Sadness
Writen by Black Rose
Inspired by a picture of Lita sitting on the edge of a cliff.
Inspired by a picture of Lita sitting on the edge of a cliff.
Gazing out at the sea, Lita understood Amy’s obsession with water. The waves sang as they beat steadily against the cliff where she sat, her numb mind drifting over the events of the past. The only thing that seemed to stick in her mind was that Serena was gone.
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Serena ran, wailing as usual, into Crown Parlor and promptly tripped into the girls’ booth. We all laughed at her as she sniffled and ordered a large banana split. I figured it couldn’t be that bad if she could still eat. I’d seen her once go a week without food when Darien had dumped her.
To our shock, he’d done it again. It even seemed that he’d picked up a new girl before he did it too. He was dating one of the college girls with a big bosom and dark green hair that hid her eyes while she pressed that overly-endowed chest against Darien’s arm.
When she finished her treat, she smiled, and bounced out of the Parlor, her mood back up as she declared that she intended to keep trying.
That night we started to get attacked again by an enemy that was stronger than even Malachite had been.
Serena became very happy during the next few weeks and we just assumed that Darien had come to his senses and made up with her.
The day I saw her purchasing razorblades at the local hardware store, I didn’t think anything of it. We smiled, chatted, hugged, and parted with a promise to get together the next weekend.
The next day she wasn’t in school.
It didn’t take long for the news to get around. Serena had slit her wrists that night after leaving a note saying that it wasn’t worth living without Darien.
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Lita slammed her fist into her open palm as tears traced down her cheeks. “How could you, Serena?!” she cried to the turbulent sea below her. “How could you just leave me alone!” She shook her head wildly, her pony-tail coming undone so her brown hair whipped into her face. “How could you leave us to die?” she whispered, sobbing softly.
*********************************
All the girls huddled together to one side of the gravesite. We all wore black dresses while Ray wore a widow’s hat to hide her red and puffy eyes.
As the priest finished his sermon and cast a handful of dirt on the casket that rested six feet below the surface, we each threw something into the grave plot. Ray threw a good luck charm from the Shinto Temple; Mina gently tossed in a bottle of Serena’s favorite perfume; Amy let a note flutter down to land a-top the casket; I carefully took off my rose earrings and let them fall into the grave.
*********************************
Lita stood slowly and gazed down at the jagged rocks below her as the wind whipped her hair around her face and the rain that began to fall plastered her clothes to her overly thin body.
“You promised you’d always be there for me, Serena. You swore that we’d at least have each other, no matter what!” She took a step back as peace stole over her with her sudden decision. “And I’ll make you keep that promise, Serena.”
She backed up further to get a good start.
“I’m coming to find you Serena!” she shouted to the sea as she ran forward, her tears streaming behind her.
*********************************
I stood in a warm place with brilliant white light. As I looked around, wondering why I was there, I spotted a figure with funny meatball-shapes atop her head approach me. From the meatballs streamed ribbons of golden hair.
As the figure came closer, I realized that it was Serena dressed up in her princess gown. And then it all came back to me.
“Serena…” I whispered, my green eyes huge.
“Lita,” Serena said softly. “You’re here a bit early. You need to go back.”
As I made a move to speak, she held up her hand for silence. “I know I let you down, and I can’t fix that. I let everyone down, including myself. But I can’t go back now, I’ve been gone too long. But YOU CAN GO BACK! And if you don’t, the other Scouts will follow us here.”
I shook my head. “I don’t WANT to go back, Serena! The world is too dark without your light!”
Serena smiled softly, the golden moon on her forehead glowing faintly. “So make a new light, Lita! Make one that’s stronger than mine could ever hope to have been!” She grabbed my hands in hers and held them tightly. “Don’t follow in my footsteps, Lita. Learn from my mistakes and help the others. They need you now more than ever.”
I nodded and embraced Serena, sobbing against her shoulder. “I love you, Serena. I’m so sorry that I didn’t understand how you felt.”
Serena gently stroked my hair and murmured, “I’m sorry I didn’t trust you all enough to let you see my pain. But I need you to take care of something for me, Lita. Can you do that?”
I backed up and brushed my tears away, then nodded. “Anything for you, Princess.”
Serena smiled and held out her cupped hands, revealing a crystal in the shape of a rose. “I need you to hold on to the Imperial Silver Crystal for me. I’ve keyed it to you, so you can use it. Please take this and use it wisely.”
I took the crystal gently just as a green light engulfed me.
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Lita resisted the pain as long as she could, then let it tug her back into awareness. When she opened her eyes, the other three girls were hovering anxiously over her bed.
“How do you feel, Lita?” the one with long blond hair and big blue eyes asked gently.
“Much better, Mina,” she whispered with a smile. “And I saw her... she gave me the Crystal to use...” She trailed off with a feeble cough as she drifted back into a sleep.
*********************************
A week later, Lita was let out of the hospital.
A day after that, Eternal Sailor Jupiter appeared to the city with incredible powers of both healing and lightning.
Darien was saved from the influence of the enemy and every time he saw Lita, her hair was a little longer and little bit more blond.
And thus, even though the time-line was thrown for a loop, it recovered.
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