OUT OF THE PAST A Sailor Moon Lemon AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is a sequel to my previous ones, especially "Sometimes a Fantasy." It is necessary to read that story before proceeding with this one. Standard Sailor Moon disclaimers apply: these characters ain't mine, I'm just borrowing them for awhile. by Sailor Mac "Okay, I think I see. . .three forks and a pineapple?" Serena opened her eyes and looked hopefully up at Raye, who shook her head. "You're not even trying, Serena. You're just guessing. You have to reach out with your mind into the box, and then, your psychic senses will tell you what's inside." Raye and Darien had decided that it was high time Serena learn to develop her latent psychic abilities. Raye was beginning to feel the strain of always being the one to mediate between the spirit and material worlds. Besides, as leader of the Sailor Scouts, it should be Serena's job anyway, Raye thought. So now Raye had put several items in a box, and Serena was trying to reach out with her mind and see what was inside. Without success. "But reaching out with my mind is so hard," Serena said. "It won't go anywhere." "You're not focusing. You're letting your mind wander. You can't be thinking about video games or shopping or food while you're doing this. Look, why don't you try focusing your eyes on one corner of the wall, and thinking about nothing but what you're seeing. . .then open your mind up." With a big sigh, Serena did what she was told. The sooner I produce results, she thought, the sooner I can get to the arcade. . . Raye watched the expression in the other girl's eyes. She's still not focusing, she thought. Maybe we should just throw in the towel and give this up. Maybe she won't be ready for this until she's older. . . Then, suddenly, the expression on Serena's face changed. Her eyes suddenly weren't staring at the corner, they were staring into eternity. Raye couldn't believe what she was seeing. Serena had gone from "normal mental state" to "deep trance" in just a matter of a couple of seconds. . . For a moment that seemed like hours, Serena remained frozen in place. Then, suddenly, her body jerked, and she blinked and shook her head. Raye expected to hear her correctly report what was in the box-a cup, a saucer, and a candy dish. But, instead, she heard something absolutely unexpected- "There's another crystal out there," said Serena. "Another crystal, like my silver one. And it belongs to Darien." * * * "A golden crystal?" Luna said as she paced Serena's bedroom. "I don't think I've ever heard of it before." "I saw it in my mind. Queen Serenity gave it to Prince Darien. It matches mine." "Well, a person's first experiments with psychic powers can produce false results, you know." "This wasn't false, Luna! I could feel it in. . .in my soul. . ." "And, of course, when it comes to Darien there's no way you can possibly be objective about anything. . .it's all going to be colored by your personal feelings." "Bite me, Luna!" "Humph! I may do just that!" As the cat stalked out of her room, Serena turned over on her stomach, her head resting on her crossed hands. I know I saw it, she thought. It wasn't a lie, or a false image, or a figment of imagination. . . Her phone rang. "Hello?" "Hi, Meatball Head." "Muffin! I'm so glad to hear from you. . ." "Serena. . .were you and Raye experimenting with your psychic powers this afternoon?" She sat bold upright. "Yes. . .we were. How did you know?" "I got a funny image in my head all of a sudden. . .some kind of golden crystal. . ." "You saw it too? Then I'm not nuts! Ooohh, I can't wait to tell Luna. . ." "Did you get any info on where it is? What it is?" "All I know is that it's yours, and that it matches mine." Just then, Luna re-entered Serena's room, looking rather sheepish. "Serena, when you have a minute. . ." "Hold on a minute, Muffin. What is it, Luna?" "I checked with Central Command and. . .you were right. There *is* a golden crystal. . ." "Woo hoo! In your face, Luna!" "You don't have to gloat about it!" the cat snapped. "While you've got Darien on the phone, you might as well tell him to come to the temple in a half hour. We've got to have a scout meeting about this. . ." * * * "Now, do you understand what we're doing?" Luna asked the assembled scouts, who had all assumed their "super" forms. "Amy, Mina and Lita will all focus their mental energy on Raye. Raye will channel the energy into Serena, who will send it out through the silver crystal. Then, the energy will find the golden crystal, and Darien should be able to see where it is." "Why do we have to do this right now?" said Serena. "I'm missing dinner!" "It's vital that we find the golden crystal as soon as possible, before the Negaverse finds out about its existence." "So how are you going to pick up on our mental energy?" said Lita. "We don't have psychic powers like you do." "Everyone gives off psychic energy to some extent," said Raye. "One of the easiest ways to release large amounts of it at once is to focus your thoughts on someone you love." Suddenly, Mina looked uncomfortable. At first, Raye attributed this just to the fact that she was the only one without a boyfriend. . ."Or anything else really pleasant in your life," Raye said quickly. "All right, get into position," said Luna. Serena held her wand over her head. Darien stood beside her, his hands also on the wand. Raye got in front of Serena, her hands on her shoulders, and the other three stood behind Raye, each with a hand on her back. "Now everyone breathe deeply," said Raye. "Quiet your minds. . ." Raye opened her own psychic senses as wide as she could, and felt everyone else's vibrations grow still. . . "Okay, Lita, Amy, Mina. . .focus!" Raye felt the vibes start to flow through her, and she caught a strong feeling of what each girl was thinking of. The thoughts coming from Lita were all of Ken, and Amy's were of Adam. . . "Mina!" said Raye. "I'm not getting any vibes from you! Focus!" "But Raye, I. . ." "No buts. Just do it!" And then, the wall of energy slammed into Raye from Mina's direction, and she caught the flavor of it. The strong tang of unrequited love. And she knew precisely who that love was aimed at. I'll kill her, Raye thought. I'll absolutely kill her. But she pushed the emotions away-this situation would be dealt with later. Now she had to focus on pulling their energy into her own mind, concentrating it, mixing it with her own, then shooting it into Serena. . . Raye was aware of the energy passing into the other girl, then the silver crystal glowing with an unearthly light. . .There was a pause of a few moments, then Darien said, "It's sunken in a cave. . .a cave near the ocean. . .we're going to have to use the silver crystal to retrieve it. . ." Did Darien pick up on that vibe from Mina too? Raye thought. Gods, I hope not. . . The glow faded, and Darien returned to reality. "I know where we have to go, Luna," he said. "Well, then, let's waste no time," she said. "We have to get going." "Go now?" said Serena. "But what about. . ." "We'll pick up some takeout food on the way," said Darien, knowing full well that his girlfriend's stomach was on a clock-and if she didn't have her regular feedings, she was *extremely* crabby. The others started to follow Darien out to the temple's van, which the Scouts used when they traveled en masse. Raye and Mina were the last to leave. "When we get back from this thing," said Raye, "I have to talk to you." Mina felt a flash of cold fear. She knows, she thought. She read my mind. . .Oh, Gods, what's going to happen now? * * * "This isn't too far away from where we pulled Serena out of the vortex, is it?" Raye asked Darien, leaning over and resting her arms on the back of the driver's seat. "Nope. In fact, there's the crater where that cave blew up, right over there. . ." He looked away from the road at his friend for a split second, but it was long enough to see shadows behind her eyes. "Hey! What's wrong?" "Wrong?" Raye stole a glimpse at Serena, who was sitting in the front passenger seat contentedly munching French fries. I can'tlet her know about this, she thought. . . "Nothing's wrong." "You look like something's bugging you." "No, I'm. . .just worried that the Negaverse will find the crystal before we do." You liar, Darien thought. I'm picking up on your vibes, and something's definitely wrong. But he didn't pursue the matter any further. They arrived at the appropriate sunken cave, got out, and looked at what they were dealing with. "It's all the way down THERE?" said Serena, peering into what looked like a bottomless pit. "At the bottom," Darien replied. "We're going to have to form a human chain. Serena and I will have to be at the far end, because we have to go down there with the moon wand. . ." And I'm making sure that Mina's at the other end, Raye thought. She's not getting anywhere near his butt. . . Bit by painstaking bit, they inched into the hole. Darien went in first, Serena clinging to his waist with one arm, both of them holding her wand with one hand. Then Lita grabbed onto Serena, Amy onto Lita, and Raye onto Amy. "Since you're the athlete among us," she said to Mina, "you'll be the anchor." Did she see the other girl wrinkle her nose? Pretty soon, everyone was grunting and straining. "You two need to go on diets!" Lita yelled. "Can you see it?" Serena said. "It should be around here somewhere. . .just let me in a little further. . ." "I don't know if we can stretch any further," Raye yelled. "I feel like my spine's stretching right now!" said Lita. "Wait. . .wait. . .there it is! Hold out the wand now, Serena!" Raye saw the silver flash of light in the cave, answered by a gold flash. "Start pulling up!" she shouted to Mina. Slowly, slowly, they pulled each other out of the hole, until finally Darien and Serena emerged. She held up her wand in triumph-stuck to the top of the silver crystal was what looked like a lump of gold, only it was transparent. "It's wicked cool!" Serena said. "It's more than wicked cool," said Luna. "It's incredibly powerful. When used with yours, it can overwhelm even the toughest enemy." Darien went to the van to retrieve his staff. He touched the end of it to the golden crystal, and it stuck there. "Now I know why I was so obsessed with finding the silver crystal," he said. "Without the silver one, I couldn't have found my own." Everyone clustered around to get a good look at the new magical tool. . .except for Mina, who hung back. . .which did not escape Raye's notice. * * * The hour was getting late when they arrived back at the temple. Everyone said their goodbyes and started to head home. . . But Raye did not let Mina leave. She grabbed onto her arm. "You and I are having that talk. NOW." "But Raye. . .it's so late. . ." "It's not a school night." "I have to get up early for volleyball practice tomorrow." "Nice try. . .but volleyball season doesn't start for three weeks." Mina sighed and followed Raye into the temple, feeling like she was going to her own execution. Once both girls were seated, Raye said, "Mina. . .you know how Serena and Darien feel about each other. It's more than just a regular boy-girl thing. They're heart mates and soul mates. How can you even think of coming between them?" "I'm *not* thinking of coming between them." "Liar! I could feel the vibes shining from you as bright as day! You're in love with him!" "How DARE you talk to me like that! YOU of all people! YOU know very well what it means to be hung up on that man!" "I got over it! Just like you should get over it! You're only going to end up hurting people, including yourself!" "I haven't hurt anyone yet, and I've got no intention of starting now! And how can you tell me to just 'get over it'? Like it was that easy?" "It's never easy. But you *have* to do it!" "I can't! You think that Serena's the only one with any kind of connection to him. . .but I feel a connection too! Like. . .like there was something between us a long time ago. . ." "Wait a second. What are you saying?" "Sometimes I get these. . .these flashes. . .of him holding me in his arms. . .and it feels different from my fantasies. More like a memory. . .a long-ago memory. . ." Raye listened, dumbfounded. A memory? Could it be. . .that there really *was* something between them at one point? Maybe they were lovers in the Silver Millennium before he met the Princess? Or maybe. . .even in this life? There was a way she could find out. . .the hypnotism ritual which Darien used to send her and Amy into deep, deep trances. But the last thing she wanted to do was have him perform it-especially since it involved having the subject lie in front of him while he held her hand. I'll have to try and remember it myself, she thought. Dangerous, yes-but what other choice do I have? If she really is carrying around a memory like that, maybe she can be healed of it. . . "Mina," she said, "I'm going to try to help you recover the memory-that is, if you're willing. Are you?" "Yes." "Come into the main room of the temple. . ." * * * Mina was lying in the middle of a circle of salt, surrounded by candles. Raye was holding her hand, speaking to her in low tones. . .and suddenly, the temple was fading away, and she was falling, falling back into the past. . . It had been just another typical day in the life of Sailor V. She'd spent her morning going to school and her afternoon fighting evil. But then, something not-so-typical happened. She'd vanquished what she thought was the last enemy and prepared to transfer back into her everyday self. And that's when something grabbed her from behind. Before she could summon her crescent-beam-smash, she felt herself being whisked away, far, far away. . . The creature deposited her in some kind of cavern. "Who are you?" she demanded of it. "What do you want of me?" The thing answered in a terrible voice, "Why, Sailor V, we want you to die. You've given us grief long enough." "You're not going to get away with this! Venus crescent beam. . ." But before she could proclaim the final word, some kind of ray shot out from the creature and seemed to paralyze her mind, so she could not form the final word, the word that would release her power. "It's useless to struggle," the thing said. "All you can do is wait here until we decide how we're going to kill you. Because you *are* going to die, Sailor V." And the thing dumped her roughly on the floor and vanished into thin air. Mina jumped up to her feet and started examining her surroundings. It looked like a totally seamless cave. . .no visible doors, no cracks, no hope at all of escape. . . "We're in another dimension," said a voice behind her. "Getting back to Earth won't be easy." She jumped and shrieked, then whirled around. The voice was coming from another human being, a male. . .dressed in an outfit as improbable as her own. He had on an old-fashioned tuxedo, a top hat and a cape, and his face was partially obscured by a mask. "Who are you?" she said. "I'm Tuxedo Mask. I'm an enemy of these creeps too. And you are. . ." "Sailor V. A fighter for love and justice." For a split second, their eyes met through their masks, and an immediate current of attraction passed between them. Wow, she thought. There's just something about this guy. . . Who is this girl? he thought. She reminds me of someone. . .someone I have only seen in my dreams. . .He felt a stirring in his heart of hearts. Could she be. . .my princess? "How did they end up getting you?" she asked. "A couple of them attacked me. I thought I'd bested them, but then one of them grabbed me from behind. . ." "That's exactly the same thing that happened to me," she said. "These creatures are bastards, all right. Some of the nastiest things I've ever seen come out of the Negaverse." "The Negaverse?" Her guardian cat, Artemis, had mentioned the Negaverse to her before, but she really wasn't that well acquainted with the concept yet. "Otherwise known as the Dark Kingdom. A really nasty group of people that wants to eliminate the universe as we know it. Come, sit over here. . ." They sat side-by-side, and he told her everything he knew at that point about the Negaverse. She listened with interest. So now there was an explanation for all the strange creatures popping up out of nowhere that she'd been fighting. . .It all made perfect sense. She sighed. "Well, at least now I know what's going to kill me." "Don't talk like that." "Can you see any way out of this? They won't let me use my powers. There's no flaw in this cave wall. And that creature told me that they were going to decide how I was going to die, and then come for me. . ." "Don't count us out yet. These things may have a weakness we haven't found yet. Or there might be some kind of dimensional shift, and we'll be able to escape to our own universe. . ." "What are the odds of that?" She began to cry. "I'm going to die. I'm going to die without knowing what it's like to be a mother. . .or to have a career. . .or to. . .or to. . ." Her voice trailed off into a faint whisper. . . "make love." She was so much like the girl of his visions, he thought. . .so much like her. . .yet something was telling him that it was not really her. But still. . .Despite his confident words, he knew that they probably would not make it out of this mess alive. And this might be the closest he'd come to holding his princess in his arms. . . He produced one of his roses and gently stroked it over the girl's face, wiping away her tears. "You won't die without knowing what it's like to make love, Sailor V." She turned her head, and he was smiling gently at her. Their faces were so close. . .Even though the mask, she could tell he was unusually handsome. She felt herself leaning over toward him. . .And then, their lips gently brushed each other. She leaned over so she was closer to him, deepening the kiss. Oh, his lips felt so good, tasted so good. . .She threw her arms around him, pulling him deeper and deeper into her. Their mouths clashed in an erotic tangle, his tongue gently probing her mouth, hers eagerly meeting and stroking it. Hot desire was rushing through her, unlike anything she'd ever felt before. They broke the kiss and embraced each other tightly, and she gasped as her whole body trembled with lust. "Oh, Gods!" she cried. She knocked the hat off his head and stroked his thick, black hair before bringing his lips back to hers again. His hands were moving over her body, stroking down her back, cupping her buttocks, then moving up along her front. He squeezed her breasts as she made a low noise in her throat. The layers of fabric between them started to feel like a brick wall. As if he was reading her mind, he said, "How do you get rid of this uniform?" She was able to summon enough of her power to pass her hand over her body and make the Sailor V dress vanish. She debated whether to remove her mask, and decided to leave it on. . .for now. Her hands tugged at his fancy formal wear. How many damn layers of it were there? He gently pushed her away, grabbed the magic rose, and passed it over his body. His costume disappeared just as hers did. Now they lay side by side, just drinking in the sight of each other's beauty. She's like a goddess, he thought, running a hand along her hip and down her legs. Perfection. It's so hard to believe that she's not my princess. . . She passed the back of her hand down his chest, marveling at the muscles, the sexy build. She allowed her eyes to travel lower, moving over his flat stomach, and then lower still. . .For the first time in her life, she beheld a naked male organ, standing erect against his stomach. He caught her gaze, heard her sharp intake of breath. He took her hand and slowly led it to his manhood. When she tried to pull away, he pushed her hand back in place. He guided her fingers, showing her how to hold him, how to caress him. Their breathing quickened as she grew bolder, more confident. While she was pleasuring him, he brought his hands to her breasts. He cupped them in his hands, reveling in their soft-firm texture. He rubbed his palms up and down on the nipples, hearing her moan. Lowering his head to her, he began licking at one nipple with hunger, drawing it into his mouth and sucking. She cried out and twisted beneath him, her hand gripping his manhood. Oh, this felt better than anything she had ever fantasized about! As he moved his mouth to pleasure the other breast, his fingers moved down to the soft juncture between her thighs, stroking the folds, gently probing the entrance to her virgin womanhood. This is where I want to be, beautiful one, he thought. I want to be deep, deep inside you. . .Oh, if only you were *really* my princess. . . He moved up to her secret jewel and caressed it, and she arched her hips and uttered a keening cry. Her fingers were driving him toward critical mass. . .It was time, time to teach her about the ultimate fulfillment of man joining with woman. . . He withdrew his fingers and mouth from her, and gently eased her hand away from his manhood. When he positioned himself over her, his mouth claiming hers, she knew what was coming next, and she tensed with a combination of fear and wild excitement. He slipped into her, and began pushing in by degrees. She gasped as she felt him press against her barrier. He kissed her again and again, then pulled his mouth away from hers long enough to whisper, "Are you sure?" "Yes." He thrust forward with a mighty stroke, and she cried out when she felt the splitting pain. Her arms clenched him, her breath came in loud pants. "Are you all right?" he whispered. She smiled. "I'm wonderful." He began to move within her, slowly, carefully, getting her used to the sensation of being filled. . .Then, he picked up the pace, thrusting faster and harder, experimenting with different kinds of strokes until he found a rhythm that made her moan, her arms gripping his back, her legs wrapping around his hips. "Don't stop," she begged. "Oh, please, keep going, that feels so good. . ." She was being driven into an erotic frenzy, beyond thought, beyond reason. Suddenly, she felt she had to see his face. . .She yanked his mask off and flung it aside. And the face she saw was so stunning that the sight of it touched off her climax. She writhed, her hips pumping, her hands clutching, as the flames ripped through her. And as he came, he removed her mask as well. . . He fell off her, both of them panting, holding onto each other as if they were afraid they would vanish into thin air. He stroked her hair, looking at her fully-revealed face. She was indeed beautiful. And she bore such a strong resemblance to his princess. . . Then he saw the rose he had produced earlier, lying next to their naked bodies. The energy generated by their lovemaking had supercharged it with magical power. There was a chance. . .a slight, slight chance, but a chance nonetheless. . .that he'd be able to use the magic to blast through the cave wall so they could escape into their own dimension. . . "Put your uniform back on," he whispered. "We might be able to get out of here." Once they were both clothed, he showed her the rose and said, "Now, I want you to concentrate your powers on this rose, and I'll do the same. If this works, it'll blast a hole in the cave wall, and we'll be able to jump through to our own dimension. We'll both land in the spots where we were captured from. . ." That means I probably won't see you ever again, she thought with dismay. She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him. "I won't ever forget you, Tuxedo Mask," she said. "I won't forget you either, Sailor V." They concentrated their power on the rose and threw it, and sure enough, it blew a hole in the cave wall. Without looking back, both leapt through. . . And despite what they had promised each other, as soon as they landed in their own reality, they forgot that the incident between them had ever happened. It was pushed back in their subconscious minds. . . * * * Mina slowly came back to her senses. How could she had forgotten that incident, the most important one in her life to date-the loss of her virginity? And she'd lost it to Darien! It wasn't just fantasies-it had really happened! "Do you want to talk about it, Mina?" Raye said. And then Mina poured out the whole story in a flood of tears. "I loved him from that moment. . .but I can never have him. . .and it hurts so much!" Oh, Gods, thought Raye, now I've got a pickle on my hands. Mina needs to be healed of these memories. But the only one of us with healing ability is Serena. And I sure as HELL aren't going to tell her about this-she'll FREAK! Even if it happened before she and Darien recovered their memories of the Moon Kingdom, it still involves Darien sleeping with another woman. . . Mina got up. "I have to go, Raye. I just want to take a long walk. I just want to be alone for awhile. . ." Normally, Raye would urge an upset friend to stay with her, to talk about the problem some more. But in this case, she just let Mina go. Raye needed to be alone right now as much as Mina did. Raye sunk down in front of the fire, possibilities whirling in her head. I could ask Darien if he knows any healing spells. . .but if he's forgotten this, I don't want to reawaken it. He's so happy with Serena-why bring back memories of him with another woman? "He doesn't remember it at all," said the voice of Mars in her head. "Beryl completely erased that memory, along with most of his other memories of women. She was looking to get rid of his every thought of Serena, so she wiped out every thought of a female she came across." "Then can I ask him to perform the healing magic?" "It's not a good idea. If he doesn't remember the incident at all, and she tries to convince him that it happened, he'll think she's lying, living in a fantasy, stalking him. It will only get in the way of their friendship." "Then what can I do? I can't just let her suffer like that!" "There's another member of your team who has gained healing powers. She will be able to do it." "Who? Who's gained healing powers? Wait a second. . .Amy? Is that who you mean?" "Exactly. She's gained the caduceus, the supreme wand of healing. Now, this is what the two of you have to do. . ." * * * "I feel like a burglar," Amy whispered as they snuck into the basement window of Mina's house. "The healing has to be done in her sleep," said Raye. "While she's awake, she'll only resist it. Part of her wants to stay in love with him." Quietly, they made their way though the basement to the stairs, Amy hiding the glowing caduceus as best she could. "Do you know where her bedroom is?" she whispered. "No, we're going to have to wing it." They made their way up the steps, to the kitchen, through the living room. Luckily, Mina was one of those people who decorates her bedroom door with posters, little signs, and bric-a-brac, so her room wasn't hard to find. When they opened the door, they saw Artemis curled up asleep next to the bed. "Careful," Raye whispered. "You don't want to wake him." But it was too late-Artemis' super cat senses had picked up the entrance of the two girls. He sprang to all four feet. "What the HELL do you think you'e doing?" he hissed. "Quiet, Artemis," Raye whispered. "We can't heal Mina unless she's asleep." "Heal her? From what?" "From the worst kind of pain," said Raye. "Unrequited love." "Oh. . .*that.*" Artemis' tone of voice conveyed that this was not exactly an aspect of Mina's life that he was unfamiliar with. Amy approached the bed and put the tip of her caduceus against Mina's temple. "Ready?" she whispered. "Ready," said Raye. Amy whispered, "Supreme healing activation!", and a blue glow began to envelop Mina. Meanwhile, Raye said, in a low, soothing voice, "Mina, it never happened. There was never an encounter between you and Tuxedo Mask. You have no memories, no lingering feelings. You are healed of the pain of unrequited love forever. You are ready to go out in the world and live and love as a woman." The healing glow faded. Mina stirred and whispered something, then fell back into a deep sleep. Breathing a sigh of relief, Amy and Raye went back out into the hall, Artemis trailing behind. "Thank the gods someone did something about that," he said. "It was paining me having to watch her obsess over him day in and day out and not be able to do anything about it. Andthen at night, having to listen to her. . ." They could see his deep blush even through his fur, and they understood what he had heard. "It's a shame that she had to lose the memory entirely," said Raye. "It was, after all, a milestone in her life. But reliving it over and over had just gotten too destructive." As they left the house, Raye peeked into Mina's bedroom window and saw her sleeping peacefully, extremely peacefully, a sleep that she knew was unhaunted by dreams that would never come true. * * * "Hey, Raye, over here!" Mina stood up from the table in the diner where she was sitting with Amy and Lita and waved. Raye waved back, and made her way to the booth. "Well, we seem to all be here except for Darien and Serena," she said. "Guess again," said Lita. She pointed to a two-seat booth on the other side of the room, where the two were feeding each other spoons of a giant chocolate sundae, giggling and kissing between bites. "Ah, the lovebirds are off in their own little world," said Mina. Raye studied her friend's expression closely. Was that a flicker of jealousy? Was the healing incomplete? Did Mina still carry some lingering feelings for Darien? "Um, Mina. . .why are you looking at them that way?" "Oh, I envy them . ." Uh-oh, thought Raye. "They've got that cute guy Gary for a waiter! How come they're in Gary's section, and we're stuck here being waited on by dumpy old Alice?" Raye exhaled a big sigh of relief. Mina was going to be okay. She was over Darien at long last. "Hey, Raye," Mina was saying, "look over there. It's Gary's friend, Jimmy! Don't you think he's cute? Oh, Raye, you and he would be just *perfect* for each other. . ." Yes, she's back to being the old Mina, Raye thought. Maybe *too much* the old Mina. . .