Title: An Angel Plays Cupid
Part: 3
Rating: PG

Author: Angel Erika 
E-mail: Erika515@aol.com

Author's Note: Did I take long enough for you? LOL...Anyway, you know 
what? I just realized that I had Serena imagining that she was getting 
an Emmy for performing in a play ^^;; Sorry about that, but what award 
DO they give to actresses in plays anyway? I don't really pay any 
attention to that stuff. Is that part of the Oscars? Oh well. Oh yeah,
I'm trying to focus this story on Darien. So...Most of it will be his 
thoughts and junk like that. Anyway, on with the show!

For newcomers:
Endymion - "En-dee-mion"
Gaea - "Jee-ya" (Greek mythology: Mother Earth) I thought I'd follow a 
trend and stick with the name many authors have given the Earth Queen.

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon. Not Mine. Naoko Takeuchi. Any reference to other
real places/people is purely coincidental...Unless it's my subconscious
pulling them out of memory, but let's not get complicated.

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	Darien walked inside the theater, going straight to the auditorium.
The lights were dim, several people were sitting in the front, and the
spotlight focused on an olive-haired boy and a girl whose face he could
hardly see because of a shadow on stage. The girl had *ridiculously* 
long hair, but it suited her, he thought. 

	"Serenity, we must not see each other anymore! Can't you see? 
Our relationship is tearing our families apart. The earth's alliance 
with the moon is crucial to my kingdom's survival..." he said, reading 
the packet of papers in front of him. It was that of a trained actor's 
voice, but it lacked the depth and intensity the short speech required,
and this didn't go unnoticed by Darien. 

	The girl spoke passionately, and though Darien couldn't see her
features, he was sure that her teeth were clenched in frustration, and
that her eyes were wide with defiance, slightly moist. "They'll understand! 
I don't care, Endymion! If Beryl hadn't told the queen, you'd feel the 
same!"

	"Yes, I might have, but that's not the point. She knows, and I
bet she's arguing with your mother at this very moment about the partner-
ship. I'd rather have one of us end this relationship than either of 
them." Again, the boy was a good actor, but he emphasized the wrong 
words at the wrong times. Cautiously, he moved toward the girl and 
placed his arms around her. "I love you, Serenity, and I'm sorry for 
having to do this, but you must understand that I can't risk the lives 
of my people. I'm sorry..." Slowly and tentatively, the boy began to 
lower his face towards the girl in his arms...

	For a split-second, Darien felt a pang of jealously run through
his body.  

	"Alright, that was a great performance there!" A fairly young 
woman with curly, dark hair tied back in a loose ponytail stood up and 
applauded for a little while, breaking the two on stage apart, much to 
Darien's subconscious' relief. "You can come down now, I'd like to talk
to you."

	"Yikes..I've done that scene about five times, and it manages to
spring tears into my eyes every time!" the girl with the long hair said
as she sniffled and laughed at the same time. "Where are my bobby pins?
I need to put my hair back up."

	"Speaking of your hair, I think it would be best if you put your
hair up in... those two, cute buns for the play. What do you call them
anyway?" the woman said.

	The girl giggled softly and replied, "Well, somebody I know
calls them 'meatballs'."

	"Meatballs? How...endearing..." the woman said jokingly. "As 
for you, Mr. Matsuura, you put on a great show!" she beamed at the boy 
with the dark green mop, "But it's not quite what we're looking for. 
Don't get me wrong, you're an outstanding actor with a lot of yum, 
but...You just don't seem to...Baboom!...with our leading lady. We need 
someone that clicks with her..." she said thoughtfully. 

	Disappointment was evident in (AN: Let's name him Josh just for
the kicks! LOL Just kidding!!) Adam Matsuura's tone, "Oh..." he said 
dejectedly, but added cheerfully, "Well then good luck on finding that
right guy! I know it won't be easy considering how awesome your leading
girl is! Serena's a great actress, and you were really lucky that she 
decided to try out." Then he turned towards Serena, who was putting in 
the last bobby pin on her right 'meatball.' "Maybe you'd like to hang out 
with me sometime after the play is over?"

	"I'd be happy to, if I ever got the chance!" she replied with a 
smile. (AN: Stop throwing stuff at me! You can't expect Serena to just 
say no! =P)

	"I'll be looking forward to it...Serenity." Adam took a deep 
bow and kissed Serena's hand lightly, receiving a giggle in return. 
(AN: Stop it! What? Don't you think that millions of guys flirt with 
Serena? I'm sorry! Ow! Stop throwing things!) Just as Adam left, Serena
climbed up the steps and went backstage.

	Darien met with Adam on his way out and threw him a casual grin,
though jealousy was creeping all over his body, and he had no idea why.
He approached the woman whose back was turned to him and cleared his 
throat.	"Hi...My name's Darien Chiba, I'm here to audition for 'Moon
Legend'...?" he said as he took his jacket off and threw it over the 
back of a seat.

	"Hello! Mr. Chiba, you say?" the lady the with curly, dark hair 
(which proved to be a very deep burgundy in proper lighting) said, 
lowering her eyeglasses a bit and arching an eyebrow as she reached her
hand out to shake Darien's with a slight bow. She was probably
only a couple of years older than Darien, and she had a vivacious (AN: I 
love that word! It's my site's name) aura about her. Her glasses gave 
her an intelligent and mature look, though she was just as perky as a 
junior high school student, and her deep, violet eyes seemed to go on 
forever.

	He replied, "Just Darien's fine."

	"Well, alright, Darien! I'm Kari Kusakabe, Ms. Kusakabe to 
most, but you can call me Kari if you want. I'm the producer slash 
director of this play," she holds up a script, where her name is written 
under the title. "See? It says my name right here!" she points proudly 
and laughs. "I take it you're here to try out for the prince's part?" 
*Certainly fits the physical requirements...* she thought.

	"Yes," he replied.
	
	"Alright, here's the script, and all Endymion's parts are 
highlighted in blue." she said and handed him the papers. "You can look 
over it for a while, just tell me when you're ready; we're doing the 
scene on page 28 beginning with 'Serenity, we must not see each other 
anymore!' You can also change the words around to suit yourself, just 
not too drastically, but I have a feeling you already know that." as 
she walked away, she asked one of the other people, set and costume 
designers probably, "Where's our princess?"

	"Oh, I think she's backstage...Probably practicing with her 
friends." one of them answered. "Do you want me to get her for you?"
	
	"Will you, please?"

	"Sure, be right back then." The boy jumped on the stage and went
behind the curtain where muffled voices could be heard. "She'll be out
in a sec, she says." he said as he hopped down.

	"Alright," Kari replied, not looking up from a dress she was
looking over. She moved a few pins around along with some of the cloth,
and smiled triumphantly to the girl in front of her. "There! Perfect! I
don't know what I would do without you and your ideas, Natalie!"

	While the people around him were busily moving around, trying to
get as much as they can done in their limited time, Darien skimmed over
the text quickly. He wanted to avoid reading straight from the book since
that makes a person seem a bit lifeless, so he put his photographic
memory to some good use. 
	
	"Okay, Kari, here I am!" Serena announced.

	"Good. Darien, are you ready?"
	
	*Did she just say..*

	He looked up, only for his eyes to clash with a pair he seemed 
to know so well (AN: EYES, people! I swear, some of you are just so 
ecchi! LOL If you didn't get that, congratulations for having such a
virginified mind). 

	Serena could just hear her jaw make a clunking sound as it fell
to the floor. She knew Andrew had suggested Darien to come, but she 
didn't know he was actually going to! *Uh-oh, don't want to seem like 
I'm gawking...Put those acting skills of yours to good use, Serena!* 
she told herself.

	"Darien?!" she practically screeched as she leered back. "What
are YOU doing here??" 

	"What does it look like, Meatball Head? I'm auditioning."

	With a laugh, Kari said, "Ahh...So you're the person who 
calls her hair 'meatballs.' I must say, Darien, that's very original...
Not to mention quite lovey-dovey-esque." she added with a sly wink, 
only to receive a slightly puzzled, if not denying, look from both.

	"Ahh..Forget about it." Kari realized her attempt at a joke wasn't
exactly working, "Get up on stage, you two, and let's see how you do.
Ha! I rhymed!" she giggled as she pushed her glasses up as she sat down 
on a nearby seat. 

	Serena and Darien tentatively took their places on the platform,
each with a script in hand. 

	"Okay! Act away!" 

	Darien gave his throat a slight clearing (AN: hehe, I like that
phrase. It's weird.), and began, "Serenity, we mustn't see each other 
anymore!" His voice echoed through the auditorium, "Can't you see? Our 
relationship is tearing our families apart. The earth's alliance with 
the moon is crucial to my kingdom's survival..." Darien trailed off with
a small choke. By this time, all eyes were on the pair, entranced by the
intense "acting" they were emitting.

	Slightly surprised with Darien's talent, Serena widened her eyes
and hesitated for a moment. When she regained her composture, she replied,
seeming to challenge Darien's acting with hers, "They'll understand!" Just 
as he thought she did, Serena's eyes were full of fiery defiance, and she 
spoke through clenched teeth, "I don't care, Endymion! If Beryl hadn't 
told the queen, you'd feel the same!"

	Darien's hand gestures and voice were those of a frustrated man,
"Yes, I might have, but that's not the point. She knows, and I bet she's 
arguing with your mother at this very moment about the partnership. I'd 
rather have one of us end this relationship than either of them." 
	
	He captured Serena in an impassioned embrace. The fervor never 
left his voice, but he said much softer, "I love you, Serenity, and I'm 
sorry for having to do this, but you must understand that I can't risk 
the lives of my people. I'm sorry..." (AN: *sniff sniff*)

	The theater was silent, a heavy blanket of emotion covering all
its inhabitants. Darien, afraid, or maybe just unwilling, to let Serena 
go, clung on to her as if she was his lifeline, as Endymion would have 
to Serenity. He could feel Serena's steady breathing through the fabric 
of his shirt, the breath from her lips on his neck. Any sane man would
have gone crazy in these conditions, but Darien kept up a facade of 
unfeeling coolness. But as long as his eyes were open, every emotion 
he was feeling was exposed for anyone interested enough to see. 

	The couple's eyes met once more. Serena unblinkingly gazed into 
Darien's fathomless blue eyes, seeming to penetrate him to the very 
marrow of his bones. He felt as if he could and would trust this girl into
such depths that he would place his life into her small, dainty hands.

	There was still no response from their small, gaping audience of 
entranced on-lookers. It was so silent, the footsteps echoing from the hall
seemed to deafen them all. 

	Blindly aiming through the hallways, looking for the auditorium 'Moon
Legend' was playing in, Andrew checked every door, mindless of the placards 
placed on the front of them. As you may have already guessed, he opened 
a certain door he should get slapped for even coming within five feet of. 
One undoubtedly feminine shriek could be heard ten miles away as a hair brush
was thrown in Andrew's shocked face. He shut the door as fast as he opened 
it, having Faith laugh at him as hysterically as a hyena. 

	"Ha! That's what you get for not reading the stupid signs, you 
moron! See?" she pointed at the engraved plaque on the door, "It says, 
'Cynthia Li's Dressing Room.'" 

	All Andrew could reply with was a sneer.

	At last, the right door creaked open, and Andrew was in utter shock
at the sight before him. Darien?? Clinging onto Serena?? And Serena?? 
Likewise?? *Whoa! I'm really getting delirious.* he thought as he shook his 
head slightly.

	Faith's perfect eyebrow arched at the scene. *This makes my work so 
much easier now!*

	"INCREDIBLE!!" Kari shrieked. Andrew cringed. Faith giggled... 
Serena and Darien only responded with a slight turn of their heads. "Darien, 
that was magnificent! Totally captivating! What? Did you go to an acting 
school? Are you born with this talent? If you are, I am not surprised at 
all... But that was just perfect. You are the epitome of the prince we're 
looking for. Without another thought in my mind, you've got the job!"

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And I laugh. Lordy, how long did it take me to write that? LOL... And I've
had it done for a while, too. I just needed to add a paragraph that I couldn't
seem to get out of my head. Eh, go figure. SO SORRY for the long wait. I hope
that my long absences don't affect your reading of my fanfics. That would suck.
Anyway, I'll see you all in the next chapter! Until then, adeiu!

Erika
http://www.wynterchylde.com/erika <~ my personal site
http://cezzy.pitas.com <~ my pita