by TerraLuna
Any questions, email me! My address is ravenwing@antisocial.com . Have fun!
Chapter Three "Bunny?" Rini stood behind Bunny's locked door and knocked cautiously. "What's wrong?"
Rini expected a scream, maybe something like "Go away", but instead the resident said, "Rini? That you?"
"Yeah," the pink haired one responded, relieved. "Can I please come in?"
"Um..." responded the voice from inside, "I don't know. I guess so. You're old enough to understand it now, I guess."
Rini was a little taken aback. She instantly assumed it was about guys or sex, but now that Bunny was destined for the man she loved, she no longer had any problems. What could possibly be wrong?
Rini was let in by a teary-eyed Bunny, who then collapsed back on the bed in a huff. Rini took her mother's hand and whispered to her.
"Bunny. What happened?" The blonde girl slowly raised her head to look dejectedly at the product of her and Darien's supposed love.It had never occured to her that things might change and not end up the way they were supposed to be.
"Um, Mina just called," responded Bunny in a croaky voice. "She said that she saw Darien." She was speaking so slowly that Rini never knew when she was finished talking because she kept pausing to sniff sorrowfully.
"Well, okay, that's good, isn't it?" Rini said hopefully, not grasping what the problem was. Bunny shook her head angrily.
"No. No! That's not it. Just listen." Bunny cried, still speaking haltingly. "She saw him at a restaurant." Here she paused for so long that Rini had to wonder if this was the problem, or if there was even a problem at all. But then her mother continued.
"She saw him at a restaurant. With... with..." Rini held her breath, not daring to believe what she thought Bunny was about to say. Darien was with someone at a restaurant that she would be upset about? Who?
"With... Tara." Bunny finished finally. Rini couldn't stop the relieved laugh frm bursting forth. Bunny glared at her hatefully.
"Come on, Bunny!" wheezed Rini, chuckling. "Why are you getting so worked up about this?"
"Because that's not all Mina saw!" exploded Bunny loudly. "She said they were hugging. Really, really close. She emphasized 'really'."
Rini was astonished. "You think Darien's cheating on you... with Tara?" Bunny nodded tearfully.
"That's not all that bothers me," she continued. "Didn't Tara always remind you of someone that you couldn't place? It was Darien! They're perfect for eachother! Not only that, but Tara is perfect herself, with her good looks and her smarts and her kindness... Darien would choose her over me any day!"
Rini was now fighting to hide her own tears. Not her father! He wouldn't do this to her! "But he wouldn't, Bunny. He loves you. It's you two that are meant for eachother, not him and Tara. It's destiny, Bunny!"
"Okay, well say he's not cheating on me. Forget that. What about this: what if the only reason he stays with me... is because we get married in the future? What if he doesn't really want to, but it's is obligation, so he has to? What would it be like under different circumstances?"
"Bunny," Rini whispered, squeezing her mother's hand. "He loves you. That's all you need to know. You can whine and moan all you want, but it's true. He loves you and that's why he stays with you."
Bunny was silent for a while. Finally she looked at her daughter with a smile. "You're right," she said softly. "You're right."
Bunny thought that everything was back to normal, but when she went back to school on Monday, she noticed herself a little more distant with Tara than usual. She tried to avoid her and caught herself shooting hateful glances at the girl. No matter how much better she felt, no matter what the truth was, Bunny stood by what she had said. She was jealous of Tara.
Tara noticed the distance. At lunch she approached Bunny hopefully.
"Hey, Bunny! How are you?" Bunny did not look at her. In fact, she kept on walking as if Tara hadn't said anything. Tara stopped and watched her friend walk away. She did not trust herself to pursue this; she had utter confidence in the fact that she would burst into tears on the next word she said.
She turned on her heel and ran as far away as possible. After a few minutes she stopped and stood panting. Unfortunately, her glasses magnified the tears running down her cheeks. Just then the bell rang. She cursed under her breath and headed to her class.
At home, Bunny sat in her room. What have I done? she thought, catching a tear on her finger. She sat there for a while, going over what had transpired at school. After an hour or two, she decided to drop by Tara's house. She had shown it to Bunny once on the way home from school.
About ten minutes later, Bunny pulled up in Tara's driveway. She walked slowly up to the door and knocked tentatively. Seconds later, a tearstained Tara appeared.
"Bunny!" she cried in surprise. "What...what are you doing here?" Bunny kept her gaze down, not able to meet her friend's gaze.
"Um," she said quietly. "I came to apologize. Can I...?"
"Oh! Oh, sure, come in." Tara opened the door wider to admit Bunny. When she got in, she instantly stopped, tranfixed. Covering the walls were dozens of posters, paintings and sculptures of butterflies. Also, actual butterflies and their beauty were captured silently in wooden frames that lined the walls. All Bunny could do was stare.
"Wow. This house is gorgeous!" Tara blushed.
"Thanks," she responded. She motioned for Bunny to sit. "I'll go get some tea," she added.
"So, do you live all alone?" Bunny called. Tara's disembodied voice replied.
"Yeah, my parents died when I was little. I used to have foster parents, but when I turned sixteen, they let me live alone. Do you take sugar?"
"Yes, please," responded Bunny. When Tara emerged from the kitchen, Bunny noticed a tiny silver butterfly charm dangling from a chain around her neck.
"Wow, that's beautiful!" Bunny breathed, pointing at the charm. Tara blushed again.
"Thank you. My father gave it to me before he died," she responded, sitting down.
After they had both settled down and finished their tea, Bunny said, "Look, Tara, I just came to apologize for being such a jerk. I just heard a rumor..." Bunny said, bending the truth a bit, "But it wasn't true. I'm really sorry. Can we still be friends?" Tara smiled at her, then looked down sheepishly. Bunny was glad she didn't ask what the rumor was.
"Of course," Tara said warmly. "You know Bunny, I've always kind of admired you. You have great friends, you're pretty and popular... I'm really glad we're friends."
Bunny didn't know what to say. All this time she'd been jealous of Tara, the girl had actually been jealous of her!
She was just about to say something else when a huge explosion rocked the house. They both jumped up, alarmed, when another shook them and they tumbled to the floor. A third blast threw them from the house. They hit the ground outside, and Tara was knocked unconscious when her head smacked the hard cement. Bunny stared in horror at the flaming house.
She noticed Tara. She crawled over to her, cradling a broken arm. She was about to try and tend to her friend when she heard a familiar voice behind her.
"Well well well. What have we here? The Great Sailor Moon, crushed, broken. What is there to be done?" Bunny whirled and gasped in horror. Darien stood there, a dark smile on his lips.