Thorny Remembrances

CHAPTER FIVE

	Lita?s mouth hung open at the thought of Darien finding the new 
princess.
	?It was a huge coincidence, unless there are things going on 
that I don?t understand, which is also likely.  I was leaving work on 
my motorcycle.  This girl pulls up next to me on her bike and revs 
the engine.?
	?You didn?t!? Lita gasped.
	?Yeah, I did.  What?  You think I don?t have any fun??
	?No, I guess I?ve just never pictured you racing through the 
streets of Tokyo.?
	?Well, it doesn?t happen often.  But it happens.  Anyway, I won.  
She wiped out on a curb and then passed out.  When I tried to help her, I 
felt some of my energy transfer to her.?
	?Are you all right??
	?Yeah, but you haven?t heard the strangest part.  She called me 
?Prince.?  I took her to my place to try to help her get her head 
straight.  After I made sure she was alright I took her back to her 
bike, but I gave her my number.?
	?Wow.  Well, it sounds like you?ve got things under control.  
Do you think she has any idea that she?s a moon princess??
	?Don?t know.  She just seemed like a normal girl.  But, Lita, 
I felt something when I was with her; something very familiar, 
something warm.  I wanted to touch her,? said Darien blushing a 
little.
	?What do you mean?  What kind of touching??
	Lita?s eyes narrowed a little and her voice lowered to a 
whisper.
	?I don?t know,? answered Darien, looking away.  ?I?m totally 
devoted to Serena, but I felt something when I was with her.  And, 
I?m going to figure out my connection with Rose Mason.?
	?Rose Mason?that?s her name??
	?Yeah.?
	?What?d she look like??
	Darien leaned back with his eyes shut, trying to remember how 
she?d looked.  A smile crept across his face.
	?Long red hair, wavy.  Her eyes were sorta blue-green and her 
skin was very fair.?
	He stretched. 
	?And her hair smelled like oranges or peaches maybe.?
	?Oh man!  Darien if you remember how she smelled, that?s bad,? 
Lita said shaking her head.  ?Are you?crying??
	Darien hadn?t been aware of the tear streaming from his eyes.
	?Lita, it?s been so long since I?ve seen her.  And she looked 
so pretty when she was asleep on the sofa.  I wanted to hold her, 
but I couldn?t?not with these hands.  It would have been all wrong.?
	Lita?s mouth hung open for a second time at Darien?s admission.
	Darien, shocked at his words, took a deep breath.  He excused 
himself to the bathroom.  Inside, he starred at his reflection in the 
mirror and wondered where those words had come from.  It was seldom 
that he said things without meaning them, but this time, he wasn?t 
even sure what the words had meant.  He splashed some cold water on 
his face before retuning to the living room.
	Lita still sat on the sofa, looking concerned.  Suddenly Darien 
felt awkward.  He was acting like Serena, he thought.
	?I can?t believe I?m letting this get to me,? he apologized.
	?It?s all right.  Actually it?s nice to know you?re as human 
as the rest of us.  You?re even starting to sound a little like me.?
	?Oh, I don?t think it?s that bad.?  He winked at her.  ?Do you 
feel like getting out tomorrow?  Why don?t we go to that coffee shop 
on Market?  I?d like you to check out Rose.  Maybe you would remember 
more about her than I do.  Europa does circle Jupiter.?
	?You have a date with her??
	?No!  But, I told her to call me and let me know she made it 
home okay.  I can ask her to meet us.  What do you think??
	Lita looked at him cross ways.  ?Well, okay.?
	?If you can keep from telling Serena??
	?I know.  I know.  Just pick me up after school.?
	She stood to escort him to the door.
	Downstairs, Darien got on his bike to head home.  He looked 
back up at the bright window and wondered if Lita would go out after 
he was away.  There was no way he could stop her if that?s what she 
wanted.  He tried to picture himself in her place, hanging out in 
dark allies until someone cried for help.  
	?Is someone getting hurt tonight because Lita is staying home?? 
 But his own answer to that question echoed in his head.  ?We all 
take risks some calculated, some foolish.?
	
	Darien could hear the phone ringing through the front door of 
his apartment as he fumbled with the lock.  He barely made it to the 
phone before the machine was to pick up.
	?Hello?  Darien?  It?s Rose and I?m home,? she said.  ?I was 
about to get worried that you hadn?t made it home all right.  This 
is the second time I?ve tried to reach you.?
	?I?m sorry.  I stopped by a friends apartment on the way home.?
	?Hmmm.  Your friends sure keep late hours.?
	?What are you doing tomorrow around 4:30 in the afternoon?  I?m 
meeting a friend at the coffee shop on Market.  Why don?t you join 
us?? asked Darien.
	?I don?t know.  Sounds kinda ?third wheel-ish.  Besides I?ve 
got to get some work done tomorrow.  Is that too vague??
	?No.  I?ll understand if you can?t make it.?
	?Thanks, Damien.  I?ve got to go now; lot?s to do tomorrow.  
Well, I suppose it?s already tomorrow.?
	?Darien,? he reminded her.
	?Oh, right, Darien.?
	
	Serena was deep in thought.  She hadn?t been able to sleep.  
She was anxious about the prospect of another Moon Princess.  She was 
nervous about the new threat of danger.  Finally when things were 
going the way they should, and now she felt faced with the string 
that could unravel everything.
	Darien hadn?t been home when she tried to call him.  He should 
have been there.  His shift at the hospital was long over and he 
didn?t have any classes.  She?d left a message and promised herself 
not to call again, trying not to appear needy.
	She rolled over and tried to fluff a pillow. 
	A voice from the foot of the bed reminded her that she wasn?t 
alone.
	?Serena!  Please try to lie still, or do I need to find a 
window sill to sleep in?? said Luna.
	?Aren?t you supposed to hunt mice at night?? asked Serena.  
?I?m sorry Luna.  I?ll try to be still.  I just can?t shake the 
feeling that something?s wrong, very wrong.?
	?I know,? said Luna yawning and stretching.  ?I believe the 
evil presence Artimus and I have been looking for is about to make 
an appearance.  I?d hoped we were wrong.?
	?Will we have to fight her, the princess of Europa?? asked 
Serena.
	?I expect we will.  I hope we don?t.  If everything is revealed 
I don?t? know if we can,? she purred.
	?What?s that supposed to mean??
	?I?m not sure I know, myself?  I feel as though I?m on the 
verge of remembering something.  The only thing I know for sure is 
that you Scouts need to get your minds and hearts in synch.?
	?Easier said than done,? said Serena before finally settling 
under the covers.
	Luna crept back to the foot of the bed and stared out the 
window.  The half crescent moon was just coming into view.  It?s 
soft light bathed the corner of Serena?s bedspread.  Luna curled up 
in the white glow, reminded of the promises the future held for them 
all.
	
	
	Rea sat at the coffee shop waiting for Mina, who was late.
	?Man,? she sighed under her breath, ?she?s almost as bad as 
Serena.  It?s hard to believe she?s supposed to be some kind of 
leader.?
	She stirred her coffee and watched through the front window, 
people rushing by on their way to work or school.  She wondered what 
it would be like to go to a regular school instead of the private one 
she attended.  She wondered what it would be like to be a regular 
girl, instead of the fiery Sailor Mars.  She flipped her hair back 
over her shoulder; remembering that she?d always been different from 
other girls, even before she found out about her celestial flip side.
	 When she was very young, she?d seen visions of the future.  
Images would dance in the temple fires.  Other girls were afraid of 
her.  She?d been lonely until she met Serena and the others, when 
she found that the talent that had alienated her from the others had 
a purpose.  And, that purpose was to save peoples lives.
	Mina tapping on the storefront window interrupted Rei?s 
contemplations.  She waved.  But before Mina made it through the 
front door, there was a crash in the kitchen.
	A waiter ran from the back of the shop yelling.  He was 
bleeding from a gash in his forehead.
	?They?re crazy.  Someone call the cops before they kill each 
other,? he yelled.
	The girl behind the register picked up the phone and began to 
dial.  Before she could finish a woman emerged from the kitchen.
	?Put down the phone!? the woman yelled while running towards 
the front counter.
	Ignoring the order, she spoke into the phone frantically.
	?Police.  We need the police here??
	She dropped the phone as a knife pierced her hand.
	?I told you to put down the phone!? the lady from the kitchen 
repeated herself.  ?Now move before the next knife hits something 
more important.?  She held up another larger blade.
	The clerk at the register did as she was told while cradling 
her injured hand.
	A moment later another person appeared from the kitchen.
	?This isn?t over yet,? he yelled.  ?I will kill you!?
	Wielding his own set of kitchen knives the man lunged at the 
armed woman.  When the met, both knives hit their marks.  Blood 
spattered across the floor.  Injured, the two continued to fight, 
stabbing each other over and over.
	Suddenly the front window crashed to pieces as a gold chain 
broke through with a fluid motion.  The whirring chain wrapped the 
two assailants together so tightly that they couldn?t move.  Knives 
clanked to the floor, as did their owners.
	 Rei leapt over the counter and picked up the phone.  She 
redialed the police and requested and ambulance as well.
	Sailor Venus stepped through the broken window.
	?Someone help me with these two,? she cried.  ?If we don?t 
stop the bleeding, they?ll die.?
	Rei was at her side in minutes.  They worked trying to tunicate 
the injuries, but even tied, the two continued to fight one another.
	?You?ve got to stop fighting or you?ll both bleed to death,? 
yelled Venus.
	?I don?t care!? cried the woman.  ?I hate him so much.  I have 
to kill him.?
	?No!? screamed the man in return.  ?You?re the one.  You have 
to be stopped.?
	?I?ll solve this,? said Rei picking up a coffee mug.
	After two solid ?thuds? both the man and woman lay unconscious 
on the coffee shop floor.
	Rei looked up at Mina.
	?Sailor Venus, the police will be here any second.?
	?Right,? she said, winking at Rei in understanding.
	A moment later a squad car appeared in front of the shop, 
followed by an ambulance.  Sailor V had disappeared through the back.
	Rei put her hand on the woman?s forehead.  It was ice cold.  
She drew her hand back suddenly, aware of the negative energy.  She 
felt as though the energy had almost been alive, as if it had bit her.
	She could see Mina out of the corner of her eye, lurking out 
front with a dozen or so curious on-lookers.
	Rei gave a brief statement to the police, since she had been 
the one to whack the bad guys over the head.  It was almost time for 
school when she finally made it outside to Mina. 
	?Man, you got there just in time.  I was trying to figure out 
how I was gonna transform in front of all those people.?
	?Yeah, I guess for once it paid to be a little late.  What 
happened before I got there?? asked Mina.
	?Nothing.  They just barreled out of the kitchen about the 
time you walked up.  And what were they saying about needing to kill 
each other??
	?Talk about weird,? agreed Mina.
	Rei continued.  ?When I felt the woman?s forehead, I felt 
negative energy--almost as if it were trying to latch on to me.  It 
stung.?
	?Are you all right??
	?Yeah.  What time is it?  We?re going to be late.?
	?I?ll come to the temple after class,? called Mina as she and 
Rei each dashed off in opposite directions.

	Mina was out of breath as she slid into her seat.  The 
teacher had already begun to call the roll.  She was barely able to 
gasp a weak ?present,? when prodded.  She lay her head down on the 
desk for a moment.
	She felt something small hit her head.  Looking up she saw a 
wadded up ball of paper on the ground.  Looking behind her she saw 
Serena waving for her to pick it up.  She uncrumpled the white ball 
of paper and read the note.
	?What?s up?  Are you okay?  You look more than late?? it read.
	She mouthed to Serena that they?d talk at lunch.  Serena nodded.
	Mina lay her head back down as the teacher finished the 
attendance.  Her mind raced through the morning's events.  She hadn?t 
had time to tell Rei that the coffee shop had been Sailor Venus? 
second appearance of the day.
	She?d actually been running early until she got to the train.  
Just as the train had left the station two men began fighting over a 
seat.
  At the next platform they?d taken the brawl into the station.  
	Mina had gotten off the train as well.  There had been a wild 
look in the men?s eyes, which had frightened her, almost as if they 
were wild animals.  She?d ducked into an alley to transform.  That 
time too she?d used her love chain to bind the pair together.  They?d
kept fighting just as the couple in the coffee shop had.
	When the police arrived at the train station Venus had 
released the two.  They immediately began fighting again.  She had 
watched from a nearby rooftop until the officers had subdued the men.
	Ambulances had been called there as well.  She wondered if the 
two men were all right.  She also wondered how a seat on the train 
could have brought two grown men into such a rage.
	Mina pushed the information to the back of her mind as the 
teacher began writing notes on the blackboard.