Strong Destiny, Weak Heart
Chapter 22 Fate and Destiny
Disclaimer: I wish I could take credit for Sailor Moon! Alas, not my creation, only this story is.
A/N: HIGHLY Recommended listening for this story;
CRASH-Sum41
Already Gone-Kelly Clarkson
As I've stated before, I already had this story in my head for quite some time before I've written it, but when I heard these songs...they just matched SO WELL!
Previously on Strong Destiny, Weak Heart:
"Serena, you have to let Reagan go! Darien needs you right now! He wants to live, Reagan wants to give up!" Rei said, pulling at Serena's arm.
"What? Is Darien back? What's happened to him?" Serena replied weakly, as she turned her head slightly to see Rei's teary face.
"Serena, I don't think Darien's going to make it, you're going to have to choose one now!"
And now the continuation...
Chapter 22
Fate and Destiny
-Reality-
"What? I can't! I don't want to lose either of them! I'll save them both! I have to!" Serena managed to say before she slipped into unconsciousness.
"Serena!" Both Lita and Mina said as they saw Serena's eyes close. They walked toward the door way when they saw how frantic Rei had become.
"Serena?! SERENA!" Rei yelled as she shook the unconscious woman sharply in an effort to get some kind of response. She knew it wouldn't work when she saw Serena transform back into herself, no longer Sailor Moon. Rei put Serena down and quickly ran back to where Darien was on the couch. She wasn't sure how to respond, all she knew was that she wanted him to live. Lita picked Serena up from where she was laying and put her on the bed next to Reagan, while Mina was making sure it was just a fainting spell, and she would be okay.
"Rei, what happened? Where's Serena?" Ami asked as she checked Darien's pulse once more.
"She's not coming, she's used to much power to keep Reagan alive, she's unconscious. She needs time to regain her strength." Rei said, knowing time was the one thing they didn't have.
"Rei, his pulse is fading fast, his body just can't recover fast enough without help. He's not going to make it-"
"Stop it! Don't say that! Serena will be up in a few minutes! She said she's save them both and she will! I may not have had faith in her before but I have faith in her now! She'll do it! I know she can!"
"Rei! Snap out of it! We're Serena's guardians! We're supposed to be protecting her! If she uses the crystal she could die! We can't sacrifice her for Darien or Reagan." Lita said, walking out of the bedroom.
"If that's what Serena chooses then I'll fully support her!"
"What are you saying?! You'd rather have Darien than Serena?! What the hell is going on with you!"
"No! I'm saying Serena makes her own choices all the time and-"
"Guys! It's...it's too late. Darien's gone." Ami said, as she still had her fingers to his nonexistent pulse.
"No! You're wrong!" Rei shouted and rushed over to his side and pushed Ami out of the way, administering CPR immediately. Lita silently walked over to Mina to inform her of the news.
"Darien no longer has a pulse." She said to Mina as Mina was constantly checking Reagan's machines knowing that without Serena's help, every second could be his last. Mina's gaze shot up to Lita as her words flowed over her as her shock took over and she just continued to work on Reagan.
"Guys! Reagan just flat lined! I'm going to try CPR!" Mina shouted into the living room as she began trying to save Reagan's life. Ami had no hopes for the two men with Serena so exhausted, and she knew the risks if Serena were to wake with them in such dire condition. Ami hoped she didn't wake until she was fully recovered, and was in better shape to take the news.
-Limbo-
"What's going on? Where am I?" Serena said as she opened her eyes to an almost burning white light. She quickly realized it wasn't a light, but somewhere familiar and strange at the same time. She remembered a similar scene when the Moonlight Knight revealed himself to be Darien. "Hello? Darien? Scouts? Anyone?" Suddenly she saw a shadow heading in her direction. "Hey! Can you tell me what's going on and where I am!" She called to it.
"Serena, it's me, Reagan. I don't know how to tell you this, but we're in purgatory, otherwise known as limbo." He said as he neared her and saw the look of shock in her eyes.
"What?! Why? How?"
"I'm not entirely sure. I just know that I was close to seeing Alice, when I heard your voice and felt you pulling me away from her."
"How do you know we're in limbo then? I can't be in limbo, I wasn't dying!" She said, as realization sank in and panic began to cover her features. "Darien needs me, you need me! I have things I have to do! I can't waste time here!"
"I know because this isn't my first time here. I recognize this place from when I was a small child, and my parents pulled me back, the same way you were refusing to let me go. Although I can say your hold was much stronger, and persistent. I didn't want to let go then, but now it's a different story. Every minute here is like a second in 'reality'. I think we pulled each other here, you refusing to let go, and me refusing to stay."
"Why Reagan?! Why do you want to leave so badly?! Do you know what it will do to your family!? To your father?!"
"My family knew my end would come before theirs. In a lot of ways it will be a blessing, not worrying or going mad wondering when it will happen. They can finally be at ease, knowing they don't have to 'wait' anymore."
"No! They will be hurt! Inconsolable! Don't you understand how much you mean to them? To me?"
"Serena!" They could hear Rei call her in a muffled tone.
"What's going on?"
"It seems they just realized you're unconscious. If that's the case, you'll be back to reality soon, the only thing that brought you here was me, so now that the connection is severed, we'll both go where we 'belong'."
"No! I don't accept that! You need to come back with me!"
"Why do you care so much?"
"I care about everyone! I can't let you choose such a horrible fate! I, I love you!"
"I know. It's just not enough, I'm sorry. How can it be such a horrible fate when I'm going to be joined with the one person I cared about the most in the world?"
"Because it's not life! It's not a beginning, it's an end! You won't be with her! No one knows where you'll be! No one ever recalls a former life, you have to live and move on!"
"I can't and I won't! I've tried, put on a front for my friends and family, but eventually they all see through me. At best you gave me an excuse to not see the pity in my family's face. The worry every time I got a fever, or illness. I know it will be ruff at first, maybe even excruciating, but in the end it will be for the best."
"Death is NEVER for the best! Please, realize that!"
"You know, for the longest time I wondered why I haven't died. I asked my parents that once, and I think it freaked them out. They simply said I was meant to live and refused to talk about it anymore. But what is life without meaning? What was I living for? What was I meant for?" Serena saw she had no argument for him. He had already made his decision long before she came along, he'd only been waiting for death to claim him, possibly only for his family's sake.
"Darien no longer has a pulse." Lita said to Mina in another muffled tone in their 'realm'.
"What!? No! I have to get back! I have to save him!" She searched briefly for an exit before falling to her knees and clawing at a nonexistent floor. "Let me back! I have to save him!" Reagan smiled.
"Or else what Serena? What will you do if he dies? Die too? Give up? What about your family?"
"I- No, I won't give up- but-" Tears covering her face, knowing she couldn't get back just yet, and not fully understanding what was holding her there.
"Serena, now's your chance. You can't save us both."
"Yes, I can! With the Silver Crystal I can! I'll just use my powers!" She said, determined to get back to reality.
"You would die to save us both? How would anyone 'win' in that situation? You're the only one who ties all of us together. Any one of us would sacrifice our lives for you, and that aside, the only reason we're both in limbo in the first place is because you're holding me here and not letting go, which means if you go back to reality, I will finally be where I want to be, so you see, even if you do go back to reality, it'd still be sacrificing someone."
"No! That can't be true! I can't lose Darien again!" Reagan saw the suffering in her face and was reminded of his own experience with Alice.
"You really love him don't you? I think I finally see what I was meant for. You two are meant to be together Serena. Please, let me go and find him again." After his sentence she saw a shadow forming in the shape of another person, lying down.
"Darien! I know it's Darien!" She ran to his side as quickly as possible and rested his head on her lap, although unlike Reagan and herself, he still seemed unconscious even in limbo. As he lay there, he began to slowly disappear. "Darien no! Please no! DON'T LEAVE ME PLEASE!" She sobbed shamelessly as she clutched his lifeless hand. She suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her.
"Don't worry Serena, I may have lost my love, but I'm not going to let you lose yours." Reagan said, determination on his face as he used any and all energy he had left, and gave it to the fading soul in front of him. Slowly Darien's body became more solid, as Reagan's became more translucent.
"Guys! Reagan just flat lined!" Mina's voice reached Serena as a sad smile crept upon her face. She looked at Reagan and caught him before he was completely gone, and mouthed a thank you to his fading face.
Darien's eyes slowly opened to his love holding his head.
"Serena? Where are we?" He said weakly as his eyes searching for something recognizable.
"We're in limbo, Darien, you have to fight! We have to be together!" She said as she held his hand and held it near her heart.
"Limbo? Serena, I'm sorry, I don't know if I have the strength..."
"No Darien! Don't give up."
"Serena, I'll never give up the idea of being with you, but I just don't think my heart has the strength to keep beating..."
"It's okay Darien, I'll give you my strength, I'll help you heal, just please don't give up!"
"I'm sorry Serena. I had to protect you, I love you."
"No Darien, don't leave me, No! NO!" She felt an immense energy surge flow through her body and opened her eyes to see Mina trying to give Reagan CPR.
-Reality-
"Serena, stay down, don't look, save your strength!" Mina yelled to the back of Serena as she pounced off the bed and ran toward the living room.
"It's not working!" Ami said to Rei and Rei was frantically doing CPR on Darien. "His pulse picked up slightly, but only for a moment... Rei...I don't think you can get his heart beating again."
"No! There has to be a way! C'mon Darien!" Her eyes were so full of tears, all she saw were blurs.
"Rei, move! Lita, get in there and give him a shock to his heart! I don't think I can help him if his heart isn't beating!" Serena said, frantically thinking of ways to save him. Lita looked at Ami for approval.
"Yes, that may work, but it can't be too weak or too strong. Go ahead Lita. You're his only chance at this point." Ami said, hopeful, yet unsure.
"Right!" Lita quickly gave him a shock directly onto his chest. Ami checked for a heartbeat, but no luck.
"Again!" Ami ordered. Lita repeated her action, with the same result.
"Again!" She repeated, and Lita tried for a third time.
"It worked!" Ami said happily. Serena quickly moved to Darien's side.
"Now it's my turn!" She knelt by his side and used her crystal to share her strength with Darien. The soft glow made everyone hopeful.
Mina looked toward Reagan's body as it slowly disappeared and looked to be 'pulled' into Darien himself. Apparently, she was the only one who noticed, as the rest of the girls tried to get everything ready for both Darien and Serena to be 'out for a while', she shed tears of appreciation for the man's actions, and pity for the fact he never got to live the life he wanted.
When Ami noticed his vital signs were stable, and he was out of the 'danger zone', she laid a hand on Serena's shoulder, motioning for her to save what was left of her energy. Serena understood and ceased her crystal's power, she immediately felt dazed and reached for the support of the coffee table. The scouts kept a watchful eye on them while they rested and regained their strength. Mina told Serena's mother that they were going to take her on their vacation to some hot springs and wouldn't be back for at least a week, while in reality they recovered in Darien's apartment, under the scouts close supervision. Mr. O'Brien was tired of getting the run around from Serena's friends and demanded to know the whereabouts of his son. Luckily for the scouts, Serena was finally well enough to inform him herself.
"How long was I out?" Serena asked as she put a hand to her head when she slowly rose from Darien's bed. She looked over to find Darien lying next to her, and a slow tear formed on her face as she reached for his hand, remembering the last person that laid by her side was Reagan.
"A little over a week" Ami replied, "anyone else would have taken at least a few months! It's times like this I'm extremely grateful we recover faster than regular humans." She gave a smile to Serena, and she returned the smile.
"Is he going to be okay?" She asked turning toward Darien again.
"Yes, he's recovering well, but he's not using his powers, which is better. His body is recuperating naturally, and not adding any stress to his body. However, I've also noticed his body equips itself for more strenuous situations once he's involved in this type of damage."
"So you're saying when he is injured, after he's healed, he comes back stronger?" Serena looked at Ami waiting for a reply, but Ami was caught off guard, expecting Serena to not understand her explanation and ask her to simplify it.
"Uh, yes, exactly." Ami replied, still surprised at Serena. She felt guilt flood her, doubting Serena's intelligence again. She noticed Serena knew exactly what she was thinking, "I'm sorry."
"It's okay Ami, you've been the only brains too long in our group!" She smiled at her. Just then the other scouts walked in.
"I thought I heard talking in here!" Lita said, holding some lunch for their recovering comrade.
"Now that everyone is here, Serena, we have to tell you what happened to Reagan." Mina said solemnly. Everyone's expression was pained as they were brought back to that night.
"It's okay, I know what happened." Serena replied, not wanting to relive the event, her heart feeling the immense pain of his loss and sacrifice for her.
"Do you?" Mina replied, shedding tears, once again for the brave man.
"Yes Mina, as a matter of fact, I do." Serena said, clenching her chest.
Mina couldn't let it go, she hadn't told the scouts what she saw, and she couldn't let his sacrifice go unnoted. "That's enough Mina, let her relax a little and regain her strength." Lita said, resting a comforting hand on Mina's shoulder.
"No! I have to get this out," She was crying uncontrollably again, as she had been since it happened, every time she thought about Reagan, every night when she was alone with her thoughts. "Serena, he sacrificed his life for Darien's! He wanted Serena to be happy, and instead of living and staying with Serena himself, or being joined with Alice, and finally being in a place where neither had to worry about pain or dying, he gave it all up to give Darien a second chance! He gave his life essence to Darien so that he just might pull through, and he did! Darien owes his existence to Reagan now, even though we all tried our hardest to help both of them survive, it would have been all for not if Reagan hadn't made his sacrifice!"
"It's true." Serena whispered as her memories flooded her mind once more. "He gave up his dream to give me mine." She said as she looked at Darien's sleeping form and brushed his hair from his forehead. "Mina, I understand how you feel, and believe me, I won't take it lightly. I promise, I'm not going to take Darien for granted anymore, and I won't run from the facts. I know Reagan felt like he had a purpose, and his sacrifice was his destiny, but it wasn't. He had options, and even if he didn't know or realize that, I do. I'll never stop being grateful to him."
The scouts were in shock and didn't know what to say, their silence was broken by Serena's cell phone ringing in Lita's pocket. "Hello?" Lita glanced at Serena before she spoke again into the receiver. "Can you hold on for just a minute?" She looked at Rei and whispered, "It's Mr. O'Brien again, what should I say?"
Serena overheard, "Pass me the phone, please." Serena said with an outstretched hand while the other reached out to wipe her face from her fresh tears. The girls looked hesitantly at each other before remembering not to doubt their leader, and Lita reluctantly handed Serena her phone. "Mr. O'Brien? I have to speak to you in person, will you be available in an hour?" There was silence and she got a paper and pen prepared while she wrote down an address. "Yes, thank you. See you soon." She clicked off her cell phone and looked at the scouts, "I have to get ready, this isn't going to be a simple conversation."
An hour later Serena pulled up to a building that looked like a newer hotel with several conference rooms near the lobby. She spotted Mr. O'Brien near one of the rooms, and walked over to him. Mr. O'Brien led her into the room and seated her before sitting down himself. "The building politely allowed me to speak with you here, as I have a meeting with some business partners in one hour." He obviously wanted her to get to the point. She nodded in understanding.
"Well Mr. O'Brien, I have to start with a well kept secret before I can even hope for you to understand." She spoke with all the calmness and grace as her mother, Queen Serenity. She explained how they were Sailor Scouts and how they had passed lived and though she wanted to be in love with Reagan, she just couldn't defy the love in her heart for Darien. She then explained what happened in the past few weeks, including the Ball, and how Reagan found her with Darien. She also included how Reagan had asked her not to inform his father. She stressed how Reagan's concern was focused on how he felt he had burdened his family with his health issues, even if his family had not seen it that way. Mr. O'Brien listened intently, and after all was explained, he broke down into tears.
"I knew you'd be the death of him. I knew he always felt like a burden. I just wanted him to be happy...I failed him." He slumped over in defeat. Serena didn't know what to say, she knew he believed she was the cause of his death, but she also knew he was also blaming himself.
"Mr. O'Brien-"
He held up a hand to silence her. "Please, just go."
"No sir, I can't. You have to know you didn't do anything wrong. You did what you believed would help your son. Your whole family had much love for each other, and I knew that when he would speak to me about you all. He loved you very much, and appreciated what you did for him, everything you did for him."
"But it wasn't enough." The man said, trying to gather himself. "Look, now that he's gone, we won't be staying in Tokyo, or even in Japan. I only have sad memories here. I don't want to keep in contact with you, and I want nothing to do with you or your scouts, understood?" She nodded in understanding, knowing the worst of his sadness would be in private.
"I'll go. I'm sorry." She had tears of her own, but she didn't completely break down until she was in her car. Mr. O'Brien walked to the lobby to see if any of his associates had arrived and saw her crying in her car through the large front window. He unknowingly smiled, knowing she did care about Reagan. Knowing his love for her wasn't one sided, and strong enough to make her as upset as he saw her, and knowing this most likely wasn't the first time she let her feelings for him take over. They were all hurt, and that fact made him realize Reagan knew his love wasn't one sided, and that was why he made the decision he did.
When Serena arrived back at Darien's apartment, she was surprised to find the door opened before she reached the handle. To her surprise, Darien was standing on the other side, welcoming her with open arms.
"Darien!?" She squeaked as she jumped into his arms.
"Welcome home my love." He said as he wrapped his arms around her.
"Uh, we should go." Mina said as she side-stepped the couple.
"Yeah, I have to study." Ami followed close behind.
"And I have a date." Lita was next.
"I have to help gramps with the temple." Rei said lastly as she closed the door behind her.
Neither Darien or Serena said anything to the departing scouts.
"Darien, everything that's happened...I'm so sorry..." She said as she held him tighter to herself.
"Serena, I know. It's okay, just please say you'll be my girlfriend again." He said as he tilted her head up to face his.
"Of course I will! Oh Darien, I'll never treat you the way I did before, I'm so sorry! Please just tell me you won't break up with me anymore!" She said with a teary smile.
"Never again." He said as he closed the gap between them with a sweet and loving kiss.
The end
A/N: Thank you to all reviewers! You guys are awesome! Also, please let me know if you think the song fits with this chapter and how you thought it matched, especially if you can't think of what to write for a review otherwise! Please review, it gives my heart a smiley face. ;)
F.Y.I. In case it's not obvious (which I don't think it is) this is supposed to be where Rini gets her pink hair and red eyes from. The pink hair is a mix of Serena and Reagan's hair, and the red eyes are from Reagan. It always annoyed me how she didn't get the blonde or black hair from her parents so I came up with a story of why she has different colored hair and eyes. Odd story to come from such an idea I know, but I'm weird, what can I say? LOL, anyway I hope you enjoyed the story! I will edit the story (hopefully soon) and fix errors as soon as I can. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!
Special Thanks/Mention: xxTwilight Princess xx, GinnyPotter0183, Lunachan90, buttaflykissesxoxo, LoveInTheBattleField, Sailor Rallison, inufan155687, Swtmelody637, Vanessa, Ami-chanMercury98, Doodlez1996, guest, and rosemoonangel.