"When Dawn Comes"
By Kimra
Part XII
Serena continued to run. She had been doing a lot of that lately, and she knew it. It was strange how Darien could instil in her a sense of fear she had never felt before. It wasn't a fear for physical danger, something in him, despite everything radiated security. She hated him for that, for the fact that she was weak around him. And it was the weakness she was afraid off.
You'd think a champion of justice could hold her own against the jerk. Was the last thought she had before she felt warm fingers twine into the hair at the base of her neck. She jumped and spun staring behind her and knew she was alone. This is insane, totally completely insane. She just knew her mind was leaving her, but it hadn't told her where it was going and she was afraid to ask. Get over it Serena. She chided herself, but the images, vague as they where would not leave her alone.
It where those images, memories she guessed, that made her more afraid of him then anything else. It was strange to remember aspects of a night that was otherwise completely forgotten. And the feelings she got when those memories took hold of her were nothing like control. She could feel the frenzied emotions that had controlled and dominated her state of mind. The emotions also lingered, even the brief flickers left her on edge and susceptible.
Her communicator beeped breaking her from her thoughts. She was beginning to despise the sound.
Opening the lid she found Luna's button blinking back at her and stifled a groan. It took a moment to get control of her expression before she pressed the button and Luna's resigned face flickered onto the screen.
"Serena." A sigh of long suffering filtered from the cats mouth her red eyes dark. "Your late for the scout meeting at Raye's temple." A twitch at Luna's eye suggested she wanted to say something more or perhaps shout something. Serena repressed her own sigh, wishing the cat hadn't reminded her, she could have spent the weekend blissfully locked in her room and ignoring responsibility's.
"I know Luna." She managed calmly. Luna's expression calmed but her eyes hardened just a little.
"Serena, your beginning to worry me. And if your not here soon I'll have to tell them, because it is effecting your efforts as a scout. Even you aren't usually this late." Luna's expression was earnest and Serena nodded her head in response.
"I'll be there soon." She shut the watch her expression grim. She wished fiercely that she hadn't chosen Luna's shoulder to cry on, but then she couldn't think of any other shoulder that would have been any better. Besides Luna was loyal to her secret, except when involving the scouts. The only good thing about the threat was that Luna hadn't cracked yet. Serena was sure the scouts had been pestering her guardian mercilessly for information and clues but they obviously hadn't gotten anywhere.
Pushing thoughts aside Serena forced her body into a fast run, heading in a beeline for Raye's temple.
"The problem isn't that we lost the crystal, it's that Zoisite has it." Raye's voice thundered across the courtyard bringing Serena to a halt. She glanced around to see if anyone was there before continuing cautiously. She had never realised how loud there conversations could get. It was honestly surprising that no one had inadvertently overheard them over the last few months.
"I agree. We no longer have any control over the situation." Amy sounded slightly peeved, though she hid it well under a bland tone.
"Then we have to take control." Lita snapped sharply. Serena heard the distinct sound of something breaking and would have smiled if she hadn't been concerned by where the conversation was heading.
"Lita!" Raye's indignant voice shattered the tranquillity of the temple grounds again. Serena bit into the bottom of her lip as she turned the corner to face her three friends and guardian cat. Only the cats red eyes registered her presence.
Raye was scolding Lita was such ferocity that it would have been impossible for her to see anything else. Lita looked completely unaffected under the full weight of Raye's wrath and Amy was attempting desperately to calm the priestess. There was a broken… something… Serena couldn't exactly tell what it had been, but it had been wooden before Lita had obviously vented her frustrations on it.
A small pang of guilt shifted through Serena at the sight of Raye but she pushed it away, Luna would not accept even the slightest absent minded behaviour during the meeting, she knew.
"How do we take control?" Serena asked in a surprisingly weak voice. It took a few minutes for all three of her friends to turn and look at her, blinking in surprise. Obviously they hadn't been expecting her.
"Sorry?" Raye stared at her obviously having missed Serena's question.
"I said: How do we take control?" Serena's voice did not gain any strength the second time but she did feel more secure. There was a foreboding feeling settling into her body as she asked the question. She knew the situation as well as they did, that she hadn't spared a thought for it in the last week or so didn't mean she wasn't aware of it. Serena couldn't bring herself to stare Raye down at that moment, so instead she fixed her eyes on Amy, making the blue haired genius shift a little uncomfortably.
"Since…" Amy shifted again and looked around for help from the other two, they both seemed willing to let Amy explain. "Since all the crystals have been found and extracted from their carriers our priority is to obtain them. Right now we have no control over the fate of the Princess' Crystal."
"And we need that control!" Lita growled striking her left hand with her balled fist to emphasise the point.
"If the enemy were to obtain the Silver Imperium Crystal they would have the power to destroy a planet, maybe worse." Amy continued giving Lita a glare that suggested although she had not wanted to be the one explaining this she still didn't appreciate the interruption.
"So we need to get the Rainbow Crystals back?" Serena prompted her stomach twisting with feelings of nausea, she didn't think she was going to like where ever this meeting was going.
"Since the loss of our own crystal the enemy's only attacked once that we know of." Amy paused with a little frown and Serena was ready to defend her actions on the day she surrendered the crystal to Zoisite but Amy continued. "Though central registered a few power spikes the other night. That concerns me."
"What night?" Serena settled back against the temples elevated floor watching her friends sombrely.
"It wasn't any of us." Amy replied distantly, her eyes a little unfocused as she stared past Serena. "We think it might have been Tuxedo Mask, or an attack on him."
"Why would the Negeverse attack Tuxedo Mask." Serena demanded hotly, shifting her weight with discomfort.
"Because his the only person with something they want Meatball Head!" Raye shouted in frustrated disappointment. Serena froze at the name used against her, her nerves trembling, she almost felt the need to jump at Raye and hit her for reminding her of him. Instead she clenched her hands behind her back, squeezing her tension out by crushing one hand with the other.
"And his not equipped to protect the crystals from Zoisite." Amy continued her eyes focusing once more on Serena.
"His not about to ask for help." Serena snapped that sense of foreboding not leaving.
"Nor is he going to give up the crystals without a fight." Lita mumbled but Serena heard the words perfectly.
"Without a fight?" Serena demanded hotly realising exactly where the sense of foreboding had been leading her. "Your not suggesting we steal the crystals of Tuxedo Mask!" She felt indignant on his behalf, but more indignant that they had formed a plan like this without consulting her. Because from the looks of the three girls and cat, the idea was settled amongst them.
"Of our two opponents he is the weakest." Luna interjected, her voice rational where Amy's had wavered.
"But Zoisite has crystals too and… and we know his the enemy." Serena pleaded.
"But his also the strongest of the two, and right now his not paying attention to us. To get his attention would be foolish when we can focus all our energies on getting Tuxedo Mask's crystals." Raye flicked her hair behind her shoulder almost a sign of disapproval for Serena in its own way. It hurt so much more then usual, and Serena understood why though she ignored the guilt, Luna was still watching her intently.
"But…" She faltered uncertain trying to form the words that where failing her. "But Zoisite attacked us the other night!" Serena snapped when she could get her mind around the words.
"No. Lita stumbled across the Youma by accident. It wasn't a focused attack. More like the beginning when the Youma's where just there to steal energy." Raye continued, she was the best equipped to argue Serena down and they all seemed to understand it.
"So there stealing energy?" Serena demanded, willing to take the conversation away from her rescuer. She owed him that much, after all the betrayal she had already been a part of.
"It's possible there gathering energy for when they attack Tuxedo Mask and attempt to steal his crystals." Amy admitted over the raised voices of Serena and Raye. Serena couldn't even remember beginning to shout, but it had obviously happened.
"Which is why we have to get them." Raye proclaimed as if it settled everything.
"But he protects us! He protects me! Why do you all want to attack him suddenly?" Serena's hands clenched and unclenched against each other trying to read her friends eyes. Raye looked determined, Amy studious, Lita looked almost apologetic but Luna's disappointed expression hurt the most.
"He never said he wasn't our enemy Serena." Luna whispered, proving her eyes didn't show half the emotions she was feeling because her voice was also apologetic. "And in the case of the Rainbow Crystals we must accept that there, at least, we are enemy's. As the guardians of the Princess we are more capable of protecting the crystals then he is. And it is our duty, where we still have no idea why he has any interest in them." Luna sighed and looked at the four scouts. "We must get the crystals from him, no matter what your personal feelings are." Luna nodded her head, enforcing the decision on herself and the others.
"Fine!" Serena shouted, unable to control the anger. Nothing had been going right since she had given the crystal over to Zoisite two weeks before. The scouts had lost trust in her, then Molly had, had her birthday party, Tuxedo Mask had been acting strangely around her after that one battle, avoiding Darien was become a harder task then fighting Youma, her hounding friends had given her no peace when near her and Luna was obviously slowly regretting her promise of secrecy. And now? Now they wanted to attack her protector for a couple of crystals that belonged to some moon Princess who was obviously never going to show up. "And how do you plan on finding him?" She demanded staring at them through slitted eyes.
"That's easy, he always shows up when your in danger." Raye muttered. Serena suddenly became very worried about her friends sanity and went to back away from them. "So the next time there's an attack we'll just jump him." Raye continued oblivious to Serena's wide eyes.
"Your going to use the fact that he saves my life against him?" Serena demanded incredulously her back was straight with indignation. She was slowly forming her own plan of simply not showing up to the next battle when she found Luna's eyes locked on her.
"As the leader of the Scouts I expect you to understand the necessity of recovering the Rainbow Crystals. Your duties before all else Serena." Luna's eyes bored into her, there was no hiding meaning there was a demand that she pay attention for the first time in her life to the true demands begin a scout placed on you. Serena tried to break eye contact so she didn't have to surrender but her head wouldn't move until she lowered it in submission. It was her duty, and despite her emotions, she would do as she had to. She would prove why she was the leader, but she would be damned if she did it there way.