Disclaimer: As always I don't own the characters of Sailor Moon and have no claim whatsoever on them.
Author's notes: Hello! This is a rewrite of a story I started a few years ago. I've always wanted to finish it but never got the story completely fleshed out. Now I have and decided to change a few things.
It is now set in a Silver Millennium AU with a lot of twists.
I wanted to give this a fresh start and not just update the old story. I hope you will enjoy it. Reviews are always welcome. Oh and I tried to keep typos and grammar mistakes to a minimum but I don't have a beta reader. So please excuse any mitakes.
If you're curious… You and I is the title to a song by Jennifer Rush. It can be found on youtube. The lyrics to me it Endymion and Serenity so well that it was inspiration for this story.
Rating for possible later chapters.. won't be too lemony though.
Thank you for reading!
You and I
Prologue
-Beginnings-
Soft hurried footsteps echoed through the cold night air as a young boy tried to reach his destination. His lungs hurt from the speed he had been trying to keep up for the last ten minutes.
Just a little further, he told himself. It was just beyond that hill.
Reaching the top he finally halted, breathing heavily. He stood there, hands on his knees, his rugged breath forming small white clouds in the cool night air.
Upon regaining his breath, he finally looked up and although he had seen it a hundred times, the view took his breath away.
Before him lay a vast field filled with moonflowers, shining beautifully in the light of the full moon. The necks of the full blooms seemed to reach towards the heavens.
The moon shone so serenely above, bathing the entire field in its ethereal glow that it almost took his breath away.
His gaze wandered to the center of the meadow and a smile spread over his lips. There she stood, her small beautiful face turned toward the skies, drinking in the soft silver rays.
It made her skin glow and her golden hair turned almost silver. If he didn't know better he would think she was a fairy ready to start her dance.
Just as that thought passed his mind, the small girl spread out her arms as if they were wings and started to dance around in circles. She spun faster and faster and her giggles rang like angel bells in the air.
He watched her silently for a few minutes, fearing if he only moved a muscle the spell would be broken and she would turn into dust and disappear.
As if sensing someone was watching her, the little girl stopped her magical dance and turned soft blue eyes towards the boy.
For a second he held his breath before she ran towards him with a loud squeal that he was sure would give him a hearing impairment for the rest of his life- but he didn't care. Her short legs were a little unsteady when she ran faster than she should have, her blonde hair flying behind her, the most delightful little smile on her face.
"Endyyyyyymiiiiion!" she squealed in delight as she ran to him and flung herself in his arms. He had already known her move and awaited her with arms wide open.
Once her arms reached his, he picked her up and swirled her around in the air, making her giggle and squeal. They kept spinning and spinning for a few minutes before tumbling down to the ground both dizzy, laughing and happy.
When she had regained her breath she rolled onto her said, looking into his eyes a bit sternly, "You're late."
Her voice was flat and he detected a little trace of anger.
Endymion turned as well, facing her and raised his finger to her nose and playfully put it on her nose.
"Not everyone can sneak away as easily from their chores as you, Serenity." He said with a little wink.
At the word "chores" the girl's nose wrinkled in disgust and she thought for a second before speaking up again, a most heart melting smile on her small lips.
"I forgive you." She proclaimed with an almost regal voice.
The young boy blinked in surprise before whispering the words "Ohhhh you little.." and tackling her to tickle her sides mercilessly.
When Endymion finally stopped, Serenity tried to catch her breath, tears in her eyes from all the laughter.
"You…are….s…soooo… evil" she breathed between her final giggles.
He laughed out loudly, "You know you deserved it, you cheeky girl!"
After that they both lay side by side surrounded by moonflowers, gazing into the clear sky. There was no cloud to be seen, only the moon in all its glory and the stars trying to outshine each other.
It was peaceful bliss and they just enjoyed each other's company and essence.
Endymion turned his head slightly towards Serenity. Her eyes were half closed as she looked up at the moon. Its soft glow illuminating her in the strangest way. For a moment he thought he saw something on her forehead but then brushed it off as a shadow passing her face.
He was so lost in looking at her that he hadn't noticed her gaze wander to meet his own.
There was a quizzical look on her face as she asked him what he was looking it.
As he didn't react she waved a hand in front of his face and demanded "Helloooo?! Earth to Endymion.. anyone there?!"
For the second time this night he had to blink when he finally registered her voice.
"W…hat?" he breathed.
"You just looked at me really strangely.. like you were somewhere else." Serenity said.
He smiled a little sheepishly at her as he rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.
"I'm sorry." He apologized, his eyes still a little dazed.
"You're just so strange sometimes, Endymion…" she whispered.
Those were the last words spoken for a long while, as they lay side by side in the grass, the smell of the moonflowers intoxicating their senses, the glow of the moon inspiring fantasies in their minds.
What seemed to be hours later, Endymion felt the little body beside him shiver. He looked to the little blonde haired girl and noticed her cuddling up to his side, her arms wrapped around herself trying to get some warmth into her limps.
With a soft smile he simply took her into his arms and gently rubbed her back before whispering into her ear "Let's go home."
At first she resisted but then she had to admit it was getting too cold for her and with a loud sigh she got to her feet.
Smiling at her, Endymion took off his woollen cape and wrapped it around her small frame. She smiled at him and gently took his hand into her smaller one.
They walked home slowly and happy. It was their special night together. Every month they would repeat this.. it was their own little secret.
When they finally arrived at Serenity's home she barely could keep her eyes open anymore. Endymion smiled at her, gently brushing a loose curl from her face.
She gave him the sweetest smile before getting up on her tiptoes to place a soft kiss on his cheek.
As she looked towards her room's window she blushed lightly and bit her lip. He watched her for a second then realized what the problem was.
He went up behind her and gently lifted her up by her waist so she could reach the window with her short arms.
She flashed him a grateful smile and he had to chuckle.
"How in the world did you manage to get out of there on your own, Serenity?" he asked her with a raised eyebrow.
She huffed indignantly and replied "With a chair, of course! I'm six years old and not stupid!" And with that she disappeared into her room but not before she playfully stuck her tongue out at him.
Endymion shook his head and smiled…what a crazy little thing his best friend was and for a brief moment he wondered what she would be like once she had grown up.
With that he turned around to run home and sneak into his own bed. Luckily that wasn't too far off. He felt the tiredness in his bones and muscles. The day had been hard. His father had died even before he could remember him and Serenity's mother had taken them in, given them shelter and a roof over their heads. She had been in quite a similar situation. Her husband had died on the battlefield and she was left pregnant on a farm. All by herself.
This way they could help each other, she had said.. and that's how it had been all those years.
He silently crept into his room and under the covers of his bed, very careful not to wake his mother. She disliked it when he went too far off. Actually he wasn't allowed to leave the farm at all because she was always scared of something happening to him.
Still he managed to sneak out every now and then. He smiled when he thought about his little moonlight trips with Serenity. These moments were special to him and he treasured them. Still he had the feeling that one day she would get him into trouble… and he would follow her willingly…
The next day dragged by terribly. Once Endymion had woken from his short night he had felt it immediately. His body was sore and tired. With a grown he swung his legs out of bed and went into the kitchen to greet his mother.
She smiled warmly at him and wished him a good morning while she stirred something that smelled very delicious to the young boy in the big kettle over the fire.
"Breakfast is almost done, Dear." She told him before she added some more spices to the mix.
"Smells great, Mama. I'll just run outside and wash my face!" he quipped before running out the door.
Once outside he took a deep breath and turned his head towards the sun.
"Looks like it's going to be another beautiful day." He thought with a smile. Work was so much easier when the sun was shining. And maybe he was lucky enough to finish early and sneak in some reading time. Oh, how he loved a good book! There was so much to learn and to know.
His mother didn't like to see him reading, in fact she had forbidden him, saying a farm boy didn't need to be able to read. He had been so eager to learn new things that this crushed him.
Serenity's mother- a midwife- had felt pity on him and embraced him gently when her daughter had dragged him in with tears in his eyes.
His mother never wanted him to learn anything, wanted him to never leave and sometimes she was looking at him with an expression that made his skin crawl. She was a sweet and caring mother but something just seemed off sometimes.
Melena, Serenity's mother, was another thing entirely. She was kind and giving, wise and clever. You could see it in her intelligent eyes and although Endymion was merely 9 years old, he knew that she had saved many lives with her ancient knowledge.
One day she had confided in him that she knew how to write and read. That her deceased husband had taught her secretly and she had decided to teach him.
I was the most wonderful gift he had ever gotten and he would be forever grateful. He was even more amazed when she had shown him and enormous chest filled with books.
Sometimes he wondered who Serenity's father had been. He couldn't have been just a simple soldier. But he never dared to ask because Melena's eyes would glaze over and water at the mention of her dear husband.
As he walked back into the house, his mother was already waiting at the table with breakfast, a soft smile on her lips.
He smiled back at her absentmindedly and slurped down his breakfast in a hurry before quickly giving his mother a peck on the cheek and dashing outside to begin his chores.
In the early afternoon he had made himself comfortable in the barn, laying in the soft hay, looking out of the window. He smiled. It had been a good day and he was able to sneak off and grab one of his favourite books: The history of the Moon Kingdom.
Why it was called "History" he didn't know. It all sounded so unreal and illogical. A Kingdom on the moon? Magical even?
But sometimes he wondered.. there were so many legends revolving around the Moon Kingdom. How it had been the grandest of Empires in the Universe. The regal Lunarians protecting and overlooking the Cosmos.
A fair and beautiful race graced with powerful magic that could heal and destroy.
The most unbelievable part was the warriors though… female warriors! Who ever heard of such a thing?
Of course this was Serenity's favourite part. She loved to hear him read from the book and afterwards she would always strike a pose and play "Moon Warrior".
To her female knights were a normal thing and it disappointed her greatly that one Earth she couldn't become one.
"Will you become a knight one day, Endymion?" she had asked and in reply he had shaken his head and told her that you had to be of noble birth to be a knight and he would never qualify.
That had made her frown.
Just as he was thinking about these precious moments, he heard the rustle of fabric nearby and in a flash of gold and light blue a small girl had plopped herself down in front of him, her chin resting on her hands, expectant eyes fixed on her best friend.
"Hello Serenity. Where have you been all day? I missed you." He said softly.
She turned her head to one side and thought for a moment.
"I've been away with mother. I saw how a baby was born!" she told him excitedly.
She told him in every detail about what she had seen that his eyes went big and he wished he was somewhere else.
With a cough he interrupted her story and pointed toward the book he was holding. Her mouth stopped mid-sentence and upon seeing the book's binding her eyes lit up with excitement. She would know her favourite book anywhere! It was so beautiful with it's soft silvery leather binding and delicate dark blue letter.
"What are you reading to me today, Endymion?" she exclaimed excitedly.
He smiled and turned the book around to face her and although she couldn't read the letters yet, she saw the very impressive image underneath. It bought a huge grin to her face and Endymion knew he had chosen the right chapter- Dragons.
And so he began to read to her:
"In the old age of the Moon, when the land was vast and no living creature graced its surface, wonderous creatures roamed the planet.
Covered in shimmering feathers of white and pearl, scales of silver and eyes as grey as the glow of the Moon. Proud, fierce and yet gentle they awaited the arrival of their Masters, their friends who would share their bond and their magic. But only those of royal blood truly bonded with these magnificent creatures for their magic was the strongest and purest."
"Endymion, what does that mean?" the little girl interrupted.
He looked at her, thinking for a moment, rereading passages of the text before he carefully searched for words.
"I think it means that the Lunarians had a bond with the dragons. They were part of their magic and their bond." He explained, "And only royalty could bond with them for their magic and purity."
"Hmmm.. I wish I was a Moon royal and had a dragon! I would fly off into the sky and let the wind run through my hair!" Serenity exclaimed excitedly.
Endymion chuckled at her words and her excitement, he cheeks flushes as her mind filled with the endless possibilities a dragon would bring to her life. "So you would.", he smiled.
The rest of the afternoon was spend in silence as Serenity hung onto every word Endymion was reading to her, but her mind never strayed far from the dragons.
That night she looked out of her window, up at the moon and whispered ever so softly "I wish all those stories about the Moon were true….", and then she drifted off into the world of her dreams.
"Endymion! Endymion!" he heard her squeak excitedly as she hopped up and down in front of his window excitedly.
He smiled and shook his head. How could a small girl have so much energy, he wondered.
Not even having taken a step out of his house, two small arms had circled around him and the little hurricane called Serenity had almost tackled him to the ground.
"Why in such a good mood today, Serenity?" he asked her all too innocently, a small smile tugging at his lips.
She looked up at him and pouted. "You forgot?" she whispered, her eyes tearing up.
Biting his lip he took her chin into his hand gently. "Never." He whispered back at her and her face lit up with a big smile as she hugged him again.
It was her birthday, of course he hadn't forgotten. He never would.
Gently prying her arms from around him, he took her hand and started running, hearing her squeal with surprise and delight as she followed him.
She knew where he was taking her and grinned. In the distance they could hear Endymion's mother yell for them to come back.
For a moment Serenity turned her head, worried they would get into trouble but saw her mother calming the other woman down. It was a special day after all.. so all would be good!
Breathless they arrived at the edge of the forest. It fascinated and scared her at the same time. She loved the old, tall trees that moved gently in the wind but the creaky sounds gave her the creeps.
All of that was forgotten though when Endymion lead her to a small clearing. Her breath caught in her throat.
There before her lay the most beautiful garden she had ever seen. There was a small waterfall and brook that crossed through the meadow. Left and right the grass was green and lush. All around were rose bushes, some tall, some short. The full blooms shining in many different colors. The dew drops on the petals caught the sunlight and made the garden sparkle as if it were a dream.
She looked on amazed as she observed the other flowers, every inch was covered, beautiful white and orange lillies grew around the water. It all seemed like a dream.
"Happy Birthday, Serenity." He whispered into her ear with a smile and she almost jumped as the words ripped her from her stupor.
"This… this is ..for… me?" she asked, her voice full with amazement and a small whisper.
Endymion looked at her an smiled glad his surprise was a success.
"Yes, I made it just for you." He told her with some pride in his voice.
She couldn't believe it.. he had created this beautiful garden just for her? Her heart skipped a beat as small tears of happiness ran down her cheeks.
Worried the little boy stepped towards her, wiping her tears away with his thumb. "Is everything all right?" he asked her, worry in his voice.
She turned her face up to meet his gaze and smiled softly. "I love it Endymion.. thank you so much! This is the best gift ever" she said softly and moved closer to him to give him a small peck on the cheek.
He just smiled a very silly grin.
With that she ran towards the center of the garden where a small pool of water spread out before her. With a giggle she flopped herself down into the grass. Laying on her belly she watched the Koi fish under the surface as the swam around in circles.
She never wanted to leave this place ever again.
When she heard her best friend sit down beside her she turned and looked at him with a smile.
"How did you do all this, Endymion?" she asked in wonder.
Her looked at her and shrugged. "I just concentrated on it and wanted to make it the most beautiful garden I could imagine.. and somehow it worked." He explained to her, blushing a little.
"Wow.. just wow…." She whispered.
Serenity watched him pick a small rose blossom from one of the bushes. He took it into the palm of his hands and closed his eyes. There was a soft golden glow that radiated from his hands and Serenity stared in wonder as the small blossom opened its petals and transformed into a rose in full bloom.
Her mouth opened a little as if to say something but nothing came out. She couldn't think of what to say.
"It's something I discovered I could do while planting the garden. It's as if the flowers respond to me… a little freaky, isn't it." He told her with flushed cheeks.
She put a gentle hand on his and smiled into his eyes "Not at all, it is the most wonderful thing I have ever seen. You are magical Endymion. It's our little secret now." She softly told him.
It seemed today he couldn't keep the blush from his cheeks. He liked the idea of having a special secret with his best friend and smiled at her.
Taking the softly glowing rose from his hands, he tucked it behind Serenity's hair with a smile.
She sighed in bliss and lay down in the grass once more. "This is the best birthday EVER!"