A/N Hey, folks. Just a quick one shot that I couldn't get out of my head. They are only a couple of episodes into the series, so I don't feel confident enough to hold the character voices for a multi chap just yet. If you haven't seen Terra Nova yet, you really should check it out! It's on Fox, Monday nights! As always, reviews are cherished! ~Kelcor

Nightmares

The Slashers had them completely surrounded. Hunter was already badly wounded. Max's life was slowly ebbing out of him. Skye had yelled that she was out of ammo, and Josh was pretty sure he was very close to expending his last burst of bullets, as well.

They were so screwed.

Josh thought back to how he had treated his dad earlier that day. He had been angry with his father for not being around for the past couple of years, all because the man couldn't control his temper. But he didn't really blame him for his actions. Josh would have done the same thing to protect Zoe, or Maddy and his mom, for that matter, if he thought his efforts would have made the least bit of difference. Truth be told, he wasn't even strong enough to take care of his mother and sisters in his dad's absence. He wasn't old enough to get a job. He wasn't smart enough to find away around that loophole. His dad was like a superhero who'd had his powers revoked, and Josh was his sorry replacement sidekick who couldn't even hope to compare to his predecessor.

Suddenly, Maddy and Zoe were standing just a few feet away, screaming for him to protect them. Then his mom was there, in the opposite direction, also pleading with him.

But, wait, this wasn't how it had happened... was it?

"Josh!"

He spun around at the sound of his father's voice, "Dad!" Josh watched as his dad ran towards him, then stared in horror as a Slasher whipped its razor sharp tail out and sliced his father in half, bringing the older man to his knees. "NO!"

Next, he heard the blood curdling screams of his sisters and his mom. His world seemed to tilt on its axis as he turned to see his entire family sprawled on the ground, bleeding, all eyes wide and staring at him. Eyes filled with accusation, blame... betrayal.

TNTNTNTN

Jim stood out on the porch, drinking a glass of wine. The night's events kept racing through his mind over and over again, convincing him that he was not going to be getting any sleep tonight. Possibly not for a few nights to come.

He had almost lost his son tonight. He had almost lost Josh. His gut clenched at the mere prospect, his heart stuttered at the realization of how incredibly close he had come to losing his first born. He did his best to swallow down the lump that had formed in his throat with another gulp of wine but it didn't work.

A choked cry from inside brought him back to the here and now. Alarmed, he bolted back into the house, in search of any kind of danger lurking in the darkness. A mumbled plea for help led him to Josh's bedroom door. His son was tangled up in his sheets, closer inspection revealing a thin sheen of sweat covering his brow. Frozen to the spot, all Jim could do was watch as his boy's eyes darted back and forth beneath the lids.

A second strangled cry pulled him from his state of shock and he immediately took action. He knew full well what Josh's nightmare was about. The kid would have to be a robot to not be affected by the terror he had endured just a few hours ago. Jim sat on the edge of his son's bed and grasped the now quaking shoulders in his palms.

"Josh," he whispered urgently. "Wake up, son. It's just a nightmare."

His efforts were rewarded by a keening sound that Jim fervently hoped he would never hear come from his boy's lips ever again. He shook him with more force. "Josh! Wake up!"

Josh startled awake. He jolted forward, trying desperately to free himself from the hands that were holding him down, but crashed into an unknown obstruction, his cheek mashed up against something hard and solid and warm. All he could see was darkness. All he could smell was... blood! His arms were trapped between his chest and the unyielding barrier. In response, he tried to backtrack, to pull away, but his movements were even more restricted than before. Terrified, he pushed and pulled, kicked and squirmed, anything he could do to get away, to escape!

Fragmented words began to leak their way through to his unconscious mind... "Josh... hear me?... safe... need... wake up..." The voice suddenly became familiar. The scent assaulting his senses was no longer blood. It smelled more like the outdoors, mixed with gun oil, sweat, and a mild spicy scent. Oh, how he had missed that scent.

"Dad?" He both heard and felt the sigh of relief, bringing him to the realization that he was currently enveloped in his father's arms. "I - I'm okay now," he whispered, pulling away and averting his eyes in shame.

"Hey," the older man said softly, placing a large palm on the back of his neck and offering a firm squeeze of support. "Look at me, kiddo."

After a moment, Josh complied. "Sorry for waking you," he mumbled, eyes scanning the room in a sudden apprehension that maybe his father wasn't the only one to see him like this.

"It's just me," Jim told him, reading the kid like a book, mainly due to the fact that his son's book was an early chapter of his own. "You wanna tell me what you were dreaming about?"

Josh blushed, averting his eyes once again. "You already know."

"Yeah, I do," Jim admitted. "But it might help if you talk about it." At Josh's continued hesitation, he added, "Just between you and me. Father-son confidentiality."

The teen peered up at him from beneath his brow, "What?"

Jim shrugged. "Why should your mom be the only one who can have a confidentiality agreement?"

Josh gave a half hearted grin, but continued to study the blankets covering his legs.

"Talk," his father told him lightly but firmly.

"I'm sorry about being angry with you," Josh started. "I didn't mean what I said."

"Yes, you did," Jim said. "And you had every right to be angry. I won't apologize for my actions, I will do whatever it takes to protect my children, but I am sorry that those actions left you and your sisters without a dad for so long. And I'm proud of you for taking care of things while I was gone, kiddo."

These last words elicited a hitched breath from his son. Instinctively, he returned his hand to the boy's neck and squeezed.

"What is it, Josh?"

"I was really scared, Dad. When the Slashers attacked, I was so scared. I can't remember ever being so scared in my life, except when..."

"When, what?"

"I thought I was gonna die," Josh said, instead of continuing on his previous train of thought.

"Anybody would've been scared, Josh. But you're okay. You're safe, now."

"In the dream... it was different..."

"How was it different, son?"

Josh hesitated but Jim just waited him out. Finally, "Mom, Maddy and Zoe were there. Screaming at me to help them. But I wasn't strong enough." The last statement was choked out.

Jim closed his eyes, hating that his son was in so much pain at such a young age. He tried to pull him into his arms again but the teen resisted, insisting on recounting the rest of the dream, no matter how difficult it was.

"Then you showed up and I thought it was over, that everyone was safe. But a Slasher sliced you in half right in front of me." Josh tried to stop the tears but they ran unbidden down his cheeks. He wiped at them angrily with one hand, keeping the other one fisted in the blankets. "Then Mom, Maddy and Zoe all screamed but it was different from before. They weren't just afraid, they were in pain. I turned and they were all... All of you... were dead... staring at me... blaming me... because it was all... my... fault. Because I wasn't strong enough. I'm never strong enough!"

Jim pulled Josh forward again. This time, ignoring the boy's struggles. "Shhhh. Josh, it's okay. I gotcha, son. I gotcha."

"No, lemme go! Get off me!"

His protests just made Jim hold onto him all that much tighter. Keeping one arm around his son's back and shoulders, he cupped the back of his head with his free hand, limiting his struggles even further. When the kid continued to try to pull away from him, Jim resorted to something he hadn't done since Josh was a little boy.

He began rocking him back and forth. "I love you, Josh," he whispered into the teen's ear. "And I missed you so much." Then a thought occurred to him, something his son needed to hear. "I saw you put yourself in front of Max to protect him from the Slasher, putting yourself in harm's way. And, even though the thought of losing you terrified me, I was so proud of you in that moment, kid. So, incredibly proud."

His dad's words ran through his mind... he had been terrified, too? He was proud of him? Something in his father's tone told him that he was telling the truth. That unexpected knowledge kicked away the last of Josh's defenses and a sob broke through before he was able to stop it. Then another. And another.

Sensing the teen's mortification at being so vulnerable, Jim adjusted him so that the boy's sobs would be smothered by the juncture between his father's neck and shoulder. He felt Josh's hands come up around his back, clutching at his shirt as if for dear life.

Movement caught Jim's eye and he turned slightly to see Elizabeth standing in the doorway, one hand covering her mouth, eyes filled with tears of her own. Saying all he needed to say with his eyes, his wife retreated back to their bedroom, knowing that Jim would fill her in on everything she needed to know later.

For now, Jim held his son's shaking body in his arms, with no plans to let go anytime soon.

A/N Thoughts? I know I probably don't have the voices down but I hope it was still enjoyable.