Well, I'm not exactly satisfied with this chapter... but Umi-chan3 is leaving town tommorow... and I wanted to get the next chapter up before she leaves! Go read her stories, she's getting sad because of the lack of reviews... .

Anyway, about the characters. Umi is Out of Character for most of the story. I know that. There -is- a reason for it. I'm doing it on purpose, kay?

For Clef... well, I have no excuse. He's out of character, too. Uh... Umi just does that to him sweatdrops Forgive me. Please.

Just one more thing! Check out my website, its on my profile page. It's a MKR forum... you can talk about it there! There are not really any MKR websites nowadays... I also have a RolePlaying section... am I the only who thinks that doing a Magic Knight Rayearth RolePlay would be totally fun? Please come, I would love you forever!

On to the story! Review respones at the bottom!

Chapter Two-

-- Dreamscape --

"Well, hello again, little brat!"The voice was the first thing Umi heard as she entered the dream. Her eyes darted around. All she could see was thick blackness all around her, covering her.

Weren't you supposed to wake up when you realized that you were in a dream? She gave a mental shrug. This was not an ordinary dream; from the beginning she had never thought of it as one.

"No apparitions of dying friends? No mysterious dying men?" She said wearily. The voice chuckled.

"Not at the moment, little brat… Perhaps later!"Umi was silent. "Aw… Are you tired, little brat? Didn't get much sleep last night?" It mocked her.

"SHUT UP!" She shouted, suddenly angry. That just made it laugh all the more. Umi wanted to punch something, kick something, kill something. But the voice remained in the shadows, taunting her, taunting her. "Why don't you show yourself?" She hissed. It giggled.

"I'd really rather not..."It said gleefully.Umi noticed It was acting different today. A bit more... hyper?

"And why not?" She shouted, wheeling around in circles, glaring angrily at the deep shadows.

" 'cause I don't wanna..."It said, drawing out the last word. Umi could almost hear the nasty smirk in It's voice. Umi wondered when it was that she had started thinking of the voice as an 'It', in capital letters.

"Coward!" She yelled.

"Oh, I'm soo insulted..."It said, giggling maniacally. Then It yawned. "Well, I'm getting bored with this... how about some more fun?"Umi was sure that she wasn't going to like It's idea of 'fun'. She curled her hands into fists, her fingernails digging into her flesh.

-- End Dreamscape --

Clef had not been able to sleep that night, afraid that he would feel Umi's terror again. He had no reason to think that it would, it could very likely just be another –ordinary- nightmare. Despite that, he –still- had not been able to fall asleep. He had paced his room and tried to read some old spell books... until now. There it came, once again. The terror. For one time in his life, Clef dearly wished that he had not been correct. He snatched his staff from where it lay, at the ready, against his wall. His staff pulsed briefly with a blue light as Clef activated the transportation spell.

-- Dreamscape --

"Umi..." A deep voice whispered. She whirled around involuntarily, even though she knew this would be one of It's tricks. The man from last time stood about four meters away from her, surrounded by the same darkness that still surrounded her. She gave a little gasp, and took a step forward. His appearance tugged at her heart. The man stared at his feet; it was obvious that he could not see her.

"Umi..." he whispered again. His voice was tinged with agony.

"Who...who are you?" She breathed. Suddenly she realized that if she were in real life, she would know this man. It was the strange power of the dream that was keeping her from recognizing him. Dreams just worked that way…

"Who is he?"The voice seemed to find her question quite amusing. "He's the man you love." It said smugly. All the color drained out of her face, and she took a step back.

"But... I… don't...I don't lo..."

--End Dreamscape--

Clef grabbed her hands. Damn it, they were bleeding again! Her long fingernails dug into the flesh of her palm so hard that it drew blood.

"I… I… don't... lo..." She whispered; her voice filled with agony and horror. He dropped her hands and shook her shoulders.

"Umi! Wake up!" He said urgently. "Please!" Her eyes opened slowly.

"What?... Clef?…" She said, mostly awake now. He sighed with relief.

"You had a nightmare, -again-." He said quietly. She bit her lip and looked down. At least she didn't burst into tears this time. Her eyes were wide and her breathing was short and choppy. She seemed to be in shock. She's in shock from something a -nightmare- said. Perhaps I -am- right... Clef sighed wearily. "I can give you that potion again." He offered.

"Sure." She whispered. Well, at least she said something this time. It's an improvement, I suppose... The same cup he had given her last night appeared in his hand. She sighed softly and took it.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" He asked her. She shook her head. Well, I had to ask... She placed her lips on the rim of the cup and sipped quietly. She set it down on a small table that was beside her bed, and Clef noticed that her hand trembled. He clenched his teeth. Maybe I'm -not- overreacting. She laid back in the bed and turned away. Why did she keep turning away from him?

"Clef?" She asked softly after a minute. His eyes widened in surprise. He hadn't expected her to say something. Judging from how fast the potion had taken over the night before, he had assumed she was already asleep.

"Yes?" He answered, curious about what she was going to say. She gave a low sigh, so soft that he almost didn't hear it.

"Thank you, Clef." He stared in surprise, and then smiled softly.

"You're welcome, Umi."

--Next Morning--

Umi paused a second before opening the door to the breakfast hall. For some reason, she didn't want to see anyone right now. She just wanted to be alone… to think… but her friends would worry if she didn't show up. She had already slept too long. I'm going to have to ask Clef-chan to tone down that potion or something… She opened the door, and felt everyone's eyes turn toward her.

"Umi-chan!" Hikaru burst out happily. Umi smiled, almost shyly.

"Sorry everyone! I really don't know what's gotten into me lately!" She said cheerfully as she walked over to the same table that the girls had sat at the day before. She could feel Clef's skeptical eyes on her, and could almost hear his thoughts. 'Sure you don't, Umi.' She leaned against the table. "So, what were you guys talking about?" Hikaru bounced in her chair.

"Fuu-chan said she had a surprise for us!" She exclaimed, grinning widely. Umi looked at Fuu, interested. Fuu colored and reached up and ran a hand through her shoulder length blonde hair.

"What is it?" She asked. Fuu smiled shyly, and held up her hand. On her hand was a beautiful ring, with a bright red jewel in the middle, carved in the shape of a heart. Everyone gaped at it.

"Ferio-chan asked me to marry him." Fuu said, looking down to stare at her hand. Umi felt a lump grow in her throat.

"OH MY GOD!" Hikaru, Presea, and Caldina all shrieked at the same time. They all proceeded to squeeze the death out of a furiously blushing Fuu. Umi forced a smile on her face.

"Congratulations, Fuu!" She said, trying to force happiness in her voice, for Fuu's sake. This was supposed to be Fuu's special day… why couldn't she be happy for Fuu? Umi's gaze unconsciously slid over to Lantis, who had a tiny, secretive half-smile on his face and was fingering something in his pocket. Umi almost choked. Great! Just GREAT! Her two best friends were getting engaged, and she… she… she had nothing. She felt heat rise to her face.

--"He's the man you love…"--Crap. Crap, crap, crap! That's what it is… I'm jealous… Why am I jealous? That's not like me at all… She felt tears sting at her eyes. Damn it all! Why the heck am I –crying-? I never cry… what the heck is wrong with me? She spun around; she had the sudden urge to just bolt out of there. She had to get out… She walked slowly toward the door, fighting with everything that she had to not cry until she was out of the room. Her hand on the door, she glanced back. No one had seen her start to leave; everyone's attention was focused on Fuu and Ferio. Tears blinding her vision, she turned and almost ran out the door, not seeing Clef's worried eyes following her retreat.

-- --

He knocked softly on the door. There was silence for a few seconds.

"Who is it?" Umi's voice sounded defeated and weary. He frowned slightly.

"Clef." He answered. There was a pause.

"Come in." He swung the door open, walked in, and quietly shut the door behind him. Umi was seated in front of her window, her arms folded in front of her and resting on the windowsill. Her face was buried in her arms. He walked slowly forward until he was about in the middle of the room.

"I saw you leave," He began in a gentle voice.

"Really? You were the only one." She said sharply, cutting him off. He blinked. Did that have something to do with why she was so upset?

"Something was bothering you. You looked like you were going to… cry." His last word trailed off as she lifted her head to look at him. She –had- been crying; her face was tear streaked. He stared at her with clear blue eyes, now even more concerned. "What's wrong, Umi? Please tell me." He asked her, a pleading note in his voice. There was that same look in her eyes, that lost, lonely one.

"I'm just being an idiot. There's nothing wrong." She said bitterly, closing her eyes and turning her head back toward the window. He didn't believe her for an instant.

"Umi…" He said softly. Her hands dropped to her side, then curled into fists.

"I didn't mean to…" She began, her voice almost inaudible. Clef said nothing, just listened intently. Maybe she would finally tell him something about what had been bothering her. "But I looked over at Lantis when everyone was congratulating Fuu…" She paused again and swallowed, "And he was fingering something in his pocket and almost –smiling-." She stopped than added, "He was staring at Hikaru."

Suddenly he understood. Lantis was going to propose to Hikaru; both of her friends were getting married. She was jealous. She let out a sharp breath, almost a sob. "See! I'm just being an idiot." She buried her face in her hands.

"No." He said quietly. "No, you're not. Anyone would feel jealous if they were in your place. It's human." He walked nearer and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Your best friends all have loves, and you do not. It's completely natural. It is not something you should worry about… It is not something you should cry about." She looked up at him.

"Thank you, Clef." She said, with warmth in her voice.

"You're welcome, Umi." He had a brief déjà vu of the night before. A ghost of smile crossed his face. He turned and walked out of the room, his robes swishing on the floor behind him.

-- Fifteen minutes later --

"Clef-chan?" Hikaru asked in a worried voice, poking her head into his study. Clef looked up from the book he was reading.

"Yes?" He answered. Fuu, Presea and Caldina appeared behind her.

"Have you seen Umi-chan?" He frowned at them. They had just –now- realized that she was missing? He tapped his fingers on the table.

"Yes. Last time I saw her, she was in her room." Hikaru nodded.

"Okay!" She said cheerfully, and turned to go off toward Umi's room, but Presea stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. The Soushi stared at Clef.

"Clef, is there something wrong?" She had noticed his scowl. He absently ran his thumb across the edge of the table.

"Actually, yes. When I was talking to her… she was quite upset." Hikaru's eyes widened.

"Why?" Fuu asked concern laced in her voice. Clef sighed, and wondered how to put it. He didn't want to say anything about Lantis' proposal plan, not with Hikaru there.

"Fuu has Ferio… and you have Lantis." He said slowly to Hikaru, "I believe she was feeling a bit…" He paused, "left out, and a bit jealous. Then she got upset at herself because she was jealous." Understanding lighted in their eyes. Hikaru spun around and began to sprint down the hallway toward Umi's room, the others following close on her heels.

-

"That's it, Umi. Keep it up! You're falling right into my trap… just perfectly! Soon you shall be completely –mine-!"

-

Responces:

rayearth-luvr : Thanks! -blushes-

Padme5 : Thanks! I have a couple one-shots in rough draft mode, I just have to edit them. I wanted to get this chapter out first before I posted anything else! I love Clemi too, I LIVE on Clemi. And on Clef in general... .

Umi-chan3 : Thanks! I had to go over this fifty times before I got it the way it is now... No exageration... You don't know how happy it made me feel when I saw that one of my favorite authors of all time reviewed my work... -grins- Post the rest of your story soon -glomps- .

Shimmering Rose Petals : Hehe! My IM s/ns are on my profile... -prods you in that direction- .

Lunacy Fringe : -blushes bright red- Thanks so much!

Haruka3: Thanks! Yes, doesn't Clemi just rock?

--

Everyone: Wow, I was completely flattered to see how many reviews I got. My ego has bloated to the size of a large blimp. Does anyone have a pin? Someone needs to pop it...

I just hope I don't scare everyone away with the horridness that is this chapter... -winces-

Please review! -glomps everyone-

Raven

PS: The next chapter is going to be a while in coming... something special happens next chapter, and I'm going to have a hard time keeping the characters IC... so it will take me a while to write it...
-coughs- In the meanwhile, why don't you guys check out my website? I'll keep you updated on there about how far I am in writing the chapter... -grins-