A/N- Sorry guys that this has taken me so long! Last week was hell. First my ATM card didn't work, then I got a flat tire, lost a race, was sick all week, and other shit happened. But the chapter is here! So I hope you like it and it does have yet another twist for you guys!
cosmos serenity- thank you! What would a Sere/Dare story be without the bickering? There will be more of course, but the amount will lessen.
Dertupio- thank you! Here's the next chapter. Sorry it took so long!
Anonymous- Sorry it's taken me so long… way too much has been going on! And great job on your reviewing skills
Moon Titan- thank you for reviewing. When I get reviews it makes me want to write! It's good to know people liked the last part because I wasn't too sure if it was too early or not…
MoonieB- thank you! I have no idea where I got the idea, but I was pretty sure people hadn't done something like this. I just find Sere/Dare bickering funny so I had to put it in.
sailorceb- thanks!
peaceful blossom- Well now you're caught up. I think everyone is busy with life right now. I know I am and last week was hell for me. Everything kept going wrong, but now everything is all good so here's the next chapter.
raechan-17- You did a great job reviewing! Updating as fast as I can.
ffgirlmoonie- It's going to be getting more interesting in this chapter and the next. One twist after another, but that's how I like it.
AmberJupiter- Well Serenity would be mad, but things happen as you're about to see.
"So are you two friends now?" Lita asked looking at Serenity and Darien that evening. They sat on the same sofa, but on different ends making sure there was plenty of space between them.
"I guess." Serenity mumbled looking at Darien and giving him a small smile. Ever since the kiss they had shared in the bathroom Darien and Serenity had been avoiding each other as much as they could. They tried to be in separate rooms, but when they were finally forced into the same room they became silent and unmoving.
"Darien, we need to finalize our plans." Malachite said walking into the room and relieving some of the tension. Mina was hanging on his arm and smiling like an idiot.
Darien simply nodded and got up from the sofa. Malachite got Mina off his arm and walked with Darien out of the room. Before Darien disappeared into the hall he looked back to find Serenity watching him. Their eyes met for a brief second before Serenity turned her head away to hide her blush and Darien left the room completely.
"What happened?" Rei asked looking at Serenity.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Serenity answered.
"Alright let me rephrase that. What happened between you and Darien to change your attitude?" Rei asked again.
"Nothing, I have no clue why you think anything has changed." Serenity answered again.
"So all these sighs, the blushing when he's near, no more fighting, and other small things are just because you feel like it? I don't believe you." Rei said.
"What, can't we be friends or is that not allowed?" Serenity asked. "From my point of view it looks like you are with Jadeite and shouldn't be worrying about anyone else's love life!"
"I'm just stating the obvious!" Rei shouted back.
"Both of you be quiet!" Mina huffed standing up. Rei and Serenity shut their mouths and glared at each other as Mina sat back down. "Serenity, she is right though. Your attitude towards Darien has changed. His attitude towards you has changed as well. We were just wondering why. Rei, you need to calm down and not press matters farther than needed."
Serenity and Rei looked at each other and offered small smiles before visibly relaxing in their seats.
"Mina and Rei are right Serenity. I've never seen you act this way around anyone, not even Andrew." Lita said.
"Serenity, we know something happened we just want to know what." Amy said.
"What if I don't want to share?" Serenity asked pulling her knees up to her chest.
"That would be a first. Serenity, it might help to get this out and stop bottling it up inside." Lita said as she sat down next to Serenity and pulled her into a hug.
"We kissed." Serenity said. Rei and Mina exchanged a glance and Lita looked at Amy with wide eyes.
"Was he your first kiss?" Mina asked.
"No, but… but…" Serenity tried to find the words, but eventually gave up and looked at her hands.
"He reminds you of him doesn't he?" Amy asked.
"Who does Darien remind you of?" Rei asked.
"My first and only love." Serenity muttered. Tears had begun to flow and sobs began to rack her body.
"Serenity, go to your room and get some sleep. I'll come get you for dinner." Lita said. Serenity nodded before she dashed off into the hallway and into her room.
"Who was he?" Mina asked turning her attention to Amy.
"He was a prince that used to visit the castle often. He practically lived there. He was Serenity's first love, but I sense she might be beginning to find love once more, but in another man." Amy explained.
"What happened to him?" Mina asked again.
"It isn't my story to tell, but what pretty much happened was that he left one day after saying goodbye to Serenity and promising to return to her. He never returned and no one has seen him since." Amy said. "Serenity vowed to love no one else. Some of the same emotions are probably starting to awaken in her and she's scared. She's been avoiding love this whole time and now she's forced to face it and doesn't know what to do."
"Is that why she ran away from Diamond?" Rei asked.
"She believes her prince will be back for her so she's going to wait for him. Plus she's hated Diamond since the first day they met." Amy explained.
"I can understand why. I met him once. Most unpleasant man I've ever met." Mina said.
"Lita, did you ever meet this prince?" Rei asked.
"No, he left a couple years before I arrived and started working at the Castle Ceinlys." Lita said.
"Poor thing, this must be so hard for her." Mina said. After a few moments of silence the girls started talking about happier subjects. They were mostly on a quest to find out Amy's true feelings towards Zoicite.
oOoOoOo
In another room of the house…
"So Darien is there something going on between you and Serenity?" Malachite asked.
"No, nothing has happened since she left me in the room." Darien answered.
"Now we know you're lying because she pushed you into the bath that you had dumped her in!" Jadeite exclaimed.
"Yes, but that's it." Darien said.
"Right." All the guys said rolling their eyes.
"If she's told Mina or Rei…" Jadeite said before Nephrite interrupted him.
"Or Lita…"
"Or Amy…" Zoicite continued.
"…We'll find out. Its better we hear from you." Jadeite finished.
"Fine you guys really want to know? We kissed. Nothing more nothing less. She didn't even respond!" Darien said.
"Who initiated the kiss?" Jadeite asked.
"Well, I did. It was quick though. It was more like a peck because Mina knocked on the door."
"So, now what? You're going to try and court her?" Nephrite asked.
"I don't know. I don't know anything about how I feel right now. I just know one thing and it's that we need to get back to the ship. The crew has probably caused enough trouble as it is." Darien said.
"So how are we going to get Serenity on the ship?" Malachite asked.
"Why don't we take all the girls. Same sleeping arrangements…" Jadeite suggested
"Zoi, will you stay with me so Serenity can stay with Amy?" Darien ordered more than asked.
"But I wanted to talk to Amy." Zoicite complained.
"You'll have plenty of time to talk to her." Darien said. "We're going to be out on sea. There's not a whole lot we can do and there's no place she can go. Now we just need to figure out how to get them onto the ship without the crew noticing."
"That shouldn't be hard. Someone goes in to find where everyone is. That night we bring the girls and put them on the ship. Everyone returns the next morning and we're good to go." Jadeite said.
"That sounds like a plan." Darien nodded. For about an hour longer the guys talked about what they would need before they set sail and where they would go.
"Guys, dinner's ready!" Lita called from outside the door. The guys all looked at each other and got up from their chairs. They all filed into the dinning room where they found the table set, food ready to go, and four girls.
"Where's Serenity?" Darien asked.
"She was in your room." Rei said nonchalantly.
"I'll go get her. She's probably fallen asleep." Lita said. She quietly got up from the table and made her way to Darien's room. Not hearing any noise she opened the door to find a figure curled up on the side of the bed.
"Serenity, it's time to get up." Lita called. "Serenity, this isn't funny, dinner is ready and everyone is waiting." Lita walked over and stood in front of the figure. "Serenity, you are known for your sleeping habits, but this is ridiculous." Lita pulled the covers back to just find a bunch of pillows under the covers. "What have you done now?" Lita asked looking out the open window.
Lita ran back into the dining room to where everyone was waiting. "What's wrong?" Mina asked.
"She's… she's gone." Lita gasped. "The window is open and there were just pillows under the covers."
"WHAT?" Everyone exclaimed. Darien was the first one out the door followed by the others. Nephrite stayed with Lita who took her time getting back to the room.
"She took my pair of pants and my shirt." Amy said walking into the room.
"We need to go look for her." Darien ordered.
"No, what we need to do is get a plan ready." Malachite said stopping Darien.
"Malachite's right, there's a storm getting ready outside. If we aren't careful someone else can go missing or get hurt." Zoicite added.
"We'll stay here and get some towels ready in case it does rain." Rei said.
Darien just nodded and looked at Malachite. "She should have left tracks. Before I came to the ship I was taught how to hunt and track. So we can track her until we find where she's going or until we find her." Nephrite said.
"Good enough." Darien said. Everyone walked outside and got ready to go. Each guy had a gun strapped to the hip just in case they found someone that was looking for a fight.
Nephrite, Jadeite, and Malachite all got a hug and kiss from their girls while Amy offered Zoicite a small hug. Darien walked to the end of the porch and stared out into the forest.
After Amy had given Zoicite a hug she walked over to Darien. "She's hot headed and doesn't think things through. She gets it from her father." Amy said quietly. "Though her father learned how to use it to his advantage. She might not be ready to come back so be prepared for a fight."
"I'm expecting one. Tell the girls I want to know why Serenity left when I get back."
"Of course, I would have been worried if you didn't want to know. Be careful around her though. She's confused about her feelings right now and you aren't helping things."
"She's not helping me either." Darien muttered. Amy just patted his back and laughed at his comment.
"She'll come around. Just give her time." Amy said. "Good luck and bring her home."
"I plan to." Darien said and walked off the porch to where the guys were waiting for him. Within minutes they found her tracks and were following them into the forest…
oOoOoOo
In the forest
"Great, look what I've done now!" Serenity muttered. All around her were trees as far as the eye could see. Serenity just kept walking hoping some kind of landmark or even a person would appear.
Finally a road appeared, but as she got to it the sky erupted into a fit of rain drops and thunder and lightening.
"I don't think this could get any worse." Serenity muttered. Her clothes were becoming soaked, she was cold, and there was no life form on the road. As she mumbled to herself Serenity didn't pay attention to where she was walking and accidentally tripped on a root.
"OW!" She howled as she held her throbbing ankle. Tears started pouring down her face and Serenity knew from past experience that she wouldn't be able to walk on the heel. She leaned onto one of the trees and waited for someone to come and help her.
"Miss, miss are you alright?" A voice asked. Serenity turned her head and saw a young man bending down to where she was sitting.
"I'm soaking wet, have no clue where I am and I seem to have injured my ankle. Yes, I'm just great!" Serenity exclaimed.
"Someone's the real joker aren't they? My name is Seiya." The young man said.
Serenity's mind scrambled looking for a name to give Seiya. She didn't want to put so much trust into the stranger, but yet again she was just staying with a group of pirates. "My name is Usagi. I'm a friend of Lady Amy and her father Lord Alec." Serenity lied.
"Since you're wet, why don't you come with me to my manor? My brothers and I live up this road just a little bit. You are welcome to stay there as long as you need." Seiya offered.
"Um, I guess so." Serenity said. Seiya offered her his hand and she accepted it. Then he gently picked her up so she didn't have to walk on her foot and carried her over to his carriage.
"I thought you said you had brothers." Serenity said looking into the carriage and not finding anyone.
"I do, but they're home already. Here's a blanket you can stay warm in." Seiya said as he handed her a big quilt.
"Thank you." Serenity smiled. Seiya smiled back at her and watched as Serenity got comfortable. He signaled to the driver to go and soon the carriage was moving once more. After a while the rocking motion of the carriage and the exhaustion of the day's events caught up to Serenity and she fell asleep leaning on the side of the carriage.
oOoOoOo
In the forest, Darien and the guys
"Darien we need to go back! This storm is just getting worse!" Malachite yelled over the rain.
"No! Serenity is out here somewhere!" Darien shouted back.
"Darien, we know you love her, but you need to stay strong in order to find her!" Nephrite shouted.
"She's probably regained her head and has headed home. Even is she hasn't she's a smart girl and will find some shelter!" Zoicite yelled.
"We can pick up the search tomorrow!" Jadeite added. Darien looked between his four closest friends and then at his surroundings. The rain was coming down harder and a wind was starting to pick up. He just growled at his frustration, turned around, and headed home.
When they got back to the cabin they found dry towels and four young women waiting for them. Without any words exchanged the guys all left to get changed and the women started to get dinner ready again.
"I want to know exactly what happened." Darien said as he sat down. His voice was low and dangerous and the girls were scared to tell him. Rei started to explain what happened with the bickering and them bothering Serenity into telling them what happened.
Darien's look just got madder and madder as the story went on and made all the girls uncomfortable. "You guys should have known better." He growled.
"How were we supposed to know she would do this?" Rei asked.
"Well you shouldn't have tried! It is rude and mean to do that to someone!" Darien yelled.
"This coming from the man who terrorizes other ships for a living." Rei shouted back.
"I'm not hungry. I'll see you four in the morning. We're going to find her tomorrow." Darien said. He got up and left the room without another word to anyone. Everyone had a couple more bites till the events of the day caught up to them and they all retired back to their rooms.
"Darien?" Rei called from outside his door.
"What?" Darien answered.
"I just wanted to say I'm sorry. Everything has just been really stressful and I don't know what came over me." Rei explained.
"I understand Rei. For some reason Serenity's every action seems to control my mood." Darien said looking out the window and into the rain.
"You love her Darien. That's supposed to be expected." Rei said walking up to him.
"How can you be so sure?"
"Its how I feel with Jed. Get some sleep Darien. You'll need your health, head, and strength to find her and bring her home." Rei said.
Darien just nodded and looked at Rei with sad eyes. Rei excused herself from the room and close the door, leaving Darien in the dark and staring out the window.
"Where are you Sere?" Darien asked the person he wished he could talk to.
oOoOoOo
At Seiya's manor
"Usagi, wake up." Seiya said as he gently shook the girl that had been sitting across from him. Serenity looked up and around her, startled at first, but she calmed down once she remembered what had happened.
"We're at the manor." Seiya said. He helped Serenity out of the carriage and before her injured foot hit the ground he had already picked her up.
"Already bringing a girl home Seiya? You haven't even been to town yet!" A voice laughed from the door.
"Usagi, this is my brother Yaten. Yaten, this is Usagi. She has a twisted ankle. I found her on the side of the forest road." Seiya explained as he walked into the foyer.
"Always the gentleman." Another voice said from behind them.
"And this would be my other brother Taiki." Seiya said.
"Well, let's have a look at your foot." Taiki said. Seiya set Usagi down on a sofa and backed away allowing Taiki to look at her foot. "Well, it is swelling, but not as bad as a true twisted ankle. You should be able to walk on it tomorrow."
"Thank you." Serenity whispered.
"And she speaks!" Yaten exclaimed.
"Why don't we get you some food and then find you a room to stay in so you can get some sleep? Here, I'll help you." Seiya said. He once more picked up Serenity and walked her into another room which she guessed was the dining room.
She talked to all three brothers over dinner. She found out their likes, dislikes, and joked around with Yaten which was easily distinguished as the family clown. After dinner Seiya once more helped Serenity to a room so she could sleep. A nightgown had been set out on the bed waiting for her.
"I think I can change by myself thank you." Serenity said. "Good night, I'll see you in the morning."
"Good night Usagi. Sweet dreams." Seiya said. He bent down and gently kissed the top of her head.
Seiya walked out of the room leaving Serenity to change and get ready for bed. When she was in bed she looked out the window next to her and let out a sigh. "I'm sorry everyone." She muttered before she closed her eyes and allowed sleep to take her once more.
When Seiya left the room he was immediately confronted by his brothers. "Always the gentleman." Yaten said walking up and patting Seiya on the back.
"Another girl for you brother? What are you going to do with her when you're done with her?" Taiki asked.
"She's not like the others. I want her to stay here for a while. I want to get to know her as a person." Seiya answered.
"This is a big change for you Seiya." Yaten said. "But a good one and one we both approve of."
"Yes, now let's get to bed. It has been a long day." Seiya said. Each brother said their good nights and went into their rooms. When Seiya was sure his brothers were gone he crept across the hall and looked back in on Usagi.
"Good night my angel." He whispered to the sleeping form. He promptly returned to his own room where he fell asleep dreaming about a certain golden haired fallen angel who he was lucky enough to find.
A/N- So that's it. There's your next big twist for you! Now how long will it take Darien and the others to find Serenity and what will happen between her and Seiya… that's for me to know and you to find out.
Just to make some things clear… I'm going to be using Serenity's true name most of the time, but when it's focused on Seiya or his brothers she will be called Usagi because that's what they think her name is.
Please review and thank you!
