Wow! I'm back! I am so very happy to be home from Hawaii and....oh, who am I kidding?! I WANT TO GO BACK! SOB SOB SOB!!!! But, seriously, I missed you guys and writing and stuff. That was the tough part...
But now, where to begin? Oh, yes, I remember...welcome back to my world. Hope you enjoy the continuation of this story as I listen to the Prisoner of Azkaban soundtrack (am I converting to a Harry Potter fan? Oh, Tolkein...FORGIVE ME!). Ah, wait! I must say this (Sydnie, forgive me), but, since I'm listening to the POA soundtrack, I just remembered...the dementors are a TOTAL rip-off of Ringwraiths (Nazgul, the Nine, etc.). I mean, come on. It was TOLKEIN'S IDEA FIRST! GOD, MOOCHERS! Good, now that that's off my chest, time for some random thought process (or RTP for short! honestly, I feel like Yu Watase here in her manga! I'm an anime fan, too).
Okay, I just beat The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King for the playstation 2, and MAN OH MAN! It was hard, but soooo much fun!!! And m'boy Leggie (he's level nine now, one step closer to the final level he can go) got me there! WOOHOO! Needless to say, he looks just as hot in a video game RPG as in the movie and book. Mm...and Orlando is just....wow, I'm drooling. OO! POLL TIME! Okay, okay: In which movie is Orlie the hottest? (pick one and tell me what you think and why).
(you guessed it, my pick!!) The Lord of the Rings: Legolas
Pirates of the Carribean: The Curse of the Black Pearl: William Turner
Troy: Paris
Alright, now, which is your favorite movie and why? I feel like an English teacher for an essay... but, for me, DUH PEOPLE, TIS CHOICE A ALL THE WAY. It could be all of them, just cuz he's SO HOT! But my fave movie is LOTR, obviously. I hated Troy just because of the really, REALLY bad dialogue, and it was SO inaccurate! PARIS DIES, PEOPLE! AND MENELLAUS LIVES, NOT GETS KILLED BY HECTOR! ARGH! Poor Homer...they totally destroyed the Iliad, but, oh well. Okay, back to the story...I'm really sorry, but I'm rambling. STOP READING THIS! I'M WARNING YOU! Aww...my Teddy (he's my dog, so tiny...he's six years old next Monday and he STILL looks like a puppy...he's so cute!) is dreaming! His widdle paw is twitching and he's whimpering....awww! Got to wake him up...what if he's having a nightmare? WOAH! COME ON, I'VE GOT TO START WRITING! SORRY, GUYS!
Ch. 21: Fabled Dreams
"For your life, Aya, run!"
"Sieg, behind you!"
"DAD!"
"They're coming..."
Aya shot up in bed, cold sweat trickling down the side of her face. She shivered and angrily wiped the tears from her face. Her heart was racing in her chest as any chance of sleep faded out the window. Sighing, she slipped carefully from bed, replacing the covers over Remus and tiptoed out the room.
I'll probably catch my death out here.
Aya watched her steamy breath get caught by the wind and soar away. She sighed and wrapped the coat a little tighter around her, kicking at the ground. Snow clung to her boots.
Why the hell am I out here?
She knew the answer.
"Stupid dreams," she murmured as she pressed her back against the wall of the cottage.
Sunrise isn't for another two hours, stupid. Why are you out here?
Hugging her knees to her chest, she gazed out towards the dark mass of the forest. The moon, near its full once again, seemed to stare unblinkingly at her with a sneering face. She looked to the stars instead and closed her eyes.
"How many stars are there, Daddy?"
"I dunno, Little Elf. More than you can ever count in your lifetime, probably."
"I bet I can count them all!"
"Little Elf, I bet you would. There's no telling what you can do, am I right?"
"Why am I out here?" she whispered softly to herself. "I'm being an idiot, and I know it."
Licking her cold, chapped lips, Aya stood and moved to go inside.
Still a Little Elf...
"Aya, you look terrible! Did you sleep alright?"
Liz placed the back of her hand on the girl's forehead, her eyes narrowed. With a rather nasty and very obvious glance towards her eldest son, she said, "You feel a bit warm...did you sleep okay?"
Aya, still recovering from the unexpected motherly affection, guiltily shook her head.
Liz clicked her tongue. "Was it the bed? I swear, that boy shouldn't sleep there with you, you know."
Remus tried his best to look away.
"No, no, the bed's great! Just some bad dreams, is all, honest. I'm really fine!" Aya replied quickly, blushing.
"Bad dreams?" Remus asked, looking up. "You should've woken me up...ah, not that I was right there in the room, of course, Mum...you know, I was sleeping great in my own room and all!"
Liz narrowed her eyes and mouthed "I'm watching you, boy."
Remus gulped.
"I'll get you a nice cup of tea, then. We can't have any sick 'uns when it's Christmas Eve tomorrow!" Liz replied with a smile.
"You gonna tell me how come you didn't wake me up?" Remus asked, crossing his arms and leaning forward on the couch.
Startled, Aya nearly dropped her book. Catching it before it fell to the ground, she blushed and shakily pushed a stray strand of black hair from her face. Biting her lip, she looked up at him and smiled. "I didn't want to bother you," she replied.
"Bull shit!"
"Remus!" Liz yelled from the kitchen. "What have I told you about profanity, young man?!"
"Er...not in the house?" Remus replied.
"Damn straight!" Liz yelled back.
"Um...okay, hypocrisy aside, of course," Remus hissed, rolling his eyes. Turning back to Aya, he continued with a lowered tone of voice. "Bother me? Why would it bother me?"
Aya shrugged and opened her book again. "It was nothing important."
He shut the book in her hands and stared intently at her. "You went outside last night."
Startled, she looked up at him, her cheeks flushing madly. "What...?"
"Your boots were muddy. I saw them this morning," Remus whispered. "I'm going to take a wild guess that you had a really bad nightmare..."
"Oh, come off it, Remus. It was just a stupid dream. Honest."
The howls were sounding closer and closer. They were coming. The screams had gone quiet a while ago, but the howls still continued.
Something moved in the bushes...something with shining, green eyes...something that snarled.
And then it leapt from the bushes, and all she could do was scream.
"Aya! Dear God, wake up! Hey!"
Remus shook her, his lip trembling. With a deep sigh of relief, he saw her eyes open. He pushed back to allow her to sit up, then he pushed her hair from her face. Cold sweat brushed along his fingertips. It was a while before he realized she was trembling, even as he held her tightly to his chest.
"It was just a bad dream, that's all," he whispered in her hair.
"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to," she murmured, biting her lip.
"It's okay, but, damn! You scared the flipping shit out of me, though!" he hissed, pulling back to stare into her gray eyes. "What the hell happened? You started screaming bloody murder...I thought something was attacking you or something, I almost punched the wall!" He laughed, placing his hand behind his head.
She twisted her hands together and bit her lip, feeling more than just embarrassed. "I'm really, really sorry..."
"Ah, it's okay, you just scared me, is all. I'm glad my Mum didn't wake up and come tearing in here, because then she probably would've taken you to the hospital, knowing her," he replied, glancing towards the door. "But, you kept saying 'Mum, run!' the whole time."
"Did...did I?"
"Yeah, and something about 'they're coming.' Scared me stiff," he replied, twirling his hands together. "What were you dreaming about?"
"Um...nothing, really," she whispered, staring at her hands.
"Nothing doesn't send you screaming like that," he replied, grasping her hands. "You...dreamt about...them, didn't you? Your family?"
She remained silent, her heart beating rapidly. Please, God, no...don't tell him...
"It...was nothing important," Aya replied hastily, pulling away from him.
"Oh, no, not this again!" he cried, grasping her shoulders. "You did this before, remember? And I had to pin you down that time, and I really, really don't want to do that again..."
"They...they died, is all," Aya replied, staring at anything...anything but his eyes. "It was a long time ago, Remus. It doesn't matter anymore."
"But...doesn't matter? How can anything not matter?"
"Let's just go back to bed, okay? I'm tired," she whispered.
"Aya..."
"Please...let's just go to sleep..."
He sighed. "Alright, but you wake me up if you can't fall asleep, or if you're scared or anything, okay?"
He pushed her gently back onto her pillow and kissed her forehead. Then, he snuggled next to her and pulled the covers over them.
You're such a mystery, Aya...
"Hey, sun's up! Wakey, wakey! Remus, Remus, Remus, Remus, Remus!"
"Ugh...shut the hell up, Thomas!" Remus yelled, tossing his pillow at his younger brother. "She finally went to sleep and now you come in!"
"But it's Christmas Eve," Thomas whispered, eyeing the sleeping girl. "Mum's got breakfast going and on, Mum's pancakes. Wake her up!"
"Are you crazy?" Remus hissed, sitting up. "She didn't get much sleep last night."
"Yeah, I know. I heard her screaming...scared me, but then I heard you, so it was fine," Thomas said with a shrug. "Just wake her up...you know Mum's not gonna let us eat till everyone's up. I'm trying to get Dad up, too."
"Well, go wake him up, then!"
"Ah, but he sleeps like a rock! I bet even a Ringwraith couldn't wake him up, honestly!" Thomas whined.
"Well...try again! And take your meds, too," Remus hissed. "And a bath, too...you smell!"
"Bugger."
"Mornin', Mum," Remus yawned, stretching as he entered the kitchen. Scratching his belly, he kissed his mother on the cheek.
"Set the table," Liz replied. "And is your dad up yet?"
"Thomas is trying to get him up," Remus replied.
"Is Aya up?"
"Naw, she's still sleeping. She had...a rather rough night, so I'm letting her sleep a bit," he answered with a yawn.
"Thomas tells me she was screaming," Liz replied, trying to sound aloof, but at the same time failing. "Is she alright?"
Remus noted the tone of motherly concern in her voice and smiled. "I think so..."
"Another nightmare?"
"Yeah, but she didn't want to talk about it at all," he replied. "So, I'm just gonna leave it alone."
Liz set her wand down and turned to her son, narrowing her eyes and wagging her finger before she realized his back was turned to her. "Hey, I'm talking to you, so turn around! That's better. Now, then, I'm saying this once, so pay attention. She's barely slept for two whole nights, has woken up screaming, and you're saying 'I'm just gonna leave it alone'? Are you nuts?"
Remus blushed. "She's...not exactly the kind of girl who likes tell people what's really bothering her. It's like pulling teeth trying to get it out of her...believe me, I've had first hand account. If she's willing to tell, she'll tell. Honestly, there's no use in interrogating her at all."
Liz sighed and turned back to cooking. "You keep stuff bottled up inside you like that, you'll end up in a lot of trouble one day. She'll have a major outburst sometime soon, with all the horrible stuff she's seen and been through. It's a wonder she can still keep smiling at all. Remus, you've got to help her."
Remus resumed setting the table.
I'm trying...I love her too much not to try at all...
Sunlight crept in quietly and warmly through the window triumphantly to splash upon her sleeping face. Remus smiled to herself. She looks so innocent and pretty, he thought to himself as he knelt by the edge of the bed, placing his chin on the edge. He watched her steady breathing and gently brushed a stray strand of hair from her cheek.
"Aya..." he whispered in her ear, gently running his hands through her hair. "Hey, it's time to wake up..."
She stirred quietly. Without opening her eyes, she whispered, "Is it time to get up already?"
He laughed. "Come on, sleepy head. How else can I wish you a merry Christmas Eve if you don't wake up?"
Sighing, she opened one eye and smiled. "Okay, okay, I'm up," she answered, sitting up slowly, brushing her hair from her face. "What time is it?"
"Almost nine...hungry?" he replied, planting a kiss on her lips.
"Starving."
"G'mornin', Aya!" Thomas cried from the table, waving both arms violently in the air.
Smiling, she replied, "Good morning, Thomas. Merry Christmas!"
"It's only Christmas Eve," he replied glumly, putting his elbows on the table.
"Elbows off, Thomas, if you want to keep them," Liz hissed, eyes glimmering through narrowed slits.
"Yes, Mum," Thomas replied quickly. "Sorry. Hey, let's have a snowball fight!"
"After breakfast," Isaac said quickly.
"Have you ever been in a snowball fight, Aya?" Thomas asked, his eyes shining.
"Not really," she replied quickly. "Kind of, at my old school..."
Yeah, I was their target, she thought grimly.
"Come on, let's eat!" Liz said with a smile. "I made my special pancakes today...Remus' favorite."
"They're my favorite, too!" Thomas yelled.
"Everything Mum cooks is your favorite, Stupid," Remus said with a sigh.
"Stop calling me stupid!" Thomas yelled.
"Oh, come off it, that's the first time I've ever called you that! What, you like Idiot better? "
"Remus," Aya said quickly, staring calmly at him, "you should know better. Set an example, would you?" Remus blushed and stared down at his plate. "Apologize to him."
"What?!" Remus cried. Liz chuckled to herself and exchanged glances with her husband. Remus quickly recoiled from the sudden flash in the girl's eyes. He had seen that look only once before, and even then it had frightened him a little. "Er...I'm sorry, Squirt...Thomas."
Why does she always make me feel so childish?
"Would you like some pancakes, Aya?" Liz asked sweetly, a large, triumphant smile on her face.
"Yes, please," she answered.
"Come on, Aya, you have to build a fort first, silly!" Remus laughed as he ducked under his wall of snow as her snowball went sailing overhead.
"But guerilla warfare is so much better!" she answered with a giggle as she hid quickly behind the tree.
Remus jumped up to throw a few warning shots at her when he was caught from behind by some rather cold slush. Turning angrily, he barely had to time to catch a glimpse of Thomas ducking behind a tree. "What is this?"
"Oh, I forgot to tell you," Aya called out from her hiding place. "Thomas is on my team!"
"What! That's not fair, two against one?" Remus cried out as he turned, keeping a wary eye on Thomas. Seeing her chance, Aya shot out from behind the tree and sprinted over, then tackled him into the deeper snow behind him.
"Got you!" she yelled, giggling madly. "I win!"
"Not...fair...." Remus said through a mouthful of snow. "Ow, that kind of hurt..."
Blushing, she replied, "Oops, sorry. Looks like I'll need to bandage you up, silly."
"Payback!" he yelled, then grabbed her behind her head and pushed her into the snow. "I win the second round!" He tickled her and smothered her with kisses, cackling loudly.
"Ew, gross," Thomas said as he came out from behind the bush. "Can you guys not do that in my presence? Kissing is disgusting."
"All three of you are absolutely soaked and muddy! I can't believe it!" Liz was yelling, wagging a finger at them. "And dinner's in an hour, and here you all are dirty! Get to the shower, the lot of you before I give you another piece of my mind!"
"Ladies first," Remus said under his breath to Aya. "I'll go in when she's not looking."
"And Remus!"
"Er...yeah, Mum?"
"Showering requires bathing separately, understand me, boy? Or it's your hide, understand?" Liz hissed.
"Absolutely, 't agree more, could you, Aya? Of course not! Capital idea Mum, clearly capital!"
"Quit sucking up, Remus."
"Of course, Mum. Capital idea, eh? And have I told you how wonderfully beautiful you're looking? Mm...and I bet that's apple pie in the oven!"
"Just take your shower, Remus!" Liz cried, exasperated.
"Of course, Mum, I would be-"
"JUST GO!"
"I can't believe we're doing this," Aya giggled as she closed the door behind her. "This is worse than sleeping together, you know. She'll kill us both."
"Oh, hush. Besides, the water's running, and I like my shower to be hot," Remus said, silencing her. "Not lukewarm or ice cold. Besides, I've already seen you naked...well, it was an accident..."
She went crimson and gripped at the towel around her a little tighter. "You peeked, which wasn't fair! And I was asleep!"
"Yeah, yeah, life isn't fair. Anywho, let's get in the shower...er...you first."
"Why do I have to go first? You can go first!"
"Fine! Fine! I'll go first, then," he replied, turning towards the shower and pulling back the curtain.
There was a long pause.
"Are you getting in, or what?" Aya asked.
He started. "Well, yeah...I just like to...um...judge the angle of the shower head, first, and make sure everything's alright. Can't a guy do that or what?"
She narrowed her eyes at him. "Fine, why don't we just...get in together? That way it's on then..."
Slowly but surely, he slipped off his towel, and, though he was a gentleman, watched her with wide eyes as she slipped off hers. Biting his lip, he went to step in the shower before he realized only too late that he was still some two feet from the ledge. With a loud cry, he fell backwards and crashed head first into the shower, nearly flipping over.
"Oh, my God! Are you okay?" Aya cried, running to him.
"Ah...shit...hurts...but, yeah, I'm okay..." he moaned, sitting up as the water came splashing over him.
"Good, just had to make sure," she said, then burst out laughing, leaning against the sink for support. "You looked...so...hilarious! Your feet...oh, God...your feet just....ha...went up in the air...like a ballet dancer....oh, God! Oh, God!"
"Hey! Stop it!" Remus cried, trying to sit up, but only slipped back into the shower. This only added to her laughter, tears of mirth streaming down her face. After a moment's hesitation, he managed to push himself up far enough to grab her by the wrist and pull her into the shower. She cried out in surprise as she was pulled towards him, then, as Remus lost his balance again, landed on top of him, the water beating down on her head. He watched her for a moment, feeling lost in her grey eyes, before he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.
"We need to shower, silly," she whispered in his ear. "Come on, I'm starving!"
"Fine," he replied with a sigh.
"Took you long enough to get ready," Liz mumbled, eyeing Remus and Aya suspiciously. "Isaac, would you cut the ham?"
"That's my favorite job!" Isaac replied with a large grin as he stood up.
"Try the mashed potatoes, Aya! And, oh! The yams, too! Ugh, you don't have to have the vegetables, but you've gotta have the ambrosia!" Thomas was saying as he handed the poor girl a bunch of plates filled with food. "Try 'em!"
"You're trying to kill me, aren't you?" she answered with a mock-suspicious tone, trying to hide a smile.
"Naw, you're just skin n' bones, is all...skinny. Ya gotta eat up!" Thomas answered with a goofy grin. "Come on, I'll dish you up the potato stuff." He grabbed her plate and heaped the mashed potatoes on her plate, grinning all the while. "Here you go, and merry Christmas!"
"Er...thank you," she replied, her eyes wide as she took her now rather heavy plate back. Why am I suddenly reminded of the Lord of the Rings chapter, Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit?
"Okay, okay, a toast!" Isaac cried as he sat back down from his task and held up his wine glass. "Alright, to Christmas, family, and our new addition to the family...Merry Christmas!!"
Aya found herself smiling, laughing, and feeling as if she belonged in a family again.
"Oh, man...I think I'm gonna die," Remus moaned from beneath his pillow. Aya could see him clearly through the moonlight that soaked the room through the window.
"I told you that you were eating too much," she replied, kissing him on his exposed stomach. "You should've listened."
"No, you don't understand," he said as he pushed his pillow off his face to look at her. "How can you stop eating that kind of food? It's not humanly possible to resist it all!"
"Remus, when you're going for a fourth helping of everything, you really need to think before you act first."
"Fifth."
"What?"
"That was my fifth helping," he replied with a groan.
"Well, than that was just stupidity on your part," she said with a sigh as she ran her hands through his hair.
"Stop talking about food! I can't be sick when it's Christmas tomorrow!" he answered, sitting up. "How can I sleep?"
"Start by closing your eyes?"
"Well, why aren't you asleep already?" he answered.
"I'm...just not...tired, is all," she replied hesitantly.
"Mhm," he said, narrowing his eyes. "Come on, Aya, I know why. And you don't have to worry. I'm right here, so you don't have to be scared. And don't worry about waking anyone up, my family sleeps like rocks...I'm serious."
She bit her lip, then nodded. "Okay..."
"Besides, it's Christmas Eve! This is exciting!" he replied with a giggle.
"Then here's my early present for you," she whispered, then kissed him soundly on the lips. "Okay, good night, Remus...thank you..."
"Uh...for...what?" he replied dreamily.
"Oh, just for inviting me," she answered as she snuggled against his chest.
Yawning, he answered, "You're welcome..."
Hey, guess what?! This chapter's ten pages long! TEN! My longest chapter ever! I'm so happy! Okay, then...thanks for reviewing, guys! Sorry it took so long for me to update...but, if you forgive you review? MERCI BEAUCOUP! JE VOUS AIME!