#Can't believe I missed that Dream and Nightmare drawing last night

[somegrumpynerd]

Dude I love you so much omgggg get over here!! I need you overseas NOW /silly

Hold on I'm on my way!!!!! Should only take like ten minutes or maybe a year

[yanderefairyangel]

The others / Glass steps

Track 6 of Gothika, I tried to translate it.

何故か 近頃の僕は

Why is it that lately

へんな感じなのだnoda

I have been experiencing such an odd feeling ?

後ろ手に締めた扉

From behind, the locked door

振り向いたら全開だわ

Suddently opened itself as soon as I turn around.

僕の歯ブラシが洗面所の鏡

My toothbrush crossed over the bathroom's mirror

刺さってる

And stayed stuck there.

女なんか特に

This woman I brought home

最近持ち帰った記憶もない

No matter what I do, I simply can't remember her

割れた破片

Around all these broken pieces

赤い血が滲む十字架を描く

I draw a red cross stained in blood

午前2時のholy nightmare

It is 2 : am : Holy nightmare hour !

A labyrinth continue which opens

In the mirror

目を疑うようなscene

An unbelievable scene plays before my eyes

古びたオルゴールはcrying

The old music box is crying

何処へ逃げればいい

Where can I run away ?

Oh no begin to cry help me

何時の頃からか

When exactly has my room

部屋が男臭いの何故naze

Started to have this masculine fragrance ? and why ?

影のような気配

This shadow like presence

吸わないはずのタバコの煙

is smoking tabacoo, it should not be here

見知らぬ歯ブラシ

I found this unknown toothbrush

全力で鏡に投げつける

And I thrown it into the mirror with all my strengh

恐怖で痛みを感じない

I am so scared I can't even

指先の切り傷

feel the pain of my injuried fingers

割れた破片

Around these broken pieces

赤い血が滲んだハートを書く

I draw a big heart stained with red blood

午前2時のholy nightmare

It is 2 : am : Holy nightmare hour !

A labyrinth eternally which opens

In the fear

研ぎ澄まされるsixth sense

My sixth sense sharpened

叫んでもあたしはcutie

Even screaming out of fear, I am a cutie

誰にあたればいいの

Who can I can call out for help ?

Begin to cry help me

夜が永遠に続いている感覚

It feels like this night will never end

何かを忘れている様な不安

Anxiously, as if I had forgotten something

ボンヤリとした残像から

There is no way to escape from

抜け出せずにいるのさ

this fuzzy afterimage

君はどうだい

How do you feel about all of this?

こっちへ おいで

Come, I am right here.

A labyrinth continue which opens

In the mirror

誰もいない old room

Into the empty old room

揺らめく二つのshadow

There is 2 flickering shadows

永久に繰り返す

Repeating it over and over againt

Oh yeah where is the heaven

A labyrinth eternally which opens

In the fear

闇に響くcry of the fear

The cry of the fear echoes in the darkness

振り向く僕は so deadly

I turn around and I am so deadly

千切れた足がうずく

My torned up leg is hurting me

Begin to cry help me

Y-Yandere mister wolf ?!

So following my theories of all of Gothika's song being from the pov of the villagers who found Akazukin, Kurozukin and Okami san dead, this one would also be the villagers thinking Okami san killed the sister but unlike for Okami no ketsuzoku, in this one it would be that Okami san killed Akazukin who tried to escape after they spend the night together but got himself killed by Kurozukin before she died herself since the other songs indicate they believe Kurozukin died because she tripped on her shoes.

Anyway, the male character seems to be refering to the doing of the female character

1, 2, 3 Take one

1, 2, 3 Take two

1, 2, 3 Take three

1, 2, 3 Prologue

「I miss you so much.」真っ黒なドレスで光を唱えた 私は何色に染まってる？

"I miss you so much" dressed in picth black, I chant for the light

Can you tell me : what is my true color ?

愛し焦がれた　Hey！Mr HUMAN.定めのその灯火よ 幾千の旋律を奏でて　貴方のもとへ

You are yearning for love, aren't you ? hey ! Mr Human. I can see the light of fatality playing thousands of melodies just to please you

三日月に　one step 午前0時　魔法が解けるまで 孤独だけな　two steps 刻み続けるの　ガラスの靴で 黄昏た　three steps 2つの想い　胸に縛りこみ 涙の　last steps 叩き割るの　滲んだ夢

Leading to the moon, one step

Until midnights rings, until the spell is broken

(Please stay with me... take one)

Only loneliness remains, two steps

I keep engraving them with my shoes of glass

(please hold me ... take two)

Twilight arrives, three steps

There is 2 feelings I'd like to get off my chest

(please listen to my story... take three)

Leading to tears, the last steps

Is smashing all the blurred dreams

(please break the music)

「美味しいワインはいかがかしら？」真紅に混じっている ちょっとスパイツーな隠し味…ポイズン 「私のことをお嫌いかしら？」 そう　永遠が欲しい ゆらゆらゆらぐ記憶を踊り　私のもとへ

"Would you like some of this tasty wine ?" Delicious crimson red

that I mixed with a special spice and a secret flavour of .. poison

"Now I wonder : do you hate me ?" That's right, I yearn for eternity

Swaying, swaying all these memories are dancing for me

逃がさないnever step. 隣の隣で微笑んだ Fate trap.I just can't stop！ 見つめて欲しい　私の影 似合わないdress up. モノクロの雫　頬に流れる 願いはdream step. 塗りつぶしてよ　七色に

You can't escape. It's never step.

I am next to you, next you, giving you a great smile.

(Dancing you and me... take one)

Fate trap. I just can't stop !

I just want you to look at my shadow

(dancing melancholic waltz ... take two)

Unsuitable dress up

Monochrome drops are running down my cheeks

(dancing I see my ghost... take three)

The wish of dream step

I want to be filled with the colors of the rainbow

(But nothing my nothing)

one steps

two steps

three steps

1 2 3

one steps

two steps

three steps 1 2 3

三日月に　one step. 午前0時　魔法が解けるまで 孤独だけな　two steps 刻み続けるの, ガラスの靴で 「I miss you so much.」さよなら 午前0時　私は崩れてく おとぎの世界で

Leading to the moon, one step

Until midnights rings, until the spell is broken

(Please stay with me... take one)

Only loneliness remains, two steps

I keep engraving them with my shoes of glass

(Next, take a final)

"I miss you so much" Goodbye (I miss you so much Goodbye)

Midnight is ringing and I am crumbling

Living in fairyland

キラキラ　黒いシンデレラ…

I am the sparkling Black Cinderella

(do you know my story ?)

one two three

take one

one two three

take two

one two three

take three

one two three

one two three

take one

one two three

take two

one two three

take three

one two three

one two three

take one

one two three

take two

one two three

one two……

Track 3, from Kurozukin's pov.

[lovelyghostlyharmony]

how to train your dragon: how you met your dragon

Skrill-

Why did you do this? Are you insane? Just because you really want to train a dragon doesn't mean you let yourself be captured by Berserkers! You idiot! Well, to be fair, you did fly on one - for about a few minutes - then you fell and the Gronckle left you on the spooky island. And why you may ask? Because you didn't create a bond with it! And it was scared! It was a Gronckle! As you were pacing in your cell and waiting for Daggur to show up, a man suddenly broke into the hall. "We need you two outside! Some Whispering Deaths escaped!" And just like that, your guards disappeared.  Well, now you can escape - you only need to figure out how. You looked at the bars, trying to find a weak spot or something, but you didn't find anything. Ugh, if only you had a key!  You defeatedly sat down next to the bars, resting your back against the cold rocky wall. Are you going to die? Are you about to be slaughtered? Pf, you went to find a dragon and now you are going to be its food! This is surely your lucky day. You were just about to rest your head against the bars when you realized, that uncomfortable rocky wall wasn't upright. A little bit of the lower part was missing, making a distance between the wall and one of the metal bars big enough for you to crawl through. That's it! You can escape! You took your chance and began to run. You didn't remember where was the exit, so you just carefully followed your instincts. The very first thirty seconds went great, but then one guard spotted you. Oh no! You ran in a different direction and hide in a room. It was a really weird room, really. There were keys everywhere! Fortunately, the guard didn't think about checking the room, so you were safe... for now.

You looked around, admiring the key room. Well, it saved your life, after all. And apparently, it really liked you, because you spotted another door! You opened it and found dragon cages! There were no guards - they were probably still fighting Whispering Deaths - but there were lots of other dragons. Few Monstrous Nightmares, Deadly Nadders, Gronckles, and at the very back of the room a Skrill. Yes. A Skrill! And not just any Skrill. It was the one that met Hiccup and Toothless. You were in shock at seeing it. Didn't Hiccup set it free? Why is it here? The Skrill is intelligent enough not to be caught! You curiously went to its cage and found out the Skrill was kept in a little pool of water, so it couldn't shoot the lightning. "You poor thing," you said, but the Skrill growled. He looked frightened and hide in the corner, so the only thing you could see were spikes on his head and dark purple color. You badly wanted to touch it, but you knew that it would hurt you. "I will get you out of there!" You run back to the key room and checked all the keys. All of them were marked - and one of them had Skrill word written all over it. "Yes!" you said to yourself. But that was when the guard finally found you. "There you are!" he hissed and went after you. You reacted quickly and run towards the Skrill. He wasn't happy to see you, but when you tried to open his cage, he came out of the darkness and exposed his teeth.  "It's okay. I want to help you," you whispered, but that was the time when the guard caught you. "No!" you yelled and tried to fight back but it was no use. The guard was stronger. You looked back at Skrill, finding him looking back. He wasn't exposing his sharp teeth anymore. He looked as if he was thinking. 'Well, hopefully, he is intelligent enough to see, that I am not his enemy,' you thought. 'Or else, I'll be dead.'  Just as the guard finally realized you're not fighting anymore, he loosed his grip. But that was a bad move for him because you easily slipped out. "Hey!" he roared surprised. But it was too late. You opened the Skrill's cage. You didn't know if you should have been scared or happy, but either way, it was your only chance. He was your only chance.

And he knew that!

That's why he quickly flew out of his pen, taking you by his strong legs, and passed the frightened guard. You just hang there, shielding your eyes from the wind and waiting for the Skrill to find the exit.

Now and there he shot the lightning, but it didn't scare you. You somehow started to trust him. Well, you saved him and now he is saving you - and that's enough to begin to bond with a dragon, right?

After he found his way out of the Berserkers' island, he landed on some rock. "Thank you," you said. He just purred, placing his body right in front of you, watching your every move.

You looked away. "It may sound crazy, but even though people are more afraid of you than of the Night Fury, I don't. I trust you." You reached out your hand towards him, focusing your eyes on the ground. "Do you?"

The Skrill placed his nose against your palm and you smiled.

"Now, what should we call you?" The Skrill looked at you with his big eyes, understanding your every word. Just as you were thinking, he shot his lightning towards the clouds. "Hm, Bolt?"

He didn't complain, so you smiled and scratched his scaly skin. "Bolt it is then. How about I introduced you to my family and feed you some fish?"

As much as Bolt enjoyed the scratching, he licked his mouth and lowered his body, so you could hop on. This was the start of your relationship.

Hideous zippleback-

It was late in the morning and you were just leaving your house. You had a great dream and you were well fed. 'Well, this is going to be a really good day,' you thought. You headed towards the woods and soon found a little cave. It was small as your bedroom and it had this really big opening that kind of looked like a large window.  "Hello," you greeted your two friends, Odias and Hanka. "Here is our sleeper!" said Odias amused, while he was drawing something on the paper. "Why do you always sleep so long? It's almost lunch!" "Gotta get my beauty sleep." You sat down next to Hanka and asked: "What have you guys been doing?" "Playing with Bea," she simply answered and took the little Terrible Terror from the ground. "She is so lovable, isn't she?" You looked at Hanka's bright red dragon and scratch it under the chin. "Yeah, yeah," you agreed, but you haven't sound as enthusiastically as she.  "Why don't you get your own little dragon?" She asked you and smiled at the thought.  "Err, but it's just a Terrible Terror. What's the point of having a dragon, if you can't ride it?" Suddenly, Hanka became angry. She couldn't believe what you just said! She felt insulted. "What's the point of having a dragon, if you're not brave enough to get one!" "What did you just said?!" You two stood up and faced each other. "I am brave!" It was normal for you to have a fight with Hanka. I mean, she has been your close friend since kindergarten and arguing with her was quite normal. "Then prove it!" "Fine!" And without another word, you left the cave. You needed to chill out. The forest was warm at this time of the year so you decided to take a short walk. "Not brave enough," you mumbled under your breath. "I'll show her." After like ten minutes, you found two Terrible Terrors playing with each other. You sat down next to them and they curiously came closer. You scratched one Terror's head and it purred. "You dragons are soo easy to get." You picked one up. "Come on. Let's get you to Hanka." Terrors still thought you are playing so they didn't mind going with you. They looked really happy, but you were so annoyed, you almost didn't see a movement from behind the bush. "Who is there?" you asked out loud while placing the Terror back on the ground. "Hanka?" Is she stalking you? Or is just someone pranking you? "Show yourself!"  The creature came from behind the bush and your eyes opened wide. It was a goldish green Hideous Zippleback with red spikes. Its heads were calmly looking from you to Terrible Terrors. The Hideous Zippleback probably sensed you were a friend to dragons and that's why it came from its hiding place. "Well, you will help me with my 'Hanka problem' just fine," you smiled, forgetting all about two Terrible Terrors. You reached your hand and touched one head. "But maybe I should name you first." You touched another head and scratched it. The Hideous Zippleback liked it and fought for your attention. It was amazing how one dragon can have two personalities.  "How about Vengeance and Revenge? I think it'll suit your next task."  *** "Where are you?!" yelled Hanka. "Look, I am sorry. I shouldn't have said you're not brave!" "Yes!" agreed Odias, yelling as well. "She is an idiot! Now don't be angry! Show up!" They have been searching for you in the forest for the last ten minutes and your amusement just grew. You have been looking at them from the sky (of course, you have been riding Vengeance and Revenge as low as possible for your friends not to see). "Show yourself! Please!" While Hanka yelled, Vengeance quickly showed Odias from the ground and put him onto his neck. He looked shocked but after he saw you, he grew mischievous as well. "Odias! Where are you?!" Vengeance and Revenge hid themselves in the bush and when Hanka turned around they roared.  "W-who is it?" She held her Terrible Terror so tight you had to cover your mouth not to laugh. "Now," you whispered to your new dragon and it jumped from behind the bush. Hanka fell on the ground looking pale as the moon and breathing heavily. You and

Odias burst in laughter, jumping from the dragon. "Got you!" "What?" asked Hanka. "That's my new dragon. Vengeance and Revenge," you said casually. "Still think I am not brave enough?" Hanka stood up - but she didn't look angry nor pale. She just looked sorry. "Ok. I am sorry. You got me." You two smiled. "But seriously, you've got yourself a dragon and named him Vengeance and Revenge just to show me up?!" "Yep." "Well, I should've known." "Wanna ride?"

(had to put that gif there lol)

Razorwhip-

It was that time of the year when Gothi gave you a list of ingredients you needed to find on the Healer's island. You really liked doing it. You had a free day for yourself just collecting flowers and stuff. Who wouldn't want that, really? Every time, you pick some random Gronckle to give you a ride, so you don't have to get to that island on the boat. You really liked Gronckles, but they weren't your type of a dragon. You wanted a strong and fast one. But there wasn't enough time to find you your own dragon, so you just used Gronckles when they were needed.  It was a really great day. Sun was shining, birds were singing and your basket was slowly being filled. At the time you were heading towards the rare yellow flower, you heard a loud sound - as if someone was smashing a piece of metal against another piece of metal. It was weird. As you were wondering what could be possibly making that sound you saw it. A female Razorwhip. From what you could see, it accidentally got its long neck in the rope that was hanging from the tree and when it was trying to broke free, it sliced the tree in half and as the tree fell on top of the dragon, it knocked off one big stone from the rock wall and that stone fell on the dragon's wing, trapping it completely. "Oh my gods!" you exclaimed looking at this mess. You immediately dropped the basket for Gothi and made your way towards the poor Razorwhip. Your steps were slow, but that didn't stop the dragon from being scared. It raised its tail and shot the spines but because of the fallen tree, it was unsuccessful. "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you!" You made your way back towards your basket and found a dragon nip you store there for Gronckles. You picked it up and made your way back to the Razorwhip. You didn't get too close, of course, just enough for the dragon to smell the dragon nip. When you saw that the dragon relaxed, you decided to come even closer. And fortunately, the Razorwhip let you. You let her smell the green plant some more, but then you let it fell to the ground so you'd get the dragon's full attention. It was a girl - cause it had really long eyelashes - and her eyes were, unlike Windshears, red. But not bloody red, more like strawberry kind of red.  "Now let me help you," you said while reaching your hand. Razorwhip had to be really intelligent because it pressed its scaly head against your palm, letting you touch it. She probably knew you were her only chance now. After you caressed her smooth metallic grey scales on the head you took insight into her full appearance. Well, you definitely needed some help with that stone on her wing and also with that entire tree, but the loop on her neck could be removed easily straight away. "Now I will take my knife and cut that rope off your neck, okay?" you informed her. "Please don't freak out, I won't hurt you with that knife."

Razorwhip purred, so you carefully took out the knife from your pocket and did as you said. The dragon didn't even flinch. "You're a brave girl, you know?" you said happily because it went so easy. "How about I call you Fearless?" She looked happy since her neck wasn't in the loop anymore so you could tell, she was content. "Now how do I take care of this?" You made your way towards the stone and then the idea hit you. "Wait here I'll get some help!" Fearless roared for you, but you ran away. Soon, you came back - but on a happy green Gronckle. "We'll get that stone away, okay Fearless?" you asked and fly towards it. "Don't worry, it will be over soon!"Gronckle's strong legs lifted that rock up and placed it on the grass. Then you made Gronckle do the same with the tree. It was tough at first, but with Fearless's help, you actually managed to break her free. "That's it!" you yelled happily and quickly made Gronckle land on the ground, so you could hug Fearless. "I told you I'd help you. Is your wing alright?" She raised both of her wings straight up to the air, showing you her strength. You laughed and waved at the leaving Gronckle. "Now, do you want to help me found a yellow flower? After that, we'll get you some sea slugs and you could come home with me back to Berk!" You were really excited about creating a bond with her! But so was she.

[hughiecampbelle]

Being The Smartest Shelby Would Include:

Polly knew you were smart from the start

She said so when you were a baby, but of course no one believed her

Everyone thought their kids were special, but you really were

Born just a few years before Finn, you weren't the baby, but you definitely weren't the oldest, so it was hard to be taken seriously

It started with your homework

You spent a lot of nights trying to tell your siblings it was just too easy

You weren't just getting every answer right, you were finishing pages of work in minutes, faster than anyone in your class

Eventually, you moved on to your brothers work

Finding it discarded on the table, you recognized Johns scraggly handwriting

He'd only made it halfway through, so you decided to finish it, even fixing some of his mistakes along the way

You wanted to show them what you'd done, but of course no one listened

At least, not until you stood on your chair and demanded that someone look over your work

It was a bit dramatic, and made for an embarassing story later, but you wanted to be heard

They did, finally, and they were shocked

Tommy handed it to John, who passed to Ada, skipping over Arthur, who eventually got it to Polly

"Well?"

"It's right, all of it. . . ."

"Fuck."

It wasn't just math though. You were reading every book you could find, even the ones your siblings struggled to get through

You had a knack for puzzles, for figuring things out no one else could, able to pull things apart and put them together just in your head

Polly knew, and she was going to do something about it

Anything she could find to keep you entertained, occupied, your mind at work, she'd bring it home

You had an incredible memory too, remembering everything from the contents on the back of bottles you brothers drank from to entire speeches Polly gave when all of you were misbehaving

It was amazing, to say the least

You were a kid when your brothers went off to war, so it was mostly Ada and Polly who spent long nights with you at the table over homework

You didn't think it was fair, that you were forced to stay in school when none of your siblings were

Polly called it a gift, said you shouldn't take it for granted

She had big plans for you, the kind of career kids like you could only dream of

Finn grows up with you reading to him every night

Even helping him with schoolwork, though that didn't last very long

It still irks you Polly let's Finn drop school, not even getting past reading himself, but you know better than to push the subject

By the time your brothers come back, thankfully all in one piece, you've become a bit of a myth or legend around the Small Heath

Not only are you taller and with more acne, a young teenager, you've made a name for yourself, and a business

After school you could be found with a hat on the ground, getting pocket change for your "abilities"

Showing off and splitting the money with friends, you put on shows

Memorizing the faces of strangers, drawing them almost perfectly by hand, reciting lines of poetry from class all from memory, etc.

Sometimes you bring Finn along, promising candy for his silence, making him part of the act

Your favorite is showing off the languages you've lesrned, switching between Romani, French, Italian, and German (to name a few) without a second thought, so effortlessly

Arthur caught you once, but instead of saying anything, he simply cheered you on, laughing at the fact that your business was doing better than the familys

You spent a lot of time in the shop like Finn, growing up there, but never really allowed in on business, not even to listen

Instead you were ordered to be quiet and focus on your studies

And you did, for a few years, slipping notes to John about what you thought would improve business, pressing your ear to the door to listen, putting up with being categorized as "one of the kids" with Finn

And then you made an announcement, one that almost killed Polly

You weren't going to university, and instead you'd be joining the family business

Your aunt put up a good fight, but your brothers were more than happy to welcome you, with rules of course

Ada wasn't too thrilled either, knowing how smart you were, and how special it was, but she wasn't going to stop you

Pol was, or at least she was going to try

"You could be anything you want y/n."

"And I choose this."

"You're-"

"Wasting my potential? So you've said."

You'd be more behind the scenes, working on the business side rather than the side with razors and guns

Your brothers were more than happy to hear that, though you'd gotten more than a few comments muttered by Pol

If you really wanted to, you could always be a doctor or a lawyer later in life, for now this is what you wanted most

You were finally part of your family

Within the first week, you have a full list of what could be improved and you're center stage in the family meeting

To say that was nerve wrecking was an understatement

Tommy had his doubts, of course, but John knew you'd been keeping their heads above water for a long time

"Go on then, you've got our attention."

You were the one they went to check over the books, the numbers, catching mistakes no one else did

It wasn't just spelling mistakes or addition issues, you were taking stock in inventory, in all the bullets that were wasted, the little things that went missing that no one seemed to notice

It didn't take long for you to work your way up, prove yourself not only to Tommy, but Pol too, showing her this wasn't a waste of your time

She's still not thrilled, but you're as stubborn as the rest, and she knows it's a losing battle

At least you're being smart with your work

Tommy made you check over every contract and agreement he made, making sure he didn't miss a single detail that would screw them over

He brought you to the races too, working out probability, though your math was shaky at best under that kind of pressure and uncertainty

You were the one counting the profits and losses too, weighing the options of whether or not to invest

You're really the only one who knows just how much the family makes

That is a dangerous thing in itself

You make friends quite easily

Not only can you speak an array of languages, bonding with everyone, but you've got that Shelby charm and good looks, too

You're quite popular, though your brothers constantly get in the way of any potential relationship

You're smart though, and not just for their gain, but yours too

If and when you're ready to date, you'll find a way

Alfie adores you

Tommy drives him mad, but he'd have you over any day

Not only does he love the fact that you can keep up with him, witty beyond belief, but your Hebrew is perfect

"So, you're the brains behind the whole operation?"

"Something like that."

You're brought along to a lot of in person deals

You pick up on things no one else does, remembering the littlest of things that can and will be weaponized if need be

Their kids and spouses names, the way they look at you, how they speak and carry themselves

It doesn't take long for you to know exactly who they are

"They're lying Tom. I know they are."

"How can you tell?"

"They look away when they answer, their eye twitches, and they always lean forward when they're saying something true."

"You got all that from a five minute conversation?"

You're not only their beloved little sibling, but the perfect weapon

They don't teach you how to use a gun, but you've been watching for years, making note of every tiny detail

When you do use a gun, which is inevitable, it's a perfect shot

Arthur and Tom insist you carry something with you, but you're fine sticking with a simple razor

The guns can stay with them. . . .

Not only does it come in handy with work, but your family, too

You pick up on the way Arthur escalates, talking him down before there's a full outburst

You know the nights Tommy does and doesn't sleep just by the sound of his voice, the way he signs his name

You know when to check up on Ada if she's not doing well after Freddies gone, even if no one else can see the hurt in her eyes

That's the thing everyone seems to forget, is that you're not only book smart, but people smart, too

Constantly making fun of your siblings right in front of them

"Pol, y/n's making fun of me!"

"I am not! You don't even speak Russian."

"No, but I can guess."

He'd never admit it to you, but Finn really is amazed by you

Ever since he was a kid he always looked up to you

School and homework and all that never came easy to him, and it lead to him giving up, so the fact that all of this comes so easy makes him proud to be your brother

"Y/n, curse in a language we all know or don't say it all."

Along with learning weapons along the way, you pick up on how to be a nurse, tending to whatever it needed

From your nieces and nephews scraped knees to bullet wounds

"Do not get blood on my new shirt!"

No one really suspects you to be listening or watching the way you do, so when they need it, you go "undercover"

Gaining the trust of the enemy, pretending to be a stranger that just so happens to get their attention as if you hadn't been figuring out what makes them tick, distracting them with drinks and small talk

If anything goes wrong, you picked up on how to get away, how to fight without getting too much attention, and not just by watching

With a memory like yours, there are some things you'd like to forget and can't

A lot of things do leave you with nightmares, with flashes of panic, with this dreadful feeling in your gut like you'd seen it all before

At one point or another you've called your siblings and aunt in the middle of the night, just to check up on them, see if they're okay

Begging your brothers to be more careful

They rarely ever listen though

"Is there anything you can't do?"

"I can't go on a date."

"Nope, not until you're forty."

"Come on Arthur, you can't scare them all away."

Despite all this, you're still treated like a child

Your siblings still see you as that smart little kid correcting their work and growing bored of even the most complicated things

No matter what you do or say, you'll always be small in their eyes

[lordoftermites]

The Fox & the Thornbush | Part 3

Pairing: Roiben x Kaye Rating: M for violence and bleedy bits Summary: This is it. The Undersea Attack. Maybe eventually I'll go back and do more with it but. This took... a lot to write and honestly I can't even write a summary for it. I'm sorry in advance.

part 1. // part 2.

Faerie is a deadly place, he had told her once.

Kaye hadn’t believed him then—or, more despairingly, she had believed him, and was just far too willful to listen.

Even after the coronation in Elfhame, when Balekin had slaughtered near to every member of the royal family in a coup to usurp the throne, Kaye had persisted. She left her coffee shop, her dreams, abandoned her life in the light of the mortal world to live with him in the damp darkness of the Palace of Termites.

For her sake, Roiben had tried to convince himself that it would be a good change. That it was true—he had grown weary of having to steal away like some thief in the night to see her so sparingly, only to come back to a cold bed under a cold hill, alone.

After a while he began to believe that, perhaps, now that Kaye was at his side, within his reach at all times, that the frigid ache in his chest would abate—that he could finally be content.

Perhaps faeries couldn’t speak a lie with their own mouths, but Roiben had been telling himself untruths for longer than he could remember.

Kaye rolls over onto her side, burrowing farther beneath the coverlet. Her wild hair splays in lush, green tangles over the pillow. She sleeps soundly, verdant lips parted, once in a while letting out a small sigh here or near-inaudible word there. Roiben watches her from his place on the bed—their bed, he reminds himself—as though if he were to look away, she might very well disappear with one of those sighs.

He’s been awake for hours now, ripped from yet another nightmare, his chest heaving, his stomach threatening to upend the acrid bile in the back of his throat, while morbid death stares burned behind his eyes. They were the spectres of his sins, reminding him the blood on his hands has not, and shall not, wash away.

At least, this time, there had been no screaming.

A lock of deep green hair lies across Kaye’s face. It flutters slightly when she exhales, only to fall back against her lips. Her nose crinkles in her sleep, disturbed and perhaps dreaming of something else. Roiben reaches to brush it away but stops himself short, his fingers hovering mid-air. He ought to let her just sleep, he knows.

Yet, before he can convince himself not to, he’s leaning down, brushing the hair back with his mouth instead.

Kaye stirs and makes a light, disgruntled noise, until she seems to realize what’s happening. Then she’s lazily kissing him back, pressing her lips against his, parting just enough for him to sweep her mouth. One of her hands comes up to rest on the nape of his neck, her long fingers tangling in the hair there. Roiben sighs against her lips at the feeling; it’s light and comforting, warming that chill in his bones she alone has ever been able touch.

As often as he scorns himself for giving in to her decision to stay here permanently with him in Faerie, it’s selfish moments like this that he wouldn’t have her anywhere else. He can face the demons waiting in his nightmares—so long as she’s with him.

“Well, good morning to you, too,” Kaye says drowsily, black eyes fluttering up to his, lidded with sleep and something else. Roiben hovers over her, grinning. “What was that for? I mean, not that I mind or anything.”

He shakes his head, still unused to the lightness of his newly-cropped hair. “A compulsion, I suppose,” he answers, and lowers himself again to bury his face in the crook of her neck, breathing deep the scents of moss and clover. He can’t quite bring himself to admit aloud that it was more to solidify her presence—to give himself physical reassurance that she isn’t part of a cruel trick his mind so often played on him.

Kaye strokes the back of his head gently, as if she already knows, as if perhaps she too needs the reminder that neither of them are made of phantoms and longing. Roiben kisses the column of her green neck, an arm curling under her, pulling her closer and yet still not close enough. She tilts her head with a soft hum of encouragement. “Whatever it is, I could get used to waking up like this.”

Her hands slide over his shoulders, down his bare arms, along his spine. Roiben shivers and shifts his weight, caging her body beneath him. His mouth drifts along the line of her clavicle to the base of her throat. One of his hands slips under the coverlet to the silklike flesh of her thigh, drawing it up to bracket his hip, while his lips brush against the flushed swell of her chest. Kaye’s hushed sighs as he arches against her spark a flame behind his navel, galvanizing him into urgent desire.

What he wouldn’t do to just simply stay here with her forever, to revel in her touch, her warmth, her love. Let the crowns decay. Let the duties and the demands and the courts crumble to nothing; let him be only a knight and a man again, to be content. Unburdened.

As if the fates decided he needed reminding of his reality, a light rapping at the door to his chambers breaks through their intimate solace.

Roiben ignores it at first, tells himself whatever it is will go away. Surely a herald, one of his knights, or even his chamberlain can handle it—not every small thing ought to be a king's concern, especially not when his council members are already far more inclined to do his duty for him. He doesn't cease his kisses, and instead channels into them the denial of obligations and the desires of his soul. His fingers grip Kaye's thigh tighter in desperation, attempting to tether himself to her and this moment alone. Leave us, his mind pleads. Find another doorway to darken.

But the knocking comes again, this time carrying a touch more confidence and urgency.

Suddenly furious, unfulfilled, and ultimately defeated, Roiben growls against Kaye's skin before pushing himself up. She watches him with heady eyes, seeming just as exasperated at the interruption as he. Her hand lingers on his arm. "Just tell them to fuck off," she suggests, though it's half-hearted. She knows as well as he does that it's very seldom anything he can simply wave or wish away.

"If we're fortunate," he sighs, bending down to give her one last kiss and then forcing himself to rise from the bed, "it will be nothing but our breakfast.” In a moment, he’s crossed the room and wrenched the heavy door open. Ruddles himself is there, hand raised as though he had just been about to give another, less-timid knock; he lowers the hand, and himself before Roiben, bowing low enough that his nose might brush the floor if given another half inch.

“My King,” the hob greets in his usual rasp before straightening. He seems to realize his king’s half-naked appearance and forced even breathing, but carries on. “I apologize for the disturbance at such an early hour, but I assumed you would want to be informed we’ve had a messenger come and go without our receiving him.”

Propping an arm against the door, Roiben barely suppresses a roll of his eyes. “It is not an uncommon thing for a courier to go missed.“ He knows his tone is clipped, but he doesn’t bother to correct it. “Why does this time require my chamberlain coming to my private rooms, when clearly whatever message left was not of enough import to be received in the first place?”

That seems to bristle the hob, who takes a rather deliberate, offended breath through his sharply-pointed nose. “Because, the message was left while the entire hill slept,” Ruddles answers gruffly. His brows are furrowed as if there really is something to be worried about, and his sovereign is, as usual, too unconcerned. “No one saw the messenger arrive, nor did they witness his departure.”

It’s Roiben’s turn to frown. That couldn’t be right: since the rebuilding of the Palace of Termites, they had sentries posted through dawn and dusk, and as many guards patrolling the hill. Surely someone ought to have seen this phantom envoy. Foreboding gnaws at his gut; he doesn’t like mystery, and he likes even less when that mystery involves his playing the part of the ignorant fool.

“What was this message? Did you bring it with you?”

Ruddles shakes his tawny head and wrings his hands. “It was a parcel, a large one, addressed to the Lord of the Court of Termites. We left it where it was found—” he pauses, the troubled expression on his face doing nothing to quell the rising uneasiness Roiben feels—”in the throne room… more pointedly, on your throne.”

A deliberate act, and a bold one. The thought of it sets Roiben’s teeth on edge. “I see,” he says, scrubbing a hand over his jaw, deliberating.

From behind him, Kaye yawns. Roiben turns back to look at her, where she’s stretching and rubbing the sleep from her eyes, green hair falling over her shoulders. Just the sight of her, wrapped in his spider silk coverlet and little else, makes him ache with longing. It takes everything he can muster not to bolt the door in Ruddles' face.

She squints at him, as if attempting to focus her vision or read his thoughts, tilts her head in a question. Roiben tries a casual smile and holds up a finger, before turning back to his chamberlain. “Gather Dulcamara and Ellebere,” he instructs. “See if either of them know anything. I’ll meet the three of you in the throne room presently, and we’ll see just exactly what gift our shadow messenger has left us.”

The hob gives a shallow bow and backs away before turning on his heel and setting back off through the corridor. When Roiben closes the heavy wooden door, he leans against it momentarily, breathing a long sigh that does nothing to relieve any of the pressure in his chest.

How exhausted he is of intrigues and suspicions, of forging treaties that seem as stable as a thread stretched above a candle flame. Roiben himself feels like that thread—fraying at both ends while trying to hold his kingdom between his teeth, at any moment about to burn up with the burden of it all.

Take this from me, he had once thought, after his coronation as the Unseelie ruler. I do not want to be your king.

Now, he had two crowns, each heavy as a boulder on their own. Together, they are a mountain, and may very well crush him beneath their weight.

“What was that about?” Kaye’s voice calls from the bed. Roiben moves from the door and crosses the room to sit beside her. When he goes to kiss her cheek, he takes a selfish moment to breathe in the smell of her again, something to take with him. “I’m not entirely sure,” he replies, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I expect nothing but trouble, as usual. But I won’t be gone a moment—” he leans in again, grazing his lips against her neck with a promise—”and when I return, we can forget them all again.”

Before he can lose himself, Roiben pushes off of the bed. He pulls on a fresh set of clothing—a simple black tunic with trousers to match, and a pair of boots. From the chair beside his bed, he takes up his curved sword and straps it to his waist. Its weight is one he is used to, cold and secure at his hip.

With an apologetic glance back at Kaye, who shoos him with a small wave before shuffling back under the coverlet, he slips through the door.

Dulcamara is perched on the dais when he arrives in the throne room, clad in her beetle-black armor, polishing a dagger while her pink glare remains fixed on the throne. She stands when Roiben enters, however, and gives him a small bow of her head; as reverent a gesture as he likes, if he must be revered at all. “The hob is off searching for Ellebere,” she tells him in her gravel-scraping voice. “Must we wait for our curiosities to be sated?” Her head bobs in the direction of the throne.

As proficient a knight as Dulcamara is, her impatience often wills out, even when it comes to the one she serves.

Roiben shakes his head with a snort. “I suppose it isn’t a requirement,” he admits, stepping up onto the dais. “Though I doubt Ruddles will be much pleased when we solve the mystery without him.” Even so, eyeing the parcel, Roiben finds himself every bit as curious as he is wary.

As Ruddles said, what’s been placed on his throne is no small thing: it covers nearly half the seat itself, dome-shaped and wrapped in a cloth of deep blue velvet, tied together at the top with golden string. It certainly looks like a gift. Yet, as Roiben reaches out to take the small slip of folded parchment resting beside it, his title addressed in a dark blue flourish across the front, an icy dread seeps into his bones. When he opens the letter, he has to clutch the arm of the throne as the dais pitches up to meet him.

From behind him, Dulcamara’s voice seems distant, distorted. “What does it say?” Without turning, Roiben holds the note out to her, suddenly finding it difficult to swallow—or tear his gaze from the parcel. His hand trembles as he reaches to undo the string, to look upon what he already knows lies inside the elaborate wrapping.

“‘Let us see how easily you unwind the wire of your own cage’,” Dulcamara reads. “What sort of riddle—”

“It is no riddle.” He's clenching his jaw hard enough to hurt. His hand goes to grip the blade at his hip. “It is a threat.”

Unwrapped and glinting in the candlelight, just as he remembers, is the gilded birdcage that once held his friend and subject, Lutie-Loo—the very one he freed her from in Balekin’s office less than a year ago. Roiben had made a fool of the would-be king then, promising fealty when he’d already sworn to Prince Dain. Now it would seem his trickery is finally being repaid.

“Dulcamara,” Roiben starts, whirling around, “we need—”

An eruption of sound outside the throne room cuts off whatever order might have given. Before either of them have time to move, Ellebere barrels into the hall, sword in one hand, the other covering his side. Blood and dirt streak his pale face, only adding to the intensity of his frantic expression. “The Undersea,” the knight stammers, “they’re here. They’ve been here.”

Ruddles’ words echo dully in Roiben’s mind. No one saw the messenger arrive, nor did anyone witness his departure.

As Ellebere clambers up onto the dais, Roiben is reminded with a turning in his stomach of the last time he saw the knight in such a state, when Silarial made her move on the court. They had nearly been destroyed because of his underestimating and overconfidence. Has he once again brought ruin to his people? To…

“Kaye.”

The brugh swirls around him. His breath is trapped in his lungs.

As a swarm of bodies pours into the hall, the sharp clashing of metal against metal resounding through the hollow hill, Roiben can see none of it; only Kaye’s face, bloodied and lifeless.

Dead, because of him.

Something solid shoves into him, nearly knocking him to the ground before his legs catch him. Jolted back to the present, he jerks his head up just as Dulcamara brings her blade down in an arc across the front of an advancing selkie; the faerie crumples at her feet, black blood spilling onto the already gore-stained floor of the dais. It had gotten that close, and Roiben hadn’t even seen it. Dulcamara whips around to look at him, pink glare ablaze. Before she can scold him, he shakes his head and grips the sword he can’t remember drawing.

“I have to get to Kaye,” he shouts above the skirmish, already retreating down the other side of the dais, cutting through another Undersea soldier as it hurtles toward him. He is already charging down the hall before she can protest or follow, fear propelling his steps and his blade.

The battle seems to be more focused on the throne room, thankfully; Roiben is stalled only once, by a selkie warrior wielding a longsword of shark bone. Though he takes a slash to the thigh, the other faerie is not nearly as fortunate. He falls to his knees, clutching the gaping hole in his chest when Roiben withdraws his blade.

Biting through the searing pain in his leg, Roiben pushes on, repeating silent pleas that he not be too late.

As he comes to the door of his chambers, a fresh wave of glacial panic seizes him; the door has been thrown wide open and is hanging from the hinges. From the other side he can hear crashing, breaking. A struggle, and then a scream.

Kaye is screaming.

Roiben never feels himself move. He sees nothing but the flash of his sword, slicing through the gray-blue neck of an Undersea knight; hears nothing but his own cry of wild rage, his own deafening heartbeat in his ears. In less than breath, both Kaye and her attacker lie on the floor in a pool of mingling black and crimson.

It has happened, yet Roiben cannot shake the fog of unreality that strangles his breathing, weakens his legs, clouds his vision. His sword falls from his hand, and he collapses to his knees beside Kaye. He stares down in horror at the deep red gash from her throat to her sternum. Someone is sobbing. Blood streams from the wound—too much. There is too much blood.

He pulls her into his lap, holds her gently, covers what he can with a trembling hand. Dark, ruby warmth spills through his fingers and over his wrist. “Kaye,” he chokes, reaching to touch her cheek. His fingers are wet with blood and he has to brace against the sick twisting of his stomach.

Her black eyes are wild and unfocused, but she finds him. Grasps his arm desperately, gasping. She opens her mouth to speak, the beginning of his name on her ashen lips, but it comes out a fearful, small sound, and she doesn’t finish. Roiben strokes her hair and hushes her softly, bringing a kiss to her cool, damp forehead. When he pulls back, the unhinged terror in her eyes burrows like a dagger into his heart. “It’s...“

It’s going to be alright, he tries to tell her. The words will not form.

He cannot force back the sob at realizing why he can't say it. It could be a lie, and Kaye might die right here, in his room. In his arms. Dead before their life together had barely begun. Dead because he hadn't been fast enough. Because he had allowed it—because he had caused it.

Roiben can console himself no more than he can console her.

Faerie is a deadly place, he had told her once.

[zoxiqwritesstuff]

This fic is dedicated to the amazingly talented @elisaphoenix13 and her aeesome Mama bear AU that inspired this fic. Go check out her work on here and AO3!!

========

Looped Nightmare

Chapter 1: Was it all a dream?

Tony woke up as he jolted up from his slumber, panting lightly. His forehead was damp with a cold sweat as he ran a hand down his face, trying to calm himself from the nightmare he had just woken up from. He grabbed his glasses on the table next to the bed, sliding them on as the iv tube hit his face. Tony batted the tube away before his chocolate eyes went wide at his surroundings. 

"What the hell…" Tony questioned as he saw he was in the medical bay. " Friday, tell mama bear this is a little extreme for falling out of bed."

Friday was silent for once. 

"Friday? Oh don't tell me he's still mad about the bath bomb…  i said i was sorr…" Tony rambled as he tried to get out of bed, his legs failing him as he crumbled to the floor.

Steve had been passing by just asTony had collapsed to the floor, the super soldier rushing forward and helping the billionaire into a nearby wheelchair. Tony's face grew even more confused at his weakness. He had felt fine just last night when he had crawled into bed with Stephen. He hadn't felt like this since he was rescued from space after…

"You've been out for a week Tony." Steve stated softly. 

"Where are the girls? Stephen? The boys? Is everyone ok?!" Tony asked hurriedly as he looked up at the super soldier. 

"Cassie and Diana are fine… but I'm sorry Tony…" Steve sighed sadly as he walked behind the engineer, pushing the wheelchair. "Stephen, Harley, and Peter were…"

"Were what?! Where's Val? You forgot her! Were we attacked while i was asleep?!" Tony was letting the panic fill him completely at what he was hearing. 

Then things started to click. Space, everyone missing… It was just like after the snap. Was everything he remembered just a dream during his comatose state? 

No.

It couldn't be. This had to still be some sick dream he was stuck in. They defeated Thanos… he snapped again. The engineer was wheeled over to a table with the few remaining Avengers, the pictures of those lost to the snap projected up from the holotable.

Chocolate eyes widen when he sees Peter and Stephen's pictures flash across the screen. He grabbed what he thought was his damaged arm,  his brows furrowing when there was no charred flesh under his touch. 

Had him snapping all been a dream in his coma? 

His eyes focused off into the distance as the other's talked in the background.  Something was wrong.  He could feel it in his gut and would try to prove it.  

*****

Tony sat in the living room of the lake house, staring at the Starkpad in his hand. It was getting harder and harder to tell if what was happening around him was real. He got hungry and needed sleep, which meant it wasn't a dream. Maybe it was an alternate dimension? Or some spatial anomaly?

Either way, he knew he would get his family back. 

Cassie watched from the kitchen where she was feeding Diana some baby food from a jar. The billionaire had her worried. Maybe he was still in shock from the snap? She knew that she hadn't quite gotten a grip on what had happened. At least she didn't have it as bad as Tony, who actually had both Stephen and Peter turn to dust in his arms.  

She finished feeding Diana, wiping her face with a diaper wipe to remove any blueberries that had decided to stay on her cheeks before carrying her back to the living room.  The child set the baby in the swing before climbing up onto the couch next to Tony. 

"Uncle Tony? Can we watch cartoons?" Cassie asked softly, looking up at the distracted man. 

"Huh? Oh yeah… FRI? Put on whatever Miss Sass wants." Tony muttered as he kept scrolling through the articles that littered the screen. 

Each and every one of them was dated 2018, part of Tony wanting to believe that were true even though there was a much louder voice in his head yelling at him to wake up. Even his conscience sounded like his last husband.  He rubs his eyes and sighs as he sets the device in the coffee table before him. Cassie pats his leg gently. 

"It's ok Uncle Tony." Cassie said softly, the billionaire not missing the sorrow that laced her young voice. "I miss my daddy too." 

Tony pulled Cassie into a hug, hoping to soothe the still grieving girl beside him. "Me too Cass… me...too.."

Tony's brain began whirling with ideas.  

Scott. 

Scott…

"SCOTT!" Tony hadn't realized he yelled the man's name as his hands darted for the Starkpad again. 

Scott had solved the answer in how to get everyone back before. If Tony could find him again and bring him back,  maybe then he could prove he wasn't crazy.  Maybe he could get his family back. 

Cassie turned her attention away from the cartoons on the television to watch Tony. She knew the last time she saw her father, he was helping Mr. Pym and Hope to collect some particles or something like that. 

He was one of the victims of the snap.  

"Uncle Tony… daddy is gone too." She muttered softly as she reached to pull his hand away from the Starkpad. 

"Cassie. I promise I'm not crazy but… I've already been through this before. " Tony explained. "Your dad wasn't snapped.  He's trapped in the quantum realm and if I can find him, then he can help get everyone else ba…" 

The man turned and saw the tears filling large hazel eyes just before Cassie got up. The child ran to her room and shut her door behind her.  Tony sighs softly as he holds his head in his hands, looking over at his baby daughter in her swing.  

"I promise daddy isn't crazy." The billionaire mutters to her as he moves to put her pacifier back into her mouth.  "Maybe I should let time take its course. I know Stephen would say it's wrong to mess with a time stream."

He could wait. He had done it before and he could do it again. Tony knew exactly how to fix this,  but he needed everything to happen in the exact order as it did last time. 

That night, Tony lied awake in his bed as he stared at the ceiling with his tired chocolate eyes. He thought it was hard to sleep when Stephen was dimension hopping, but now it was nearly impossible. The billionaire sighed as he rolled over onto his side and stared at the spot where his husband would have been, his heart aching as his fingers reached over and clutched the sheets. 

"I'll get you back tesoro." Tony promised softly. "You and our whole family."

After a few more hours of tossing and turning, the billionaire finally fell asleep. If only it were a peaceful sleep. Tony was caught in a dream. 

Tony looked around the sandy terrain littered with the ruins of the alien civilization that used to occupy Titan. He slowly stood from where he had been seated in the sand, his hand instinctively reaching to tap the nanotech housing unit.  Two weights shot out and attached themselves to his wrist, drawing Tony's immediate attention to what was attacking him. 

He couldn't believe his eyes.  

Stephen and Peter were hanging on his wrists, their fingers clawing at his sleeves. Tony couldn't take his eyes off of the betrayed expression they had on their face. 

"You failed." Stephen's voice rang out as he suddenly vanished. 

"I...I tried… i…" Tony stuttered as he saw Peter vanish as well. 

"You didn't try hard enough." Peter's voice bit out as wind began to whip around Tony.  

He tried to push on through the brewing sandstorm. He had to get to his family. 

"I tried everything!" Tony shouted over the howling wind. 

"You can't… we had one chance… and you ruined it." Stephen's voice hissed in his hair. "You let us die." 

"NO! I DIDN'T!" The billionaire exclaims. 

"I told you to run. We would have been safe on earth." The ghostly form of Stephen and Peter appear before Tony.  "If you had listened to us instead of your ego,our family would be whole. We wouldn't have turned to dust!"

Tony fell to his knees as tears welled up in his eyes,  his hands trembling as he gripped the sand beneath him. He had tried everything to save his family that day. After having Thanos in his head since the Chitauri invasion, he thought the only way to stop Thanos was to take the battle to him. He wished he could undo everything from that dreadful day. 

"...ony...Tony…" Stephen's voice called softly. 

Tony went to answer the gentle voice, but he couldn't as a sudden pain coursed through his chest. He cried out in pain as he fell to the sand, clutching his chest. He tried to breathe, to catch his breath but another pain coursed through his chest. It was like he was being electrocuted by invisible lightning. 

"Tony! Wake up!" Stephen's voice cried out as the ghostly versions of him and Peter faded. "Tony!!" 

Tony jolted awake with a startled gasp, clutching his chest as he panted heavily.  His hair was drenched from sweat as he pushed it away from his forehead.  

What the actual hell was that?

[dumdrop]

My Nightmares

This one made me cry while writing it. It's a lot more emotional than my previous nightmares. I apologise for the sudden time jumps. Please enjoy!

I was sleeping in my bed, and I woke up from the sound of my little brother crying like he was scared. I left my room and walked down the hallway to Austin's room. I entered his room and saw him in his bed, wide awake, and crying very sadly.

I walked over to him and sat on the left side of the bed. “Hey, buddy. Did you have another nightmare?”

He nodded with agreement, too afraid to speak. I raised my hand and placed it on top of his head. Usually, physical affection worked best to calm him down. I stroked his head smoothingly, and he grabbed my hand and squeezed it.

“What was your nightmare about?” I said. It's always better to talk about his fears and reassure him they could never happen. He was staring at his hands, nervous to talk about what scared him. His little voice broke the silence of the room.

"I was playing in the front yard with Tony. I saw something shiny in the middle of the road and ran over to it. It was a shiny button. I picked it up because it was a pretty button. It was yellow just like the buttons on Nana's sweater she used to wear."

He stopped crying but was still shaking. "Then I saw a car coming towards me and it hit me."

"Oh, that's a bad one," I said. "I've had nightmares like that before. It's pretty scary."

"You have?" He said, looking up from his hands to look at me. His face lit up, happy knowing he wasn’t alone.

"Yeah, I have those nightmares too. I had thought before what it would be like to be hit by one. And, of course, I had a nightmare about it that night."

He finally stopped shaking after I said this. I tried to think of something else to say that would reassure him. "You know... nightmares are only your mind trying to scare you. And when you have a scary thought in your head, your mind plays it out in your dreams as you sleep. But it's only your imagination so it's not real."

I gave him a side-hug and he rested his head on my shoulder. "So it's not real, right?"

He didn't look up at me but I could still see his smiling face as he said, "Not real."

Time Skip

It was suddenly morning. I was sitting in the dining room looking out the window. It was raining and very grey and cloudy. I always loved the rain. The sound of the spattering raindrops on the roof, the fountain of water falling down the glass, the faint rumble of the thunder and lightning. It makes me feel so peaceful and happy.

Austin came running into the dining room. At full speed, he crashed into me causing us both to be pushed back against the table. "Hey! Slow down next time!" I said.

"Sorry!" He said excitedly, pushing himself up and wrapping his arms around my shoulders. "I love it when it rains! I wanna go outside and play!"

"Not yet! It's still pouring!" I replied, hugging him back. "You know the rules. We don't go out yet until it's sprinkling."

He gave me a dramatic, very sarcastic, frown. "I know! But can't we just go out this time? Just once?"

He looked very desperate, as kids do when they really want something. "Not this time. I don't wanna get soaked today."

"Can we get soaked one day?"

I nodded. "Maybe one day."

He let out a loud and again dramatic sigh. "Fine!" He let go of me and left the dining room. I watched him disappear out of my view and returned my gaze back to the window.

Time Skip

It was suddenly the afternoon and the rain had stopped pouring and was now a quiet drizzle. Perfect for Austin and me. I could take pictures of the outside wearing its drenched coat of dirty puddles and water drops falling off roses.

I quickly grabbed my polaroid camera and jacket and left my room. Austin was already waiting by the door with his jacket on and Tony, his cat doll that was a Ragdoll!

"Come on, Taylor! What's taking you so long?"

"Hang on, Austin, we have to put our rain boots on before we go out." I grabbed our boots that were sitting by the door. I sat his blue boots by his side and started to put my red ones on.

"But I hate rain boots! They aren't as comfortable as my normal boots!" I finished putting mine on as he sat down and started removing his "normal" boots.

I grabbed his left boot and started putting it on his foot. "And they're too long!" He continued. "And I don't like the way they squeak as I walk!"

I finished putting on his boots for him and stood up as he continued. "They are such an Unconvenience."

I grabbed his tiny hands and pulled him to his feet. "Inconvenience."

He grabbed the doorknob, gave it a quick twist, and opened the door. He immediately ran out of the house and left me in the dust. I heard him yell something like whatever! as he ran into the woods.

I quickly moved my camera to my eyes, looking through the camera's viewfinder, and aimed it perfectly at his silhouette approaching the woods. I pushed the button and Flash! The picture was taken. The familiar sound of the photo exiting the camera and into my hands.

"Wait up!" I shouted and ran after him.

I put the instant photo into my jacket's pocket as I was sprinting. I found him by an old oak tree, looking up at its majestic tallness. It was covered in moss and vines. The living things growing around the dead body of bark and branches, I thought.

"Awesome!" Austin said. He touched the moss with his index finger. "And gross!" He sat on the hump of one it's massive roots. "Here. Take a picture!"

My little genius! He found the perfect spot to take a picture! He made a cute pose as I raised my camera. Click! The photo left the camera, into my hands, and into my pocket.

He, again, took off running, ducking under the hanging branches of the old oak tree, avoiding the drizzled leaves, and ran deeper into the forest. I lost sight of him through the fog. I started to chase after him, tapping on the fallen sticks, breaking them in half, the snapping sound echoing through the thickets.

"Aussie!" I cried out.

I heard the sound of sticks breaking again, but not from me this time. Found you!

I quickened my pace towards the sound, getting smacked in the face by the wet leaves. I could only get a glimpse of those bright blue rain boots. "Aussie! Slow down! I'm gonna lose you! Brother!"

"Slowpoke!" He shouted back.

"You know I hate this game!"

"But I love it!"

"You asshole!"

I caught a glimpse of the flapping of his hoodie in between the trees and fog. He wasn't too far. I could catch him.

I was really running now. I knew I could outrun him. I followed the sounds of his steps that were running away from me. They were getting louder and louder, signaling that I was getting closer. I saw his silhouette again, fading in and out of the fog. I quickly held up my camera again and took a shot blindly. Click! The flash lighting up the world in front of me.

I finally caught up to him. I grabbed his shoulder and forced him to slow down. We both managed to stop and I clasped his arms and pulled them to me, trying to stop him from leaving me again.

"You know... I hate it when you do that." I said, gasping through my words.

"I know. I wanted to see if I could outrun you yet." He replied with a cheeky grin.

I had seen a white figure in my peripheral vision. I looked over to it and saw the picture I just took in my hand. Oh right! The picture.

I let go of my grip on his arms and he walked over to another tree that was just about ten feet away. I looked at the picture I took to see if it was good enough to keep. But, something was wrong. I realized something was missing in the picture. Austin.

The picture was the fog and the trees I had seen, but where Austin was standing before, he wasn't. That's odd. I clearly remember him there. I did take the picture while running… maybe I didn't aim it right on him?

I tucked the photo into my pocket along with the two others I took. I looked over to my brother, who was standing by the tree and drawing swirls in the moist dirt with a stick. I lifted my camera again, a motion I was most familiar with, and looked through the viewfinder like a peephole in an apartment door. Nothing looked different. My finger found the button and pushed it. I had seen the flash go off, but there was something I didn't see. My brother.

He had disappeared. His body was completely gone in the light of the flash. Just briefly, though. But I had seen it.

I slowly lowered the camera down from my face. Complete terror flowing through my body and running through my veins. Then came confusion and then denial. Why did he just disappear? Like he's not really there?

I took the picture from my polaroid and stared at it. No Aussie.

I moved my shaking hand into my pocket and pulled out the three pictures of today. I had first seen the picture of just the fog and trees. Next, the old oak tree. No Austin. Last, the silhouette just outside our house. Just the dark woods. No Austin.

I couldn't believe it. What the hell? What does this mean?

It couldn't be true. He's right there!

Better be sure.

"Austin. Look over at me." I demanded, trying to keep my cool.

"Okay." He answered while shrugging his shoulders. I walked over and stood directly across from me. I was going to make sure this time! I looked through the viewfinder and aimed it on Austin, perfectly in the frame. It clicked again and there went the flash.

Just as the flash went, Aussie had teleported right in front of me when he was just ten feet away.

I screamed and jumped back, falling into the mud. He was looking at me with great concern. "What's wrong, Taylor?"

All I did was gasp and wail. So afraid.

I took off running. I couldn't stand the thought of my little brother being a ghost, not being real anymore. He is still alive. This is all a sick nightmare I'm having.

I could hear his sweet and tiny voice crying out for me. "Taylor! Wait up! Where are you going?"

I tried with all of my might to keep running. Don't turn around. Keep running. It's not true!

I was out of the woods and came upon the street. I no longer heard his voice. I had to get away. I knew where I had to go. I knew who I needed to see. I was running to his house without thinking. Daniel.

I ran to my best friend's house. I came to his front door and loudly pounded it. He quickly opened the door and saw me, looking concerned and confused.

"Taylor? What's wrong? What happened?" He said.

"I- I- I- I don't know. I- I'm-" I stuttered, unable to speak.

He grabbed my shaking hands and held them tight. "It's okay, Tbug. You're okay."

I realized I was crying. I felt a tear fall down my cheek.

Danny released my right hand, still holding my left, and raised it to my cheek, brushing away my tear with his thumb. He released my left hand and pulled me into a tight hug. I collapsed into him, releasing all of the tension I was holding. He held me tenderly, whispering soothingly into my ear, one of his curls tickling my nose. I finally felt my fear calming down, my shaking slowing, and my tears falling against his shoulders, soaking the fabric of his shirt.

I eventually heard the sirens. I had seen the reflection of blue and red lights in the window. I let go of Danny and he released his grasp on me. I turned to the flashing lights and the sounds of the sirens. They were near my house, down the street from my friend's house.

I started to freak out again. My body resumed shaking. The blood was sucked out of my face as if a vampire had bitten me. I took small steps off of his front porch and back on the street. My steps quickened as I stared at the police cars and paramedics truck. My steps got faster until I wasn't on my feet anymore.

Daniel had run after me and tackled me to the ground. He pushed his weight against me so I couldn't get up. "No, Danny! Stop! I must see it!"

I knew what I would see. My dead brother on the street, his small body crushed by a car. Danny must have caught on to the situation and prevented me from seeing my living nightmare.

"No! Aussie! Danny let me go!" I cried, attempting to push him off me but failing. "Austin!"

I was repeatedly calling my brother's name, trying desperately to get an answer.

"No Taylor! You don't want to see it!" Danny said, breathing heavily, his grip loosening. He was struggling to keep me in place.

I kicked my feet and managed to slide out of his grasp. I sat up on my butt and tried to stand up but Danny had grabbed my legs and pulled me to him, my backside sliding against the ground. Now face-to-face, he hugged me again, not letting go. Even through my hits and screams, he didn't let go. I looked into his eyes. He looked so sad. I couldn't fight him anymore. I gave up.

I gave in to the truth. The truth that my little brother was gone and I couldn't do anything about it. I never felt such sadness in my life. I couldn't feel anything else. I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything.

I stared into my best friend's sorrowful eyes and started to cry deeply. Danny's eyes were filling up with tears. He cried along with my wails of sorrow. He buried his face into my shoulder and I wrapped my arms around his neck. Even though his body was on top of mine, I couldn't feel it. I didn't feel the familiar warmth of him. I just cried and cried.

“We didn’t get the chance to get soaked…” I said mindlessly. “I told him 'maybe one day.'”

I could hear the words but I couldn't feel them leave my mouth. “It wasn’t real… I told him it wasn’t real. I told him that! I told him…”

It’s not real. It’s not real. It’s not real! It's not real! It's not real! IT'S NOT REAL! NOT REAL NOT REAL NITREALNOTREALNOTREALNOTREALNOT-

And that's when I woke up.

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