jfang@netcom.ca

			    
		      Forbidden Rose: In Destiny's Way

		Idea Collaboration: Rain, Dani, and Emily
				Written by: Emily

	This story takes place immediately after the N. American episode 
?Sibling Rivalry?. Oh, and, I apologize for my writing style, which gets 
kinda melodramatic!

			_____________________
				
	
	"Serena!" Darien ran through the thick fog which surrounded him,
searching for the blond girl. "Serena! Where are you?" Suddenly, a deep
voice filled the silence. His words echoed through Darien's head. "Stay
away from Princess Serena. Her future, your future, the future of the
universe depends on it." Darien whirled and saw Serena...Princess
Serena. Her large blue eyes stared into his. "Serena!" Darien reached
out to her, but she turned away. Darien watched in horror as she was
engulfed in a mass of falling rocks and disappeared in a bright flash of
light. "Serena!" he yelled frantically. Silence answered. Frustrated,
Darien turned his attention to the mysterious voice. "Who are you?" he
demanded of the fog around him, "Who are you? What do you want? How do I
know that you're for real?"
	"You must, Darien." As these words were uttered, the fog melted away and
Darien found himself sitting in bed back in his apartment. He clutched
at his pounding heart and tried to catch his breath. Slowly, he got out
of bed and stepped out onto the balcony. The gentle night breeze blew at
Darien's hair, but he barely felt it. Instead, he watched the bright
round moon as it crept across the night sky. His mind filled with
thoughts of her, and he whispered her name,
			"Serena..."

			?...Darien"
	Serena stared at the full moon, but saw only his face. Clutching the
Star Locket she had given him a thousand years ago, she sighed and
closed her bedroom window. As she moved to close the curtains, the
locket fell out of her hands onto the floor. The catch slipped and the
locket popped open, its quiet music filling the silence of the room.
Hearing that music, Serena was reminded of the happy moments she and
Darien had experienced together, of the love they had shared...
	Serena closed her eyes and breathed deeply, trying to hold back the
tears, but she could feel them slipping down her cheeks. Suddenly, she
heard a knock at the door. Quickly wiping her eyes with the back of her
hand, she did her best to smile and say "Who is it?"
	Her mother poked her head in. "It's me, sweetie! Lita dropped by. She
wants to talk to you." Serena nodded as she closed the locket, shutting
out the music. Lita walked into the room.
	"Hey there, Serena. How've you been?" Serena glanced at her best
friend. Seeing the look of concern on Lita's face, Serena smiled
reassuringly.
	"I'm fine."
	"That's great," Lita plunked down on the floor beside Serena,
	"Because I think you've been moping around in your room way too long.!"
Lita smiled. "Want to go to see a movie tomorrow? Ken and I are going,
and Ken has this friend who I think you'll like. We can introduce you
two!"
	"Kind of like a double date, huh?"
	Lita laughed. "Yeah." It sounded like a fun, but Serena wasn't sure.
She still loved Darien, and it didn't seem fair to him to go out with
someone else while she felt this way. Besides, if Darien found out, he'd
be heart broken. *At least I hope he would!*
	"Serena? Well? Come on, it's not healthy to be locked up in a room
for so long!" Lita looked so worried that Serena felt terrible.
	Serena smiled. "OK, Lita. I guess you're right."

			*	*	*

	"Lita, are you sure this is the right thing to do?" Ami was sitting
on the steps of Rei's temple, gently stroking the black cat sitting in
her lap. Luna purred happily and motioned for her to scratch behind the
ears. Ami looked anxiously towards Lita, who was leaning against the
wall of the temple.
	"Oh don't worry, Ami! She's been sitting in her room way too long.
It'll be fun, and she needs to relax." Lita laughed.
	"I agree." Mina said from her seat on a rock near the temple gardens.
Artemis, who was sitting perched in her arms, nodded in assent.
	"She's got to get out sometime." Mina continued. "It's not
healthy..."
	"She acts like she's in mourning or something. Putting on the
high-and-mighty act. Ha! Serves her right for getting dumped!" Rei
paused from her sweeping to glare at the others. "And you guys aren't
helping by babying her! I'm sick and tired of hearing about how she's so
depressed! Why can't she just get over it?"
	"Rei!" Luna jumped down from Ami's lap and stared reproachfully at
the dark-haired girl. "That's not very nice at all!" Luna turned her
back on the girl, who tossed her hair at the cat and continued with her
sweeping.
	"Anyways, Lita." Luna fixed her attention on the girl, "I'm worried
about this plan, although there's not much I can do to stop it. Just
make sure Serena won't get hurt."
	"Yeah, this guy better not be a total jerk!" Artemis warned.
	"Oh, don't worry, he's very nice!" Lita said brightly. "I'm sure
Serena's going to love him!"

			*	*	*

	"So, what's this Serena-girl like?"
	"Well..." Ken hesitated. *How do I describe Serena without making
her sound like the world's biggest ditz?* Suddenly, his face
brightened. "Why don't you see for yourself? Here she comes now!"

			*	*	*

	"We're so late!" Serena shrieked.
	"Well, if you hadn't spilled tomato juice all over yourself, we'd
have been there by now! Come on, let's go!" Lita grabbed Serena's wrist
and began sprinting towards the arcade where they were meeting the
guys.
	"Lita!" Serena gasped for breath, ?Slo...slo...slow down!"
	They came in sight of the arcade and saw Ken leaning against the wall
talking to a dark-haired boy whose back was facing them. As they
approached he turned and stared at them with large, dark-brown eyes.
	"Hi guys!" Lita greeted the two of them cheerfully. "Serena, this is
Chris." Lita gestured towards the dark-haired boy. "He goes to Ken's
school. Chris, this is my friend Serena."
	"Hi, Chris." Serena smiled. *Nice guy,* she thought, *kind of
cute.*
	Chris just stared. *Wow!* he thought, *she's so beautiful!*
He felt Ken's elbow dig sharply into his ribs, subtly warning him to put his jaw back together and say something.
	"Ummmm, hi." Chris blushed.
	"So, guys, let's get this show on the road. The theater?s that way."
Lita shoved the Serena and Chris forward. Serena, caught off guard, fell
flat on her face onto the sidewalk.
	"Owwwww, Lita!" Serena stared accusingly. Lita scratched her head,
looking embarrassed. Ken and Chris began to laugh.
	"Here, Serena, let me help you." Grinning widely, Chris offered his
hand to Serena, who gratefully accepted it. Serena's klutziness seemed
to have broken the ice, and the four of them joked and laughed the rest
of the way to the theater.
				
			*	*	*
	
	*Serena!* All Darien could think about was her. It felt like his
heart was slowly breaking the longer he was away from her. But, that
eerie voice had warned him, and he had felt compelled to obey. His last
dreams had pointed him in the right direction. *Still...*
	The night was cool, and Darien walked down the sidewalks of 
Tokyo; aimlessly wandering. After an hour of meandering along dark 
street after dark street, Darien found himself in the warm glow of a 
coffee shop window. Entering, he realized that he was in the coffee shop 
where his friend, Andrew's, little sister, Libby, worked. Sitting down at 
an empty booth facing the far wall. Darien began to flip through the menus 
and daily special listing which were scattered across the table.
	"Hi, Darien!"
	"Libby! Hi!" Darien motioned for her to sit down.
	"So...Darien, what are *you* doing here so late?" Libby smiled
widely.
	"Didn't really feel like sleeping. Y'know? It was just such beautiful
night..."
	"Yeah, that moon is gorgeous tonight!" Darien nodded and turned to
gaze. And gaze. Libby watched Darien for some sign of intelligence, but
he was staring off at the moon with a wistful look on his face. Libby
sighed and passed her hand in front of his face a few times.
	"Darien! Darien! Dar-ee-an! Snap out of it!" Darien blinked, and
turned to Libby.
	"What was it you were just saying?"
	"Never mind. What'll you have? How about hot chocolate? With
marshmallows? and whipped cream? Sounds good. Hold on, and I'll get it
right away!" Libby sauntered off. Darien shook his head and returned to
watching the moon.

			*	*	*

	Suddenly, Darien heard the sound of laughter, and a single,
distinctive voice ringing above the others. Darien turned to see Serena,
walking with a group of friends. They had just entered the coffee shop,
and were heading towards an empty table near the center of the room.
Mind racing, Darien began to create a lavish excuse to give to Serena as
to why he would have to leave right away, and that it wasn't her fault
that they had broken it off...when Darien realized that the laughter had
continued. Serena was seated with her back facing him, and had been so
engrossed in her conversation, that she hadn't even noticed him. *I
wonder if I should feel hurt...*
	It was then that Darien noticed the crowd Serena was with. Across
from her was seated Lita, and Ken, a boy that Darien had met briefly a
few months back. Serena, herself, was seated with a boy that Darien
didn't recognize. All four were talking avidly about a movie they had
just seen. The new guy, cracking some joke about one of the characters,
raised his arm and placed it around Serena's shoulders. As she snuggled
closer towards the guy, Darien felt as if he had just been punched in
the face. Turning back to his table, Darien felt his heart pounding. His
eyes were wide, but staring at nothing. The laughter grew louder and
louder, until Darien felt like he was being suffocated by the sound.
Finally, Darien sprang up from his booth and ran to the door, slamming
it behind him with such a loud *bang!* that everyone jumped and
Libby dropped the hot chocolate.

			*	*	*

	"Libby, what was that all about?" Serena asked her friend.
	"It was Darien, he..."
	"Darien? Here?" Serena raced for the door, calling his name, but
he was nowhere to be seen. She looked up and down the sidewalk, wishing
that she knew which way he had went, but he was gone, swallowed by the
inky blackness of the night. "Darien, I'm so sorry...it's all..."


	"...my fault!" Darien raced through the dark, running blindly
through the night with no thought or care as to where he was headed. All
he knew was what he had seen. Serena was seeing someone else! *And it
was all his fault!* Darien stopped running and leaned against a stone
wall. He felt a single tear slip down his cheek; and, somewhere, a bright
red rose began to wilt. 

			*	*	*				
	            	
	"Serena? Are you okay?" The four of them were walking down 
a the sidewalk. The night was cold and unusually silent, and the full moon
shone down on the world, giving everything an unearthly aura. Serena
heard her friend, but couldn't bring herself to answer. She couldn't
bear to smile reassuringly while memories of Darien tore her up
inside.
	"Well, Lita, this is where we split up." Ken motioned towards a 
dark path which cut through the park.
	"Are you sure it's safe? We could walk you home."
	Ken laughed weakly. "We'll be okay. Take care. You too, Serena."
	"Serena? I hope you everything turns out alright. And I'm really
sorry about tonight. I wish things could have been better." Chris took
Serena's hand and squeezed it gently. "You're sure you'll be alright?"
Chris had a genuine look of concern on his face which broke Serena's
heart. *He's so sweet, so kind. I'm sorry, Chris...Sorry that I ruined
the whole evening.*
	Serena smiled. "Thank you, but I'll be fine."
	Ken and Chris started down the path, glancing over their 
shoulders to reassure themselves that the girls were alright. After 
a minute or two, Lita and Serena continued towards home. Lita turned 
to Serena.
	"Serena, I can tell when something's bugging you..."
	"Oh, Lita," Serena felt her eyes starting to water. "Darien must have
seen us. He must have seen Chris put his arm...Oh, it must have broken
his heart! I still love him, Lita, and I know he still loves me!"
	"Serena..." 
	Suddenly, they heard screams coming from the park. Both girls whirled
around.
	"Ken!" Lita cried. "He and Chris must be in trouble!"
	Lita raced back to the path. An eerie glow extended just beyond the
trees. Within a second, Lita had whipped out her Transformation Pen, and
yelled out "JUPITER PLANET POWER!" Soon, Serena was standing next to
Sailor Jupiter.
	Lita sprinted down the path. "Serena, hurry up!" Lita called over
her shoulder.
	"Oh, wait! Lita! Don't leave, yet! Wait for me!" Serena whined. 
She pulled out her locket and held it up. "MOON CRYSTAL POWER!" 
She felt the power flow around her, and transform her into Sailor Moon.
Quickly, she raced after Sailor Jupiter.

			*	*	*

	"That's it, Droid Spinstra! Take as much energy as you want from
these humans. The more, the better. That should attract that pest,
Sailor Moon. Then we can start on the next phase of out plan!"
	"Gladly, Master Rubeus." Droid Spinstra, whirled and created a small
globule of energy between her hands, out of which shot a glowing rope.
The rope surrounded Ken and began sucking out his energy. He screamed
again, and fell to his knees.

			*	*	*

	"JUPITER THUNDERBOLT ZAP!" A current of electricity 
flashed across Droid Spinstra's face, and the rope which entangled Ken 
snapped. The boy moaned and slumped to the ground.
	"Ken! Are you okay?" Sailor Jupiter raced towards him, lifting his
head onto her lap. He opened his eyes.
	"Lita...?" His eyes closed, and he fell into unconsciousness.

			*	*	*

	"That's all very sweet! Now destroy them all!" Rubeus ordered.
Spinstra nodded at the man floating above her head, and flung another
rope at the two people on the ground.
	"MOON TIARA MAGIC!" The rope was cut short. It fell to 
the ground and disintegrated. The Droid turned to face the source of this 
new attack. A figure was leaning against a tree.
	"I am Sailor Moon, Champion of Justice, Enemy of the Negaverse.
I shall right wrongs and triumph over evil. In the name of the Moon, I
will punish you!"
	Rubeus laughed loudly. "*Very* impressive, Sailor Moon," he
said, sarcastically. "Tell me, who writes your speeches? I simply
*must* hire him for myself!" Suddenly, he threw a globe of black energy
straight at her chest, quickly directing another at Sailor Jupiter.
Caught off guard, both Scouts were hit hard.</p>
	"You're scum, Rubeus! JUPITER THUNDERBOLT ZAP!" 
Sailor Jupiter aimed the bolt at Rubeus' head. He dodged and several small
 Nega-energy bombs flew from his hands towards Sailor Jupiter.
	"Jupiter! Are you okaaagh..." Sailor Moon fell forward as Spinstra
attacked her in the back with a flash of black energy.
	"Sailor Moon!" Jupiter cried out. *This doesn't look good! Scouts!
Can you hear me?!? We're in big trouble!?! We need help! They're too
strong!*

			*	*	*

	In different places of Tokyo, three human and two feline heads 
looked up in alarm.

			*	*	*

	Sailor Moon lay dazed on the ground. Shaking her head, she tried to
ignore the waves of dizziness. *She had to get up! Had to fight
this...this monster!* She struggled to her feet.
	"Rubeus! How can you pick on innocent humans? MOON 
TIARA MAGIC!" She aimed the glowing discus at his head. Rubeus 
gestured negligently, and it smashed into an invisible barrier. He fired a 
powerful bomb at her chest. 
	"Aaaaagh!" Sailor Moon screamed as it connected. Her knees gave
way and she could feel herself slipping into unconsciousness.
	*Help...Darien...*

			*	*	*

	"Serena?" Darien heard her thoughts. *She was hurt! In danger! He
had to help her!* He raced towards the area where the thoughts were
coming from, transforming into Tuxedo Mask in mid-stride. *Hold on,
Serena, I'm coming!"*

			*	*	*

	Sailor Moon felt another bolt of energy hit her, but her mind and
body were numb. She felt herself slipping into the darkness.
	*Help...*

			*	*	*

	"Sailor Moon!" Sailor Jupiter watched as her friend fell to the
ground, unconscious, then turned to Rubeus, her face the image of anger 
and disgust. "How could you!?! JUPITER THUNDER-DRAGON CRASH!"
	The dragon manifested itself. It flew at Rubeus and swallowed 
him whole. Suddenly, the dragon exploded and Rubeus stood in the falling 
bits of light, laughing.
	"I'm not that easy to stop, pathetic twit!"

			*	*	*

	"VENUS LOVE CHAIN ENCIRCLE!"
	"MARS CELESTIAL FIRE SURROUND!"
	"MERCURY ICE STORM FREEZE!"
	Rubeus turned and was smashed by the combined attack. 
Three Scouts stood next to Sailor Jupiter: Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars,
and Sailor Venus.
	"Spinstra! We have what we want. Let's go!" Rubeus cried out.
Spinstra hurled a length of rope at the unconscious form of Sailor Moon.
	"Yes, sire," she responded. Rubeus faded out of view, and the Droid
leaped over the trees, Sailor Moon in tow.
	"SAILOR MOON!"
			
			*	*	*

	"I'll be fine. How's Ken and Chris?" Jupiter smiled and got to her
feet. The other Scouts and the two cats were standing over her.
	"Thankfully, Chris was knocked out, early. He was lying hidden near
some thick bushes throughout most of the attack. Ken took the brunt of
the attack, but he'll be okay." Mercury reassured her friend.
	"Where's Serena?" A voice asked. Everyone turned to see Tuxedo Mask
approaching. Despite the mask, there was an obvious look of concern on
his face.
	"They took her, Darien; Rubeus and the Droid. We don't know where
they went." Sailor Venus laid her hand on his shoulder in an attempt to reassure 
him.
	Luna spoke up. "We're trying to track down her whereabouts, but it'll
take a few minutes." Luna looked at Mercury who was typing away on her
mini-computer.

			*	*	*

	Sailor Moon woke to find herself lying in an old, dirty pile of sacks
next to a wall. Opening her eyes, she was faced with a pink tuft of
hair. She heard muffled sobbing.
	"Reenie?" Sailor Moon tried to sit up. She saw that the little girl
was seated next to her on the pile of sacks. Hearing her name, Reenie turned 
to face her, her eyes swollen from crying.
	"Oh, Sailor Moon, you're awake! I'm scared, can you take me
home?"
	"How did you get here?" Sailor Moon managed lift herself so that she 
was leaning against the wall in somewhat of a seated position.
	"I was walking home from school when these people grabbed me. They
took me here. I've been sitting in the dark all day, and I'm afraid of
rats!" Reenie looked around apprehensively, in case there were any furry
rodents lying in wait.
	"Don't worry, Reenie, I'll get us out of this." Sailor Moon looked
around and saw that she wore a metal anklet which was attached to the
wall by a metal chain. Reenie was similarly chained.
	"I hope the accommodations are comfortable." Rubeus shimmered into
view in front of them, a sneer on his face.
	"Rubeus!" exclaimed Sailor Moon, "What do you want?" Reenie moved
closer to Sailor Moon, looking worriedly at the floating man.
	?Just the Silver Imperium Moon Crystal. I know one of you has it! So,
hand it over!" Rubeus held out his hand, but neither girl moved.
	"Stubborn, eh? I know how to get it from you!" Rubeus snapped his 
fingers, and smiled. Suddenly, Sailor Moon felt like her whole body was on
fire. The energy surrounded her. Every nerve in her body burned with
pain. She screamed and slumped forward, barely conscious.

			*	*	*

	Tuxedo Mask suddenly cried out. "Serena!" He raced through the trees
and disappeared.
	"What was that all about?" Sailor Mars asked.
	"It's Serena. She and Darien have a kind of empathic link. When one
is in trouble, the other can feel it. That's how Darien came to our
rescue early on, even before he knew about Tuxedo Mask. If we follow
him, we can find Serena." Mercury explained.
	"Let's go, than!" Sailor Jupiter ran off after Tuxedo Mask.
	"'An empathic link'? Oh, brother!" Sailor Mars muttered under her
breath.

			*	*	*

	The pain had stopped. Sailor Moon felt dazed. Dimly, she heard 
Rubeus ask for the Crystal, but she refused to respond.
	"Still not answering? I'm surprised, Sailor Moon. I didn't think you
had the courage of a cockroach!" Rubeus prepared to send another jolt of
energy at Sailor Moon, when suddenly a rose flew across the room,
cutting his hand and embedding itself into the floor. All three turned
to see Tuxedo Mask, standing at the door of the room, cape flying, cane
in hand.
	"So, it's you, cape boy. What a nuisance you are!" Rubeus flung some
pellets of Nega-energy at Tuxedo Mask, who jumped out of the way. In
mid-air, he threw a rose at Rubeus, which the Nega-person easily
dodged.
	?Missed, cape boy! Incompetent!" Rubeus sneered.
	"Not as incompetent as you think, Rubeus!" Tuxedo Mask said. 
Rubeus turned to see that the rose had cut through the chain that had held
Reenie.
	"No! That brat'll escape!" Already, his fingers were amassing 
Nega-energy and forming a glowing fireball, when, suddenly, he heard the 
words "MARS FIRE STORM FLASH!" Rubeus jumped away at the last 
minute, and the fire seared the wall behind him.
	Rubeus turned to see Sailors Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus
standing at the doorway. He gave Droid Spinstra a look. "You were
supposed to be guarding the door!"
	"Get Reenie and get out of here!" Sailor Venus cried to the two cats 
at her feet. Luna and Artemis dodged between Rubeus' legs and paused next
to the girl. The cats jumped at Rubeus and the Droid, clawing at their faces
while Reenie weaved around them and to safety. The cats jumped off and
raced after the girl.
	"Droid Spinstra, destroy the Scouts! I'll get the Crystal." He turned
to Sailor Moon, who winced, bracing herself for another attack.
Suddenly, another rose flew past his ear, cutting it, and sliced through the chain
which held Sailor Moon to the wall. Tuxedo Mask jumped in front of
Sailor Moon and threw a torrent of roses at Rubeus. As Rubeus dodged
this attack, Tuxedo Mask picked up Sailor Moon's weak figure and leaped
into the air and to safety.
	"Oh, Darien," Sailor Moon murmured, "You came." Feeling safe in his
arms, Sailor Moon allowed herself to fall unconscious.
	
			*	*	*

	"VENUS METEOR SHOWER!" The attack hit the Droid, but she 
withstood it and aimed several burning ropes at the Scouts, who dodged them. 
However, one grazed Sailor Mars' leg, drawing blood.
	"She's so strong!" Mars cried out.
	Mercury, who had activated her Visor, now deactivated it. "I have a
plan, you guys. By my calculations, if we combine our most powerful
attacks, that should be enough to finish her off!" The others
nodded.
	Dodging other ropes and globes of energy, the Scouts formed a line
and called upon their powers.
	"MERCURY ICE STORM BLAST!"
	"MARS CELESTIAL FIRE SURROUND!
	"JUPITER THUNDERBOLT ZAP!
	"VENUS LOVE CHAIN ENCIRCLE!
	The attacks combined to form a large fireball which engulfed the
Droid. Screaming, she disintegrated into a pile of ashes which blew away
in an unearthly breeze. All that remained was a dull, gray crystal which
clattered to the ground.
	"You've defeated my Droid! No matter! I will destroy you next time,
Sailor Scouts, and get the Silver Imperium Crystal!" Rubeus
disappeared.

			*	*	*
	Sailor Moon woke up to find her leaning against a wall. Tuxedo Mask
was bent over her. She smiled, happily.
	"Darien, you do care about me!" She exclaimed happily, and threw
herself into his arms. *She looks so happy...* Suddenly the voice
from his dream returned to him *'...must stay away from Princess
Serena...her future...her future...* He had to do this...for her. He
loved her.
	"No, Serena. We can't do this. We can't be together." Tuxedo Mask
extracted himself from her embrace. "Please, Serena, we can't see each
other anymore." Serena's smile fell from her face. Her eyes filled with
tears.
	"Why, Darien?" Serena asked. "Why? Is it because you don't love me
anymore? Is it something I did? Please, Darien, I'm sorry!"
	Seeing the expression on her face broke Darien's heart. She looked so
sincere...and so hurt. "No, Serena, I still love you! We just can't be
together. Our future depends on it!"
	"But, Darien..."
	"Good-bye, Serena." Darien put his arms around her, and their lips
met in a bittersweet kiss. A single tear rolled down her
cheek. They parted, and Tuxedo Mask turned away.
	"Wait, Darien..."
	Cape billowing, Tuxedo Mask walked away, his eyes threatening to spill the tears he felt. ?I love you, Serena..." he whispered.

	"...and I love you, Darien. You'll see, someday, we will be together again."
		
		________________________
	

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