He lay in his bed, his head propped up on his hand, and he watched her sleep. He also held her hand with his right one. The touch was both wonderful and necessary.

Lazy sunlight filtered in through the window blinds, and Darien estimated that it was well after eleven. Almost afternoon. Setsuna probably had to work today, and he had to go in at three. Neither of them had showered. Also, none of it mattered.

Setsuna looked so serene and beautiful when she slept. The thin bars of sunlight that crossed her face in parallel lines added shadow that made her seem wildly young and beautiful for the ages. She looked exactly as he remembered her. Her touch was the same. Being with her, inside of her, was something very like flying, leaving himself to become part of something that was so much bigger than either of them. A thing nothing less than pure ecstasy.

He sighed contently and sat up, the rumpled white sheet sliding off his body and exposing his bare chest. Darien did not release Setsuna's hand, but reached down with his free hand and brushed some of her long bangs out of her face.

His gentle smile turned quickly to a frown. Darien knew that this would not last, and it would be painful when things came to a close. He had to end it to preserve his love for Serena. Still, one nagging thought remained: as much as Darien loved Serena, he thought he loved Setsuna more. This thought always brought on more thoughts that made everything in the future more and more clear. Setsuna returned to the lonely Gates of Time so that she would be as far away from Darien as possible. Neo Queen Serenity always agreed to this steadfastly; she said it was the best way.

There were still things he couldn't piece together, yet; like the reasons why Neo Queen Serenity never allowed Rini to go to see Setsuna, but he could easily figure things in.

Later, when there was time.

For now, he watched her sleep. Darien watched Setsuna sleep.

=-=

Serena made her way up the long stone staircase leading up to the Hikawa Shrine. She took them slowly, admiring the stone that had been bleached by the sun. She was altogether nervous, excited, and frightened, and the mix made her sick to her stomach. The dream beat in her head as she marched up the stairs, every word and every scene pervading her thoughts. She hoped that talking to Raye would rid her of it.

She let herself into the temple when she reached the top of the stairs, pausing only to wave to Chad and Raye's grandfather, who were preparing to meditate beneath some of the bare cherry blossoms. Serena thought it too chilly to be outside for long, and took a moment to marvel at the strength of mind that priests must have.

The hallway to the room where Raye meditated by the fire was dark, and she knew that the meditation room would be even darker. Serena slid the door open and stepped in, closing it behind her. Raye looked up from the fire, but her firm expression did not change. She nodded to Serena and Serena seated herself on her knees beside Raye. The fire was burning brightly, and warmed her skin immediately.

Raye's plum-colored eyes closed slowly. "I prayed about your dream," she told Serena, her voice low. "I prayed long and hard, and I kept on getting the same answer." Raye's tone was grim, and Serena thought the suspense would kill her. She swallowed hard.

"Will you tell me?" She asked, her tone almost one of begging.

Raye opened her eyes and looked at Serena long and hard, deciding how to put the interpretation and also wondering how in the world she could put it. Serena looked tired and worn. She looked like she had been doing nothing but crying, and Raye suspected that she had. Serena had lost a crystal to an enemy, and they weren't sure if they had any real hope of getting it back. They had all thrown together some meager plan and laughed uneasily about how stupid they hoped Chiharu was. She would fall for it for sure.

Raye had been even angry with Serena. There was a better chance of them getting Rini back than there was of getting that goddamned crystal.

Raye cleared her throat and said, "The dream tells me that your mother put a spell on Prince Darien to make him love you."

Serena gasped a little and whispered, "What?"

"He didn't fall in love with you all the way on his own. The first spell was to end a grieving for something or someone he lost. The rest of the spells were small ones to make sure he didn't fall out of love with you. They didn't think he would, but when it started looking that way, why, they just put another spell on him. They weren't to make him like you more, but they were used to erase someone else from his mind."

Raye stopped and shut her eyes to let Serena digest what she'd said. Also, she couldn't bear seeing Serena's horrified expression.

Made him fall in love! Serena's mind screamed over and over at her. Made him fall in love! Your own mother made him fall in love!!

After a few moments of this, rationality kicked in, and the screaming voice was replaced by one that sounded bitter. Right. Your mother helped him fall in love with you and then made sure that he stayed in love with you. So he'd had another woman before you? That could easily be helped. Just erase the girl from his memory, slowly but surely. In time, she was gone. You had plans to marry. And then you killed yourself for him when the Negaverse attacked. He loved someone else and your mother and his father took her away from him. He loved someone else.

Serena wished Raye would say something. She felt like she was going to throw up soon if she was forced to chew on these things any longer. "It can't be true," she managed to say in a choked voice.

Raye gritted her teeth. "It's true. However, he wouldn't be able to tell you about any of it if you asked. He won't remember. He couldn't remember unless someone showed it to him, and that is impossible. The woman would not still be living."

Knowing this made Serena relax a bit, and she unclenched her fists. So, he couldn't remember her. That was good. That assurance somehow made everything a little better. The past was the past, and the past had been forgotten. She suddenly remembered something. "The necklace!" Serena said suddenly. "The necklace he was holding! What does that mean?"

"The necklace belonged to her. She gave it to him to say goodbye."

"He was giving it to me, in the dream."

Raye nodded. "I don't know what it means."

"There was a key on the end of it," Serena recalled, staring into the flames. Her voice was thoughtful and dreamy. "An old brass key. It was very beautiful."

"A key," Raye repeated, thinking. "A key. I think it represents the key to her heart. Or a symbol of her undying love, maybe." She shook her head. "Perhaps it means nothing."

Serena managed a small smile and turned to gaze at Raye. "Thank you for helping me."

"Anytime," Raye said. She did not, however, return the smile.