A Dream Come True Author: aria Rated: G She ran to the balcony and leaned over the gilded railing. Where was he? She quickly scanned the palace landscape looking for the familiar figure. The slight breeze blew her the delicate fabric of her gown around her as she waited breathless trying to catch a glimpse of him. She looked cautiously over her shoulder. If her mother new what she was up to she would have more than a fit. Excited and nearly jumping out of her skin with nervous energy, she ran to the corner of the balcony where she new no one could see her from the inside. The gentle breeze blew again. It was getting chilly. She stared up at the cold night sky and wished she’d thought of putting a cloak on over her gown. Still she was thankful for it. The slight breeze blew the clouds away from the full moon lighting up the gardens around the palace with its gentle silvery light. And now she would see his handsome face more clearly. Where was he? She rubbed the chill from her bare arms. This gown really wasn’t made to protect anyone from the cold winter air. The sheer gossamer of her gown couldn’t do anything to stop the breeze from chilling her through. She took another furtive glance at the silvery orb in the sky. He promised to be here before the moon reached it’s highest point. She looked up again. It was getting quite high now. Maybe he was waiting for her? She leaned over the railing again trying to get a look underneath. The wind swirled around her faster now, whipping a golden comb out of her hair. A gloved hand caught it before it could mar the pristine snow. A deep husky voice whispered up to her. "Be careful my princess. I don’t know what I would do if you fell on my account." Elated to see him smiling up at her, she leant over again. "Darien, my love! You came!" "Of course I did. I will always some for you." He easily climbed up the vine-covered side of the castle. "Now where is my kiss?" he pulled her close and gently claimed her lips with his. "Darling! You’re freezing!" he quickly pulled his coat off and draped it over her shoulders and pulled her closer. She was hardly feeling the cold now. She completely forgot everything around her except for him. She let her gaze wander over his perfect features. They started at his amazingly blue eyes. They reminded her of the blue gems her mother was fond of wearing. Then down his straight nose to his sensuous mouth. The stubborn chin that she knew would rise at any challenge. Down to his broad shoulders, strong chest and arms. She was getting weak in the knees just thinking of them. She loved every inch of this man. She tipped her head back and kissed his chin. "When do you think we should tell mother about us?" He cupped her chin with his large hand. "Very soon." He leaned down for another soul searing kiss. "I don’t know how much longer I’ll be able to keep myself from making you mine." To emphasize his words he dragged her hips to his letting her feel the effect she had on him. Trembling she pulled herself back. "We’ll tell her tomorrow then." "As you wish, princess." He kissed her again and again until she couldn’t tell which way was up. "Serena!" Heart stopping, she force herself to push him away and ran back into her room. Sticking her head back out, she whispered, "Tomorrow." The voice trilled again, "Serena!" She quickly threw his coat over the railing, shut the doors and dove into bed. "Serena!" ---- Serena jumped in her bed. It took her a moment before she recognized it was her own plain bedroom door she was staring at not the ornate door of the princess in her dreams. She blinked away the remnants of the dream world and groggily got out of bed. These dreams were coming way too often. It probably wouldn’t have bothered her so much if they weren’t so real. It was like everything in the dream were really happening to her. The smells, sounds, sights and memories were too vivid to be just a dream. Unsettled she got out of bed and headed to the bathroom. She stared at her reflection. "You’re going crazy." At least it was her day off. She could spend the day quietly going insane at the mall. Maybe some Christmas shopping would take her mind off of it. She quickly took a shower and got dressed in her favourite jeans and sweater then walked the gaily-decorated mile it took to get to the mall. On the way she pulled out her diary and wrote down what she could remember about the dream. She then flipped back through the notes she’d written down over the past few months. Since she’d been having the dreams she started keeping notes about what went on and who was there in them. It had started about four months ago. Since then, night after night she’d dream about a young couple. They were absolutely in love but were of different classes. Or so it would seem. She was always dressed regally and he as well but not nearly as extravagant as the woman’s dress. She looked at the notes scrawled on the edges of the page and laughed. From what she remembered about the dreams, the man was very good looking. And her notes concurred with her memory. She turned to page to the sketch she’d drawn of him one morning. Even in the drawing, the piercing intensity in his eyes effected something deep inside of her. She flipped the page to read her description of him. ---- Very tall and strong. Makes me feel protected. Jet black hair, sapphire blue eyes. Loves me very deeply. Calls me princess. Named Darien. ---- She flipped back to the sketch and sighed. Like she would ever meet someone like him. Deep in thought she wandered into the crowded mall. The moment she walked in a man bumped into her, practically knocking her to the ground. He continued on his way like nothing had even happened. "Sorry to get you your way!" Sarcasm dripping from her voice she gathered herself together and stalked off into the crowd. All the men she encountered were swine like that jerk. Cursing her luck she walked to the nearest shop. ---- Darien walked into the restaurant his friend owned and waved at the hostess. He found a suitably isolated booth and sat down. Dead tired, he rubbed at his eyes and sighed. He’d been having strange dreams again. Half asleep he greeted the blond man that appeared at his side. "Hey Darien." He frowned when all he received was a curt nod. "What’s the matter? Having weird dreams again?" he slid into the seat opposite. "Hi Andrew. Yeah. It’s so strange it’s like I know her." It was more than that. It was like he needed her to be with him just to function normally. But how crazy was that? To need a figment of his imagination. He ran a hand through his ebony hair. "It’s crazy, but I think I’m in love with my dream." Andrew leaned over and slapped him on the shoulder. "I think it’s finally happened. Work has got you so messed up you can’t tell fantasy from reality." He got up. "Tell you what. How’s a nice big lunch sound?" "Sounds great." Darien leaned back and tried to stop thinking about his dream. How impossible was that? He sat there thinking only about the beautiful blonde woman in his dreams. Maybe Andrew was right. Maybe he’d been working too hard. Too many hours at the hospital hadn’t proven good for any one of his intern friends. And now it seemed that he fell into the same rut. He rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hands. Being at the hospital almost 24/7 wasn’t too great but the sooner he finished his internship the better. Andrew returned a little while later with a tray off steaming food. "There you are. Something other than hospital food." "You’re a saint." Andrew smiled and walked off to attend to another customer. Darien lingered over his meal for a time, still living in the dream he had that morning. It was just so real. He could still smell her delicate perfume as if she were sitting right there beside him. Darien tore his thought away from her. There was no way in this world that a creature like her even existed. He quickly finished off the rest of his food and paid and thanked Andrew. He had things to do. He wandered for a while, aimlessly walking through the crowd. Then decided that he had wasted enough time and headed to the men’s clothing store. He was there to find a suitable tux for the dinner he had to attend at the hospital. Hating the idea of having to spend hours talking to stuffy people while at the same time being stuck in a penguin suit he picked out a tuxedo and headed to the changing room. ---- Serena sat down on a bench. Shopping for a dress was not easy work; especially considering it was a few days before Christmas and it was late afternoon. She wasn’t going to be finding any dresses at this rate. Feeling totally down she leaned back and let her head hang over the back, not caring what other people would think. She was too down to care. Her head bobbed a moment before she noticed a woman putting a dress up in the window opposite her. Her head instantly snapped up and she whirled on the bench. The lady fitted the mannequin and walked away. Serena jumped up and ran over to get a good look at the dress. At this point she was willing to buy just about anything. She stopped when she got to the window. The gown had to be the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Serena strode into the store to get a closer look. Ignoring the withering glance of the tired staff, she walked straight into the display and ran her fingers over the vision in white. The fabric glimmered in the spotlight shining both silver and gold, depending on the way the light hit it. The sleeveless bodice was ribbed and detailed with gold brocade across the modest neck. It ended in a ‘v’ where the voluminous skirt flowed to the floor. Speechless, she hailed a saleslady. "Excuse me, can I try this on?" The lady nodded wearily and took the dress she’d just arranged, off the mannequin and handed it to Serena. "The changing rooms are just over here." She led the way and pulled open a door for her. "Thanks." Serena dropped her bags inside and pulled the door closed. Moments later she emerged to gaze at herself in the mirror. "Absolutely incredible." Serena shifted from side to side and turned around to look at the dress. It fitted perfectly. "Miss. These come with the dress." She handed her a pair of shoes and a tiara. "If you put you hair up." She piled Serena’s hair on top of her head and put the tiara on. "I think you will stun the shoes off of everyone." Serena put on the strappy shoes and looked at herself. There only one thing left to say. "I’ll take it." She walked back into the stall intending to change out of the gown. She noticed that he bags were gone. She quickly turned in time to see a man running out of the store. "Stop thief!" she quickly took the chase and followed him out of the store and through the crowd. "Someone stop that man!" ---- Darien tied the shoe and stood up. He grimaced when he saw himself. This was not him. He was tugging at his tie when he heard the commotion outside. The only thing he saw was a man running with an armful of bags and all he heard was a voice shouting. Instinctively he ran after him and tackled him to the ground. A crowd gathered around him and the man as Darien grabbed him and forced him over to the side. "What do you think you’re doing?" he snarled at him. Only a true slime ball would even consider stealing during the holiday season. Darien slammed him against the wall and held him there until security reached them. Everyone was so busy with the thief that no one noticed the bags lying forgotten on the floor. Hopefully whatever was in there wasn’t ruined. Darien reached down to pick them up when a hand grazed his. ---- Serena had stopped part way through the chase to take off the shoes that were impeding her so much and was now only just catching up. She saw the security group of security guards and knew that the man had to have been apprehended. Thank goodness for that. Serena slowed to a walk and headed over to the crowd looking for her bags. She smiled when she saw them and walked over to pick them up. Instead her hand encountered another. Startled she looked up. Blue clashed with blue. Her eyes grew wide with shock and she fought for a breath. Those eyes! It was him! ---- Darien drew a shuddering breath. Those beautiful blue eyes. Who could forget them? He stared into their depths then moved onto her delicate features. He fought to form words but only one could escape his lips. "Serena." Serena found enough breath to answer. "Darien." Seizing the moment, he gathered her close and tentatively touched his lips to hers. "I finally found you." Smiling, Serena wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "It’s about time." ----‘----,@ the end