Ariette: I have brought you another sub-chapter! This one takes places during the same night the fight happened in last chapter. Why I'm making this clarification? Because you must know that all events that happen during the sub-chapters are happening between the main plot. That means that the sub-chapters will show things that have happened but not things that will happen unless its corresponding chapter is up. (That way I don't spoiler you... much XD)
Yuma: Wait, weren't you going to publish another sub-chapter?
Ariette: *Smiles sheepishly* Yeah, well, that's true. But I got really sick this weekend and couldn't finish that other sub-chapter, but while rereading last chapter I came up with this idea and thought of writing it down! It didn't even take me two days, so I thought of publishing this one first and then publish the other.
Yuma: *Shrugs* If you say so.
Ariette: None of the ZEXAL FORMS belong to me, sadly, but hey! This plot does! XD Enjoy!
-Sub-chapter: Nightmares or Memories-
"Dark…"
Dark looked up from his homework. It was already late in the night, roughly ten pm, but he couldn't find it in himself to finish homework. He disliked the idea of homework. Learning was for the school, not for the home. He closed his notebook and told himself he would finish it tomorrow before class.
He turned towards Zaxel, his twin, who had been the one calling him.
Zaxel was sitting in his own bed. The blonde was smiling slightly, looking at his twin from his side of the room. His shoulders were tensed and, even though he was smiling, there was a painful expression shadowing that smile.
Dark didn't need any other words. "Why don't we sleep together tonight?" He said, going to his own bed and patting the side in an inviting manner.
Zaxel stood and quickly went to his twin's side. He laid down on his twin's bed and waited for Dark to do the same. Dark turned off the lights and laid down beside his twin.
"Do you need anything else?" Dark asked quietly.
Zaxel hesitated for a moment before taking his brother's hand within his own. "I just need to know you're here…"
The black haired boy squeezed his twin's hand. "I'll always be here." There was no trace of uncertainty in his voice.
The words couldn't be entirely true. There was no way Dark could always be there when he needed him, but Zaxel decided to hang onto the hope those words gave him. Maybe that way he would be able to sleep.
Sadly, neither nightmares nor memories care about your feelings. They both strike when you least expect them or want them.
It always starts the same way. Sunny day, light breeze, happy smiles, Astral, him and them.
Then comes the strange feeling.
"Astral, let's go home."
Astral's reassuring smile.
"Everything is fine. Do not worry."
Their smile.
"Yeah! Don't worry! It'll be fun! Promise!"
The sudden loud sound of tires, running, shouting, the hands that forcefully grab him.
"What are you doing?! Leave us alone!"
Then… Then comes the worse part. Everything is a blur of colors and memories and sounds and pain. He remembers Astral. He remembers his own screaming, Astral's desperate cries, the betrayed and heartbroken look on his face.
And that laughter, the one that would follow him during his worst nightmares.
How could someone, anyone, laugh at what was happening to them? What kind of sick pleasure was there in hurting two children? Nobody in their sane mind would find pleasure in something like this, only a monster.
A monster that now lived in his darkest nightmares and memories. A monster that, for some reason, was always accompanied by the colors red and blue.
Crimson red for the blood and midnight blue for the terror.
Zaxel woke up screaming. Tears were running down his mismatched eyes and sweat was traveling down his face and neck.
Dark was beside him, holding him strongly and already whispering soothing words. "It was just a dream, just a nightmare. It's not real, it's not real."
The blonde could only cry and hold onto his brother. "It wasn't just a dream, Dark. It happened. It'll keep happening. It could happen again. It could be you next time. It could be us. It could be worse."
Dark squeezed his twin tightly, hiding his face between his twin's neck and shoulder. "Don't think about that. Nothing will happen to us. Nothing will happen to you. Not again, not ever. We're safe here. You're safe here."
"What if it happens again? What if you're hurt? What if it's Xezla or Alzex next time? What if it's Mist or Astral again or Yuma? We're not safe anywhere, Dark. We're at risk everywhere we go." More and more words shot out of the blonde's mouth, each one making less sense than the one before.
The black haired twin held his brother's shoulders and looked straight at his mismatched eyes. "Zaxel, Zaxel, calm down. Please! Panicking will do nothing to help you. Nothing will happen to us. We're fine! We'll be fine! So, please, stop thinking about that."
A pair of hands touched Dark, one in the shoulder, the other over his left hand. He looked up to see the silhouette of Xezla in the darkness of the room. Near the open door was Alzex and their mother, Mara.
Xezla gently took Dark's hands away from Zaxel and replaced them with his own.
"Hey, Zaxel," Xezla gently whispered, gaining the attention of his younger brother, "why don't you come with us? You'll feel better."
Zaxel looked at his older brother through watery eyes. "Xezla, we're going to be okay, right? No one will find us here, right? Nothing will happen again, right?"
Xezla smiled warmly. "We're safe here, Zaxel. You trust me, don't you? Have I ever lied to you?" Zaxel shook his head. "Then you have nothing to fear. You're safe with us. Now, come, come here."
The older brother extended his arms and enveloped his younger brother in them. Carefully, he stood with his brother still in arms and went to the door.
Their mother received them, delivering a loving kiss on her younger son's forehead and taking him from his older brother's arms. She whispered soothing words as well as she walked down towards the living room, her oldest son in tow.
Xezla returned to the room and picked up his other younger brother, gaining a surprised stare from the black haired twin.
"Let's all go together. Zaxel's not the only one who needs it," the older brother said.
Dark hid his face between the mass of red hair his brother had and allowed himself to cry silently. "He didn't deserve it. Neither of them did. I should've been in his place."
Xezla hugged his brother tightly. "No. They didn't deserve it, but you shouldn't have been in their place either. If anyone should've been there, it was me, you know that."
Dark held onto his brother tightly, a sob coming out of him. "It would've been worse for you. They would've…"
"Shhhh." Xezla soothed. "Let's not think about what ifs. For now, let's concentrate on feeling better, alright?" The younger boy nodded. "Good. Now let's go down with mom."
The older boy exited the room, still with his brother in arms, and went down the stairs towards the living room.
Their mother was laying down in the middle of the living room atop a couple of blankets. She was still holding Zaxel in her arms, now stroking his head as she whispered soothing words. Beside her was Alzex, putting countless of pillows and cushions around, making it look like a makeshift bed.
Xezla went towards them and laid down beside his mother, with Dark between himself and Zaxel. A couple of seconds later, he felt his oldest brother's body against his back.
Their mother smiled warmly. "Looks like we'll be all sleeping together tonight. Isn't that comforting, Zaxel?" She asked, nuzzling said twin.
Zaxel nodded. He took his twin's hand again and squeezed.
Dark squeezed back, pressing himself closer to his twin and mother.
They felt a blanket covering them and looked up to see their father smiling warmly. "It'll be alright, Zaxel, Dark."
After making sure everyone was well covered, the father laid down beside his wife and delivered a loving kiss to her before closing his eyes.
The mother gave a kiss to each twin. "Goodnight, darlings."
"Goodnight, mom," replied all four children.
She chuckled lightly and whispered to the younger blonde, "Sweet dreams, Zaxel."
"Sweet dreams, mom," the blonde whispered back. He turned slightly towards his twin and squeezed again the hand that was locked with his own. "Goodnight, Dark," He whispered.
"Goodnight, Zaxel," Dark whispered back, also squeezing his twin's hand.
They felt Xezla coming closer to them as he whispered, "I love you both."
"We love you too." They replied in unison.
They felt the hand of Alxez atop their linked hands and knew the message that it delivered.
"We love you as well, Alzex," They replied again, "And we love you, mom and dad."
The smile on their parents' faces was enough answer.
The twins looked at each other and mouthed a final "I love you" to the other.
Finally, all members of the family closed their eyes and went to sleep.
In a loving embrace such as the one they were sharing, there was no room for nightmares or memories.
"Thank you."
Ariette: Mist mentioned that both Astral and Zaxel suffer from nightmares because of their previous experiences, so I thought of showing a bit of how this kind of nights usually go for the twins. I think Zaxel is the one traumatized the most, like, he can't even think about what happened without starting to panic slightly. Poor guy. I feel like hugging him...
To the reviews:
De hearts 26: I think Astral is very curious of many things, especially 'cause he enjoys learning a lot. And I can totally picture Astral as an otaku in real life, for some reason. XD That'd actually make for a great sub-chapter! Thanks for the idea! Though we'll have to see Haruto first in the main chapters to be able to see this one happen. Don't worry though! Haruto may be closer than you think! Also, I had NO IDEA there was a special until you told me about it! I will definitively look it up! (Also, the Arclights will have their own chunk of sub-chapters once I introduce them in the stories XD) I didn't realize Astral actually has little interactions with Shark :O That'd make for great sub-chapters as well! Haven't seen Servamp, may look it up later on. Yugioh Zexal wouldn't be Yugioh Zexal without the Barians in my opinion. XD No, I am not going into Yaoi territory, mainly because I don't write Yaoi or Yuri. However, I find it hilarious to tease Astral with this because it's an opportunity we don't get every day. XD I think the story will take a sad turn, but in the end it'll be happy, I promise! Both Astral and Vector had very difficult childhoods. Their personalities may not be the same, but they still have wounds that they can relate in some way. I'm glad you understand this, both Astral and Vec, and I am not offended in any way for your comments. I think it's amazing you give your thoughts and I'm always open for discussions about life and stuff. XD Also, THANK YOU SO MUCH! I send you lots of love and hugs and kisses! GOD BLESS YOU! \(OoO)/
Fake face: Thanks and I surely will. XD
Fake blade: Thanks and you bet. XD
Stalking Anon: You left three reviews. *Gasps* Thanks for that. XD I'm glad I won't receive any punishment from Her Stalkership. XD Thank you for taking your time to answer the questions, Your Stalking Majesty. For me it's good to learn a bit more from my dear readers, makes me feel closer to them. Also, I may add Astral's and Mist's Kaa-san and Tou-san's reactions in a sub-chapter. XD I'm (not) sorry to say that we won't be entering Yaoi territory. As I said before, I don't write either Yaoi or Yuri. I am not bothered by your assumption, though. In a fandom such as this, it is normal to assume such a thing. However, I am not one among those writers for I believe in the purest love of friendship. I believe two beings can be the closest of friends without having to cross a romantic line. It is not necessary for a good relationship development, in my opinion. I admit that, yes, I will be teasing Astral and Yuma a lot because I find it hilarious, but nothing will be serious on any point of the story. I hope to not have offended you with this. Finally, I thank you again for your reviews and I'm very glad you liked it. I reassure you, I'm not bothered or annoyed at all. In fact, I like to hear all of your opinions. :D
Ariette: So that's it for the reviews! I shall continue working on the other sub-chapters and the main chapter as I go on with life! XD Though I may delay a while since I've been sick for... five days now. :/ *Sigh* Why does this kind of things only happen to me? Anyways! See you next chappie! :D