Disclaimer: I don't own Star Ocean: The Second Story characters. I wish I did, but I don't. L  Later, Reese. J

Chapter 4 - Tragedy

On the way to Arlia, Claude was starting to get irritated by the way Rena was hanging all over Dias. First she was standing next to him swinging their arms back and forth with their hands linked together. Then she was leaning on his arm with her hands gripping his arm. The one thing that really irritated him was seeing how she somehow talked Dias into carrying her.

"How'd you talk me into this, Rena?" Dias said while he looked over his shoulder.

Rena smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck a little more. "The same way I use to when we were little."

She kissed him on the cheek.

A corner of his mouth lifted slightly. "You could always talk me into doing just about anything."

"Hey what's that?" Precis said as she pointed in front of them. "It looks like smoke."

Dias put Rena down and looked in the direction the hyperactive teenager was pointing at.

No. It can't be. Dias broke into a run and yelled over his shoulder. "RENA, ARLIA IS ON FIRE!"

"WHAT?!" Rena said as everyone started running after him.

They entered Arlia and felt like they were in an inferno.

"MOM!" Rena screamed as she ran toward her house.

"DON'T GO THERE BY YOURSELF!" Dias yelled as he followed her.

Everyone split up 3 groups of two and searched the rest of the houses.

They looked everywhere they could and found no one. Alive.

Rena ran into her house and saw a crying Lucia and her unconscious mother. She ran over to her mother and Dias knelt down next to Lucia.

"Mother, are you okay?"

She received no answer.

"Mom…"

"Lucia, what happened?" Dias asked while he held the little 3 year old.

"Some bad men came and s…started b…breaking stuff." He said between sniffles. "I don't remember who they are."

"Dias…" Rena said quietly. "My mother…" She turned toward him and he saw the tears streaming down her face.

"Come on Rena. You take Lucia and I'll carry Westa out of here." He gently picked up her mother then ran out the house with Rena and Lucia and they met up with the others.

They got out just in time because the house let out a loud creak then collapsed into a flaming heap.

Bowman checked over Lucia and then Rena's mother.

"Well, Lucia is fine but Mrs. Lanford…" Bowman hesitated.

Dias was holding Rena, who had wrapped her arms around his waist as soon as Bowman took Lucia and her mother, tightened his arms around her. "What about Westa?"

Rena looked at the doctor. "Bowman?"

"…I… I…She's gone."

Dias clenched his jaw and he then looked down at Rena. Her face was almost as white as a sheet.

My mother. My mother is gone. She's gone. Both of them. Rena moaned and swayed a little bit. She vaguely heard people shouting her name. She didn't realize Dias had picked her up and carried her off somewhere.

~~~~~~~~~2 hours later~~~~~~~~~

Rena felt something cold and damp on her head. She took it off.

She moaned and heard footsteps coming near her then heard a familiar deep voice speak and warm hands lightly brushing her cheek.

"Rena, are you awake now?"

"Mmmmm…Dias?" She opened her eyes to see crimson eyes filled with worry staring down at her. She looked around. "Where are am I?"

The bed she was on sank down a little bit from his weight. He leaned over her, bracing his arms on each side of her. "You're in my house and you are lying in my bed."

"Where is everyone?"

"In the guest house not far from here."

"Where is Lucia?"

"He's in the other room asleep."

"What about my mother?"

"…"

Rena noticed that he had clenched his jaw. She cupped his face with both of her hands and pulled it down closer to hers.

She studied his face closely. "You've been crying. W…"

Dias interrupted her. "You don't remember what Bowman said do you? What he said before you fainted?"

"About what?"

"About your mother, Westa." He replied quietly.

She sat there staring at him for a bit. "I remember the fire, you saving Lucia and my mother, and Bowman checking them out and saying they were fine."

"He said Lucia was fine." Dias corrected. "Westa…was not."

Rena's eyes widened when the meaning of Dias' words sunk in. "My…mother is dead, isn't she?"

Dias nodded. His eyes were also filled with tears that were dangerously close to falling. He picked her up gently and sat her in his lap. There he let her cry until she went to sleep.

~~~~4:00 a.m.~~~~

Dias awoke to find that Rena wasn't in his bed.

"Rena?"

"I'm out here. On the balcony." She answered from outside.

Dias walked outside to see her leaning on the rail. He couldn't help but notice how pretty she was in the moonlight.

"Dias… Let's leave here."

"What? You want to leave?"

"Yes."

"What about Lucia? Where is he going to go?"

"He can come with us. I wouldn't leave him here without anyone here he knows."

Dias came up silently behind and embraced her. "You know what you're doing right? "He bent down and let his mouth trace the length of her ear. "You're doing what I did 2 years ago."

Rena felt a shiver go down her spine. "Yes. But I'm not leaving anyone behind that I love." She turned around to look up at him. Her heart skipped a beat. She has seen Dias shirtless before, but this was different. She never felt like she did now.

"Dias…" She reached up to take hold of the two thick locks of hair and pulled him closer.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"All right. When do you want to leave?"

"Now."

"Let's go."

******Author's Notes*******

Sorry it is taking so long.  I've been building my website. I am also making a Rena and Dias shrine.  Any contributions are welcome.   Please Review.  I would like to know if anyone is actually reading this.

~Later Reesechan