Thirty Four - AR
Scott was awoken by a voice. He struggled for a moment to get his bearings, it still being quite dark.
"Leave me alone! I don't want to come with you!"
"Virgil?"
"NO! Keep back!"
"Virgil?" Scott repeated and then swung his legs over so that he was sitting on the edge of his bed. "You awake Virg.?"
"I don't want to go!"
Scott got out of bed and walked over to Virgil's. Although his still healing eyes made it seem as though the room was totally dark he found his brother with the ease of a weeks practise.
"Virgil" he said quietly. "Wake up, you're dreaming." He touched Virgil on the arm.
With a yell Virgil sat bolt upright. "Wha....!"
"Hey, calm down. You were dreaming."
"Dreaming?" Virgil leant over and switched on the light.
"Ow!" Scott raised a hand to shield his eyes from the glare. "Careful! They're still not adjusted yet."
"Sorry." Virgil redirected the beam.
Scott looked at him. His younger brother had been perspiring heavily and appeared to be forcing himself to be calm. "That must have been some nightmare."
"Nightmare. Yeah it was." Virgil wiped his face with his hand.
"Want to tell me about it?"
"No. It was nothing. Go back and get some sleep."
"What's the time?" Scott still couldn't focus properly on the clock.
"5.30."
"I'm never going to get back to sleep now, so you may as well tell me."
"Okay." Virgil slid back up his bed so that he was sitting up against his pillows. "I was at home. Boy was I glad to be home."
"Only a few more hours now."
"I know, thank heavens. Anyway, I walked into the lounge and everyone was there. Just sitting around looking depressed. Really depressed. I had no idea why. No one took any notice of me so I thought I'd go play on the piano."
Scott smiled. "Typical."
"I sat down and the keyboard lid was closed, so I tried to open it, but it was locked. I thought 'Alan's been playing a trick on me', so I asked him to unlock it. He didn't pay any attention to me, no one did."
"That's odd."
"Yeah, I thought so. Then Gordon came into the room dressed in fancy dress, and I thought, 'Good old Gordon trying to cheer everyone up'. But I thought his choice of clothing wasn't the most appropriate - if he was trying to make anyone laugh."
"What was he wearing?"
"Long black robe with a hood and carrying a scythe."
"Ah." Scott agreed. "Not the most cheerful getup."
"No one took any notice of him. And then I realised that Gordon was sitting on the balcony staring out to sea."
"So who was it?" Scott said in surprise.
"That's what I wondered until the figure stretched out a skeletal hand and beckoned to me. That was when I became scared. I yelled out to you and Brains to help me, but you didn't hear me. And then I started running. I had to get away, so I went over to my slide... you know." Virgil mimed, with his hand, the action he took when the painting tipped backwards to take him to Thunderbird Two. Scott nodded his acknowledgment. "Next thing I was sliding down and I felt safe... until I reached the bottom. Instead of folding as normal I found myself flat on my back on some kind of platform. Then I realised that there were sides to the platform and that they tapered down towards my feet and it was lined with satin."
"Comfortable." Scott said dryly.
"I let out a yell and jumped out pretty darn quick I can tell you."
"I can imagine."
"I didn't want to look inside. I had a feeling that I knew exactly what, or more correctly who was going to be in there."
"You?"
"Me."
"And was it?"
"Yes. I started backing away and then I heard something behind me. I turned and there was the figure, 'Death', staring at me. Just the robe, the scythe and that horrible hand beckoning to me. I started backing up until I'd backed into the coffin and couldn't go any further. But it kept on advancing. I told it to leave me alone, but it wouldn't."
"I know. I heard you."
"Sorry. Anyway it was getting closer and closer until it grabbed my arm... and then I woke up! ...And you had hold of my arm!"
"I may have felt like death warmed up a few times over the last week, but I didn't realise my touch was like it too." Scott was smiling.
Virgil passed his hand over his eyes. "Silly isn't it. Getting uptight over a simple dream. Why do they have to feel so real?"
"Sometimes I think they say the things we're not willing to admit to ourselves when we're awake." Scott said.
Virgil looked at him. "How'd you manage to come up with something that deep at this time of the morning?"
"I've had plenty of experience and time to think about it this past week."
"Yeah, you have haven't you? Waking me up in the middle of the night..."
"Which you've just done to me!"
"It's morning big brother!" Virgil said with a trace of anger. He was still uptight after his dream. "At least I had the decency to wait until a time when you're normally awake." Scott was grinning. "What!"
"It's wonderful to see you mad. It's wonderful to see you! It's just wonderful to see!"
And Virgil grinned in return.
Scott was awoken by a voice. He struggled for a moment to get his bearings, it still being quite dark.
"Leave me alone! I don't want to come with you!"
"Virgil?"
"NO! Keep back!"
"Virgil?" Scott repeated and then swung his legs over so that he was sitting on the edge of his bed. "You awake Virg.?"
"I don't want to go!"
Scott got out of bed and walked over to Virgil's. Although his still healing eyes made it seem as though the room was totally dark he found his brother with the ease of a weeks practise.
"Virgil" he said quietly. "Wake up, you're dreaming." He touched Virgil on the arm.
With a yell Virgil sat bolt upright. "Wha....!"
"Hey, calm down. You were dreaming."
"Dreaming?" Virgil leant over and switched on the light.
"Ow!" Scott raised a hand to shield his eyes from the glare. "Careful! They're still not adjusted yet."
"Sorry." Virgil redirected the beam.
Scott looked at him. His younger brother had been perspiring heavily and appeared to be forcing himself to be calm. "That must have been some nightmare."
"Nightmare. Yeah it was." Virgil wiped his face with his hand.
"Want to tell me about it?"
"No. It was nothing. Go back and get some sleep."
"What's the time?" Scott still couldn't focus properly on the clock.
"5.30."
"I'm never going to get back to sleep now, so you may as well tell me."
"Okay." Virgil slid back up his bed so that he was sitting up against his pillows. "I was at home. Boy was I glad to be home."
"Only a few more hours now."
"I know, thank heavens. Anyway, I walked into the lounge and everyone was there. Just sitting around looking depressed. Really depressed. I had no idea why. No one took any notice of me so I thought I'd go play on the piano."
Scott smiled. "Typical."
"I sat down and the keyboard lid was closed, so I tried to open it, but it was locked. I thought 'Alan's been playing a trick on me', so I asked him to unlock it. He didn't pay any attention to me, no one did."
"That's odd."
"Yeah, I thought so. Then Gordon came into the room dressed in fancy dress, and I thought, 'Good old Gordon trying to cheer everyone up'. But I thought his choice of clothing wasn't the most appropriate - if he was trying to make anyone laugh."
"What was he wearing?"
"Long black robe with a hood and carrying a scythe."
"Ah." Scott agreed. "Not the most cheerful getup."
"No one took any notice of him. And then I realised that Gordon was sitting on the balcony staring out to sea."
"So who was it?" Scott said in surprise.
"That's what I wondered until the figure stretched out a skeletal hand and beckoned to me. That was when I became scared. I yelled out to you and Brains to help me, but you didn't hear me. And then I started running. I had to get away, so I went over to my slide... you know." Virgil mimed, with his hand, the action he took when the painting tipped backwards to take him to Thunderbird Two. Scott nodded his acknowledgment. "Next thing I was sliding down and I felt safe... until I reached the bottom. Instead of folding as normal I found myself flat on my back on some kind of platform. Then I realised that there were sides to the platform and that they tapered down towards my feet and it was lined with satin."
"Comfortable." Scott said dryly.
"I let out a yell and jumped out pretty darn quick I can tell you."
"I can imagine."
"I didn't want to look inside. I had a feeling that I knew exactly what, or more correctly who was going to be in there."
"You?"
"Me."
"And was it?"
"Yes. I started backing away and then I heard something behind me. I turned and there was the figure, 'Death', staring at me. Just the robe, the scythe and that horrible hand beckoning to me. I started backing up until I'd backed into the coffin and couldn't go any further. But it kept on advancing. I told it to leave me alone, but it wouldn't."
"I know. I heard you."
"Sorry. Anyway it was getting closer and closer until it grabbed my arm... and then I woke up! ...And you had hold of my arm!"
"I may have felt like death warmed up a few times over the last week, but I didn't realise my touch was like it too." Scott was smiling.
Virgil passed his hand over his eyes. "Silly isn't it. Getting uptight over a simple dream. Why do they have to feel so real?"
"Sometimes I think they say the things we're not willing to admit to ourselves when we're awake." Scott said.
Virgil looked at him. "How'd you manage to come up with something that deep at this time of the morning?"
"I've had plenty of experience and time to think about it this past week."
"Yeah, you have haven't you? Waking me up in the middle of the night..."
"Which you've just done to me!"
"It's morning big brother!" Virgil said with a trace of anger. He was still uptight after his dream. "At least I had the decency to wait until a time when you're normally awake." Scott was grinning. "What!"
"It's wonderful to see you mad. It's wonderful to see you! It's just wonderful to see!"
And Virgil grinned in return.
