Jess huddled under a blanket with a shiver, grinning at Jack where he perched on the edge of their coffee table, watching her where she curled up on the couch.

"You're not too cold?" Jack wondered.

Jess had lowered the temperature to let Jack sit comfortably in the apartment. James was off at one of his classes, for once, and Sam was sleeping in their room, buried under enough blankets that he probably wouldn't notice the chill. She shook her head. "No, I'm fine."

"Alright," Jack said, doubtfully, poking at the blanket. "If you're sure. What was it you wanted to talk about?" He wondered.

Jess shrugged, suddenly uncertain. "What do you know about… dreams?" She wondered, making a face at how stupid she sounded.

"Dreams?" Jack repeated. "While you sleep? What? Like the Sandman? Is he here?" He asked, rapidly.

Jess shook her head. "No, no. I mean… like, recurring dreams. The Sandman wouldn't do that, would he?"

Jack shrugged. He didn't know very much about the quiet little man, other than that he was friendly enough to wave at Jack whenever they crossed paths. "What's going on, Jess?" he asked softly.

Jessica cast a glance at her and Sam's bedroom. "Sam's been having these… dreams," she began. "And they're always the same. Me, on the ceiling, burning." She shuddered. "His mom died the same way."

Jack nodded. "Yeah, that's why he was hunting, they were trying to find the demon that did it."

"At first, I thought it was just because of what happened to his mom, but," Jess paused. "I've started having them too. I thought maybe Sam had just gotten me on edge, but I'm not so sure anymore. What if," she paused again, casting another glance at the door. "What if it's something else?"

"What? Like a vision?" Jack guessed.

Jess shook her head. "I don't know," she admitted. "But I've had some weird dreams… like… Oh, I don't know. I had one with Sam, but he was dressed in an all-white suit and he wasn't… something in him wasn't Sam."

"It wasn't though," Jack said. "It was a nightmare, Jess."

Jessica sighed. "Maybe I'm just freaked out. This while monsters thing is still pretty new to me," she admitted. "But, is there any sort of spirit or monster that causes bad dreams?"

Jack hummed thoughtfully. "The Sandman makes dreams but… this isn't like him. And I haven't seen any sand around here. It must be something else." He frowned and cast a glance around him, searching the shadows. "I have heard about another spirit, a nightmare spirit. He preys on fear. If you were freaked out about whatever Sam saw, then maybe he could have latched on," Jack suggested.

"What do you know about him?" Jess wondered, pulling her blankets close.

Jack shook his head. "Not much. He hasn't been very active in years – not since I've been alive. I don't even know his name. He made a lot of trouble a long time ago, some of the other spirits got together and defeated him. But he could have recovered by now." He shrugged. "He lives off of fear, and if the other spirits are afraid of him then he can't die."

Jessica shuddered. "He sounds dangerous," she noted.

Jack nodded. "He is."

"I don't want you going anywhere near him, Jack," Jessica warned, her eyes flashing dangerously. "I mean it. If this guy is half as dangerous as you say, I don't want you getting hurt. I care too much about you to risk it."

"I care about you guys too. You're the first friends I've had in my whole life. I'm not losing you, not to this. If he's the one who's doing this," Jack began.

"No," Jess cut off. "You said he feeds on fear, right? Well that means that something else is giving Sam his dreams. He told me that he hasn't even thought of his mom in years, so why would this nightmare guy bring that up? Something else is doing this – if it is a something, and not just a few bad dreams. I don't want you putting yourself in danger, not for this."

Jack frowned but he nodded. "Fine," he muttered. "But if it gets any worse, or if you see anything when you're awake then I'll hunt the Nightmare King back to whatever bed he's hiding under."

Jess smiled. "I know you will, Jack, I'm just hoping that you won't need to."

~An Unlikely Friendship~

Their apartment building was unusually quiet. James doubted that there was anyone else on their floor. He shivered at the unnatural silence as he unconsciously silenced his own steps along the hallway, making no sound as he crept along.

He brushed past Jessica and Sam's door, debating knocking for a moment, when he jerked his hand back, shocked at the ice-cold chill of the wood.

For a moment, a million thoughts of monsters and spirits raced through his mind before he realised what it was.

"Jack," he muttered, shaking his head, taking note of the faint frost traces lingering on the carpet. He still thought that Sam and Jessica trusted the spirit too much, but he couldn't deny that Jack hadn't done anything wrong or even slightly suspect. They all seemed to be genuinely friends.

James shifted his weight from one foot to the other, pondering whether or not he should interrupt. Him and the spirit had made a good team while they were out on the hunt, but they still weren't quiet friends. He didn't think that the Icicle was at ease when he was around, and James could recognise when he wasn't wanted by someone.

"… dreams. And they're always the same. Me, on the ceiling, burning. His mom died the same way."

"Yeah, that's why he was hunting, they were trying to find the demon that did it."

"At first, I thought it was just because of what happened to his mom, but I've started having them too. I thought maybe Sam had just gotten me on edge, but I'm not so sure anymore. What if, what if it's something else?"

"What? Like a vision?"

James froze. A vision? Of Jess burning on the ceiling? He had seen that before. He had dreamed it himself. He had just tried to ignore it though. He had figured that it was just a coincidence, considering that his mom had died the same way.

But, a demon?

Had his mom been killed by a demon? His dad had never mentioned that. His dad only said that there was something in their house, not a demon. He had never mentioned any demon. They had never even come across a demon before, either of them.

Except for that night, apparently.

James sighed, leaning against the door frame, rubbing a hand down his face. What did it mean if he was seeing things too? Did it have anything to do with…? No. No, it didn't, he decided. That was nothing. He had made it up. There was nothing weird or unusual about him. Nothing more than anyone else would be after living his life.

Except for the fact that you're dreaming about your friend dying on the ceiling, and so is she.

No, he decided. It was nothing. Just bad dreams. Nothing more.

~An Unlikely Friendship~

Sam woke up with a scream caught in his throat. He shot a look up at the ceiling, just to check that the love of his life wasn't burning on the ceiling. She wasn't.

Sam muttered a curse and pressed a hand to his pounding heart. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to ignore his pounding head.

What was this? Why was he having these dreams? Why was Jess in them? Why was she dying in the same way as his mom?

He sighed and rubbed at his eyes. Whatever this was, he wouldn't let anything happen to Jess. He would die before he let anyone hurt her.

~An Unlikely Friendship~

Outside, Brady sat in his car, watching the building. He watched the other hunter enter and made a guess at his window based on which lights turned on. It took a few minutes, but that could mean anything. It was assuming a lot to guess that the hunter was on the same floor, but Brady wasn't too worried about the hunter.

It was Sam he wanted. Sam, and his beautiful little blonde.

The boss would be annoyed to lose one of his own before their trials, but if Sammy didn't seem to inclined to jump back on the hunting horse on his own. Not even the nearby were enough to tempt him back into the fold. He was all too willing to fade into normal life and abandon the destiny that had been laid out centuries before his miserable little life began.

Brady chuckled. They couldn't have that, could they?

He pulled out his phone. These meat sacks might be virtually useless, but they had handy ways of communicating. He dialed a number.

"Tom, Ruby? You there?" He asked. Two other deep cover demons, assuming the identities and living among the other skinsuits, waiting to be useful to someone else. He was sure that they would jump at the opportunity to further their leader's plan.

"Be ready to go. We're acting soon."