I ran with a newspaper over my head to stand against the rain, late for work again. The sidewalk was sloped pretty steep, and it was still so early the sun hadn't come up- even so, I knew I wouldn't trip. I could hear the city stirring, down and away from campus. We were so cut off from the city, it was comforting to know such a gigantic place was just within arm's reach.
We lived, technically, in Brentwood. The citizens there called the dorm area Brentwood Heights, anyway. The school was carved into the side of the mountains, just off and slightly above the City of Angels. Windy City campus was a sprawling stretch of prestigious west coast rich types, so the directors had enough cashflow to landscape just about everything. I smirked to myself.
I got in with my grades and stayed put when they crashed because I got involved with the newspaper. When I wasn't running to punch in at the coffee shop on time, I was running to make a deadline for the university. All I did was run. I loved it.
My reverie was broken when a shadow separated itself from the stone archway of the outdoor food court. My stomach lurched, going cold. It was so dark I was seeing everything against moonlight through patches in the rainclouds, so I wasn't sure I'd-
"Amanda," I said, partially relieved when it was the face of my friend that broke into the light. It wasn't her shift yet at the coffee shop, so she must have been up to go running. "I thought you were someone else."
She sniffled, crinkling her small nose. When the furrowed, piercing expression in her eyes and brow didn't fall, I started to get nervous. She didn't say anything- she just stood there, dripping wet.
"I had that dream again. But it wasn't a good one this time," I said, feeling out the silence. To my surprise, she answered me right away.
"The rest of the day's not going to be much better to you, kid." With that, she planted her feet and flicked her wrists. A burst of steam and light from behind her played with her hair and skirt, and sudden flames lit up her fanatic face. I leapt back, startled. A glowing, crackling whip of candleflame appeared in her hands and coiled about her feet. The raindrops hissed into the fire.
"Oh. God. It's you," I said.
A snake's head hissed up her arm, and Amanda caught the gently glowing thing with two fingers to cuddle it against her face. The burning snake-whip writhed against her, seeming to bring some amount of comfort. "I can't have you around, honey," she said, clearly getting emotional.
I crawled back, getting muddy. I'd fallen back, terrified, without even having noticed. My work buddy was coming at me, and I was heartbroken to realize why.
Her right hand stabbed the bell-shaped grip into the air near her face, and flicked it back down sideways, saluting. A gleaming, red rapier slid out with a flaming hiss and a strange, haunting echo. She wielded it at me, the coiled snake still wrapped about her left arm.
"Amanda," I began, on the verge of pleading. "You don't have to-"
"From the dreamworld," she chanted, cutting me off, "silver werewolf, burst!" She slashed outwards, a red pentagram suddenly glowed to life at her feet. "Duran!" She spun the grip in her hand with expert dexterity, the sword reversing, and cracked the whip like a lion-tamer.
"Go!"
Flames exploded from the magic circle, and the dream-wolf I knew so well crashed through the fire. Hissing mud and steam, gravel and leaves leapt away from the impact he made on the ground as he landed, snarling.
I scrambled to my feet, mesmerized by the Child's ferocity. This beastly thing had comforted me because he'd been benevolent, but I realized he'd been a vicious monster playing sheep all along.
His black fur, up close, had more than anything the appearance of licking flames. Except for the razorwork armor and snakeheaded breastplate, he was a crackling shadow of fire. He leapt into the sky, lunging at me with Amanda.
I shut my eyes tight, panicking, and remembered how it'd come to all this.