The days passed and soon it was time for the ball.
Serena had not felt overwhelmed by all that had to be done,
but sometimes she wanted nothing more to do than just crawl
into bed and sleep for the whole day. However, there were
times when Serena wasn't needed and those hours she spent
exploring her surroundings.
The palace was really quite beautiful but her favorite
place was the gardens. As Darien had said, they really were
spectacular.
Flowers from all over bloomed there, some she
knew, some she had never seen before. If possible, she would
spend hours there because she loved the peace and tranquility
the area offered. It was as if she were in her own world, a world
free of worries and problems.
But then reality would set in when
she would hear someone calling her name and she would have to
leave, although quite reluctantly, sniffing and touching blossoms
along the way back.
But today she had found the perfect chance to come
back again.
She had been walking with Lady Augusta and some
other noblewoman when the perfect opportunity to escape
presented itself to her.
Queen Augusta had asked her to go get
something from somewhere and Serena took the chance. They
wouldn't miss her; for the most part she had been following them,
only talking when necessary. All very boring in her opinion.
So here she was now, the bright sun shining down upon
her, warming every inch of her. She had never really gotten a good
chance to explore the outer area of the gardens and decided that
was what she would do today. As she walked closer to the edge it
became colder and the flowers became sparse.
How strange, she thought and continued to walk until
she stopped in amazement at the sight that lay before her. She
knew she had reached the end of the gardens because what she
was seeing now was definitely not part of them.
Snow blanketed
the area in front of her and what truly caused her mouth to fall
open was the frozen lake just ahead.
She had heard stories of
how people could walk and skate on frozen water and she had
always hoped she would be able to do that one day.
The Moon
didn't have anything like snow or frozen bodies of water because
the climate there was usually a constant temperature. Not like
Earth, which she had heard, had four distinct seasons.
She took a few steps forward and immediately
shivered at the drop in temperature. So cold, she thought, but
it didn't bother her much for her interest lay on the lake. I just
want to take a few steps on it, that's all. It couldn't hurt, could it?
Warning bells went off in her head but she ignored
them, her excitement getting the better of her. The snow made
crunching noises under her feet and when she had reached the
lake, she gingerly put one foot out. It was slippery but she
quickly learned to balanced herself and soon she was standing
straight with no problems.
She flung out her arms and lifted her face to the sun,
pure happiness filling every part of her. This is the greatest day,
she thought and hugged herself.
All of a sudden she heard a slight cracking sound, and
startled she looked down to stare at the ice. Tiny cracks were
forming at where she was standing and they were growing quickly.
"This cannot be good," she whispered and then looked
up suddenly when she heard her name being yelled.
She whirled
around, startled and it was then that the ice decided to give way
under her feet. She screamed but was cut short abruptly when she
crashed into the water, it's cold iciness halting her breath.
She began to struggle as water covered her head and
when she broke the surface she screamed once more, hoping
someone would hear her. But her dress was quickly weighing her
down and she desperately reached out to grab at something solid.
Just when she thought she was going to sink a hand grabbed her
wrist and hauled her up. Warmth enveloped her as a cloak
was wrapped around her and she looked up to see the face of
her rescuer.
"Darien..."
"Shh, don't speak. It's alright," He brushed strands of
her wet hair away from her face and held her closely to him, gently
rocking her.
"Endymion?" It was Kunzite but he was far away.
"Kunzite! Over here!" Darien yelled and began to stand
up taking Serena with him.
They saw Kunzite running towards them and Serena, the
shock leaving her body, began to shake as she realized how close she
had been to death.
"Darien...I can't stand..."
"It's okay, I've got you," He wrapped his cloak tighter
around her and then lifted her up in his arms and began to walk
towards Kunzite. She closed her eyes and rested her head against his
shoulder as exhaustion pulled at her.
"Oh my God, what happened?"
"She fell through the ice."
"What was she thinking walking onto it like that?"
"I don't know."
They walked quickly towards the palace in silence until
Darien spoke. "Kunzite, run ahead of us and alert the Generals and
the Scouts and my parents about the situation. I don't want anyone
else to know about this so try to make sure no one else knows."
"Right."
As Kunzite ran off, Serena spoke in a small voice,
"Darien...I'm so sorry."
"We'll talk later," was his curt reply and Serena felt awash
in shame and regret. How stupid you were, she told herself. Stupid,
stupid, stupid. She felt the exhaustion taking over and welcomed it,
falling into its darkness.
When they reached the palace, Darien went in using the
kitchen entrance and the two were met by the Scouts and Generals.
"Is she alright?" the girls asked, fear evident in their eyes
for their Princess.
"We have to get her warm. I'm taking her to our room,
Mina get some warm clothes. Jadeite, get some more blankets. Lita
make something warm, Nephrite help her. Kunzite, where are my
parents?"
"They've gone to see the Consulate but are on their way."
"Good. Keep a look out for them and tell them everything
as soon as they get here. The rest of you come with me."
Darien rushed up to his room, the others following behind,
and kicked the door open. He placed his wife on the bed and began
undressing her. Zoicite turned around respectfully and when Darien
had put blankets on Serena, he turned to Amy.
"Amy, I know you're some kind of unofficial doctor on the
Moon. Please examine Serena and if you'd like, Zoicite can help you."
"Of course, Your Highness," she said, nodding, and calmly
flipped out her mini-computer and began tapping away, scanning
Serena. Zoicite walked up behind her and they began to talk quietly.
Raye slowly approached Darien, who sat next to Serena
holding her hand.
"Will she be alright?"
"She will, if anything, she'll pop her eyes open and yell at us
for wasting our time standing over her like this."
Raye's face broke out into a smile and she wiped a few tears
away. "That would be our Serena."
At that moment, Mina and Jaedite came in and Darien and
Raye began to dress Serena and cover her with the extra blankets.
"Darien," Zoicite placed a hand on his friend's shoulder.
"What have you found?"
"Well, she seems to be okay, she's only unconscious
because exhaustion has really gotten to her and if she gets plenty of
rest, she probably won't even fall sick. Thank God you were there in
time Your Highness, her condition might have been much worse."
"Thank you Lady Amy. Now, all of you may leave. I
don't want people to know about this so do your best in keeping this as
quiet as possible."
When everyone had left, Darien turned back to the bed
and sat next to Serena, bending over her.
"C'mon Serena, wake up. Open those beautiful blue eyes
of yours." He stroked her cheek and placed a kiss on her forehead
and then straightened, his muscles stiff. He realized he hadn't even
gotten a chance to change and his cold wet shirt only served to remind
him of that fact.
As he changed his mind relived the rush of fear that went
through him when he had her first scream. He remembered his heart
stopping and then his body going into action as he crashed through the
bushes, heading towards her voice.
He was sure his heart had stopped a second time when he
saw her struggling in the freezing water. He had never been more
scared in his entire life.
"Darien..."
His thoughts startled, he looked over to the bed and rushed
over to Serena. Her eyes were open but they were cloudy with fear
and confusion as she struggled under the heavy weight of the blankets.
She quieted and looked at him, as tears pooled at her eyes.
"I'm so sorry, I've caused so much trouble haven't I? I didn't mean to,
it's just that-"
A light knock at the door interrupted her and she watched
as Darien walked over to the door, opened it, and took a tray from
whoever it was outside. He spoke quietly to the person on the other
side and then closed the door and walked back to her.
"Who was that?"
"That was Lita, she and Nephrite made some warm bread
and hot soup for you."
"Oh," she struggled to sit up and Darien quickly put down
the tray in order to help her.
He held her waist while she grabbed onto his forearms
and they somehow managed to have her sit up.
As he tried to
straighten, he lost his balance and would have fallen on her had he not
supported himself with his hands placed behind her (AN: how awkward
does *that* sound? I warned you, I'm not good with these details).
They stared at each other, their faces just inches apart, their breaths
mingling.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly and lifted himself away from her.
He set the tray on the blankets and lifted the cover of the bowl.
"Mmm, it smells so good," Serena said, inhaling in the
aroma.
"Your Scout and my General, put together, can work
wonders," Darien said grinning as he lifted the spoon. He saw her
frowning and looked at her. "What?"
"You are not going to feed me are you?"
"Yes, of course," Darien knew he had said the wrong
thing the minute the words left his mouth.
She narrowed her eyes at him, "I don't think so. I am
perfectly capable of feeding myself. I don't need anyone to help
me."
Darien sighed in exasperation. She is definitely getting
better, he thought. "Serena, don't be so stubborn. I can help you."
"No," she grabbed the spoon and dipped it into the
bowl. However as she lifted it to her mouth, her hand began to
shake and she was forced to drop the spoon back into the bowl.
"The fatigue is still keeping you weak Serena, let me help
you."
"I hate being so weak," she grumbled and Darien grinned
taking her reply as a yes.
He lifted the spoon to her and reluctantly she took it in
her mouth.
"See, it's not so bad," he said, waiting for her to finish.
He continued to feed her in silence and when everything was finished,
she let out a big sigh and rested back against the pillows.
"I have never had such good soup in my entire life," she
said, closing her eyes in bliss.
"..."
She opened her eyes again and looked at him. "Thank you
Darien, for taking care of me...and saving my life."
"Hmm...Speaking of which, what were you doing out on the
ice anyway?"
She looked down at her hands and spoke, "I was curious.
I've never seen a frozen lake before and I had heard of how people
could walk on it and I wanted to try it for myself," she looked up at
him, "I never knew it would crack beneath my feet."
"I can understand that, but Serena you should have never
gone there in the first place alone. What if I hadn't been there to hear
your scream? What would have happened then?" His voice was
sharp, the image of her in the lake embedded in his mind and she
flinched.
"I said I was sorry."
"You've already said that," he said flatly and strode to the
door at a knock. His parents came in, worry and concern evident on
both their faces.
"Darien, we heard about the accident, is she alright?" Queen
Augusta asked.
"You can see for yourself Mother, she just needs a little rest
and she'll be quite fine."
The Queen rushed to the bed and enveloped Serena in her
arms, "Oh God, Serenity are you okay? I didn't think much of it when
you had left Lady Sandra and I but now I regret not having come after
you."
"Please, don't blame yourself, it's really my fault, I should
have never left you two."
"Do you think we should cancel the ball? It is tomorrow
night after all." King Terrence asked.
"Oh no, please don't do that! I'll be fine by tomorrow night.
Even now I can feel my body regaining its strength."
Darien raised his eyebrow at that and turned to the older
man, "Father, I think it's best if we have the ball, less questions will be
asked that way."
"You're right about that, but if Serenity isn't feeling better, I
don't want to make her condition worse."
"I'll be fine, the most I'll probably have is a slight cold. No
one will notice that."
"I guess we'll be okay then," Queen Augusta said. She turned
back to Serena, "Are you sure you'll be alright?"
"Yes, I'll be alright," she replied laughing, "I'm a warrior,
remember? I've been through much worse."
"Oh yes, of course," an awkward silence followed and then
the King spoke again, "Then I guess we'll be leaving you two," he said,
motioning for his wife to come join him, "We'll check up on you later
Serenity. Get plenty of rest."
"I will," she watched them leave and then saw Darien
frowning at her. "What?"
He strode to her and grabbed her shoulders. "Did you have
to remind my parents that you're a warrior? That was absolutely
unnecessary and I don't need you to rub it in our faces that you 'have
been through much worse' as you so nicely put it."
"I was only trying to reassure them and that was the only
way I knew how. It's true, I've survived much worse than just a fall
through the ice."
"Just a fall, just a fall? You almost died out there today
Serena, doesn't that mean anything to you?"
"Of course it does, I'm not insensitive to that fact. It's just
that if I die, I die. I don't want to die but it's a natural thing."
"Not if it can be prevented," he countered.
Realization dawned upon Serena, "You were afraid for me
weren't you? You thought that would be the end of me. I'm surprised
you weren't relieved that you wouldn't have to deal with me anymore."
His hands tightened around her arms almost to the point
of pain and she looked at him, "Darien, you're hurting me."
He ignored her comment and spoke, "How can you say
that? Do you think me so cruel and selfish? I would never feel that
way about you. Serena, I..."
"You what Darien?"
"I have to go."
A surge of disappointment washed over her as she
watched him leave. He was about to say something, something she
knew she had yearned for someone like him to say. But why her?
She had made his life miserable, could it be that he actually did
feel something other than annoyance towards her? She truly hoped
so.
