Hey everybody! Yep, that's right, I'm back with another fic. Not a series…thank God, cuz' I have enough of those and I don't need anymore. This has actually been in my head for awhile now so I just decided to write it down. I don't see enough Safir/Serena fics, as of matter of fact, I haven't seen any at all.
The story takes place in the Dark Moon series (of course) same plot except for a few minor details. You'll know what they are when you see them, so please don't send me reviews that what I have happening didn't in the series, believe me, I already know so please don't tell me something I already know, it's just annoying. If you have a question and you're not sure, then send it anyway. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: Don't own Sailor Moon or its characters…..damn! Too bad.
Italics ….mean thoughts
*****…..mean new day
*~*~*….mean different scene
Bitter sweetness
The sun was setting making the pink, purple and orange hues dance and mingle with the already dispersing clouds. Few people still lingered the streets doing last minute tasks before running home to be with their families. Ever since the dark moon planted its seed in the middle of Tokyo, the energy pulsing from the black crystal has been the citizens' wake up call to the danger they reside near. Though they knew the sailor scouts would be there to protect them, they were well aware of the situation.
By the time the street lights were on the sidewalks were deserted and businesses were starting to close. Oblivious to all of this, the blonde walked down the street, her mind somewhere else. She didn't pay any attention to the wind blowing warm air through her pigtails that trailed behind her and the bangs that tickled her forehead. Instead her thoughts surrounded the boy who held her heart but denied her his own.
Serena sighed aloud. Darien could be so difficult without reason sometimes. Now that she knew the truth about their breakup, she still couldn't be with him. Why? The answer's very simple…..because Darien is too damn stubborn to back down. How is it that a relationship requires two people but only one gets to make all the decisions? This was the position that she was in now, since he had that stupid dream her and Darien couldn't be together.
What really bugged her was how he had acted at the scout meeting thirty minutes ago.
He avoided having any eye contact with her, acted as if he didn't know her, and when he finally did acknowledge her existence, he spoke her name as if it was foreign to his lips. She just didn't understand him.
After the meeting she tried to tell him that she didn't care about the dreams or the future, she just wanted to be with him and he thought she was being selfish. If being selfish was her willing to sacrifice everything to spend what could be her last month living with the man she loved then what could she say, she was selfish and proud of it.
Serena was so tired of trying to give Darien everything and coming up empty handed.
"Never again." she vowed
She wasn't going to put herself in the position of being Darien's pet dog who whined when her master left, licked his face when he returned and then heeled when he told her to. She loved Darien, but she wasn't about to destroy her dignity just to get his attention and his respect. No, she was going to let him sweat it out until he came running back begging her for forgiveness and then…..make him sweat some more.
"Blue-eyed bastard…"
Serena turned to the corner mumbling obscenities that would cause even the most crude person to cringe in shame.
Before she could react, Serena found herself sprawled on top of a huge lump on the ground. Out of habit she began apologizing for her clumsiness to the person she fell upon and struggled to her feet. It only took a second to realize the figure's lack of movement and Serena immediately started to investigate.
She lowered to he knees and peered into the person's face scrutinizing the unfamiliar features. He had dark hair and his eyes were closed. When Serena saw the blood trail from the wound on the side of his head she began to panic, already suggesting the worst.
"Oh my God, I've killed him!"
Before she could get overwhelmed it was then she remembered how she had ended up on the ground in the first place. She had tripped and fell, she didn't run into him like she had done countless times with Darien. So this meant he was laying here before she came along and she just happened to stumble upon his unconscious form.
She squinted her eyes at his forehead, there was something peaking out from underneath his dark bangs. She pushed them to the side and gasped. She stared at the black upside down crescent moon positioned on his forehead mocking her. She stood up startled and backed up against the building, her eyes never leaving him while her mind turned its wheels.
Should she help him? Should she leave him here to possibly die? The same questions circulated her head, she just didn't know what to do.
Serena reached into her pocket and pulled out her communicator. She should definitely call the others and tell them about her predicament, it was the right thing to do after all. So why wasn't she pushing any buttons?
With a sigh she put the device away and turned back the body. As if it was a sign from heaven, Andrew came out of the arcade whistling and locked the doors to go home for the evening. Serena bit her lip in thought. She could use Andrew's help getting the guy back to her house, there was no way she was able to lift him by herself.
"Drew! Quick, I need your help!"
Andrew ran over to her with a confused expression on his face which turned to concern when his green eyes landed on the immobile body.
"Serena?"
"Could you help me get him to my house?"
"Um, sure…" he said still looking over the situation with curiosity "…but what happened? Is he alright?"
Serena could see the guy's chest move up and down. "Yea, he's fine, I just need to get him back to my house."
Andrew frowned, "maybe we should get him to a hospital, Serena….."
"No!"
Andrew raised both brows at her outburst. Serena composed herself and continued.
"I mean, no…he's a friend of mine. He had too much to drink and…. got himself into a fight….yea, a fight. So there's no need for a hospital."
Andrew gave her a dubious glance but relented in the end helping her get the guy into his car. When they pulled into her driveway, Andrew helped her take him into the house and into the guest bedroom on the main level. They put the guy into the bed and Serena walked Andrew to the door thanking him the whole way.
"No problem, but he looks really bad."
"He'll be fine with a little rest. Don't worry, I have everything under control."
I think….I hope
"Do your parents mind him being here? I could bring him back to my place…"
"No, that's okay. They're out of town for the next two weeks and Sammy's at a friend's house until then."
He shrugged and headed to his car. Before Serena closed the door she called him back.
"Um, could you not tell anyone about this?"
Running a hesitant hand through his dirty blonde hair, Andrew sighed. He eventually nodded earning a thankful smile and climbed into his car. She watched him drive off and then closed and locked the front door.
***********************************
A ceiling?
This is what he saw when he opened his eyes, but he couldn't believe it. Last he remembered he was running from Wiseman who was trying to kill him because he wanted to tell his brother the truth, that Wiseman was using him and when he was done, he planned to kill Diamond as a sign of thanks for being so gullible.
But how did I get here?
His thoughts didn't travel too far. With the pounding in his head it was hard to see past the fuzziness that continually covered his sight. With a groan he brought his hand up to head. He could feel the white cloth through his fingertips, which heightened his curiosity even further.
He immediately stopped his movements when he heard footsteps, he closed his eyes when the door swung open.
Serena pushed the door open with her foot and walked into the room with a tray of food was in her hands, eyeing the male that laid motionless in the guest bed. She set the tray on the side table, but before she could turn to leave his hand shot out and grabbed her on the arm.
Serena jumped back startled and clumsily bumped into the side table sending the lamp crashing to the floor. Both hands flew to her flaming cheeks as she tried to get over the near shock experience. Their eyes clashed and her heart stopped.
"You're awake." she said clearing her throat.
"Yes. I apologize for startling you, it was not my intention." he replied struggling to sit up. Serena noticed and forced herself to move and help.
"Here…" Serena propped the pillows up behind him and stepped away quickly.
"Thank you."
Serena nods and grabs the tray of food and places it on his lap. "I made you a sandwich…um..."
"Safir."
"Safir? Well I'm Serena."
He nods and turns to the sandwhich picking through the bread. He gives her a blank look.
"Sorry, I'm not much of a cook." Her eyes wander around in embarrassment, "It's peanut butter and jelly"
He takes a small bite and when the taste was satisfying, the sandwich was gone in seconds putting a smile on Serena's face, no one had ever eaten her food willingly. She sat in the chair and smiled.
"If you're still hungry, I can order pizza, since I sort of ran out of bread."
What Serena really meant to say was that she ran out of bread because she's a clumsy freak in the kitchen and she dropped the whole loaf on the floor when she was trying to clean up the mess she made while making his sandwich. But of course, it can happen to anyone.
Well it can!
"Pizza?"
"Er, don't worry, it's good, you'll like it….trust me." she said remembering who he was.
Of course he won't know what pizza is….he grew up on a dark and gloomy planet where the food was scarce….but he doesn't know that I know that fact….so shut up, Serena before you give yourself away!
With that, she quickly got up from the chair, grabbed the tray and headed to the door.
"Um, I'll go finish cleaning up and then we'll order that pizza." she threw over her shoulder as she closed the door.
His brows rise when his eyes travel to her hair which hung loose and flowed down to her ankles. Who would want all that hair? Hair so gold that it shines like the sun. And her eyes, so captivating, so familiar….
"so blue…." he whispers and for a few moments, Safir forgets his troubles.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
When Serena came back to the room, Safir was standing at the window removing the bandage around his head.
"Hey, what are you doing out of bed! You need your rest." she said with her hands on her hips in an authoritive manner which caused him to raise a brow in amusement.
"I feel fine, besides I have to relieve myself."
Serena frowned and looked at him with confusion, "relieve yourself?"
At his nod, her frown deepened. When she grasped what he meant her frown changed into realization and embarrassment as her face turned bright red.
"Oh, you mean the bathroom?…um, it's up the hall and to the left." He thanked her and left the room.
He squinted into the darkness of the bathroom. He had been searching for the light for five minutes now and he was about to yell for help until his hand rubbed against the switch on the wall and the room was flooded with bright florescent light that made him shield his eyes to adjust.
They wandered over the small space in amazement, he had to study the past traditions of earth considering things had changed in the future. He remembered Diamond talking about the restrooms, as they were called; everything was done so primitively that it made his brother laugh.
So this is a bathroom?
He turned the knobs to the sink and pushed the knob on the toilet smiling foolishly. As he watched the blue liquid swirl around the toilet and disappear then refill he let out a small giggle that made Serena stop in the hallway and give the door a curious glance.
When his playing was over he relieved himself and walked out of the bathroom. Before he could re-enter the bedroom he heard a crash and a curse from up the hallway.
"miss?" he called
"Uh, I'm in the kitchen!…." she yelled, "….just walk past the bathroom and follow the hall.
He did what she said. When he reached the end of the hall he could see her fumbling around in the kitchen as she dropped anther pot, which made him cringe at the sound.
She wasn't lying when she said she wasn't much of a cook
She turned and smiled sheepishly at him never seeing the shocked expression on his face. He walked forward and sat down hesitantly while looking over at her. She closed the cabinet and walked over to the phone.
"I'll order the pizza now."
He watched her closely as she talked to the person on the other end of the line, she leaned against the wall and unconsciously played with her hair which he realized was up in two meatballs and no longer hung loose. He narrowed his eyes when she hung up.
"The pizza will be here in fifteen minutes, it's very good. It comes with all these different toppings like cheese, pepperoni, sausage, peppers, pineapple…which I definitely recommend, though people make a face at it, once they try it…."
He raised his brows at her babbling, even if he wanted to he couldn't concentrate on listening to her since something was nagging him in the back of his mind and if he didn't say anything he would be wondering about it all day and night. So he shrugged inwardly and opened his mouth.
"Do you use that contraption to talk to Endymion?"
Serena didn't even stop to think about his question as she looked toward the place behind her shoulder where his nod directed.
"Yea, all the time. I call everyone on it just to….." Serena stopped in mid-sentence and stared a him, "….shit."
He gasped at the colorful word that left her mouth. His eyes widened when she grabbed one of the pans on the stove and stepped away from him.
"Stay back or I'll knock your face in!"
To prove her point she banged the pan on the counter surface, which made him jump back and raise his hands in surrender. He would have laughed if she wasn't threatening his life in such a convincing manner.
"Serenity, calm down. I promise I'm not going to hurt you."
She narrowed her eyes in doubt, but one glance into his deep blue and innocent eyes she knew he was telling the truth. She gave him one last look before she eventually began to relax as she lowered the pan and set it on the counter.
He let out an breath in relief and sat back on the stool. They stood in a deafening silence that made him nervous as his hands unconsciously rubbed at the bandage wrapped around his ribs, which Serena happened to catch. Sighing she walked around the counter to stand at his side.
"Let me take a look at that wound." she said tiredly.
He obediently unbuttoned his shirt and allowed the blonde to remove the bandage and caress the now smooth skin with her soft hands. It took all his strength not to moan at the touch. Serena's eyes wandered over his muscular chest and swallowed, he didn't look this sexy last night, but that was understandable since he was covered in blood.
He was definitely going to be a distraction. She cleared her throat and stepped back.
"Y-you're healed, how is that possible?"
Safir shrugged, "I'm a fast healer."
"Oh, right."
She scratched the back of her head and sat down on the stool next to his. He began to button up his shirt when he realized the shirt wasn't the one he was wearing the night before.
"Serenity, just out of curiosity…. whose shirt am I wearing?"
"It belongs to my father, I had to throw out the one you were wearing and, by the way, it's Serena."
"Won't he mind?" he asked barely listening to her correction.
"Not really, with all the shirts he has, he'll never miss it."
No more questions followed and Serena eyed him before asking her own.
"So, what happened to you?"
He didn't answer right away and Serena was ready to change the subject to something else when he finally turned to her.
"Wiseman…." he replied, "….he plans to kill my brother after he's done getting what he wants."
"And what's that?"
"Power."
"But isn't that what you want?" she asked now confused.
"No, my brother and I want a chance to live a peaceful life here on Earth. Wiseman wants to rule the world."
She snorted in disbelief. "And you expect me to believe this?"
"Why wouldn't you?" his eyes growing serious.
"I don't know, maybe it's the fact that your brother kidnapped me and tried to hypnotize me with a eyeball in his forehead."
Safir blushed in embarrassment, "I know Diamond can be difficult, but it's not his fault."
This statement made her frown and cross her arms over her chest in annoyance. "Then whose fault is it?"
"Wiseman's, but of course he's not the only one to blame either, considering….."
"Considering what?"
"Considering he's working for a higher being."
Serena's brows furrowed in thought.
Before she could ask him any more questions the door bell rang.
*********************************
"Oh crap!"
Serena threw various objects over her shoulder forming another pile of clothes, balled up pieces of paper, pens and books as she searched for the missing notebook. She kicked the bed frame in frustration. There she was last night actually doing her homework for once and now she can't even prove it. Why? Because the notebook in which it's held has magically disappeared. If only Luna was there then she could blame it on her.
"This is why I don't do homework. How can you lose something that doesn't exist?"
She gave the bed frame one last kick and plopped down onto the bed in submission. She was too busy pouting to notice the figure standing in the doorway of her room with a confused frown upon his face.
"Is something wrong, Serenity?"
Serena looks up to meet his gaze. His hair was sticking up in all directions and his clothes were rumpled.
"Did I wake you?" she asks
"No, I've been awake for over an hour. I've never been one to sleep late." he shrugs.
Serena rises from the bed and begins to gather the belongings from the floor where she threw them in a roar of rage before. He continued to observe wordlessly from the doorway and still completely confused.
"Are you going some place?"
"Yea, I'm expected at the Hell people like to call school." she says without looking up from her task. "I was going to leave you a note before I left."
He nodded. "What time are you expected to be there?"
"Eight freaking-clock in the morning, too early if you ask me."
He smiled at her mumbling and glanced at the digital clock on her night stand. His eyes narrowed as 8:05 am glared back at him.
"Serenity, I think that time-telling device on the table is a bit fast."
"No, it's right." she replies absently.
"But aren't you late?"
She shrugs. "It's nothing new, I haven't been on time since elementary, there's no need to start now. I'm working on a record. I must be up to detention 250."
This response caused both eyebrows to rise in puzzlement and in wonder
Detention?
When she managed to gather her things he followed her down the stairs to the front door. Before she closed the door behind her, Serena turned to him.
"Um, if you get hungry or something, there are left-overs in the refrigerator….you know that big white thing in the…"
"I know what a refrigerator is, Serenity." he interrupted
"Well…." she cleared her throat, "you can use the microwave."
At his blank expression Serena sighed.
"You do know how to use a microwave, right?"
"Microwave? Tell me, what is its purpose?" he says with his hand caressing his chin in thought and absolute curiosity that made her groan and roll her eyes in annoyance.
"You know what a refrigerator is, but you've never heard of a microwave. Did you study kitchen ware or did you just skip that chapter?"
He doesn't reply to her remark instead his eyes wander to the floor in offense and humiliation. What did she expect considering he was from the future where these appliances didn't exist anymore and he would expect that the future Neo-queen of Tokyo would understand that instead of staring at him as if he's the one with the third eyeball in his forehead.
Guilt is what she felt. After seeing that sad puppy dog expression she was ready to apologize and ask for his forgiveness. Now she understood how Darien felt when ever she used the same expression when she wanted something.
She sighed, "How about this, on my lunch period I'll sneak over here and bring you something to eat. Until then, there's fruit in the kitchen. If anything happens the number to my school is on the kitchen counter….please tell me you know how to use the telephone."
"Aye, Serenity….that is one thing I do claim to have studied well." he smiles.
She made a turn to leave but stopped once again. "And Safir, it's Serena not Serenity."
He nodded. "Don't worry, everything will be fine."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Safir yawns and looks at the clock on the night stand. It was going on 1:00 pm and he was bored out of his mind. Serena had came home during her lunch like she said but she was only there for a few minutes before she was running out the door again. That was two hours ago and he couldn't take the silence any longer.
He gets up from the chair he was sitting in and heads up the hallway and into the kitchen. He runs his hand along the surface of the counter and sits down on one of the stools with his hands clasping as his thumbs drum one another. His eyes wandered around, the blues taking in everything in sight until they paused at the cabinets.
Out if curiosity Safir began to open every cabinet observing the objects from inside. First, the glasses then the plates and finally the pots and pans. While he reached above the stove to open the two small and last cabinets he rubbed up against the knobs causing one of them to turn.
Safir jumped away from the stove as the clicking sound reached his ears. His eyes widened when the red and orange flames came up from the surface, the smell of gas surrounded him. He leaned over and narrowed his eyes at the small flame.
"Is that…. fire?"
Without thinking, his hand shot out and touched the blaze caused a searing pain to shoot up his hand and arm. He grabbed at the roll of paper towels next to the stove, fumbling at the sheets until one came loose. Wetting the paper towel he placed it to his blistered hand. He was too preoccupied trying to get the pain to stop to notice the paper towels strewn too close to the active stove.
He swings around when a ringing sound reaches his position. The ringing continues three more times before a voice comes from the living room.
"Serenity? Is that you?" he calls
There is no one in sight when he reaches the living room. Only the sound of another voice was present.
"Serena, it's Rei. When you get out of detention call me or come by the temple, there is something that you need to know. Important scouting business if you know what I mean."
Safir stares at the machine sitting on the table.
"What type of contraption is this? I don't recall reading anything about talking machines."
Safir stops and sniffs the air. He couldn't understand why the room smelled like smoke as if something was burning. His eyes widened as he turned toward the kitchen and could see dark clouds of smoke covering the ceiling.
"Oops"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Serena Tsukino, you have a phone call."
Serena lifted her head from the desk to look up at the loud speaker above the teacher's head. Why would she have a phone call at school?…..unless...
Safir!
She leaves the classroom with Ms. Haruna's permission and makes her way to the main office. When she enters the woman at the desk told her to pick up the receiver on the second desk and press the blinking button to begin talking.
"Hello."
"Serenity?" Safir breathed into the phone.
"Safir? Is everything alright?"
"Do you promise not to get upset?"
"What?" she frowns
"Do you promise not to get upset?" he repeats.
"No!"
"I won't tell you if you don't promise me."
Serena sighed loudly, "Do you know how immature you sound right now?"
"Promise me!"
"Fine, I promise I won't get upset."
"Your kitchen is on fire." he chokes out.
"What!"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Serena runs breathlessly into her house. She could barely see through the thick smog of smoke that filled the air. Safir was definitely dead meat!
"Safir!"
"I'm in the kitchen!"
The blonde throws her stuff down on the floor and runs into the blazing kitchen to see the blue-haired man throwing water onto the stove which was covered in flames matching the same fate of the wall behind it. If only he'd realize that the water was making it worse.
"I don't understand why it's not working, they said that water puts out fires!"
Serena runs out of kitchen and returns with an extinguisher.
"You idiot! You need an extinguisher, water only makes it worse."
Serena pulls out the pin, aims and shoots drowning the flames in white foam. When the last light died, she took a look at the blackened walls and floor. She turns to him in rage as her azure eyes turn a stormy cobalt and her hands clench into fists.
"What the hell did you do?"
"It w-was an accident?" he says not too sure as he twists his shirt in anxiety.
"An accident? An accident!?! My parents are going to freak!"
"Wait! I can fix it."
"You better or my foot is going to fix your….whoa!"
Her mouth hung open as the kitchen, once the color of charcoal, was back to the colorful and clean way it was before. "How did…How did you do that?" she whispers
"My brother taught me……I could give the walls a different color if you'd like."
Serena shook her head absently still amazed by the sight that met her eyes. "C-can you do it again?"
"Sure." She ran over to the cabinets and took out a glass, before he could blink she threw it on the floor causing it to shatter into thousands of pieces. He raised both brows.
"Do it again." she says with a look that expected him to know.
He smiles and with a flick of his wrist, the glass was sparkling once more.
"Ooooo, do it again!"
The smile fades when she throws a plate down next.
Right before her eyes the plate was unbroken making her clap her hands and jump up and down in excitement.
He laughed aloud when she went back to searching through the cabinets. "again!"
*crash*
The sound of her laughter.
"Man, you have got to teach me how to do that!"
*******************************************
Shaking. Why was the ground shaking? Was Tokyo having an earthquake? But they've never had one before, so why is it shaking all of a sudden?
"Serenity."
Serena moaned and looked at him groggily before rolling her eyes and closing them to return to the sleep she was being deprived. Safir just shook her harder.
"What!" she yelled sitting up practically annoyed by now.
"Serenity…."
"Is it such a crime to want to sleep every once and awhile? To dream without being woken up before it's finished?…."
"Serenity…" he repeated.
"And stop calling me by that blasted name! My name is Serena…..learn it, live it, love it." she hissed in a low voice.
Safir blinked at her out burst. He was beginning to learn that Serena was grumpy when first woken up and that, he thought, was scary.
"Um…Serena," he said, her name sounding foreign on his lips. "…I do believe that you will be late for Hell if you don't wake up now."
Her brows furrowed in thought as her lips curled in confusion. "Hell?"
"Yes, it was just yesterday that you explained that at 8:00 am you were expected to be at the Hell people like to call school, correct?"
Serena gave him an apologetic glance. She didn't expect for him to take what she said seriously. She thought everyone knew how much school sucked…guess she was wrong.
"It's not actually called Hell, I just don't like school and….." she was interrupted by his chuckling, she could see by his expression that he was teasing her. She answered him with her pillow as she used it to slap him over the head.
"You should've seen your face…it was hilarious!" he said through his laughter.
She stuck her tongue at him and laid back down throwing the covers back over her head. He yanked at them causing the blankets to fall off the bed to the floor. Serena sat up with a huff making her hair fall over her shoulders like a waterfall of sunshine. Safir had to take a deep breath to keep his mind straight, to keep him from wanting to run his fingers through the golden tresses.
"Now what? Can't you see I'm busy!"
"Aren't you forgetting about school, you're going to be late."
All of sudden a smile broke out upon her face. The kind of smile that expressed alternative purposes, the kind of smile that made him eye her suspiciously. Without warning she jumped out of the bed and ran down the stairs to the kitchen with him on her heels.
"Here" she said handing him the telephone. He took it and frowned.
"What will I do with this?"
"Call my school and tell them that I won't be in because….." he tongue coming out the corner of her mouth as she thought up a reason. "…because I'm sick…No! tell them I have the flu."
"Well, why can't you do it.?"
"Because I've done it before and it didn't work." This response causing his brows to rise in question.
"But you're not even ill."
"So!….Lie, damn it! It's not like you've never done it before."
"But I haven't" Serena paused, a look of disbelief on her face.
"You….have never lied?"
"I never had to…….. considering Diamond did all the talking."
"Well it's a good time as any to learn and today is that day….now dial." she growled
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Serena sighed and leaned into the cushions of the couch. With remote in hand she turned the channel of the television. She watches Safir's eyes light up with interest as the Blockbuster commercial came on showing the hamster and the rabbit talking. She frowned when he started to follow the hamster's movements as it shook its butt in the screen with Safir's head rolling around and around.
Serena rolled her eyes. She couldn't take this anymore, he could be such a dork sometimes, though he's extremely good looking, he could still be a dork. She definitely needed to get out of the house. She heaved another sigh before turning off the television.
He questions her with a look.
"I'm bored, let's do something."
"Like what?"
"Eat, breathe through my mouth…I don't care just as long as it's not in this house."
"Ok," he shrugs. Serena jumps off the couch with new found energy and grabs his hand.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Safir could only stare in wonder as Serena dragged him down the street pointing out all the teenage hangouts and favorite stores that she shopped in. When she comes to one particular store she stopped and turned to him.
"Ever had ice cream?"
"No."
"Well today is your lucky day!" she says before pulling him through the doors .
When they made their exit Safir had a simple cone of vanilla ice cream, with all the different colors and Serena's constant babbling about which ones tasted better, he just chose the one that stuck out the most….the white one. It reminded him of his brother's hair.
For his first try Serena thought he chose well as she ordered herself a tripled layered cone of three different flavors, flavors he didn't care to know.
He watched amazed as Serena consumed it quickly, the only evidence was the sticky substance left on her fingers which she easily licked away with several swipes of her tongue. It was then she noticed Safir's staring.
"Aren't you going to eat that?"
Safir took a glance at the melting cone in his hand. He hesitantly pulled it to his lips then moved it back licking away the remains that stuck to his mouth. His eyes lit up and the blonde could only blink before his cone was gone.
"Wow, can I have some more?" She giggled at his excitement.
"So I guess you liked it."
He nodded and smiled, "Can I?"
"Um, maybe later. Besides, there are other things that you still need to try." with that said Serena grabbed his hand and guided him in the direction of the Crown Arcade.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Hey Drew!"
Andrew stood behind the counter wiping it down with a cloth. He wore an apron and his dirty blonde hair was messy as usual. He smiled as she walked up to the counter to meet him.
He gave her a confused look. "Why aren't you in school like the rest of the sixteen year olds?"
"So I decided to take a personal day…sue me." she shrugged.
Andrew smirked deciding not to pry any further and turned to the guy standing next to Serena. The guy, he recognized from Saturday night, was looking at him curiously. Andrew stuck out his hand.
"Hey man, I'm Andrew."
Safir grasped it hard causing Andrew to wince in return.
"Safir." he said.
Andrew frowned. "Safir? That's a weird name." he said aloud. Serena could feel the heat rise in the blue-haired man next to her.
"It is a family name!" he snapped. Before anymore words could be exchanged between the two men Serena stepped between them.
"Drew! We're hungry."
His eyes softened when he looked at the teen. "The usual?" he asked.
At her nod he gave Safir one more hard look and headed to the back to get their orders. Serena pulled Safir into an empty booth where they sat in silence until Serena couldn't take it anymore.
"That was so rude." He looked at her incredulously.
"He insulted me!" he hissed shaking his head causing his blue locks to move and reveal the insignia on his head. Serena's hand shot out and replaced his hair never seeing the glazed expression on his face.
"You need to be careful, Safir. No one knows who you are but they will if you keep blowing up at everyone who speaks their opinion around you." she says her eyes wandering around the room.
"But it is a royal name!" he continued
"Who cares! My hair is royalty but people think it's weird. there are some things you need to just laugh at instead of taking it seriously or you'll never understand us."
He blinked and sighed. Through their silence he noticed the arcade was nearly empty save for a few college students sitting in the next booth drinking their mugs of coffee.
"Do your friends come in here also? Is that why you are nervous?" Serena nodded.
"If they see your mark it won't be good."
"So the message that was left yesterday was from one of them, correct?"
Serena nodded again and smiled when Andrew brought their food over to them. When he left Serena turned back to Safir and could see the questions in his eyes. He wanted to ask her more, but Serena decided that the arcade wasn't the best place to answer them so she changed the subject.
"Ok, this is a cheese burger, fries and soda………now dig in."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
After their meal, which Safir completely assaulted once he tasted it, they headed away from the arcade to the park. It was going on four o'clock and the arcade would be full, which was why she made such a hasty retreat.
They found a spot in the shade and sat down in the grass. Safir inhaled and closed his eyes. Serena smiled and did the same.
"Beautiful." he says gaining a giggle from Serena.
"You act as if you've never seen nature before."
"I haven't." Serena stopped laughing and stared at him surprised.
"Are you serious? How is that?"
"Well, Nemesis is a dark planet with no life and nature did not exist. Diamond and I were born there so I guess we were lucky." he said raising his eyes to the blue sky.
"Why is that?"
"Because we didn't know what beauty was. How can you miss something that you have never known?"
Serena looked out toward the lake with guilt heavy on her conscience. It was her future self, after all, who banished his people to that horrible planet. A tear fell down her cheek. But the queen didn't know that the planet was so dark….or did she?
I'm so sorry, Safir
He gave her a questioning glance. "Why do you cry?"
"It is my fault that you had to experience that."
"No, it was an ignorant queen, not you…..you're different." he said wiping away the stray tear with the swipe of his hand which now rested underneath her chin.
He leaned in and kissed her cheek. Serena's eyes widened, still teary eyed she gasps.
"W-what was that for?"
"To show my gratitude to you."
Her brows furrowed. "Gratitude for what?"
"For showing this to me…" he gestured with his hand. "…..For letting me know what beauty is."
*********************************
"Now lets see…"
Serena leaned over and put her palms on her knees. Her eyes scanned the shelf searching for the movie in which she came to rent. Once again she had conned Safir into calling her school and announcing her absence for the second time and she was enjoying the freedom she possessed at that particular moment. Their day had pretty much been boring consisting of soap operas and talk shows on sibling rivalry, but after seeing the Blockbuster commercial the twentieth time she had to get another source of entertainment. And she had the perfect movie in mind….if only she could find it.
"What movie are you looking for?"
Serena put her hand underneath her chin in thought. She answered without looking at Safir.
"A movie that you would definitely love."
"Tell me about it." he said with a curious spark in his deep blue eyes.
"Um, it's based off this book series, which I didn't read, but it is my favorite!"
"Why didn't you read it?" he asked his eyes now scanning the shelves to look for the movie.
She blanched and made a disgusted face. "Me! Read?! Very funny. I'm allergic to anything book-related."
He smiled and continued to follow her down the aisle. He had never heard of video stores and it fascinated him that people could go to one place to get any movie that they desired. He wondered what else he could find.
He walked to the back of the store where it seemed to be deserted. It was a small cubby space where the lights seemed dimmer and her wondered of the movies kept in the small area. He continued his advance, but he was not expecting to meet the sight that he came to see.
There were naked girls on each cover, some in very awkward positions and some doing things that made his eyes expand and his mouth drop in surprise. How on Earth could someone make such a movie? It seemed to Safir that these women didn't have respect for themselves and this should disgust him……so why couldn't he take his eyes from them and why was he reaching for one of the cases?
"Safir, where are you?"
Serena walked to the back of the store trying to locate the blue-haired man who had wandered off earlier. She didn't think he would be in this part of the store since everyone knew what movies were kept there, but she looked everywhere else and this was her only option left.
"Safir! Stop!" she hissed when she saw him pick up one of the cases with the nude form on the cover. She ran over to him and snatched the box out of his hand with him reaching to try and take it back.
"Wait, I want to see!"
"No! this isn't appropriate for alien eyes." she said setting the case back on the shelf and shoving him back up the aisle.
"But…but, it was so-so….. interesting…"
"No, it was disgusting! Now wipe your mouth, pervert, you're drooling." she growled looking up at him with her eyes narrowed.
"Serena?"
Serena turned and met Melvin's enlarged eyes through his thick glasses. His brow was raised as he looked from them to the back of the store then back to them. Serena could only blush as she already knew what he was accusing her with his eyes.
"Hi, Melvin." she said forcing a smile. Safir just stared blankly at the smaller boy.
"Renting or returning?" he asked. Serena frowned and looked down to her hand where she held the video, she had forgotten about it, after all, that was the reason for her search for the pervert who must not be named.
"Oh, renting…..The Lord of the Rings."
"Yea, great movie!.." he said excitingly suddenly stopping to give Serena a closer look. "Say, aren't you supposed to be sick?"
"Um, yea."
*cough* *cough*
"See."
Melvin scrunched up his nose and covered his face with his hand. "How about I see you later….hope you feel better."
Then he was gone.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"You shall not pass!"
"Things that were, things that are and some things….that have not yet come to pass."
"My precious."
This was what the evening was filled with. A couple of hobbits, a dwarf, a future king and an elf who never ran out of arrows. Every scene had Safir on the edge of his seat, he really was enjoying the movie. Save for Serena's constant outbursts of dialogue as she imitated each scene the movie was really entertaining. They were laying on their stomachs on the floor with two bags of popcorn and a two liter bottle of soda.
"Just how many times have you seen this movie?"
"Not a lot….like about fifty." she answered nonchalantly.
"Fifty?" he said both brows raised.
"Yep, like I said….not a lot."
***************************
When Serena awoke the television had a blue screen, the lights were off and a patch of sunlight was peaking through the windows to land a couple of feet away from her. She narrowed her eyes when she felt something heavy around her waist. As Safir's hand came into view her eyes widened in anxiety. She could feel his chest against her back and his breathing on her neck.
When Serena woke up last Saturday, she wasn't expecting to trip over Safir's unconscious form, take him home and nurse him back to health.
And when Serena woke up this Thursday morning, she wasn't expecting to be in this position. She wasn't expecting to be snuggling close with his hand around her waist his thumb lightly caressing the exposed skin of her flat stomach.
But Serena definitely wasn't expecting to have butterflies in her stomach when he walked into a room. However, she was expecting to wake up and find that everything that happened was a dream and it was still Saturday. And she was glad that it wasn't.
Serena smiled and relaxed into his embrace wrapping her hand around his still clinging to her waist…… but she didn't attempt to move it.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
All she heard was constant banging and as she continued to ignore it the banging only got louder.
Serena dragged herself from the floor and to the front door. When she opened it and saw who it was standing on her doorstep the little sleep left in her eyes had completely dissipated.
"Uh, Mina! What do I owe the honor of such an early visit?" she said yawning.
Mina lifted a brow. "Early? It's nearly one…….."
Serena frowned and turned to look over her shoulder to see the clock on the mantel and it did indeed prove Mina's announcement. Now she understood Mina's expression, she never did sleep this long before……
Wait! Why wasn't Mina in school?
Movement on the floor caught Serena's attention. When her gaze met that of Safir's she nearly had a heart attack. Mina continued to babble never noticing Serena's sharp intake in breath.
Oh shit
With a small gesture Serena told Safir to stay down and out of sight.
"……..besides Raye is pissed because you completely ignored her phone call since you didn't call back and now she's all grumpy toward everyone and she wants you at the meeting tonight, no excuses….um, Serena?"
Serena was still facing the living room and if Mina didn't know any better she could have sworn there was someone else in the house with her.
"Serena? Hello!" Serena's head snapped around to face the blonde with the red bow.
"Huh? Oh sorry Mina….you know me always spacing out." Mina gave her a dubious look , but et the thought go.
"Um, Mina, why aren't you in school?"
"Oh, we got out early. Somebody opened a stink bomb in lab today so they have to fumigate the whole building."
Serena nodded not really caring but trying to at least look like she did. Mina licked her lips and looked around.
"So, can I come in or are you going to have me standing here all day?" Mina started to push through the door.
Serena panicked and pushed her back by closing the door leaving nothing but a small crack to peak through.
"Not a good idea with me having the Flu….you could get sick too."
Mina shrugged and waved it off. "No problem, I helped you the last time you were sick, remember?"
Serena frowned. Yes, she remembered all to clearly and she would jump off the Tokyo tower before she admit Ms catastrophic Mina into her house.
"Sorry. I really don't feel like Nurse Mina today, but tell Raye that I'll be at the meeting." without letting Mina respond, she closed the door. Serena turned to Safir who was still laying on the floor staring at her as she leaned against the doors surface.
"Venus, I presume?" he asks
Serena frowns, "How did….?"
"She looks like her. Besides, I think the moment I found out who you were, the magic that conceals your identities disintegrated."
Serena nodded and sighed. The meeting would be after school as usual so she had time. "You hungry?"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
They sat on cushions on the floor. Raye was the only one in the room standing as she paced the room running her mouth as usual.
Every now and then Serena would make a throaty cough convincing them that she was indeed sick. Of course, she really wasn't but who cares! This gave her an excuse to miss all the scout meetings, which she did.
Serena looked across the room and stared at her former boyfriend. He was sitting on the other side of the room with a textbook on his lap. He seemed to be engrossed in what Raye was saying until her felt Serena's obvious staring and turned to meet her eyes. His eyes narrowed in thought as if he was contemplating whether he should acknowledge her today, but it soon disappeared as he turned back to the fiery scout.
I hate him
She sighed irritably and stared out of the window, making it known that she could have cared less for what came out of Raye's mouth.
"Serena, are you listening?" Raye snapped
"No." she responded nonchalantly.
The scouts raised their brows. Raye's face went beet red with anger. She was going to blow in… three….two….one…
"What! You don't show up for three days and you have the audacity to come here and be lazy!"
"Why should I come to hear the same thing all the time? Oh, the nega moon is gaining power, Diamond will not rest, Rini is still missing….blah blah blah! Tell me something I don't know!"
Raye's nostrils flared. "Fine!.." she sat down on her cushion and crossed her arms over her chest. "…I found something out Monday morning. You would know what I mean if you had called me back!."
Serena rolled her eyes as Raye continued. "The fire told me that the enemy walks among us. Since looks can be deceiving we have to be careful with who we talk to in school and on the street."
Serena's heart raced. The fire, she knew, was talking about Safir. She was harboring the enemy in her house, feeding him, laughing with him…sleeping beside him.
But he's not evil….he just can't be!
Serena looked up and caught Darien staring at her with curiosity. Serena couldn't act natural if she was paid with food. Damn, she thought. She needed to get out of there.
"Guys, I'm feeling a little nauseous. I'll see you later." Standing she put her hand to her stomach and walked to the door, but this time she wasn't faking.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Serena sat in the living room quietly. The television was on, but she paid no mind to it. Just stared out into space with a blank expression on her face. Safir stood in the doorway of the kitchen watching her. He knew something was wrong when she got home, she barely spoke a word to him instead going straight into the living room.
She sighed and blinked when a mug of hot steamy cocoa came into view. She took it and smiled.
"Thanks." Safir nodded and sat on the sofa next to her.
"Is something bothering you, Serena? You're the color of my hair."
Serena snorted and looked over at him. Safir always had this way of making her feel better even if he didn't realize it. The things he said were corny, but they could be cute and sincere.
"I was just thinking about some stuff is all." she said putting the mug on the table. He nodded and sat back into the cushions.
"The meeting was stressful, eh?"
"W-why do you say that?"
"Because you've been fooling around with your transformation broach for over an hour." he said gesturing to the trinket with a nod of his head.
Serena blushed and placed the broach back in her pocket. Safir knew all along that her broach held the crystal, so why didn't he make a move to steal it? It made her wonder, she knew he was a good person, but there was that doubt in the back of her mind, and then there was Raye's prediction.
Serena looked up into his blue eyes. Maybe she was in over her head.
He must of read the accusation in her eyes because her raised a hand to her cheek and stroked it with his fingers. Her eyes widened at the touch and her breathing hitched as she tried to swallow, her throat dry. He smiled at her and without realizing he leaned in and placed his lips upon hers.
Serena sat still her hands clutching the cushions of the couch. His lips moved over hers slowly barely touching them, but still sent chills up her spine. He pulled back when she didn't respond.
"Serena, do you trust me?"
She was surprised by this question. She had never asked herself because she didn't want to know her own answer, that is, if she even had one. There were so many voices in her head and they all told her the same thing. Safir was the enemy, a wolf in sheep's clothing…….the enemy walking among us. But why did her heart say different?
"Yes."
He smiled and leaned toward her again.
Serena loved Darien, but she wasn't going to wait around for him forever. Safir, on the other hand, might have been working with his brother, but he was nothing like Diamond and she would do all that she could to keep it that way, to keep him.
So, when his hands touched her waist, hers unclenched. When his eyes closed, hers cried tears. And when his lips moved across hers, hers moved too.
**************************************
What was he going to do?
Safir sat in the chair in the guestroom looking out of the window. His expression was serious as he sat there rocking back and forth, his eyes turning an icy blue as his thoughts continued.
Here he was sitting in the house of the future neo-queen of Tokyo. Just a girl now, Serenity certainly has changed his mind about her true intentions for the future that will eventually come. He always thought that the queen was cold and heartless only caring about what she wanted. After all, this was the same queen who sent his people to a dark and gloomy planet devoid of life because they didn't agree with the change in government from a democracy to a monarchy.
His people believed that Serenity was too powerful. No one should be allowed that much of an authority. It makes it easy to abuse. He remembered growing up and hearing stories about the Earth queen, the woman who never aged, the woman who was so very well protected by her guardians and even more by her lover.
He remembered well.
Safir smiled when he recalled playing with Diamond when they were children. Diamond was filled with so much life back then with his white hair bobbing up and down as he ran through the dead grass of their home. His brother was so different then, before Wiseman came along and poisoned the people's minds with his promises.
Wiseman convinced Diamond to go down and demand their return to earth. He convinced Diamond to attack if he was denied and he convinced him to travel back through time to take control of earth while it was defenseless.
It was all Wiseman's fault!
Safir knew that Wiseman was probably lying to Diamond about his sudden disappearance.
"He's a traitor…..He must not be trusted, your highness……do not let his family status blind you"
Safir could hear the scratchy voice of the cloaked figure with his crystal ball. If anyone was the traitor, it was Wiseman. But as hard as it was to say he knew that his brother was gullible. Promise him the world and he will sign the contract without reading the small print.
It was up to Safir to save him.
With a sigh he got up and walked up the hall to the kitchen. He stopped at the doorway to pear out toward the kitchen table where Serena was trying so hard to do all the work she had missed from school. There were papers and books all over the table, she had a pencil behind her ear and a pencil between her teeth as she stared in horror at the work in front of her.
He practically made her do it, she refused at first but he managed to get her to comply in the end.
He continued to stare at her. Her hair wasn't in its usual style instead hanging loose spilling over her shoulders and to the floor. Her sapphire eyes were strained as they scanned the notes over and over again. It amazed him that she could wear a t-shirt and shorts and still look beautiful and sexy as hell. God
He was falling and he was falling hard. He fell for the same woman that his brother was obsessed with, how was that possible? Well, the only difference was that he loved Serena not Serenity. But now that he admitted that fact, how was he going to tell her? Why ruin six perfect days together?
Because I have to help my brother
Serena turned to him with a questioning gaze. "What?"
He shook his head and shrugged. "Nothing. Are you hungry?"
"Not right now, maybe later." At his surprised expression she rolled her eyes.
"What! I can not be hungry if I want to be." she said sticking out her tongue making her look even more adorable if that was even possible.
When she went back to her studies his smile vanished as sadness swept over his features.
How was he going to tell her that he planned to leave tomorrow?
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Serena woke up with a start. Her breathing was fast and her heart raced.
That dream, she thought, it was so…so confusing but somehow she read between the lines and figured out the meaning. Safir was planning on leaving.
This was a good thing, right? Of course it was. She wouldn't have to lie anymore, she could go back to school even though she hated it with a passion that no human being could understand and she wouldn't feel like she was betraying her friends by having feelings for the enemy. So why the hell wasn't any of these reasons having an influence on her?
Serena laid back down and stared up at the ceiling. She eventually forced herself to turn on her side and close her eyes and it began to work until his blue specks popped into her head. After that she couldn't take it anymore and stomped out of the room and down the stairs to stand at his door.
Letting out a deep breath she knocked.
"Come in." he said.
And with that she turned the knob and entered.
***********************************
He was falling. She could hear him almost whisper her name.
Their eyes connected at that moment. She realized that that was what he wanted. On impact he staggered around until he was facing her, looking her right in the eyes. His were so sad like he had expected it to happen. But he promised her! Or were they just words that would ease her mind?
There was so much blood. It leaked down his shirt, the one she gave him. It leaked down to his shoes staining his pants along the way. He put a shaky hand to the wound and breathed once more before falling to the ground. His chest rose one more time then went completely still.
Serena heard nothing but screams. They were loud and pierced her ears. Screams filled with profanity as Diamond picked up the dead body of his brother. They cursed him for being so blind and heartless and a traitor to his family, to Safir. The screams were promises of destruction to the one in the cloak with his crystal ball. They were screams of agony and pain.
Screaming. More screaming.
It was then, when two hands clasped her shoulders, Serena realized that the screams were coming from her own mouth.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Serena sat on the sofa hugging herself as she stared at the wall. She had ignored the phone calls from her friends and the ringing of the doorbell. It happened three hours again and she just wanted to be alone away from the reassurances of the scouts….
"It's okay Serena, we couldn't save him…"
"Don't worry, Diamond will pay…"
"Even though Safir was the enemy, he didn't deserve to die by the hands of his brother…."
They didn't understand, they didn't know.
Serena's gaze followed down to the floor where the case to The Lord of the Rings laid untouched since Wednesday and it was past its due date, but she didn't care. She could see him sprawled on his stomach watching the movie with his mouth hanging open in awe. She could see the goofy smile on his face when Legolas shot his arrows never having to reload his pack. And she could feel the weight of his hand on her waist as they fell asleep on the floor together.
When the tears finally came her body was wracked with sobs as she stumbled into the kitchen to grab a couple of paper towels to dry her face. She reached up into the cabinet to grab a glass for her parched throat. She stood unmoving in the middle of the floor still clenching the empty glass and her anger was rising fast. Instead of getting the water like she intended she threw the glass on the floor.
Her breathing was fast as she sat down on one of the stools with her head in her hands. She couldn't take it anymore, she wasn't going to be able to keep this in any longer and she decided she wasn't going to. Wiping the tears away from her face, she took a deep breath and look down at the broken glass on the floor.
With the flick of her wrist the broken pieces fused into one and became a sparkling glass once again.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
During the walk to the arcade Serena thought about everything. She thought about the scouts, Darien, but most of all she thought about herself and her life so far.
Serena once believed in destiny and that everyone had their own path that was already laid out for them to take. Darien was her destiny. She was supposed to marry him and have his child and become queen of Crystal Tokyo, that was her destiny so carefully prepared. She was so naïve then.
Then Darien breaks up with her and all her dreams come crashing down right before her eyes. That was when she realized her destiny was flawed. Pluto spoke of all the things that were to come in her life but her information had a lot of loop holes, gray areas that she didn't share with Serena. And that is what Serena found so misleading….so fucked up
When Safir came into the picture, she thought that, for once, she would decide her own path. She was ready to give up everything for him, so close. But it was obvious Destiny had something else in mind for her and Safir became no more. It seemed she would become the cold, heartless queen after all.
As Serena stood outside the arcade doors she could see Darien sitting at his regular booth with a book in his hands sipping the bitter black coffee. He must have sensed her because he raised his eyes and stared at her through the glass doors. He didn't look away, surprising Serena, instead he smiled. The kind of smile that she hadn't seen in months; the smile he used to give to her.
It figured that once she gets over him, he gains back interest in her. Serena could only shake her head. She couldn't refuse him, she knew that much. Her life was like a pretzel. No matter how many twists and turns she makes, she always ends up at the same beginning, marked with a red "x" which pointed in the same direction.
She tried something different and yet she still ended up on that same red "x." What could she do but submit.
When she looked through the glass again, he was still smiling at her. She still loved Darien, of course, and staring at him made her forget about Safir then, as insincere as the knowledge was, Safir was almost lost now as she stood on the sidewalk.
That was life, right? You walk through life with memories both bitter and sweet. They say that it is those memories that make you who you are. So why was the opposite happening to Serena. When Safir died, so did the innocent, lively teen in which he fell in love with. She couldn't run anymore.
So when she finally entered the arcade her eyes became cold…………the Neo-Queen had been born.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Why do you tremble so?"
"I don't know…..I have a bad feeling." she said softly.
He kissed her bare shoulder and then the back of her hand.
"Don't be, nothing will happen."
The two looked into each other's eyes. Serena was stretched out on her back as Safir leaned over her running his hands through her long silky tresses that covered both their naked forms. Serena turned onto her side, her head resting on her hand as she met his eye level.
"What if you don't come back?" she said running a finger down his chest.
"I will. I promise I will return to you."
Serena could see the hesitation in his eyes. She knew he was only saying this to make her feel better, but even though she knew that the chance of him returning was slim, she appreciated his effort.
Serena leaned into his embrace ignoring the bad feeling stabbing at the back of her brain.
When the sun rose he would walk out of her life possibly forever leaving her with memories close kept.
~fin~