April 2002
Disclaimer: These character's aren't mine, but the story is..
Chapter 18
"Did he say what he wanted, Charles?"
"No miss. He simply asks that you call him at your earliest
convenience."
"Oh." Selenity frowned, "Alright. I will call him tonight. Thank
you Charles."
"You are welcome, miss. Are you ready for today's activities?"
She nodded, "Why daddy thinks I need golf lessons is beyond me.
Lead on."
Darien skipped school for the first time in a long time and went
straight to his old home. The house where Andrew's parents still lived.
Semi-retired with two grown children, they lived in a cozy two storey
bungalow on the outskirts of one of the most expensive neighbourhoods in
Tokyo. Fortunately, it wasn't far from Selenity's home, but it was far
enough he would rather take his car than walk.
Walking up the carefully cut lawn, Darien rang the doorbell. He
knew he had a standing invitation to come back, and these people were his
family, but he felt it necessary with the nature of his errand.
A striking woman in her early 50's answered the door with a smile.
"Darien! This is a pleasant surprise. Come in, come in. What are you
ringing the doorbell for anyway?"
He chuckled, stepping inside before enfolding the woman in a hug,
"Thanks, mom."
She hugged him back, "No thank yous are necessary for family, honey.
I thought you'd be in class at this hour."
"I'm afraid I cut class today. For a good reason though. I have a
couple of questions I need answered too and I wouldn't be able to
concentrate until I asked them."
She smiled, pushing silvering blonde hair out of her eyes, "Bill!
Darien came by for a visit."
Bill came out of the back of the house as Darien followed his
surrogate mom into the living room. The man was a lawyer, though he was
mostly retired, and loved to work in his garden out back. "Darien, son,
it's good to see you."
Darien enfolded the aging man in a hug, noticing the silver in his
strawberry blonde. "Dad. I'm sorry for dragging you out of the garden."
Bill waved a hand dismissively, "It's been too long son, what's on
your mind. Mae, is there lemonade in the fridge?"
She smiled and disappeared into the kitchen as Darien too a seat
across from his foster father, "Dad, I have a couple of questions about my
adoption. I know it was hard for you to get custody of me, even though you
knew my blood parents, but I need to know the circumstances. I'd like to
see my adoption papers if I could."
Bill accepted a glass of lemonade from Mae as she sat beside him.
Darien picked his up from the table and took a sip. "Still the best."
Mae blushed, smiling, "You boys always loved your lemonade. Darien,
there are certain things about your adoption we won't be able to tell you,"
she glanced at her husband of 30-some years, "however, we will tell you
what we can."
Darien nodded, "I'd appreciate that. Could I see my papers?"
"We don't have them."
He blinked, "I thought you had to have them."
Bill sighed, "Darien, your parents were really important people,
we're not sure who they were exactly and we're still not. They had a lot
of influence in politics and with the government, so your adoption papers
were signed and sealed before being dropped off somewhere. We're not sure
where. We got a different form than what we first signed to prove we were
your foster parents, but it doesn't say much beyond your name and
birthday."
Darien sat back in his chair, "How did you end up getting me as a
second son?"
Mae smiled, "Andrew begged and begged. His sister just wasn't
enough, he'd always wanted a brother. The fact that you're a few months
older than him doesn't bother him. Since Bill knows, and deals with, child
adoption cases we had something of an edge. Thankfully your parents left a
will, though it took some time finding, that if they died before you were a
certain age they wanted you to live with us."
"Do you know if I have any biological siblings?"
Bill and Mae exchanged glances, "Do you mean that Duke of something
or other that you resemble?"
Darien nodded at Bill's question, his mouth dry.
Bill sighed, "We don't know for sure. There is a vague mention of a
second offspring in their will, but he's somewhat older and only left part
of their estate. Your mother and I never got a chance to sit in on the
will reading, since we were in court that day, but the judge who was
handling it contacted me to let me know about the stipulations of your
parent's will. When I got that phone call, we were able to adopt you and
bring you home."
"Were my parents some kind of nobility?"
Mae reached out and squeezed his hand, "Darien, darling, you have to
understand that your parents were here to raise you to live a normal life.
They wanted you to grow up in a normal environment and have decent
friends. We know they were hiding from something, or trying to, but we
don't know what it was."
Darien sighed, "Then you don't know. I will have to speak with
Selenity then."
"The Princess?" Mae's eyes sparkled, "When are you going to bring
her home to meet us?"
Bill laughed, "Mae, we're losing all of our children and you want to
bring her here?"
Mae swatted him on the arm, "We're not losing them, we're gaining a
few more."
Darien got to his feet smiling. The easy affection between his
foster parents was one of the reasons he'd enjoyed his childhood so much.
"I'll make sure I bring her over for dinner sometime soon."
Mae and Bill stood and embraced him, "Check the library for the
reports on your parent's crash, dear. We don't have everything, but we do
have a scrap book of a few clippings if you want to read it."
"Maybe some other time. I think I'm going to try and sneak into my
class."
Bill chuckled, swatting him on the shoulder, "That's my boy. Good
luck, Dare."
He hugged them both again, promising once more to bring Selenity by
as soon as he could, and left.
Darien was frustrated. He'd gone to class like a good little
student and then immersed himself in the public library's plasfilms. He'd
found accounts from every journal about the wreck; but none had names. The
victims were always labelled as a 36 year old Japanese male and a 34
year old female. Their six year old son was in critical condition. He
slammed his hand on the book of plasfilms as he closed it. This was
getting him no where. The obituaries were even short. Not one thing about
a brother, a larger title or ties to some kind of nobility. So much for
the library coming through.
He rose from the dusty table and made his way quietly out of the
library. It was almost dinner time; his stomach was growling. He left his
car in the parking lot and walked towards the Crown Arcade. He ducked his
head, his eyes on the sidewalk in front of him as he walked. Why was
everything so blurry about the accident that had killed his parents? Did
they even have names? He'd never heard anyone refer to them as anything
beyond Mr. and Mrs. Chiba. Was it possible that he was related, however
extreme it seemed, to Martin? Could he be the long lost little brother of
that woman hating monster? His heart screamed no, that he could never have
anything, even blood, in common with an animal such as that. And yet, his
mind was busy rationalizing the evidence he'd turned up... or more to the
point, hadn't been able to turn up. If his parents were indeed some kind
of nobility, wouldn't there be some kind of evidence of it somewhere in the
press? Nobody was that good at covering up unwanted information. Unless
of course someone very powerful had ensured it was covered up.
He almost walked right past the arcade; so deep he was in thought.
At the last minute he glanced up and blinked before entering the arcade.
Andrew wasn't around, neither was Rita or any of the girls. He sighed.
After the last couple of days he wasn't sure if he wanted company. He made
his way upstairs to the diner. After a good meal, he'd head home for a hot
shower and a good night's sleep. Hopefully, after his day of research, his
demons would take the night off.
"Are you sure, Charles? You tried the right number?"
"Yes, miss. Darien is not home at the present time. Shall I leave
a message after his somewhat unconventional message?"
She waved him away with a sigh, "Sure, anything. Tell me if he
shows up again tonight, alright?"
"Of course miss."
She headed up the stairs towards her room with a heavy tread. She
was worried about Darien; his message had sounded urgent. However, if he
didn't contact her tonight, all she could do was watch and wait.
Author's Note: Comments, Questions, Suggestions, flames... all go to
Jademax@hotmail.com
Unless of course you'd like to write a review!
Thanks for reading!
Jade_Max
Disclaimer: These character's aren't mine, but the story is..
Chapter 18
"Did he say what he wanted, Charles?"
"No miss. He simply asks that you call him at your earliest
convenience."
"Oh." Selenity frowned, "Alright. I will call him tonight. Thank
you Charles."
"You are welcome, miss. Are you ready for today's activities?"
She nodded, "Why daddy thinks I need golf lessons is beyond me.
Lead on."
Darien skipped school for the first time in a long time and went
straight to his old home. The house where Andrew's parents still lived.
Semi-retired with two grown children, they lived in a cozy two storey
bungalow on the outskirts of one of the most expensive neighbourhoods in
Tokyo. Fortunately, it wasn't far from Selenity's home, but it was far
enough he would rather take his car than walk.
Walking up the carefully cut lawn, Darien rang the doorbell. He
knew he had a standing invitation to come back, and these people were his
family, but he felt it necessary with the nature of his errand.
A striking woman in her early 50's answered the door with a smile.
"Darien! This is a pleasant surprise. Come in, come in. What are you
ringing the doorbell for anyway?"
He chuckled, stepping inside before enfolding the woman in a hug,
"Thanks, mom."
She hugged him back, "No thank yous are necessary for family, honey.
I thought you'd be in class at this hour."
"I'm afraid I cut class today. For a good reason though. I have a
couple of questions I need answered too and I wouldn't be able to
concentrate until I asked them."
She smiled, pushing silvering blonde hair out of her eyes, "Bill!
Darien came by for a visit."
Bill came out of the back of the house as Darien followed his
surrogate mom into the living room. The man was a lawyer, though he was
mostly retired, and loved to work in his garden out back. "Darien, son,
it's good to see you."
Darien enfolded the aging man in a hug, noticing the silver in his
strawberry blonde. "Dad. I'm sorry for dragging you out of the garden."
Bill waved a hand dismissively, "It's been too long son, what's on
your mind. Mae, is there lemonade in the fridge?"
She smiled and disappeared into the kitchen as Darien too a seat
across from his foster father, "Dad, I have a couple of questions about my
adoption. I know it was hard for you to get custody of me, even though you
knew my blood parents, but I need to know the circumstances. I'd like to
see my adoption papers if I could."
Bill accepted a glass of lemonade from Mae as she sat beside him.
Darien picked his up from the table and took a sip. "Still the best."
Mae blushed, smiling, "You boys always loved your lemonade. Darien,
there are certain things about your adoption we won't be able to tell you,"
she glanced at her husband of 30-some years, "however, we will tell you
what we can."
Darien nodded, "I'd appreciate that. Could I see my papers?"
"We don't have them."
He blinked, "I thought you had to have them."
Bill sighed, "Darien, your parents were really important people,
we're not sure who they were exactly and we're still not. They had a lot
of influence in politics and with the government, so your adoption papers
were signed and sealed before being dropped off somewhere. We're not sure
where. We got a different form than what we first signed to prove we were
your foster parents, but it doesn't say much beyond your name and
birthday."
Darien sat back in his chair, "How did you end up getting me as a
second son?"
Mae smiled, "Andrew begged and begged. His sister just wasn't
enough, he'd always wanted a brother. The fact that you're a few months
older than him doesn't bother him. Since Bill knows, and deals with, child
adoption cases we had something of an edge. Thankfully your parents left a
will, though it took some time finding, that if they died before you were a
certain age they wanted you to live with us."
"Do you know if I have any biological siblings?"
Bill and Mae exchanged glances, "Do you mean that Duke of something
or other that you resemble?"
Darien nodded at Bill's question, his mouth dry.
Bill sighed, "We don't know for sure. There is a vague mention of a
second offspring in their will, but he's somewhat older and only left part
of their estate. Your mother and I never got a chance to sit in on the
will reading, since we were in court that day, but the judge who was
handling it contacted me to let me know about the stipulations of your
parent's will. When I got that phone call, we were able to adopt you and
bring you home."
"Were my parents some kind of nobility?"
Mae reached out and squeezed his hand, "Darien, darling, you have to
understand that your parents were here to raise you to live a normal life.
They wanted you to grow up in a normal environment and have decent
friends. We know they were hiding from something, or trying to, but we
don't know what it was."
Darien sighed, "Then you don't know. I will have to speak with
Selenity then."
"The Princess?" Mae's eyes sparkled, "When are you going to bring
her home to meet us?"
Bill laughed, "Mae, we're losing all of our children and you want to
bring her here?"
Mae swatted him on the arm, "We're not losing them, we're gaining a
few more."
Darien got to his feet smiling. The easy affection between his
foster parents was one of the reasons he'd enjoyed his childhood so much.
"I'll make sure I bring her over for dinner sometime soon."
Mae and Bill stood and embraced him, "Check the library for the
reports on your parent's crash, dear. We don't have everything, but we do
have a scrap book of a few clippings if you want to read it."
"Maybe some other time. I think I'm going to try and sneak into my
class."
Bill chuckled, swatting him on the shoulder, "That's my boy. Good
luck, Dare."
He hugged them both again, promising once more to bring Selenity by
as soon as he could, and left.
Darien was frustrated. He'd gone to class like a good little
student and then immersed himself in the public library's plasfilms. He'd
found accounts from every journal about the wreck; but none had names. The
victims were always labelled as a 36 year old Japanese male and a 34
year old female. Their six year old son was in critical condition. He
slammed his hand on the book of plasfilms as he closed it. This was
getting him no where. The obituaries were even short. Not one thing about
a brother, a larger title or ties to some kind of nobility. So much for
the library coming through.
He rose from the dusty table and made his way quietly out of the
library. It was almost dinner time; his stomach was growling. He left his
car in the parking lot and walked towards the Crown Arcade. He ducked his
head, his eyes on the sidewalk in front of him as he walked. Why was
everything so blurry about the accident that had killed his parents? Did
they even have names? He'd never heard anyone refer to them as anything
beyond Mr. and Mrs. Chiba. Was it possible that he was related, however
extreme it seemed, to Martin? Could he be the long lost little brother of
that woman hating monster? His heart screamed no, that he could never have
anything, even blood, in common with an animal such as that. And yet, his
mind was busy rationalizing the evidence he'd turned up... or more to the
point, hadn't been able to turn up. If his parents were indeed some kind
of nobility, wouldn't there be some kind of evidence of it somewhere in the
press? Nobody was that good at covering up unwanted information. Unless
of course someone very powerful had ensured it was covered up.
He almost walked right past the arcade; so deep he was in thought.
At the last minute he glanced up and blinked before entering the arcade.
Andrew wasn't around, neither was Rita or any of the girls. He sighed.
After the last couple of days he wasn't sure if he wanted company. He made
his way upstairs to the diner. After a good meal, he'd head home for a hot
shower and a good night's sleep. Hopefully, after his day of research, his
demons would take the night off.
"Are you sure, Charles? You tried the right number?"
"Yes, miss. Darien is not home at the present time. Shall I leave
a message after his somewhat unconventional message?"
She waved him away with a sigh, "Sure, anything. Tell me if he
shows up again tonight, alright?"
"Of course miss."
She headed up the stairs towards her room with a heavy tread. She
was worried about Darien; his message had sounded urgent. However, if he
didn't contact her tonight, all she could do was watch and wait.
Author's Note: Comments, Questions, Suggestions, flames... all go to
Jademax@hotmail.com
Unless of course you'd like to write a review!
Thanks for reading!
Jade_Max