A/N: Okay, I lied. This isn't the last chapter. But it is the second to last. A lot of people have reviewed telling me to continue because there's so many possibilities for this fic. I agree, there are, but they're possibilities that I want to use for my precious baby, Subject to Change. I strongly advise – and beg – all of you who asked me to prolong this fic to check out Subject to Change, an SM fic that's been quite warmly received – if I do say so myself.
Um, again, I'm using the name Bunny from the manga because I feel like it.
Disclaimer: I can't draw Darien without making him look like a girl. That's why Naoko owns Sailor Moon and I don't.
His Grin:
Chapter Four
"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" Luna's outraged squall greeted Bunny as she clambered clumsily into her room through the window later that night – or earlier that morning, however one prefers to look at it.
Bunny sighed, dropping from the sill to the carpet. She was so tired…she just wanted to go to sleep and forget all about the nighttime escapade that had started out with such potential and petered down to just another instance of Tuxedo Mask rescuing her. The only difference between this time and all the other ones was that he had been able to scold her this time, just like the Scouts and Luna, who similarly thought her incompetent. And rightly so…
Bunny's eyelids drooped. She looked at her clock. 2:00 a.m. She would just curl into bed, and…wait – didn't she have that Geometry final tomorrow?
"Bunny," growled Luna threateningly.
"The battle took a little longer than I thought it would, Luna," Bunny said quietly, forcing herself up off the floor and to her desk. "But it's okay, nothing's wrong. Go back to sleep."
"What are you doing?" asked Luna curiously as Bunny flipped open her geometry book. "You're not studying – at this hour?"
Bunny nodded her head drowsily, staring at the rows of postulates on the page before her. When a chord – what was a chord again? …intersects the diameter – was that the long one or the short one? She couldn't remember. …and it is bisected, then the two are…
"Bunny, why don't you go to bed," suggested Luna gently, leaping up to the desk and nudging the book out of Bunny's hands. "If you get into turn in now you might be able to get five hours of sleep in."
"Yeah, I guess so," said her ward dejectedly, shoulders slumping. "It's not like I understand this stuff, anyways. What's one more failing test grade?"
"If you don't understand it, why don't you just ask Ami to help you?" inquired Luna as Bunny shuffled over to her bed.
Bunny peeled back the comforter and sank gratefully onto her mattress. "Ami always uses such big words… I never understand what she's saying, and when she tries to explain, it just confuses me more." Yawning, and with arms that felt like leaden weights, Bunny fumbled up to pull her hair buns out. "And even though…she doesn't show it…I can see her getting frustrated and annoyed..." Bunny burrowed down into the sheets. Maybe if she wrapped them around her tight enough, they would form a chrysalis, and she would wake up the next morning to find out that she had been transformed from a clumsy, useless caterpillar to a beautiful butterfly. And then maybe he would be able to see her as someone to love. "Besides…Ami-chan's got so much homework to do already…she doesn't have time to walk me through every homework problem."
"You know that she'd make time for you."
Bunny's eyes fluttered shut, and she smiled faintly. "No, I don't wanna drag her down. I do okay." She laughed, a strange hitch in her breath, and breath. Luna snuggled against her neck, purring softly. "It's not like I need an education anyway…my career's already set in stone, right? Fight evil…and…protect…the…princess…"
Luna's estimate of how much sleep Bunny would get had been – unsurprisingly – accurate. Five hours, just enough for Bunny's muscles to relax, but not long enough for REM to start – so she was sore, and she was cranky. Her eyelids drooped as she trudged to school, too exhausted to pick up any speed despite the fact that the clock was only mere minutes away from tolling eight o'clock.
Stupid youmas, she thought to herself as she shuffled along, head hanging tiredly. Her buns were haphazard clumps of golden hair pinned on top of her head; the bow on the front of her school uniform was sloppily tied so that one end hung to her waist, and dark smudges painted the skin beneath her faded blue eyes. They don't even have to attack me to kill me, they just need to show up and eventually I'll die of exhaustion.
"Whoah," said an all-too-familiar voice. "Someone was up late last night. Not studying, I'll bet."
Darien's words cut deep, reminding her of the Geometry test she had that morning… and knew nothing about. Bunny's face paled, and her hands curled into fists, but she didn't have the energy to do anything else. She just kept on walking, drowsily telling herself to make a memo to kill Darien as soon as she got her hands on some caffeine. A Moon Tiara should deflate his ego sufficiently.
"What, no cutting retort?" The jerkwad wasn't giving up. "Does this mean you've decided to forfeit out insult war, Odango?" At her silence, he continued. "Odango? Hello, earth to Odango…"
"Earth to Sailor Moon…"
Bunny's fists clenched. The jerkwad just had to go and remind her of Tuxedo Mask, didn't he?
"What's wrong with you, Odango? Why aren't you insulting me?"
"Leave me alone." The hoarse whisper rustled past Serena's lips. "I'm tired."
"Obviously." He had walked in front of her and lowered his ridiculous glasses to regard her with his horribly blue eyes. Blue eyes again…why do they keep haunting me? Everywhere I go, when I fight, when I sleep – everywhere I go… "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm just tired. Just let me be. I've gotta go to school."
She bit her lip as Darien fell into step beside her. Didn't he have anything better to be doing? Why was he plaguing her? Didn't he have to go to school?
As if he could hear her thoughts, Darien said, "High school starts an hour later than junior high does. Therefore, I'm gonna walk you to school. Who knows how many poor pedestrians you could terrorize in such a state? You're bad enough when you're awake."
"You're such an insensitive jerk." Bunny lets the words slip out of her mouth; bone-tired she may be, but he wasn't going to get away with that remark without being punished. "Why are you in such a good mood today?" How could anyone be in a good mood after last night?
"What makes you think I'm in a good mood?"
"Usually I'm lucky if you say five words to me. Today you must have said at least fifty already."
"Oh, so you count yourself lucky if I talk to you?" Darien quirked an eyebrow at her, flipping his schoolbag over his shoulder in that distinguished way he had.
"I didn't say that, you Neanderthal," countered Bunny without batting an eyelash. "It was a figure of speech."
"Sure it was. Hey, isn't that the bell?"
Sure enough, she could hear the incessant ringing of the school bell. She was late. Surprise, surprise – not.
Darien was watching her. "Shouldn't you be screaming and running at the speed of light towards homeroom right about now?"
"Why waste the energy?" Bunny replied. She felt her head nodding and felt a sudden urge to rest her head against Darien's shoulder – an urge that she quickly shoved out of her head. Bunny! How could you even think such a thing? Not only is he the JERKWAD, but you were just moping about Tuxedo Mask not three minutes ago – what are you, some sort of scarlet woman!
"You really are tired, aren't you?"
Bunny looked up at the upperclassmen, puzzled by the gentleness of his voice. "Yes."
"Poor Odango Atama." He patted her head. His hand rested there a moment, and he was silent, as though trying to figure out what to do. Suddenly, he handed his briefcase to Bunny and plucked her hair pins out of her buns. "Here, at least let me fix your hair up before you go in and face Haruna. It's a mess. Beautiful, as always, but a mess."
Words could not describe the shock that rushed through Bunny at these words. She froze, stunned speechless by this seeming reversal of the universe. She was walking to school with Darien, he was being nice, he was offering to do her hair for her, and he had just called her hair – the hair he teased her about every single day – beautiful.
It was the end of the world. It had to be.
Bunny remained still as Darien's fingers – surprisingly deft – twisted her hair into her usual "odangoes." When he was finished and had stepped back to admire his handiwork, she fingered them tentatively and felt a fresh thrill of shock. They were exactly like her usual ones – how did he know how to make them? The secret to her odangoes was her own personal secret – as sacred to her as one of Andrew's secret recipes.
"How did you know how to do buns?" she demanded, somewhat shakily.
Darien flashed her a grin. She realized that his was another face on which she'd never seen a grin before. Yet the expression was…familiar.
"From the first day I met you, I wondered how you made those Odangoes, Odango Atama. I asked Andrew's sister, and she said it was your secret, and you never told anyone how you did it." He grinned again. "So I made it my business to figure it out. And it turns out my theory was right? All you needed was that extra twist before you pull the hair through?"
Serena nodded slowly, still dumbfounded. "You made a theory…about my hair?" she finally managed to sputter. "That's…kinda creepy, Darien."
He shrugged, awkwardly fiddling with his school tie.
"And really nerdy." Bunny added thoughtfully. Then she smiled at him. "But sweet. Arigatou."
He smiled back, and that wave of emotion rose inside her again. Only this time it wasn't just a wave, it was a tsunami – she gripped the handles of her schoolbag tightly in one hand and quickly shoved his briefcase towards him with the other. She had to get away – "Here!"
He moved to take it, but she dropped it too quickly – his hands hadn't closed around the handle yet, and the bag fell to the ground, landing on the clasp and popping open. Bunny watched in dismay as books and pens and papers spilled out all over the sidewalk.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, dropping to her knees and beginning to snatch up the disgorged contents of his school bag. "I – I'm such a klutz!"
"No, it was my fault, too." Darien joined her on the ground, gathering up his supplies. Was it just her, or was he avoiding her eyes? "You're actually being – uh – pretty graceful today, Odango."
She barely heard his words, so focused was she on her relief that the wave had sank back down into the ocean again. She handed Darien the handful of pens she'd gathered up, then scanned the sidewalk to make sure they hadn't missed anything, and her eyes landed on something white half-hidden beneath the briefcase.
"Darien – " she began. His eyes flicked to hers. "Under your bag – " She began to reach for the object, but found her hand suddenly knocked aside.
"It's nothing. Just a tissue." She caught a glimpse of the white crushed in his hand before he stuffed it in his pocket. "Thanks for helping me pick up. You should probably get to school now."
Bunny shrank back, unable to tear her eyes from his. The ocean in her chest churned horribly; it was like last night all over again – he's not yours – he doesn't like you – what was wrong with her! His gaze slid from hers. She stumbled backwards, felt her back collide with the light pole, making a hollow, reverberating thunggggg, and then fled.
A.N: I know, I know, another disappointing ending. There really was no good place to end this chapter – none of the good stuff comes until next time.
Please, please, please, give me juicy reviews. It's so wonderful to log on and find paragraph lone reviews full of criticism and comments so that I have something to work with for the next chapter.
Lots of love,
EightofSwords
