Angel of Mercy III
"Therapy"
The sun shone brightly upon the large hospital as Serena arrived. It wasn't a regular visiting day for her, so the nurses at the front desk were surprised to see her. But as always, they greeted the girl warmly and allowed her in.
'So this is what freedom feels like' Thought Serena as she walked down the corridor. It was summertime, the time of the year where she was suppose to have the most free time in but every year that changed when a new enemy appeared, completely ruining her summer. But this time it was different, and she was planning to take full advantage of that by doing whatever she wanted, especially if that reckless cousin of hers was around.
She walked into the children's wing, looking at all the closed doors. It was still early perhaps too early for sleepy, sick children to be up yet. Stopping in front of a door she quietly opened it and peeked in to find a five year old girl calmly watching TV. Once she heard the door closing Annie quickly looked toward the new comer, her rosy lips forming into a happy smile.
"Hey there sweetheart"
"Ammi! What are you doing here?" She asked in a quiet childish voice.
"I had some free time and I decided to visit my favourite munchkin, plus didn't I tell you I would come today?"
Annie giggled, delighted that Serena had come at such an early time to visit her, for her the mornings were always the most boring. The child's visits to the Angel of Mercy hospital were scarce but long. Her health was poor and she still had to have one more operation in order for her to be able to leave for good. She'd had three operations from the day she was born but unfortunately they could only perform them in Tokyo.
Serena sat beside her on the bed, scooping her frail body closer to hers.
"Are your friends angry with you?"
"I don't know… I think they're confused"
The girl threw her small arms around the older girl's neck in a hug. Serena smiled and kissed her cheek before setting her back on the bed and looking at the TV.
"So what are we watching?"
"Care Bears"
&&&&&
"Let me guess they ditched you!"
"Trey!"
"Well didn't they?"
"No"
"Then what happened?"
"So your arm isn't really broken?"
"No, the doctors made a mistake, it turned out the crack on my bone was a hair stuck on the x-ray lens. Anyways, what happened?"
"I… left"
"What did they say?"
"That is wasn't such a big deal since it's all past. There's nothing that can be done now"
"And that upsets you?"
"Yeah, No, I don't know!"
"Well make up your mind sunshine!" The blonde collapsed on the comfy chair beside him in frustration.
She herself didn't understand why she was so angry, they had taken it VERY well considering. Yet instead of feeling happy she felt… like they didn't care. She didn't understand it herself perhaps she was going crazy. 'Gods Celene, Can't you help me out here?' Asked Serena silently.
"Listen, it sounds like the only reason you're upset is because of how they took it. But they are right, I mean you already fought all the battles and lived to tell the tale. It's not like they can do anything now."
"Agh! I think I'm more angry at myself than at anyone" She declared, instantly feeling better. They reached for her hand and at seeing his attempt she reached and grasped it.
"Sunshine, Celene would be proud of you. Of how strong you've become, and how well you did her job. She believed in you Sere, she loved you like a sister. You don't have to feel guilty anymore, just let it go."
She smiled, truly smiled. It was so different to hear it from him, it was as if she was hearing it from Celene herself. Maybe because Trey had been the most affected by her death, she was his sun, his love. And when she died it was as if his sole purpose for living had been taken away from him. They had been too young to experience true love they'd said. Yet what he had felt for her was greater than anything else. So his words impacted her the most.
"Thank you bro, maybe it is time I let it go…"
&&&&&&&&&&&
Was the air lighter? She didn't know, and she didn't care. It wasn't important, no what was important was that she felt better after talking to Trey. He always knew exactly what to say in each situation. He had always been her comfort. How many countless nights had she called him in the dead of the night only to cry out her sorrows? To yell why she couldn't do this, why she wasn't a good leader and he always dismissed her. Only he knew what plagued her heart, only he understood, for he was plagued ten times more for the loss of the same person.
She smiled at herself for no reason at all as she walked down the park. Suddenly she spotted a black haired man sitting cross-legged on a bench and with a book in his hands. Only one person would actually do that and still not look dorky, her Darien. She smiled, her mind quickly plotting some way to surprise him, today she felt like teasing.
"Hey sugar this seat taken?" She asked in her best street accent. However he never looked up at her as he answered in his casual polite manner.
"As a matter of fact I'm afraid it is. But there are many other unoccupied benches around this one"
"I'm glad cause if it wasn't you would be in BIG trouble Mr" She replied now in her normal voice. Darien quickly looked up to meet her baby blue eyes. He smiled warmly before leaping up and embracing her in a tight breathtaking hug. The book fell carelessly off his hands as he embraced her, crushing her small frame against his. She only hugged back with all her strength.
"I called" He whispered
"I know"
"You didn't call back"
"I thought you needed more time… I needed more time"
"We had time"
"Are you mad?"
"A little"
"At me?"
"No, not at you… of anything I'm proud of you" His words were so soft and tender that she thought she would melt right there in his arms.
"Then why?"
"At myself"
"At yourself? Darien why would you…" She tried to pull back just far enough to see his face, yet he wouldn't let her. He had her crushed against him.
"All this time Sere, all this time, all these battles and you didn't have to do any of them. I can't believe I didn't figure it out, that I let you… that you were in danger…"
Serena couldn't believe her ears. She had felt guilt but never because of those things. She had taken care of herself just fine, well maybe not fine because she couldn't do without the scouts but he was blaming himself for something she kept secret? How on earth was he suppose to know?
She drew as much strength as she could and pushed him back, this time he didn't resist, letting her push but still having her at arm's length.
"And how were you suppose to know Darien? Magically, did you expect some secret letter to fall from the sky with the truth? I kept the secret Darien, it was MY secret. And I'm actually not sorry at all that I kept it from all of you! I know I'm not a great leader, I know that you spent more time saving me than fighting but it was MY choice. And for that I'm sorry, for putting your lives in danger because of me needing protection. However I'm not sorry that I was able to fight by your sides. That I was considered part of the team instead of some side dish like it was originally meant! And if you're going to be angry then it will be at ME not you!"
It was out, and sounded out. Her new found confidence on the matter surprised her. She watched Darien's reaction carefully, he looked shocked, then somewhat guilty, then he had her back in his arms in less than a second.
"I'm sorry" He whispered and he really sounded sorry.
"I'm sorry too" It was the truth, she was, for so many things she was.
"So you're taking the job?" Asked the blonde as she attacked her double decker ice cream cone.
"At least until I can find a better one" He said as they walked together, they'd silently agreed on not mentioning anything that had to do with Scout business.
"I'm sure you will Darien"
"And what are you planning on doing with your first free summer?" Asked Darien teasingly.
"I'm actually planning on spending it at the hospital with Annie and the other kids" The seriousness in her voice surprised even Darien.
"Serena, how come you never told me just how much time you spent volunteering at the hospital?"
She looked at her ice cream nervously.
"I was afraid I guess"
"Why? Didn't you think I would support it?"
"I was afraid that you might say something bad about it… half my life is in that hospital Darien, it always has been"
"Yet you don't want to be a nurse?"
"I don't like the profession, it just doesn't suit me. I'm more of a cheer on person I guess. And I like it better when I actually help the patients emotionally"
"Well you sure helped me when I was in the hospital after the battle with Beryl."
Serena smiled as she remembered. They had both lost their memories of each other then, yet Serena remembered slipping into his room after seeing him laying on the hospital bed with that distressed look on his face.
"Is there anything else you'd like to tell me Serena?" Asked Darien taking the opportunity to let her reveal anything she still needed to say.
"(Chuckle) That bad eh?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean I've messed up that bad for you to feel like asking me if there's anything else I'd like to confess"
"No, I was just trying to-"
"Don't worry about it Darien, I know how this must look. I know how bad it looks to ME… and Trey kept asking me to tell you all the truth, but I just couldn't bring myself to. (sigh) Agh, gods I'm so stupid" She threw her head back as she spoke. Then something popped in her mind.
"Actually Darien, there IS something else, one final thing"
He embraces himself for the worst. To his great shock she quickly finished her ice cream cone and before he can process anything else trapped him in an open mouth kiss. He could still taste the remaining ice cream in her mouth. She pulled him down toward her, lacking gentleness. She just wanted to surprise him and she sure did, he was bending down to kiss her and she was actually in control for once. Soon she ended the kiss after several minutes and several peeking toms passed by.
She had an innocent smile plastered on her face as she released him. And she was about to turn around to keep walking when a strong hand gripped her arm, turning her completely around. In seconds he had his lips covering hers in another deep kiss. Bu tthis time he took her by the waist and moulded her to fit his body like he'd done so many times before. Their minds went out the window with no hope of coming back as their tongues battled.
It wasn't until someone passing by cleared their throat and mumbled a 'get a room' that they parted. Both actually blushing but grinning like mad.
Serena lived for moments like this, they were what gave her strength, life.
She still hadn't heard from her friends and she was getting worried. However she didn't have enough confidence to go to them and ask them their feelings. Truth was she was terrified, she was waiting for them to make the first move toward her. The last thing she wanted was to push them, even if it wasn't that much of a big deal anymore didn't mean they wouldn't be angry at her.
She felt like going to the hospital but she had just come from there. Rini wasn't home, according to her mom she'd gone over to Rey's. They were all probably talking things over right now. She sighed, looking at the ceiling of her room wasn't helping. She needed to distract herself. But was afraid to leave the house and have them call while she wasn't there. Her eyes landed on her closet, thinking of the things she had in there, well more like THE thing she had in there. In one swift motion she was up and walking toward the close doors of the closet. Opening them she dug through some hanged clothes to the end and reached blindly for the box she knew was there.
She kept it well hidden at all times. The last thing she wanted was for someone to find her 'treasures'. She sat on the floor, the box beside her and opened the lids. Inside were a number of videocassettes all labelled, two picture albums, one yellow, one maroon and several other trinkets. She took out the maroon picture album, sprawled it on her lap and opened it. In it sat a large number of pictures all neatly organized by date.
These were Celene's photo albums. She kept everything, tapes, pictures, diaries, small things. The girl had had an obsession about keeping every detail of her life as intact as possible. Something Serena had found weird in their childhood but cherished now that she didn't have her. She looked carefully at the pictures, her lips forming into a beautiful smile as she absorbed them through her eyes. They were pictures of Celene and Serena when they were kids, pictures of Trey, of her mom, of Celene's mom. Pictures of everyday life as well as birthdays and picnics, even school.
Her eyes came to rest upon one of the pictures, one of her favourites. It was of Celene, Trey and her. They were all standing in front of a huge tree, Celene and Serena stood arm by arm while Trey had both his hands resting on each girl's shoulder. It was the 'perfect' picture of the three of them. All looked happy, all looked good.
She skipped several pages until almost the end of the thick book, her eyes glazing through each picture until finding the one she wanted. She stared at it for what felt like forever. It was one of Trey and Celene, alone. Trey stood about an inch taller than Celene with both his arms around her, his face beside her and her hands in his.
It was a beautiful picture, it had been taken just a day before Celene's death. Just a week ago both had confessed their feelings and like Serena liked to put it 'hooked up'.
She suddenly got an idea, it would require a trip to the photo shop and a picture frame. It would be the perfect present for Trey and hopefully it would give him the strength to continue living. She heard the phone downstairs ring, sighing she closed the book on her lap, knowing it would be her friends.
Her mother's voice announcing the caller confirmed her suspicion, she stood up and went downstairs.
"Serena here"
"Hey Serena it's me Lita, we're all at Rey' temple could you come right now please?"
"Yeah sure Lita, I'll be right there"
They both hanged up, She wasn't surprised at the slightest.
"Mom I'll be going to Rey's temple for a while. I'll be back in time for dinner" She yelled.
"Ok honey, Rini also said she was going over to Rey's"
"Yeah, she's there right now"
She ran upstairs to tidy up but as she walked into her room and saw the photo album on her carpet something hit her. It would be a great idea if she took the maroon photo album with her, after all the scouts deserved to meet their true leader at least in pictures.
Amazed at the flow of ideas in her brain she smiled proudly. And in minutes she was out of her house carrying a plastic bag with a book inside.
"What exactly are we going to tell her guys? That we're sorry she had to get her butt kicked?"
"What do we say in a situation like this?"
"I can't believe she was so irresponsible and not tell us something this important!" Haruka's words sounded harsh she knew, but they held worry.
"She was being responsible Haruka, that's why she did it" Corrected Michiru.
"Rini did your mom tell you anything about the letter before you left?"
"She just told me to give the letter to Luna, and when I asked what it was she said it was something very important."
"Why didn't I notice it sooner?" It was Luna's voice, Artemis beside her trying to cheer the cat up. She'd been feeling guilty since she'd read the letter.
"It wasn't like she helped by telling us about Celene either."
The sight of a two pig tailed blonde girl paused their discussion. Serena was nervous but was good as hiding it.
"Hey everyone" She greeted with her usual cheerfulness. They all smiled at her but didn't return the greeting. "So what's up?"
"We haven't really gotten the chance to talk to you about… Celene" Said Rey.
"I know… what would you like to know?"
"You should have told us" The simple sentence made her grin.
"And what then? I would tell you and you wouldn't let me be Sailor Moon again. Trust me I ran the simulation in my head half a million times, every time we defeated a new enemy I would plan on telling you then a new one would show up and I would have to keep it again. I had to do what was best for the world you guys, please don't be angry with me for that"
"We're not mad, just… concerned"
"You took a lot of unnecessary risks over these past few years Serena."
"I think saving people's lives and the earth is a necessary risk!" She defended.
There was silence from everyone. They all knew she was right, yet they couldn't just forget about it. It was Serena who broke the silence.
"I brought some pictures of Celene. I thought you deserved to at least see who was suppose to be Sailor Moon."
She took out the book from the bag and sat on the first step of the entrance to Rey's house. The scouts silently gathered around her.
The first picture they saw was of a little girl, round face, pink cheeks, dark purple hair and redish eyes. She was smiling a full happy smile and wore a pink shirt that rode down her shoulder and pants. She had a look on her face that meant business.
"We were ten in this picture" said Serena
"And here," She pointed to the next page "Trey is messing up Celene's hair, I took these picture on the day…"
"Whose photo album is this?" Interrupted Mina.
"Celene's, she carried a camera everywhere we went. It drove us crazy sometimes. But she filled book after book with photos, and then when she discovered the tape recorder she taped every outing… I used to find it annoying now I'm thankful."
The girls watched as Serena turned each page, revealing a new scene, a new place, the pictures just radiated energy. Most of the pictures had Serena and Celene together, a few with Trey and other with other unrecognizable people. It was one particular image that grabbed their attention.
Serena, Trey and Celene stood around a couple holding a newborn baby.
"The baby is Annie, the girl you met at the hospital. And the woman is Nikki, her mother. She babysat me from the time I was a baby to the time I turned twelve and they had to move away. I actually helped deliver Annie"
"You did?"
"Yeah, Annie was two weeks early and we were stranded in the middle my grandmother's farm. My grandmother served as midwife and Celene and I helped while Trey phoned all over Tokyo looking for her husband Michael… it was a busy day all right"
Serena chuckled as she remembered the day, by the time the picture had been taken they'd all been ready to collapse on the floor.
"Is that your grandmother?"
Serena looked at the picture with great tenderness. A woman, around her late sixties stood beside a blooming Sakura tree, a big happy smile on her face. Her eyes shone with a mischievous twinkle.
"Yeah" Her voice was soft, remembering the woman who had taught her so much and loved her even more.
"It seems Celene was a straight to the point kind of person"
"Oh yeah, but she was always ten steps ahead of everyone else. She never liked standing around, her moto was that if we had been brought into this world it sure wasn't just so we could stand around and do nothing with out lives"
"Sounds like a great way of living life"
"It was, unfortunately it was also what got her killed" The scouts looked at Serena with worry, but the blonde never met their gazes. Instead she kept staring at the pictures in the book. "I got over it… it took me a long time but eventually I did… watching my friends die in battle while trying to protect me really made me understand why she did what she did for me…"
They nodded, and in their eyes she saw something she'd missed…
Understanding, compassion, love.
Sorry for taking so long, I forgot to upload thsi chapter... (stupid me) But good news! next chapter will be here this week! Yay.. ok (Smiles, waves, and runs for cover to teh woods)
