Disclaimer: I do not own Midnighters or Buffy the Vampire Slayer; they are the wonderful work of Scott Westerfeld and Joss Whedon.

A/N: this chapter's a bit horror-y, didn't mean it to be though, really. Honest. Just sorta turned out that way. Anyway thanks for the review.

Nightmare

...

Melissa glanced frantically around the room – no, the cave – she was in. Blood camouflaged the walls, never leaving more than a centimetre of brown rock-wall free from its horrible clutches. The sight chilled her to the bone and she bit her lip – hard – to stop herself from letting out a scream. Her entire body ached as if someone had repeatedly beaten her over with a hammer and she was pretty sure she was bleeding from a cut on her forehead. Where the hell am I?

Wherever I want you to be, replied a voice in her head. It sounded cold and sickly sweet, a sound that caused Melissa to shudder. This was just getting a little too freaky for her.

And who the hell are you?

A nightmare, a monster, anything you don't want me to be.

She frowned, wondering what in the world was going on. What do you want? The question tasted wrong on her tongue, and she realized immediately how horror-movie-like it sounded.

You. I want you.

Um, sorry, I don't even know you. And even if I did I don't exactly go on dates, especially with voices inside my head, she bit off, wanting desperately to leave wherever this was.

The voice ignored her. I want to see you bleed. To scream in agony whilst writhing on the floor, till it's painted crimson with your life. Oh, what a pretty picture. Oh, how I'll dance.

Melissa shuddered; something about the singsong voice terrified her beyond belief. And that was without the horrifying words. Well, you're not getting what you want.

Oh, but I am. Oh, but I am. the last sentence rose higher than the last and it sent a chill down her spine. Now. It was said so suddenly and coldly that Melissa had no time to react when a shadowy figure pounced on her out of the darkness. She let out a gasp of pain as razor sharp claws grazed her side and needle-like teeth pierced her neck. I will show you pain you never even dreamed of.

Melissa let out a scream as the teeth sunk deeper into her neck and something burned her side. A pain started emanating from her gut as though something had suddenly stabbed her. Tears sprung to her eyes and she knew immediately that he was right – he was going to get what he wanted. She could feel blood seeping out from beneath her writhing, screaming form and knew he was right. The thought cut her like a knife as she sank deeper into agony.



...

Dess frowned as she raced up the stairs, the screaming growing even louder with every step. Jessica, Jonathon and Buffy were trailing along behind her and she was pretty sure Mrs Summers had paused in her cooking at the unexpected outburst. Dess didn't have to be a mindcaster to know who was screaming and neither did anyone else. The scream was undoubtedly feminine and there was only one other female in the house who remained unaccounted for. Her stomach twisted in worry; what could be so bad to make Melissa scream like that?

...

Rex tried desperately to hold down Melissa's flailing arms. He'd been awoken by the mindcaster's screams a couple of minutes ago and had since been unable to wake her. Shouting and nudging were of no help and he was debating the unappealing thought of whether he should slap her or not.

"Melissa! Wake up!" he shouted, deciding to continue with shouting for the moment. "It's just a dream!"

As expected this had little effect and the brunette continued to writhe in untold pain beneath him. Before he could try anything else the door slammed open and Dess burst in, marching purposefully towards them. Barely sparing him a glance she pushed him aside and, to his astonishment, sent a stinging slap to the side of Melissa's face. He saw the polymath cringe as bare skin met bare skin and she withdrew her hand quickly. Still, although drastic as it was, the action seemed to work and Melissa's eyes sprang open. For a few dragging seconds she lay there, stock still staring unseeingly at the ceiling.

"Get out," she said finally, her voice quiet but firm.

Rex and Dess stared across at each other unsure of what to do.

"Get out!"

The two Midnighters hastily left the room, shrinking under the harshness of the mindcaster's tone. Rex slammed the door shut and leant against it with a sigh. On the other side he could hear a scream muffled by some sort of object; a fist? A pillow? He didn't know. Next came the sobs. Icy talons gripped his heart at the sound of them and the urge to bring her into his arms was growing almost too strong to bear.

Glancing up he nearly jumped out of his skin when he met the concerned faces of Jessica, Jonathon and Buffy staring back at him. He could hear Mrs Summers coming up the stairs too, her rushed footsteps faltering every now and again. He heard a noise behind him and saw Dess walk off, face ashen and blank. It would take a while for her to get over touching Melissa; that he knew.

In a poor attempt to distract himself he looked down at his watch: 6:27. They hadn't slept for long, not nearly enough for Melissa's tired body. And it would be pretty impossible to get her to sleep now, not after whatever nightmare she'd just had.

He caught sight of Mrs Summers hurrying towards them and locked eyes with her.

"What happened?" she asked.

Rex shrugged. "Nightmare." It was such a simple word, so simple in fact that he found it inadequate to describe what had just happened. But it was the only word he could manage at the moment, the only word he could manage with Melissa's sobs in the background. He could tell that it didn't really satisfy her but after a pause she nodded, her face soft.

"Dinners almost ready. Does anyone want some hot chocolate?"

Everyone nodded; more because it was something to do than because they actually wanted one.

"Melissa will just have some warm milk though, she doesn't like hot chocolate," Rex told her, giving away how much this was actually effecting him by using Melissa's real name. He didn't know whether he'd be able to get her down stairs for a glass of milk but he'd try anyway. He knew how bad it was for her to stay cramped up in a dark room too long – it messed a heap with her sanity.

After a pause he nodded in goodbye at the silent group before gently pushing his way back into the room, intent on helping Melissa now that he'd given her a few minutes to calm down.

A/N: What'd you think? Reviews are much appreciated.

NEXT: Dess and Jonathon have a little chat and Rex confronts Melissa.