She found her consoling Lilly in her room. "Hey, can I come in?" Rei asked.
"Sure," Lilly said.
"Why do you even let what he said get to you?" Rei asked.
"Usually I don't, but that really hurt," Lilly said. Something she said made Rei think. She thought over all the other times in the past when they'd argued. Eventually someone always broke it up before things headed too far downhill. Rei wondered what would happen if they were left alone to fight it out. "Lilly, I talked to Erin after the three of you took off. Did you know that not once since you found us, have you even mentioned it to him about this?" Rei asked.
"I just assumed that he knew like everyone else does," Lilly said.
"Well I talked to him, and the reaction I got wasn't just an act. He really didn't know about your dyslexia, or he would never have made that comment," Rei spoke softly to her twin.
"It was still rude," Lilly said.
"You were rude to him, too. He hadn't said anything nasty to you yet. You called him a dumb fuck. Technically, you started this fight with the insult," Rei said.
"Didn't you hear what he asked Rena though?" Lilly asked.
"Yes. He asked how she got you to help her. He wasn't even snotty about it. He just simply asked her a question. I do believe that he asked because, back in the days we were growing up here, you weren't the first to volunteer to help do anything. You've changed though. You're not the same person you were back then, and he isn't either. I know that even though he didn't apologize to you, he regrets what he said," Rei said.
"I know Erin well enough to be inclined to agree with her. Especially considering the fact that he didn't know," Serena said.
"If you agree, that means you owe him a phone call," Lilly said.
Serena sighed. "Rei, can you teleport me to him?" she asked.
"Powers still not working right?" Rei asked.
"No. I think it has to do with being pregnant, though I never had a problem the first time around," Serena answered
After telling Kaden where she was going, Rei teleported Serena to the sun. A place she hadn't been in almost two lifetimes. Serena looked at everything as she passed it. She'd rarely been allowed here growing up. "It's different than the moon, isn't it?" a male voice said from behind her. She stopped to look at a tapestry, but didn't turn. "You can't ignore me forever, Your Majesty," he said.
"Sure I can. I always use to. Besides, that's not my name. Only a title," Serena said and continued to walk on.
"Do you even know where your going then, Serena?" he asked.
"Yes I do. Do you know where I'm going?" she asked, stopping at a seemingly small hole in the wall. She put her finger in the hole and a hidden door opened. It opened silently. She stepped through into a well lit walkway. She smiled to herself as the door closed just as silently behind her.
"How come I never knew about this walkway?"
"Because you were always too busy trying to be better than your sister, whom by the way is doing just fine and says hio" Serena said.
"I should visit her. How's Diana? I heard you took her on for a secretary," he said.
"I did. She excels and does more than I ask of her. I wouldn't trade her for anything," Serena said, stopping at the end of the walkway. "This is where you get off, James. I need to talk with Erin alone. You're a cat. You can find your way back," Serena said dismissively.
"What's beyond the wall?" James asked.
"Erin is," she answered. Knowing he wasn't going to get any more information, he turned and left. Serena shifted her weight from one foot to the other, trying to decide if Erin would talk to her or not. Finally, she pushed gently on the solid wall, it slid forward and to the side, and she stepped through.
Erin looked up in surprise to see his sister standing there. "How'd you get here?" he asked.
"Rei teleported me," she answered, shifting nervously. He stood and walked over to her. He closed the door behind her, then stood in front of her. "I came to apologize," Serena said.
Erin frowned. Serena didn't apologize. "You came all the way to the sun just to apologize to me?" he asked.
"Mostly, yes," Serena answered.
"Why?" he asked.
"Because I hit you, and I shouldn't have and I'm sorry. No one told me to come they just know I'm here. I really am sorry for slapping you. I lost my cool when you said that to Lilly. I just assumed, like she did, that you knew and were using it against her. I'm not apologizing because it's what's right, I'm apologizing because you're my brother and I love you, and I wish I hadn't hit you," Serena said.
"Wow, three apologies in one night. That's a record. Why are you here Serena?" he asked. Hurt flared in her eyes for a moment before she masked it. He saw it and immediately regretted saying that. "I'm sorry I doubted you. It's just not like you to apologize that's all. Come here," he said and pulled her into a hug. She hugged him back. "You said mostly. What does that mean?" he asked.
"It means that I'm going to try to help you get things organized here," Serena said.
"Serena, you haven't even finished organizing the moon. How are you going to help me?" he asked.
"Time management and multi-tasking. Besides, contrary to popular belief, the moon is running a lot smoother now than it was when Mom ruled. I can afford some time to help you. I just have to rearrange some meetings with the girls and a few other diplomats, and have Ari, Dad, and Kaden come and help," Serena said.
"When I take you back in a little bit, can you get Lilly to talk to me for a minute so I can apologize?" he asked.
"I'd love to, but she's already in bed. She usually drops off around this time every night. I'd have her help, but any form of teleporting reeks havoc on her system and she's not much use for a few days," Serena said. Erin smiled. Things were going to be OK between him and Serena now. He knew it.
The next few years seemed to fly by for them all as they organized, rearranged, and fixed the problems with their planets. Soon, the daily meetings were a lot less stressful and a lot more organized. They had all helped Erin get organized the best they could, finding out that the sun kingdoms were in just about as bad of shape as the moon. The rebuilding was coming along slowly but surely, as they wanted as much preserved as possible, and that didn't just happen overnight.
Lilly gave birth to a son, Damien, often referred to as Demon. It suits him. He's a holy terror on two legs, and heading straight for trouble. He has his mother's dark black hair, but carries the Serenity eyes.
Erin still hasn't been informed. As far as he knows, Lilly's son is a hellion on two legs. One that he wouldn't trade seeing every time he was on the moon for anything. He and Lilly still argue any time they're in the same room for more than five minutes. As a result, Serena tends to try to forget to mention meetings with Erin in them.
Serena had a boy named after his father, but fondly called Kane. She also has a baby son named Keith, in memory of his uncle, who's just learning there's a whole world to explore on two legs. Rei had twins again, another boy and girl, Justine and Alec. Mina had a son named for his father and a daughter named Alyssa, that's two days younger than Keith. And a year and a half later, followed suit with a daughter named Olivia. Lita, ironically, married Travis after they dated for almost two years. Everyone else has kept busy keeping things in line.