A/N: I swear this plot would not let me get any sleep last night. It was all like "write me write me" and I was totally all like "not now go away". But I decided to write it anyways.
The title is from the definition of "Dream": A succession of thoughts or images blah blah blah. Takes place after Tsubasa ends. Please review even if it's just to tell me what the scariest nightmare you ever had was.
Oh yeah, and it's from Syaoran's POV. Enjoy!
Succession
We landed in a world that was cold. It wasn't unbearable in the least; in fact, it was easily survivable. It was already dark, however, and Fai told me that sometimes cold places stayed dark for long periods of time and so it could be day for all we knew.
Still, Kurogane said it was probably best to sleep before we looked for real shelter. So we built a fire and, well, here we are.
I agreed to keep watch first, because I knew that Kurogane had done a lot of the look-out work in the last world and Fai probably had stayed up as well to bother him. Besides, I didn't really feel like sleeping. The cold always brought on nightmares.
I could tell from the look in my companions' eyes that they were probably a little apprehensive to fall asleep as well. We all suffered from nightmares.
Fai would deny it of course, but I could tell that he was the worst when it came to sleeping. He tried to hide his exhaustion, and did it very easily, but when it came time to actually close his eyes he hesitated a lot.
It may have been worse when we were travelling with Sakura, but I hadn't really paid that much attention to him in favor of watching Sakura. To make sure she was safe, of course.
Ahem, anyways, it wasn't hard to figure out what Fai dreamed of. It was obvious in the way he leaned in close to the fire, as though in a constant search for warmth.
I knew he dreamed of cold snow, and a cold palace, and an even colder king.
I think that sometimes he also dreamed of blood and betrayal. Though whose betrayal, I'm not sure.
He never called out, though. He had probably gotten good at that when he was hiding his distress from Sakura so she wouldn't worry.
Kurogane, on the other hand, was hardly hesitant when it came to sleep. He seemed to understand that rest would allow him to be more alert the following day, and that was important to him. I still think he had nightmares, though.
I remembered the story I had read in the library. Kurogane's story. It had been so sad and yet… he never seemed to carry that sadness around with him. Not like Fai did. Maybe he was better at hiding it.
Still, I think that maybe that sadness escaped into his dreams sometimes. Because I've noticed that he sometimes wakes up and his face is wet, and Fai is trying to distract me with nonsense because he knows something about Kurogane that I don't. But I'm trying to figure it out.
And the second Kurogane dries his face, Fai is back at his side, and Kurogane is yelling at him, and I'm smiling. Because for all the excuses that "it was just melted snow, kid" and "I sweat during the night, okay stupid mage?" I know Kurogane is still human just like me, and that makes me feel better. Like somehow, this crazy perpetual journey is normal.
And sometimes I even think we could call this a family.
But I know that they're not the only ones who have nightmares. I dream too. I dream that I have been away from my princess for a long time, and that I might not see her again for a while, and that she might be in danger for all I know and I'm not there to protect her.
All I have is a promise and a feeling that she is alright.
But that's not the worst part of the nightmare. The worst part is waking up. Because that's when I realize that somehow, my nightmare has meshed with my reality, and that what I was dreaming was all true, and that the next world we go to may or may not have Sakura in it.
But for right now, in this little microchasm where it's just the three of us and our dreams, I feel like the chance of seeing her again is just the slightest bit higher.
And I look forward to the next world.