Destiny Series
by
-Angel- <ActinAngel@aol.com>


Episode Eight
 "Darien's Past"

      Serena woke up. The sun was shining, the sky wasblue, and birds were
chirping
 happily. It seemed like the perfect day. Except for the fact that Raye was
snoring beside her.
      "Good, Serena, glad you're up." Amy echoed in her head. "I need to
speak
with you in private."
      Serena nodded and glanced over at Raye. She was sound asleep. "Okay,
what's up?"
      "Raye's disease is progessing more rapidly than everyone else's. I
fear
she may go next." Amy said bluntly.
      Serena gasped. "She can't! There will be no one left!" Serena suddenly
felt alone.
      "I'm more concerned about what goes on between her and Chad. We can't
risk him getting the disease as well. She'll have to stay away from him."
Amy
said.
      Serena understood. "Okay, this morning we'll head over to Darien's."
      "Serena, be cautious around Darien. The probe's still activated in
Raye's head, it's
 probably acting up in Darien's head as well."
      At that moment, Raye woke up. She coughed, then sat up. "Good morning,
Serena. Did you have a pleasant night?" Raye didn't wait for an answer. "You
know, I find it good therapy to have another person sleeping in the same bed
as you. Nothing helps a good night sleep more than hours of KICKING." she
muttered.
      "Yeah, although snoring is a close second." Serena snapped back.
      "I do not snore!" Raye said indignantly.
      "Yes you do! Ask Luna!" Serena shouted back.
      Luna bent her head in defeat. Back to normal, she thought.

      Darien opened the door to his apartment. He was breathless from his
morning jog,
 but felt very pumped. And he had managed to keep Serena off his mind all
the
time. He made himself breakfast, skimmed over the paper, and took a hot
shower. He came out with a pair of jeans on, and a towel on his head.
      There was a knock on the door. "Darien? It's Serena and Raye." a voice
said from
 behind the door.
      "Coming!" he shouted and gave his hair a final rub down. He walked
over
to the
 door and opened it. Serena walked in, followed by Raye.
      "Well, good morning ladies. And what a fine morning it is." he said
and
shut the
 door. Serena sat down on the couch. Raye stood by the television.
      "It's only good if you haven't been struck with a fatal disease." Raye
muttered.
      Darien galnced at Serena. She shook her head, telling him not to
pursue
the topic
 right then. He shrugged and offered the girls some breakfast.
      "What I need is a shower. Do you mind, Darien?" Raye asked. Darien
shook
his
 head. She started towards the bathroom and stopped. "Does the door have a
lock on it?" she teased him.
      Darien blushed and nodded. Serena was confused, but decided to leave
it
at that.
 There were more important things to discuss. Raye went into the bathroom
and
shut the door. Instantly, Serena was next to Darien.
      "Darien, she's bad off. Amy told me she would only last another day."
Serena's eyes misted with tears. "Darien, what am I going to do without her?
She's the only one left."
      Darien put his arms around her. She was so fragile right then, he
wanted
to hold her and shield her from all the pain in the world. "You still have
me,
Serena. And I'm not leaving."
      Serena leaned into his chest and he held her for a long time. They
stood
there, just savoring the peaceful moment. Serena looked up at Dairne. There
was warmth and compassion in his eyes. It was the old Darien, the Darien she
knew and loved.
      Suddenly, the warmth in his eyes turned into an intense flame. His
eyes
darkened
 with desire as he leaned over and kissed her. She gently kissed him back,
but
that was not enough for him. He kissed her harder, demanding more with his
mouth. Finally, Serena gave in and kissed him back with equal force. Their
lungs burned for oxygen as they continued kissing. Serena felt a warmth
inside
her begin to spread all over her body. This was what love was. It was
tenderness and passion. It was friendship and desire. It was sweet and
rough.
And it made her feel wonderful.
      They parted finally. Both of them were out of breath. But Serena could
only say one word, "Wow." Darien grinned and she smiled shyly.
      At that moment, Raye came out of the shower. Her hair was damp, but
she
looked more refreshed. She coughed loudly, more so that Darien and Serena
knew
she was there.
      "Okay, Raye. We have to talk." Serena said.
      "We're right behind you Serena," Amy called out.
      Raye heard her and was confused. "What's going on?"
      "Raye," Mina suddenly spoke out, "You're dying. And it's not going to
be
much
 longer."
      Serena's eyes brimmed with tears as she nodded. "One day." she said,
her
voice
 choked up.
      Raye was shocked. One day left for her to live. Only one day and she
had
so much more she wanted to do. Raye sat down, overwhelmed.
      "I'm sorry Raye," Darien said. He wanted to sit next to her, but the
stupid probe
 stopped him from doing so. "Not a lot of people have gone thorugh what
you're
going
 through. I'm so sorry."
      "We're all sorry, Raye." Serena said, tears spilling down her face.
Darien went over to her and held her. "But there's nothing we can do."
      Raye finally spoke. "But I'm not supposed to die." she said
helplessly.
She looked up at Serena. "It was my destiny. I was supposed to defend you,
Serena."
      "So were we, Raye." Lita said. Raye nodded slowly.
      "It's my fault." she admitted. "If I hadn't tried to ignore my
destiny,
none of this
 would have happened. It's all my fault."
      "Trust me, Raye." Lita said. "It will all work out. You'll see."
      Instantly, there was a knock on Darien's door. Darien got up and
opened
the door.
 There was Tanya.
      "Oh, hi Tanya." Darien said distractedly. Meanwhile, Serena had stood
up
and gone to wash her face in the bathroom.
      "Hi, Darien. May I come in?" Tanya said meekly.
      I'm just soothing everyone today, Darien thought to himself. He
invited
her in, and
 introduced Raye to her. Tanya smiled.
      "Have we met? You look familar to me." she said.
      Raye nodded. "Yeah I've got that feeling, too." Maybe I knew her in
the
Moon
 Kingdom days, she thought. After all, she had only met seven people from
the
old days, and there had been hundreds people there.
      Darien sat next to her. "So what's up, Tanya?" he asked.
      Tanya shrugged. "Nothing. I just felt really lonely."
      Dairen nodded and understood. Raye sensed something about Tanya, but
also knew it was a private conversation and time for her to leave. "I'll be
in
the kitchen," she muttered and walked over to it.
      "It's so hard living with someone for years and then going home alone.
I
miss him so much." Tnaya said once Raye was out of the room. Darien put his
arm around her.
      "I know. But you get used to it. I've lived alone since I was 16. I
sometimes miss
 company, but then I go to my friends' houses. Andrew, my best friend, works
at an arcade and has a really cool place. We hang out all the time." Darien
said.
      I wonder what humans do when they "hang out", Tanya thought. She had
come to the conclusion last night that humans weren't ALL bad, some of them
were nice. Darien happened to be one of them.
      "You're always welcome to come and visit anytime. I'll even unfold the
cot for you
 to sleep on should sleeping alone get to you." Darien said with a smile.
Tanya sighed and thanked him.
      "You really do understand what being alone is like. Did you have a
girlfriend leave
 you too?" Tanya asked.
      Darien solemnly shook his head. "No, but my parents were killed in a
car
crash when I was five. Until I turned 16, I lived in an orphange with a
bunkmate. The orphanage was a nice place, but I longed for a home. We went
to
school, then had an hour to play, and did our homework. Everything was very
routine right down to the clothes we wore.  We switched bunkmates every
year,
but there was no one I really got along with.
      "Finally when I turned 16, I was released from the orphanage. They
gave
me some
 money, enough to rent a place and buy food, but I had to get a job. Those
first few months were the hardest. I had never felt so alone. At least in
the
orphanage you had a bunk mate, someone to talk to. But there was no one for
me. At times, going home and sleeping by myself was the last thing I wanted
to
do.
      "Things picked up for me when I got a modeling contract. An agency had
seen me
 running one moring and decided that I was the one for them. I figured I had
it made. But modeling proved to be a tough job. It was 12 hours of hard
work,
posing, hair, makeup, and most of the time the pictures you worked so hard
on
producing are torn up because someone else screwed up. After about a year, I
gave up my contract. I've always had the opprotuninty to go back, but I'll
never take it. However, modeling kept me from feeling so lonely. It took up
so
much time that I couldn't feel lonely." Darien paused.
      "In those years, did you ever find any friends?" Tanya asked.
      "I dated a girl for awhile, Amanda her name was. She was a colleague
of
mine, the makeup girl. She was nice to me, but that spark just wasn't there.
Eventually we broke up, she moved onto bigger things. Now I think she's
modeling big-time. As far as guy friends went, the guys were too full of
themselves to associate with a lowly model like me." Darien answered.
      "What did you do after modeling?" Tanya asked.
      "After I quit modeling, I got several odd-jobs, one being a janitor at
the arcade.
 That's where I met Andrew. We became good friends, and it was nice to know
that there are people out there who like you because you're...you. Finally,
we
both got up the guts to apply to college. Andrew and I both got in, and took
a
two-year program. He majored in business management, I majored in
technology.
Then Andrew went back to the arcade. He seems to have found an attachment
there and loves it so much. One day he'll become manager, I can almost
guarantee it. I took a job at a television studio, updating equipment and
working with it. I worked there for a long time. Then, I quit my job a few
days ago,
 moved here, and got a job working as a computer technician."
      "Why did you quit?" Tanya asked.
      Darien paused. He had already told his life story to Tanya, carefully
omitting the
 parts about his alternate identity and his girlfriend. "I decided I need a
changed," he lied.
      Tanya nodded. "Have you seen Andrew lately?"
      Darien shook his head. "I've been meaning to head over to the arcade,
but can never find the time. He's really busy right now. His girlfriend is
in
Africa with some archeological dig, and he's saving money to fly to her for
Christmas. He's taken on a job at the drug store as well as gotten a raise
at
the arcade. He should be able to make it."
      Tanya smiled. "And your girlfriend? Was that her that snuck out of the
room?"
      Darien chuckled and shook his head. "No, that's Raye. She's one of my
girlfriend's friends. She and I get along as well."
      "So where does your girlfriend fit into this picture?" Tanya asked.
      Darien paused. He had been careful to eliminate Serena because so much
of his
 relationship with her had been based on the fact that she was Sailor Moon
and
he was Tuxedo Mask. "Oh, she came in during my days at the television
studio."
he shrugged.
      "There must be something special about her. After all, you wouldn't be
dating a
 fourteen-year-old if she wasn't special. What's her name?"
      "Ser...Serene." Darien didn't want to give away her name in case Tanya
recognized it and turned her into the hospital attendants. "I love her.
That's
what makes her special. I love her more than anything in the world."
      Tanya smiled. "Well, I've bugged you enough. I better go back to my
lonely
 apartment. See ya." She stood up and walked out of the apartment.
      Darien sat down. He had never told his life story to anyone, not even
Serena. It was good to get it out. What had made him tell her all that?
      Serena appeared from around the corner. She smiled and sat next to
him.
"I heard
 everything. How come you never told me about your life?" she asked.
      "Oh, it never came up. There wasn't much to tell. Except that I met
you." he
 whispered in her ear and gave her a light kiss.
      She blushed and smiled shyly. "Why do you tell me the WHOLE story,
including the scout stuff someday?"
      Darien smiled. "I will, meatballhead."
      Raye came out. She glanced around. "She's gone. Man you guys talked
for
a long time."
      Darien nodded. "Yeah."
      Raye coughed and sat down. "Alright, Serena. We have to talk. You too,
Mina, Lita, and Amy."
      "We're listening," Mina said.
      "If I'm going to die in one day, there are a few things I'd like to
do.
First, I'd like to
 apologize for screwing everything up."
      "Don't fret about it," Amy said. "Things will work out."
      "I'd also like to confess something to Serena." Raye said guiltily.
      Serena looked suspicious. "What?"
      "That day you saw me and Darien kissing..." Raye began.
      "Yeah?" Serena said, expecting something terribly.
      "Well, Darien had come to see me and Grandpa had said I was in the
bathroom.
 Well, without thinking he walked in. And I was about to take a bath. So he
saw me..." Raye said, her voice trailed off.
      "NAKED?" Serena gasped.
      The other scouts gasped as well. Darien look mortified. Serena looked
at
him one
 instant. His hand covered his face.
      "And you saw her naked?" Serena said.
      "I'm sorry, I didn't think..." he began. But Serena did the
unexpected.
      She burst out laughing. She laughed so hard, she fell on the floor. It
didn't stop her. The other scouts were giggling, but trying to sympathize
with
Raye, who had no idea what to say.
      "That's so funny!" Serena cried out, trying to control her amusement.
"Darien, I
 can't believe you saw her..." she began giggling again.
      "It's not that funny." Darien murmured. Serena nodded, laughing too
hard
to say yes.
      "I was scared you'd be mad." Raye admitted.
      Serena controlled her laughter. "No, of course not. Why would I be?
But
I can just
 picture his face..." Serena started laughing again.
      "It was humiliating." Raye said. "It was embarrassing. It is something
that I will
 never want to go through again."
      "And what was worse," Darien said, "I liked it."
      That made Serena shut up. Ryae gazed at Darien in surprise. Darien
looked at
 Serena, then cracked a smile. "Boy, did that shut you up!" he said
chuckling.
      Serena smiled. "You were only teasing..." she announced, then turned
to
him,
 "right?"
      Darien took his beloved in his arms. "How can I enjoy anoyone else but
you, my
 dear? I was just seeing what your reaction would be." He gave her a long
passionate kiss.
      Raye smiled. It was good to those two together. At least that was one
aspect of
 destiny she hadn't screwed up. Now it was time for her final announcement.
      "I have one more thing I want to do." she said solemnly. Serena and
Dairen turned
 towards her, listening intently.
      "I want to go home and be with Chad when I die." she said.
      Everyone was silent. Then Amy spoke, "Raye, you can't. You could give
him the
 disease, too! We can't take that chance."
      Raye was silent, thinking about this. Finally she stood up. "I love
Chad. I want to be with him." she said.
      Darien stood up. "No, you don't love Chad. Your body is playing tricks
on you.
 You've got to fight it."
      Raye shook her head in denial. "No, we're in love. I want to die in
his
arms."
      Darien ignored the impulse that was holding him back and grabbed her.
It
took every strength of willpower for him to not let go. "Raye listen to me."
      She struggled against him. But Darien was too strong for her. He held
on
tightly.
 "Let me go." she said.
      "Not until you listen." Darien said.
      "WE LOVE EACH OTHER!" she screamed.
      "Fight it, Raye." Darien continued saying. "Fight it."
      The other scouts were worried. The probe was shooting off tremendous
strength, and it would kill Raye who was already weak with the
disease."Raye,
please fight it." Amy said.
      "Raye, don't listen to your body!" Lita said.
      "You don't love Chad!" Mina said.
      Serena stood up. "Fight it Raye!" she said.
      "I...can't." Raye said and felt a boost of energy. She was almost free
of Dairne's
 grasp. "I won't!" she shouted and kicked Darien between the legs.
      Darien let out a small cry of pain and fell on the floor. He was in
pain
so badly, he
 couldn't utter a sound. He just layed on the floor trying to get up the
strength to ignore the pain.
      Serena looked at Raye with utter rage. She walked over to her and
slapped her hard. Raye whirled back, surprised. She was out of breath as she
leaned down to see if Darien was okay. He looked at her, his face contorting
with pain. Serena looked back at Ryae with murder in her eyes. "If you ever
dare hurt him again, your last day will be cut short." she said quietly.
Raye
knew that she was telling the truth.
      Darien  groaned. The pain subsided, but it was still too sore to move.
"I'm okay," he moaned. Serena bent down to him.
      "Are you sure, muffin?" she asked with concern in her voice.
      He nodded and groaned as he sat up. He looked at Raye. She looked
guiltily at him, then turned away. He sighed and stood up. The area was
still
tender, but he could bear it. Serena stood up with him. "Are you sure you'll
be alright?" she said.
      "I'll be fine. It's happened before. I'll live." Darien said. This
time
he couldn't fight
 his urge to stay away from Raye.
      "Raye, please fight it." Amy said.
      Raye nodded. "I'm going to tak a nap." she announced. She walked past
Darien into his bedroom and shut the door.
      After awhile, Liat said, "She's asleep."
      Darien glanced at his love. "I can't believe you slapped her. She's
slapped me before, and she's slapped you, but I never dreamed you'd hit her
back."
      Serena sighed. "Neither did I. But I was so mad..." she said and
looked
at him. "I
 saw you there hurt, and I had to."
      Darien smiled and sat down. He kissed her softly. "She's going to die,
Serena." he said to her.
      Serena's eyes clouded over with tears. "I know. And I slapped her."
      "She was asking for it, Serena." Lita said. "If you ask me, she's been
asking for it
 for a long time."
      "Still that's no reason to slap her." Serena said.
      "It was nesesscary. It made the probe levels go down." Amy said.
      Darien held onto Serena's hand. "You've still got me Serena. And
you're
friends are right behind you, even if they aren't alive."
      Serena smiled. Darien was right. Things would go on. They could beat
this thing.
 And then everything would go back to normal. She thought of Amy's speech.
"Things will never be normal." she had said. No, but she would adjust. After
all, she was Sailor Moon! She could conquer anything. Serena glanced over at
Darien. Well, everything but losing Darien.