Anou... I did try to write more for this, but sadly nothing seemed to work. So I revised it and added in more. Hopefully that'll be enough to make you want to read it again. Arigato to all who commented on this story the first time, and I hope to hear from even more of you with this revised version. disclaimer: *rolls eyes* please, do I have to say it again? You know and I know that I don't own it... and that's all I have to say about that. ^_^ Going Up? by Sailor Elysia [ely_chan@yahoo.com] rating: maybe a tiny PG, for wandering thoughts, but even that's pushing it... Serena shot up in her bed, her heart pounding in her chest. Drops of sweat beaded on her forehead. The silent still of the night only increased the panic throbbing in her head. This was the second time that dream had appeared. The first time, she woke up screaming Darien's name. Only her mother and Rini knew what had happened between them, but only her mother could console Serena enough to get her back to sleep again. Rini was of no help. She only reminded Serena of the pain that she longed to rid herself of. Knowing that the little girl was constantly with Darien and she couldn't be hurt her even more. The previous night, she had been so frightened that she didn't give the dream any thought. But tonight was different, tonight she had almost anticipated the dream returning. All Serena could really remember was the very end of the dream, with the haunting voice that had spoken to her, repeating the same words, over and over. Stay away from Darien? How could she possibly stay away from the man she loved? Suddenly it dawned on her that this might be the reason Darien had been acting so strange lately. She knew he just *had* to love her, so why else would he turn away from her? After all they had been through--previous lives, numerous monsters and countless battles, even loss of memory--it couldn't be that easy for him to turn his back on her. But could it be possible for them to transmit their thoughts and dreams to each other? Serena jumped out of her bed, careful not to wake the black cat slumbering peacefully at the foot of the bed. She was determined to talk to Darien, and find out the truth once and for all. She didn't care if it was past midnight, she had to know. *^*^*^*^*^*^* Serena knocked on Darien's door once lightly, then again, more insistently. She leaned against the wall to catch her breath. Running seven miles through the city and climbing ten flights of stairs was *not* something she did regularly. She could hear him fumble with the lock on his side of the door, then watched anxiously as the door cracked open an inch, and the groggy face of Darien appeared from within. "Darien?" she asked in a small voice. "Serena? What in the--what are you doing here? Do you have any idea what time it is?" he asked, a slight hint of anger trying to creep into his voice. "Darien, let me explain. Something happened, and I need to talk to you," Serena rushed on. "Is it Rini? Did something happen to her?" Darien demanded, opening his door a little wider now. "No, no, the little spore--ah, I mean Rini's fine. I need to talk to you about us. I think--" Darien cut her off abruptly. "Serena, I've told you before, there is no more 'us'. Now go home." He started closing his door. Serena stuck her foot in his door to prevent Darien from shutting her out again. "Darien, please, just listen to me for a moment," she pleaded. Sighing loudly, Darien looked at his watch, and stepped out into the hallway. "I'll walk you outside, and listen to you until we get there. But no more of these midnight visits, all right?" He locked his door behind him, and guided Serena to the elevator. They stepped inside, and he pressed the button for the ground floor. She leaned against one wall, and he the other, the elevator deathly silent for a few moments. "Is it all right if I talk to you now?" Serena asked quietly. "Just make it quick," he said crisply, trying his hardest not to look at her. If only she knew what he went through each night. The agony of not being able to hold her close was more than he could bear. The elevator was somewhere between the sixth and seventh floors when it suddenly lurched and made a loud screeching noise. The sharp movement threw Serena off balance, and she nearly fell to the floor, but Darien caught her around the waist in time. Serena immediately, remembering other times Darien had held her in similar ways, and desperately wished it could be one of those times now. He still had his arms around her. Serena slowly turned around so she was facing him. She was sorely tempted to put her arms around his neck, and kiss him with all the breath she had in her. Darien was off in his own world, not planning on letting go either, but he suddenly remembered where he was and who he was with. Knowing he couldn't stay like that without losing the little control he had left, his arms dropped, shoved one hand into his pocket, and turned away. He walked over to the emergency phone and picked it up. It was dead. "Great, just great," he muttered, and slammed the receiver back down. "Darien, what's the matter?" Serena asked in a very small voice. She knew his temper could be easily set off, and she didn't want to make him any more angry than he already was. "Oh, nothing, nothing at all," he said sarcastically, and threw his hands up in disgust. "It's past midnight, we're stuck in a busted elevator, and the phone's dead as well. Everything's just perfect." Serena sank down to the floor, and started to cry softly. "You mean, you're stuck in here with me. I'm sorry, Darien. I'm sorry for getting you into this mess." Darien immediately saw the mistake he had made, for blowing his top when there was no need to do so. He crouched down next to her, hesitated slightly, then brushed the loose hair out of her now tear-stained face. She was beautiful even when she was crying. How he hated to keep away from her. But he knew it was for her own good. "Serena, none of this is your fault. The elevator just picked a lousy time to break down. Please don't cry." She looked up into his face. "What's going to happen to us?" she asked nervously, more tears ready to fall. "Are we going to be stuck in here forever?" The pained expression on his face immediately turned into one of remorse. Darien sat down next to her, and placed one hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "Absolutely not," he assured her. "I think the cables are just jammed." His words started to calm Serena down, and she stopped crying. How was it that he could brush her off in the street, but now be as sweet as she remembered him? When it had been silent for a few minutes, she looked over at him, her thoughts running wild within her mind, and she let out a small giggle. She clamped a hand over her mouth to prevent any more laughter from escaping. "What's so funny?" Darien asked, puzzled over her sudden outbreak. She giggled again. "I . . . once pictured us in an elevator together, but it was nothing like this," she said shyly, a light blush rising to her cheeks. The mental picture Darien got in his head made him blush slightly, knowing that he had thought the same thing one or twice, but he laughed as well. They were both silent again. He looked over at Serena to see she was still smiling over something. He couldn't help but grin at the mischievous look on her lips. "What are you thinking about now?" Serena kept giggling. "Oh, I don't know, I was just wondering, if things got desperate, if it was possible to open the elevator with my tiara." Darien fell silent for a moment, then it hit him and he burst out laughing. "Wait, how about using a rose to pry open the doors?" She was surprised to find him in such a humorous mood, and she began laughing so hard that she fell over, both of them shaking with laughter. If anyone were on one of the floors they were stuck between, they would've been sorely confused. But in the situation they were in, the little things that were usually serious now became the funniest things in the world. When Serena finally got her laughter under control, she found herself lying down with her head in Darien's lap, not exactly the first place she would have thought she would find herself in . She glanced up into his deep blue eyes to discover he was staring down at her as well. Suddenly she remembered why she had come to see him in the first place, and figured that this was not exactly the best position to be in for talking seriously. Serena tried to sit up, but a strong hand on her shoulder gently pushed her back down. She stared up at Darien, shocked and amazed at his gesture. She cleared her throat. "Remember how I said I needed to talk to you? It's really important," she replied, searching his face for acknowledgment. He just continued watching her, and began to lightly run his fingers through her long blonde hair. Serena took a deep breath, and continued. "I came to see you because of a weird dream I've been having for the past few nights. You were in it too, so I thought you might know something about it." Darien started to speak, but he was staring off into space, his voice sounding very far away. "I have a feeling that your dream is the same one I've been having for the past month. The same one telling me to avoid you, unless I wanted to see you hurt." Serena let out a small gasp at this, but said nothing. "It was hard enough doing that in public, even though I knew I had to do it for your own safety. But the two of us alone, especially in an elevator, I can't do it anymore. I don't care about a stupid dream." He looked down and gazed at her beautiful and very puzzled face. "I care about you and only you, Serena. I just hope you know that." Serena grabbed his hand that had been playing with her hair, and laid it gently over her heart. "I know, Darien, I know." She struggled to keep the tears from flowing again. "And no matter what happens in the future, just know that you'll always be in my heart." Darien whispered 'thank you,' grateful that she would be so understanding about this, even though he had been such a fool. He decided to finally follow another voice that had been whispering to him for so long. He leaned down, cupped her face with both of his hands, and kissed her gently and firmly on the lips, slowly deepening it as the seconds and minutes passed. He slowly broke away, and grinned at her. "Now, how are we going to get out of here?" All right so the title doesn't really make much sense, but they're in an elevator, so just leave it at that, okay? Thank you.... This story copyright June 1998, revised September 1999 Sailor Moon and all its characters are the rightful property of Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, Kodansha Ltd., Bandai. English adaptation is copyright 1995 DiC Corporations.