Hi everyone! As promised, the next chapter…
Thanks to: KageNoNeko, SerentiyMoonGodness, skye668, Goddess of the Moonlit Sky, snoopykid, Ldsprincess, MegTao, SulliMike23 and Lady Clark-Weasley of Books for reviewing the previous chapter
Title: Only In My Dreams
Author: Crystal Saturn
Rated: T
Chapter: 11- She's So High
The delicate plucking of her toes along the wisps of condensation. It tickled, and yet it felt so comforting. Serena's heart felt so light and carefree at this moment. She giggled as she danced along the soft fluffy tops of the cumulous clouds. Her toes tingled as the fluffs of cool air curled up around her feet, holding her weight and supporting her with a bounce. Serena felt as light as a feather. Her heart began to beat faster as a mischievous grin spread across her lips. She curled her fingers into fists of anticipation and held her breath.
One swift step after another. She opened her eyes at the last moment and awkwardly flapped her arms about herself as she leapt off the cloud. To her relief, she began to soar across the sky. The cool air was gusting across her rosy cheeks. A somersault. A twirl. She landed softly and gently onto another cloud and giggled innocently. Her heart was racing with adrenalin and the new sensation of weightlessness made her head spin. The soft feeling of the clouds between her toes was comforting, but it simply wasn't the same. She wanted to feel the rush. It wasn't long before she yearned to be flying among the clouds once again.
One swift step after another. She opened her eyes at the last moment and awkwardly flapped her arms about herself as she leapt off the bed. To her complete horror and shock, she experienced a sudden, shooting pain as she found herself on her bedroom floor. Serena yelped, trying to be quiet as she rubbed her right shoulder which had made the initial impact. She shook her head at her own stupidity, but moreover at the loss of such a lovely dream. It had been so long since she had had such a carefree feeling within her heart. Serena groaned and crawled back under her sheets, hoping her dream would resume as she closed her eyes and drifted off into a listless slumber.
The sun filtered her light across the bedroom and embraced Serena warmly. She squinted under the glare, and her eyelids fluttered open. She stretched and yawned loudly, feeling refreshed and energized. It was a feeling that she had not experienced in a long while. It was a welcomed change to her usual lethargy and morning feeling of apathy. She began to prepare herself for school, floating about the room gracefully on her toes. She felt happy today.
"Serena!" Ami called out after her friend. "Serena! You're early today! What's going on?"
"Good morning Ami" Serena smiled warmly. "Nothing, I just had a good sleep and woke up early today."
"I'm glad to see you smiling again, Serena." Ami noted Serena's light mood and warm smile. Something she hadn't seen in a long time.
"Mercury Bubbles, Blast!" The soldier of water announced as a flurry of bubbles gave way to a thick fog, limiting vision.
"Jupiter Thunder, Crash!" Lightning flashed through the dense fog, signaling the cue for a deep rumble from the dark horizon.
"Sailor M-"
"I'm on it!" Moon took a firm grasp on her tiara, not wanting to become too drained of energy by using her wand. All eyes fell upon the scout who seemed all too eager to dust this demon. "Moon tiara, Magic!" The gold disc rotated swiftly, fanning the thinning fog about as it spun toward its target. Within a split second, the tiara vanished, not even coming close to the monster. "No!" Sailor Moon cursed. Her tiara still wasn't obeying her commands. It reappeared on her forehead. She reached for it once again, with more determination. "Moon tiara, Magic!" Once again, her tiara fizzled and faded half way through its mission.
"Sailor Moon," Venus stepped forward, not quite knowing how to console her leader.
"No Venus, I'm going to make this work! I will." Moon reached for her tiara again. It lifted and molded into its glowing disc form. "Moon tiara, Magic!" Sailor Moon yelled, demanding that her weapon obey. "Tiara! Go!" She watched eagerly as the disc of light sliced through the air and fearsomely embedded itself into the monster's chest, rendering it a worthless pile of moon dust.
"You did it, Sailor Moon!" Her fellow scouts congratulated their leader and celebrated their victory. "The return of Sailor Moon." Mars patted Moon on the back. "Let's go for sundaes to celebrate."
"No thanks, Mars." Moon sighed, rubbing her tired eyes. "I think I'll just stay out here for a while. It's such a nice night. You guys go ahead. I'll be fine." She powered down into Serena and waved as her friends and fellow scouts began to leave.
Tuxedo Mask watched from behind the lighthouse as Serena sat herself down on a bench, furthest away from the cliff face. She sighed contently to herself. Gentle choppy waves lapped, distorting the reflection of the full moon. The beacon from the lighthouse above her rhythmically shined at predetermined intervals, bathing the coastline in short bursts of light. Sighs could be heard from below the cliff face, where the gentle waves crashed amongst the rocks, foaming and gurgling as they continued to play their steady rocking game of tag. Serena allowed her eyes to close as she focused on her other senses. Touch, sound, smell. A familiar scent was lingering in the air. A light musky floral scent. It seemed so familiar and yet, she couldn't figure out why. Maybe it was because it seemed like a strange smell to detect by the sea. Roses. How odd.
The crisp sea air driving up the cliff face sent chills down Serena's back and goose bumps across her arms. Her breathing deepened as she recalled her latest dream. How wonderful it would be if she could fly. Soaring effortlessly across the skies. Bounding lightly atop the soft gentle clouds. They seemed to move around her, quickly adapting to fill the hollows and depressions left by the weight of her feet. They lifted her up so she wouldn't fall through. Like on a giant jumping castle, Serena began to slowly bounce across these clouds. She giggled at the feeling of gravity pulling her back down towards the clouds. Her stomach felt as though it was still moving in an upwards motion. Serena opened her eyes and found herself in her flying dream once more. The soft white cumulous clouds spanned across the whole horizon. Serena felt safe here. She felt that even if she had a klutz attack and fell, the clouds would still catch her. It made her comfortable and confident. She looked at the edge of the large cloud mass she was standing on with excitement. Serena wanted to fly again. She wanted to experience that empowering feeling of freedom.
Darien watched as Serena stood up slowly, her eyes wide open. She stared at the edge of the cliff and a small smile graced her lips. Darien felt his heart sink as he raced toward the blonde girl. Her eyes were open, yet they seemed vacant and glazed.
"Meatball Head," He called out to her. She didn't react to his voice, only continuing to eye down the edge of the cliff. "Meatball head, what are you doing?" He reached her and stood by her side. There was still no reaction. She didn't even acknowledge his presence. It was as if she couldn't see or hear him. She seemed to be in her own world. Darien watched as Serena closed her eyes and swallowed. He saw her fingers ball into fists. Before he knew it, she was sprinting toward the edge of the cliff. He chased after her and tackled her to the ground. The freshly formed dew on the grass did little to slow their momentum. Darien struggled, attempting to subdue the squirming girl within his arms. She tumbled over his body and slid off the cliff edge. Darien leapt forward, grasping hold of her arm as she dangled perilously close to her death.
Serena's eyelids fluttered as she blinked away the remnants of her dreams and she yelped in pain. She felt as though her arm was being ripped from its socket. "Darien?" She surveyed her surroundings and realized that she was hanging off a cliff, Darien being the only thing stopping her from plummeting towards a cold, harsh death amongst the jagged rocks below. "Darien, help! Darien, please don't let go." Serena called out desperately as the man above her groaned, attempting to lift her.
"It's not my intention to let you jump off a cliff, Meatball Head." He let out another loud grunt and reached for her other arm, using all his upper body strength to pull her back to safety. Serena continued to desperately cling on to Darien's arm, even though she was now safely sitting on the ground.
"What happened?" Serena's voice quivered as she struggled to control her rampant heartbeat.
"What happened? Are you kidding me? You ran off the cliff!" Darien raised his voice in anger and disbelief as he pried the girl off him. "What were you thinking? I thought you said you were Ok. I thought you said you'd talk to me if anything was bothering you. You said I was your friend."
"I did! I didn't mean to scare you. I didn't mean to… I… I don't know what happened. One moment I was sitting on the bench… I was thinking of my dream… I didn't know that…" Serena struggled as the shock subsided and gave way to the reality and gravity of the situation. Tears filled her eyes as she began to shake uncontrollably. She was so close to death.
"Sere…" Darien pulled her close and held her tightly. "Don't cry. You just scared me. Please be more careful." He soothed as she clutched tightly to his shirt, crying openly and burying her face within his chest. It was clear that she had no idea of what had happened. She was just as confused and scared as he was, if not more. She had almost lost her life that night, and she didn't even know what she was doing. It couldn't have been easy regaining consciousness whilst hanging precariously off the side of a cliff.
"Thank you," Serena's voice quivered. "Thank you for being there for me, again." Darien simply held her closely in an attempt to settle and reassure the distraught girl. In amongst the sound of her sobs and the hush sighs of the waves below them, Darien could swear he heard the deep, echoing rumble of laughter.
That's the end of the chapter! See you all in a weeks' time for the next chapter. Until then, please review and let me know what you think.
Crystal Saturn