A/N Finally! Here we are at the final chapter of this story. I actually finished this a couple of days ago, but my son got a bit under the weather. So I've been spending time with him, curled up on the couch alternating between watching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and playing Assassin's Creed Revelations with him on our Xbox. Oh yeah! I'm the cool mom! No wonder all of his little friends always want to hang out at our house. But anyway, this is the end of this part of the saga. I tried my best to get the story to flow smoothly into Lunar Princess, and I hoped I succeeded. GT will be wrapping up soon as well, bringing the trilogy to a sort of end. But I am already playing with some one shots that take place in this particular universe, and will probably post some of those at a later date.

I know I usually give out individual hugs to everyone who reviewed the previous chapter. But since this is the end of this story, I would like to take the opportunity to thank each and every person who has ever reviewed, favorited, followed, or even clicked on and read this mad rambling of mine. Your support has meant everything to me. So without further ado, I give you the conclusion of this tale. Thank you all!

ENJOY!

When Bad Boys Go Good

Chapter 22

Until We Are Together Again

Two Days To Go

Serena looked up from the photo album she was working on to scowl at her boyfriend. "Oh please tell me you aren't taking that thing with you."

"Of course I am," Darien told her as he placed his favorite green jacket inside the hanging bag he had on the back of his closet door. "I know you've never liked it, but it's warm and comfortable. Winters in Massachusetts can get pretty cold, and you wouldn't want me to freeze to death, would you?"

"No," she sighed. Then she wrinkled her nose. "It's just that it is such a bad color on you. It washes out your natural tan and clashes horribly with your eyes."

He flashed her a smirk. "Then count yourself lucky that you won't have to look at me in it everyday. Instead I'll be terrorizing the student population at Harvard with it."

Serena thought about that for a moment. In her eyes, Darien never looked bad, no matter what he was wearing. But maybe, just maybe, if he wore that jacket while he was away at school it would be enough of a deterrent to keep the girls he was bound to come across while he was there from seeing just exactly how gorgeous he was.

It wasn't that she didn't trust him, she trusted him completely. And she knew that she would never have to worry about him cheating on her. It was her fellow females that she didn't trust. Some women could be as vicious as vipers when they saw a man that they wanted for themselves, and could be positively relentless in their pursuit. Just look at all of the trouble that Beryl had caused, twice. Her ambition to possess the Silver Crystal had been trumped only by her lust for the earth prince. And that didn't count some of the other little incidences that had occurred with people developing crushes on her boyfriend, and they hadn't necessarily all been women either.

She shook her head. "On second thought, take it with you. If you left it here I would probably be tempted to take it and let Raye use it for target practice anyway."

He chuckled. "I figured as much. That's another reason why I want to take it with me. To keep it safe."

She stuck her tongue out at him as he turned back toward his closet.

'I saw that,' his voice rumbled in her head.

'I'm glad you did,' she teased back impishly as she returned to her project.

When Darien had attempted to go overseas the year before, she had put together a small photo album full of them and their friends. But since that circle of friends had grown so dramatically over the summer, she'd decided to update it before he left. She knew that he had tons of pictures saved on his computer, but this was something that he could pick up fast if he just wanted to quick peek at home.

She was finding it hard to decide which ones to replace and which to leave though. After dithering for a few minutes, she taken out some of the ones that didn't have as much sentimental value to her, mostly random shots of her and the girls hanging out back when they were in middle school, and she'd freed up quite a few spaces.

She'd also made sure to remove the picture that she'd found of Andrew and Rita together, feeling a pang of sadness for her friend as she did. Andrew claimed that he was recovering from the sudden break with Rita, but his eyes told a much different story. He was hurting deep inside, and he probably would for a while, but he was trying to keep up a brave face and a positive attitude in front of everyone. It was a heartbreaking thing to see.

It was also a good thing that Rita hadn't stayed in town for long after she'd dumped Andrew, and she would never know how close she had been to being on the receiving end of some harsh, sailor scout justice. Raye and Lita, in particular, had been ready to run out and lynch the auburn haired woman. And even Amy had been outraged over the fact that Rita had obviously been cheating on Andrew for some time and hadn't been honest with him.

Surprisingly, Mina had been the least infuriated about the events, stating, "Well, I knew it was coming sooner or later. They weren't soul mates or anything. Now perhaps Andrew will be able to find the one that is meant for him." But she had still been upset for her friend and ready to jump into the action.

Luckily the generals had been able to keep their headstrong girlfriends from rushing off and doing something crazy. And finally, Andrew had spoken to them and told them to leave Rita alone. She was in charge of her own life and could make her own decisions. That had put a stop to the threat of bloodshed.

Serena pushed the depressing thoughts from her mind as she set back to work. She was about to have a lot of free time on her hands, and she was putting keeping Andrew as cheered up as possible at the top of her list. She had known the sandy-haired boy most of her life, and he was like her older brother. They would lean on each other to get through the rough patches in their lives. She knew the scouts and generals would be there to help too.

She smiled as she began fitting new pictures into the album. There was one that had been taken just a week and a half before at Darien's birthday party. In it, Mina beamed a bright smile as she sat next to Kunzite in one of the arcade's booths. The usually stoic general had an arm draped around the blonde girl's shoulders and even had a hint of a grin on his face.

Then there was one of Lita and Nephrite the day that they had all ended up at the water park. They were both laughing as they attempted to ram each other on the bumper boats.

Another one showed Amy and Zoicite being uncharacteristically lazy as they lounged side by side on rafts in Mina's backyard pool.

The next one was a rare sight. It was of Raye and Jadeite the night that they had celebrated her and Rini's birthday in the park, and it showed a rare quiet moment between the usually loud couple. Jadeite was sprawled out on a blanket on the ground while Raye's fingers played idly through his hair.

She even put in a picture of the outer scouts that someone had taken after one of Amara's race wins earlier in the summer. The disheveled racecar driver was grinning broadly as she held the always cool and composed Michelle to her side. Trista was, well…Trista. Her expression was completely smooth, though there was the slightest smile turning up her lips. And she was holding tightly to Hotaru's arm, probably to keep her from bolting out of the picture. The younger girl was almost painfully shy at times, and it was no secret that she hated having her picture taken.

She flipped the page and saw that she was at the end of the album and only had space for two more pictures. She slipped in one that she had somehow managed to take, and not stick her finger in the frame, of Darien, Andrew, and the generals. The six men were gathered around the pool table at the generals' home and looked to be having a fun time as they sipped beer and played pool. Each of the men alone was handsome in their own way, but together they were like an overdose of testosterone. And she found it amazing that the guys were able to go out together in a group without being mauled.

She was debating about a few pictures when Darien's hand suddenly shot into sight to swipe up one of the photos.

"Put this one in. It's one of my favorites," he told her.

Her nose scrunched up at his choice. It was an older photo that had somehow become mixed up with the newer ones that she had been going through. "This one? Really? But it's so embarrassing! I still can't believe that you took it!"

He smirked at her. "I couldn't help it. It was such an adorable moment that I couldn't pass it up."

"Adorable, my butt! I looked like an apocalypse survivor in it," she grumbled. But she slipped the photo into the last slot anyway. In it, she was curled up in Darien's bed. Her hair was snarled, tangled, and half out of its usual style while her "meatballs" were blown up to three times their normal size. Combine that with her snow-pale face and the bruise-like circles under her eyes, and she looked like hell.

The only thing that kept her from ripping the photo into confetti was the image of the sleeping little girl tucked securely in her arms. The sight of Rini's pink haired head tucked up under her chin made her heart swell up with warmth and love, and drew her attention away from her less than appealing looking state.

The picture had been taken sometime during the hours immediately following her battle with Pharaoh 90. She had literally felt half-dead after that fight and had had to depend solely on Mina, Raye, Lita, and Amy to get her away from the scene before the authorities showed up since she had been incapable of even standing, let alone walking. The girls had wanted to take her to the Hikawa Shrine to rest, but she had been adamant about returning to Darien's apartment to check on Rini. Despite Sailor Saturn's reassurances that her future daughter's pure heart crystal had been returned to her and that she would be fine, Serena knew that she wouldn't rest until she had seen the proof for herself. So her friends had carried her to the apartment where Darien had barely said a word before scooping her up in his arms and tucking her into bed beside the peacefully sleeping Rini. Evidently at some point he had decided to snap the picture.

Serena closed the completed photo album and tossed it into the open suitcase sitting on the foot of the bed. "There, it's done. Now you have something to take a peek at if you ever start feeling homesick."

Darien grinned as he tugged lightly on one of her golden pigtails. "You're such a sentimentalist! But I'll be sure to keep it on my bedside table. That way I will be able to see your lovely face quickly whenever I wake up from having naughty dreams about you."

Her face immediately blazed red as she wailed, "DARIEN!"

His expression turned innocent. "What? Are you telling me that you never have those kind of dreams about me?"

Her cheeks turned impossibly redder and she sputtered, "Th-that's none of your business!"

"Ah ha! You have!" he replied smugly.

"Stop picking on me!" she screeched, yanking him by the arm so that he fell across the bed. Using just a bit of her scout strength, she flipped him over onto his back. Then, quick as a wink, she scrambled on top of him to straddle his waist.

Though surprised at her actions, he smirked up at her. "Ooh! Are you going to punish me, princess?"

"Just shut up, you depraved pervert!" she growled a second before she seized the front of his shirt in her hands and proceeded to kiss him silly.

After a couple of minutes of intense kisses and light groping, they were both breathless. Serena reluctantly pulled away from the delicious temptation of his lips and laid her head on his chest where she could hear his heartbeat racing just as madly as hers was.

She had been trying her best to stay strong and upbeat, but the moment got the better of her and she couldn't help but sigh, "Just two more days."

His chest rumbled under her ear as he groaned, "Serena…"

She sat up straight, immediately snapping herself out of her melancholy moment and placing a hand over his mouth. "No, don't say anything, Darien. I'm okay…really I am. Just like you and everyone else have pointed out to me this summer, I am the one that pushed so hard for you to take this opportunity to go to such a wonderful school. I know that being apart isn't going to be easy for either of us, but deep down I know that this is something that you have always wanted. And as long as you are happy, I am happy. It's not like we're never going to see each other again. When you're done soaking up all the knowledge that Harvard can give you and you're ready to come back home, I'll be right here, waiting for you with open arms."

He pulled her back against his chest and wrapped both of his arms tightly around her as he kissed the top of her head. "My little Meatball Head truly has grown up some."

She leaned up and nipped playfully at his earlobe. "Don't sound so surprised, jerk! I thought you would have figured that out by now; especially since you have been treating me like an adult all summer."

He quickly reversed their positions so that she was pinned between him and the mattress. Then he shot her a wicked grin. "So I have. My packing is pretty much done, and we still have a couple of hours before we're supposed to meet everyone at the restaurant for dinner. So what do you say about me taking some time to treat you like an adult again."

"You are absolutely incorrigible!" Serena sighed in exasperation as she rolled her eyes. Then she reached up to grab his collar in both hands and pulled his face down to hers. "Just shut up and kiss me!"

One Day To Go

"Ooh! What about this one?" Mina squealed as she pulled a dress from her closet and spun around to face the rest of the room.

Serena's eyebrows arched warily as she took in the extremely short, strapless, bright purple dress. "I think that might be a bit over the top, Mina."

Amy's blue eyes peered over the top of the book that she was pretending to read. Like anyone could concentrate on reading with all of the commotion going on. "She's right, Mina. She's going to the airport, not a nightclub."

Mina stuck her tongue out at both of them. "You two are such sticks in the dirt."

"Sticks in the mud," Lita corrected her with a laugh. "And I have to agree with them. It's a great dress for a night on the town, and Serena could totally pull it off with those long legs of hers, but it's overkill for an airport goodbye."

"Well I wouldn't mind borrowing it," Raye announced as she plucked the fabric from Mina's fingers. "Jed's taking me out tonight, and I could use something new to wear."

Lita snickered again. "So what else is new? You and Jadeite have been stuck together so tight lately that it would take a crowbar to pry the two of you apart."

Raye snorted derisively. "Like you have any room to talk. Sometimes I wonder if you and your little Nephie have discovered some new and interesting uses for super glue. Do you ever stay in your own apartment anymore?"

"Yeah, when he pisses me off But that just makes the making up later much more fun," Lita cackled. "What about you? Has grandpa rented your room out to anyone yet?"

Mina jumped in when she saw Raye's face turn bright red in anger. "Okay, yes, I think it is safe to say that we have all spent quite a few nights sleeping over at the penthouse lately. Even Amy hasn't been immune to that."

The blue haired girl quickly ducked behind her book to hide her blushing face.

Serena howled with laughter as she rolled around on the bright orange comforter covered bed, clutching her stomach. "Did I just hear the great love goddess use the term sleeping over to describe spending the night with your boyfriends? From all the hints I've picked up on, there is usually very little sleeping involved."

Mina wasn't fazed by her words in the least, and a feline smile curved up her lips. "You would know all about that, wouldn't you, princess? Who was it that came climbing through my window the other night, trying to beat her enraged father here because he was on his way to make sure that you were spending the night where you said you were?"

Serena's laughter died and she pouted. "My dad is way beyond overprotective. Thank god Luna heard what was going on and was able to call me and warn me in time."

"You were just lucky that I was here," Mina stated smugly. "How would you have been able to explain to your dad that you were spending the night at my house while I was spending the night somewhere else?"

"I would have come up with something," Serena grumbled. "I would have told him that you were in the shower or had run to the store."

"Like he wouldn't have seen through that excuse," Raye chuckled. "Serena, you couldn't tell a convincing lie to save your life."

Lita nodded. "Raye's right. You are a pretty crappy liar."

Amy set her book aside, finally giving up the pretense. "Well being bad at lying is not a bad thing. Why would somebody want to be good at something that is so wrong?"

Serena rolled to her stomach and propped her chin on her hands as she sighed heavily. "I may not be a good liar, but I still managed to fool all of you for several months when Darien left last time."

"And we were blind, stupid fools for believing it!" Raye snapped. "We call ourselves your best friends, so we should have picked up that something was wrong from the very beginning."

"Well, to be fair, we were a bit preoccupied at the time," Lita growled.

Amy nodded. "That is a valid point. We were kept busy with rogue sailor scouts stealing peoples' star seeds and turning them into phages. Not to mention we had the Starlights popping up every time we turned around and the outers were acting so aggressively."

"But the main point now is that we won't have to worry about things getting out of hand this time," Mina piped up. "Serena won't be the only one keeping in contact with Darien anymore. And if he were to go missing again, the guys would be hot on his trail before it even had a chance to cool."

Serena flung herself over onto her back and stared at the ceiling as she grumbled, "You girls are never going to let me live that down, are you?"

The four girls just grinned and replied, "Nope!" Then they promptly found their faces full of the pillows that Serena had picked up from the bed and thrown at them.

A five-way stare down ensued in silence for the next minute before they all grabbed a pillow and war cries erupted.

Downstairs, Luna lifted her head from the couch she was laying on to look at the ceiling as sounds of battle exploded overhead. "Do you think we should go break them up?"

From the cushion next to her, Artemis cracked open a blue eye to squint at her. "Are you insane? I'm not getting in the middle of that. Mina went shopping this morning and picked me up some solid white albacore tuna and fresh cream, and I am not taking a chance of her keeping that dinner from me as punishment."

"Typical male, always thinking with your stomach," Luna muttered as she laid her head back down. After a few seconds, she couldn't help but ask, "Am I invited to join you for that dinner?"

Artemis snickered as he closed his eye again. "Of course you are, Luna."

"Finally!" Jadeite exclaimed as the front door to the penthouse opened to admit a slightly bleary-eyed looking Zoicite. "I was afraid that we were going to have to start the party without you."

"Party? What party?" Zoicite mumbled.

Jadeite rolled his eyes. "Well, it's not exactly a party per se. It's just that the girls are all together doing their thing this afternoon, so us guys decided to take this opportunity to hang out and have a couple of drinks. It will be the last time we're all together for a while with Darien leaving tomorrow and everything. But I was beginning to wonder where you were. I thought your shift ended a couple of hours ago."

Zoicite shrugged. "The hospital doesn't exactly work on a set schedule. The ER got pretty busy, so I stuck around until everything settled down."

"Any interesting cases?" Darien asked as he and Nephrite came out from the kitchen carrying bags of junk food.

Zoicite chuckled. "Just the ordinary slew of hypochondriacs and addicts hoping to get their hands on some pills. There were a few legitimate cases; some sprains, broken bones, possible concussions, and such. And Anne told me that there was a woman that almost gave birth in the parking lot. So it was a pretty typical day."

"Anne?" Nephrite drawled interestedly. "Getting in cozy with the girlfriend's mother are we?"

The blonde doctor's cheeks turned faintly pink. "For god's sake, you depraved moron! I work with the woman on practically a daily basis. It's just easier for us to call each other by our given names."

Darien tilted his head thoughtfully. "That's true. She was in charge of my last student rotation, and she was the same way then. I spent a lot of extra hours at the hospital shadowing her, and she invited me to call her Anne."

"And I'm sure the fact that you are friends with her daughter and Zoicite is shagging that daughter had nothing to do with her decision," Jadeite snickered. Then he jumped and yelled, "Ouch!"

His hand flew to his right butt cheek where he found a shard of ice, as thin and as sharp as a needle, sticking out of the material of his jeans. He plucked it out and turned to glare at Zoicite. "You stuck me!"

Zoicite arched a brow at him, his expression remaining smoothly calm. "I'll do it again if you keep up your perverted talk. Only next time the icicle will much larger, and it will be aimed at a much more sensitive area of your anatomy."

Jadeite's bottom lips poked out in a pout. "You're no fun anymore since you became Mr. Serious Doctor, Zoi. You need to learn to loosen up."

A grin twitched at the corner of Zoicite's mouth. "Really? I thought shooting you in the ass was great fun."

All four men burst into laughter.

"Did I miss the joke?" Kunzite asked as he came down the stairs.

Darien waved a bag of potato chips at him. "Not really. Just Jed being typical Jed and Zoi getting a bit of revenge on him."

The platinum haired man rolled his silvery gray eyes at the chuckling golden blonde troublemaker before stating in a bored tone, "Do something about that water, Jadeite, before it drips on the floor."

Jadeite looked down at his palm where the miniature icicle had melted into a tiny puddle. He gave his former commander a mocking salute with his other hand as he barked, "Yes sir, my lord and tormentor!" The water sizzled on his skin for a moment before evaporating into a wisp of steam.

"If that boy wasn't so good at keeping the company records straight on the computer, I swear I would take him out into the middle of nowhere and run him through with my sword," Kunzite grumbled as he walked past Darien and Nephrite.

"I'd be happy to help," Nephrite declared with a sinister chuckle.

Darien huffed a laugh. "You two aren't fooling anyone. You might not miss him the first day, or the second, but by the third I would be willing to bet that you would be wishing that his annoying ass was around to bug you again."

The annoying ass in question popped up behind his former prince and attempted to give the man a hug as he cooed, "Aww…I knew somebody around here still loved me."

Darien shrugged him off, half irritated and half amused. "I take it back! You guys feel free to kill Jadeite any time you feel like it."

The other three generals snapped to attention and saluted him. "Yes, your highness!"

Then everyone dissolved into a round of good-natured chuckles.

The doorbell rang, and Darien went to answer it, saying, "That has to be Drew. He said that he would come by if he could get away from the arcade."

It was indeed Andrew. He gave his best friend a smile that was a ghost of the one that he used to wear on his face almost constantly. But despite the hard set of his jaw and the lines of tension around his eyes he looked a lot better than the broken man who had shown up on Darien's doorstep in the middle of the night two weeks before.

"So did I miss everything?" Andrew asked, managing to inject a light tone into his voice.

Darien grinned and shook his head. "Nope. You're just in time actually."

Andrew shuffled in with his hands shoved in the pockets of his khakis. "Good. I could use a break. I didn't think I would ever get away from the arcade today. What a nightmare!"

"Problems?" Darien inquired as he closed the door behind them.

"That's just it. I'm not sure," Andrew replied with a shake of his head. "When I came down from my apartment to the arcade this morning to open up I found the back door unlocked and open just a bit. I was afraid that we had been robbed, but there wasn't even a speck of dust out of place."

"Perhaps one of your kitchen staff forgot to lock it last night," Kunzite offered as the six men made their way into the entertainment room.

Andrew shrugged. "That's what I thought too. But Rico closed up the kitchen last night, and he swears that he locked the door himself. He's worked for my dad for over ten years, and I don't think he would lie about it."

Jadeite sat in a chair and propped his elbows on his knees with a thoughtful expression on his face. "But wouldn't your alarm go off if the door was opened?"

Andrew scratched the back of his head. "That's just the thing. The alarm was turned off too, which is way beyond weird because I distinctly remember setting it before I went upstairs last night. I know I've been in a fog lately, but I'm not a complete idiot. Dad yelled for a half hour saying that I forgot before he finally called the security company. Their records show that the alarm was set about midnight and then deactivated around 2:30 am."

"Perhaps you were sleepwalking," Zoicite interjected. "It's not uncommon for things like that to happen when someone has been under a lot of stress. And no offense, Andrew, but you've not exactly been yourself lately."

"I don't think that's it either," Andrew disagreed.

Nephrite sat back on a sofa and crossed an ankle over his opposite knee. "And you didn't hear anything that made you think that someone else was in the building?"

Andrew leaned against the bar and accepted the drink that Darien had just mixed for him. "Nope. And it's strange too, because I woke up about 2:45 after having a dream that I can't remember now. I was burning up and drenched in sweat, so I went to take a shower. I never heard a peep. So if there was someone in there, they had to have been a ghost because they didn't make a sound. But like I said, nothing was taken or even moved."

Darien chuckled. "I don't think ghosts have to worry about things like security systems and doors. Perhaps the door just wasn't pushed to all the way and the wind blew it open. It rained last night and was a bit windy. And perhaps by some freak of nature your security system decided to have a blonde moment at the same time."

"Either that, or I'm loosing my mind. Which is really not that hard to envision," Andrew snorted as he took a sip of his drink. "I did kind of wonder if the girls were behind it since they used to come and go from the arcade at all hours of the night back in the day. I know Amy's computer had some way of bypassing the system. But they always locked up and turned the alarm back on when they left."

"I seriously doubt it," Darien told him. "I don't think anyone has been down to the scouts' old control room for probably around two years now, except for maybe Luna and Artemis, and that's a long shot. The only thing down there is the moon's old database computer."

Andrew sighed. "I figured as much. I was just trying to go for the obvious solutions. But that's enough about my troubles. I thought the point of this get-together was for us to have a good time."

Jadeite's spunk returned as he jumped from his seat. "That's right! So who's up for some pool?"

"Wait a minute!" Darien called out, his voice deep and serious. "There is something that I want to talk to you guys about first."

The four generals all sank into their seats and looked expectantly at the former prince, who came to stand in front of them.

Darien took a deep breath. "That night, the first night when we first came up with the idea of bringing you guys back to life, I admit that it was with selfish intentions on my part. It's not that I didn't think that you deserved a second chance, but I had ulterior motives. I was torn about my school decision and Serena was pressuring me to accept the Harvard offer. It's not that I don't think that the scouts are good fighters; heaven knows that those girls have fought their share of battles over the years. But the last time I tried to leave things went downhill in a bad way. I died. The scouts died. And Serena almost died while saving this planet from destruction. I never want her to have to be alone in a position like that ever again if at all possible. So I didn't bring you back just to give you a second chance at life. I also hoped that you would agree to be an extra line of protection for Serena and watch over her in my absence."

Silence lingered in the room for a moment after he finished speaking. And then the generals began chuckling softly.

Jadeite was the first to speak up. "Did you honestly think that we didn't have that part figured out already? Serena has become like a little sister to me. Of course I'll help keep an eye on her."

"Not like it will be that hard to do," Nephrite snickered. "The girls are around each other so much that I'm sure that we'll be spending a lot of time in Serena's presence."

Zoicite's expression appeared slightly miffed. "I'm just a little bit offended that you even had to ask. What kind of friends do you take us for? I know that you would watch out for Amy if I had to spend any time away with no questions asked."

Kunzite nodded his head sternly. "I agree. Serena's safety while you are gone is a non-issue. She is not only a good friend to us, but she is also your chosen future queen. She will be as safe with us as she would be with yourself or her own guard."

Darien smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I didn't doubt any of you for a moment. I just needed to hear it out loud for my own peace of mind." He turned to Andrew.

The sandy blonde man held up his hands. "Hey! I've already told you my feelings on the subject. I've known Serena for the longest, ever since my mom and hers became friends back when we were just kids. I've been looking out for her and keeping the bullies away from her, including you at one time, Darien, for a long time. I may not have any awesome super powers the way the rest of you have, but I would protect her with my life."

"I know you would," Darien answered gratefully. Then he took a sip of drink and grinned. "Okay! Now that the heavy stuff is out of the way, I thought we were about to engage in a fight to the death pool tournament."

D-Day

The airport was practically bursting at the seams with people rushing through the terminals to make their flights and families and friends hugging one another as they wished each other farewell. A voice calling out flight and gate numbers over an intercom was practically drowned out by the noise of hundreds, if not thousands of people speaking at once.

In all of the commotion, no one paid attention to the teenage girl who had retreated to a somewhat quieter area near one of the large windows that looked out over the city or the fact that she was speaking quietly into what looked like a wristwatch on her arm.

"No. I didn't uncover anything," she said in a low voice. "There have been no reports, or even rumors of sailor scout activity in the two weeks that I've been here. I thought I had finally tracked down the location of the control room couple of days ago and went in to check it out the night before last. But that ended up being a dead end. I poked around a little bit just to be sure, but then I heard a noise upstairs and realized that I wasn't alone in the building and had to bail out of there quickly."

A sigh came from the watch, followed by a crisp female voice. "I can't really say that I'm that surprised. I wasn't actually expecting you to find anything anyway. I just thought it was a good idea to cover all of our bases while you were there. It would have been nice to get some kind of an idea about the identity of at least one of the scouts. But we have time. Our enemy has yet to reveal themselves."

Another, softer, woman's voice broke in. "I'm just glad that you're coming home. I don't like you being so far away. And doing something illegal like breaking and entering…really!"

The girl smiled. "I wasn't thrilled about it either. But what else could I do? Besides, nobody would have seen me thanks to my shadow powers. And as far as me being away from you, you could be at my side in a second if I called you."

The woman on the other end huffed indignantly. "That is beside the point, young lady. I always feel better when you're at home, safe and sound where you belong. And you have some busy times ahead of you. Your classes will be starting in a few weeks."

"I know. I know," the girl groaned. "Sometimes you gripe more than mom does. Did you know that?"

"I am going to ignore that remark," the woman replied. "You just have a safe trip and I'll see you later on tonight. I'm making something special for you to celebrate your homecoming."

"Is it peach cobbler?" the girl asked eagerly.

"You'll just have to wait and see," the woman answered mysteriously.

"It is!" the girl squealed, doing a little happy dance and drawing some attention from the people around her. She felt her blood boil and had to fight back the urge to glare at some of the people who were giving her odd looks like they thought she was emotionally imbalanced. She drew in a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

"Any way," the first voice spoke up. "I'll be expecting a full report from you later."

"Yeah, yeah," the girl grumbled.

Then a male voice called out over the crowd from a short distance away, "Hey, Peanut! We better start getting ready. They'll be calling our flight soon."

"I gotta go," the girl said hastily, pushing a button on the side of the device that she had been talking into. Then she spun around and waved at the tall, light blonde haired man gesturing to her over the heads of the crowd. "Coming, dad!"

She hitched the backpack she was carrying up higher on her shoulder as she grumbled, "I really wish he would stop calling me Peanut. For crying out loud, I'm about to start college soon. I'm not a little kid anymore."

She weaved her way through the crowd, ducking and dodging the other bodies as she made her way towards her parents. She grinned as she saw her brunette mother fussing at her father about something, probably for embarrassing their daughter by calling her by such a childish nickname in public.

She was passing by two young men and a girl not much older than her when a harried looking businessman who came running by jostled her. She stumbled and brushed lightly against the back of the sandy haired man in the trio.

"I'm sorry. Excuse me," she murmured as she tugged the ball cap she was wearing down further over her eyes and dashed away without waiting to hear his reply.

Andrew jumped a bit after feeling someone bump gently into him and then a soft voice apologizing. He turned around to tell the person that it was okay, but whoever it was had already vanished. He looked around for a moment, feeling the back of his neck prickle uncomfortably as he suddenly felt hot and sweaty.

"Damn hot flashes," he growled, turning back to his friends. He had been experiencing these brief periods where he felt almost unbearably hot on and off for the past two weeks. He had mentioned something to Darien about them, but his friend hadn't seemed concerned about them and had told him that it was probably just his body's way of dealing with all of the stress he'd been under lately.

"Are you okay, Drew?" Serena asked, looking at him in concern.

He laughed it off. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a bit stuffy in here. I think I'll just go wait for you out by the main concourse, Serena. It will give you and lover-boy here a chance to say goodbye in private."

He pulled Darien into a one armed male hug and pounded his back a couple of times. "You take care of yourself."

Darien returned the gesture. "You too. I'll drop you a line or something once I get there and have a chance to catch my breath."

"You better," Andrew warned him. Then he stepped away. "Catch ya later, man!" And then he left the young lovers alone.

Serena stood in front of Darien, her eyes impossibly wide as she fought to hold back the tears that threatened to spill over. The last time that she had found herself in this position with him she had been determined to send him off with a smile, and she had succeeded for the most part. A few tears had trickled out that day. This time she was hoping to keep the tears inside until he was gone.

Darien smiled at her with that familiar, lopsided grin that she loved so much. "I'm afraid that I don't have a ring or anything to give you this time."

She choked out a laugh. "That's okay. I don't need anything. I already have your promise that you will come back to me." She fiddled with the pink, heart-shaped ring on her left hand.

He put his hands on her shoulders. "It's a promise that I intend to keep. I know that physically there will be a lot of distance between us, but I'll only be a phone call, e-mail, or text message away. Just promise me that you will leave me some time to study."

She sniffled lightly and nodded. "I promise I won't bug you too much. I'll just be grateful to hear from you from time to time and know that you are okay."

His hands moved up to cup her cheeks, making sure her eyes met his. "Serena, it's okay to cry. I won't think any less of you if you do."

It was if his words had torn down the last of her defenses, and she threw herself against his chest. She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed tightly as she pressed her face against the soft cotton material of his shirt. Finally, she allowed a few hot tears to escape.

He hugged her back just as tightly as he rested his cheek on top of her silky golden hair. For a moment he looked like he could cry himself as he closed his eyes and breathed in her fresh citrusy scent.

After a minute he murmured words that seemed familiar to him from another place and time. "This isn't a forever goodbye, my love. I'll be back before you know it."

A nostalgic feeling swept over Serena as well as she lifted her head to look up at him. Then she raised a hand to brush his dark hair away from his eyes and trailed her fingers down his cheek.

Then she replied with words that she felt like she had spoken before. "I know you will, my prince. But I will not say goodbye. I prefer to think of it as until we are together again."

His dark blue eyes stared intently down into hers. "Then until we are together again, Serenity."

"Until we are together again, Endymion," she whispered back.

He bent down as she rose up on her tiptoes to meet him halfway, and their lips met in a lingering kiss that neither of them wanted to end. The crowds and the noise around them faded away until they felt like they were the only two people left in the world.

But unfortunately reality intruded when the last part of an announcement over the intercom broke into their dream world.

"…to Los Angeles is now boarding."

They parted reluctantly, but Serena clung to him a moment longer to tell him earnestly, "I love you, Darien."

He pressed one last tiny kiss to the tip of her pinkened nose. "I love you too, Serena. Now I better go before I miss my flight."

She nodded and let him go. "I know."

He picked up his carry-on bag by his feet with one hand and reached for one of her hands with the other as they began to walk toward his departure gate. "I have a couple of hour lay-over in California before I continue on to Boston, so I'll call you when I get there."

Serena hugged his arm closer to her. "I'll be waiting." Then she shivered as a large group of passengers passed by them. She didn't know why, but all of her senses were on alert. She scanned the crowd, but didn't see anyone that looked even remotely threatening.

"What's wrong?" Darien asked as he felt her concern.

"It's nothing," she told him as the feeling passed. "I guess my nerves just got to me for a moment."

He nodded as he shook off the unusual feeling that he had felt as well. It faded away as he turned to say his last farewell to the most important person in his life. "I have to go now. I'll talk to you soon."

Serena took a deep breath and let him go. "I'll be waiting for your call. And don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

He chuckled. "I know you will. You always come out on top." Then he gave her one more quick hug and kiss. "I'll call you as soon as I can."

And then he turned and walked away from her. A part of her wanted to run after him, to scream at him to stay with her always. But deep in her heart she knew that it was best for him to walk away at the moment that he did. She watched his retreating back until he disappeared through into the crowd that was lining up at the gate.

After a minute or so she sucked in a deep breath and forced herself to walk away. This was what she wanted. She had wanted Darien to realize his dream and had pushed him toward fulfilling that dream. It wouldn't be right for her to feel remorse for it now.

She felt a slight spike of apprehension through the bond she shared with Darien, and her thoughts shot out to him before she could stop them. 'Are you okay?'

'I'm fine,' he thought back to her. 'I just had a moment when I stepped on the plane, but I'm fine now. Don't worry about me.'

'Easier said than done,' she shot back at him.

'I'll be okay, Serena,' his mental voice spoke to her. 'I'm getting settled in my seat right now and everything is good. Now why don't you go back to the arcade with Andrew and have a milkshake.'

'You're a jerk!' she grumbled at him.

She heard his laughter in her head. 'And you'll always be my Meatball Head.'

Serena smiled to herself, but cut off any further mental ramblings with her soul mate. Hearing his voice inside her head was only making it harder for her to let him go, and she knew that she had to…at least for now.

She spotted Andrew waiting for her near the main concourse, but she turned away from him, heading toward the outside observation deck where people could watch planes take off and land. And she felt Andrew follow her.

The two of them stood in silence near the metal railing for almost a half an hour, neither of them saying anything, watching airplanes come and go. It wasn't until a large passenger jet raced down a runway and a tear slipped from Serena's eye that Andrew spoke.

"That was Darien's plane, wasn't it?" he asked softly. It was strange, but he felt like that flight was carrying away more than just his best friend.

Serena nodded. "Yes. He's on his way. Now we just have to wait for him to come back to us."

"Well, he'll know where we'll be," Andrew told her. "Now how about I take you back to the arcade and treat you to a milkshake."

A slightly sad, but genuine smile lit up Serena's face. "That sounds like a great idea, Drew."

She looked one last time toward the tiny dot in the sky that was now Darien's plane and thought one last time, 'I love you, my prince.'

His thoughts faintly tickled hers for a moment as he replied, 'I love you, my princess.' And then his thoughts drifted away like smoke in the wind.

Her tears under control at the moment, she spoke to him gently just before their link weakened to where they couldn't sense one another any more.

'Until we are together again, my love. Until we are together again.'

The End

A/N So that's it. If anyone is reading this and hasn't read any of my other stories and is curious about what happens after this, feel free to read the first story that I wrote in this saga, The Lunar Princess of the Earth and its sequel The Galactic Trinity, which is almost complete. This has been a storyline that has been in my head for a long time now. And although it has taken a few years to get it to the point where it is almost complete, I do feel a sense of satisfaction that I have gotten it down in print and have been able to share it with others who have been interested. I have more wonderful ideas for playing with Naoko-san's wonderful characters in addition to the other works I have in progress at the moment. And if I have managed to entertain you for even a moment, then I am happy. I hope that you have enjoyed the products of my muse. Reviews are, as always, greatly appreciated. I depend on you, the readers, to supply me with feedback and let me know what you think. So for the last time, at least for this installment, be safe. Be happy. And lots of love and hugs!

~This is Sere-chan, signing out!~