Chapter III

It was a beautiful day. The trees and hedges ringing the playground provided just the right amount of shade for the children to play in with little fear of getting a sunburn. Most of them had taken their shoes off in order to feel the grass under their toes. Watching them play made Dr. Marluxia realize—not for the first time—how lucky it was that the Home even had a green area such as this. It was uncommon, considering its location in the city, but was one of the reasons Mr. Fuseiai had chosen the property he had when building the Home.

It's good that the children have a place to enjoy fresh air without worrying about traffic or skinning their knees on asphalt.

The traffic of the city was nearby, but thankfully the trees and hedges helped to block it out, so the sounds were muted and seemed farther away than they really were.

Seated at the painted blue picnic table, Marluxia idly skimmed over yet another form. Early starts the last few days had helped him get through most of it; he was almost back to his regular documentation of sessions. If he worked through lunch, he might be able to finish it all.

A beeping sound from his watch alerted Marluxia to the fact that it was time for the first session of the day, and he set the forms aside. Sessions were always preferable to paperwork.

"Children," he called softly, knowing that their sensitive ears would easily hear him. "Come sit. It's time to begin."

Obediently, the children left their games and sat in a circle in the grass. A space was left for the pink-haired doctor, and they sat in their usual pattern. Marluxia was quick to join them, and smiled.

"Have you all been having fun?" he asked, hands gracefully moving through the signs. Nodding heads, smiles and signed yes's answered his question.

"I'm glad. Today we're going to talk about dreams. Would anyone like to start?

Sora raised his hand then signed, "Good dreams or bad dreams?"

"Either. You can tell about any dream you want. Take a moment to think of a dream, then raise your hand when you pick one. We'll take turns once everyone's decided."

One by one, hands were raised. The doctor nodded and they were lowered.

"Who would like to go first?"

No one moved. They'd discussed dreams before; it wasn't a very exciting topic, but that wasn't the point. Talking about dreams was a way to check progress. Dr. Marluxia wanted to see if recurring dreams had broken, if a nightmare was no longer frightening. Changes in dreams could mean the child was making progress, or even regressing. If the children were unwilling to share, then perhaps there were no changes to look for.

A friendly, encouraging smile overtook the man's face. "No one wants to go first? How about I tell you what happened in my dream?"

A few of the children smiled and nodded.

"Tell," Sora's hands commanded. Roxas nudged him disapprovingly and added,

"Please."

"Thank you, Roxas," Marluxia signed to the blond, pretending not to notice the embarrassed blush on Sora's face. For a moment, he paused, as if thinking, though really he was just building suspense in his audience. He knew they wanted to hear about his dream.

"It was very dark," he began, speaking softly as seven pairs of eyes focused on his hands. "I was all alone, and no matter how loud I yelled or how fast I ran, I couldn't find anyone or anything."

"Were you scared?" The question came from a worried-looking Demyx, and Dr. Marluxia nodded.

"Yes. I was lost and afraid. Then, suddenly, I saw a light. It was dim and far away, but as I ran towards it, it got brighter and bigger." The pink-haired man paused and the children leaned towards him eagerly.

"What was the light?" Kairi asked, her movements quick and impatient.

Marluxia smiled. "You."

A confused look went around the group.

"Me?" The redheaded girl didn't understand.

"Yes. All of you." He indicated each child. "I was lost. I didn't know what to do with my life. Then I found you. You children saved me from the dark, and now I know what to do. Now I know where to go. I'm not scared anymore. I'm happy."

Finished, Marluxia waited for a response; the children were looking at each other and signing amongst themselves. Seeming to reach an agreement, six of the seven children stood and crowded around the doctor, hugging him. Dr. Marluxia felt happy tears beginning to form and took a deep breath to hold them back. He wrapped his arms around the fragile bodies and sighed happily, letting his eyes close. When he lifted his head a few moments later, he saw Kairi standing before him.

"We love you, Doctor," she signed, an innocent smile lighting up her sweet face. "You saved us from the dark, too."

"Thank you," he replied, and then turned his attention to the one child that had not moved.

Namine was still seated in the grass, her crystal blue eyes focused on the dandelion she had picked. The yellow was unusually bright next to her pale fingers, but she liked it. Yellow was her favorite color—it was happy and warm, like the sun.

"Namine."

The quiet voice broke her concentration and she looked towards the doctor as the other children returned to their places in the circle. His kind eyes looked worried, and, for a moment, she wanted to run into his arms and nuzzle into his chest like she'd done to her father when he returned home from a long trip. But the doctor wasn't her father, and so she remained where she was.

The concern was replaced by a smile. "Would you like to go first? Tell us about your dream."

Nodding, the blonde girl gently placed the dandelion in her lap in order to use her hands. Briefly, she described a dream in which she was alone in her house. All the lights were on, even though it was very late at night. Someone was crying, but she didn't know who, and she couldn't find them because the doors to the bedrooms were locked. The crying got louder and louder. She tried to call out and tell the person that they didn't need to cry, but no sound came out.

"I tried and tried," she finished, "but it didn't work. Then I woke up." Her hands stilled and she kept her gaze lowered, needlessly embarrassed to be the center of attention. A sympathetic touch on her shoulder drew the blonde's attention to Kairi, who was smiling.

"It's okay," the redheaded girl signed. "We all have dreams like that."

Relieved that she wasn't alone yet sad that her new friends were just as scared as she was, Namine smiled and looked at the doctor. He had yet to offer any sort of reaction to her dream, and she was curious as to what he thought.

Marluxia lifted his hands when he knew the girl was watching. "Do you have this dream often?"

The blonde girl nodded. "Not every night, but a lot."

"Does it ever change?"

"Sometimes it is dark."

"How does this dream make you feel?"

For a moment, Namine considered the question. "Scared. Lonely. Sad."

"Why do you think you feel that?"

Again, she paused before answering, as if weighing her words. "Because I know that my mom and dad are gone and that I should be crying, but I'm not. Also because I want to help the crying person but I can't find them, and there is no one there to help me."

"Is there anything else about the dream that you forgot to say or want to share?"

Namine hesitated. "I think it is my aunt."

"Who?"

"The person who is crying in my dream."

"Does your aunt cry because your parents are gone?"

"No, but I know she is very sad and misses them."

"I see. Thank you for sharing, Namine."

Blushing, she returned her attention to her dandelion.

"Who would like to go next?" Dr. Marluxia asked, looking at the other children.

"Can we go around the circle?" Kairi suggested when none of the others volunteered.

Marluxia nodded his approval and indicated that Sora would start and Kairi would go last. The children seemed relieved that a decision had been made—none of them wanted to volunteer.

"Go ahead, Sora."

Small hands flying, the brunette quickly described his dream. He was at the park with his parents, having a picnic like they did every weekend. Their dog was there and Sora was playing fetch with him while his parents got the food ready. Then they called him over to eat, but their voices didn't sound right. They were high pitched and screechy, like smashing metal. It hurt his ears, but he pretended not to notice. He didn't want to make them feel bad. His dog was whining because he didn't like the sounds either. Sora went to play with him but he ran away, then everyone in the park suddenly vanished, including his parents. Left all alone, Sora sat on the picnic blanket and waited for someone to come find him.

None of this surprised Marluxia or the other children; they'd all heard about the dream before, except for Namine.

"Have your feelings about this dream changed at all, Sora?"

The brunette shook his head. "I feel the same."

Dr. Marluxia hid the small amount of disappointment he felt and smiled at the blond beside Sora. "Your turn, Roxas."

Nodding, Roxas lifted his hands and twisted them in the air as he formed the words to tell them his dream. "Something's chasing me, and I'm running, but I don't know what it is. At first I can run really fast, and it feels like I'm getting away, but then something heavy grabs my legs and I get slower and slower until I can't even move. When I try to take a step, I fall down and my legs won't move so I can't get up. The thing chasing me is getting closer and closer but I can't tell what it is, then right before I know it's going to get me, I wake up."

"The same as before?"

"Yes."

The pink-haired doctor nodded and turned his attention on the redheaded boy sitting to Demyx's left.

Axel blinked then realized it was his turn to share. "My eyes are closed, but even if I open them it's too dark to see, and the air stings them. My throat, nose and lungs hurt from the air so it's hard to breathe. The only thing I can hear is a loud roar and crashes. I'm trapped in a small room, and if I feel around the walls I find a door, but I can't get it open and the door knob burns me if I touch it. Then there's a louder crash, and a bright light, and it ends."

"Has anything changed since you last had this dream?"

"No."

"All right. Zexion?"

"It's dark and quiet and warm, and I can hear my mother's voice. She's reading to me." His small hands dropped for a moment to lightly touch the book in his lap. "It's always a different part of the story, but she always reads the very ending to me, no matter what."

Smiling kindly, Dr. Marluxia lifted his hands. "How does the book end, Zexion?"

A small frown creased the blue-haired boy's forehead. "I can't tell you that. You have to read the book first."

Marluxia chuckled. "Of course. I should have known better than to ask." Zexion's frown vanished and he nodded, lowering his gaze.

"Your turn, Demyx."

"My parents are walking down the street with me," the mulleted boy began. "We're holding hands. It's sunny at first, but soon it gets cloudy and windy and cold, then it starts to rain. The rain forms puddles that get deeper and deeper, and everyone walks through the water like it isn't even there. Soon I have to swim because I'm not tall enough, and then everything is underwater. I try to swim up but my parents are still holding onto me, and they won't let go. I know I need air so I try to get away but I can't." Small tears dripped down his cheeks. "They hold onto me and I drown."

Silent, Marluxia held his arms out and the boy quickly moved into his lap. The doctor held him, humming and stroking his hair in a soothing fashion. Perhaps such interaction between therapist and patient was frowned up, but these were children and Marluxia wasn't going to deny them comfort when they needed it.

"Kairi, it is your turn." He spoke without signing, his hands still busy with the task of calming Demyx.

The pink-haired girl nodded in understanding. "In my dream, I'm lost in a crowd of people. We're all running around, but we keep stumbling and falling like the floor is moving, and the people are yelling. For some reason I can't tell what they're saying. Suddenly, all the people are gone and I'm alone and it's dark and cold and scary, but all I can think about are my mom and dad because I don't know where they are."

"Does anything else happen?"

"No. It is the same as always."

"Would anyone like to say something before we end the session?" Marluxia asked, hopeful. So far, none of the children had reported any changes, though that wasn't exactly surprising. They took a moment to think before shaking their heads; there was nothing more to add to the conversation.

The doctor resisted a heavy sigh and helped Demyx to his feet. "That will be all for now. Go play."

Immediately, Sora grabbed Roxas' hand and dragged the blond towards the swings. This made Kairi smile, and she more gently took Namine along to join the two boys. Zexion, unsurprisingly, chose a shady spot to read in and buried his nose and his book.

Left with each other, Demyx and Axel shared a small nod before running towards the sandbox and the toy dinosaurs that had been left there. A silent war between Axel's carnivores and Demyx's herbivores raged as sand was sent flying.

Marluxia watched them all for a moment. He wanted to join them, but the stack of papers was still waiting on the picnic table.

That's all I have left to do, and I'll be done with it.

With a sigh, he rose from his spot in the grass and returned to the paper work. At least he'd be able to get a decent amount of sleep tonight.

XXX

Trailing behind her aunt, Namine walked into the condo they lived in together. Her stomach growled, and she looked up at the blonde woman before her. She could ask what was for dinner, but she knew her aunt didn't know sign language. There was little to no point in trying to communicate with the woman.

Resigned, the white-blonde girl made her way into the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was full of take out boxes and leftovers from various restaurants her aunt had visited recently. Namine missed the days when it was filled with her mother's home cooking. But there was no use dwelling on the past, and she quickly pushed the thoughts of her mother away. The memories only made her sad.

Namine chose an unlabeled Styrofoam box and dumped the contents onto a plate before climbing up onto a stool and putting the food in the microwave. It wasn't the best supper, but it was the best she was going to get.

The microwave beeped and she removed the plate, careful not to burn her fingers, then carried her food to the large wooden table in the dining room. Her aunt had vanished and wasn't likely to show herself again before Namine went to bed, so the girl ate in solitude. Once the food was gone, she took the dishes back to the kitchen and put them into the dishwasher to be taken care of later—her aunt had a cleaning lady that came once a week to wash the windows and vacuum and take care of other such chores. She was a very nice woman and Namine liked her very much, though they couldn't really communicate because the woman didn't know sign language. But Namine would listen while she talked and did her best to show her reactions.

With her stomach full and her dishes taken care of, Namine went down the short hall into her bedroom and changed into her pajamas. The clothes she had worn that day were either put away or thrown into the hamper depending on if they needed to be washed or not. Then she crossed the hall to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and carefully combed out her hair. A small smile came to her lips when she thought about how proud her father would be if he could see Namine taking care of herself, but she was quick to remove such thoughts. She felt bad for making herself not think about her parents, but it only made her sad, and Namine was tired of being sad. She wanted to be happy again, and that wasn't going to happen if she kept letting herself miss the way things used to be.

Finished, she went back to her room, switched off the light, and climbed into bed. The nightlight she had cast a soft glow that was just strong enough for her to be able to see the faces in the picture on her bedside table. It was a photo of her and her parents, and Namine reached out to touch the glass with small, pale fingers.

"Good night, Mommy," she signed, sitting up in bed. "Good night, Daddy." Then she laid down and closed her eyes, hoping that she wasn't going to have the dream again, that maybe this time something about it would be different, that she'd wake up happy for the first time in months.