For Takukamu!

(I don't own FE)

Nightmares

The storm raging around Nohr Castle that night was a particularly vicious one. It had started at around dinnertime, thunder and lightning roaring across the sky, while rain and hail pelted down on the land. Even though the Hoshidan family had only arrived the day before and a party planned, everyone had retired early, the weather having put a damper on the whole thing.

Corrin however, had not yet gone to sleep. Despite having been officially 'tucked in' (as she called it) by Joker and Felicia a couple of hours ago, she'd been sitting in bed, reading a romantic adventure novel she'd found among Camilla's old books. Her sister had left a rather goodish pile behind her when she'd moved to Hoshido, and Corrin was determined to get through them all. So far, she'd found them entertaining and highly… informative with regards to certain things.

But as the storm outside increased in intensity, she found herself wondering about her poor Hoshidan family.

'I wonder if they've gotten any sleep at all,' she mused, snuggling into her pillows as a particularly loud thunderclap made the window frames shake. 'Sakura might be afraid, but she and Elise are having a sleepover and Elise got over lightning ages ago… I don't think Hinoka or Ryouma are afraid of thunder, and neither is Taku-'

There was a loud knock on the door. Corrin sat up with a yelp, nearly dropping her book.

"Who is it?" She called, quickly tossing her book underneath her bedcovers. "J-Jakob?"

"Corrin?" came Takumi's voice. "It's me."

"Takumi?" Corrin slipped out of bed and padded to the door, wondering if everything was alright. Takumi stood outside, a pale ghost in the darkness. Even in the dim light, his face was slick with sweat, and his hair and clothing were disheveled. He blinked at her and frowned.

"Corrin," he said, "so you're still awake."

"Takumi," she said, "what happened? Why are you here?"

He blinked again, rubbing his eyes. "I saw the light under your door," he said, "I can't find my way around this damned place." The thunder crashed again and he flinched, wincing angrily.

"Uh, but why are you wandering around the castle this late?" Corrin asked, "did something happen?"

"I was looking for the others," he replied. "Sakura, and everyone else." He rubbed his arms irritably. "I can't find any of their rooms. Why is this place so confusing?"

"But what happened? Why-"

"I just want to see them, alright?!"

"Takumi," Corrin said slowly, "It's late. Sakura is sleeping in Elise's room. Ryouma and Hinoka are with their spouses. Azura is probably in her own room, but she's probably fast asleep as well. You want to go barging into their rooms, waking them and their retainers and everybody else up, without a second thought?!"

Takumi glared at her. He opened his mouth to argue, paused, and closed it again with a sigh.

"I... you're right; I'm being stupid," he said, shoulders slumping. "I should just go to bed." He shook his head again and turned away. The sight of him looking so defeated made Corrin's heart clench. She reached out and grabbed his arm.

"No, wait. That's not what I said!" she exclaimed. "Look, whatever it is, tell me. I- we're not family, but we're friends, right?"

Takumi looked at her hand on his arm, then at her face, indecision on his features. Corrin tugged at him. "Come on," she said. "We can't stand here all night."

Takumi chewed his lip, finally inclining his head. "Alright," he said, "but… whatever I tell you, stays between the two of us, okay?"

"Of course."Closing the door behind them, Corrin steered him over to her bed. She sat down, patting the space next to her. Slowly, Takumi settled beside her.

"This is… a little unusual, you know," he pointed out. Corrin waved a hand dismissively.

"Its fine," she said, "I used to have Jakob over all the time when I was younger." She crossed her legs and gave him an expectant look. "So, what's bothering you?"

The troubled look returned to Takumi's face again. He rubbed his forehead and said: "its all Leo's fault."

"Leo?" Corrin raised her eyebrows. "How does Leo figure into this?"

"I'm telling you, aren't I?" He said testily. "Leo gave me this book. About- about the world being overrun by giant man eating monsters. And all the humans left are-"

"Oh, wait, yeah, I've read that one," Corrin said, realization dawning on her face, "oh yeah, I can understand why you freaked out, when I read it I-"

"Corrin, let me talk, will you?"

"Right right," Corrin said hastily, "so you had a nightmare about giant man eating monsters chasing you?"

"I - yeah," Takumi said. "I was outside the Imperial City, and these monsters appeared. They chased me, all the way inside the city walls. I had to hide in a ditch of some sort, and even then I could feel them, wandering about, looking for me."

"That's pretty bad," Corrin remarked.

"That's… not even half of it," Takumi said, with a bitter laugh. For a moment he fell silent, running his hands through his hair before interlocking his fingers together. When he spoke again, his voice was oddly monotonous: "There was a party. I-It was a fairly colorless affair- standard in a dream, I guess. I remember you. You were talking to me, and some other guests. The others were there, although I couldn't really see them.

"Then… there was a sort of stairway. It led up to nothing, only thin air. You and I climbed it. The next thing I remember is that it collapsed. We came down, and everyone was gone. I-We looked for them… the castle seemed to have changed, there were all these little corridors instead of the wide hallways there usually are. There was a small white door. I opened it, and… everyone was dead."

Corrin's eyes widened. "Dead?" She asked. "Who, y-"

"Everyone," Takumi said, "Sakura, Ryouma, Hinoka, Azura… everyone. Even Oboro and Hinata. They were all piled up in the room, one over the other." He covered his face with his hands. "The odd thing is, I can still see Sakura was right in front, just lying there all waxy pale-"

"Stop." Corrin said, "don't repeat it. Don't think about it."

Takumi looked at her, and gave a rueful smile. "Its okay," he said, "I've seen stuff like that before in my dreams. Someone dead, someone dying, someone out to kill me. Someone watching. It scares me, but… once some time passes, the fear goes away." He shook his head. "I'd have slept this one off; only I saw this one twice, so it was a little more disorienting."

Corrin frowned. "What do you mean?" She asked, "you've seen this before?"

"No, I saw it twice this night," he said. "You lead me out of there, you see; we ran, down the alleys and into a little room. Then you told me that we had to go back to look for survivors. We returned, and everyone was alive again; the palace was full of people. This time I raced to the little room, but it was still too late- the minute I opened the door, everyone was dead again, and the whole palace fell silent. You told me that there was someone killing people, and we had to get out. I grabbed Sakura's face, but I wasn't able to get her out." He shrugged. "That was when I woke up, and right after that I ran."

"Takumi…" gently, Corrin pulled him into a hug. He flinched in surprise before hugging her back.

"I'm sorry," she said, "that was awful."

"You're getting too emotional over this," he remarked, sounding slightly amused. Corrin shook her head, tightening her grip.

"No," she said, "even for a nightmare, no one should have to go through that."

He laughed. "Well, at least I had a dragon with me," he said, as they pulled apart from each other. "Whoever the killer was, would have had quite some time trying to get past you, huh?"

Corrin smiled. "That's true enough," she said. "I don't- I won't ever stop protecting you okay? If anything happens., you can always count on me."

"Are you implying that I can't protect myself?"

"Well… you're the one who came to me."

"Hey!" Takumi lightly punched her on the arm, and Corrin burst out laughing as well. He seemed back to his normal self, and it relieved her to see that. She stuck out her tongue at his disapproving expression, and said: "So, you're feeling better, then?"

"Yeah." Takumi stood up, straightening his clothing . "I suppose I'd better get back to bed," he said reluctantly. "I wish I didn't have to; no offense, but this castle is creepy at night . Now I see why Leo's so into the dark arts; this place practically reeks of it."

"Its not that bad," Corrin said shrugging. "You get used to it eventually. Although, if you want, you can sleep here."

"W-What?!" Takumi stared at her, eyes widening. "I can't- that would be inappropriate!"

"It'll be fine," she said. "I told you, I used to have-"

"Yes, but you were kids!" He exclaimed. "We're adults; we aren't-" He looked away, flushing.

Corrin made a face. "Look, if you feel like going back, then fine," she said, "but if you want to stay here, with the cozy candle-light and a dragon at your side, you're welcome to stay."

"I have candles in my room!" He retorted, trying to look disapproving. Corrin giggled and he winced. "Okay, that sounded bad," he said, "but still…"

"Do you want to go?" She asked him. "Its fine."

Takumi hesitated. "…No," he said. "I -its nice being with you. And this place does give me the creeps." Slowly, he climbed back into the bed, while Corrin slid over to give him room.

"You're okay with this?" He asked her. "And don't tell anyone I slept here; I-I'll be really mad at you."

"Its okay," Corrin said, patting him on the arm. "This night doesn't leave this room."

"Hmm." Takumi slid down into the sheets, yawing and closing his eyes. Corrin fished her book out from underneath the covers and tried to find her place. There was a comfortable silence for a while before he asked: "Why are you awake so late?"

"Reading," she answered.

"What's it about?"

"Pirates. And a pretty lady who needs to be rescued from them."

Takumi l scoffed. "Really? A bodice-ripper? You read those?"

"They're very good!" Corrin defended. "That term is overrated."

"Well, that's what the plot is mostly about," Takumi pointed out.

"And how would you know?"

"Well, I've tried reading them." Takumi said, blushing a little, "H- don't tell her I told you this- but Hinoka reads them too. When I ran out of my own books I tried her, but they're boring. And a little embarrassing."

"How are they boring?!"

"Well, the plot is more or less the same," Takumi pointed out. "The heroine, the hero, they look into each others eyes and think darkly passionate thoughts about each other." He stifled a yawn and stretched back.

"Well if you think that, then clearly you've been reading the wrong books," Corrin said, "Its not always about… romantic stuff, the plot's pretty good too!"

"I'm sure," Takumi teased, yawning again. "I'm sure the plot is great."

"Yes it is!" Corrin sat up. "Look! See, this one, its about a pirate; when he's a new on the seas, he meets a young girl, who tells him that she's rich and her father has engaged her to marry someone when she's eighteen. So the pirate guy promises her that on her eighteenth birthday, he'll come and save her, but when it actually comes she-" there was a snore. Corrin paused and looked at her companion. Takumi was fast asleep.

"What… well, I guess he really was tired out," she mused. Gently, she leaned towards him a little. His features were relaxed, his breathing regular. He actually looks pretty cute,' she thought, reaching out to stroke his hair from his face. He murmured and turned away to face the other side. Corrin smiled. Even asleep, he was still Takumi. Shaking her head, she snuggled back down to finish her book.

(AN: Sorry for any oocness or mistakes)