Yup Yup, hi all. Yes, I am alive, with another installment of SAW. I actually forgot what my last update was…eep bad me. Any way, R&R please, and feel free to comment on most of it, because yeah…I want to post SAW 2 soon…If you want a disclaimer see chapter one.
Plans for departure
The sirens were gone when I woke up. The ceiling above me was not mine, was what I first registered, and then the pain began to spread thru my body. "Ow." I closed my eyes and willed no tears to come from them. It worked, and in the middle of it, Darien came into where ever I was and whatever I was on. Wow, that is sad, I concluded. I blinked at him. He blinked at me. No one said anything.
General
"I……um, thanks. I guess…." She began to weave invisibility around herself, but was stopped by an equally stronger force. "I have a favor to ask." She stopped actively casting to listen. "Speak." The man stepped into the sunlight, and chuckled. "You really are a royal." She didn't like this guy, and maybe that was because he was Darien.
"Say your favor." He laughed and looked at her strangely. "Give me a blood sample." She blinked. "Why?" He crossed his arms. "Do I have to tell you?" "Is it for good or bad?" Darien shrugged. "It's in the eye of the beholder." She considered it, and finally agreed. "It's payment for what you did then. Take me to your apartment." Darien did a mock bow. "Fine, Princess, follow me." She began to follow, and then set invisibility around herself. Darien felt this. "You made a deal." She nodded but he couldn't see her anyway. "I know. Do you want the attention of the only living technically a fugitive senshi in your apartment?" He hadn't stopped walking. "Good point. Know that I can sense you." That alarmed her just so slightly. She had had no idea that Darien was this powerful.
Well, now Serena knew where Darien lived, even if knowing meant she was Sailor Moon. A well-placed lie would have to cover if that happened. Covering a yawn, she stepped into his apartment, not really surprised at how boring and bachelor-ic it looked. She dismissed her spell, and found a wall to lean against. This was why favors were hated, when they came when she was the busiest, the most tired, or hungriest. Holding up the senshi costume really wasn't helping much either. Resisting closing her eyes, she found Darien staring at her, until she finally stood up. "Let's get this over." She walked over to where Darien indicated, next to a needle. Suppressing a shudder, she pulled down her glove enough to see a vein and looked away. Darien didn't move. Looking at him, she glared, hopefully not having to say it. He was looking amused. Walking over to where his stuff was on, he pulled out a cotton ball with something wet on it.
Sailor Moon said nothing but just held out her arm. "Is the mighty Sailor Moon afraid of a little needle?" She turned to glare again. "Just do this and let me leave." He didn't know that she was exhausted, hospital material, or starving, so she really couldn't blame him directly. Thinking about taking it out on Sammy, she realized that she forgot. Again. She moved her hair over her shoulder to hide her face and her thoughts. Sailor Moon really didn't care that Darien found this odd.
Sailor Moon could here him pulling out a box of something glass and a suffocating silence took over. "Do you have any plans for the holidays?" Darien was trying to make small talk to relax her, which she found funny, and didn't want to answer, but answered anyway. "I'll have the house to myself." He took this for a no. "Are you visiting any family?" She blinked back a traitorous tear. Her voice still came out choked. "They're dead." Darien didn't know how to take that. He had always assumed that Sailor Moon and her family were the very pictures of perfect holidays. "Are you spending any time with your family?" She tensed feeling the needle enter her skin. Darien started to get his blood sample. "No, they are also dead." She knew that she hadn't been alone with that situation, but was surprised that Darien didn't have any family. He always looked so happy. "Sorry."
The needle was leaving her skin. Finally, it was gone. Darien stood up and looked at the needle, then turned around to put it in a box. She didn't want to know what it was for. Standing up, she found she was getting stiff, and that most of her healing she had already done began to reverse itself. Not registering pain on her face, she looked for the exit then at Darien. "I have repaid you. Where is the exit?" Darien closed the box, revealing a crescent moon surrounded on the box with the other planetary signs. Those had just revealed them selves to both Moon and Darien. Sailor Moon was beginning to find this creepy. "The exit is over their, or a balcony is down the hall, whichever your kind prefers." Darien just noticed that insignia and then looked at Sailor Moon's face. "Something wrong?"
She turned away and started to head towards the door. She had a feeling that trying to fly would hurt tonight. "No, nothing. Happy Holidays." She summoned up the invisibility spell before turning the doorknob. Darien looked like he was about to say something. "What?" Now he looked rather uncomfortable. "Maybe do you want to make a stop by on Christmas Princess? I'll leave chocolate chip cookies." She gave him an odd look. "I'll think about it." Finally, she escaped from that stifling apartment.
Darien
I had had no idea what made me invite The Sailor Moon to stop by for Christmas nor about the chocolate chips cookies. When she had left the apartment, I turned to look at the top of the little box again. Now it was flat, and had no remnant of an insignia. He must be tired. Looking at the Slide container, he decided to put it off for later, considering how late in the morning it was and that he had agreed to meet Andrew at the arcade, then to do a little Christmas shopping. Looking at the clock, he saw he had four hours to get some sleep before Andrew would come calling. Making a mental note to somehow take out the blood that Sailor moon had been sitting it, he went to bed.
However, just as he was drifting off to sleep, he thought about how inconsiderate of himself it had been to demand Sailor Moon's attention after a fight, and how he would probably get coal for Christmas now. It was too bad that he never believed in anything anyway.
Serena
I finally made it home around five am, and I had a total of five hours to shower, sleep, re-bandage, and then get up to decide to Christmas shop for the few remaining people to shop for. Deciding to put the shower off, she started to re-bandage temporarily and turned on the news. "To commemorate the fallen senshi for protecting Tokyo, they will be buried the day after Christmas, and a memorial will be had on Christmas day. Anyone interested call this number…" She dropped her roll of bandages and ran for a pen and paper. Writing the number down, she grabbed the phone and quickly dialed three numbers, then the phone number. "Yes, Channel 21 News? I'd like to speak during the memorial, yes; my name is Sailor Moon…"
Sleep came uneasy, like every other night of sleep for her since that night, and several hours of tossing and turning later, Serena gave up trying, since she had begun to feel watched. Since she had made that call in the morning, something had come easier for her, like her spirit was partly settled. After a shower, she sat in front of her mirror. Reaching for her brush, something stopped her eyes and directed them towards her mirror face. A scene then of the hospital, and of her past played before her eyes.
We were in the hospital room, with each in our beds. Pluto was actively struggling, as if trying to break bonds. I kept unmoving in my own bed. A glow came from the dark jewel of Pluto's bow, but after a flash was white. Highness…../ your highness, you have to know something before I leave./ you have to leave before it is too late. The evil is not gone, and will start to hunt you down before you can recover, if you do…I cannot tell you everything, there is no time, but know that you must live, you must destroy it…you must destroy it….I am sorry I cannot do any more to help you, but please, take….this….. That was what Serena had heard in her head, or at least an attempt on mind speech, but now she heard it again, clearer. My body convulsed, and then settled as the energy held by Pluto was released into my body, and left Pluto still. A second later, words, said in Lunarian, which I'd thought no one else but I remembered it, were weakly spoken. "Queen….Bunny…find Saturn…time….he will help you…..the prince…I'm sorry..."
I really didn't want to remember that Pluto had given her life for mine, nor for any more of this, but more images came.
My mother was in her throne room, speaking to someone in the chair next to her own. "Dedric, have you spoken to your son?" Dedric nodded, understanding the Lunarian. "Yes, he is, well, how shall I put it," Dedric looked like he was fishing for words. My mother smiled. "He is not really happy about it." Dedric looked up, slightly relieved. "Selenity is also resisting. However, it is politics. The result will be greater than the personal feelings." Dedric, an apparent king, looked just as guilty as Queen Serenity. "Father." The large double doors flew open, and a prince walked in. His black blue hair and sapphire eyes reminded her of something, but she could not picture what. His words were spoken in another language, and she did not understand it. A few moments later, a princess with double buns, a white dress, and large pair of black wings flew in from the window. "Mother, I refuse to marry this over bearing egotistical brute."
The mirror faded to the blank glass that is always had. Wow. That was a lot, maybe to much to handle. So, Pluto had spoken Lunarian, she had a mission against something evil again, she was going to be married in her past life, and she had a pair of black wings as that princess. This was a lot of info. My life was beginning to look bleaker and bleaker; all the while, I am needed more and more. Do I really need to be on this world? Couldn't I just end it here?
A breeze through her open window made the framed photos on her nightstand. Standing up to fix them, the bright eyes of Mina, Lita, Reye, and Ami stared up at me. I stared for a few moments before a tear hit the glass, which then I put it down as quickly as possible, and turned it around. I stood there a moment, and then turned the frame around again. "Sere, don't forget us. You can do it alone, remember, you can find your help, even if he doesn't stare you in the face." I blinked. Did a picture just talk to me? I forgot that temporarily as a loud crashing noise made me turn to my window. A breeze had shut my window, from the inside. You would think that several years of fighting odd monsters would make me less afraid of everything, but it did nothing for creepy-ness.
Crossing over to the window, not really knowing what I was checking for, a piece of rolled up paper caught my eye on the floor. Picking it up, I found that it wasn't paper, but parchment. Granted, my history was old, but not that old. I sat down on my bed to unroll it, as the think nearly crumbled in my hands. It was written in Lunarian.
"Take the bodies to the crypt under the ocean. There, they will be at rest." The only ocean I knew that had a crypt under it was the moon, and that was the royal crypt. At least whoever left the note wasn't big on riddles. Still, it was odd. I looked to my calendar, and flipped it open to the current month with a flick of the hand. Today was Sunday, and the burials were six days away. If I had had everyone else alive, it could be easily done in under a day, unfortunately, they were the reason I was going.
Calculating, I would need to build up power a good day or two in advance, to carry the bodies up there. There, I would be out for a good day, and then the ceremony could be done, or what ever my mother wanted me to do with their bodies. Getting back wouldn't need a day to prepare, but I would still be out of it for a while, and this would have to be done before new Years, which really should be no problem. Sighing, I brought my calendar to me, along with a pen. In Tuesday through Friday, I wrote in lunar business and then stretched out on my bed. It really didn't matter when because I had no obligations that I knew of until Andrew's new years party, and that could be missed. Rolling over, I saw the clock read ten.
Was there any purpose in Christmas shopping? Actually, I had to keep up a charade of giving gifts to my family, because I had bought gifts for the others already, and then Andrew and Darien already. If I was going to do something with my destiny, I guess then that I had to give them a proper burial. That meant that I had two days before I went into meditation and to get the bodies back. I guess hitting the mall wouldn't hurt, if it was the last thing I did before heeding Pluto's warning, and I really didn't think about it due to someone being after my head and all that stuff. For some odd reason, the presence that I had not wanted to acknowledge began to be more of a chill.
Rolling back over, I decided that if I was going to get out of the house it would have to be now, for I will have something to do tonight. Pushing myself up, I went to go find something to wear.
Armed with the money my parents had left me, I left the house, mildly pleased that the injuries I had sustained hadn't gotten worse with exception of bruises. Actually, the day wasn't looking to bad. The only other good day like this had been right before my parents had gone, or when I was Sailor Venus in the Sailor V game, and Darien had made that odd inquirer about beating my score. I was proud that the only other person I had gotten more of a challenge was Sailor V herself. Okay, maybe I was acting with an ego, but if it kept up my mood and made me forget temporarily, it was good. It was also good to be able to die and not really die. It was nothing like before, but it was something. The odd chill was back again.
The mall was not like it used to be, not with me being alone and stuff. It was still crowded, over priced, and rude, but then again, the entire world was. Finding the little lobby in the corner, I sat down and stared at the list of people I had to buy for. The top people were my family, which I could lie about and say that I had already bought them something. I thought about the people I would miss. As much as I hated to admit it, Darien was right up there with Andrew, and my teacher for the past 10 years was important. Molly used to be my best friend, until we grew apart, but she was right there as I was growing up. Later her boyfriend Melvin became more of a friend than a pest, so he deserved a parting gift, to. Maybe I could create something for the senshi parents, since they lost their kids and all. Ooo, maybe mother would like a corporal item for the holidays she never celebrated, even if she could only use a few of them.
Now I just had to put on a perky mask for everyone else. Just as she headed out to the main mall, she wondered where the bodies were. As if it was monitoring her, the TV above her head gave a TV news bulletin. "After the senshi memorial, the bodies of the fallen senshi will be taken out of the government morgue in a precession to the national cemetery." Smiling truly for the first time in days, I actually was looking forward to the holiday season.
Around noon, I ran into Andrew and Darien. Actually, that is literal, but I had managed to avoid acting perky for the first hour or so. Really, I didn't act it at all, and just was distracted, like I naturally was. "You really miss them." I nodded, just registering that phrase and no other part of the conversation. Then I realized that I had no clue to what was going on. I looked up from my uneaten pizza to find them both staring at me. "What? Sorry, I'm a little spacey today." Andrew repeated how he thought that I missed my friends whit them being on vacation. Sure, I never thought death would be a vacation, but sure. "Yeah." I laughed, not there and went back to staring at my pizza. Darien asked Andrew about something, he laughed, and I got up. "Um, guys, I have to hurry with the rest of my shopping. I have to go somewhere in two days and I still have to pack." Actually, that wasn't a lie. Fleeing, I could feel their eyes boring into my bruised back.
That's it. Please tell me what you think of it, and it would be appreciated if you did review. Any questions can be sent to my email at Arcanewitch05yahoo.
This has been another installment by Saturns Darkness