5 . Together, under the stars.

5 P.M. The bewitched hour that haunts you every day. Like an itch from an old wound, you can't quite shake 5 P.M. off. It stings, it pulsates and burns you. You try to get rid of it, only to find out you are denying nature itself. 5 P.M. will always be with you. No matter where, no matter how. You will always remember it, for the time when tragedy struck and your life changed forever.

It's almost like the world stops around you. The music blasting from Rogue's room comes to a pause. The faraway traffic from the busy streets of NYC turn silent. Like a secret hour, this time is all for you. Well, not exactly. Almost as a reminder, she appears every 5 P.M. A being only known to you, a being of such power you can't even begin to comprehend. She is part of you. She is your Devil. And she has come to cash-in her investment.

Your room starts to rotate, walls falling down to reveal a black void that surrounds you. You get up, still on your bed, as you start to see stars dance on the emptiness; some, like ballerinas, pirouette around you, before settling on a fixed spot on the horizon. You cautiously put your feet outside the bed, where the ground should be. Imagining being greeted by nothingness - after all, everything around you is now darkness and stars - you recoil as you hit something. Looking at your feet, you are surprised to see - and feel - grass. In fact, everywhere around you is now surrounded by grass. Valleys and valleys of pristine, pure, green grass. You breathe in, smelling the scent of nature. It somehow feels comforting, albeit sad. Like a good hug from someone who you love after a great loss, it's bittersweet. Perhaps it is because you know why you are there, you are to meet your Devil, after all.

You walk towards a mount that somehow attracts your attention, as if a scrap metal pulled by a magnet. With every step, a form starts to show itself for you. A great tree, with many leaves and branches, constructs itself bit by bit. Among its gigantic tree top, you see small animals revolve on themselves, coming to be by what looks like dust. You see wise owls, of many shades and sizes, every single one wearing a different gold ornament; you see mighty jaguars who sneak and defend their home, golden fangs protruding from their mouths; finally, you notice the spiders, who weave a beautifully crafted web that connects every single branch, which you imagine that serve as pathways for every inhabitant. You feel like everything is in its place, that everything is as it should be.

You never cease being amazed by the imagery of this place. It has some sort of ethereal beauty to it, as if made carefully by the world's greatest inventors. The dust that you now can see coming from the stars, starts to form the image of a person, who is sitting down at the base of the tree. She hums a melody as she looks up at the tree, maybe appreciating the beauty of it all. Her golden tunic floats, as she turns around to greet you.

She has no eyes - holes, black as the sky around you, look right through you. Her golden beaked mask is fixed on her head, a headpiece that makes you think serves maybe to spare you of witnessing her real visage. From her pillowy lips, two fangs - that remind you of a spider - throw off her beautiful appearance. In fact, you can't deny how beautiful she is, her brown skin shining under the night sky. Her long green hair puffs up, hiding partially branches that grow from her scalp. The microflora on the lady's head seems to house its own ecosystem, as you can recognize many animals which roam it. As she sees you, she smiles, opening her arms for an embrace.

At this point you are very familiar with what you perceive are her tricks, but every single time you can't help but fall for them. You start to sprint, meeting her hug with one of yours. She is warm, but cold - cozy, but distant. You feel sorrow, but happiness, and for a second you feel like everything will be alright. You start to cry. Only in this place, for two years, have you allowed yourself to cry. Or maybe you haven't allowed yourself anything, and that is one other trick of hers. After all, who would, in their right mind, cry in the arms of their demon?

She strokes your hair with her long fingers, her long nails getting caught on your strands. She resumes her humming, swaying gently from side to side with you. Why does she feel like home? You don't think it's fair. She is using you, she has to! But you can't fight back. You are all hers, until this horrible feeling comes to pass. Some nights, it's quick, but sometimes you cry for what feels like days. And tonight was one of those nights.

Probably dehydrated, the hug ends. You move back, but she keeps you at arms length, still touching your shoulders. She smiles again, stopping her singing. She reminds you so much of her. She moves with you, sitting under the broad branches of the Tree. A slight breeze caresses your face as she turns her head to speak with you.

"You have no idea how glad I am that you came, Sam. I get so alone here. You are the only person who visits me nowadays." her voice is sweet, her breath smelling of flowers. You try to not let her appearances deceive you, though.

"You know I'm not here because I want to. We had this talk before." you tried to sound as hard and emotionless as you could, but it was difficult since you just finished the crying fit of a lifetime.

"Is that so?" she stops to ponder for a second, letting out a giggle that echoes around you. It sounds like she does not believe you. "You are funny things, you know? You humans."

"What do you mean?"

"You choose to deny reality to live under a fantasy made by yourselves. It's quite amusing, really."

"You sound like-"

"Emma, yes. Fascinating creature, that mutant. She is very wise, you know?" says the woman, with a sly smile.

"What is with you now? You bring me here just to shame me, to say how fucked up I am? One person in my life doing that is enough, thank you very much."

She lets out her ethereal, almost ghastly giggle once again, covering her mouth with her left hand. "Sam, you dummy. Shaming you would be quite hypocritical coming from me, don't you think?" she sits straight once again. "No, I would never shame you. It's just that she is getting in the way of our goal again."

"I know, I know. I just can't help it. It's been extra tough lately." you sigh, collapsing back into the comfortable grass. She doesn't take long to follow suit.

"Oh, I see. It's almost that time of the year again, right?" you nod. "Maybe I can take the reins again like last time, just until everything is ov-"

"No!" you burst out, straightening up from your quick lay on the grass. "I mean, I don't need to. Not this year. It would just complicate things."

She sighs. "Just because I wanted to eat some pizza again…" your Devil doesn't get up from the grass. It looks like she is quite comfortable there. "Fine, I won't interfere. As long as the Spider keeps doing his job, that is."

You gulped. You feel like your boss caught you slacking on the job, and now your ass was on the line. She continues.

"I will be forever grateful for your daily visits, Sammy. I would even consider you my only friend." you can hear her smile, even not looking at her. You hear rumbling noises, and you see dust floating in front of you. It settles, turning itself into the image of the lady once again. "But I can't give without take. The Spider can't die, Sammy boy. He cannot even think about slowing down. Those were our terms. Try not to forget, ok?"

As soon as she ends her speech, thousands of spiders fall on you. You try thrashing around, foolishly attempting to shake them off yourself. But they are too fast, and in this place it seems like your powers don't work. You feel yourself being enveloped in a cocoon, with the world around you slowly fading to black. Another recurring event. This signified your time was up. For better, or for worse.

Before you are sent away, however, the lady whispers one last thing into your ears. "Listen closely and listen true, Sammy. Don't forget who keeps you alive. Don't forget the lady in the night. As for She isn't your Devil, foolish, foolish child. She is the beginning and the end. The One without a name. The love and the hatred, She is your everything. She is your Goddess. She is the Spider."