~Chapter Five-Those Lost~
Serena took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. She sat on a marble bench just in front of Darien's grave. It was depressing and frightening to think Crysta was the only member of her family left. After the Children killed Reenie, Serena had watched her body fade away. She longed to know what became of her eldest daughter. A breeze of gravel dust and the sound of small footsteps forced Serena's eyes upward. Laura was with her in the cemetery, apparently trying to find something.
"Laura?" Serena stood up and cleared her throat. "Honey, what are you doing?"
"Looking for the baby." Laura replied, swallowing. "He was born on the same day, in the same hospital. And Setsuna named him Donovan." This new information shocked Serena. All five women had agreed to put the event of Donovan's birth in the back of their minds, as if the child had never been born. But somehow, Laura knew.
"How…how do-"
"I don't know how I know." Laura sighed. "I know I'm lonely, because Setsuna took him away."
"What do you mean, 'lonely', honey?" Serena inquired, raising Laura's downed face tenderly by her chin.
"He was to be with me. We were to be together."
The minute Laura said, "to be together", Serena collapsed to her knees for the second time in a week. She and Darien were destined to be together, also, and he'd left her as lonely as Laura. Laura knelt down and put a hand on Serena's shoulder.
"Please forgive me for making you emotional and unhappy." She requested. Serena nodded numbly and slowly got to her feet.
"It's okay."
"Do you know where Donovan and Setsuna are, Aunt Serena?" Laura queried.
"I don't." Serena sighed. Technically, it wasn't a lie. Serena and the others assumed Setsuna had either taken Donovan to the Gate of Time or Crystal Tokyo, but they knew not for sure.
"You're lonely for someone, too, aren't you?" Laura asked. Serena nodded, biting her lip to keep from crying. Without a sound, Laura went over to her and climbed into her lap. Serena, stunned, looked down at the girl and tears came anew. Lita was right. Laura couldn't have done any kind of harm to anyone-not even Reenie. Serena's only reason for knowing this was simple: none of the Children had ever, since their births, climbed willingly into their mother's laps before.
* * * * *
"Thanks for walking Laura home, Serena." Lita ushered her daughter and friend into the apartment, half-smiling.
"Can I talk to you?" Serena inquired softly. Lita nodded.
"Laura, sweetie, you wanna go and play with your…um…?" "I'll leave you alone so that you may proceed discussing me with Aunt Serena." Laura nodded once and walked toward her room.
"Oh, Laura, I didn't mean anything by it…" Lita stared sadly at her daughter.
"I know, Mother. You had no intention of damaging me emotionally. I understand." Laura turned the corner, entered her room, and shut the door.
"What's on your mind, Serena?" Lita sat on her now tattered white sofa; her friend did the same.
"Do you ever watch the Children play?" Serena began. Lita frowned, then slowly shook her head.
"I try not to."
"Oh. Then you haven't noticed how they interact with each other?"
"No, why?" Suspicion and concern came over Lita. Why had Serena suddenly taken an interest in the Children?
"They're always paired up." Serena continued. "Crysta and Adam, I think. Then Erin and Dominique. And Laura's always by herself."
"So?" Lita became saddened, despite her efforts not to get involved.
"Lita, Laura said 'he was to be with me'. Do you know what that means?" Her friend thought for a moment, licking her lips and swallowing.
"Are they paired up, like a…a mate?"
Serena shrugged and decided to end the conversation right there. A dead silence hung in the air. Serena didn't know what to say; Lita only wanted to think. After a long while, Lita closed her eyes. "I never told Laura about Donovan." There was no need to inform her friend about Laura's display of affection in the cemetery; it might only upset Lita. Serena stood up and headed toward the door. She didn't say goodbye, and she didn't need to. They both wanted to be alone.
* * * * *
The beautiful, bright-colored fish against the darkness of Tokyo Tower's uppermost floor always made Serena happy. It made her remember the better times, though she wasn't sure she could call the time Haruka and Michiru brought her here a "better" time. A lone sigh escaped Serena.
"Mother." Crysta hadn't meant to bark her greeting, but her voice came loud and flat, and was deciphered as one. "Why are you here?"
"Oh, do I have to run where I'm going by you now, dear?" Had the girl been a cat, surely she would have hissed at the remark.
"I'm hungry." Crysta stated simply. Serena just looked at her daughter. "I want something to eat. It's nearly time for dinner." Still nothing. "Now! If you do not comply, I will have to take action!" Serena began to laugh, surprising herself as well as Crysta.
"You walked ten blocks from our house, to the Tokyo Tower, just so you could tell me I have to feed you?" The laughter flared, then Serena calmed down. "You idiot. You definitely inherited some of my former traits."
"Take that back…" Ordered Crysta in a low whisper. Serena ignored her daughter and took from around her neck the Moon Locket, the gift she'd given Darien ages ago. Crysta's eyes started their familiar glow. First bright green, then red. But no matter how much she intensified her efforts, the girl couldn't control her mother's mind. Serena shut her eyes. The soft, soothing music of the Moon Locket still floated toward her ears. Immediately, she was lost once again in her memories. Memories of her and Darien, walking hand in hand, along the beach on a date. And the time she and Reenie made Promise Bracelets, even though they both had the same guy in mind for whom the bracelets were for... More blissful moments in her life. Then a memory came that made Serena begin to cry. Prince Darien standing with her in the darkness, but he radiated such a light when he was around her. She handed him an object, which he lovingly accepted: her gold, star-shaped Moon Locket. With a smile from both, they kissed. Crysta increased her powers, but in vain. The girl's eyes ceased to glow, then narrowed. "You're thinking of Father again." She uttered. Serena snapped out of her reverie and swallowed; she wiped her wet eyes with the back of her hand.
"Let's go." She whispered.
* * * * *
Serena sat leafing through photo albums she'd kept for years. Pictures of her and Darien on every page forced hot, fat tears to run down her cheeks. "It has to be here…" She wiped the tears away angrily. "I'll find it." Serena glanced upward, without knowing why. Crysta stood in the entrance to the living room; her face lacked emotion. This made her mother shudder.
"We're going to stay on the top floor of the Tokyo Tower from now on." With that, Crysta turned and left. Serena blinked before she went back to the pictures. After a moment longer, Serena found what she had been looking for. A medium-sized photograph revealed Serena standing next to Darien, who had Reenie on his shoulders. The memory of that day was clear as crystal to her. Sunny, breezy, and warm. All three had just eaten a wonderful picnic lunch, and a nice mad had agreed to take their picture. Smiles exuded their faces; it was something she wouldn't-couldn't-forget as long as she lived.
* * * * *
No mother had ever been more eager to be rid of her child. One by one, the Children left their mothers and entered the Tokyo Tower. Lita tightened her grip on Laura's arm, biting her lip to keep from crying. Laura squirmed, and Lita shook herself out of her semi-trance.
"I'm not letting you go." She told her daughter. Laura sighed.
"You haven't been given an option."
"Have you?" Lita turned to Laura suddenly, a desperate look in her eyes. "You know, you don't always have to do everything they tell you."
"We are the same." Laura explained.
"No, you're not." Lita shook her head. "You're Laura; you're different!" Lita pulled her daughter closer, daring to hug her and maybe keep her a moment longer, but the girl pulled away abruptly. Laura only took one last look at her mother before she, too, ran into the Tower.
There was nothing more Lita could do. She silently walked home.
Serena took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. She sat on a marble bench just in front of Darien's grave. It was depressing and frightening to think Crysta was the only member of her family left. After the Children killed Reenie, Serena had watched her body fade away. She longed to know what became of her eldest daughter. A breeze of gravel dust and the sound of small footsteps forced Serena's eyes upward. Laura was with her in the cemetery, apparently trying to find something.
"Laura?" Serena stood up and cleared her throat. "Honey, what are you doing?"
"Looking for the baby." Laura replied, swallowing. "He was born on the same day, in the same hospital. And Setsuna named him Donovan." This new information shocked Serena. All five women had agreed to put the event of Donovan's birth in the back of their minds, as if the child had never been born. But somehow, Laura knew.
"How…how do-"
"I don't know how I know." Laura sighed. "I know I'm lonely, because Setsuna took him away."
"What do you mean, 'lonely', honey?" Serena inquired, raising Laura's downed face tenderly by her chin.
"He was to be with me. We were to be together."
The minute Laura said, "to be together", Serena collapsed to her knees for the second time in a week. She and Darien were destined to be together, also, and he'd left her as lonely as Laura. Laura knelt down and put a hand on Serena's shoulder.
"Please forgive me for making you emotional and unhappy." She requested. Serena nodded numbly and slowly got to her feet.
"It's okay."
"Do you know where Donovan and Setsuna are, Aunt Serena?" Laura queried.
"I don't." Serena sighed. Technically, it wasn't a lie. Serena and the others assumed Setsuna had either taken Donovan to the Gate of Time or Crystal Tokyo, but they knew not for sure.
"You're lonely for someone, too, aren't you?" Laura asked. Serena nodded, biting her lip to keep from crying. Without a sound, Laura went over to her and climbed into her lap. Serena, stunned, looked down at the girl and tears came anew. Lita was right. Laura couldn't have done any kind of harm to anyone-not even Reenie. Serena's only reason for knowing this was simple: none of the Children had ever, since their births, climbed willingly into their mother's laps before.
* * * * *
"Thanks for walking Laura home, Serena." Lita ushered her daughter and friend into the apartment, half-smiling.
"Can I talk to you?" Serena inquired softly. Lita nodded.
"Laura, sweetie, you wanna go and play with your…um…?" "I'll leave you alone so that you may proceed discussing me with Aunt Serena." Laura nodded once and walked toward her room.
"Oh, Laura, I didn't mean anything by it…" Lita stared sadly at her daughter.
"I know, Mother. You had no intention of damaging me emotionally. I understand." Laura turned the corner, entered her room, and shut the door.
"What's on your mind, Serena?" Lita sat on her now tattered white sofa; her friend did the same.
"Do you ever watch the Children play?" Serena began. Lita frowned, then slowly shook her head.
"I try not to."
"Oh. Then you haven't noticed how they interact with each other?"
"No, why?" Suspicion and concern came over Lita. Why had Serena suddenly taken an interest in the Children?
"They're always paired up." Serena continued. "Crysta and Adam, I think. Then Erin and Dominique. And Laura's always by herself."
"So?" Lita became saddened, despite her efforts not to get involved.
"Lita, Laura said 'he was to be with me'. Do you know what that means?" Her friend thought for a moment, licking her lips and swallowing.
"Are they paired up, like a…a mate?"
Serena shrugged and decided to end the conversation right there. A dead silence hung in the air. Serena didn't know what to say; Lita only wanted to think. After a long while, Lita closed her eyes. "I never told Laura about Donovan." There was no need to inform her friend about Laura's display of affection in the cemetery; it might only upset Lita. Serena stood up and headed toward the door. She didn't say goodbye, and she didn't need to. They both wanted to be alone.
* * * * *
The beautiful, bright-colored fish against the darkness of Tokyo Tower's uppermost floor always made Serena happy. It made her remember the better times, though she wasn't sure she could call the time Haruka and Michiru brought her here a "better" time. A lone sigh escaped Serena.
"Mother." Crysta hadn't meant to bark her greeting, but her voice came loud and flat, and was deciphered as one. "Why are you here?"
"Oh, do I have to run where I'm going by you now, dear?" Had the girl been a cat, surely she would have hissed at the remark.
"I'm hungry." Crysta stated simply. Serena just looked at her daughter. "I want something to eat. It's nearly time for dinner." Still nothing. "Now! If you do not comply, I will have to take action!" Serena began to laugh, surprising herself as well as Crysta.
"You walked ten blocks from our house, to the Tokyo Tower, just so you could tell me I have to feed you?" The laughter flared, then Serena calmed down. "You idiot. You definitely inherited some of my former traits."
"Take that back…" Ordered Crysta in a low whisper. Serena ignored her daughter and took from around her neck the Moon Locket, the gift she'd given Darien ages ago. Crysta's eyes started their familiar glow. First bright green, then red. But no matter how much she intensified her efforts, the girl couldn't control her mother's mind. Serena shut her eyes. The soft, soothing music of the Moon Locket still floated toward her ears. Immediately, she was lost once again in her memories. Memories of her and Darien, walking hand in hand, along the beach on a date. And the time she and Reenie made Promise Bracelets, even though they both had the same guy in mind for whom the bracelets were for... More blissful moments in her life. Then a memory came that made Serena begin to cry. Prince Darien standing with her in the darkness, but he radiated such a light when he was around her. She handed him an object, which he lovingly accepted: her gold, star-shaped Moon Locket. With a smile from both, they kissed. Crysta increased her powers, but in vain. The girl's eyes ceased to glow, then narrowed. "You're thinking of Father again." She uttered. Serena snapped out of her reverie and swallowed; she wiped her wet eyes with the back of her hand.
"Let's go." She whispered.
* * * * *
Serena sat leafing through photo albums she'd kept for years. Pictures of her and Darien on every page forced hot, fat tears to run down her cheeks. "It has to be here…" She wiped the tears away angrily. "I'll find it." Serena glanced upward, without knowing why. Crysta stood in the entrance to the living room; her face lacked emotion. This made her mother shudder.
"We're going to stay on the top floor of the Tokyo Tower from now on." With that, Crysta turned and left. Serena blinked before she went back to the pictures. After a moment longer, Serena found what she had been looking for. A medium-sized photograph revealed Serena standing next to Darien, who had Reenie on his shoulders. The memory of that day was clear as crystal to her. Sunny, breezy, and warm. All three had just eaten a wonderful picnic lunch, and a nice mad had agreed to take their picture. Smiles exuded their faces; it was something she wouldn't-couldn't-forget as long as she lived.
* * * * *
No mother had ever been more eager to be rid of her child. One by one, the Children left their mothers and entered the Tokyo Tower. Lita tightened her grip on Laura's arm, biting her lip to keep from crying. Laura squirmed, and Lita shook herself out of her semi-trance.
"I'm not letting you go." She told her daughter. Laura sighed.
"You haven't been given an option."
"Have you?" Lita turned to Laura suddenly, a desperate look in her eyes. "You know, you don't always have to do everything they tell you."
"We are the same." Laura explained.
"No, you're not." Lita shook her head. "You're Laura; you're different!" Lita pulled her daughter closer, daring to hug her and maybe keep her a moment longer, but the girl pulled away abruptly. Laura only took one last look at her mother before she, too, ran into the Tower.
There was nothing more Lita could do. She silently walked home.