#12wwday.7

[howtowhumpyourhiccup]

Winter Whumperland Day 7: Delirium

Summary: Written for Winter Whumperland Day 7. Set in a Modern AU, follows up on Day 6 'Mistakes'. Frozen and suffering from hypothermia, can Hiccup successfully escape from Viggo or was he a fool to think he could?

Rating: Mature

Characters: Hiccup, Ryker, Viggo

Pairing: Vigcup, past-Hiccstrid

Words: 3 266

Fandom: How to Train Your Dragon

Prompt: “Hallucinations”

Whumpee: Hiccup

Author’s Notes: Here is Day 7 and I have absolutely no idea how to write hallucinations. Dream sequences? Sure! I have plenty of experience with those! Hallucinations, however? Eh, not so much.

Constructive criticism is appreciated! Including on the tags!

Enjoy!

@amonthofwhump

Ao3

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When Hiccup wakes up after his confrontation with Viggo and Ryker, it's with a splitting headache. Without a doubt, it's there because of his encounter with the frying pan and the kitchen counter, but he doesn't quite remember that. All he knows now is the pain inside his skull, foot, and the brand on his back.

It's agitated by something. Now that he thinks about it, his entire backside is cold and wet. Is he lying in the snow?

The darkness of the night is the only reason why he can open up his eyes. He sees nothing by the vague outline of treetops above him. So he is outside and this must be snow that he's lying in. The layer is thick, his fingers and ears are already freezing.

A whine leaves him at the pounding in his head and he brings a hand up. Gods, he wishes that would stop. It's centered mostly in the back, but his temple seems to be hurting as well.

What happened to put him in such a sorry state? Or rather, in even sorrier of a state than usual. What did he do?

He can hear the sound of shoveling.

Hiccup looks to the side, vision blurry and double what it's supposed to be, the pounding worsening with the slightest move. He can see Ryker, though there appears to be two of them, and he's shoveling dirt. Why would he be digging? He supposes it's the middle of the night.

He sits up without meaning to, like he doesn't realize that's what he decides to do until he's already upright. A wave of nausea overwhelms him, the world spinning all around, but somehow he manages to steady himself before he vomits.

No, he can't throw up, that's about the last thing he wants to do. Throwing up hurts.

Besides the groaning, he's quite silent and he doesn't feel like he's entirely there, like he might pass out again soon. He holds his head in both of his hands.

"Alive, are you? I'm not surprised, you do have a thick skull." Of course, Ryker notices that he's awake, speaking to him without even bothering to turn and face him. He figures the double blows to his head must be enough to keep him from picking a fight for now.

Gazing at what Ryker is digging, an uneven rectangular hole vaguely registers in his mind. It's not as deep as it's supposed to be, not at all, but it's just right for a person. And suddenly a memory sparks alive in his mind, this hole is meant to be his grave.

At this, Hiccup attempts to get up, his movements slow and sluggish, but the want to stand on his feet and run away is certainly there.

Unfortunately, he doesn't get very far before a wave of vertigo hits him and he all but crumples back down again. Ryker laughs at the sight, amused.

"You're not going anywhere, not with a concussion like that. I'm surprised you even woke up!" He informs him and continues digging. Did either of the two even bother to check whether he still had a pulse or not?

Unresponsive, Hiccup looks towards the cabin, which he can only just see through the trees.

"Viggo is still inside. You left a mess back there, head bleeding all over the place, you know he hates filth. So he's leaving the pleasure of getting rid of you to me." Ryker gleefully tells him, he's been waiting for this day for what felt like ages! Having Hiccup around was a torment!

But all Hiccup can do is wonder how much blood he could've lost if he's still bleeding and awake. He can feel his hair sticking to his scalp, can feel it running down his face, and stain the clothes on his back.

Gods, he needs a hospital and fast.

He brings a hand up again, attempts to will the dizziness and the fog away. He can't properly think while they're there.

"So you're going to kill me now?" Hiccup asks, blinking slowly. With every beating of his heart, he feels a new surge of pain inside his skull. Thought is nigh impossible.

"Yes, I am," Ryker responds with a smirk, finishing up the grave and throwing the shovel aside. He straightens, stretches his neck, shoulders, and back before facing the young man he intends to kill.

Hiccup tries again to get up when he approaches and he does get to his feet, but only because Ryker grabs him by the hoodie to pull him up. It's something that doesn't quite agree with him after that pan broke his toes.

"Oh no!" That seems to wake him up a little, Hiccup yelps as his foot isn't able to hold his weight at all. He'd wonder what it looks like now, feels the impending fear of his right foot suffering the same fate as his left. Broken bones can sometimes lead to amputations, too.

"And I've made sure your grave is shallow for when you're dead. They can't find a corpse if it's been torn apart by scavengers and spread all over the forest." Ryker lets him know, face once again uncomfortably close. Now it's not just the movement making him nauseous, but the thought of never being found even while dead is.

Of never properly being buried, of forever remaining the missing person until he's forgotten, an unsolved case without closure, his loved ones forever wondering and never knowing they die one by one, too.

He wants to be found, he doesn't want them to suffer like that for years and years just because some rich, arrogant ass couldn't keep it in his pants.

"No, I can't... I can't let that happen," He breathes out, head lolling to the side.

"Haha, I'd like to see you try and stop me!" Well, Ryker is about to.

Though his brain is pounding, Hiccup headbutts him in the face, forehead to nose, and he's promptly dropped.

"ARGH! Bastard!" Ryker lets out what can only be described as a yelp while Hiccup holds his head and regrets worsening the pounding inside his skull. At the very least, he manages to stay on his feet somewhat.

"Oh, why did I do that?" He asks himself, tongue looser than it's been all day.

Well, he's not broken, for one.

Ryker composes himself, nose bruised and bleeding, and lungs for Hiccup with murder in his eyes.

Hiccup is slow and can't respond in a timely manner because of the concussion possibly brewing, he can't quite fight the bigger man when he's grabbed and thrown back to the ground. Hands once again wrap themselves around his throat and this time they squeeze to kill.

"No!" Hiccup squeezes out before his airways are forced shut for the second time in two days. And unlike Viggo, Ryker isn't trying to control his temper enough to not accidentally murder him. Murder is exactly what's on his mind.

The pain in his body doesn't matter anymore as he grabs Ryker's hands to remove them from his throat, his splitting headache worsening with the lack of oxygen. His throat already sore, it undergoes another bout of torture and Hiccup fears his windpipe caving in underneath the pressure.

No... No! Against all odds, choked to unconsciousness once and two killing blows to the head, he's still alive. He can't lose his life now!

Sudden alertness returns to him and he takes a hand of Ryker's.

During all of these long months, they've been cheating. They've used every dirty strategy in and outside of the book to destroy him. The basement, their stronger physiques, the shock collar, his father, White Spot, Astrid, what if he gives them a taste of their own medicine and cheats at their own game?

Well, he's got long arms, and Ryker can't pin him down and choke him without making himself vulnerable. So Hiccup grabs his face and with a strangled noise pushes his thumb in Ryker's eye.

The man recoils instantly with surprise, natural reflex not allowing him to push onwards through that horrible sensation.

"You fucking brat!" He yells angrily, holding his eye. It's still there, his reflexes were quick, but that doesn't make the subsequent numb throbbing any less alarming.

Hiccup manages to crawl out from underneath him, kicking Ryker in the chest to get him away from him, and hurries to his feet again. The fog seems to have lifted enough, his response time is quickening.

He's grabbed by his painful foot and dragged back down to his knees. He turns and this time kicks Ryker in the face, further injuring his nose and a cry of pain leaves him.

But he doesn't have the time to enjoy it. He's managed to fight him off and Ryker is now on the ground. In a hurry, he struggles again to his feet and grabs the shovel.

What he does is purely on instinct to survive, not a single second or thought wasted on his choices.

Hiccup grabs the shovel as Ryker stands to finish what he started and with a wide swing whacks his head with it, hitting his temple dead on.

Turning on his axis, Ryker falls to the ground, eyes rolling back, and landing right in the grave meant for Hiccup.

Minutes go by in a blur. The fog in his head now entirely gone, Hiccup stands there, panting and frozen as he watches the blood pour out of an ugly wound and stain the dirt and redden the snow. Ryker's temple has caved in.

Just to make sure what just happened actually happened, Hiccup glances at the spade and sees both red and bits of... something.

Oh Gods, there comes the bile again.

But he's not getting back up from this, Hiccup's almost certain he's not even breathing anymore.

Even so, he checks. Forcing his frozen body to move, Hiccup limps over and kneels next to Ryker. Laying two fingers on his throat, he feels for a pulse and finds none. His hand quickly retreats.

He's really dead. That blow to the skull killed him.

that doesn't make him happy somehow.

"Oh no... Oh no!" Hiccup jumps back up, his own injuries and the freezing chill momentarily forgotten with the shock of what he's just done.

He killed a man, but for some reason, the first thing on his mind is how Viggo is going to react. Not whether or not this is going to hurt the remaining brother, but how he's going to punish Hiccup for it. And this after it's already been decided he should die for proving to be too much trouble in the end.

It's a twisted way he's been conditioned to think. He's done something wrong, what will his kidnapper think of this?

They've done many things to him, made him do many things, turned him into many things, and now he's a murderer, too.

He has to leave.

He can't breathe, his mind races through a million thoughts, and the pain from his injuries return to him. His heart's pounding reminds him that he's alive and he should run while he still can.

After one last glance towards the cabin in the distance, seeing the lights still on and no Viggo on the way, Hiccup tightens his hold on the bloodied shovel and turns in the opposite direction. Leaving a dead Ryker behind, he makes his escape.

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So that is most of the story that's brought him to this point, alone in a forest covered by winter's snow, underdressed for the cold, and hurting.

It's been hours since he's left the cabin and the brothers behind him and hypothermia has without a doubt set in.

Struggling through the snow, Hiccup can't tell for how long it's been around. The fog resettled in his mind. For some strange reason, he's stopped shivering and he's too confused to realize that this might mean something troubling.

He's still holding onto the shovel, but this time not just for support. He clings to it like his life depends on it. Both hands on the long shaft, he clutches it to his chest as he inches forward. The blood on its edges has been mostly rubbed off because of the snow.

He's losing sight of his objective. Growing more confused as the minutes pass, he's gone from walking into a straight line to wandering aimlessly instead. He's forgetting that he's supposed to be heading for a road or the town at the shore.

Sometimes he stops, broken foot strangely not as painful, or maybe he's just not paying attention. He can't feel his fingers either, they've gone from red to a pale white.

Looking around, Hiccup wonders where he should go next. He's already switched directions so many times and even got turned around and walked right back to where he'd come from. Now, he's not sure which one to take.

There's another snowfall, the wind howling past his ears. A thin layer already blankets his hair and shoulders.

He feels like he's searching for something, but what? Is it Toothless? But why would Toothless be in a forest? Why is Hiccup in a forest? What's he doing here?

His feet drag him forwards again, he doesn't know in which direction. If he's going forward, backward, left, right, he just can't tell.

Trees pass and so do bushes and other plant life, whatever little that's still around in the cold, most of them are empty of their leaves.

The snow falls as Hiccup continues, sinking further away, and out of the corner of his eyes, he thinks he can see someone standing in the distance.

He comes to another halt, looking over, sucking air in through his teeth, eyes blinking slowly. There's nothing there.

But he could've sworn... Is it a figment of his imagination?

"Hel... Hello?" He calls out, voice soft and slurring. There is no answer, he must've imagined it.

Dragging himself forward, his energy saps faster and faster in this fruitless mission.

The figure reappears between the trees and Hiccup stops to look over, but it's not there.

"Oh, come on..." He groans and turns, taking another path without realizing it.

So now there are strange, pitch-black figures at the edge of his vision? He doesn't want to deal with those.

It's there again, popping up in the distance. So long as he doesn't look, it stays there.

Hiccup wants to ignore it, he doesn't like it, he hates it. But as he inches forward, he can see it coming closer and closer. Anxiety creeps up his spine and settles in his stomach. There it comes.

Whispers fill his ears. He can't understand what they're saying, the words barely register in his mind. In the penetrating cold, he's quickly becoming more delirious with time.

Hiccup doesn't trip a second time, but his foot does give out beneath him and a great jolt of pain breaks through the numbness plaguing his tingling extremities. The injured bones grind against one another.

And then, the figure is standing right next to him.

"Oh, Gods, no..." He whimpers, feeling it staring down at him with malice.

He dares to look up, finding nothing. Where has it gone? The snowfall is becoming thicker with time.

"No, you... How did you find me?" Hiccup asks no one, but he swears someone he knows is standing in front of him now.

That suit... It's Viggo's.

His face is blurry, but the expression he wears is one of disappointment.

"I've seen what you've done to my brother, Hiccup. You've murdered him."

He has? Hiccup looks at his hands and finds them stained.

"What? No!" He gasps and attempts to rub them clean with the snow, but it won't come off. He tries rubbing, he tries scratching, but the blood won't go away.

Hands grab his and he pulls them free sluggishly.

"No... No, go away." Without the shovel, he stands only to slump back down right after. He wants Viggo to leave him alone.

"I won't go away, Dear. I will never go away." His hands are on him. They're on him and they're touching him where he doesn't want to be touched, pulling him down into the snow, intent on pinning him. He hasn't felt anything in the past hours or so, even the cold has disappeared, but those hands he can still feel.

"No, please... Not... Viggo, not here!" He pleads, coming to believe himself somewhere other than the woods he's in.

His chin is grabbed and gently lifted and there he is. Viggo is staring into his blinking eyes with a malevolently arrogant face.

"Hello, my Dear."

Finding the shovel, Hiccup swings slowly, clumsily, but he's not there.

"What?" He wonders out loud, looking around himself. Where did he run off to?

Hiccup looks up, finding the sky clearing of the clouds, the snow falling less and less. He can see the stars. Are they real? Or will they disappear like Viggo just did?

They do, but not in a way he dislikes.

The shape that makes them disappear is familiar to him, it's that of a dragon in flight, a Night Fury to be more precise. Even in his delirium, he can recognize a Night Fury from anywhere. He's making the stares disappear and he loves seeing it in the sky.

His Bud.

The cold, the pain, his dirty hands, Viggo, everything is forgotten and all that exists is his best friend.

"Toothless," He breathes, smiling from ear to ear. His call echoes in the night, filling his ears with something pleasant.

His eyes are wet and then his face, skin too cold to notice. Though out in the snow for hours and hours already, he feels warm. So warm, he wants to take his hoodie off.

"TOOTHLESS!" He shouts at the top of his lungs, knowing that the shape in the sky couldn't possibly be anything else.

It disappears along with his hope and the stars reappear.

Eyes closing, he falls to the side and lands in the thick carpet of white.

Body sapped completely of everything, energy, strength, warmth, all that remains is his life and that is quickly draining as well.

Hiccup doesn't realize it. As his hypothermia grows more severe, he believes he's warm, he believes he's lying in a bed, and he's daydreaming of his Bud and him together in the sky.

If he falls asleep now, alone in the middle of nowhere, he won't wake up again.

"My Dear,"

So maybe it's not such a bad thing that he's found, that a pair of hands settle on him once more. He can numbly feel one on his shoulder and another on his back. He can't even tell Viggo to go away this time, too tired to.

"Hiccup!"

"I'm here, my Dear."

One of them runs through his hair and lips press themselves on the top of his head, minding the blood.

"No, Viggo, please... I just..." He just wants to... what? "I want to sleep... So tired.."

"What? No! No, you can't sleep!"

"Sleep? But there will be no sleeping tonight, Sweetheart."

Hiccup can't stop Viggo from turning him over onto his back, the hands warming his face.

He sinks further away, can briefly open his eyes to see many shadows surrounding him before they close. They're like an omen announcing his end.

Someone picks him up from the snow and he lets it happen. What's the point of fighting it? It would seem he can never truly escape and thinking that he could was just foolish.

[quillingyousoftly]

Written for @amonthofwhump and their 12 Days of Winter Whumperland.

All short fics written for this event will take place in the Pit of Vipers universe. If you haven’t read Pit of Vipers, all you need to know is it’s a Hydra Trash Party fic where Hydra won, Jack Rollins took over by killing Pierce and enslaving Brock, and Brock is now Hydra’s favorite sex toy.

***

I’m back after three hard days--the last days of work this year. I’m starting off with something short and simple. Warnings: referenced non-con, referenced Hydra agents/Brock Rumlow, referenced drugs usage.

𝑺𝒖𝒈𝒂𝒓 𝑷𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒔

He has only two kinds of dreams, and both are nightmares.

The first kind doesn't give him the break that sleep's supposed to. He dreams about being stuck in a tight cage. He dreams about hands touching him, about lewd whispers right against his ear. When he opens his eyes, he can't tell if he's still dreaming or if he was asleep at all, because it's still happening; his head lying on the metal floor of his crate, his ass outside and in the air, plowed by some guy behind him.

The second kind is even worse.

In those dreams, he escapes. He manages to jump the tall fence in the garden and outrun the guards. He knocks out a man and steals his warm, soft clothes. He gets back home and airs it out, so it doesn't smell of dust and stale air anymore. He adopts a dog, a big loyal one, with black fur and a white patch on his chest. 

It's always mundane. He's cooking or doing laundry, or going out shopping. The scents of tomato soup, fresh vegetables, fabric softener, and wind bring him joy and comfort. It varies, but one thing repeats every single time.

He always feeds the dog.

The can cracks open loudly, and the shit brown goo stinks when it plops into the plastic bowl. His mouth goes dry and his stomach turns as he wonders why he bought such a cheap food. He watches Patch approach his bowl with dread. He knows something bad's about to happen.

Then he wakes up. His clean kitchen and Patch disappear. The stench remains. The plastic bowl stands in front of his face, just behind the bars of his crate.

He should be used to the heartache that comes with the realization it was just a dream; that his reality is the real nightmare. But it always hits the same.

He likes sleeping with Rollins not only because of his warm, comfy bed. The sleeping pills Rollins always gives him black him out.  No dreams, no nightmares; just a break. It's the closest to death he's ready to get, and he takes it gratefully always.

[official-impravidus]

Sugar Plums Dancing In Their Heads

Eight year old Peter Parker awakes with a whimper and a gasp.

His body is soaked with sweat under his fluffy pajama pants and cotton tee, his curls damp and sticking to his forehead. He heaves unsteady breaths, eyes not daring to close long enough to relive his horrible nightmare.

He clicks his lamp on and throws his covers off as he tries to get as much fresh air as he can. Well, fresh stale apartment air.

When his heart is finally leveled to a reasonable speed, he pads to his door and begins to head to his Uncle Ben and Aunt May’s room.

However, his body goes rigid when he pulls open his door.

Ben stands at the counter eating Santa’s cookies while May is putting presents under the tree.

“What are you doing?” Peter asks, voice small.

The two freeze, looking up like deer in headlights.

“Why are you eating Santa’s cookies?” Peter asks, lip wobbling. “Those… we made those for Santa a-and you’re… you’re eating them?”

The cookie drops from Ben’s hand. “Peter, this isn’t what it looks like.”

Click Here to Read More!

[phoebonicawrites]

12 Days of Winter Whumperland, day 7 - sugar plums dancing in their head (nightmares)

I wanted to go really weird for this one... Inspired by various game glitches and odd things that can happen. This is what the other Green looks like, for the record.

Warnings: unreality/surreal horror.

~~~

“Green vented,” Lime says. “In Electrical. I saw them.”

“I was in Weapons,” Green tells everyone, hastily. “I cleared the asteroids.”

“They did,” Blue confirms. “I watched them do it. So did Purple.”

“Not you,” Lime says. “I mean the other Green.”

“…you’re the other green,” Pink says, slowly.

“No, I mean…” Lime looks around the table, but the other Green isn’t there. They only see Green, and Red, and Blue, and Purple, and Brown, and Pink, and Red, and Black. “It was the wrong green. More sort of… bluey.”

“Cyan’s dead,” Brown says.

“That’s more of a greeny-blue than a bluey-green,” Purple muses.

“Not Cyan! It was…” Wait. Wait. Lime looks around the table again. “Why are there two Reds?”

Everyone stops staring at Lime and stares at the two Reds instead. The two Reds stare at each other.

“…same hat,” the Red on Lime’s left says, pointing. They’re each wearing a black fedora.

Red on the right nods. “Same hat.”

“Well, one of them has got to be an impostor!” Lime points emphatically down at the table. “We need to vote them out.”

“You said it was Green before,” Black points out.

“And Green’s clear,” Purple adds. “Can confirm.”

“That’s kinda sus, bro,” right-Red says.

“I can do Medbay scan!” Lime protests. The time’s slipping away from them, clock counting down. “Someone come with me!”

“I’ll go,” says left-Red.

“I’ll go,” says right-Red.

“Sure,” says Blue.

“Skip?” Pink suggests, and everyone casts their votes.

Lime heads for Medbay. The rest of the crew crowds in after them. They step on to the scanner, but nothing happens. Waiting for Cyan… says the readout.

“They’re faking,” Green says. It’s Green, but it’s not Green. The other Red is gone. Not-Green is wearing a black hat.

“Cyan’s scanning!” Lime says. They jump down from the scanner again. “Someone else try. You’ll see.”

Not-Green steps forward. “Not you!” Lime protests and tries to block their way, but Purple holds them back.

“Green’s already clear,” they say. “We can trust them.”

“That’s not Green,” Lime tries to explain, but the scanner lights up and no one’s listening any more. They all watch as the circular grid of light travels over not-Green’s body.

“Green safe,” Blue says.

“But the readout says they’re Blue!” Lime says, pointing.

Everyone crowds around to peer at the screen. Blue shrugs. “Okay, Blue safe, then.”

“That’s not Blue either! You’re Blue!”

“Lime’s been accusing a lot of people,” Red says, frowning.

“I’ll scan!” Lime insists. “I can show you, right now, I’m not…” They step back on to the scanner as not-Green gets down. This time, the ring of light appears straight away. “You see?”

“I can’t see anything,” Brown says. “The lights just went down.”

Everyone turns as one and runs for the door. “Wait!” Lime calls after them, but their feet are stuck to the floor. They can’t move as the scan passes over them.

“You know, cyan’s not a mixture of anything,” Cyan says, from over by the samples machine. “It’s a primary colour.”

“Only if you’re printing,” Lime says.

“We should have a Magenta,” Cyan says. They float over into Lime’s scanner circle. “I could hang out with them and Yellow.”

“There’s no Yellow here either,” Lime points out. “Anyway, you’re dead. Why can I still hear you?”

Cyan shrugs. “That’s not what you should be worried about,” they say, and point behind Lime. Lime turns around just in time to see not-Green leap out of the vent.

“I knew it!” Lime shouts. They jump off the scanner, and the light comes with them, wrapping around their body. They run for the door.

Not-Green runs after them, but Lime takes the corner sharply, rushing into the cafeteria. It’s still dark, and they run straight into a storage box. One of the ones that came up in the dropship, scattered around the floor with all the rest.

They can’t reach the button. They try, but they find themself running in place, pressed up against an invisible wall. On the other side of the room, the vent opens and not-Green climbs out.

“That vent doesn’t even link to Medbay!” Lime yells, as they turn and run back the other way. The light grid is still wrapped around their body. They can prove themself. They just have to find everyone.

There’s no one in Medbay any more, no one in Upper Engine or Reactor. Pink’s in Security, watching the camera feeds. They’re wearing another face on top of their visor. Lime can’t stop staring at it, transfixed by every detail. It’s somehow more detailed than anything else in the room, seeming unreal and too real all at once.

Pink turns. “Oh, hey, Lime! I got a new hat.”

“Pink, it’s Green! Not-Green! The other Green – you have to believe me! Look!” Lime raises their hands, scanner light crawling over them.

“How’d you do that?” Pink asks, but Lime never gets a chance to answer. The vent opens, and in a blur, half of Pink is gone. Their lower half sways for a second, then drops to the floor. Not-Green stands above them.

Lime rushes toward the body. The report button flashes up on their pad and they reach for it, but in that moment there’s a blaring flash of light and Not-Green is behind them. Their hands grip either side of Lime’s head, twisting it with a sharp crack.

~~~

Lime jolts awake, breath catching as they stare up at the bottom of the bunk above them. They roll over, pulling the blankets up over their head, and close their eyes. They need all the sleep they can get, before their mission starts in the morning.

It’s just a stress dream, they tell themself. Nothing to worry about. There are no alien monsters out there waiting to infiltrate ships and kill everyone. It’s just a story people spin to scare the newbies.

Eventually, they manage to drift off back into an uneasy sleep.

They don’t notice the red gleam of an eye, in the darkness above them.

[rubberduckiemel]

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28156629

Memories of Angband still haunt him.

Day 7 of AMOW. Sugar Plums Dancing in their Head: nightmares | hallucinations

[jaqdawks]

[ this is for the Winter Whumperland event hosted by @amonthofwhump ]

content warnings: dead people

context: luca can control electricity based on raw emotion. he should be able to control this, but he can’t. is frequently beat up by a kid named elias. dallas is his roommate, since this takes place at a boarding school.

——————————————————————

Lights shattered and tore at Luca’s body. His nose bled and he felt the bile threatening to choke him settle as he gave in to what it desired.

Everything was covered in glass. The cafeteria tables, the corpses of students, everything.

Luca couldn’t move. The agonized faces of his classmates looked as if they were paused in time, twisted in shock. Their eyes were going dull, they were having the last bit of function leaving their bodies. Luca was cemented in place on the ground. He couldn’t tell if Dallas was okay, he couldn’t tell who was still alive and who wasn’t, but they were all most likely dead. Luca wanted to get up, to get up and

And then he was in a white room. A woman set a picture of a cat before Luca, and Luca smiled. A small lightbulb across the table gave off a small glow, and the woman seemed satisfied.

She gave Luca a small piece of hard candy that tasted of strawberry when he put it in his mouth. It was another small delight.

Then the woman placed a picture of a corpse before Luca. Luca felt the bile begin to rise and the only release was to let go.

The lightbulb broke.

The woman jotted something down on her notebook, before taking the picture away.

She said something to Luca, but all he heard was static. Luca realized that no sound really existed, other than the growing white noise.

The woman’s figure warped into the faces of corpses. Luca wanted to scream, but no sound came to his throat. Only bile.

The bile made blood spill from Luca’s nose and chocked him until

Luca jolted upright in bed. He was covered in sweat and panting in an excess panic. He rubbed his eyes and took a deep breath. He could breathe, he wasn’t choking.

It was just a nightmare.

Luca looked across the dorm to his roommate, Dallas. He was alive. Everything was okay, he was alive.