his large body as he led her to the couch.

What she needed right now was a cold shower.

She didn't need a man. She had no time for men. She couldn't afford a
relationship.

Turning her attention back to the group who stared expectantly at the man
they referred to as Darien, they waited for the introductions.

She had never told them her name. How was he supposed to introduce her?
She wanted to smile at his predicament. She tamped it down, not wanting
his to know she was laughing at him.

His face swung towards hers in a scowl. Almost as if he had caught her
amusement at his plight. But that was impossible....right?

Not wanting to dwell on it further, she glanced at the men and two women
in the room.

"What are your names?" she demanded.

Not really expecting them to answer, she sat there.

Darien smiled.

"This, little cat, is Malachyte Reiakos, Jadeite and Raye Daravinsky,
their little daughter, Celeste Daravinsky, Zoycite Iciyalis and Nephlyte
and Lita Tonerri."

She nodded. They had odd names. Well, no more odd than hers.

"And I, am Darien Praedari. Perhaps you've heard of me."

"Not really, no." she lied.

THIS was the elusive billionaire? She would never have thought Praedari
to be young and handsome with a tone body that would even put Brad Pitt
to shame. Anyone living within a 200-mile radius of the city had probably
heard of Darien Praedari. Scratch that. Make that the whole country.

"Really?" he purred.

She wanted to run. She really did!

"No matter, perhaps you would grace us with your name then, little cat?"

She frowned. "Stop calling me little cat. Or I'll scratch you."

Okay, not the most frightening and wisest threat to use. Besides, it
wasn't as if she really could scratch that dratted handsome face. She
couldn't scar such beauty.

"We're waiting, little one."

"My name is Serena. Serena Ferale."

Immediately, the room froze and an oppressive silence went through the
room, sending fear down her spine.

She watched the sudden hardening in their faces. Had she said something
wrong?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Darien froze at the name Ferale.

And then, relaxed. Perhaps there were other people in the world by the
name Ferale. Odd that he had never encountered one in all his years.

"Is something wrong?" came her voice.

"No sweeting. Nothing at all." he smiled. She gave him a glare before
turning her pert little nose up at him.

"Is Ferale your real name?" asked Raye.

"Yes. It was the name of my father. The name my mother gave me." nodded
Serena, her eyes wary.

"Your parents...what happened to them? What were they like?" he asked,
his hand tangling in her silver blonde curls. Rubbing a strand between his
thumb and index fingers.

Serena shivered, feeling as if her hair were extra-sensitized. She batted
the hand away. She didn't need any man. Least of all some macho mystery man.
It was better for her to be alone. She didn't need to tell these people
anything.

The words slipped from her mouth despite her intention to stay silent.

"My mother was beautiful...silvery hair. My father was the strongest most
handsome man I had ever seen. Dark hair and jade eyes. I was twelve the
last time I saw him. He didn't live with us, but he came to visit my
mother and me often. One night, a robber broke in...I was hiding in the
closet. My mother was killed that night." whispered Serena as the memories
came, boiling out of her mind.

"I stood there, looking at all the blood. Then my father rushed in. His
eyes were haunted as they looked at me...filled with pain, rage and anguish.
It made me cry. That was the last night I saw him. The killer was never
found. The police only found a pool of the robber's blood smeared in a dark
alley. Strips of shredded cloth. I was put with a foster home."

"Were you born here?" he asked. Something nagged at his mind about her
story. Something he should remember.

"Yes..."

A tear slipped, trickling down a cheek. Then, the flood came as the
memories assaulted her. She cried, rocking herself back and forth. Strong
arms enfolded her, turning her into a hard chest. She could only cry...she
couldn't seem to stop the tears.

She felt weak, defeated. She never cried. She didn't need anyone. But at
the moment...it felt good to have someone. A someone who held her, cared
for her. Loved her when everything in the world was wrong. She felt safe.
Maybe if she closed her eyes, she'd be able to believe she was safe. Even
if for a few short hours.
It was an hour or so later when Darien finally put Serena to bed. Tucking
the covers under her chin, he brushed her silvery bangs off her forehead,
smiling tenderly. She was beautiful.

Retreating to his study, he sat down in his large leather chair, brooding.
He stared out into the moonlit night, and his thoughts began to wander.

Ferale.

He had not thought to hear that name for fifteen years. Closing his eyes,
he could almost imagine how it was two hundred years ago. Coming to this
new land with his pride and his best friend, Raphael Ferale.

He remembered his laughing face, his sense of humour that never failed to
make him laugh. Raphael had had dark black hair and green eyes. Was it a
coincidence that Serena had described her father with the exact colouring?
~ Two Hundred years ago... ~

"Do not lose hope, Darien. One day...one day, you will find your
salvation, I am sure of it." smiled Raphael, thumping his friend on his
back.

A younger, still brooding Darien frowned at his friend.

"I do not understand your enthusiasm. How can you be so sure I will not
turn man-eater? There are so few of our women left on this earth. It would
be a miracle if one of them became my mate." muttered Darien.

"Have faith Darien. I do not know how I know, but I can feel it..."

"Pray hope you are right, old friend. Our children will perhaps be
friends, eh?" smiled Darien grudgingly,

~ Thirty years ago...~

"I do not understand Raphael these days, sister..." snarled Darien as he
paced his study.
"He's just going through a phase."

"What phase can he be going through?! He's as old as I am!" I mean, he
goes off and comes back happy as a lark. After a day or so, he begins to
mope, and finally he leaves again. Sometimes for extended periods of time!
He doesn't tell anybody where he goes either. And the stench on him when he
comes back from the city!! Humans!" spat Darien disgusted.

Raye winced at the word. Her brother was beginning to scare her sometimes.
She knew the killing urge was pushing him hard these last months. It was
why he was so irritable at the scent of a human. She hoped he would soon
be able to control it, otherwise...

"Blasted humans. They are just liable to drive me mad!" snarled Darien.

~ Fifteen years ago...~

Darien had tracked Raphael to the city. His friend had charged off a few
days ago in an insane frenzy. The news had reported a murder of a woman in
a small home. The murderer was not yet found. The only trace was a gruesome
bloody scene in an alleyway.

The report had reminded Darien of killings made by man-eaters. Scenting
the air, he found the elusive trail.

A scream rent the air.

He ran, reaching a dark street. A woman was on the ground, backing slowly
away from a large black panther snarling, saliva dripping from its mouth.
Agony filled his being at the implication....

Raphael was a man-eater.
Darien's eyes snapped open. The murder...Raphael becoming a man-eater. He
had killed his friend that night. One couldn't leave a man-eater alive.
But could Serena be related to Raphael?

But how was it possible?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Morning came and Serena was shaken from sleep. Blinking her eyes against
the light, she looked up at Darien's dark face staring down at her.

"Serena, what was the name of your father?"

"What?"

"Your FATHER! The NAME of your FATHER!" exclaimed Darien impatiently.

She cringed at his voice. She knew it was too good to be true. A man
couldn't be rich, good-looking and kind. He had to have a mean streak or a
failing somewhere. No man was perfect.

And no man who had ever been in her life had been perfect. Not her father,
not...

"Serena!"

"Don't shout, you jerk!" hissed Serena. "How dare you drag me to your
home, damn near molest me every time and how dare you shout at me like I'm
your damn-"

"Molest?" snarled Darien.

"Yes!"

"Dammit, I don't want to argue, Serena. The name. NOW!"
Throwing the covers off her body, she stormed towards the doors
bare-footed. Before she could open them wide, a strong hand slammed them
shut, trapping her against the door.

"Where do you think, you're going?"

"Away from here!"

"No." he snarled menacingly.

She heard a grating sound that sounded suspiciously like something digging
into wood. Dismissing the sound, she glared at the handsome dark-haired
creep with the pretty buns.

Had she really thought THAT?!

Darien breathed out and closed his eyes as if trying to calm himself.

"Serena, you are not leaving here. Now, please...I apologize for my
behaviour, but I've been up all-night and cranky as an ass. Now, will
please tell me the name of your father?"

"All night? What were you doing?" gaped Serena, examining his face. Now
that she was looking, he did look a little tired.

"Serena-"

"Alright, alright!"

A brow lifted, waiting.

"My father's name was...."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
To be continued...

Finally got around to switching on the computer and finishing this chapter.
Sorry for the late update. I've been distracted. And will probably be for
the next month or so. :p So you can look forward to long spells of slow
updates. (Sorry!) But I'll try to write when I can. Hope you liked this
chapter. I was going to name this chapter something else but decided to use
the title for Chapter 3. Anyway, review and tell me what you think. Thanks!

21/02/03
Edited: 21/02/03