----------------------------------------------------------------------
"Love Potion #9"
Recorded by: Ziska Ames
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Chapter Three
The farther Darien walked from the arcade, the more he
questioned his actions. Looking back at the morning, he couldn't
remember anything besides Serena's face and wanting to protect her.
That wasn't normal at all. And as far as he could tell, he hadn't once
called her 'Meatball Head.'
Darien hated when he did something unexpected, but it really
hadn't been that bad. Plus, he remembered how nice it had felt to have
Serena depend on him. Not to mention when he had his arm around her
shoulders.
An abrupt shake of his head helped to scatter those thoughts.
It likely wouldn't happen again so there was no point in dwelling on
feelings.
Plus, Grange Electronics was looming ahead of him and he had
approximately twelve minutes to get to his interview.
Serena hurried home after leaving her friends at the arcade.
Luna was running along a fence beside her, alertness apparent in every
step. After Amy explained Serena's condition, Luna appeared to have
taken it upon herself to protect her charge from any and all sources
of male attraction.
Her eyes prowled the street, her muscles bunched. She was
ready to take a flying leap in any direction to protect her princess.
No guys would come within touching distance if Serena didn't want them
there.
As they neared home, Luna leapt off the fence to Serena's
shoulder. Serena locked the door behind her and collapsed on the couch.
"Well, at least I haven't got anything to do today."
"Nor tomorrow, nor the day after. You aren't leaving this
house till that curse wears off."
"Luna! That's not fair! You know I was going to go see Dad
tomorrow at work. It's his birthday! I always visit him on his
birthday."
"Well... it just isn't safe, Serena."
Serena grabbed Luna around the middle and held her so they
were face to face. "I'm going to see Dad at the office tomorrow. You
can come if you want, but you can't stop me."
Luna grumbled something under her breath. "Okay. But I'm going
with you as far as the building."
"Okay." Serena agreed as she dropped Luna to her lap and
reached for the remote control.
"Well, I don't think we need to continue. Your recommendations
are impressive, along with your résumé. Congratulations, Darien. You're
hired." Papers were shuffled briefly before Ken Tsukino extended a
hand across the desk.
Darien smiled broadly as he returned the handshake. "Thanks,
sir."
"Can you start tomorrow? I know it's rather short notice and
all."
"That would be fine." Darien replied immediately.
"Good, good. When you get her just talk to my secretary and
she'll show you your desk."
"All right." Darien agreed as he stood and shrugged into his
jacket.
"I'd show you out, but-" Ken gestured to the paper work in his
IN box. Darien smiled.
"I can find my own way."
"Oh good. See you tomorrow then."
"Right."
Serena hummed happily as she dressed the next morning. Being
stuck at home all day yesterday had been almost as bad as being stuck
in school. Not only was there nothing on tv, there was no sugar in the
house anywhere. And being home early, her mother had forced her to set
the table and clean her room. She looked forward to going out today
like she never had before.
She adjusted her sundress briefly as she picked up small pink
ribbons and tied them around her meatballs. She grabbed her matching
purse and nudged Luna with her foot.
"Come on. I need to be there at 11:30."
"Alright. I'm coming." Luna muttered as she dragged herself
out of bed. Knowing Serena would be stuck safe at home, Luna had taken
the chance to go out on her own and just act cat like. She'd been out
most of the night and was regretting it now as she finally dragged her
eyelids open and looked at the clock. "This is the second day in a row
that you've been up before me."
"Well, I didn't stay up till 2 am." Serena replied as she
picked Luna up carefully and held her at arms length till they were
outside.
"I haven't got a disease you know!" Luna muttered indignantly.
"I know. But you are covered with cat hair. And I want to look
nice." A quick check in her purse and she set off down the street.
Every year on her father's birthday, she would "surprise" him
at his company and they would go out to lunch together. But this year
she had saved her money so she could really surprise her father by
treating him to lunch.
She skipped happily down the street, glad that it was
mid-morning on a Monday. Thanks to summer vacation, most kids were
gone and all the adults were working. Meaning there weren't any guys
for Luna to threaten with her claws if they glanced in Serena's direction.
Serena arrived at the building dragging her feet. "Oh man. I
forgot how far away this place is."
"Twenty blocks isn't that much of a distance," Luna commented.
"It is on a Monday," Serena muttered as she straightened up
and tried a smile. "Alright. Here goes!"
"Oh good. I was hoping those would be ready before lunch." Ken
smiled at Darien as he took the folder and quickly shifted through the
contents. "I'll take care of these as soon as I get back. Can't work
through lunch today."
"Why is that, sir?" Darien asked from the doorway.
"My daughter's taking me out to lunch today for my birthday,"
Ken answered as he lightly tossed the folder on his desk and glanced
at the clock. "11:45. She's fifteen minutes late which means she
should be here-"
"Oof!" Darien and Serena cried as she attempted to dash
through the doorway while he still occupied it.
"-now." Ken finished as he picked up his sport coat and
settled it on his shoulders. Serena scrambled up from the floor and
smiled at her dad.
"Hi, dad. Sorry I'm late. And sorry for running into you," she
directed at Darien.
"No problem, Serena. I shouldn't have been blocking the door,"
Darien responded with a charming smile. Serena's grin disappeared as
she stared up at him. He'd called her 'Serena' again.
The curse. She gulped and looked away. He was only nice
because of that stupid pink goo. "Come on, Dad. I've got a real
surprise. Reservations at The Checker."
"That's wonderful, Serena." Ken casually dropped his arm around
Serena's shoulders and steered her to the door. "See you after lunch,
Darien."
"Goodbye, sir. Bye, Serena," Darien replied as he watched them
leave, that smile never moving. It even seemed to get broader when
Serena glanced back.
Yet, as soon as the doors on the elevator closed, it
disappeared. Darien shook his head as a coworker came up behind him.
"So, you got your eyes on the boss' little girl?" he asked with a
friendly slap on the back.
"What?" Darien replied in a daze.
"Yep. She's a beauty. Makes me wish I was young and single,"
the coworker muttered as he moved on down the hall.
"No," Darien whispered in confusion as he looked from the
coworker back to the elevator. Was that why he couldn't seem to be mad
around her any more? He shook his head and laughed ruefully. Yeah,
right. Him fall for Serena? That would be the day.
"So you've met my newest employ, already?" Ken asked as he
ushered Serena into the car. The Checker was a newish restaurant, and
on the other side of town.
"You could say that," Serena muttered. "Our meetings tend to
consist of loud fighting and thrown objects."
"So you like him," Ken finished for her.
"Heck no. He's a jerk," Serena grumbled. "Can we talk about
something else?"
"Sure," Ken conceded as the subject changed to the actual
company and not the employees. Serena spoke with half her mind as she
cursed the idiot youma with the other. Why did it have to be a love
spell? And why did it have to effect Darien?
The lunch finished without too many mishaps and Serena was able
to return her father to the office only an hour later than was planned.
Unfortunately, this also put her in place just in time to run into
Darien again.
"Serena. You're still here?"
"We just got back," Serena said with a blush, head lowered.
She half excepted a retort, and was almost sad when one didn't come.
"Well, everything can't go as one might hope," Darien said
instead, a gentle smile on his face. "Come on, I'll walk you out."
Serena nodded and they stepped into the elevator together.
She looked at the floor, he looked at her. She glanced up, and
looked down again as his eyes never strayed. Finally, she turned to
completely face him. "Stop it," she growled.
"What?" Darien asked, genuinely perplexed.
"Stop looking at me like that. You're supposed to be teasing
me, not escorting me to the first floor."
"I'm sorry," Darien replied, his face hurt.
"Don't be!" Serena cried, throwing her hands in the air. "It's
a curse! A stupid curse. That's why you're nice to me. In two days
it'll be gone and everything will be back to normal except that I'll...
I'll..." she stopped. She'd what? The moment had carried her through
and suddenly stopped. She didn't remember what she was going to say.
Or maybe she did.
"You'll what?" Darien asked quietly as they passed the second
floor. His hand darted out and hit the emergency stop button. "Serena,"
his voice was quiet as he reached out a gentle hand. The speaker blared.
"Hello? Don't know what happened. Have you down in the jiffy,"
someone said. They went completely ignored by Serena and Darien.
"Serena," Darien said again. She was huddled into herself.
"Meatball Head," she whispered.
"What?"
"Why aren't you calling me Meatball Head?" she asked, face
lifted to look directly at him. He stepped back.
"Good question," he murmured. Why wasn't he? How come he
suddenly couldn't do anything around her except try to be closer. "I
don't know why."
"It's because of a curse. I was cursed and now you like me.
But you won't soon," Serena whispered, so soft Darien could barely hear
her.
"Curses aren't real," Darien replied.
"Yes, they are. I'm cursed and in two days it will go away and
you'll hate me again."
"I don't hate you," he denied.
"Not now," Serena countered.
"I never hated you."
"I hated you."
That comment stopped all conversation as the elevator
shuddered and moved the rest of the way to the bottom floor. The door
opened and Serena fled past two confused repair men.
"Love Potion #9"
Recorded by: Ziska Ames
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter Three
The farther Darien walked from the arcade, the more he
questioned his actions. Looking back at the morning, he couldn't
remember anything besides Serena's face and wanting to protect her.
That wasn't normal at all. And as far as he could tell, he hadn't once
called her 'Meatball Head.'
Darien hated when he did something unexpected, but it really
hadn't been that bad. Plus, he remembered how nice it had felt to have
Serena depend on him. Not to mention when he had his arm around her
shoulders.
An abrupt shake of his head helped to scatter those thoughts.
It likely wouldn't happen again so there was no point in dwelling on
feelings.
Plus, Grange Electronics was looming ahead of him and he had
approximately twelve minutes to get to his interview.
Serena hurried home after leaving her friends at the arcade.
Luna was running along a fence beside her, alertness apparent in every
step. After Amy explained Serena's condition, Luna appeared to have
taken it upon herself to protect her charge from any and all sources
of male attraction.
Her eyes prowled the street, her muscles bunched. She was
ready to take a flying leap in any direction to protect her princess.
No guys would come within touching distance if Serena didn't want them
there.
As they neared home, Luna leapt off the fence to Serena's
shoulder. Serena locked the door behind her and collapsed on the couch.
"Well, at least I haven't got anything to do today."
"Nor tomorrow, nor the day after. You aren't leaving this
house till that curse wears off."
"Luna! That's not fair! You know I was going to go see Dad
tomorrow at work. It's his birthday! I always visit him on his
birthday."
"Well... it just isn't safe, Serena."
Serena grabbed Luna around the middle and held her so they
were face to face. "I'm going to see Dad at the office tomorrow. You
can come if you want, but you can't stop me."
Luna grumbled something under her breath. "Okay. But I'm going
with you as far as the building."
"Okay." Serena agreed as she dropped Luna to her lap and
reached for the remote control.
"Well, I don't think we need to continue. Your recommendations
are impressive, along with your résumé. Congratulations, Darien. You're
hired." Papers were shuffled briefly before Ken Tsukino extended a
hand across the desk.
Darien smiled broadly as he returned the handshake. "Thanks,
sir."
"Can you start tomorrow? I know it's rather short notice and
all."
"That would be fine." Darien replied immediately.
"Good, good. When you get her just talk to my secretary and
she'll show you your desk."
"All right." Darien agreed as he stood and shrugged into his
jacket.
"I'd show you out, but-" Ken gestured to the paper work in his
IN box. Darien smiled.
"I can find my own way."
"Oh good. See you tomorrow then."
"Right."
Serena hummed happily as she dressed the next morning. Being
stuck at home all day yesterday had been almost as bad as being stuck
in school. Not only was there nothing on tv, there was no sugar in the
house anywhere. And being home early, her mother had forced her to set
the table and clean her room. She looked forward to going out today
like she never had before.
She adjusted her sundress briefly as she picked up small pink
ribbons and tied them around her meatballs. She grabbed her matching
purse and nudged Luna with her foot.
"Come on. I need to be there at 11:30."
"Alright. I'm coming." Luna muttered as she dragged herself
out of bed. Knowing Serena would be stuck safe at home, Luna had taken
the chance to go out on her own and just act cat like. She'd been out
most of the night and was regretting it now as she finally dragged her
eyelids open and looked at the clock. "This is the second day in a row
that you've been up before me."
"Well, I didn't stay up till 2 am." Serena replied as she
picked Luna up carefully and held her at arms length till they were
outside.
"I haven't got a disease you know!" Luna muttered indignantly.
"I know. But you are covered with cat hair. And I want to look
nice." A quick check in her purse and she set off down the street.
Every year on her father's birthday, she would "surprise" him
at his company and they would go out to lunch together. But this year
she had saved her money so she could really surprise her father by
treating him to lunch.
She skipped happily down the street, glad that it was
mid-morning on a Monday. Thanks to summer vacation, most kids were
gone and all the adults were working. Meaning there weren't any guys
for Luna to threaten with her claws if they glanced in Serena's direction.
Serena arrived at the building dragging her feet. "Oh man. I
forgot how far away this place is."
"Twenty blocks isn't that much of a distance," Luna commented.
"It is on a Monday," Serena muttered as she straightened up
and tried a smile. "Alright. Here goes!"
"Oh good. I was hoping those would be ready before lunch." Ken
smiled at Darien as he took the folder and quickly shifted through the
contents. "I'll take care of these as soon as I get back. Can't work
through lunch today."
"Why is that, sir?" Darien asked from the doorway.
"My daughter's taking me out to lunch today for my birthday,"
Ken answered as he lightly tossed the folder on his desk and glanced
at the clock. "11:45. She's fifteen minutes late which means she
should be here-"
"Oof!" Darien and Serena cried as she attempted to dash
through the doorway while he still occupied it.
"-now." Ken finished as he picked up his sport coat and
settled it on his shoulders. Serena scrambled up from the floor and
smiled at her dad.
"Hi, dad. Sorry I'm late. And sorry for running into you," she
directed at Darien.
"No problem, Serena. I shouldn't have been blocking the door,"
Darien responded with a charming smile. Serena's grin disappeared as
she stared up at him. He'd called her 'Serena' again.
The curse. She gulped and looked away. He was only nice
because of that stupid pink goo. "Come on, Dad. I've got a real
surprise. Reservations at The Checker."
"That's wonderful, Serena." Ken casually dropped his arm around
Serena's shoulders and steered her to the door. "See you after lunch,
Darien."
"Goodbye, sir. Bye, Serena," Darien replied as he watched them
leave, that smile never moving. It even seemed to get broader when
Serena glanced back.
Yet, as soon as the doors on the elevator closed, it
disappeared. Darien shook his head as a coworker came up behind him.
"So, you got your eyes on the boss' little girl?" he asked with a
friendly slap on the back.
"What?" Darien replied in a daze.
"Yep. She's a beauty. Makes me wish I was young and single,"
the coworker muttered as he moved on down the hall.
"No," Darien whispered in confusion as he looked from the
coworker back to the elevator. Was that why he couldn't seem to be mad
around her any more? He shook his head and laughed ruefully. Yeah,
right. Him fall for Serena? That would be the day.
"So you've met my newest employ, already?" Ken asked as he
ushered Serena into the car. The Checker was a newish restaurant, and
on the other side of town.
"You could say that," Serena muttered. "Our meetings tend to
consist of loud fighting and thrown objects."
"So you like him," Ken finished for her.
"Heck no. He's a jerk," Serena grumbled. "Can we talk about
something else?"
"Sure," Ken conceded as the subject changed to the actual
company and not the employees. Serena spoke with half her mind as she
cursed the idiot youma with the other. Why did it have to be a love
spell? And why did it have to effect Darien?
The lunch finished without too many mishaps and Serena was able
to return her father to the office only an hour later than was planned.
Unfortunately, this also put her in place just in time to run into
Darien again.
"Serena. You're still here?"
"We just got back," Serena said with a blush, head lowered.
She half excepted a retort, and was almost sad when one didn't come.
"Well, everything can't go as one might hope," Darien said
instead, a gentle smile on his face. "Come on, I'll walk you out."
Serena nodded and they stepped into the elevator together.
She looked at the floor, he looked at her. She glanced up, and
looked down again as his eyes never strayed. Finally, she turned to
completely face him. "Stop it," she growled.
"What?" Darien asked, genuinely perplexed.
"Stop looking at me like that. You're supposed to be teasing
me, not escorting me to the first floor."
"I'm sorry," Darien replied, his face hurt.
"Don't be!" Serena cried, throwing her hands in the air. "It's
a curse! A stupid curse. That's why you're nice to me. In two days
it'll be gone and everything will be back to normal except that I'll...
I'll..." she stopped. She'd what? The moment had carried her through
and suddenly stopped. She didn't remember what she was going to say.
Or maybe she did.
"You'll what?" Darien asked quietly as they passed the second
floor. His hand darted out and hit the emergency stop button. "Serena,"
his voice was quiet as he reached out a gentle hand. The speaker blared.
"Hello? Don't know what happened. Have you down in the jiffy,"
someone said. They went completely ignored by Serena and Darien.
"Serena," Darien said again. She was huddled into herself.
"Meatball Head," she whispered.
"What?"
"Why aren't you calling me Meatball Head?" she asked, face
lifted to look directly at him. He stepped back.
"Good question," he murmured. Why wasn't he? How come he
suddenly couldn't do anything around her except try to be closer. "I
don't know why."
"It's because of a curse. I was cursed and now you like me.
But you won't soon," Serena whispered, so soft Darien could barely hear
her.
"Curses aren't real," Darien replied.
"Yes, they are. I'm cursed and in two days it will go away and
you'll hate me again."
"I don't hate you," he denied.
"Not now," Serena countered.
"I never hated you."
"I hated you."
That comment stopped all conversation as the elevator
shuddered and moved the rest of the way to the bottom floor. The door
opened and Serena fled past two confused repair men.