Chapter Two: Miracles In The Crown Arcade
Serena jolted awake, careful to not interrupt Darien's rest as her mind snapped into awareness. A problem she had not considered for some time loomed on her thoughts again and now she was silently berating herself for letting her worries for Darien interfere with her primary mission. She was sure now that Luna wasn't still at the arcade, perhaps the dark feline had never even made it and images of kitty Popsicles filled her head. There was only one thing she could do however since she couldn't very well leave Darien on his own and the storm was still ferocious out there – she could hear the howling of the wind through the walls and felt a chill as she thought about. As long as Darien kept sleeping, he'd never suspect anything, but if he woke up …then there'd be some explanations needed. But the matter was far too important for her to care whether she had to fess up to him that she was Sailor Moon. Besides, she could always pass it off as a fevered dream he'd had. That firm thinking settled the matter.
Not moving from her comfortable position – to make sure he didn't wake she was telling herself, not for any reasons having to do with how much she liked being exactly where she was with him – she activated her senshi communicator and tried to hail Ami first, figuring that she'd be able to track down the stray cat if nothing else. Ami's fuzzy picture appeared on the screen moments later, the blue-haired senshi of Water looking thoroughly upset at having been woken up in the dead of night.
"Hey Ames, it's Serena, no, don't transform, there isn't a youma or anything we have to worry about." She greeted in a hushed whisper. Ami's irritation grew considerably.
"Then what, pray tell, are you doing using the communicator? At this hour? Is something wrong at your house? Hey, who's snoring if you're awake?" Ami questioned, her impressive mind working through layers of sleep.
"I'm snowed in the arcade with Darien, I came down here looking for Luna because she said something about needing to talk with Central Control, only she isn't here and I don't know where she is. I was hoping she'd be at your place, or maybe Raye's or Lita's but if she's not then I knew that you could use your computer to search for her. I can't leave, even if I wanted to." Serena explained.
Ami blinked tiredly and appeared to snag the first thing she could. "Luna is missing outside? And you don't want to leave your mortal enemy to search for her?"
Serena sighed, for the smartest of the senshi Ami could be incredibly dense when it came to matters requiring thought after waking. Then again, who was Serena to talk? "Listen, Ames, I can't leave because A: Darien is really sick and if I left him and something happened to him I could never look myself in the eye again and B: like I said earlier …we're snowed in. I tried the doors and they wouldn't even budge."
"Well, Serena, Luna isn't here but I'll get to looking for her right away. You inform the others and I'll get back to you as soon as possible, okay?"
"Thanks, Ami, we can strangle Luna together once we find her for making us look for her this late in a blizzard." Ami giggled softly, presumably at the image Serena painted and faded out. "Please, Luna, be at Raye's or Lita's!" Serena pleaded quietly, summoning Raye's drowsy image. Maybe the priestess would be easier to talk to when she was half-asleep. "Raye, is Luna over there?"
"Huh?"
Then again … "Luna, you know, the little black cat with the golden crescent moon on her forehead who likes to hassle me as much as you? Is she there? Have you seen her at all tonight?" Serena was aware of a hysterical note in her voice and quickly suppressed it.
"No, Serena, I haven't seen Luna all night. Is she missing? Where are you? That's not your house!" Raye exclaimed, instantly alarmed.
Serena allowed herself a low growl of frustration. "No, Raye, it's not, I'm in the backroom at the arcade, snowed in with Darien who happens to be extremely sick so I can't leave and Luna is the reason I'm stuck out here at all and now I can't find her and she might be frozen outside somewhere!"
Raye frowned darkly. "That cat …wait a minute, you're with Darien? All alone?" There was a brief chortle from the raven-haired senshi of Fire who appeared more than a little sleep deprived. "Uh, sorry, Serena, didn't mean to laugh. Is Luna at Ami's? Er …Lita's then? Here, I'll try asking the Sacred Fire, okay? I'll get right back to you if I find anything." And then she was gone as well.
"Lita, you're my last hope, please have Luna there." Serena prayed fervently. Lita answered almost immediately, splatters of batter on her face and a cloud of flour making things hard to see at first, she was also grinning hugely and looking decidedly overeager to battle a youma. "No baddie, Leets, but I've got another problem," Serena began, rapidly filling the brunette senshi of Storms in on the trouble.
"She's not here, Serena, but she might be at your place. Hey, I can call and ask, okay?"
Oh no. Home. "Eeek! No, Lita, you can't, you see, I left after everyone went to bed and if they go looking for Luna they'll check my room first and find out that I'm not there." She sighed heavily, worry now a massive anchor about her heart. "Raye and Ami are busy looking for her now." She thought frantically for a time and her jaw dropped open. "Lita, I just had a brilliant idea. I think I might know where Luna is and if that's the case then you'd be the perfect one to check it out for me."
"It's kind of cold and snowy outside, Serena," Lita began, looking unsure. "But then again, Luna would be out there looking for one of us I'm sure. Where to, valiant leader?"
"Andrew's house. He works here and he told me earlier that he would be closing up tonight. He might have seen her and brought her to his house. He knows that she's mine but I don't think he knows where any of us live and I know that you know where he lives. Can you check it for me?"
Lita's face brightened and she nodded curtly. "Consider it done, Serena. I'll reply as soon as possible once I get there. Oh, and do you like walnuts or raisins in your cookies?"
"LITA!" Serena cried out sharply, remembering Darien an instant later and dropping back to a whisper. "Chocolate chips of course, not nuts or dried grapes. But go ahead and make three batches if you want, I'm always open to experimentation when it comes to food. Thanks again, Leets," She promptly 'hung up' with her friend and settled back to wait anxiously. She could already tell that she wouldn't be getting much more sleep that night, but then Darien was stirring, mumbling incoherently as he slept on, muttering names that were too quiet for Serena to catch. Jealously flared through her at once, if he was saying the name of some girlfriend or crush …well, she'd just have to do something about that, wouldn't she?
Moaning softly she eased herself back down into the crook of his arm, resting her head on his muscular chest. His breath warmed the back of her neck, tickling her as the small curls of hair in back danced against her skin and it wasn't long before the Land of Nod spread before her again and she tumbled helplessly into sleep.
* * *
Darien groaned quietly, forcing his heavy eyelids to open as his vision swam sickly. He was freezing cold, well, parts of him were, there was a large section of his body that was quite warm as a matter of fact and he blinked a few times to see clearly what was lying so close to him. Reality jolted back to him as he saw Serena, deep in slumber and half on top of him, one arm curved around his neck with her hand brushing against his cheek and the other crooked with the hand resting on his chest. She seemed for the moment to be exactly what her name claimed: serene. Usually she was giggling and bouncy, full of zeal and joy as she dashed around life. Surprisingly, he found that having her like this was all well and good, but he missed her cheerful exuberance that blanketed the world day in, day out.
"My little bunny, so sweet and caring," He murmured softly, tightening his grip about her where his arm rested around her waist, feeling suddenly protective of her. He gasped softly as he saw the faint traces of tears on her rosy cheeks and noted the troubled curve of her ruby lips, her nose was scrunched up like a bunny's and her brow was creased as well. She appeared to be deeply concerned over something …him perhaps? No, that didn't seem likely, he couldn't seem himself as meaning that much to her. Her family perhaps, they'd be frantic that she wasn't home. Yes, that seemed much more like it. She was just the type of girl who would be worried that others were worried about her and that just made her even more endearing. Something from his dream nagged at him, drawing him from his speculation of the angel in his arms and he frowned in thought. She looked a great deal like the child in his dreams …well, his memories to be precise, but that couldn't be …could it? How likely was it for him to run into the same girl, years later and with the same sort of feelings fluttering in his stomach?
Serena was familiar, there was no doubt about that, and not just because of their run-ins and flying object incidents, or the curious connection between the girl who promised to be his family and the girl in his arms. He felt as if he had known her before, long, long before. She held the key to something within her golden being, and she held his fragile heart in the cup of her tender palms.
He didn't want to disturb her, but nature had a way of becoming obnoxiously loud when calling and Darien felt that he wouldn't be able to last much longer. He gently eased Serena fully onto the couch as he slipped off, clutching the doorknob so hard that his knuckles turned white as a dizzy spell nearly brought him crashing to the floor. He had been feeling slightly off-kilter for several days now, shrugging it off as lack of sleep coupled with one of the bugs going around, but now he wasn't too sure. He never usually got very sick and to be so weak and reliant upon someone else bothered him. The fact that he couldn't bring himself to confide in Serena also troubled him, but he didn't want her to know that he had been ill for the past few days when they'd had their customary verbal spars, or that he'd sliced his hand when he stumbled over a hole in the sidewalk and had fallen to his hands and knees, grabbing out at anything within reach and feeling the soft flesh of his hand grinding over a jagged part of the metal railing. Of course, since that had happened, he hadn't been able to do more than rise up and stagger a few feet further against the weather until he had given up …at which time Serena had come along. He admitted it to himself easily enough but he felt that admitting it to her would frighten her more than anyone should be frightened. She had saved his life out there, much longer and he would have stood a good chance of freezing to death, sick as he was, and Serena had been the only person outside.
Which puzzled him. What would Serena be doing in the heart of a blizzard after ten at night? He hadn't asked, knowing that if she told him her reasons, then he'd have to tell her his reasons. Which was another problem. He didn't want her to know that he had merely been wandering around since leaving the arcade up until that point. He was strong and secretive and it was supposed to be him that saved the day by aiding Sailor Moon and her friends in battle, he was the one who was supposed to tease Serena and he was the one who was supposed to be indestructible. Somehow that made the situation all the worse.
He teetered sickly back into the room after returning from the bathroom and froze as his stomach rumbled loudly, so noisily in fact that he feared for a moment that it might have woken Serena. Until he remembered that it was Serena sleeping on the couch, the single girl upon the earth who'd be able to sleep through ragnarok without so much as skipping a Z. Much to his surprise however, her glorious eyes fluttered open, regarding him drowsily and she yawned delicately.
"There's …a salad …and some …chocolate …and cocoa by the …heater, …" She slurred sleepily, smiling tiredly as she lowered herself back onto the couch and returned to her dreams. Darien let out a sigh of relief and realized with irritation that he was trembling again. Exasperated, he moved to the treats and regarded the salad warily, trying to determine whether the leafy substance would go down well with his personal favorite food – chocolate. Hunger won out over everything and he quickly ate what food there was and drank the lukewarm cocoa, feeling only mildly content with his meager meal as he debated whether to let Serena sleep on peacefully by making up his own bed with the assorted cushions or to share the couch with the angel. The latter sounded far more pleasant, but he didn't want to make her uncomfortable by having to share, so he wearily rose to his feet.
And barely stifled a cry of shock as he turned to see Serena sitting up and watching him curiously. "If you even think that you're going to sleep on the ground, allow me to derail that particular train of thought." She informed him crisply, getting up. "By the way, you could almost rival me when it comes to wolfing down chocolate." Another pause and she smiled warmly. "Was the choice of the salad really so poor? I thought you'd like one, considering how healthy you are …" Was that sarcasm in her voice he detected?
His heart was beginning to slip back into his chest, freeing his throat enough to form vaguely audible noises as his pulse slowed down again. "Y …er …ah …" He tried and slumped his shoulders, admitting defeat.
Again she smiled, a special smile that he'd never seen her give to anyone else. "I missed your warmth. And then your tummy growled." Her pretty little nose wrinkled as she made a face. "It's cold, you come lie down here and I'll fetch some more blankets and crank up the heat."
He managed to form a coherent sentence. "Keep me warm? Like earlier?" Well …it approached sentence form. Give the boy that much at least.
"Only if you promise to stay here this time, Muffin," She replied easily, a crimson blush staining her peaches-and-cream complexion as she bit her lower lip in embarrassment. "Er …my fault, Darien, never mind," She mumbled, herding him gently to the oversized couch. For his part, Darien was still a bit too shocked and exhausted to take note of much she said, but his jumbled mind did manage to catch 'Muffin' amidst whatever else she was saying. She pushed him down onto the couch and made him lie down fully on it again, disappearing for a moment only to return with a few afghans from a closet near the wall and she paused by the heater for a long moment, her indrawn breath a sharp hiss.
"Ah, lie down, Darien," She ordered, her voice strangely tense and her posture rigid.
"Call me muffin again, little bunny, I like that," Darien mumbled, barely registering as she wrapped him up in the blankets before gingerly lowering herself back into the crook of his arm. Once positioned there however, he summoned the rest of his strength to hold her close and inhaled the soft cinnamon scent of her hair …not a perfume fragrance, for her perfume was vanilla and cherry blossoms, but maybe just cinnamon as in the spice? Yes, she must have been baking with her mother earlier; either that or her shampoo was cinnamon. Whichever reason it was, he found it delightful, but then again everything about her rang pleasingly in his heart. He wondered idly what it was that caused the sudden change in her behavior and then his thoughts recalled the fact that she had covered him with all the blankets, saving none for herself. Concern for his guardian angel and secret love mounted in his heart, but fever stole him away to slumber once more and he knew no more.
* * *
The persistent beeping of her senshi communicator wrested Serena from her turbulent thoughts some time later as she lay shivering atop the afghans covering the man she loved. Working past cold and weariness, she answered the call to see Raye's face appear on the tiny screen. She looked troubled to say the least, no trace of hope glimmering in her soft violet gaze. "Well?" Serena asked, trying to not let her teeth chatter.
"No luck. Maybe Ami has something. Sorry, Serena." Raye said, her words hanging ominously in the air like the chill winter. Raye frowned again and peered through the viewscreen. "Is there any heat there? You look frozen yourself, are you and Darien all right? Should we try to get to you guys?" She demanded with concern evident in her tone.
"No thanks, Raye, I couldn't be responsible for losing you guys outside as well. As for the temperature here, well, I've got Darien covered with blankets and that ought to hold him over till the worst of this blows past and we can get out, but the heater's battery wasn't too charged so I'm afraid that we've got no more instant warmth. I've got everything under control though, so don't worry about sending us any fire." Raye looked unconvinced but chose to drop the matter as her image winked away. Serena let out a breath, half-afraid that it would mist in the air, but thankfully it wasn't that cold yet. She retrieved her somewhat dry jacket and pulled that on to stay partially warm.
She was really worried about Darien. Given his weakness and cold, she wasn't sure how long he'd make it in freezing weather even piled under blankets and with her warmth bleeding through to him. His forehead was burning up still, yet he complained of being cold as he dreamt on, lost in a world of ever-shifting shapes and reflections. He was tossing and turning beneath the blankets, the bandage on his hand loosening as he moved in his sleep. She screwed up her courage and bit down on her lower lip until she drew blood and then winced in pain, reaching out to hold his injured hand within both of hers and took a deep breath, praying to let him keep sleeping.
She slowly untied her makeshift bandage and let her breath out in a hiss – she was doing that often – and averted her eyes. There was still a bottle of water within the room and she used it to rinse the wound again, reversing the bandage so the clean side would be against the gash. Darien made a noise similar to a whimpering as she worked, quicker this time, as she knew how to go about her work more productively.
It was getting to be dangerously cold. She moved her hand to check his temperature again, pressing the back of her hand to his forehead. His forehead was still hot and she instinctively moved her hand to cup his face in her palm. His skin was clammy and cool, flushed with fever yet strangely void of the heat of his forehead. Somehow she knew that it was not a good sign. There was nothing that came readily to mind that she could do however, except perhaps leach advice from Ami.
Swallowing nervously, she pressed a light kiss to his forehead, brushing his playful bangs from his sweat-dewed skin and activated her communicator again. "Ames, I really need some medical help here," She said the minute Ami's face appeared on the tiny screen. "We never covered fever and stuff in health last semester and Darien is really, really not doing well. Wait, first, did you find anything on Luna?"
"She's not near enough for me to help her if that's what you mean, but from what I've gathered, she's still in good condition, by which I mean that her signal on here is still strong. That's all the good news I can give you for her, now, tell me exactly what Darien's symptoms are," Ami ordered.
"Umm …let's see, he has a fever and his forehead is burning up but the rest of him is cold and clammy. He seems really exhausted and he sliced his palm earlier and I think that isn't helping too much. He's also very weak …and he has a constant tremor and racking cough." Serena explained and paused, biting down on her lower lip nervously. "Plus the heater died and I don't think that the blankets will help for much longer. I'm really worried, Ames, I've never seen him like this!"
Ami wasn't quite looking at the screen and Serena heard the rapid typing in the background. "Hey Serena? I'm going to go wake up my mom and check with her. I've got to let you go but I'll get right back to you. For now …just let him sleep I guess." With that, Ami was gone again.
But Darien was stirring in his sleep, vague words spilling from his lips as beads of sweat stood out on his forehead as he started breathing rapidly, shifting beneath the blankets. He was having a nightmare. Serena wanted to wake him up and take him in her arms, brushing back his hair and soothing him with whispery words that she was there and he wasn't alone, she wanted to end the nightmare and take away his fever and suffering, wanted to make the world right for him. He didn't seem like a conceited jerk when he wasn't awake …in fact, his face took on a boyish look, complete with trampled innocence and a forlorn, helpless quality that reminded her of someone or something …like a figment of the past buried in shadow. Ami had told her to let him rest for now though, and she didn't want to wake him if it turned out that he needed the sleep, but the option was dwindling fast and he gasped in his sleep and clenched his eyes shut, almost panting as a single crystal tear escaped his closed eye and made a salty trail down his cheek.
She could stand no more and moved to wake him when the first word that she could actually understand froze her. "Serena." He had called out her name, as though in desperation, with fear and grief tainting his voice and he drifted back into the senseless mumblings. Then she was at his side, kneeling on the cushions beside the couch and placing her small hands on his shoulders, starting when he jumped at her soft touch, as though he was unfamiliar with such treatment, and gently shook him, repeating his name in quiet, gentle tones as she bent close. When it became obvious that such a delicate approach would not banish the horrors of his sleep, she took a determined breath and shook him harder, ordering him to wake with a steely tone that bespoke of royalty and did not merit trifling with.
His dark blue eyes opened, clouded by fever and seemed to regain a touch of the turbulent color that seemed so familiar and he stopped struggling, breathing softly and murmuring her name again. Serena let out a sigh of relief and threw herself into his arms, careful of his cut and hugged him tightly, hot tears burning down her face and soaking into his shirt and the blankets. "You frightened me again, Darien Chiba!" She sobbed openly, allowing her worry to leave via the tears. "Promise me that you'll stop doing that! Promise me that you'll wake up when I tell you to the first time! Promise me that you'll take better care of yourself!" She commanded, her voice shaky.
And then his arms were around her, weakened still but granting her reassurance as he whispered his reply into her hair. "I'm so sorry, Serena, please don't cry! I promise I won't scare you again if I can at all help it and I promise I'll stay healthy, just please stop crying! Your tears make me feel so helpless because I can't make them stop, please don't cry, my little bunny!" He said, holding her tighter than she was holding him. Her heart swelled within her chest and for a moment she dared to believe that he actually held some feelings for her …but then logic reasserted itself and stomped about making excuses for why he could never, would never love her in return. "Thank you, bunny, thank you for waking me up."
"Oh, Darien!" She exclaimed, weeping again though she wanted to stop. She could practically feel his wretched guilt over being the cause of her tears and being unable to ease them.
"No one has ever been there to wake me up before, Serena, thank you," He continued. Dreadful awareness flooded his cerulean gaze as she risked meeting his deep eyes and he gaped at her for a moment. "You're freezing cold, Serena!" He noticed, sounding at once accusatory and stricken.
"I'm sorry, Darien!" She yelped, trying to break from his embrace. "Oh, I just wanted to keep you warm and the heater broke down and we're still stuck in here and …" He cut off her rambling with a finger pressed to her lips and shook his head.
"I will not allow you to freeze yourself worrying about me." He announced. "You will climb up onto this couch and share these blankets with me and we will ignore the fact that the heater couldn't have picked a worse time to go out." He paused and looked down at her wistfully. "Didn't I ask you to keep calling me 'muffin'? Whatever happened to that?"
Serena took a shuddering breath and let tears of relief and hope stain her cheeks before rising and slipping into the cocoon of warmth that came of being pressed against Darien's body and being wrapped in several blankets. Again his arm worked its way around her waist and pulled her close protectively and she snuggled closer, resting her head on his shoulder and wrapping her free arm – the other one she was lying upon – to reach up and act as a pillow for him. She felt once more the ache of exhaustion tingling at the edge of her awareness and resolutely ignored it. Darien was already close to falling off into sleep again and she had to wait for Ami to contact her again …and if Darien was still awake then, she could still pass it off as a delusional dream.
"Good night, my little bunny," Darien murmured, letting heavy lids fall again as he smiled down upon her.
Serena felt herself fill with inexplicable warmth again and trailed a finger from his temple to his jaw, tracing over a faint scar on his jaw line. "'Night, Muffin," She replied and settled in to wait.
* * *
Darien took a deep breath, inhaling the sweet fragrance of the angel child in his arms. She lay dozing upon a blanket of her honey-gold hair that spilled over to him as well. She was in his mind that absolute symbol of perfection, from her bunny nose to her tiny waist and the telltale promise filling out her form as she grew. A persistent chirping had interrupted his sleep and he blinked, trying to banish the lingering fuzziness in his head as he searched for the source of the noise. It sounded to be very close to his ear …a watchband adorning Serena's slender wrist to be precise. Puzzled, he touched it, intent upon shutting the alarm off before it woke Serena, then he realized that it was more than just a watch …in fact, it wasn't a watch at all.
A familiar looking girl appeared on the crackling screen, looking anxious and a bit surprised. Darien struggled for a moment to clear his mind and come up with a name, remembering that she was one of Serena's friends. "Ami Mizuno?" He asked unsurely, wanting to clarify that he was in fact seeing the blue-haired genius on the face of the watch that wasn't a watch.
"I …er, uh, Darien Chiba …" Ami started. "Is Serena there? No wait, that's a stupid question, it is her wrist communicator after all …er …ah,"
"Yes, but she's asleep right now. I'm beginning to believe that I am as well."
Relief drowned out the confusion on Ami's face. "Oh. I see. Wait a minute, she's asleep?! Wake her, Darien! Wake her right this instant! You can't let her fall asleep! It's too cold for her to sleep and you've got to stay awake as well!" Ami ordered frantically. "Wake her up, Darien!"
Darien frowned. It wasn't cold; it was nice and warm with Serena lying so near – practically on top of him – with the blankets tucking them in nicely and the heater on. His brow furrowed deeper …the heater wasn't making the soft noises it always made when in use …did someone fix it? He'd never seen Ami so agitated, nor so scared, when Serena had fallen asleep before. He was caught in agonizing indecision: to wake Serena, who appeared to be dreaming peacefully, or to let her rest further. He didn't know why Ami was so intent on having Serena up, but he felt as though he should have known …if there was a risk in letting her sleep …but what harm could come of sleeping like a baby? She didn't look as though she were locked within a nightmare; in fact, she appeared to be on Cloud Nine.
But Ami noticed his indecision and spoke up sharply. "I need her to wake up, Darien. You have got to wake her up. She can't sleep right now, it isn't safe …if you don't wake her up, she might sleep forever. I'm not sure exactly what prolonged exposure to chilly temperatures could do to a sleeping person, but she needs to be awake."
"The heater …" He started.
"Is broken. Serena told me that earlier, she said that she didn't want to worry you. Blankets and shared body heat can work for a time, but without the heater, I would not advise sleep for either of you. Please, Darien, wake her up. I need to speak with her as well."
Darien sighed deeply, still feeling vaguely unsure of himself. He lightly shook her shoulder. Ami sighed as though in frustrated amazement and Darien looked at her sheepishly, remembering with clarity exactly who lay more or less atop him. He sat up awkwardly, his back twisted like a C so that his lower half was still more or less prone and he gently kissed the corner of her mouth before resolving himself to disturbing the beauty rest – as if she needed any – of his angel. He tweaked her nose, he tried telling her to get up, he tried shaking her again and he tried offering chocolate and other treats. She was mumbling vague responses with words like 'Luna', 'mother', and 'just five more minutes' after some of his attempts. Finally, Darien decided that he would need to have more mobility in order to wake her, so he eased out from beneath her and stretched – almost falling backwards onto her as the blood rushed through his body and his weakness felt the urge to come into force again – when she made a soft groan of discomfort and started to toss about in her sleep.
Darien watched with mild fascination. He knelt beside the couch and rested his good hand on her shoulder, brushing some of her hair from her face and watched as she relaxed and slept easier and then he moved away and observed her reactions again. She frowned in her sleep and moved about a great deal, leaving Darien to wonder if she usually slept with a stuffed toy or pet that kept her from turning all night. It was when he had retreated to the heater that she awoke, muttering groggily and pushing herself up before arching her back like a cat and twisting to crack her spine.
She blinked sleepily at him – something he found irresistibly adorable – and yawned tiredly, apparently about to voice some objection when she noticed the wristband and Ami's face. In just under the span of a heartbeat, she was wide-awake and sputtering with half-words as she attempted to hide the device from him when Ami's clear voice cut in. "Never mind that, Serena, I've spoken with him already." From what he knew of Ami Mizuno, Darien would have ventured a guess that she was preoccupied with something as she spoke.
"Uh huh." Serena replied numbly. She blinked again and seemed prepared to drift back into that post-wakefulness world that she'd been in, apparently sensing crisis averted when she seemed to be pulled back to reality by her thoughts. "What's your professional diagnosis, Dr. Mizuno?" She asked in a little singsong voice.
"Not good, Moon," She started and promptly blanched. It appeared as though Ami forgot that they weren't communicating as scouts. "Er …mom says pneumonia is most likely. I sure hope not however, if so he probably needs to get to the hospital as soon as possible. Pneumonia is a very serious sickness, an inflammation of the lung tissue that is recognized by fever, chills, shaking, a severe cough and weariness. Sometimes people have to get their lungs cleared of the mucus and most people ought to see their doctors about it. I need to know how long Darien's been sick and what he's done about his illness."
Serena's eyes narrowed as she remembered the information she had attempted to glean from the aloof older man earlier. She repressed a sigh and turned to regard Darien who was swaying near the heater. "DARIEN! GET OVER TO THIS COUCH RIGHT NOW! YOU CAN BARELY EVEN STAND UP! I WILL NOT LET YOU GET EVEN SICKER ON MY WATCH SO GET OVER HERE NOW AND REST!" Serena hollered as imposingly as she could. Darien winced. Fighting the urge to drag him bodily to the couch she rose and slipped under his arm, forcing him to stand and then supporting the majority of his weight as she gently guided him back to the impromptu bed.
"Ami …said that we shouldn't go back to sleep. We may never wake up." Darien mumbled as Serena eased herself down at his side, still snuggled up beneath his arm and positioned herself like a pillow again, all the while giving him a hard look. Resigned to his pleasant fate, Darien allowed himself to sink down into the soft cushioning of her clothes and warm, supple body.
"Now, before we do anything else," Serena began in her normal sweet voice. "How long have you been sick? How did you cut your hand? What medications if any have you taken for your cold? Have you seen a doctor? Is there anything I can do for you?"
Darien silently reeled at this slight angel who commanded so much from him without even noticing. She wasn't even aware that she had him wrapped so tightly about her little finger that circulation would have been impossible. She had spoken in that same soft tone lathered with royal undertones. Just as he could not ignore the call of Sailor Moon or the duty assigned him by his dream princess, he could not do anything less than answer her questions and even as he lay in her lap he had to wonder why he even tried to keep it from her earlier.
"I've been sick …for about a week …probably just under." He said quietly, brow crinkling as he attempted to best respond to her inquiries. "I sliced my hand after I left the arcade today when I stumbled and tried to catch myself, but the only thing within reach was a jagged chunk of metal that must have been a part of the railing. I haven't taken any medications or seen any doctors. And there's nothing I want right now that isn't right here in this room."
Serena flushed almost instantly and regarded him with wary eyes, letting a slight smile grace her face as she clearly battled some inner doubt to trusting his words. "Oh." She finally murmured, one hand absently moving to run through his silky ebony hair when the wristband gleamed in the light and she stiffened again. "Hey Ames, did you catch all that?"
Ami did not reply for a long moment and Darien really wished that he had the energy to get up and read her expression. "Things aren't looking that great, Sere, I think he has pneumonia and it sounds like a bad case. You guys need help soon. It isn't good for you both to be awake in such cold weather, but if you fall asleep it'd be worse and I really want my mother to check up on Darien. Unfortunately, I can't go anywhere with this storm." Ami sounded highly distressed.
"Oh Serenity," Serena whispered softly, her eyes widening suddenly. "Ami, I need you to get a hold of Leets, I sent her to find Luna at Andr …er, I sent her to see if Luna was at our friend's house. If I knew the weather was this bad I never would have asked her to go out there! Oh no, what if she catches cold, Ami? What if she gets stuck out there all alone?" Serena sounded almost frantic by this point.
"I've got it covered Moon," Ami replied. Again Darien noticed her slip and frowned. "Just hang on until morning and we'll come get you two out." He heard the clasp catch on Serena's communicator and felt her wilt beneath him.
"Oh, Darien, what have I done?" She breathed.
Not quite knowing how to answer her, Darien did the only thing that made any sense to his befuddled mind and brought his arms up to pull her close and held her awkwardly as she rested against his chest, tears collecting on his shirt and pooling through to drip against his skin. He held her close and silence of the heart reigned.
