Chapter 7: Strange vibes
Serena put the gold chain on around her neck before looking up at Darien through thick lashes, her light blue eyes reflecting into his. "Thank you, this necklace means a lot to me." Darien took her hand into his and pulled her closer to him. "I know. That's why I gave it to you." She smiled up at him, knowing what he meant. Every time they got together in the darkness of night on the moon, she would also eye it with a loving look. But she could tell he was hesitant to give it to her, until that unfateful day, when the moon got attacked. She knew it was important to him but it was just so catching, so lovely. She knew it was selfish of her, to be so greedy. She remembered what he had told her the first day he had gotten it.
"This is a gift, from a dear friend of mine from Elysian. He told me to give this to the one I love, but it's too special to me, I don't think I'd be able to give it up. It means too much. To me it means friendship, and honor. A strong society bonded by it. That might sound ludicrous, but it does. I'd love to give it to you, but it's too sentimental. When I'm ready to, you'll be the first person it goes to." Serena smiled at the memory, trying to hide it. Darien looked down at her smiling and questioned her. "What are you smiling at?" She looked up him, his baffled look making her smile more. "I just remembered something, that's all." She hugged him and they both moved up plank and into the ship. Serena looked around in amusement before saying, "Wow, this place is great! But, I'm kind of hungry." The girls all rolled their eyes before saying in unison, "We'll eat later Serena!" Serena groaned before walking off in search of a snack. Darien followed her. Mina fell to her knees in fake despair. "Oh no! It's got Darien too! Serena must be contagious!" Darien heard this and turned to the girls. "Well, someone's got to watch her!" The girls turned to Luna and Artemis, who they brought along, and Lita said, "When will she ever learn?" They all shrugged before Luna said, "Girls, you must be on the look-out at all time. I've got strange vibes about this place." They all agreed before going out to search for Serena. Finally they found her stuffing her face on the pool deck. Luna jumped up on the pool chair next Serena's outstretched legs and said, "Well, I see you've found something to do." Darien walked up behind the girls. "There you are Serena. Sorry I made you wait, I had to put our luggage in our room." "Oh, that's ok Darien. I should have waited for you." Then she turned to Luna and said, "Did you want to tell me something?" "Serena, I have bad vibes about this place." "You're telling me! Their food tastes weird!" The girls snickered and Lita said matter-of-factly, "Serena, that's escargot." Serena looked blankly at her friend then at Darien. "What's that?" Darien ran a hand through his thick hair and said, "Serena, escargot is French for snail." Serena gently dropped the food on the plate in front of her, then, holding her stomach, stood up. "I've lost my appetite and am ready to be sick. Darien could you place take me to our room? I want to rest awhile." Darien put his arm around her shoulders before walking to the steps. "Maybe a little rest will help you feel better." Then with that they walked down towards the rooms.
Soon Darien and Serena arrived at their room. Serena was feeling a little better, but Darien insisted she take a nap to be sure she didn't get sick. Slowly Darien unlocked the door and allowed Serena to go in and look around. "Wow! This place looks gorgeous!" Then she turned to Darien and hugged him saying, "Thank you Darien." Darien hugged her gently saying, "For what?" "For just being there for me. For all that you're done for me." Darien led her to their bed and gently laid her down. "Anything for a princess. Now try to rest up my love. I'm going to walk around a bit, I'll be back soon." He kissed her on her cheek and left the room. After Darien left, Serena smiled before putting her hand over her locket, rolling over and falling asleep.
* * * *
Serena yawned gently and opened her eyes to conversation on the other side of the room. It suddenly got quiet and Darien walked towards the bed and sat down next to her. "I'm sorry Serena, did we wake you." She sat up against the headboard and shook her head. "No I was just…" She stopped in mid-sentence and looked up at the woman standing at the foot of the bed. "Are you feeling better Serena?" She looked back up at Darien and answered him. "Yes, but who is this woman?" "That's Ada Wong. I met her up on deck when I was walking." Ada was about 5 ft 6 with light blonde hair that hit her shoulders with a silky flow. She had a light complexion and light, icy blue eyes that dug into your soul when she looked at you. When she spoke, her voice was soft and had a friendly edge to it, although the look in her eyes when she spoke with Serena never agreed with the tone of her voice. She had a creepy air about her, like someone from a long time ago. Ada brought a chair over and sat down and looked up at Darien, then to Serena. "Hi Serena. You must be Darien sister. Am I right?" Darien held Serena closer to him saying, "Actually, she's my girlfriend." Serena smiled up at Darien saying to herself. 'Oh sweet Darien, I love you so much. Just to hear your voice saying that make me happy.' Serena slow brought her hand to her chest, totally tuning herself out of the conversation, and realized her locket was gone. She searched next to her to find that it had fallen off in her sleep. Slowly she opened it and she soft music played. Ada looked over at it and said, "Oh, what a lovely locket you have. Did your mother get you that?" Serena gently closed the lid and looked over at Ada. "Not Exactly." Ada inhaled some air and went on guessing. "A friend perhaps?" Serena smiled up at Darien and said, "I wouldn't say a friend, but if you insist, yes. A very good friend." Ada secretly glared at Serena and stood up. 'They may love eachother now, but when I'm done with loverboy, he'll forget about old what's her name. It's the only way for world domination.' With plans and strategies working through her mind, she walked towards the door and placed her hand on the knob. "I must get going now. It's almost dinnertime and my family would be worried about me. It's been nice talking with you Darien. Bye." Serena noticed that Ada had excluded her from her good-bye, but she didn't care, she had other things on her mind. She stared down at the blanket covering her legs, her finger tracing the wrinkles. She set her hand under Darien's and let him enclose his fingers over hers. Her hair had come out of her meatballs in her sleep, so it flowed down around her shoulders, hiding the tears that slowly trickled down her cheeks. Although she quietly sobbed to herself, Darien could feel her hand shaking gently under his own. He pulled her closer and moved her hair back behind her ear. He kissed her cheek, her salty tears soaking into his lips. "Serena, tell me, is something bothering you?" She leaned against him, unable to speak for a minute. Once she found her voice she spoke. "Darien, I want to go home. I'm scared. I've had terrible dreams, visions that have happened on the boat. I'm scared Darien, I want to go home." She bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears before continuing. "Darien, please, just hold me and protect forever." She moved into his lap sobbed against his neck. She knew she was acting childish, but whenever she'd have a dream, it'd scare her to no end. He gently stroked her hand and held her close, trying to stop her tears. A knock sounded at the door and then it opened to reveal Lita and Mina. "Hey guys! We just wanted to know if you'd like to come walking with us!" Mina said cheerfully, than stopped when she saw Serena's tear-streaked face. They backed out of the room and Lita said apologetically, "We're sorry, we didn't mean to interrupt, we'll just come back later." Darien laid Serena back onto the bed and walked towards the door. "No, come on in. We were just talking. Besides, I think Serena needs her friends right now." Lita and Mina walked on in, followed by Amy, Raye and the cats. They sat down on the bed by Serena and began interrogating her all at once. Serena held up her hand to silence them. "Please don't worry yourselves about me. It's just a little silly thing that's gotten me going. Nothing to worry about. It's almost dinnertime anyway, so let's just go get ready." She stood up and walked towards to the closet to pick out a dress for dinner. The girls all left to go their room and change. Soon after three minutes, she found her dress. It was a sky blue with little flowers on it. It came to over her feet, and clung to her becomingly. It was strapless with a little coat to go over it. She turned to Darien who was also already dressed in a snazzy tux. He walked over to her and opened the clasp on her locket's chain and put it around her neck. He turned her around towards and smiled down at her. "There, now you're as beautiful as I remember." There was a knock at the door and Darien went towards it to open, not realizing the impact it would have on their lives.