An Everly Tale
Chapter Eleven
By A Shot of Amber
Wow this has been a crazy week. I just won an award for my story "Standing in the Night"! And I get to go home tonight for the first time in a month so I'm excited about that. I also just finished reading a wonderful story by Lois Fogg called "Fire." Its located in the library section of A Sailor Moon Romance which is a wonderful site dedicated to Sailor Moon fan fiction and other genres of fan fiction also. If you are interested go to www.moonromance.net and check it out. I'm currently a member of their message board there under the name Saphrian's Reflection. Please join if you are interested. It's really a great website full of wonderful people. Okay and now on to the story!
An Everly Tale Chapter Eleven
Serena twisted a lock of hair in her hands braiding it into one long braid. She was sitting on the floor with her back to the bed leaning against it dressed in a pair of black pants and a white and blue blouse braiding her hair but now she let go of the braid and let it unwind itself as she looked across the room to the door.
It had been three days since the ball. She had turned off her phone and refused to answer the door for anyone but Mina and Lita and Rei. Darien had stopped by once but she hadn't even moved from her spot on the couch while he pounded at the door and yelled for her to open it. He had stayed for maybe five minutes knocking and calling for her while she sat there looking at the door as though seeing through it to him. Finally he had left and she stood up and walked over to the window to watch him leave. She didn't see the normal limo or even his bike but instead a small red car with him at the wheel speeding away.
After the ball when she had ran up the stairs and pounded on the door and after Mina and Lita had let her in she had poured out her story. Mina had sat next to her with her arm around her while Serena cried. Lita had dug out a bottle of wine and made Serena drink a glass to calm her down. It didn't really help but she did stop crying only because a pinpoint headache was starting in the middle of her forehead. Mina must have sensed this and the fact that she was tired. She stood up and led Serena out of the room and upstairs to her own apartment.
"I'll make you a bath and you change out of the dress," Mina had said through Serena's haze and stepped into the bathroom.
Serena didn't change though but instead just fell onto her bed and buried her head in the pillows. Maybe it was the wine or the headache or the sound of the water pouring into the tub that put her to sleep. Whatever it was when Mina walked out of the bathroom she found Serena asleep on her bed. Her face was tear stained and her hair was coming undone but at least now she was not thinking of her pain. Mina set down the towels she was holding and took her leave.
Serena didn't wake up again till the next morning to find Mina once again fixing a bath and Lita fixing her some breakfast.
The radio was on, how did it get on? Oh wait she had turned it on when she woke up. She didn't want to heart to hear the silence of the apartment ringing in her ears. She just wanted noise while she packed.
Serena had decided to go back to Japan for a few weeks. She had packed her clothes into two suitcases, called her office and took a few weeks off and now only needed the taxi cab to come and pick her up. It had been a week since the ball. The newspapers had shown her picture, the one where she was standing on the stoop of her building looking into the cameras. She had a confused wide eyed expression on her face. It was right before she was pulled into the limo with Darien. The picture had ran the next day in the major newspapers but she had been unable to look at it without feeling tears gather in her eyes. Finally Lita had taken to cutting out articles that didn't appeal to Serena from the papers. These articles included shots of Lady Jeanette smiling in her jewels and gowns and walking through the town. Darien was never in the shots. He never appeared in public with Lady Jeanette, instead unknown to the press he was hiding at Green Acres where Rei was comforting him by sitting next to him while he spoke of Serena.
Meanwhile Serena walked over to the window and looked through the dripping rain to the street below her. It was a quiet day, Sunday where there weren't a lot of people out. Then again the pouring rain kept people from wandering around the town. The dripping rain seemed to fit her mind and mood. She was the dripping rain. Mina and Lita had already said goodbye to her, she was just waiting for her taxi to arrive and then she could be off. Off to the airport and off on a vacation, maybe a permanent one. Japan was looking more and more appealing with every minute that passed.
Buzz! The ringer went off, her taxi was here. Serena turned her head to look at the small white box next to her door then walked over to it and buzzed the man in. She then picked up her suitcases and looked around the apartment, if she decided to move then she could come back and pack up everything, but for right now she just wanted to leave and get out of here for awhile. Darien's presence was everywhere; she could almost see him sitting on the couch smiling over at her. That lazy quirky smile that made her melt when ever she saw him....
Serena turned away and walked out the door closing it behind her. She had forgotten to turn off her music, but Mina or Lita could do that. She just wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible. Down the stairs and out into the rain where the taxi cab driver held an umbrella over her head and took one of the suitcases. She climbed in first and closed the door while he shoved the cases into his trunk and ran around to the driver's side of the cab and climbed in. They took off and had just turned the corner when another car pulled up, a small red one that stopped right next to the curb and turned off its engine. Darien climbed out of the car holding one arm over his head while the other held a bouquet of red roses. He ran up the stairs and pressed the button to Serena's apartment. Nothing happened, no one answered so he tried again and still nothing.
"Serena I know you are in there! Please open up!" Darien yelled pressing his face against the glass and looking in. He didn't see Serena but instead an elderly man with a white beard coming forward. As Darien stepped back the man opened the door and peered through his thick glasses at the rain spattered man.
"Are you looking for someone?" The elderly man asked.
"Yes I am! I'm here to see Miss Serena Tuskino," Darien replied.
"Miss Tuskino? Oh yes apartment 4C. Well come on in and get out of the rain. Miss Tuskino may have not heard the buzzer." The man stepped back as Darien walked in and shook off the rain.
"Thank you sir," Darien replied nodding to the man before heading for the stairs.
"No problem!" The man called as Darien ran up the stairs. "He must be after something important."
Upstairs the door to Serena's apartment was closed but that didn't stop him. He pounded his fist on the door leaving a wet mark on the white paint.
"Serena its me Darien! You have to let me in!" He pounded on the door again. "I know you are in there! Rei says you haven't let the apartment at all! She says you just sit in there and mope! She talked to one of your friends so I know you are in there!"
He was greeted by silence.
"Listen to me Serena! I'm sorry for what I did! She wasn't worth hurting you and I want you to know that I love yo—"The door opened and Darien looked up.
"Serena?"
The blond girl took a step back at the rain soaked wild man with messy black hair falling into his eyes.
"Serena?" He said again before his eyes cleared and he realized this wasn't Serena.
"Serena just left for the airport," Mina replied taking a hold of the door.
"The airport? You mean she's leaving the country?"
Mina nodded. "She's going home to her family. You really hurt her."
"I didn't mean to," Darien ran his hands through his hair. "Oh god I didn't mean to." He looked at Mina who looked a lot like Serena but wasn't. "When did she leave?"
"I don't know, I just came up here to turn off her music, she left it on."
"So she may have left hours ago," Darien sighed turning away from Mina then turned back to her. He looked at her seeing the resemblance of Serena in her blue eyes but she wasn't Serena. He looked down at the roses in his hand then up again at Mina. "Here, you might as well take these. They were for Serena." He handed her the roses and headed off down the stairs while she stood there watching him holding the roses in her hands. Finally she turned and walked back into the apartment.
Mina retrieved a glass vase from above the fridge and filled it with water and put the roses, out of their wrapping into the vase before setting it down on the counter where Serena could see them when she came back, whenever that would be.
The plane landed on another rainy night ten hours later when she arrived home. The night was full of clouds weepy with wet tears. She had spent the whole flight sitting next to a womyn in a brown dress who read her book and slept. Serena meanwhile had just looked out the window seeing the sun set and the clouds creep in until everything went dark and the rain began to fall. At this time she turned away from the window and tried to get some sleep but it didn't work so by the end of the flight she was looking down at the lights below her slowly growing bigger the closer to the ground the plane got to.
The plane landed and the passengers got off with Serena following them carrying a small black bag slung over one shoulder. She walked through the tunnel into the terminal to see a man dressed in a suit with his hands in his pockets looking over at her. His black hair was cut short and streaked with gray. Suddenly tears filled her eyes as she saw the Darien in the face of her father.
Serena brushed away the tears and walked over to him not saying anything but just holding out her arms to hug him which he happily did.
"Welcome home sweetie," Kengi said hugging her tightly.
"Thank you daddy. I'm glad to be home," she replied sniffling as they let go.
Kengi took her bag and they headed off to get her luggage.
Meanwhile in Basalt the rain was pouring down harder as Darien drove his car through the rain. He was temporarily blinded by a car heading the other direction but drove on. He knew she would be there, she was always there. His hands were holding onto the steering wheel so tightly that the skin around his knuckles was white. The roads were wet and the bluffs around him were saturated and dropping mud onto the roads. He was concentrating on the road which was slightly treacherous but in the back of his mind he was thinking of Serena. He was imagining her sitting on the plane or maybe she was already home sitting with her family drinking tea.
Darien suddenly squealed the tires as he almost missed the turn but he made it onto the long tree lined driveway and sped down the lane. The house was only alight with a few lights, Rei preferred darkness to light where she could sit in front of a fire and meditate but he knew she was home. Darien turned off the car and got out shoving the keys into the pocket of a jacket. In their place he pulled out his cell phone and pressed a button. Rei was number five on speed dial; she picked up on the second ring.
"Rei its me Darien please let me in."
Rei looked out the door of the living room where she sat and stood up. "I'll be right out." She turned off the phone and headed towards the front door which opened to reveal Darien standing in the rain by his car looking up at her.
Serena and Kengi arrived home just as the rain was stopping. As soon the car stopped she was climbing out and looking up at her home which was full of lights. With a few drops falling on her head she pulled her bag out of the car and slammed the door shut.
"Go on in I'll bring your luggage in," Kengi said as he closed his door and headed for the trunk.
Serena nodded and walked over to the front door which opened just as she got there. Ikuko was dressed in her trade mark dress and apron with her long blue and gray hair pulled back from her face.
"Usagi!" Ikuko cried and headed towards her and caught her up in a hug.
"Mom!" Serena cried suddenly feeling the tears in her eyes again. She really had missed being home.
"Oh Usagi its so good to see you back home again," Ikuko said hugging her tightly then let go and smiled at Serena. "Usagi why are you crying?"
"I'm just glad to be home," Serena replied brushing away the tears and smiling. "I don't know why I was gone for so long," Serena sighed putting her arm around Ikuko and heading inside.
Darien gulped down the brandy in three gulps and set the glass down. He breathed and brushed his bangs away from his eyes while Rei just watched him from the other side of the table.
"How long were you driving?"
"I came straight here after I found out that Serena was gone," Darien gestured for another finger of brandy. Rei looked at him then picked up the bottle and poured him another draft before she slid off the table top and sat down in her chair.
"I'm guessing you want to know where Serena went?"
"She went home, I knew that. What I want is her address so I know where to find her."
Rei played her fingers over the top of the bottle and bit her bottom lip. "What if she doesn't want to be found?"
Darien set down his glass and sat back in his chair. "What do you mean?"
"Look Darien, I talked to Serena before she left. She came by to see me before she headed for the airport." Rei let go of the bottle and brought her legs up to tuck her chin in between her knees. "She said that she was going home for sometime to see if she might be able to get a job on a paper there. Still it isn't set in stone yet, she may come back but she doesn't really want to see you. We did talk about you."
Darien raised one eyebrow but didn't say anything.
"She didn't cry or anything she just told me that she hoped you and Jeanette have a good life. She doesn't want to be in a country where you and Jeanette will be her rulers."
"I'm not going to marry Jeanette," Darien growled.
Rei sighed and ran her hands through her hair. "Maybe you should, you can go for second best instead of the best. You really hurt her Darien and it still sickens me to think of how you fell into Jeanette's trap and kissed her. You danced with the enemy. I believe it's called, appropriately enough, flirting with the enemy and Jeanette along with your mother is the enemy."
"What does my mom have to do with this?" Darien asked.
"Serena told me that during her meeting with the queen she was told about yours and Jeanette impeding engagement but she was afraid to believe it so she didn't tell you. She wasn't sure if you would believe her so she decided to ignore it until that night happened. I guess it was the last straw because when I went to see her the next day she had already made plans to leave. I have to say this; Serena is a very strong womyn. You don't see it on the outside but once you get to know her on the inside you realize it." Rei looked over at Darien. "Your mother owns you Darien, think about it. Either you can abdicate the throne and be with Serena or give into your hidden desires and marry Jeanette and become the ruler of Basalt. The thing you have to remember though is that whatever you do it will hurt someone." Rei stood up and pushed her hair behind her. She walked away from the table headed back towards the living room.
Darien stood up and followed her, grabbing her arm and turning her towards him. He smiled down at Rei who was looking at him with large purple eyes.
"Why didn't I marry you when I had the chance?" He asked her softly.
Rei didn't smile but answered in a serious voice. "Because you know I could never love you. You only love once," she replied then smiled at him.
Darien grinned back and brought her into a hug. "Well I'll always love you Rei no matter what you say. I'm very lucky to have a friend in you."
"So am I," Rei replied hugging him back then pulled back and looked at him for a long time. Finally she turned and walked over to the counter and picked up a piece of paper and a pencil. While Darien watched her she wrote something down, folded it then handed it to him.
Darien unfolded the paper and looked down at the address written on it than up at Rei.
"I know Serena is going to kill me for this but I also believe you two are meant to be so I'm cheating and giving you her address. Whatever you do, I want you to get her back." Rei pointed one finger at him. "I don't want you coming back her unless she's on your arm."
Darien pocketed the paper and grinned at Rei. "I promise you that we'll come back together. I'm not letting her get away from me ever again."
Rei nodded and watched as he walked out of the room headed for the front door. She then slumped down on the counter and sighed.
"Shingo and Mia wanted to come over but they were busy tonight," Ikuko said setting a cup of tea in front of Serena and taking her seat.
Serena picked up the tea and took a sip. "That's okay I can go and visit them tomorrow, its not like I'm leaving right away."
Ikuko exchanged a look with Kengi while Serena picked up a doughnut and took a bite.
"Usagi how long do you plan on staying?" Kengi asked.
"I don't know, maybe a few weeks, maybe more. I was thinking about maybe finding a job on a paper here and moving back to Tokyo. I could move back home and live in my old room. Being on my own is kind of hard you know," Serena replied playing with her cup.
Kengi looked at Ikuko then spoke up again. "I'm happy that you want to come home dear but aren't you happy in Basalt? From your letters and the media shots we are getting you seem to be very happy in Basalt."
"Your boyfriend the prince seems like a very nice man also. From all the newspapers I've read they talk about how he is well educated and prepared to take over the throne one day," Ikuko added.
Serena dropped her doughnut on her plate and looked into her tea cup. "Yea did you also notice that he's a player and has no plans to marry? He uses womyn like he drinks coffee, once he's finished the cup is left to rot. He is a horrible man that the press is trying to make look good."
"Usagi are you saying this because of what happened with that English womyn?"
"How did you know?" Serena asked looking up at her mother.
Ikuko sighed and rubbed her arm. "It was in the papers that the prince is to marry that English womyn. What is her name?"
"Jeanette," Serena replied.
"Yes, of course. Well I read in the paper that the prince of Basalt, your boyfriend..."
"My former boyfriend," Serena interrupted.
"Your former boyfriend," Ikuko concided. "Was to marry an English girl. I at first thought it was a lie but apparently it's true."
"Yes it is very true, they are getting married whenever and I hope they are very happy together. Now if you'll excuse me I want to get unpacked and go to bed." Serena stood up leaving her tea cup and doughnut sitting on the table. She walked out of the room towards the stairs while Kengi and Ikuko watched her.
"Poor girl, she must really be hurting," Ikuko sighed turning towards Kengi.
"There's not much we can do Ikuko, she has to get through this herself," Kengi replied reaching across the table to take her hand. "Lets just leave her alone for a few days. She's old enough to make a decision about where she wants to live."
"It would be nice to have her here at home again but she seemed so happy in Basalt," Ikuko sighed again and looked up at the ceiling where above them Serena was unpacking her things. "I just want her to be happy and I thought she could be happy with that prince."
Kengi just nodded and looked up towards the ceiling also.
I'll be back next week with the next chapter. Please in the mean time read and review or send all comments, questions, flames, and suggestions to SaphriansWaterReflectionhotmail.com. Thank you!
Wow this has been a crazy week. I just won an award for my story "Standing in the Night"! And I get to go home tonight for the first time in a month so I'm excited about that. I also just finished reading a wonderful story by Lois Fogg called "Fire." Its located in the library section of A Sailor Moon Romance which is a wonderful site dedicated to Sailor Moon fan fiction and other genres of fan fiction also. If you are interested go to www.moonromance.net and check it out. I'm currently a member of their message board there under the name Saphrian's Reflection. Please join if you are interested. It's really a great website full of wonderful people. Okay and now on to the story!
An Everly Tale Chapter Eleven
Serena twisted a lock of hair in her hands braiding it into one long braid. She was sitting on the floor with her back to the bed leaning against it dressed in a pair of black pants and a white and blue blouse braiding her hair but now she let go of the braid and let it unwind itself as she looked across the room to the door.
It had been three days since the ball. She had turned off her phone and refused to answer the door for anyone but Mina and Lita and Rei. Darien had stopped by once but she hadn't even moved from her spot on the couch while he pounded at the door and yelled for her to open it. He had stayed for maybe five minutes knocking and calling for her while she sat there looking at the door as though seeing through it to him. Finally he had left and she stood up and walked over to the window to watch him leave. She didn't see the normal limo or even his bike but instead a small red car with him at the wheel speeding away.
After the ball when she had ran up the stairs and pounded on the door and after Mina and Lita had let her in she had poured out her story. Mina had sat next to her with her arm around her while Serena cried. Lita had dug out a bottle of wine and made Serena drink a glass to calm her down. It didn't really help but she did stop crying only because a pinpoint headache was starting in the middle of her forehead. Mina must have sensed this and the fact that she was tired. She stood up and led Serena out of the room and upstairs to her own apartment.
"I'll make you a bath and you change out of the dress," Mina had said through Serena's haze and stepped into the bathroom.
Serena didn't change though but instead just fell onto her bed and buried her head in the pillows. Maybe it was the wine or the headache or the sound of the water pouring into the tub that put her to sleep. Whatever it was when Mina walked out of the bathroom she found Serena asleep on her bed. Her face was tear stained and her hair was coming undone but at least now she was not thinking of her pain. Mina set down the towels she was holding and took her leave.
Serena didn't wake up again till the next morning to find Mina once again fixing a bath and Lita fixing her some breakfast.
The radio was on, how did it get on? Oh wait she had turned it on when she woke up. She didn't want to heart to hear the silence of the apartment ringing in her ears. She just wanted noise while she packed.
Serena had decided to go back to Japan for a few weeks. She had packed her clothes into two suitcases, called her office and took a few weeks off and now only needed the taxi cab to come and pick her up. It had been a week since the ball. The newspapers had shown her picture, the one where she was standing on the stoop of her building looking into the cameras. She had a confused wide eyed expression on her face. It was right before she was pulled into the limo with Darien. The picture had ran the next day in the major newspapers but she had been unable to look at it without feeling tears gather in her eyes. Finally Lita had taken to cutting out articles that didn't appeal to Serena from the papers. These articles included shots of Lady Jeanette smiling in her jewels and gowns and walking through the town. Darien was never in the shots. He never appeared in public with Lady Jeanette, instead unknown to the press he was hiding at Green Acres where Rei was comforting him by sitting next to him while he spoke of Serena.
Meanwhile Serena walked over to the window and looked through the dripping rain to the street below her. It was a quiet day, Sunday where there weren't a lot of people out. Then again the pouring rain kept people from wandering around the town. The dripping rain seemed to fit her mind and mood. She was the dripping rain. Mina and Lita had already said goodbye to her, she was just waiting for her taxi to arrive and then she could be off. Off to the airport and off on a vacation, maybe a permanent one. Japan was looking more and more appealing with every minute that passed.
Buzz! The ringer went off, her taxi was here. Serena turned her head to look at the small white box next to her door then walked over to it and buzzed the man in. She then picked up her suitcases and looked around the apartment, if she decided to move then she could come back and pack up everything, but for right now she just wanted to leave and get out of here for awhile. Darien's presence was everywhere; she could almost see him sitting on the couch smiling over at her. That lazy quirky smile that made her melt when ever she saw him....
Serena turned away and walked out the door closing it behind her. She had forgotten to turn off her music, but Mina or Lita could do that. She just wanted to get out of here as quickly as possible. Down the stairs and out into the rain where the taxi cab driver held an umbrella over her head and took one of the suitcases. She climbed in first and closed the door while he shoved the cases into his trunk and ran around to the driver's side of the cab and climbed in. They took off and had just turned the corner when another car pulled up, a small red one that stopped right next to the curb and turned off its engine. Darien climbed out of the car holding one arm over his head while the other held a bouquet of red roses. He ran up the stairs and pressed the button to Serena's apartment. Nothing happened, no one answered so he tried again and still nothing.
"Serena I know you are in there! Please open up!" Darien yelled pressing his face against the glass and looking in. He didn't see Serena but instead an elderly man with a white beard coming forward. As Darien stepped back the man opened the door and peered through his thick glasses at the rain spattered man.
"Are you looking for someone?" The elderly man asked.
"Yes I am! I'm here to see Miss Serena Tuskino," Darien replied.
"Miss Tuskino? Oh yes apartment 4C. Well come on in and get out of the rain. Miss Tuskino may have not heard the buzzer." The man stepped back as Darien walked in and shook off the rain.
"Thank you sir," Darien replied nodding to the man before heading for the stairs.
"No problem!" The man called as Darien ran up the stairs. "He must be after something important."
Upstairs the door to Serena's apartment was closed but that didn't stop him. He pounded his fist on the door leaving a wet mark on the white paint.
"Serena its me Darien! You have to let me in!" He pounded on the door again. "I know you are in there! Rei says you haven't let the apartment at all! She says you just sit in there and mope! She talked to one of your friends so I know you are in there!"
He was greeted by silence.
"Listen to me Serena! I'm sorry for what I did! She wasn't worth hurting you and I want you to know that I love yo—"The door opened and Darien looked up.
"Serena?"
The blond girl took a step back at the rain soaked wild man with messy black hair falling into his eyes.
"Serena?" He said again before his eyes cleared and he realized this wasn't Serena.
"Serena just left for the airport," Mina replied taking a hold of the door.
"The airport? You mean she's leaving the country?"
Mina nodded. "She's going home to her family. You really hurt her."
"I didn't mean to," Darien ran his hands through his hair. "Oh god I didn't mean to." He looked at Mina who looked a lot like Serena but wasn't. "When did she leave?"
"I don't know, I just came up here to turn off her music, she left it on."
"So she may have left hours ago," Darien sighed turning away from Mina then turned back to her. He looked at her seeing the resemblance of Serena in her blue eyes but she wasn't Serena. He looked down at the roses in his hand then up again at Mina. "Here, you might as well take these. They were for Serena." He handed her the roses and headed off down the stairs while she stood there watching him holding the roses in her hands. Finally she turned and walked back into the apartment.
Mina retrieved a glass vase from above the fridge and filled it with water and put the roses, out of their wrapping into the vase before setting it down on the counter where Serena could see them when she came back, whenever that would be.
The plane landed on another rainy night ten hours later when she arrived home. The night was full of clouds weepy with wet tears. She had spent the whole flight sitting next to a womyn in a brown dress who read her book and slept. Serena meanwhile had just looked out the window seeing the sun set and the clouds creep in until everything went dark and the rain began to fall. At this time she turned away from the window and tried to get some sleep but it didn't work so by the end of the flight she was looking down at the lights below her slowly growing bigger the closer to the ground the plane got to.
The plane landed and the passengers got off with Serena following them carrying a small black bag slung over one shoulder. She walked through the tunnel into the terminal to see a man dressed in a suit with his hands in his pockets looking over at her. His black hair was cut short and streaked with gray. Suddenly tears filled her eyes as she saw the Darien in the face of her father.
Serena brushed away the tears and walked over to him not saying anything but just holding out her arms to hug him which he happily did.
"Welcome home sweetie," Kengi said hugging her tightly.
"Thank you daddy. I'm glad to be home," she replied sniffling as they let go.
Kengi took her bag and they headed off to get her luggage.
Meanwhile in Basalt the rain was pouring down harder as Darien drove his car through the rain. He was temporarily blinded by a car heading the other direction but drove on. He knew she would be there, she was always there. His hands were holding onto the steering wheel so tightly that the skin around his knuckles was white. The roads were wet and the bluffs around him were saturated and dropping mud onto the roads. He was concentrating on the road which was slightly treacherous but in the back of his mind he was thinking of Serena. He was imagining her sitting on the plane or maybe she was already home sitting with her family drinking tea.
Darien suddenly squealed the tires as he almost missed the turn but he made it onto the long tree lined driveway and sped down the lane. The house was only alight with a few lights, Rei preferred darkness to light where she could sit in front of a fire and meditate but he knew she was home. Darien turned off the car and got out shoving the keys into the pocket of a jacket. In their place he pulled out his cell phone and pressed a button. Rei was number five on speed dial; she picked up on the second ring.
"Rei its me Darien please let me in."
Rei looked out the door of the living room where she sat and stood up. "I'll be right out." She turned off the phone and headed towards the front door which opened to reveal Darien standing in the rain by his car looking up at her.
Serena and Kengi arrived home just as the rain was stopping. As soon the car stopped she was climbing out and looking up at her home which was full of lights. With a few drops falling on her head she pulled her bag out of the car and slammed the door shut.
"Go on in I'll bring your luggage in," Kengi said as he closed his door and headed for the trunk.
Serena nodded and walked over to the front door which opened just as she got there. Ikuko was dressed in her trade mark dress and apron with her long blue and gray hair pulled back from her face.
"Usagi!" Ikuko cried and headed towards her and caught her up in a hug.
"Mom!" Serena cried suddenly feeling the tears in her eyes again. She really had missed being home.
"Oh Usagi its so good to see you back home again," Ikuko said hugging her tightly then let go and smiled at Serena. "Usagi why are you crying?"
"I'm just glad to be home," Serena replied brushing away the tears and smiling. "I don't know why I was gone for so long," Serena sighed putting her arm around Ikuko and heading inside.
Darien gulped down the brandy in three gulps and set the glass down. He breathed and brushed his bangs away from his eyes while Rei just watched him from the other side of the table.
"How long were you driving?"
"I came straight here after I found out that Serena was gone," Darien gestured for another finger of brandy. Rei looked at him then picked up the bottle and poured him another draft before she slid off the table top and sat down in her chair.
"I'm guessing you want to know where Serena went?"
"She went home, I knew that. What I want is her address so I know where to find her."
Rei played her fingers over the top of the bottle and bit her bottom lip. "What if she doesn't want to be found?"
Darien set down his glass and sat back in his chair. "What do you mean?"
"Look Darien, I talked to Serena before she left. She came by to see me before she headed for the airport." Rei let go of the bottle and brought her legs up to tuck her chin in between her knees. "She said that she was going home for sometime to see if she might be able to get a job on a paper there. Still it isn't set in stone yet, she may come back but she doesn't really want to see you. We did talk about you."
Darien raised one eyebrow but didn't say anything.
"She didn't cry or anything she just told me that she hoped you and Jeanette have a good life. She doesn't want to be in a country where you and Jeanette will be her rulers."
"I'm not going to marry Jeanette," Darien growled.
Rei sighed and ran her hands through her hair. "Maybe you should, you can go for second best instead of the best. You really hurt her Darien and it still sickens me to think of how you fell into Jeanette's trap and kissed her. You danced with the enemy. I believe it's called, appropriately enough, flirting with the enemy and Jeanette along with your mother is the enemy."
"What does my mom have to do with this?" Darien asked.
"Serena told me that during her meeting with the queen she was told about yours and Jeanette impeding engagement but she was afraid to believe it so she didn't tell you. She wasn't sure if you would believe her so she decided to ignore it until that night happened. I guess it was the last straw because when I went to see her the next day she had already made plans to leave. I have to say this; Serena is a very strong womyn. You don't see it on the outside but once you get to know her on the inside you realize it." Rei looked over at Darien. "Your mother owns you Darien, think about it. Either you can abdicate the throne and be with Serena or give into your hidden desires and marry Jeanette and become the ruler of Basalt. The thing you have to remember though is that whatever you do it will hurt someone." Rei stood up and pushed her hair behind her. She walked away from the table headed back towards the living room.
Darien stood up and followed her, grabbing her arm and turning her towards him. He smiled down at Rei who was looking at him with large purple eyes.
"Why didn't I marry you when I had the chance?" He asked her softly.
Rei didn't smile but answered in a serious voice. "Because you know I could never love you. You only love once," she replied then smiled at him.
Darien grinned back and brought her into a hug. "Well I'll always love you Rei no matter what you say. I'm very lucky to have a friend in you."
"So am I," Rei replied hugging him back then pulled back and looked at him for a long time. Finally she turned and walked over to the counter and picked up a piece of paper and a pencil. While Darien watched her she wrote something down, folded it then handed it to him.
Darien unfolded the paper and looked down at the address written on it than up at Rei.
"I know Serena is going to kill me for this but I also believe you two are meant to be so I'm cheating and giving you her address. Whatever you do, I want you to get her back." Rei pointed one finger at him. "I don't want you coming back her unless she's on your arm."
Darien pocketed the paper and grinned at Rei. "I promise you that we'll come back together. I'm not letting her get away from me ever again."
Rei nodded and watched as he walked out of the room headed for the front door. She then slumped down on the counter and sighed.
"Shingo and Mia wanted to come over but they were busy tonight," Ikuko said setting a cup of tea in front of Serena and taking her seat.
Serena picked up the tea and took a sip. "That's okay I can go and visit them tomorrow, its not like I'm leaving right away."
Ikuko exchanged a look with Kengi while Serena picked up a doughnut and took a bite.
"Usagi how long do you plan on staying?" Kengi asked.
"I don't know, maybe a few weeks, maybe more. I was thinking about maybe finding a job on a paper here and moving back to Tokyo. I could move back home and live in my old room. Being on my own is kind of hard you know," Serena replied playing with her cup.
Kengi looked at Ikuko then spoke up again. "I'm happy that you want to come home dear but aren't you happy in Basalt? From your letters and the media shots we are getting you seem to be very happy in Basalt."
"Your boyfriend the prince seems like a very nice man also. From all the newspapers I've read they talk about how he is well educated and prepared to take over the throne one day," Ikuko added.
Serena dropped her doughnut on her plate and looked into her tea cup. "Yea did you also notice that he's a player and has no plans to marry? He uses womyn like he drinks coffee, once he's finished the cup is left to rot. He is a horrible man that the press is trying to make look good."
"Usagi are you saying this because of what happened with that English womyn?"
"How did you know?" Serena asked looking up at her mother.
Ikuko sighed and rubbed her arm. "It was in the papers that the prince is to marry that English womyn. What is her name?"
"Jeanette," Serena replied.
"Yes, of course. Well I read in the paper that the prince of Basalt, your boyfriend..."
"My former boyfriend," Serena interrupted.
"Your former boyfriend," Ikuko concided. "Was to marry an English girl. I at first thought it was a lie but apparently it's true."
"Yes it is very true, they are getting married whenever and I hope they are very happy together. Now if you'll excuse me I want to get unpacked and go to bed." Serena stood up leaving her tea cup and doughnut sitting on the table. She walked out of the room towards the stairs while Kengi and Ikuko watched her.
"Poor girl, she must really be hurting," Ikuko sighed turning towards Kengi.
"There's not much we can do Ikuko, she has to get through this herself," Kengi replied reaching across the table to take her hand. "Lets just leave her alone for a few days. She's old enough to make a decision about where she wants to live."
"It would be nice to have her here at home again but she seemed so happy in Basalt," Ikuko sighed again and looked up at the ceiling where above them Serena was unpacking her things. "I just want her to be happy and I thought she could be happy with that prince."
Kengi just nodded and looked up towards the ceiling also.
I'll be back next week with the next chapter. Please in the mean time read and review or send all comments, questions, flames, and suggestions to SaphriansWaterReflectionhotmail.com. Thank you!