HeyPeeps! That's right! It's a fan made chapter! Well...Sort of. I got the inspiration from R.L. Stein's The Haunting Hour TV show. The episode was called Dreamcatcher. I altered it slightly but most of my inspiration came from there. Including the villain in this story. I just changed his name...Enjoy!
Chapter 46: The Dream Catcher's Web
*Aria's POV*
This wasn't good. Not good at all. My nightmares were getting a lot worse. Not only were they affecting my grades, performance and what not, but I couldn't even remember what they were about. Not at all. I've tried everything to remember but nothing worked. I was sent home early because I fell asleep in Ms. Grundy's class again. Did I mention it's been almost 2 weeks since I've had a good sleep? Yeah, this started on Saturday night during spring break and now it's Tuesday of the next week….I think…..Yeah, it's Tuesday. I'll sleep for about 4 to 6 hours a night, not straight through I might add, plus an extra hour or two tops through out the day. It's bad. I was walking home, because Archie was still in class, and Aunt Mary and Uncle Fred, well, I didn't want to bother them. I'm sure they got a call anyways. I had a note in my bag too just in case.
*Man. What am I going to do? If I don't sleep right I could wind up sick. Or worse!* I thought as I tried to stay up. I didn't see the light was green as I started crossing.
*Honk honk*
I was jolted awake and jumped back just as a car flew by me. I ran across and panted.
"That's it! I need to do something!" I said firmly to myself. I happened to be right in front of Doctor Beaumont's shop when I looked up. I saw a beautiful dream catcher right in the front window. It was black with white and purple string to form a web of sorts. It even had a bead on it. I knew the bead represented the spider that would catch bad dreams in the thread, also known as the web, and eat the nightmares to make them go away.
*At this point, I'll try anything.* I thought as I entered the shop.
"Hello Aria. Playing hooky today?" Doctor Beaumont asked me. I shook my head no.
"I'm falling asleep in school. It's been almost 2 weeks. I can't sleep right." I tell him.
"Horrific nightmares that you can't seem to remember?" He asks me. I nod my head yes as I yawned, giving a squeak as I do. Yeah. I don't think I've mentioned, I squeak when I yawn.
"And you saw the dream catcher and are desperate at this point?" He asked me.
"Yeah. How much?" I asked him.
"I wasn't going to sell it, but you seem to really need it. Hm….You're responsible too…...Alright. I'll sell it to you. But there's a warning for it." He tells me. He was telling me something but I started dozing off.
"Understand?" I heard him ask. I woke up a bit.
"Yeah. I understand. How much?" I asked him. "$25 and I guarantee no more nightmares ever again." He tells me. I shoved my money right at him. He put it in a bag as I squeaked a yawn again.
"Hang it over your bed before you sleep." He tells me.
"Right. Thank you." I say as I leave and head home.
*Doctor Beaumont's POV*
I watched Aria leave as I shook my head.
"I doubt she even heard my warning. Oh well. Let's hope she never has to meets him." I say to the secret audience watching this as I went back to cleaning.
*Aria's POV*
I hurried home and walked through the door.
"Aria Andrews!" I heard Uncle Fred scold as he stood at the door. I gave a nervous chuckle with a smile to match.
"The school called. You're falling asleep in class?" He asks me.
"I've been getting bad nightmares. I can't even sleep through the night anymore. I'm ok though. I got a dream catcher to help me." I say to him as I showed him. He looks at me before sighing.
"Fine. But if it doesn't work, then you see a psychologist to help." He tells me.
"It'll work. I promise." I say t him.
"Alright. Why don't you go take a nap. You look horrible." He tells me.
"Gee. And I worked so hard on my make up." I say sarcastically as I head up the steps. I missed a step and almost fell. I caught the railing just in time.
"I'm ok." I say after I heard my uncle sigh. I went into my room and hung the dream catcher over my headboard and smiled.
"Maybe now I can sleep." I mumbled as I laid down and fell asleep.
*Aria's Dream*
I woke up in a field. I looked and saw all the flowers. Roses. Some were silver with pearls in them and the rest were blue with light blue and white stars on them. I stood up and looked around me. The wind blew in my hair and I smiled. I started roaming around. I then saw a giant rainbow saber tooth tiger come up to me. I played and cuddled with it. I was enjoying this place. I failed to notice a dark spot with silver blue eyes staring at me as I played. I reached for a cloud and turned it into a bird. I giggled as it flew off. I followed it to a stone area. It was decorated with flowers and statues. I smiled.
"I wish there was music." I said softly. Soon music began playing. I started dancing elegantly to it.
"I wish I had a dance partner." I said softly. Soon the statues came to life. I started dancing with them. Soon one waltzed with me. It turned into Jughead. He spun me over to the next statue. It turned into Dilton as soon as I touched it. After a bit, he spun me away and both boys bowed to me. I blushed and giggled softly. They went to say something but I heard someone else.
"Aria. Time to wake up." I heard as my dream world faded.
*Aria's POV Awake*
I woke up and looked at Uncle Fred.
"Wha?" I asked sleepily.
"It's dinner time." He tells me. I stretched.
"Dinner already?" I asked as I looked at the clock.
"Sleep well?" He asks me.
"I didn't want to wake up yet." I say as I stretched. I got out of bed and followed him never the less. I felt better. Much better actually. I sat at the table and waited.
"You look better." Archie told me.
"I feel better too." I say as I squeaked a yawn again.
"Oh.~ You still do that?" Aunt Mary asked me in a baby like tone.
"Yeah. Never out grew it unfortunately." I say in a slightly annoyed tone.
"Well, I'm glad you slept well. I suppose that dream catcher works after all." Uncle Fred told me just as dinner was put in front of me.
"Spaghetti and meatballs! Yum!" I say as I start eating.
"Dream catcher?" Archie asked me. I nod my head yes and swallowed.
"On the way home, I passed Doctor Beaumont's shop and saw the dream catcher in the window. I figured I'd try it and it works." I say happily before I take another large bite.
"Huh. Maybe I can use that for my next weird mystery." He says as he starts eating.
"Mhm. It's not a bad idea." I tell him. We finished eating and I decided to just go to bed. I was still tired after all. I went to bed with sweet dreams, unaware of the dark spot and the silverish blue eyes watching me from that dark spot.
*Three days later*
I felt so refreshed. I couldn't believe it. That dream catcher was a miracle worker. It was Friday now. I finished school, did extra credit to get my grades up again, and was now at work. I gave Jughead his usual meal and skated around happily. Nothing could go wrong. Or so I thought.
*Archie's POV*
"Does Aria look happier to you?" Jughead asked me as he started wolfing down his burgers.
"Yeah. She got a dream catcher and has been sleeping very well ever since." I say as I started eating my burger.
"Well. *Ohm nom nom* I'm glad. *Ohm nom* She's sleeping again." He said as he keeps eating.
"Yeah…..Hey, I wonder if I can look at her dream catcher. To research it better." I said as I finished my food.
"You should ask her." He says as he finished as well.
"She might not let me." I said as I paid and tipped.
"Hey! That's my girlfriend, so you better tip her better than two dollars." Jughead scolded me all of a sudden. I jumped in surprise over this.
"I don't have much else." I say to him. He sighed and left money on the table…Wait.
"Jughead…..This is $30." I say in shock.
"So?" He says as he finished his drink.
"That's a lot of money for a tip." I tell him. He shrugs.
"She's worth it. Plus, she always makes me smile. And she also looks attractive holding those burgers." He says with a goofy grin and a blush.
"Jughead!" I groaned out while giving him a stern look.
"What?" He asked innocently. I just sighed.
"Let's go." I say and guide him out of there.
"Where are we going?" He asked me.
"To my house. I wanna look at Aria's dream catcher." I tell him.
"Nu-uh. Not without her permission." He tells me.
"We live in the same house. It's not a big deal." I tell him.
"Remember last time?" He asked me.
*Flashback*
"Archie Andrews! What are you doing in my room!" Aria screamed at me. "I needed some batteries." I tell her as I took some out of her science project. Next thing I knew, I was on the ground. She was sitting on me and pulling my arm back like she was going to break it. "I told you not to come in here!" She yells out. "Alright alright! I'm sorry!" I scream and dropped the batteries. Once she let me go, I ran.
*End flashback*
"Yeah…..But I'm not taking anything. I'm just looking. No harm in that right?" I asked him.
"Tell that to your arm. She'll break it this time." He tells me.
"Then she won't find out." I tell him. We made it back home and I went right up to her room.
"Jughead, come on!" I say to him.
"I'd rather not." He tells me. I smack my forehead.
"Just get up here." I tell him.
"Alright alright. Sheesh. Bossy." He says as he follows me up. He comes in and looks around.
"Wow. Her room is nice. And clean too." He says in awe.
"Maybe she can help you clean yours." I say as I grabbed the dream catcher.
"Hey, my room's clean." He pouts.
"Jughead, I can't even see your floor." I comment.
"It's fine." He tells me. I rolled my eyes. I was examining it as I saw a bead on it.
"I wonder why they keep the bead on it?" I ask as I poked it.
"Not sure." He tells me. I grab it and gently twist it when I heard the door open.
"I'm home!" Aria yelled out. Jughead rushed out and down to her. I had jumped and unknowingly broke the bead off before putting back in it's place. I rushed out and went downstairs to see Jughead kissing Aria.
*Aria's POV*
I had such a great day at work. I made $70 in tips today, thanks to Jughead. He's so sweet. I made it home before the sun set and walked in.
"I'm home!" I shout out. I then saw Jughead rush down the stairs.
"Hey." I say as I toss my bag to the side.
"What're yo-mmm?" I started to asked what he was doing here, since I didn't know he would be over, before he embraced me in a hug and kissed me. I was a bit shocked but kissed him back. How could I not?
"Really Jughead? While I'm home?" I heard Archie ask in a grumpy tone. I pulled back.
"Hey, he tips well, he gets some sugar." I tell Archie with a cheeky grin. He groaned and covered his eyes.
"Aria." He groaned out as I giggled.
"How'd ya know I tipped?" Jughead asked me.
"Because the most Archie will tip is a $5." I tell him.
"Really Arch? $5?" He asked him.
"It's a good tip." Archie says. I rolled my eyes.
"So? Helping Archie with his column?" I asked him.
"Yup. I didn't think you'd be home." He tells me.
"Yeah. Fridays go by fast." I tell him.
"Plus I need to get ready. Tonight's date night with Dilton." I remind him. He pouted.
"Don't worry. We still have ours tomorrow." I remind him. He perked up.
"I can't wait." He tells me as he became excited. I giggled at his child like excitement.
"I'm going to get ready. Hope you guys have fun." I tell them and peck Jughead's lips before I go upstairs and get ready. I failed to notice the missing bead.
*3 hours later*
It was past 8pm as I started heading home. Dilton got a ride from his dad and offered to take me home. I declined. His dad still seemed to dislike me. The ride would've been awkward. So, I walked. I got home and yawned. I went to my room and got into black shorts with purple bow prints on it and a purple tank top with a big black bow print on it and slipped under the covers. Allegro wasn't sleeping with me.
*Odd. He always sleeps with me.* I thought to myself. I shrugged and fell asleep.
*Dream*
It was night time in my dream. Weird. I'm in my room. Did I wake up? I sat in my bed. I then saw a glimps of a shadow moving. I looked.
*Was that a…..hand?* I thought as I slipped out of bed. I walked to my door and opened it. I felt like something was watching me. I looked around but saw nothing. It was so weird. I walked out to the dark hall.
"Hello? Is anyone home?" I called out. Nothing.
"Allegro?" I called. Nothing.
*He usually comes when I call.* I thought. I took two steps before I heard a hissing chuckle. I tensed up.
*What was that?* I thought in fear. I know in horror movies you never look behind you, but I started to turn around anyways. I saw large amounts of black and flashes of claws and silverish blue eyes as I was grabbed. I screamed and started struggling. I felt my arm get scratched in the process of being grabbed before it was gone.
*Awake*
I woke up drenched in a cold sweat. I was shaking and panting.
*Calm down. It was just a bad dream.* I thought to myself. Once I calmed down, I realized something.
*Wait…..A bad dream? I shouldn't be having those.* I thought as I turned around. I saw my dream catcher was still there.
*But how?* I thought as I reached to grab it. Then I saw my arm. I quickly turned my lamp on and looked at it. I had scratches.
*From when whatever it was grabbed me….But….It's just a dream.* I thought as I looked at it.
"Right?" I asked myself softly. I decided to clean my arm up. I had no bandages so I left it as is and tried to sleep. I woke up two more times before staying awake. It was morning anyhow. I went downstairs and went to make food.
"Hey. You alright? You look pale." Archie greeted me before asking me this.
"Yeah. I'm alright." I lie as I pour a glass of peach juice. I drank some and sighed.
"Where's Aunt Mary and Uncle Fred?" I asked as I looked around.
"Dad got an emergency call from work and mom went to have a ladies day." He tells me. I nod in understanding. I put the juice away and set the glass down. I was glad I had slipped on my gloves before coming down here. I'm not going to make Archie worry over nothing.
*Besides, maybe I scratched myself.* I thought as I made cereal. After I went to take a shower. I saw no other marks on me at all. I showered, changed into my biker outfit, but kept the long fingerless gloves on, and hurried out the door.
*Maybe seeing Jughead will comfort me.* I thought as I hurried off to his house.
*Time skip to 5pm*
I was tired but tried not to show it. We were at my house right now, snuggled up on the couch, as we watched a horror movie together. Arachnophobia. I felt weird watching it but didn't mind. I started falling asleep as things became distorted around me.
"There once was an old lady who swallowed a spider." I heard as I looked around.
"That wriggled and jiggled inside her." I heard again. I looked and saw my vision was blurred even more.
"She swallowed the spider to catch the fly." I heard. It sounded like children. I saw blurred out children surrounding me.
"But I don't know why she swallowed that fly." They sang as I saw long black fabric hanging above and around me. I turned and saw the familiar eyes as I got a better look at the thing. It had a human face with sharp teeth and long spider like arms and legs. My eyes went wide as it tilted its head and looked at me.
"Perhaps she'll die!" It hissed out before it swiped its hand at me. I screamed but it covered my mouth with his. I felt sticky substance spill inside my mouth and I started choking as he pulled back and snarled.
"Aria! Wake up!" I heard Jughead's voice before I woke up. I was on the couch and he was in front of me. I opened my mouth but started choking and spitting something up.
"Hold on." He said and stuck his fingers in my mouth. He then pulled something out. Cobwebs. A bunch of them. Once they were out of my mouth, I could breathe better. I coughed and teared up. This was serious now.
"What happened?" He asked as his voice was filled with worry.
"Jughead…..I think I'm going to die." I say as I hugged him and started crying. He hugged me back.
"What do ya mean?" He asked me. I told him of the thing I keep seeing and I even showed him my arm.
"Somethings terribly wrong Jughead." I say as I try to dry my tears.
"I'll go get Archie and talk to Doctor Beaumont. You try to stay awake by any means." He tells me. I nod my head as he hurried off. I put my knees to my chest and started rocking back and forth. I took his advice and found one of Archie's emergency energy drinks. I knew better but I drank one anyways. Anything to keep awake.
*Jughead's POV*
I told Archie what happened and what she told me was happening since Friday night. We went to Doctor Beaumont's and I rushed inside.
"Doctor Beaumont! We need your help! Aria's in danger!" I yelled out to him. He came out to me just as Archie came inside.
"What is with all the yelling?" He asked me.
"Aria's in danger." I tell him. I then explained her nightmares.
"I warned her." He suddenly said.
"What do you mean 'warned her'? Warned her of what?" Archie asked him.
*Flashback Doctor Beaumont's POV*
"Now you need to hear the warning. The bead represents a spider that eats dreams, but if you remove the bead, the dream catcher becomes a dream eater. A spider creature will appear in your dreams. It will cause nightmares and make you go insane or full of fear until he devours you. Understand?" I asked her. She looked up at me, almost as if she had just woken up, and responded.
*End Flashback Jughead's POV*
"You gave her a warning while she was sleep deprived? And you didn't try to warn her after?!" I yelled out. You bet your burger buns I was mad. My girlfriend might actually die. I think this is her 3rd near death experience? Still.
"She shouldn't have removed the bead then. I thought she would be responsible with it." Beaumont said.
"Um…..What if she didn't?" Archie asked him.
"She must've…..Unless someone else removed the bead…...Perhaps a red headed boy who wanted to see it for himself?" Beaumont said as he indicated Archie broke it. Archie thought about it before going wide eyed.
"When she came home. I jumped while playing with the bead. It must've…...Broke off." He was saying before trailing off.
"I told you we shouldn't have done that." I told him.
"How do we fix this?" Archie asked him.
"You need to weave a new dream catcher with a spider and I'll perform a chant to seal it back up in the darkness. It'll keep escaping and attack those with broken dream catchers. So, as we seal him in the new one, we burn the old one." He tells us.
"I have her staying awake right now. What do we need?" I asked him. He gave us a list of what we needed and we hunted for all of it. I hope Aria's alright.
*Aria's POV*
*What's taking them so long?* I thought to myself. I had been bouncing around and drove poor Allegro crazy. It's been 3 hours and I'm having a caffeine crash. Not good. This was like 'Nightmare on Elm St.' Except less comedy, more nightmare fuel, no chance of entering the real world, and a lot more real. I started nodding off.
*Gotta stay awake!* I thought as I headed to the bathroom. I turned the light on and went in. I started splashing water on my face to wake me up. I then heard a creak. I spun around and looked all around me. Nothing. I shrugged and started to turn when I saw a shadow in the shower curtain.
*What?* I thought as I crept over to it. I was scared. Yes. I admit it. Who wouldn't be? I grabbed the curtain.
*Please let nothing be there.* I thought as my horror movie senses were screaming at me. I pulled the shower curtain back. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I sighed and smiled with a small chuckle.
"I'm loosing it." I thought to myself. I turned and decided to go back downstairs. I didn't need cold water on my face after that. I opened the door just to find that spider man creature staring at me menacingly before screaming and lunging at me. I screamed and slammed the door shut right on his long bony fingers. It screamed in pain as I tried to keep it closed.
"No! Jughead! Archie! Help me!" I screamed in hopes they would hear me. The door then slammed open and I was sent flying backwards. It came in and it was huge! It looked to be 8, maybe 9, feet tall.
"No…...No! I'm awake! I'm awake!" I screamed and teared up.
"If you were awake, I wouldn't be here!" It hissed out in a raspy voice as it showed me it's sharp teeth. I was trapped.
"Aria!" I heard.
"Jughead! Help!" I screamed just as I was grabbed. I started fighting but was wrapped in a web and was soon being dragged off.
*Jughead's POV*
We got what we needed and made a new dream catcher. Now we needed a bead. We dug in our pockets and pulled out what we had.
"I have this." I said as I pulled out a small spider pendant. The body was the size of my pinkie nail and black with silver legs. It was once an earring but it broke. It had a loop though. I was going to give it to Aria to see what she wanted to do with it.
"It'll have to do." Doctor Beaumont said as he attached it near the opening in the middle.
"We should hurry. If she's tired, she might fall asleep soon." Arch said. I nodded in agreement. We soon hurried to the house. Archie opened the door and we heard a scream.
"Aria!" I yelled out and ran to her.
"Jughead! Help!" She screamed out in her sleep. I went to wake her quickly but then she disappeared. Vanished into thin air.
"She Disappeared!" I gasped out.
"We must hurry. One or both of you must go into the dream realm and pull her out, or else she'll be gone forever." Beaumont told us. I panicked.
"How long do we have?" Archie asked him.
"Until sunrise. By then it'll be too late." He tells us.
"Then why waste time? I'm going in." I tell them as I head up to her room.
"What?!" Archie yelled out in shock as the two followed me.
"You heard me. I'm going in. I'm going to pull her out and save her." I say as I get in her room and lay down on the bed.
"Man, this bed is soft." I say as I got ready. Sleeping was my thing.
"Jughead, you can't." Archie tells me. I shook my head.
"Sorry Arch, no changing my mind. I need to save my girlfriend." I tell him.
"Let me go. I got her into this." He tells me.
"No. I need you here. I got an idea. I'll set an alarm to wake up with her." I say as I set the alarm for 4 hours.
"This should be plenty of time for me to find her." I say as I set the clock down.
"What's your idea?" Arch asked me.
"I can fall asleep easily. I need you here just in case I don't wake up. She might wake up on the couch so you set an alarm for 4 hours and put it by the couch. Once Doctor Beaumont sees her awake, he can do the spell." I tell them.
"But where do we burn it?" Arch asked me.
"Put it on the grill in the back. Simple." I tell him. He looked shocked.
"Wow. That's actually a good plan." He tells me.
"Of course. Full proof. My girlfriend is too important to make mistakes." I tell him.
"See you in a few hours." I say as I lay down and shut my eyes.
*Archie's POV*
It scares me sometimes when Jughead plans like this and it didn't involve food. Once he started lightly snoring, I took the dream catcher. I ran downstairs and got ready. I put an alarm next to the couch as Doctor Beaumont got ready. I rushed upstairs and sat in a chair. Now to wait. Good thing I'm not tired.
*Dream Jughead's POV*
I woke up in Aria's room. I knew I was dreaming. I got up and began looking around. I saw traces of webs going from the bathroom to downstairs and out the door. Without thinking, I ran. I ran and followed the traces of webs. I followed them into the woods and to a small cave. I knew this was it because it was covered in webs. I looked around. This wasn't Riverdale. This was somewhere else. Maybe a place this legend originated from. I went to the entrance.
"Aria!" I yelled out for her.
"Jughead?!" I heard her yell. Yup. She was in there. I took a deep breath and crawled in. The web wasn't that sticky but the nest was larger than I thought.
"Aria! Keep calling me! I'll follow your voice!" I yelled to her.
"Jughead run! It's in here! We're not alone!" She yelled out as I followed one of the many paths.
"I don't care!" I yelled out. I was terrified, but Aria meant a lot to me. I looked and saw shoes and pieces of clothing on the webs. Anywhere from a child's to an adults. I gulped.
"Jughead please! I'm begging you! Turn back! Please! It eats them! It eats people!" She yells out. I was getting closer.
"I can see that. But I don't care. You're my girlfriend Aria. I love you! You'd do the same for me." I tell her. I then stopped and grew wide eyed. I just told her I loved her.
"You do?" She asked in shock. Her voice sounded like it cracked.
"Yeah. Yeah I do! I love you Aria Andrews!" I yelled out as I soon found her. She was tied up in a web and had tear filled eyes.
"Jughead." She whispered to me. I ran over and started to pull the webs off her.
"Tell me when you're ready. For now, let's go." I said as I freed her. I grabbed her hand and helped her up before starting to guide her out, keeping my eyes open for the spider creature.
*3rd POV*
Aria couldn't believe what she heard. Jughead loved her. Three words she didn't expect him to say….Ever! Now wasn't the time for her to think about that though. She needed to keep a clear mind and think. She kept an eye out as she could hear the hissing.
"We need to hurry. He can feel our vibrations from the web." She tells Jughead.
"I know. I'm trying." He says as they noticed it got harder to move.
Meanwhile, in the real world, Doctor Beaumont was downstairs, preparing for the spell with Archie's help.
"Are you sure this'll work?" Archie asked him.
"Of course this will work. I've done this once before at a summer camp many years ago." Doctor Beaumont explains to him. Archie knew it was pointless to ask him why sell it if it was a high risk. He stopped questioning him after getting the dice, after telling them stories to assist them and for helping to free Aria from Limbo.
"I trust you." He tells the older man.
Meanwhile, Aria tried to keep going but she felt her feet get stuck.
"Jughead! I'm stuck!" She says as she tried to free herself. She was now starting to panic. Jughead started to help but the web suddenly shook violently and both fell on the very sticky spot. They both struggled but then felt vibrations. That's when he appeared. He smiled and showed his sharp teeth in delight over the two teenagers he would make a meal from.
"Who are you!" Jughead yelled out as he tried to be brave. He chuckled at Jughead's bravery.
"I'm the spider of all the dream catchers. The Dream Eater!" He said as he got closer. He bent down and got in both teens faces.
"And, you two, are my next meal." He hissed out in a very scary tone.
Back in the real world, Archie ran upstairs to check on Jughead. He was shaking and sweating. Then the alarm started beeping.
In the dream world, Both teens were afraid until they heard a beeping sound. Then two. The creature looked around.
"What's that?" Aria asked in worry.
"The alarms! I set the one in your room for me and another in the living room where you last were. We should be waking up!" He said as both seemed to go ghost. They were fading. The Dream Eater looked between the two in shock. He didn't try to attack. He knew it would be useless at this point. The two faded from that world and both woke up. Jughead woke up on Aria's bed.
"Aria!" Jughead exclaimed as he ran downstairs, Archie at the tow, to see her awake. She had woken up on the couch she fell asleep on and looked around in fear. She heard thumping footsteps on the stairs as Doctor Beaumont was chanting. She saw the boys before seeing a shadow. She looked in front of her and saw a faded image of the Dream Eater before it turned into mist and was sucked into the new dream catcher. Archie immediately ran outside and turned the grill on, setting the old dream catcher on fire. Jughead ran to Aria and hugged her.
"I'm so glad that worked." He said to her. She hugged back before looking at his face.
"Jughead...Are….Are you crying?" She asked in shock. Jughead nodded as a few tears fell. Aria teared up and wiped his tears away.
"Don't cry. I'll cry." She said as a tear fell.
"Sorry." He said as he used his thumb to wipe away her tear.
"I just….I got scared I'd loose you." He suddenly told her.
"Jughead." She whispered as she hugged him. "You were so brave. Thank you." She said as a few more tears fell. Archie came in and saw their moment. He decided to move Doctor Beaumont to the kitchen to give the two alone time.
"I wonder what happened in there?" Archie asked as he meant the creature's realm.
"That's for them to know and for them to tell." Doctor Beaumont said as they waited in the kitchen.
*Aria's POV*
"Jughead…..Thank you for not listening to me when I told you to run." She tells him as they still held each other.
"You're my girl, I'm not leaving you in danger. Besides, Arch would never forgive me...Nor Dilton. Actually, no one would forgive me." He says as he pulls back and thinks about it. I giggled and dries my eyes.
"Thanks for believing me too. I know I must've sounded crazy." I tell him. It did sound crazy to a normal person. Good thing our little group isn't completely normal.
"Honestly, I probably wouldn't have if it wasn't for the fact that I pulled spider webs out of your mouth." He says as he shuddered.
"Do I even want to know?" He asked me.
"You'll find out in the article." I say with a smile.
"I can't get a sneak preview?" He asked me.
"You did already." I trolled him. He frowned before smiling and laughing a bit. I laughed lightly with him. After what I've been through, I needed to laugh.
"We should see what Archie and Doctor Beaumont want." I say as I stand up. I grabbed his hand and helped him up.
"Yeah." He agreed as we both walked into the kitchen.
"Aria, do you still want the dream catcher?" Doctor Beaumont asked me. I shook my head no.
"I don't want to risk someone breaking it again. I think it's safer with you." I tell him. Honestly, I still want it, but I'm not risking it.
"Are you sure? I know you still want it and your nightmares might return." He tells me.
"I'm sure. I'll risk the nightmares over that again. Besides, with my luck, someone might brake it as a joke. No. I think it's safer with you." I say to him.
"You do realize, it happens with all dream catchers, right?" He asks me.
"Yes, but his main power comes from that one. Others would be very weak and can easily be discarded to leave you alone. That one though…...Keep it. I've learned my lesson." I say.
"What lesson?" Archie asks me.
"To not be so desperate and to always listen to warning, even if it means being reminded." I say to him.
"Well, it seems you don't need this as much as you thought." Doctor Beaumont tells me.
"I guess not." I say to him. He then hands it to me.
"But at least put it in your trunk, just in case." He tells me.
"No refunds, no exchange, no substitution and no giving it as a gift." He suddenly tells me with a small smile.
"Besides, it would be a shame if the spider charm was not to be given to you by Jughead but left with me." He adds as he suddenly left. I tilted my head and wondered what he meant until I looked at the dream catcher. I saw it. A small spider charm in the middle.
"Jughead? Were you going to give me this charm?" I asked him.
"Yeah, I was. I found it and thought you'd like it." He tells me. I hold the dream catcher gently to my chest in a hug as I looked at him.
"Thank you. It might not seem much, but I know exactly why you were going to give it to me." I tell him.
"Aw, well." He said as he rubbed the back of his head and blushed.
"What are you going to do with it?" Archie asked me.
"Keep it in my room for now. I'll put it in my trunk where I keep my other treasures." I tell them as I started heading to my room.
"Other treasures?!" Archie and Jughead asked in shock at the same time. I didn't answer them as I rushed in my room. Allegro was on my bed, wagging his tail and panting as he saw me, when I entered.
"Hey boy." I say happily to him. I put the dream catcher in a safe spot inside my chest before shutting it. I knew it would be safe there.
*I'll buy a lock and key, just in case.* I thought as I went down the stairs. I hugged Jughead goodbye as Archie drove him home. Aunt Mary and Uncle Fred came home and hugged me.
"Aunt Mary…..Can we talk?" I asked her suddenly.
"Sure sweetie." She says as she guides me into the kitchen. She grabs juice for me and sits with me.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" She asks me.
"About love." I said to her. She ahed and nodded for me to continue.
"How do you know what's love and what's a crush?" I asked her. She give me a look before it hit her.
"Oh.~ I see. One of them said something." She tells me. I nod my head yes.
"Jughead….He….He said 'I love you.' and I can say it back whenever I'm ready." I tell her.
"And Dilton hasn't said those word either, has he?" She asked me. I shook my head no.
"And you don't want to say that until you know for sure, do you." She said to me more than asked. I nod my head yes.
"Then don't. Not until you know which one is the one for you." She tells me.
"Is it really that simple?" I asked her.
"Maybe not, but it's the simplest and probably the best one." She tells me. I nod my head.
"Alright. Thanks Aunt Mary." I say as I hug her. I drink my juice.
"When did he tell you?" She asked me.
"He told me a while ago as he saved my life." I tell her.
"Oh, well that's ni-wait? Saved your life?" She gasped out.
"It'll be in Archie's column in the school paper. I should go help him type before going to bed. Night. Love you." I say and kiss her cheek before rushing upstairs and into Archie's room. I was telling him what happened as he used the notes from Jughead's side of the story to type everything up before I took over and typed the conclusion.
"And so, the Dream Eater was sealed up and won't be a bother anymore. Just don't take the spider off the catcher and you'll be safe. I learned a lot. Like how I should be less desperate, but besides that, how also I should really pay attention to warnings. I was severally sleep depraved, but I still should've went back and asked him to repeat the warning for me. ~Aria. And I learned to not go in Aria's room and touch her stuff. ~Archie. You should've learned that after last time. ~Aria. Yes yes. You're right. A sore arm you could've broke should've been clear enough. It was my recklessness that caused this. From now on, I'll asked before I enter and I'll look and not touch. ~Archie. I just goes to show, asking to repeat yourself, listen to warnings, entering private spaces and touching some one else's stuff without permission might not seem like a big deal, but could cause more harm then you think. So always respect other's stuff and space and don't be afraid to ask questions and pay attention to details and warning. I know Archie, Jughead and, especially, myself will do. ~Aria. ….In a little town called Riverdale! ~Archie & Aria!"
I finished typing for Archie and got up.
"Gonna go sleep." I tell him.
"Really?" He asked me.
"Yes. I drank one of your dumb energy drinks and I'm still feeling the crash." I tell him as I start heading to my room.
"You did what?" He asked in shock but I ignored him. I laid in bed, Allegro cuddling up to me, as I quickly fell asleep.