A/N: Ok so I HAVE written a lot... in fact, I'm almost done this other story I've been working on since summer started so that'll be up soon. :p (I hope... :p I just need to finish the last 2-3 chapters or so and it shall be finished!:p) And I know I meant I'll write this, but I got distracted by a song and that turned my inspiration in another direction. Which is good, because it really made me think about what I want for this story, and the morals of the characters. Since I've been able to revisit this, I've gotten to know the direction of this plot more after stepping away from it for a few months... Fingers crossed it gets me somewhere!

BY THE WAY!: Just a thanks to unlockurdestiny for pointing out that it's ELF DAWNED BOOK 2, not 1 on the bottom there. :p My bad... So I'll fix the other two chapters eventually. :p Just bear with me until I do. ^^ Sometimes the copy/paste method does have its drawbacks! :p

Disclaimer: All rights are reserved to Naoko. I do not own Sailor Moon, but the story is all my creation.

Summery: She came once, sucked under the spell of Endymion's eyes. She left, forgetting everything. Now she's back, learning it all over again... but this time, she's running for her life from the beginning.

Elf Dawned Book 2: By Chance...

Chapter 7

You'd think that after having similar nightmares for a few years you'd stop being scared to sleep. You'd think that when you woke up, you wouldn't be sweating from all the emotional effort it took to not scream. You'd think that you would have gotten used to it.

I didn't.

The nightmare still scared me. Now that Aunt Rose was gone, they had something new to plague me about, and this time for good cause. I had a real reason to be scared of the nightmares now more than ever, which made it all the more frightening.

I wonder if anyone knows what it feels like to be so scared out of your mind, you'd want to run, but you just don't know where.

The night after I went out to town, I saw the maid's face in my dream. It melted into his face. He laughed at me for being so foolish, and let the wind carry the envelope to me.

"Your fault."

"No!"

"Yes…"

I know I must have screamed. I couldn't have muffled it. But by the time I did, he was gone, and there was nothing.

The door banging open woke me up, and I screamed again, out of fright that he had found me and had come for me. I pulled the covers to me.

"Serenity?"

I shut my eyes and pulled my knees to my face, resting my eyes on my kneecaps. I started to sob, realizing it was only Endymion, and not wanting to deal with him either.

"Serenity? Are you alright?"

I felt the bed give under his weight as he leaned over to run his fingers through my hair.

"What's wrong? I heard you screaming."

I shook my head. No. I didn't want to talk about it.

He sighed, wound his arms around me and pulled me to his chest, rubbing his hands down my arms and back. He whispered sweet nothings into my ear. He was telling me that he was there, that he wouldn't let anyone touch me. It was ironic because he himself was touching me, but it felt good. I listened to him, letting his words calm me down. His voice was like velvet, made out of magical thread, woven with precise decision into a most beautiful blend. I savored every word he said, like nothing else mattered. And at that moment, nothing else did.

I let him calm me. When I was calm, I let him touch me some more because I liked the electricity that ran through my veins, and I liked the tingly feeling in my chest.

He sighed into my ear, his breath warming me.

"Are you alright?"

I nodded, moving back from him.

He leaned back against the foot of the bed, watching me carefully. I instantly missed his warmth, but wouldn't admit it to anyone.

"He's still haunting your dreams, isn't he?"

I frowned. "Still? How do you know he's still haunting my dreams?"

He looked away. "Want to get a drink or go outside to the garden?"

"A drink would be nice," I said, looking away and ignoring the fact that he had avoided my question.

He got up and turned away. "I'll be right back. You stay put."

He was at the door when, despite myself, I asked quietly, "Can I come?"

I don't know what got over me. For the last couple of days I couldn't stand being around anyone – especially Endymion. I don't quite know why, but I still didn't trust him. At that moment, all of my weary feelings about him were thrown to the wind.

He seemed to sense this, and nodded his head fast. "Yeah, sure, come. Want me to get you a warm robe or-"

"I'm fine," I said. I got up and grabbed my blanket, pulling it over my shoulders, and tiptoed to him quietly.

He opened the door for me, and I slipped out, careful not to disturb the quiet. The castle at night was like a ghost town, dim and quiet and chilly. The paintings and posters and words on the walls added more to the creep scale when in the morning, they made the castle look cozy.

We walked down the hall in silence, him leading, me following. That's when I saw his right hand, covered in a white bandage stained in a coppery red.

"Did something happen?" I asked, stopping. He turned to look at me, confused, and I gently picked up his hand and held it between us as a response.

He smiled uncomfortably. "We had… a mild disturbance. We fixed it, if you're worried, but I got my hand cut up pretty badly. It's no big deal, though. I'm going to go see Amy's dad for it later tomorrow."

"What happened?" I asked. For the first time since we came here, I looked him straight in the eyes. He blinked a couple of times, but then stopped and stared into mine, too.

"N-nothing big… Like I said, a mild disturbance," his eyes cast away from my eyes to look at our hands, mine still holding his. I let go, and he let his hand fall to his side.

"Serenity?"
I looked up at him.

"I-I… almost hurt you once," he said, and then winced. For a moment, he looked like he didn't believe he said it, and flinched away like I was going to strike him or yell at him. All I did was stare. When he realized that I was just standing there, he took a breath and continued. "I've been thinking about this since this morning. And I figured – you were right. You do have the right to know. But before I say anything, I want you to know that you can trust me. I would never hurt you… I would rather-"

"But you just said you almost hurt me," I cut in, my whisper harsher than I meant it to be in the still air of the castle. It was ironic how he had the most power and strength, but he looked more scared of me, a helpless human girl he kidnapped.

"Yes, but-"

"So you almost hurt me… and you just said you never would."

"I…" he looked away, then back. "You're right. But I would rather die right now than hurt you ever again."

"But-"

"Do you want to know the story or not?" he snapped, his eyes blazing with a fire that quickly settled. He looked slightly feverish, too, which brought me back down from my high quite fast. "I'm sorry," he said, turning away. He began to walk in the same direction we were walking in moments ago. "I just… I can't tell this story unless you listen."

"I can't," I said, not bothering to follow. "I just can't listen to this right now." I was too tired, too emotionally drained to listen to this story. And I kept hearing the girl's voice from earlier today, the one I ran into who said I shouldn't figure out his story. Otherwise I'd lose… I would probably lose my mind if I had to deal with anything more. "Can we talk about this later?"

He turned back to look at me. "There might not be a later."

I hated to admit this, but the truth was that I would rather not know, which surprised even me. I was scared to know, and I did want a sort of fresh start, so to speak, with Endymion, despite my protests. I had been begging him to tell me, but now that he was about to, I realized that I might just be unready for the truth and disaster his words might bring.

He must have seen something in my face, so he nodded and walked back to me. "You deserve to know… I just might not be able to tell that story again." Then, he tilted his head. "Why aren't you wearing the locket?"

I felt around my neck quickly, my heart skipping a beat, before I remembered. "Oh, I took it off in the middle of the night. It kept digging into my skin and I couldn't sleep."

"Well, where is it now?" he asked, his eyebrows furring.

"Under my pillow."

He nodded, thoughtful. "Maybe we should go back and get it?"

I shook my head. "We'll be back there in a few minutes. I'm sure that it can wait."

"But what if someone takes it?"

"No one will take it."

He ran his hands through his hair. "You're right… I've just been on edge lately. Let's get you some water, and then we'll walk back to your room and you can get some rest."

I bit down on my lip. "Actually… I think that I'll just walk around afterwards. I don't think I'm ready to face my dreams yet."

"You're scared?"

I frowned. "Never…well… maybe… Yes."

He smiled. "Must be some dream then. Nothing scares you."

"I wouldn't be so sure," I said, rubbing my finger against my collar bone.

"No… really?"

I grinned, and began to walk again, this time him following.

He got me a cold drink of water from the tap, and I drank it thirstily and then got myself another cup of water. This time I just sipped at the water slowly, feeling the liquid roll on my tongue, savoring its sweet tastelessness.

"Tell me a story," I said, remembering his secret study and the many books within it.

He looked startled for a moment. "What story?"

"I don't know," I sighed. "Something nice."

He thought about it for a minute, and then nodded. "Yes, I have one. I suspect that you would know it, though."
"I don't care."

And so he told me a story about a human boy who snuck into Elf City and forced the town to slow down their time to keep other humans out. The boy went through a ritual and became an elf, and eventually got a very special job on the Royal Court.

At first I thought Endymion was using "boy" as a poor excuse to disguise my story, especially since I did somehow remember the story itself. But then I realized that even though I knew the story, I did not have any personal connection with it.

But I had a feeling I knew someone who did.

"Andrew…"

Endymion grinned. "Did he tell you about it?"

I shook my head. "Not that I remember. I just… know," I said.

We had begun to drift to my room slowly as Endymion talked, mesmerizing me in his voice. By the time he was done, we were standing right outside my room, my hand on the doorknob, him leaning against the far wall.

He seemed quite interested in watching me all of a sudden. "There may yet be hope for you, Serenity."

I twirled a strand of my hair in between my fingers, watching him. "I'm not sure what you mean."

"I mean exactly as I say. Good night, sweet Serenity."

"Wait!" I said, ignoring the fact that he had just called me sweet.

He stopped, turning back to look at me. "Yes?"

I opened my mouth, and then closed it. In truth, I had nothing more to say to him. I just wanted his company. I suspected it was because I didn't want to go back to my dreams.

"N-nothing. Good night."

He looked at me closely, his face outlining every pore and strand of hair. "Are you alright?"

I nodded. "Yeah…" My gaze drifted to his bleeding hand again, but he pretended to ignore that.

"Goodnight."

I watched him retreat to his room until his door was closed. The dragon's face popped out at me, grotesque, mocking me of my fears of the night.

Pretty spooked, I turned to open my door and go back inside into its safety – though I doubt that it was that much safer, even though I've been told otherwise – when I heard an awful wailing sound.

I stopped, my heart pounding so hard I was sure that anyone around would hear it, and willed myself to breath. The horrible sound had shaken my bones to their core, rose goose bumps. It was a sound of the tortured. It was a mind-shattering cry for help when words couldn't suffice.

It was nothing, I tried to convince myself. The sound didn't return. It was obviously my mind playing tricks on me.

I turned the knob when that wailing started up again, only this time lasting longer, making my heart break.

Go inside, go inside, goinside! I chanted in my head, trying to will my fingers to turn the knob faster.

The wailing started up again, this time louder, and louder still, begging me to hurry to it. I turned to look at Endymion's door, expecting it to open and him to come out looking for me, but it remained closed in the darkness, the dragon head still in its horrific pose.

Alright, I though. Someone was in trouble. I was strong. I would handle it… or at least see what was going on so I could call for help.

I turned to look at Endymion's door. I could always ask him to do so instead… he was a warrior, after all, and-

No. His right hand, most likely also his dominant hand, was bleeding badly. I may not trust him completely and utterly, but I didn't want anything to happen to him either. Not until I knew the truth from the lies.

Logic won out. I would go to see what the wailing was on my own.

I followed the sounds, creeping down the hall and holding my blanket tighter around me for comfort. The closer I got, the louder the sounds became. They were awful, really, and made me want to run every time a new round of wails came about, but I stood my ground.

Hurry, hurry, I urged myself. Someone could be dying.

I made my cold feet move faster, quieter, as I wandered down the hall.

I turned the corner and followed the sounds down a dark, fire-lit hallway. Then I stopped at a door, where the wailing was the loudest. My hand shook and I reached for the door handle, not sure at all of what I'd encounter. Horrific images filled my mind and I tried to block them out all the more.

When I finally opened the door the wailing stopped. Any and all sound evaporated, leaving a quiet, peaceful, and therefore very suspicious, room behind.

Cautiously, I entered, unsure of what to expect. I had no weapon. If something attacked me now, I wouldn't be able to protect myself, but like a bad dream, I walked in.

The room was dark and carpeted. Warm. It had white walls made dark by the night and soft red by the flickering fire, and felt very homey. Not a place I'd imagine for a maiming or…

I gulped as my eyes strayed to the fireplace in the middle of the room, spewing fire, and instantly I stopped searching the room for potential enemies. The fire called, sang the siren's song, drawing me towards it. I took the steps willingly, unthinking. The one thing I knew was that I would have fought to get to it if I had to. Killed. The urge to look in was strong, so strong…

I sat down cross legged, and leaned into its heat, searching, searching, for something.

Then I saw it.

In the heart of the fire, I saw myself.

I was tied up, trying to shrink into the poll that held me in place as fire tried to devour me. Ferocious flames attacked my body, and I watched. I was flailing in the fire, trying to get away from it, but it was no use. I was the one wailing, making the dreadful sobs. And then I called out Endymion's name, that name holding so much trust and pain that my throat closed up.

As the fire licked the skin in the image, I started to feel the burn. At first, it was nothing, but then it slowly heated my skin until nothing more was left but the numbness.

It was terrifyingly familiar numbness.

They did this to you.

The scent of blood wafted my sense of smell, and its metallic taste filled my mouth, repulsive.

I went stiff all over, responding to the voice inside my head. That voice scared me much worse than it did in my dreams. He was one who wanted me dead.

It was somehow worse when I was awake. It made him real.

I want to help you. I saved your Aunt from this fate… now I'm going to save you. They're using you… they want you to believe they're on your side. They tried to kill your Aunt Rose, and when it didn't work and I intervened, they decided to show you while they had some evidence of me being there…

No…

Yes. I want to help you. Let me help you. Let me-

No!

The story made absolute sense, but he had spent too much time in my head at night convincing me to let him kill me, and that seemed to kill the thread of lies he was building now. It was him I was frightened of. And that fear gave me the strength to get onto my wobbly legs and make a run for it. Back the way I came.

The wailing followed me until I closed my bedroom door and fell, sobbing hard for the second time that night.

Endymion didn't come this time.

TBC

A/N: Well that was interesting... LOL Anyway, sorry I wasn't updating more. Have a happy summer (or what's left of it, anyways :p).