Bleed to Love Her 5/? By Meredith Bronwen Mallory Darien stretched lazily, wincing slightly in pain as he continued to watch the sunlight stream through the window and onto the bare wood floor. Heıd been awake for a half an hour now, and though he was still tired, his body was too restless to sleep anymore. Unfortunately, his restlessness could not be helped, for even the slightest movement was accompanied by itıs own unique lance of pain. So he merely watched the sunlight and daydreamed about Serena. Half of him wished he had his poetry journal with him, thousands of lines ran through his head now, his hands aching to write them down. Instead, he laid there content to imagine her by his side. He wanted to take her for a walk in the park, preferably by moonlight. He imagined her stopping,, as he knew she would, to inhale the unique scent of each flower. Slowly the pain receded he became lost in his little fantasy, and just as he was about to kiss Serena, reality interceded as the front door slammed open. Darien stirred reluctantly as he heard the study door open. He sat up wincing again, to see Amy and one very worn looking Serena enter the room. ³Hi, Darien,² Serena said, and he watched as she plastered a smile on her face. Almost as if she were trying to hide some type of pain. ³This is Amy, also known as Sailor Mercury,² the blue haired girl bowed her head in acknowledgement as his eyes widened. Of course, why didnıt he see it before. Serenaıs Œstudyı sessions at Rayeıs temple, the inseparable threesome that had recently become a foursome with the addition of the brown haired girl- Lita was it? Sheıd arrived right around the time Sailor Jupiter had.... ³Anyway,² Serena went on, ³Sheıs gonna take a look at that wound. You donıt mind, do you?² ³Um, no, not at all,² Darien said, watching as Amy pulled a small computer from thin air and began running an analysis. Serena peered over her shoulder the whole time, looking as though she was barely standing on her own two feet. Darienıs stormy blue eyes narrowed with worry, his precious arcade angel looked pale and wane. Was it just him, or did she look thinner? Heaven knew she didnıt need to loose anymore weight. ³Serena, why donıt you upstairs and rest?² Amy asked, though it seemed like more of a command. Darien watched as something undeniable flashed through the angelıs blue eyes. ³I think Iıll wait a little while, Ames,² her voice was insinuating something, ³Besides, Iım really not that tired.² The blue haired girl shook her head, then closed up the computer and reached in her school bag for some bandages and ointment, a slight blush staining her cheeks. ³Iım going so show Serena how to change the bandages, alright Darien?² Amy explained as she carefully removed the soiled bandage from his side, proceeding to clean the wound, ³The wound is pretty deep, and the battle took a lot out of your energy. I suggest that you stay in bed for at least the next few days, I brought some crutches over from my momıs clinic, but I donıt want you using them just yet. Lita said sheıd stop by the Crown and ask Andrew to get your things, sheıll make up some sort of excuse as to why youııre laid up here, Iım sure,² Darien listened in wonder, the girls had really thought this all out, ³Can you think of anything else we need to do?² ³Um.. no,² he managed, ³But, thank you for doing this for me. I understand that I havenıt exactly made my intentions clear as of late, but I do promise I will never hurt any of you.² ³Thank you, Darien,² Serena said with a smile, ³We do trust you.... Oh, my,² her blue eyes seemed to grow with pain as she looked down at his wound. Darien felt his own eyes following her gaze, and grimaced. The skin at his side was burned terribly from where the energy had hit him, and the area around the wound was covered with dried blood, which even now Amy was cleaning off. ³Oh, Darien, Iım so sorry... Youıre in pain, because of me.² Serena looked ready to cry. ³Donıt worry about it, Meatball Head,² Darien said, slipping back to the hated nickname for comfort, ³It doesnıt hurt that much.² Actually, that was an out loud lie, but if he didnıt lie to her, then he would tell her that he would bare any type of pain to save her suffering, and that would not be good because, of course, Darien reminded himself, he didnıt deserved the beautiful Meatball Headed Angel. Of course, whatever heavenly power was in charge, didnıt seem to appreciate the young manıs lie too much, for suddenly, Amy touched the wound with a wet cloth, and he screamed in pain. ³I-Iım sorry,² Amy apologized quickly. All Darien could do was nod and bit his lip in a pitiful attempt to focus on warding off the pain. Suddenly, a cool touch appeared, spreading like a blanket over the searing pain. He opened his eyes to see Serenaıs small delicate hands pressed gently to the wound, palms down and fingers spread. Her eyes were closed in concentration, and the locket she always wore seemed to glow. In fact, so did her hands, Darien realized as he shared a shocked look with Amy. But the pain was going away, with each surge of pink/white light that came through her palms. A blush rose to Darienıs cheeks when he realized how soft her hands were. After a few moments, Serena pulled away, and he looked down at the wound to find, much to his surprise, that it didnıt look nearly as bad, or as large, as it had a few minutes before. ³Serena...² he began, but Amy cut him off. ³Serena, where did you learn to do that?² the other girl asked. The blond girl shrugged and looked down, blushing. ³I dunno,² she responded slowly, ³It worked didnıt it?² ³Yes,² Amy nodded, ³but not to your advantage. You gave him energy, Serena, and you canıt afford that in your condition.² ³AMY!² Serena said, looking insulted. Amy put a hand to her mouth and sighed. Darienıs eyes narrowed. Was there something wrong with Serena? his heart screamed at him, In that case, he didnıt want her hurting herself for his sake. ³Um, thank you for your help,² Darien said sheepishly as Amy finished with the bandage. ³Youıre welcome,² both girls responded at once, giggling. Soon after, Amy took her leave, following Serena out into the halllway. Darien pretended to be asleep, all the while listening to the hushed voices that carried easily into the study. ³Serena, promise me you wonıt do that again, no matter how bad the wound looks,² Amy pleaded. ³I wonıt,² Serena said, ³I donıt even know what came over me. I was thinking about how much a wanted to help and...² the girl trailed off helplessly. ³Hmm..² her friendıs eyes narrowed as she digested the information. Then she smiled and put a hand on Serenaıs shoulder. ³Promise me youıll rest?² ³I promise,² Serena said, opening the door for the other girl, ³Bye, Ames, Iıll see you tomorrow at school.² ³Oh, no you wonıt,² Luna said as she entered from the kitchen, ³Amy and I talked, and we both agreed that you canıt go to school in your condition.² ³REALLLY?² Serenaıs voice grew hopeful, she hated school. ³Yes,² Amy said, ³I had Luna call in and pose as your Aunt.² ³YOU? Oh, Ames,² Serena clapped her innocent friend on the back, ³I didnıt know you had it in you!² The other girl blushed. ³Neither did I,² she said sheepishly, ³And Iıll bring by your homework tomorrow so you donıt get behind.² Serenaıs smile fell. ³Gee, thanks Ames,² se said dryly, waving goodbye as her friend left. ³Yes! No SCHOOL!² she cried with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. Luna leapt in her young chargeıs arms and waved a paw before Serenaıs face. ³Ahem, you should listen to Amy and go take a nap,² she suggested. ³Oh, all right,² Serena sighed, dropping the cat and trudging upstairs. -------- Darien lay on the couch, trying to digest all heıd overheard. So he WASNıT crazy after all. Serenaıs cat COULD talk. No wonder Meatball Head was always yelling at her, she sounded rather bossy. Speaking of Serena, Darien felt a lance of worry pierce his heart. What could possibly be the matter with his precious angel? *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~