CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

~ A Dream Given ~

In a realm stained in oranges and golden tones, a dark bird glides above a old European town and takes its perch on a tiled roof. The small creature gazes down and watches curiously as a lone, youth with light blond hair clad in a black leather coat treads steadily down the dusty street below. The wind blows, playing through his short, spiky hair but he does not mind and only continues down the stone paved path. He stops at an alleyway and turns to face it before entering it in silent steps. The dust behind him rises as he vanishes into its darkness.

The alleyway eventually is intersected by another and situated at the intersection is a few wooden crates. A figure, draped from head to toe in purple sits atop the highest crate and as the young man approaches, he turns to face him.

"You've returned to me once again, young man." the draped figure says through the layers of purple cloth. "Do you seek another favor?"

"I do." The young man answers simply.

"Well first, Ventus," says the voice beneath the cloaks. "Just out of curiosity, why do you persist in having me send that boy such images?"

"I need pawn." The young man replies simply.

"A pawn?" repeats the draped figure, amused. "Why?"

"Just someone to do my bidding when the time comes." Ventus responds. "Enough questions now, Traumgeber, do me the favor I came for."

Ventus takes out a sack and tosses it to the draped figure. he then turns to exit the alley.

...

The wind dances free and elated, carrying petals of the purest whites and the softest pinks. The green and lush field is florid and full of life. Even the upper realm, consisting of only its endless stretch of azure and fluffy puffs of white, seems delighted as a slender young girl with long, golden hair clad in mostly leathery white and silky pink attire dances and sings in a similar manner to those of the beautiful creatures of fairytales and myths. A pair of purple eyes belonging to a two toned blue haired boy follows her movements, enchanted by her unseen wings of pure white. He takes a step forward to try to approach her and as he does, the ethereal scenery melts into an infernal tempest. The azure of the upper realms vanished and in its place was a darkness blacker than pitch. The fluffy white puffs were gone as well, replaced by smoke streaming up into the dark infinity. Below, the florid field became crimson and dreadful as the wind, so free and colorless before has been set aground and heated.

The two toned haired boy searches this new heated setting for the girl that had been dancing amidst the dreamlike scenery. He finds her, but standing behind her, tall and august is an ashen figure clad in dark attire. A large wing, scaly and dark, jutted out from one side of the livid demon's head and his eyes held the same iridescent glow as the one present in the eyes of the golden haired girl. The lips of this demon curl into an insane and cruel grin as a blade, sharp and coated with luster glints in his hand. The two toned haired boy watches in horror as the one winged demon moved like a tiger. He tries to run toward the golden haired maiden to save her but seems to be held back by a strange sluggishness. As the sound of a blade piercing flesh echoes in the darkened world, the iridescent, heterochromatic eyes of the golden haired girl widens and then becomes relaxed. The boy, now at her side, picks her up into his arms and calls her name but all that comes as a response from the girl is a soft whisper and flowing lukewarm tears as the life in her eyes slowly fade. Tears flow down this boy's cheeks too now. The demon looks down at the two and bursts into a piercing laughter. The sound echoes into the darkness and eventually breaks it.

Kai bolts up in bed, covered in his own sweat. The frightening laughter still rings in his mind, haunting him and sending fear throughout his entire body. This fear was not for himself either, but for the girl who has somehow slowly grown important to him. The impulse to assure that she was alright and that the dream was not real in any way coursed through him. He quickly gets out of bed and dashes out of his room and down the hall to the room where he expects or hopes to find her. When he arrives at her bedroom, he opens the door and enters. He quickly glances around the room searching for the girl but she was nowhere to be found. The laughter then repeats itself in his mind, causing him to grow even more afraid. He runs out of the room without closing the door of her bedroom and heads off to check other locations where she may be.

...

Meanwhile, a golden haired girl puts on an apron in a room well equipped with a variety of cooking utensils. The light of the rising sun creeps slowly into the room, brightening it. Lux opens the fridge and takes out some eggs, setting them on the table. She makes sure to close the fridge quickly to conserve energy as her friend and culinary mentor, Ray, had instructed and returns to the eggs. Realizing she needs a container to beat them in as well as something to beat them with, she turns to look for such items and finds what she is looking for quickly. She takes a bowl and an eggbeater back to the table where the eggs are. She then breaks the eggs into the bowl and begins to beat them, adding a little bit of water to make it smoother. When it appears mixed enough, she adds some salt and peppers and sets the mixture back down on the table to get a pan. As she reaches for a pan, a two toned haired boy bursts into the kitchen panting heavily.

"Kai?" Lux turns to him, his disheveled appearance immediately causing her concern.

Kai begins to calm down and makes his way towards her. As he does, she notices that he is covered in sweat and seems quite exhausted. She knew not what happened but she did know that the wet substance is uncomfortable to have on one's body.

"I'll get you a towel." she tells him before heading for the door.

As she moves pass him, she is stopped by a strong grip on her wrist. She turns back, confused.

"Kai?"

Without warning, he pulls her into his arms and holds her as close as he can to him. He can feel her delicate form grow tense from his sudden actions and he can smell the sweet scent of her hair as he closes his eyes. Her very presence alleviates the anxiety in his heart and assures him that the dream had not been real.

"Kai…" she calls softly to him. She could feel his heartbeat slow steadily to a more casual pace. "Are you...okay?"

"Stay here…don't go anywhere…just stay here…" he tells her.

Lux nods slightly and places her hands on his back gently. She wonders what it was that had bothered him so much and why he is holding her like this. More importantly, however, she wants to make him feel better. Since staying still and letting him hold her seems enough, she decides to let him hold her for however long he wishes.

...

A youth baring light blond hair in black leathery attire sits atop a tall tree overlooking a small clearing that used to serve as a home to a family of cats. His eyes are fixed on the brightening heavens and in his hand is a decorated cellphone. The small object gleams in the morning light and as the youth turns to it and the photo it displayed, his eyes twitch as if irritated. He closes the cellphone and puts it away before taking off the pair of contact lenses he wore and rubbing his eyes gently. He reaches into the pocket of his coat to pull out a small container and opens it to place his contacts into it. He puts the container back into his pocket and looks back up to the heavens. The iridescent glow in his eyes is now noticeable but he closes them in hopes of being granted a well deserved rest.