Props to Georgia Claw! Perhaps I'm being a bit too see-through in my writing. Oh, well. This feel good stuff is good for my soul. Hope this chapter gives ya the nice and fuzzy feelings.
Golden eyes stared up at me. They weren't the ones I'd come to fear. No, these eyes were the ones I grew up loving and adoring. Maybe someone else wouldn't have recognized it for what it was, but I knew. My wolf. The very same stuffed animal that had kept my nightmares at bay as a child. He still had the somewhat mangled right ear from where I would teethe on him as a toddler, though I could hardly tell there had ever been a gaping wound in his side at all. The stitching was flawless, the fur unmarred by an ugly scar that I probably would have left had I the chance to stitch him up myself.
I dropped down to my knees and cradled the only physical connection I had to my childhood. I didn't have the strength to fight the tears this time. They came unhindered and without shame. My sobs shook my frame until North's hand on my back had me looking up tearfully. He was kneeling down in front of me now, his eyes filled with such kindness that I thought I might melt away beneath his gaze. With haste, I threw my arms around his great belly, my wolf smashed between us.
North hugged me tightly. I hadn't known such comfort in years. I didn't know what to do with it, so I clung to him and cried. Around the room, the others looked on with varying degrees of relief. Had I been able to look his way through my tear-filled eyes, I would have caught Bunnymund wiping away a tear himself.
I felt Tooth drop to our level and add her own arms to the hug. Sandman stepped forward to put an arm on my knee and Jack pressed his cold nose to mine before pulling back with a warm grin. From a place long since hidden, I began to laugh. It was watery but heartfelt and I found myself unable to stop. Like an infection, it spread until it seemed natural to laugh and cry at the same time. The moon shone in through the window as if to wrap us in its light as well. How was I to know the Man in the Moon was more than just a silly saying?
"Think it's time for the lil' ankle biter to get some rest, eh?" Bunny asked, interrupting the moment. I was grateful. I didn't like to cry and I'd been doing it far too much lately. But it felt nice, being able to let it out without hindrance for once. Without needing bravery.
"I am tired," I admitted, squirming a bit in their arms so I could hug my wolf tighter to my chest. It didn't matter that I was seventeen already and the people around I should have been forgotten long before. They had been forgotten. But I realized I'd never stopped believing in them. All the time Pitch spent trying to make me deny it that I'd buried my childhood as far away from him as I could. So far, I guess, that I forgot them myself.
"I'll tuck you in," Tooth said, pulling me into another hug even as the others stepped back to give us room. I merely nodded, clutching my wolf like a talisman that could ward off anything that may frighten me. I didn't feel like a child holding him. I was a child. The child I would have been had Pitch not stolen into my life and spirited me away.
I made no argument, again like a child. I was too tired to beg to stay up later with them and the food in my belly was another aid to making me sleepy. It wasn't until Tooth had led me back to my room and tucked the thick blankets up to my chin that my hand reached out to capture hers and hold tightly.
"What's wrong?" she asked, her brows knit with concern.
I felt afraid to ask. But I didn't want to be alone. She seemed to understand and turned to bring a nearby chair closer to the bed. Tooth kept hold of my hand, leaning forward to rest her chin on her outstretched arm while she peered at me. "Would you like a story? Or…are you too old for that?" she wondered aloud.
"No, I… I would like one."
Tooth gave a pretty grin, obviously delighted with my response. She settled down more, getting comfortable on the plush covers. "Well," she began. "There was once a girl who could slay dragons."
Already, my interest piqued. It sounded just like a story my mother had told me as a child. It was nonsense and silly, but had all elements that I'd enjoyed as a child. A heroine unafraid to stand up for what she believed. Animals. Fierce beasts that hurt others and needed dealing with. As Tooth wove the tale more, I sat up straighter. This was the story mom had told me. Rather than question it – this was a dream, after all, was it not? – I lay back on the pillows and listened to her musical voice. With my eyes closed, I found myself remembering what home was like.
In my mind's eye, I saw my room. Animal toys littered the ground where I hadn't picked them up from a day of play while being home sick from school. There were various books open on specially marked reference pages as I had to know if my play was correct. Would a lion be able to take on an elephant? In fact, a pride could! So a pride it was, rather than the single male I would have used otherwise. It had been an African safari kind of day while rain pattered against the window. The scent of chicken noodle soup – Mom's specialty – reached my nose as I sniffed hungrily in the midst of play. Mom had come into my room, a tray held in her expert hands while she balanced the full bowl and a glass of milk at the same time. I had always been amazed that she could do it. I'd tried once when she was not feeling well, but ended up spilling the glass of milk I'd poured her down my shirt. It was the gesture that counted, she'd told me then.
Tooth's voice lulled me to a peaceful trance until sleep slowly claimed me. Initially, I'd fought to stay awake. I didn't want this moment to end. If it did… I didn't want to think on it. When finally I succumbed to exhaustion, I didn't dream.