AN: First off, thanks again for everyone who wrote
me about the story ^_~ I just love getting email.
A special thanks to Silver Moon, my editor/beta reader
(Shelly - you're so awesome, you know that!! ^V^)
I guess I just want to say one other thing - a lot of
people were saying that Darien was so _mean_, and
being the crazy person that I am, I feel the need to
defend him he is my dream guy, after all. He was
embarrassed - his friends pushed him into doing
something that he wasn't ready to do, and he simply
wasn't ready to admit his feelings for the lovable,
though insecure, Meatball head, but don't worry -
by the time I'm through with him, he will. Oh yes -
Mwhahahaha
ja'
yuu
Operation: Spread the Spirit
Chapter 3: I Start Out a New Woman
and Finish by Facing an Ice Queen
by Yuubou
e-mail: yuubou_san@yahoo.com
aim: yuubouchan
**********My House**********
That night I went to bed early. I didn't want to
think about Darien. But how to forget him when
that kiss was so.amazing? My first kiss.
What had I expected? That afterward he would
profess his undying love? This was Darien, and
somehow I could never picture him expressing any
feeling out loud. Besides, he's gorgeous, (although
I'd never let on to him - his ego's big enough
already!) intelligent, and a senior! I'd have to be
pretty daft to think he'd ever see anything in a
stupid clumsy freshman.(Yeah, I know I'm
missing a thousand other faults as well.)
Why was I always falling for totally unreachable
guys? Andrew, Tuxedo Mask, and now Darien.
You'd think I'd learn. I'm completely hopeless.
I wish that at the battle Tux boy had kissed me
instead of urging me to dust the nega-creep, then I
wouldn't give a damn about any of this. At least, I
think I wouldn't.
The funny thing is, as hurt as I was that Darien
didn't seem to care a smidgen for me, I wasn't mad
about the kiss. In a way, it was everything I had
hoped kissing would be like, although I could have
done without the live audience.
But still, I had wanted to make the choice, to give
my first kiss away instead of having it stolen from
me. He had stolen it.
I should have slapped him - hard. A bright red hand
print across the face would have been a perfect
memorial to the nerve of that guy.
I soon fell asleep after that, to dream of slapping
Darien and kissing Tuxedo Mask after dusting the
nega-monster. In the end it kind of got jumbled into
me slapping the nega-creep and Tuxedo Mask
kissing Darien, but at least it was entertaining.
I woke up early the next morning - 10 am. Hey! It
was early for me, ok? Another lazy Sunday, the last
day before another day of school. I wrinkled my
nose at the idea of school, and pushed it away from
my mind. I was going to enjoy this day, I
determined. First thing I decided was to take a long
hot bath, and soak away all the tension in my body.
I filled the tub with sweet smelling bubble bath and
skin softeners. I tied my hair up so it wouldn't get
wet. I lay there thinking about absolutely nothing
for half an hour - it was great - until my fingers and
toes were completely pruny. After getting the usual
personal hygiene stuff out of the way, I wrapped my
big fluffy white towel around me and exited the
bathroom. I felt so refreshed, like I was a new
woman.
I walked slowly toward my room - no rushing
around for this woman, when I got knocked over by
my little brother.
"SAMMY!!" I screamed at him from my position
on the floor. "Watch where you're going!"
He simply scrambled up and stuck his tongue out at
me. "Make me, Meatball head!"
Whoever told him about that name is going to die -
it has haunted me to no end. I bet it was the big
Jerk himself - it would fit his track record for
annoying me and ruining my life, although I wasn't
sure if he had even met my little brother.
I then noticed that the kid was in a hurry pulling on
his snow suit. "What are you doing?" I questioned
him, my forehead wrinkling in puzzlement.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" he replied
snidely.
"It snowed last night?"
Sammy grinned. "Two inches!"
"Sammy - you spaz! You don't need a snow suit for
two inches!!!"
"It's enough for snowball fights!! The `Rents went
shopping, so the house'll be all yours. Well, see ya
around, Hurricane Serena!"
"Hey!!!" I cried indignantly. "You hit ME this
time!" He was already bolting down the stairs and
was opening the door. "Don't forget your key -
cause I'm not letting you back in if I can help it!" I
called down to him, always eager to get in the last
word.
Finally, now that the little spam had left the
building, I began leisurely getting up, and taking my
time as I had intended. I sauntered down the
hallway to my room and opened my door. Luna was
curled on the bed, snoring away. I giggled at the
thought that I was up before she!
Carefully laying my clothes out on the bed, I
decided this was definitely the outfit for today. Just
then, the doorbell rang. "Sammy!" I yelled down.
"I don't care what you forgot!!! I told you to take a
key, `cause I'm not letting you in!" The bell rang
again - this time twice. I shook my head and
muttered, "spaz" before calling down again,
"Sammy! Can't say I didn't warn you!" When it
rang a few more times, I gave up. Quickly pulling
on my underwear and pulling my towel around me, I
scrambled downstairs to the front door. The bell
was now going crazy, continually ringing.
"Cut it out Sammy!!!!" I screamed at him while
swinging the door open. Only, see, hehehe, it
wasn't Sammy. It was Darien - and I had opened
the door in my towel.
His eyes went wide, and he started to stutter,
although whether because of being cold or because
of my choice of clothing, I wasn't sure. "Sa- sorry,
Se- Se-Serena!" Hey, he learned my name! Maybe
this towel thing wasn't a total waste.
His cheeks were bright pink and once again I hoped
it was from the cold. He had traded his ugly green
jacket for a warm winter charcoal colored pea-coat
which looked good on him - I noticed.
Suddenly, a flying white object came out of no
where and was soaring toward us.
Shocked, I pointed behind him, and warned him,
"Watch out!!!" A wretched, juvenile laughter
drifted our way, and with horror I realized that the
sound had come from a source even scarier than the
scariest nega-freak I had ever fought - my little
brother.
As if in slow motion, Darien turned to look behind
him. Quickly noticing the horrible projectile's path
- which was headed straight for him - he twisted his
body to avoid being hit. Only, something went
horribly wrong, and he ended up falling.
A sharp gasp escaped my lips - as he landed.
.on me.
Yes, full length.
We landed backwards on the carpet behind me, his
arms supporting his weight from either side of my
body. I watched, fascinated, as a small piece of
snow slid down his jacket and fell onto my bare
shoulder, its wet coldness shocking to the touch. I
shivered. The door was still open and the frigid air
wafted in. These icy sensations proved to make me
only that much more aware of my uncovered skin.
His entire form hovered above me, resting along
me, and a warm heaviness settled at the bottom of
my belly from the idea of his proximity, and from
the warmth of his body against mine. My breathing
quickened slightly as I stared up into his bright blue
eyes.
"Are you okay?" he gasped out worriedly, almost
oblivious to the position we were in. I guess he
mistook my previous gasp of breath as a sign of
pain instead of shock.
His warm breath wafted down to me, and all I could
do was nod my head in the affirmative. I felt so lost
in him - so wonderfully lost. He was so near, inches
away, hovering above me in a lover's position. I
was lying on the floor half-naked with Darien on
top of me - and I was totally aware how easy it
would be to just reach up and touch him, kiss him.
"Maybe we should get up now," I stuttered
nervously, highly aware of my dangerous and
traitorous thoughts.
"Uh, yeah," he flushed out, apparently now aware of
the whole situation.
His cheeks were now flaming red, although his
stutter disappeared. "Some one was throwing
snowballs at me. That's why I was ringing the
doorbell so, err, persistently," he explained,
sweatdropping, as we scrambled up.
Another snowball whizzed in and smacked Darien
on the shoulder - I couldn't help but giggle and
some of the tension dissipated between us as he
laughed as well and brushed the snow from his coat.
"Little brother," I explained to him while I moved
around to the doorway and then yelled out,
"Sammy!!! Not in the house!!! Go find some
friends!" before slamming the door shut. I turned
around and caught Darien staring at my legs - boy
was I happy that I had bothered to shave - when I
suddenly remembered with a flush that I was only
wearing a towel.. He looked me right in the eyes,
and a sort of helpless and embarrassed expression
crossed his face, before a mocking one made its
home instead.
"With your track record, I wouldn't be opening the
door in a towel, Hurricane Serena," he quipped.
"What is this? Some sort of conspiracy?" I cried
indignantly. Yuu looks around, avoiding
everyone's eyes - err, nooo, of course not..
"YOU ran into ME!!! Besides, you're on my turf
now, and you better behave or I'll feed you to my
little brother!"
Darien looked generally afraid at that one. After a
moment, he calmly said, "Look Meatball head, as
much as I enjoy fighting with you, maybe we should
continue this discussion _after_ you've gotten
dressed?"
"Umm, good point," I agreed, blushing. "You can
wait in the living room," I said while gesturing to a
room to my left. I quickly ran upstairs and finished
putting on my outfit and redoing my hair. After a
quick application of lip gloss I was all set.
I ambled down to the living room, strangely now
even more nervous than when I was practically
naked in front of him. He was by the mantle,
studying photos with a strange expression marring
his face, but it disappeared once he noticed my
presence.
"So." I began. "How do you like this one? Better
than the towel?" I joked, masking my nervousness
in humor.
"I don't know, I'm not sure anything could be better
than that towel." he muttered. I looked up,
scandalized - now he was making innuendoes as
freely as Mina would! He was still studying a
photo, and I got the impression I wasn't supposed to
hear that one. That comment was too good to pass
up - and I felt the need to pick an argument.
Gleefully I pulled a Darien - and raised my eyebrow.
It was time to bait him. I started, "Really? Well, at
least now I know what to get you for Christmas."
Darien returned the raised eyebrow, and without
missing a beat, declared, "That's very generous of
you. With presents like that, I just may actually
look forward to this holiday," while taking a languid
stride in my direction, like a lion on the prowl,
which, though unintentional, was very sexy.
I quickly retorted, shoulders held high and proud,
"Oh, come on, Darien. Did you really think I'd give
you a photo of me in a towel? You, little boy, have
been way too naughty to ever receive a great gift
like that!" I wagged my finger in his direction like
Raye often did to me when she scolded me.
"Why would I want a picture when I've already seen
the live show?" he teased in a low voice. A tremble
ran through my body at his tone while the tips of my
ears burned red from the content of his words.
I kept my cool, however, and gave a little laugh. I
was going to win this one, I resolved. "Live show?"
I questioned sweetly. "Honey, that was just the
commercial," I said as I teasingly cocked my head,
and let my tongue dart out and lick my lips.
His eyes narrowed and darkened simultaneously as
he glanced down to my victoriously smiling mouth
for a moment. He took a few impatient steps until
we were almost touching so that he towered above
me and I needed to lean my head back to look at
him. I could see he was out to win this one as well.
A shiver danced across my skin as I got the
unmistakable impression that I was playing with
fire.
"So," he continued huskily, "what, exactly, does
this live show entail?"
"What difference does it make? You'll never find
tickets by now, and like I said, you've been way too
naughty to find them in your stocking. Too bad you
aren't a good little boy, huh?"
He continued to hold up that sexy aura of
impregnability, and despite my efforts I seemed to
be losing my cool.
"What if I showed you just how _good_ I can be?"
he suggestively breathed.
I couldn't believe that I was actually having this
conversation! Time to tactfully change the subject,
I resolved. My policy, from now on, with him, was
to get as far away from any romantic/sexual subjects
as soon as possible - it just seemed to bring about
too many embarrassing situations.
"You? Good?" I stuttered out, now far less cocky
than before - probably something to do with his
proximity - and searching for a reason to get out of
this. He merely smirked and drooped his head
lower to mine for a moment.
And then, I heard a growl, and unfortunately it
wasn't my stomach, although it wasn't my father
either (which could have proven quite dangerous.)
Luna must have woken up.
Darien paused, his eyes clouding over in slight
confusion. When nothing happened, he continued
to move in, while I froze in fear.
"Gah!" he exclaimed while he hopped backwards
from the ensuing attack. You can't say she didn't
warn him, I thought silently.
He swung around 180 degrees to face his attacker. I
chuckled when I spied my cat hanging by her claws
on his back. He began reaching in the inside of his
jacket for something.
"Calm down, Darien, and hold still. It's just Luna."
I grabbed her off of him and gave her a quick
disapproving glance before he once again faced me.
I cradled Luna to my chest, and couldn't help
teasing him, "See, if you had been good she
wouldn't have attacked you." He glared at both of
us, and seemed to take a special interest in the
design on Luna's forehead. Had he seen her before
with Sailor Moon? Anyone who figured out my
alter identity could unknowingly endanger both me
and themselves.
I could see the wheels turning in his mind, and I
feared what conclusions he might come up with
from the behavior of my furry companion - after all,
a normal cat would never have done something like
attack him for apparently no good reason. So, to
throw him off the scent, I attacked him with my
own suspicious/irrational thoughts.
"What's in your jacket?"
"Huh?"
"You were reaching in your jacket, after Luna, err,
attacked you."
"No I wasn't," he denied almost too quickly. My
eyes narrowed. I stored the info in the back of my
mind, and asked something which I should have
asked when I answered the door.
"Why are you here, any way?"
He seemed to adjust quickly, and turned to the
nearby couch and picked up something. Gesturing
to the scarf in his hands, he told me, "You left this
in my apartment yesterday. I figured that since it
snowed, you'd be needing it."
"Oh," I nodded. How thoughtful of him - Andrew
probably put him up to it. I reached over and took it
from him. "Thanks."
"No problem," he shrugged, "and also, I thought
that maybe we should talk about last night," he
added tentatively.
My eyes stayed glued to his, waiting for him to
continue, because I sure as hell wasn't going to. He
sensed this, and took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kissed you like that."
He was apologizing - something I've never heard
him do before. Again, I had to wonder if Andrew
had put him up to this - maybe Darien didn't care at
all - it wasn't like his face was giving any clues.
Whether he knew it or not, Darien had the capacity
to hurt me tremendously. Every day we'd bump
into each other, and a playful fight would ensue -
that much I liked, but some how, at the end of it,
the little exercise in wit would turn into hurtful
declarations that dug into open wounds. It was hard
to tell if those words were said in jest or contempt,
but it seemed to hurt me all the same. His rejection
would be a hundred times worse, I knew, so I
wasn't about to give away my feelings so openly.
Keeping this in mind, I chose my words carefully.
"It's fine, Darien. Last night I was just, shocked, I
guess - that's why I left so early. Don't worry - I
know the kiss didn't mean anything, and it was,
after all, just a dare. No hard feelings, really." He
didn't seem convinced, so I continued lightly,
"Anyway, I should be grateful, right? When I
finally kiss the guy that I really like, he'll have to
thank you for the lessons!"
His eyes narrowed. "Which guy is that?" he
growled out.
I blushed. I had been, of course, speaking about
Tuxedo Mask, but I wasn't about to say that one out
loud. I could just picture him laughing at me being
in love with a super hero, and it wasn't like I could
tell him about my alter ego.
"No one you know, I'm sure," I told him sincerely.
I felt a lot better now that we were back to normal,
and last night's bout of sucking face was behind us.
After a bit of silence, he small talked, "So, what are
you doing today?"
"Oh, I thought I'd go to the Crown." I looked up at
him, and after a pause, I asked tentatively, "You
wanna come?"
He gave me a quick smile. "Actually, I have to
work today." He checked his watch. "I'm on in
twenty minutes." I nodded, understanding - he had
to go.
After another pause, he moved toward the door and
I followed. As I opened it for him, and he began to
move past me, I grabbed his arm. Startled, he
looked at me.
"Darien? Umm, since the live show is sold out and
everything, I wondered if you wanted anything in
particular for Christmas." He looked at me
questioningly. He shook his head. "So," I
continued, "do you need any help on deciding what
you're going to get me?" I gave him my `I'm a
sweet little girl' smile to help out my point.
After all, I still wanted to be able to go to the
arcade, and no matter how much Darien sucked last
night ::cough:: ::cough:: - I meant that in a negative
way, really - I still was a girl on a mission. Besides
- part of Christmas is giving, right? And I wanted
presents.
Darien, as usual, answered suavely.
"Wha?" he asked, dumbfounded and I couldn't
help, but grin.
I gestured with my arms as I replied, "Duh, genius!
It's Christmas. I expect a present, you know." And
here comes the kicker. I needed to get Darien to go
to Andrew's party so, with this quest always
hovering in the back of my head, I quickly added, "I
was thinking that we could exchange gifts at
Andrew's party," before nonchalantly turning away
and held my breath for his response.
Luckily he was still stuck on the first part. "Look,
nothing personal, but I've never really done the
whole gift giving Christmas thing."
"Well, here's a reason to try something new!" I
exclaimed cheerfully, breath let out and facing him
again. Back on my power trip, I smiled slyly, and
added, "Oh well - think about." I winked before
nudging him out the door and closing it in his still
stunned face.
I realized at that moment that I was in a cheerful
mood - as much as Darien could infuriate me to no
end, there was nothing like having an argument, and
::coughs once more:: making him squirm.
I just had to remember to tease mercilessly, and to
make no more damn innuendoes.
I peeked out the window as he walked away to his
car. Strides purposeful, head up, he seemed almost
cheerful. I backed away and flounced on the couch,
a smile splashed across my face. Maybe this
mission wouldn't be so horrible after all. I did get
to see Darien apologize to me - even if it meant that
he had to trounce on my heart before he did it.
I got up to finish getting ready to get to the Crown.
The rest of the day went by pretty much mundanely.
At the Crown, I met the girls, and besides the usual,
we discussed a few ideas to help me with the whole
Darien issue.
The next day at school I fell asleep in class, as
usual. Unfortunately, Ms. H was in a particularly
bad mood, and I got an extra long detention - she
must have had a bad weekend. After getting out I
went directly to the arcade, because, after all, I only
had the rest of the week to get Darien to go to that
party. I was deeply afraid of failing this little
mission that Andrew cooked up, and I certainly
didn't want to have to do something else if I failed
to make it up to him.
But when I got there, Darien's familiar form wasn't
hovering over a steaming cup of coffee, or chatting
with the brilliantly smiling Andrew (aka cutie in an
apron,) or even at the claw game trying to pick up a
Tuxedo Mask doll.
"Hey Andrew!" I called out in greeting. "Where's
our favorite victim?"
He flashed me a grin. "Just missed him, I'm
afraid." An unfamiliar feeling of disappointment
washed over me.
"Oh." I tried desperately to sound nonchalant.
Seeing Andrew raise an eyebrow - it reminded me
of Darien - jeesh I'm getting obsessed, aren't I? - I
realized that normally I would be doing song and
dance about that little fact, so I amended, "That's
great! One day less of staring at nitwit's ugly mug
for me!"
Andrew, who normally would chastise me for
saying something like that about his best friend,
could see that I was kidding. So, instead, he asked
me, "And now, when you say mug, do you mean his
face, or his coffee cup? Because I have his cup
right here.." He reached behind the counter and
produced coffee mug with super cute deformed
Tuxedo Masks and Sailor Moons decorating it.
I gave him a smile. "How about a hot chocolate?" I
asked, changing the subject. He nodded, and to my
surprise, went about pouring the drink into Darien's
mug - usually he reserved it only for that boy. I
wondered if Andrew was teasing me, and found that
I didn't mind if he was.
When I went home that night, I was determined to
finish my homework and everything early. That
way, I hoped I'd get to bed early, and as long as no
negaverse action occurred, I'd get a good night's
sleep - and then hopefully I wouldn't be late to
school the next day or fall asleep in class, which
meant no detention! Or so I hoped.
Well, everything went pretty well, considering. I
went to bed early, as planned, didn't have any
subversive evil creatures to deal with, but I also
woke up late, as usual.
"Ahh! Why didn't somebody wake me up!" I
moaned as I ran about the house, getting ready for
school. Out the door with a piece of toast jammed
into my mouth I ran, with a gray cat bounding after
me, holding my lunch in her jaws, each of us
muttering our own choice words around our
respective mouthfuls.
I heard a particular nasty one come from the pint
size beside me, and I turned to scold her when -
"Ooof!" - I hit Darien. Both sprawled on our
backsides and facing each other - and I was happy.
Usually I'd be fuming.
I gave him a grin through the mouthful of toast, and
he merely laughed and remarked, "That's a good
look for you."
I removed the remaining piece from hanging out of
my mouth and replied somewhat gravely, "Well, it
is the breakfast of champions," while nodding my
head.
"Oh, is it?" he mocked.
"You see me eating it, don't you? So it must be." I
shrugged. By this time he had picked himself off
the ground, and was now hovering over me, offering
a hand to help me up. I accepted it, and once I was
on my own feet he reached down and picked up my
school bag for me, which was when I remembered.
"School! Oh, no! Now I'm really gonna be late!
Miss H. is gonna kill me!" I grabbed my stuff from
him and Luna, and raced down the street, flinging a
weak goodbye to the wind, hoping he'd hear it.
Although I was late, the sleep did me good -
because I didn't fall asleep in class, not even once.
Because of that, Miss H. let me out of detention
after only a few minutes.
When completely bundled and looking like a big
fluffy pink marshmallow, I left the school building,
only to find Luna waiting outside for me. We set
off, our footsteps crunching in fresh snow, and
bright blustery winds blasting at my cheeks -
practically the only thing of me not covered - and
her entire body. I picked her up and cradled her to
my chest, trying to protect her from the wind more.
A smile lit up my face, and I convinced myself that
it was the lack of detention that did the trick, but I
couldn't help acknowledging the fact that Darien
probably had something to do with my state of mind
as well.
"Luna?"
"Yes, Serena?"
"What do you think of Darien?"
"You know Serena, if you were half as interested in
Scout business as you were in boys, we would have
defeated the Negaverse by now!"
"Do you always have to bring that up? You know I
try!"
"You need to try harder. Being a better scout is the
best thing for you, its the best thing for the rest of
the scouts, and its the best thing for all those out
there that you protect. You are their only hope,
Serena! During the last attack you spaced out more
than once - and because of it you nearly got yourself
killed!"
"But Tuxedo Mask saved me! He-"
"He may not always be there, Serena," she cut me
off, sternly. "He's not one of us - we don't know
where his loyalty lies. You can't count on him."
I shook my head resolutely. "Why would he save
my life time and again if he didn't care for me? He
must!"
"Don't be ridiculous! You save stranger's lives
everyday, time and again, can you really care for all
of them?"
"But, Luna. I do care for them. I care for each and
every one of them."
Luna looked up at me with sympathy in her eyes. "I
know you do, Serena. That doesn't mean that
Tuxedo Mask feels the same way. I'm sorry - I
know how you feel about him, but you can't trust
him. Not until we know more about him."
I averted my eyes and bit my lip, before nodding
slightly. I understood where she was coming from -
but my heart told me differently.
By chance, my eyes alighted on movement across
the street in the park. I had a clear view of the lake
across the field, and there, shimmering in the
afternoon sun and hovering above the waters, was
something that should never have been.
It was as if a holiday ice sculpture had come alive -
a twisted, beautiful ice angel.
It was a translucent ice blue in color, with hair of
icicles flapping in the howling wind, and solid
white frozen wings beating against it.
It raised a hand, palm out, and a blast of freezing
rain poured out, hitting a young couple that had
been trying to run away. Glazed over in ice, the
couple seemed to become ice sculptures themselves,
holding each other in mortal fright. The ice around
them seemed to pulsated and contract - and I
realized it must be sucking their energy dry.
The ice angel chose that moment to look up - and
right into my eyes. Even from here I could see the
look of calm pride in her face. The steady stare was
unapologetic for what she had just done, and a hint
of a smile floated about her eyes.
Coldness seized my heart, and as the blood pounded
in my veins, I wished furiously that this pain had
never happened - that I would never have to fight
and hurt and destroy. But I knew if I did nothing
that those people would die.
With new resolve I quickly bounded across the
street, and dove over a waist high hedge, and
landing in a roll. My scarf got caught on the plant,
however, and as I rolled it unwound and trailed off.
Leaving it behind, my focus tuned to finding a safe
area to transform, I skirted some trees and noticed
that the monster's attention was diverted to some
other nearby humans, before placing Luna on the
ground and shouting out for my transformation.
Tossing my communicator to the feline, I called
over my shoulder as I began to run toward the
vicious ice angel, "Call the others. It looks like
we'll need them."
me about the story ^_~ I just love getting email.
A special thanks to Silver Moon, my editor/beta reader
(Shelly - you're so awesome, you know that!! ^V^)
I guess I just want to say one other thing - a lot of
people were saying that Darien was so _mean_, and
being the crazy person that I am, I feel the need to
defend him he is my dream guy, after all. He was
embarrassed - his friends pushed him into doing
something that he wasn't ready to do, and he simply
wasn't ready to admit his feelings for the lovable,
though insecure, Meatball head, but don't worry -
by the time I'm through with him, he will. Oh yes -
Mwhahahaha
ja'
yuu
Operation: Spread the Spirit
Chapter 3: I Start Out a New Woman
and Finish by Facing an Ice Queen
by Yuubou
e-mail: yuubou_san@yahoo.com
aim: yuubouchan
**********My House**********
That night I went to bed early. I didn't want to
think about Darien. But how to forget him when
that kiss was so.amazing? My first kiss.
What had I expected? That afterward he would
profess his undying love? This was Darien, and
somehow I could never picture him expressing any
feeling out loud. Besides, he's gorgeous, (although
I'd never let on to him - his ego's big enough
already!) intelligent, and a senior! I'd have to be
pretty daft to think he'd ever see anything in a
stupid clumsy freshman.(Yeah, I know I'm
missing a thousand other faults as well.)
Why was I always falling for totally unreachable
guys? Andrew, Tuxedo Mask, and now Darien.
You'd think I'd learn. I'm completely hopeless.
I wish that at the battle Tux boy had kissed me
instead of urging me to dust the nega-creep, then I
wouldn't give a damn about any of this. At least, I
think I wouldn't.
The funny thing is, as hurt as I was that Darien
didn't seem to care a smidgen for me, I wasn't mad
about the kiss. In a way, it was everything I had
hoped kissing would be like, although I could have
done without the live audience.
But still, I had wanted to make the choice, to give
my first kiss away instead of having it stolen from
me. He had stolen it.
I should have slapped him - hard. A bright red hand
print across the face would have been a perfect
memorial to the nerve of that guy.
I soon fell asleep after that, to dream of slapping
Darien and kissing Tuxedo Mask after dusting the
nega-monster. In the end it kind of got jumbled into
me slapping the nega-creep and Tuxedo Mask
kissing Darien, but at least it was entertaining.
I woke up early the next morning - 10 am. Hey! It
was early for me, ok? Another lazy Sunday, the last
day before another day of school. I wrinkled my
nose at the idea of school, and pushed it away from
my mind. I was going to enjoy this day, I
determined. First thing I decided was to take a long
hot bath, and soak away all the tension in my body.
I filled the tub with sweet smelling bubble bath and
skin softeners. I tied my hair up so it wouldn't get
wet. I lay there thinking about absolutely nothing
for half an hour - it was great - until my fingers and
toes were completely pruny. After getting the usual
personal hygiene stuff out of the way, I wrapped my
big fluffy white towel around me and exited the
bathroom. I felt so refreshed, like I was a new
woman.
I walked slowly toward my room - no rushing
around for this woman, when I got knocked over by
my little brother.
"SAMMY!!" I screamed at him from my position
on the floor. "Watch where you're going!"
He simply scrambled up and stuck his tongue out at
me. "Make me, Meatball head!"
Whoever told him about that name is going to die -
it has haunted me to no end. I bet it was the big
Jerk himself - it would fit his track record for
annoying me and ruining my life, although I wasn't
sure if he had even met my little brother.
I then noticed that the kid was in a hurry pulling on
his snow suit. "What are you doing?" I questioned
him, my forehead wrinkling in puzzlement.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" he replied
snidely.
"It snowed last night?"
Sammy grinned. "Two inches!"
"Sammy - you spaz! You don't need a snow suit for
two inches!!!"
"It's enough for snowball fights!! The `Rents went
shopping, so the house'll be all yours. Well, see ya
around, Hurricane Serena!"
"Hey!!!" I cried indignantly. "You hit ME this
time!" He was already bolting down the stairs and
was opening the door. "Don't forget your key -
cause I'm not letting you back in if I can help it!" I
called down to him, always eager to get in the last
word.
Finally, now that the little spam had left the
building, I began leisurely getting up, and taking my
time as I had intended. I sauntered down the
hallway to my room and opened my door. Luna was
curled on the bed, snoring away. I giggled at the
thought that I was up before she!
Carefully laying my clothes out on the bed, I
decided this was definitely the outfit for today. Just
then, the doorbell rang. "Sammy!" I yelled down.
"I don't care what you forgot!!! I told you to take a
key, `cause I'm not letting you in!" The bell rang
again - this time twice. I shook my head and
muttered, "spaz" before calling down again,
"Sammy! Can't say I didn't warn you!" When it
rang a few more times, I gave up. Quickly pulling
on my underwear and pulling my towel around me, I
scrambled downstairs to the front door. The bell
was now going crazy, continually ringing.
"Cut it out Sammy!!!!" I screamed at him while
swinging the door open. Only, see, hehehe, it
wasn't Sammy. It was Darien - and I had opened
the door in my towel.
His eyes went wide, and he started to stutter,
although whether because of being cold or because
of my choice of clothing, I wasn't sure. "Sa- sorry,
Se- Se-Serena!" Hey, he learned my name! Maybe
this towel thing wasn't a total waste.
His cheeks were bright pink and once again I hoped
it was from the cold. He had traded his ugly green
jacket for a warm winter charcoal colored pea-coat
which looked good on him - I noticed.
Suddenly, a flying white object came out of no
where and was soaring toward us.
Shocked, I pointed behind him, and warned him,
"Watch out!!!" A wretched, juvenile laughter
drifted our way, and with horror I realized that the
sound had come from a source even scarier than the
scariest nega-freak I had ever fought - my little
brother.
As if in slow motion, Darien turned to look behind
him. Quickly noticing the horrible projectile's path
- which was headed straight for him - he twisted his
body to avoid being hit. Only, something went
horribly wrong, and he ended up falling.
A sharp gasp escaped my lips - as he landed.
.on me.
Yes, full length.
We landed backwards on the carpet behind me, his
arms supporting his weight from either side of my
body. I watched, fascinated, as a small piece of
snow slid down his jacket and fell onto my bare
shoulder, its wet coldness shocking to the touch. I
shivered. The door was still open and the frigid air
wafted in. These icy sensations proved to make me
only that much more aware of my uncovered skin.
His entire form hovered above me, resting along
me, and a warm heaviness settled at the bottom of
my belly from the idea of his proximity, and from
the warmth of his body against mine. My breathing
quickened slightly as I stared up into his bright blue
eyes.
"Are you okay?" he gasped out worriedly, almost
oblivious to the position we were in. I guess he
mistook my previous gasp of breath as a sign of
pain instead of shock.
His warm breath wafted down to me, and all I could
do was nod my head in the affirmative. I felt so lost
in him - so wonderfully lost. He was so near, inches
away, hovering above me in a lover's position. I
was lying on the floor half-naked with Darien on
top of me - and I was totally aware how easy it
would be to just reach up and touch him, kiss him.
"Maybe we should get up now," I stuttered
nervously, highly aware of my dangerous and
traitorous thoughts.
"Uh, yeah," he flushed out, apparently now aware of
the whole situation.
His cheeks were now flaming red, although his
stutter disappeared. "Some one was throwing
snowballs at me. That's why I was ringing the
doorbell so, err, persistently," he explained,
sweatdropping, as we scrambled up.
Another snowball whizzed in and smacked Darien
on the shoulder - I couldn't help but giggle and
some of the tension dissipated between us as he
laughed as well and brushed the snow from his coat.
"Little brother," I explained to him while I moved
around to the doorway and then yelled out,
"Sammy!!! Not in the house!!! Go find some
friends!" before slamming the door shut. I turned
around and caught Darien staring at my legs - boy
was I happy that I had bothered to shave - when I
suddenly remembered with a flush that I was only
wearing a towel.. He looked me right in the eyes,
and a sort of helpless and embarrassed expression
crossed his face, before a mocking one made its
home instead.
"With your track record, I wouldn't be opening the
door in a towel, Hurricane Serena," he quipped.
"What is this? Some sort of conspiracy?" I cried
indignantly. Yuu looks around, avoiding
everyone's eyes - err, nooo, of course not..
"YOU ran into ME!!! Besides, you're on my turf
now, and you better behave or I'll feed you to my
little brother!"
Darien looked generally afraid at that one. After a
moment, he calmly said, "Look Meatball head, as
much as I enjoy fighting with you, maybe we should
continue this discussion _after_ you've gotten
dressed?"
"Umm, good point," I agreed, blushing. "You can
wait in the living room," I said while gesturing to a
room to my left. I quickly ran upstairs and finished
putting on my outfit and redoing my hair. After a
quick application of lip gloss I was all set.
I ambled down to the living room, strangely now
even more nervous than when I was practically
naked in front of him. He was by the mantle,
studying photos with a strange expression marring
his face, but it disappeared once he noticed my
presence.
"So." I began. "How do you like this one? Better
than the towel?" I joked, masking my nervousness
in humor.
"I don't know, I'm not sure anything could be better
than that towel." he muttered. I looked up,
scandalized - now he was making innuendoes as
freely as Mina would! He was still studying a
photo, and I got the impression I wasn't supposed to
hear that one. That comment was too good to pass
up - and I felt the need to pick an argument.
Gleefully I pulled a Darien - and raised my eyebrow.
It was time to bait him. I started, "Really? Well, at
least now I know what to get you for Christmas."
Darien returned the raised eyebrow, and without
missing a beat, declared, "That's very generous of
you. With presents like that, I just may actually
look forward to this holiday," while taking a languid
stride in my direction, like a lion on the prowl,
which, though unintentional, was very sexy.
I quickly retorted, shoulders held high and proud,
"Oh, come on, Darien. Did you really think I'd give
you a photo of me in a towel? You, little boy, have
been way too naughty to ever receive a great gift
like that!" I wagged my finger in his direction like
Raye often did to me when she scolded me.
"Why would I want a picture when I've already seen
the live show?" he teased in a low voice. A tremble
ran through my body at his tone while the tips of my
ears burned red from the content of his words.
I kept my cool, however, and gave a little laugh. I
was going to win this one, I resolved. "Live show?"
I questioned sweetly. "Honey, that was just the
commercial," I said as I teasingly cocked my head,
and let my tongue dart out and lick my lips.
His eyes narrowed and darkened simultaneously as
he glanced down to my victoriously smiling mouth
for a moment. He took a few impatient steps until
we were almost touching so that he towered above
me and I needed to lean my head back to look at
him. I could see he was out to win this one as well.
A shiver danced across my skin as I got the
unmistakable impression that I was playing with
fire.
"So," he continued huskily, "what, exactly, does
this live show entail?"
"What difference does it make? You'll never find
tickets by now, and like I said, you've been way too
naughty to find them in your stocking. Too bad you
aren't a good little boy, huh?"
He continued to hold up that sexy aura of
impregnability, and despite my efforts I seemed to
be losing my cool.
"What if I showed you just how _good_ I can be?"
he suggestively breathed.
I couldn't believe that I was actually having this
conversation! Time to tactfully change the subject,
I resolved. My policy, from now on, with him, was
to get as far away from any romantic/sexual subjects
as soon as possible - it just seemed to bring about
too many embarrassing situations.
"You? Good?" I stuttered out, now far less cocky
than before - probably something to do with his
proximity - and searching for a reason to get out of
this. He merely smirked and drooped his head
lower to mine for a moment.
And then, I heard a growl, and unfortunately it
wasn't my stomach, although it wasn't my father
either (which could have proven quite dangerous.)
Luna must have woken up.
Darien paused, his eyes clouding over in slight
confusion. When nothing happened, he continued
to move in, while I froze in fear.
"Gah!" he exclaimed while he hopped backwards
from the ensuing attack. You can't say she didn't
warn him, I thought silently.
He swung around 180 degrees to face his attacker. I
chuckled when I spied my cat hanging by her claws
on his back. He began reaching in the inside of his
jacket for something.
"Calm down, Darien, and hold still. It's just Luna."
I grabbed her off of him and gave her a quick
disapproving glance before he once again faced me.
I cradled Luna to my chest, and couldn't help
teasing him, "See, if you had been good she
wouldn't have attacked you." He glared at both of
us, and seemed to take a special interest in the
design on Luna's forehead. Had he seen her before
with Sailor Moon? Anyone who figured out my
alter identity could unknowingly endanger both me
and themselves.
I could see the wheels turning in his mind, and I
feared what conclusions he might come up with
from the behavior of my furry companion - after all,
a normal cat would never have done something like
attack him for apparently no good reason. So, to
throw him off the scent, I attacked him with my
own suspicious/irrational thoughts.
"What's in your jacket?"
"Huh?"
"You were reaching in your jacket, after Luna, err,
attacked you."
"No I wasn't," he denied almost too quickly. My
eyes narrowed. I stored the info in the back of my
mind, and asked something which I should have
asked when I answered the door.
"Why are you here, any way?"
He seemed to adjust quickly, and turned to the
nearby couch and picked up something. Gesturing
to the scarf in his hands, he told me, "You left this
in my apartment yesterday. I figured that since it
snowed, you'd be needing it."
"Oh," I nodded. How thoughtful of him - Andrew
probably put him up to it. I reached over and took it
from him. "Thanks."
"No problem," he shrugged, "and also, I thought
that maybe we should talk about last night," he
added tentatively.
My eyes stayed glued to his, waiting for him to
continue, because I sure as hell wasn't going to. He
sensed this, and took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have kissed you like that."
He was apologizing - something I've never heard
him do before. Again, I had to wonder if Andrew
had put him up to this - maybe Darien didn't care at
all - it wasn't like his face was giving any clues.
Whether he knew it or not, Darien had the capacity
to hurt me tremendously. Every day we'd bump
into each other, and a playful fight would ensue -
that much I liked, but some how, at the end of it,
the little exercise in wit would turn into hurtful
declarations that dug into open wounds. It was hard
to tell if those words were said in jest or contempt,
but it seemed to hurt me all the same. His rejection
would be a hundred times worse, I knew, so I
wasn't about to give away my feelings so openly.
Keeping this in mind, I chose my words carefully.
"It's fine, Darien. Last night I was just, shocked, I
guess - that's why I left so early. Don't worry - I
know the kiss didn't mean anything, and it was,
after all, just a dare. No hard feelings, really." He
didn't seem convinced, so I continued lightly,
"Anyway, I should be grateful, right? When I
finally kiss the guy that I really like, he'll have to
thank you for the lessons!"
His eyes narrowed. "Which guy is that?" he
growled out.
I blushed. I had been, of course, speaking about
Tuxedo Mask, but I wasn't about to say that one out
loud. I could just picture him laughing at me being
in love with a super hero, and it wasn't like I could
tell him about my alter ego.
"No one you know, I'm sure," I told him sincerely.
I felt a lot better now that we were back to normal,
and last night's bout of sucking face was behind us.
After a bit of silence, he small talked, "So, what are
you doing today?"
"Oh, I thought I'd go to the Crown." I looked up at
him, and after a pause, I asked tentatively, "You
wanna come?"
He gave me a quick smile. "Actually, I have to
work today." He checked his watch. "I'm on in
twenty minutes." I nodded, understanding - he had
to go.
After another pause, he moved toward the door and
I followed. As I opened it for him, and he began to
move past me, I grabbed his arm. Startled, he
looked at me.
"Darien? Umm, since the live show is sold out and
everything, I wondered if you wanted anything in
particular for Christmas." He looked at me
questioningly. He shook his head. "So," I
continued, "do you need any help on deciding what
you're going to get me?" I gave him my `I'm a
sweet little girl' smile to help out my point.
After all, I still wanted to be able to go to the
arcade, and no matter how much Darien sucked last
night ::cough:: ::cough:: - I meant that in a negative
way, really - I still was a girl on a mission. Besides
- part of Christmas is giving, right? And I wanted
presents.
Darien, as usual, answered suavely.
"Wha?" he asked, dumbfounded and I couldn't
help, but grin.
I gestured with my arms as I replied, "Duh, genius!
It's Christmas. I expect a present, you know." And
here comes the kicker. I needed to get Darien to go
to Andrew's party so, with this quest always
hovering in the back of my head, I quickly added, "I
was thinking that we could exchange gifts at
Andrew's party," before nonchalantly turning away
and held my breath for his response.
Luckily he was still stuck on the first part. "Look,
nothing personal, but I've never really done the
whole gift giving Christmas thing."
"Well, here's a reason to try something new!" I
exclaimed cheerfully, breath let out and facing him
again. Back on my power trip, I smiled slyly, and
added, "Oh well - think about." I winked before
nudging him out the door and closing it in his still
stunned face.
I realized at that moment that I was in a cheerful
mood - as much as Darien could infuriate me to no
end, there was nothing like having an argument, and
::coughs once more:: making him squirm.
I just had to remember to tease mercilessly, and to
make no more damn innuendoes.
I peeked out the window as he walked away to his
car. Strides purposeful, head up, he seemed almost
cheerful. I backed away and flounced on the couch,
a smile splashed across my face. Maybe this
mission wouldn't be so horrible after all. I did get
to see Darien apologize to me - even if it meant that
he had to trounce on my heart before he did it.
I got up to finish getting ready to get to the Crown.
The rest of the day went by pretty much mundanely.
At the Crown, I met the girls, and besides the usual,
we discussed a few ideas to help me with the whole
Darien issue.
The next day at school I fell asleep in class, as
usual. Unfortunately, Ms. H was in a particularly
bad mood, and I got an extra long detention - she
must have had a bad weekend. After getting out I
went directly to the arcade, because, after all, I only
had the rest of the week to get Darien to go to that
party. I was deeply afraid of failing this little
mission that Andrew cooked up, and I certainly
didn't want to have to do something else if I failed
to make it up to him.
But when I got there, Darien's familiar form wasn't
hovering over a steaming cup of coffee, or chatting
with the brilliantly smiling Andrew (aka cutie in an
apron,) or even at the claw game trying to pick up a
Tuxedo Mask doll.
"Hey Andrew!" I called out in greeting. "Where's
our favorite victim?"
He flashed me a grin. "Just missed him, I'm
afraid." An unfamiliar feeling of disappointment
washed over me.
"Oh." I tried desperately to sound nonchalant.
Seeing Andrew raise an eyebrow - it reminded me
of Darien - jeesh I'm getting obsessed, aren't I? - I
realized that normally I would be doing song and
dance about that little fact, so I amended, "That's
great! One day less of staring at nitwit's ugly mug
for me!"
Andrew, who normally would chastise me for
saying something like that about his best friend,
could see that I was kidding. So, instead, he asked
me, "And now, when you say mug, do you mean his
face, or his coffee cup? Because I have his cup
right here.." He reached behind the counter and
produced coffee mug with super cute deformed
Tuxedo Masks and Sailor Moons decorating it.
I gave him a smile. "How about a hot chocolate?" I
asked, changing the subject. He nodded, and to my
surprise, went about pouring the drink into Darien's
mug - usually he reserved it only for that boy. I
wondered if Andrew was teasing me, and found that
I didn't mind if he was.
When I went home that night, I was determined to
finish my homework and everything early. That
way, I hoped I'd get to bed early, and as long as no
negaverse action occurred, I'd get a good night's
sleep - and then hopefully I wouldn't be late to
school the next day or fall asleep in class, which
meant no detention! Or so I hoped.
Well, everything went pretty well, considering. I
went to bed early, as planned, didn't have any
subversive evil creatures to deal with, but I also
woke up late, as usual.
"Ahh! Why didn't somebody wake me up!" I
moaned as I ran about the house, getting ready for
school. Out the door with a piece of toast jammed
into my mouth I ran, with a gray cat bounding after
me, holding my lunch in her jaws, each of us
muttering our own choice words around our
respective mouthfuls.
I heard a particular nasty one come from the pint
size beside me, and I turned to scold her when -
"Ooof!" - I hit Darien. Both sprawled on our
backsides and facing each other - and I was happy.
Usually I'd be fuming.
I gave him a grin through the mouthful of toast, and
he merely laughed and remarked, "That's a good
look for you."
I removed the remaining piece from hanging out of
my mouth and replied somewhat gravely, "Well, it
is the breakfast of champions," while nodding my
head.
"Oh, is it?" he mocked.
"You see me eating it, don't you? So it must be." I
shrugged. By this time he had picked himself off
the ground, and was now hovering over me, offering
a hand to help me up. I accepted it, and once I was
on my own feet he reached down and picked up my
school bag for me, which was when I remembered.
"School! Oh, no! Now I'm really gonna be late!
Miss H. is gonna kill me!" I grabbed my stuff from
him and Luna, and raced down the street, flinging a
weak goodbye to the wind, hoping he'd hear it.
Although I was late, the sleep did me good -
because I didn't fall asleep in class, not even once.
Because of that, Miss H. let me out of detention
after only a few minutes.
When completely bundled and looking like a big
fluffy pink marshmallow, I left the school building,
only to find Luna waiting outside for me. We set
off, our footsteps crunching in fresh snow, and
bright blustery winds blasting at my cheeks -
practically the only thing of me not covered - and
her entire body. I picked her up and cradled her to
my chest, trying to protect her from the wind more.
A smile lit up my face, and I convinced myself that
it was the lack of detention that did the trick, but I
couldn't help acknowledging the fact that Darien
probably had something to do with my state of mind
as well.
"Luna?"
"Yes, Serena?"
"What do you think of Darien?"
"You know Serena, if you were half as interested in
Scout business as you were in boys, we would have
defeated the Negaverse by now!"
"Do you always have to bring that up? You know I
try!"
"You need to try harder. Being a better scout is the
best thing for you, its the best thing for the rest of
the scouts, and its the best thing for all those out
there that you protect. You are their only hope,
Serena! During the last attack you spaced out more
than once - and because of it you nearly got yourself
killed!"
"But Tuxedo Mask saved me! He-"
"He may not always be there, Serena," she cut me
off, sternly. "He's not one of us - we don't know
where his loyalty lies. You can't count on him."
I shook my head resolutely. "Why would he save
my life time and again if he didn't care for me? He
must!"
"Don't be ridiculous! You save stranger's lives
everyday, time and again, can you really care for all
of them?"
"But, Luna. I do care for them. I care for each and
every one of them."
Luna looked up at me with sympathy in her eyes. "I
know you do, Serena. That doesn't mean that
Tuxedo Mask feels the same way. I'm sorry - I
know how you feel about him, but you can't trust
him. Not until we know more about him."
I averted my eyes and bit my lip, before nodding
slightly. I understood where she was coming from -
but my heart told me differently.
By chance, my eyes alighted on movement across
the street in the park. I had a clear view of the lake
across the field, and there, shimmering in the
afternoon sun and hovering above the waters, was
something that should never have been.
It was as if a holiday ice sculpture had come alive -
a twisted, beautiful ice angel.
It was a translucent ice blue in color, with hair of
icicles flapping in the howling wind, and solid
white frozen wings beating against it.
It raised a hand, palm out, and a blast of freezing
rain poured out, hitting a young couple that had
been trying to run away. Glazed over in ice, the
couple seemed to become ice sculptures themselves,
holding each other in mortal fright. The ice around
them seemed to pulsated and contract - and I
realized it must be sucking their energy dry.
The ice angel chose that moment to look up - and
right into my eyes. Even from here I could see the
look of calm pride in her face. The steady stare was
unapologetic for what she had just done, and a hint
of a smile floated about her eyes.
Coldness seized my heart, and as the blood pounded
in my veins, I wished furiously that this pain had
never happened - that I would never have to fight
and hurt and destroy. But I knew if I did nothing
that those people would die.
With new resolve I quickly bounded across the
street, and dove over a waist high hedge, and
landing in a roll. My scarf got caught on the plant,
however, and as I rolled it unwound and trailed off.
Leaving it behind, my focus tuned to finding a safe
area to transform, I skirted some trees and noticed
that the monster's attention was diverted to some
other nearby humans, before placing Luna on the
ground and shouting out for my transformation.
Tossing my communicator to the feline, I called
over my shoulder as I began to run toward the
vicious ice angel, "Call the others. It looks like
we'll need them."