A dull throbbing sensation fills my skull as a familiar warmth surrounds me, my eyelids flickering open before hissing, staring into the dilapidated ceiling. Back here again, huh? It's odd, to be here so many times in a row, does this actually count as me sleeping to my own mind? Maybe that's why the bags under my eyes seemed so sunken…

Hey, wait a second! My lips twitch upwards as I throw the covers off of me, abandoning the loving warmth of the bed despite my immediate wish for its return as I push myself onto unsteady feet, blinking away blurred vision. Adrian rests upon the desk, slouched against the wall with the back of his skull pressing against it, his eyes closed while his chest rises and falls almost rhythmically. I slink across the carpet as I look over the still sleeping ghost, a faint smile on my face as I examine the slumbering man, my head tilting to the side. It feels… odd to stare at him like this, then again, it's odd that such a normally pessimistic parasite seems so relaxed. He looks like he's out cold, must've been pretty bloody tired, or at least the spectral equivalent of it anyways. Part of me wants to wake the sleeping ghost, I have slightly missed his nagging after all, though I don't feel like I have the heart for it. I'll let him sleep in a bit longer, I just wish he could've picked a more comfortable looking spot, even if it was only for show. It's the thought that counts, I suppose.

I stumble my way back over to the bed and take a seat, sighing to myself as I bury my face into my hands for a moment, lifting my face from it to glare at the bookshelf. Each moment I look at the thing, the more a pressure seems to weigh on my shoulders, an unsettling feeling that digs into my chest, it takes a great deal of effort to tear my sight from the spines that line the shelf. Jesus fuck, I think that little day dream I had might've fucked with me a bit more than I thought, I think I was a bit too distracted with other things to realise it. Tch, fuck that day dream too, that couldn't have been a memory, right? Fuck, I'll talk to Adrian about it, the more time I spend thinking about it, the more it's gonna hurt my head.

There's not much else to do, not much else I want to do, really, other than look around the room. I swear to fuck that there's something else in this place that must've changed, the suspicion digs into my bones as I squint, though I can't exactly point out anything specific. Fuck, maybe I should nudge Adrian awake? It's… oddly lonely here within my mind, even if he's camping out in the corner, it's not as if he's making any noise. Something to alleviate the silence in the room would be kind of nice is all.

A gentle mumbling brings me out of my thoughts, my eyes shifting over to the once still ghost in the corner, his spectral limbs shifting as he groans aloud. I shake my head for a second before pushing myself off of the bed, making my way and standing beside him, I'm surprised that it's taken him so long to actually rouse himself from sleep

"Sleep well, parasite?" I verbally rib the man as he shakes his head, the man groaning out loud as his lazy eyes seem to shift into place, transparent eyes locking onto mine.

"Just fine until you started talking, you fuck anything up yet, waste of skin?" His voice sounds groggy and lax, it lacks the bite that his words would normally have, doesn't help that he looks like he's in the middle of waking up. I snicker a little as he groans once more, rubbing at his eyes.

"I'll have you know that everything went surprisingly well, at least for today." I answer with a smile, leaning against the wall as I continue to eye him. He grunts in response as he finishes himself, blinking repeatedly with wide eyes. "Seriously though, how are you? Are you feeling any better?"

"Ich, I am feeling a tad better, surprisingly;y, it was an experience to get actual sleep in your head. Didn't realise that I could, neither did I think that it'd work." I wonder how sleeping inside someone else's head would work anyways, would he be able to dream while I'm awake? How odd. He stretches his arms before floating upwards, shaking his limbs before patting his fur down.

"What was wrong anyways? Anything I can help with?" I ask the man as I look up to him, a wistful sounding sigh pushing through his lips as he continues to stretch. Does he need to do that? He's a ghost, ghosts don't have bones, can he even feel himself? Or is he doing that instinctively?

"Just a headache, hurt like a bitch, but I'm feeling better now. As for helping me, can you stop getting yourself hurt so I don't feel pain cause of your shitty decisions?" He raises an eyebrow as he crosses his arms, floating down and leaning over me. I hum to myself and rest a finger on my chin, making a show of thinking.

"No, probably not." I reply casually, shrugging as I shoot the ghost a grin. He lets out a short snort of laughter before sighing, a soft smile on his face.

"I guess I should've figured that."

"Buuuuuut." I interject with a raised finger. The action seems to surprise him, his eyebrow returning to its raised state as his lips twitch.

"But?"

"I do plan on trying to be more safe with a few specific things, I don't want to let people get the drop on me because I let my guard down, and I don't particularly want to try to throw myself into more dangerous scenarios, unless it's really needed. I'm not great with plans, you probably know that, but I'm gonna try my best to keep with that at least." I follow up on myself swift enough, Adrians face morphing into a confused look as I continue to speak. He blinks for a moment, his eyes squinting for a moment before lowering to my height, leaning ever closer to my face. I try in vain to pull away from the inquisitive little bastard, the back of my head pressing against the wall uncomfortably. Uh…

"Are you ill or something? What happened for you to actually seem honest with that idea?" I roll my eyes and take a swipe at him, my hand passing through his head harmlessly, though that familiar chill takes a hold of it for a moment. It's uncomfortable, but oddly enough, not entirely unwelcoming. How odd.

"I've had a fair bit to think about today, I've had some of my thoughts changed on some things, shouldn't you be glad that I've at least said that I'd try to stay away from danger?" I drum my fingers against myself as he chuckles, a cocky little grin on his face as he shrugs, though he presses a hand against his temple to rub at it.

"Actions speak louder than words, waste of skin, didn't you say something similar before rushing off into a pack of wolves?" A frown forces its way onto my face as I grip myself, a sour taste in my throat pushing its way into my throat before vanishing.

"Probably, not that I can remember it that well anyways. I'm gonna hold myself to that promise a lot tighter now, I promise you that much." Adrian hums for a second as he squints his eyes again. He shrugs again after a bit, floating upwards and lazing in the air.

"If you say so, I'll hold you to that, and stab you with it if you fuck it up. Why the sudden change though? I'd say that you're as stubborn as a mule, but at least a mule has the decency to die when people kill it." I can;t help but snort a little with that ribbing. Heh, not sure what it means to laugh at my own death.

"Don't you have full access to most of my memories?"

"You think that I've gone deep diving into your brain yet? I just 'woke up', can't you spare the kindness to treat me a little bit nicer?" The hand on his non existent heart doesn't distract me from the smug little grin on his face, rolling my eyes again as I pass through him.

"You're fine, probably, it'll be quicker than me trying to explain it all." I reply with a dismissive wave of a hand, taking a seat upon the bed. The doppelganger grumbles underneath his breath as I laze and embrace the softness of the thing, an odd feeling of weariness resting on my shoulders again, closing my eyes for a while. Fuck, maybe I should try to sleep my way through this dream room instead of remembering, try being the key word there.

Time passes with a comfortable enough silence as I nestle myself into the bed, occasionally opening my eyes to take a peak at Adrian, the ghost idly floating in the air with his eyes shut, his limbs twitching occasionally. Huh, is that how he looks like when he's digging through my head? I'm not sure what I expected, but I thought there'd be more to it. My musings cut short as he lets out a heated sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose as his eyes flicker open.

"I'm not sure what I expected, honestly." He mutters flatly as he floats over to me, an equally flat look on his face.

"Not sure about what? You're gonna have to specify." I respond in turn, ears twitching while I press further into the bed, closing my eyes once more. Why can't real beds feel like this, this is bullshit.

"The thing with the kid, the one you've not so subtly taken as your own, you're basically joined at this hip at this point."

"Mabel's a good kid, and I'd like to help her whenever I can, especially if no one else is gonna do the job." I say with a shrug, I can feel him staring at me, a cold shiver running up my spine, doesn't take a detective to realise he doesn't exactly approve.

"I'm surprised that people have accepted it so far, but that luck ain't gonna last forever, and Templars would be far less than kind about it. You know that they've already dug their claws into this world."

"I'm aware."

"Raising a kid, an actual fucking child is a lot of responsibility, she's not human either, you know that keidran kids aren't exactly gonna be the same as a human child either."

"I do know, actually, I know a little bit about keidran biology. I'm probably gonna see if I can grab some more books about them, too." I can hear a frustrated growl come from the spectral man, my ears twitching in response, though I don't open my eyes. I'm still enjoying the warmth dammit.

"Why the fuck are you acting so blasé about this? This is some serious shit you're getting us into dammit!" I crack open my eyes to take a peek at the man, his brow furrowed as his chest heaves for breath, his hands brushing through his translucent strands of hair. He looks a tad beyond being frustrated, it's surprising to see an expression on his face that isn't smug or pissed. I sigh to myself and shuffle into a sitting position, rubbing the back of my neck.

"I know I seem kind of… weirdly casual about all this, and I'm sorry that it's fucking with you. I know this is serious, don't think I'm trying to act like everything's gonna be a-okay and it's not a big deal. I know what I'm doing, just, not how I'm meant to be doing it. You said I was 'as stubborn as a mule', right? This is something I'm gonna be stubborn on, I've made my bed, and I'll damn well sleep in it, even if it's gonna be a prickly son of a bitch." A determined feeling stirs and burns in my chest as I speak, looking into Adrians eyes, even as he closes them shut, massaging each side of his temple with both hands. He's silent for a while, an uncomfortable dead silence reigning the room, the soft sigh under his breath is barely audible despite the twitching of my ears. He silently floats over, taking a seat in front of me, it feels like he's mimicking me more than anything, a pensive look on his face.

"..You're a bit more than determined to follow this path, aren't you?" I can see his eyes flicker from spot to spot on my face. I grunt in response and nod, returning his stare with one of my own. I'm not gonna back down from this, I said what I meant and I meant what I said. He's silent for a moment, looking down to the floor as he runs his hands through his hair again.

"...okay." His voice is… oddly soft, it's almost unnerving to hear coming from the man, my ears strain themselves to hear the word. Some part of me feels rather uncomfortable for it, unnerved and worried, but another wants to reach out to him, to clasp my hand on his shoulder and try to pull him out of his rut. But it's not possible, I know it isn't, but my hands and arm twitch regardless, as if it really wants to try. A sharp intake of air comes from Adrian, it's an almost hissing noise, as he pulls his head up. His face is contorted, morphed into an apprehensive anxious mess of a thing, though there's a stony look in his eyes, his lips pursed into a solid line. "Okay, if you're sure, I'll try my best to steer you clear of trouble, though. Someone's gotta look after you before you accidentally fuck yourself or something, who better than the person in your head?"

The smug little grin that he forces on his face is a faux one, it's a poorly made mask that isn't very hard to see through, though I don't bring it up. My lips curl up into a small smile as I nod once more.

"Why Adrian, if I didn't know better, I'd say that you actually care about me beyond staying alive." I give the man a wink, chuckling a little as he scoffs in return, my smile widening as he rolls his eyes. I know what he means, deep into our heart, even if he wants to say it in another way.

"I like being alive, thank you very much, I'm not exactly excited to return to that limbo, fuck that place in particular." He laughs it off, but I can see his own lips curl into a smile, a surprisingly soft one at that. I do agree with him though, fuck limbo, I'd rather keep my memory intact. I chuckle along with him as I return to lazing about the bed, eyes looking up to the plain ceiling as I hum to myself. It's… a little odd for him to be acting so different from last time, from what I can recall, always been in between helping and hindering, but there's something in my heart that tells me that it's leaning more to helping than not, at least for now. Maybe my meeting with that cold lady influenced it in some way? I'm not really sure, and I don't think he would know, either. Maybe I'm just overthinking it? Hell, I'm more than sure that I've changed a little bit since I first woke up here, both because of myself and others, isn't changing the way you think through life a natural thing? I sigh to myself and rub my palm against my face, resting my hand atop my face, this situation is a bit of a mess, and my mind feels so muddled. Nothing's natural about this, not at all.

And now I'm brooding when I'm meant to be resting, fantastic.

"Looks like you got something on your mind." I grunt in response as I crack an eye open, looking up to Adrians smug face, the ghost lazing above me.

"Just thinking about a few things, it really isn't that important." I reply with a wave of a hand, closing my eyes shut again. My ears twitch as I hear him chuckle, I can still imagine that smug grin on his face.

"Quite a dangerous past time for ya, you sure your brain can handle it?" I wave blindly above me, the ghosts surprised yelp filling the room as a chill squeezes around my arm. "You're thinking bout that daydream, aren't ya?"

I sigh to myself again and rub my face, forcing my eyes open to look at the man. His face is surprisingly soft looking, his fingers drumming against his cheek.

"Kind of, among other things. I've never had a memory force itself on me while I'm awake." I admit with another sigh, my head lolling against the pillow as I turn to face that bookshelf. Fucking memories, just couldn't make it easy, huh?

"But you don't think it's a memory, don't you? Not a true one anyways."

"What do you think it is, then? Cause I'm fresh outta fucking ideas, it doesn't seem consistent with how it's happened the other times." Adrian hums to himself and cups his chin, twisting midair into a sitting position. I wonder why he does that? Does he feel restless or something?

"I don't think it's a memory, not entirely. You don't have the best memory, you tend to get lost in the empty chasms of your own head a lot-"

"Hey, I'm still here."

"-and you've probably had a bit on your mind, maybe some bits might've 'leaked' through your head and into reality? I'm not an expert on this, I just say the shit I think might work, and it wouldn't be the first time you've lost touch on reality." As loathe as I am to recall those moments, the mere thought of those bits unsettles me, I suppose it makes some sense, it's better than the absolutely nothing I have. I hum and nod along with the spectre, keeping my eye on that bookshelf, and the plain spines that line the thing. God, the more I look at the thing, the more I just want to sleep, sleep away within a dream. My ears twitch as the ghost laughs, twisting my head to look up to him, there's a small smile on his face, the look in his eye isn't exactly a malicious one, but it's a mischievous one.

"I know exactly why you've got your knickers in a bunch, too, you can't exactly hide that from me."

"I know, I'd just prefer to hide it from myself, just for a little bit longer anyways."

"You've done a pretty bad job at it, your heart spikes whenever you think of it." I purse my lips together and bring a hand up to my chest, resting it above my heart. Huh, I didn't notice that, the more you know. "She did look a lot like the kid, right down to the eyes."

She did, she really did, almost frighteningly so, although I didn't look at her long while in the middle of the daydream itself. No idea why the colour gold seems to be following me around like so much, from the kid, to that glimpse of a memory in the dream journal, to that little buddy...

"You aint gonna talk about it much, aren't ya?"

"Probably not." I'm not running away from it, I'm not ignoring it, i'm just… still thinking about it all, I guess. I just want some sleep god dammit. Adrian sighs and rubs a hand against his face, that soft expression still on his face.

"Alright, I'll drop it then." That's surprisingly kind of him, though I'm not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth. "What about that? You gonna try to force a memory?"

He jabs a thumb towards the cursed bookshelf, an uncomfortable feeling stirring in my chest as I look at it up and down. The pressure on my shoulders and chest seems to increase in its intensity the longer I stare at it.

"Nope." I pop the 'p' in that word as I tear my sight away from it, nestling back into the bed. A feeling of glee dances in my chest as a confused look contorts the ghosts face, I guess he didn't expect that answer.

"Really? I'm surprised, I fully expected you to go head first into it, or to punch yourself awake to circumvent it." I sigh and rub my face, my eyelids feel a lot heavier than I remember.

"Adrian, I'm fucking tired, and I want to at least try to get some sleep. I'll deal with the memories and other things tomorrow. For tonight, at least, I want to try to actually rest for once, I wouldn't wanna wake the kid when I wake up either." I finally explain to him, looking up to him with a lazy feeling stare. He blinks once, twice, then once more before shrugging.

"Alright, I'm not exactly gonna complain, some peace and quiet doesn't sound too bad. What am I meant to do though? There's not much to do in this room." He makes a sweeping motion across the room with an arm. He's not wrong, there's fuck all in this thing, unless I wanna try to yank us into the desk.

Mentally saying that to myself makes it sound weird.

I hum to myself and look down to the bed, drumming my fingers against the sheets.

"Why don't you sleep yourself, then? There's plenty of room, ya know."

"You're kidding me, right? I'm not gonna sleep in the same bed as you, you fucking weirdo."

"Then you can sleep somewhere else, I'd just prefer you to sleep on something more comfortable than decayed wood."

"You know I'm a ghost, right? I can't exactly feel things."

"It's the thought that counts. I'm not gonna force you to do it or anything." I add on with a shrug. The ghost lets out a frustrated sounding groan, pinching the bridge of his nose. He massages it for a while, silence filling the room. Mn, it doesn't look like he's gonna take the offer. I don't mind it, it's not as if he has to or anythin-

"Alright, fine." He finally says with a sigh, throwing his hands up as he lowers himself to the bed. I blink in surprise as he rests upon the edge of it, his back pressing against the wall.

"...huh, alright then."

"What? Surprised that I took the offer?"

"More or less, I expected more of a fuss."

"Even a broken clock can be right twice a day, don't think about it too much, otherwise your head's gonna start hurting again. I am a little tired, that's something I'm gonna blame you for, might as well ride it out for now." A snort of laughter bubbles from my chest in response, looking up to the ceiling. Such a drab and ill maintained sight shouldn't bring me as much comfort as it does now, or maybe it's the lethargy taking over, my eyelids feel as heavy as stone, slowly drooping down and obscuring my vision.

"Night, parasite."

"Good night, waste of skin." My lips twitch up into a small smile, the loving feeling of warmth encompassing me with a tight hug. Sleeping in the middle of a dream seems a bit more than odd, but at least I feel comfortable during it. It feels weird to feel so safe around Adrian now, but I don't dislike the feeling.

"You kissed the kid, you weird sappy bastard."

"It was on the forehead you pile of garbage, shut up and go to sleep you goddamn bastard." My growl only entertains the asshole, his bark of laughter echoing throughout the room.

I take every positive thing I thought about him back, the prick.

…

A discomfortable feeling brings me back from the depths of sleep, my eyes flinging open while my hands squeeze themselves shut. What the fuck, where am I? What's going on? My breath slows as I look around, a familiar desk in front of me, the seat beneath me is far from comfortable, surrounded by bookshelves and lined with parchments.

Ah, I'm back here, I guess.

"That you are, Zeke." An icy cold voice seems to echo within my skull, my vision blurring as a woman appears in front of me, blue eyes looking through me, her face is as impassive as ever, blinking slowly and methodically.

"Can't say I expected to be here so soon, any reason for it?" I say with a sigh, resting my chin on a palm. I wouldn't have been dragged here for nothing, after all.

"Someone else wished to meet you again is all." I raise an eyebrow, someone else? Does she mean-

A familiar chiming rings in my skull, filling my ears as warmth fills my chest, my vision blurring again as they pop into existence.

"Little buddy!" It chimes again as it pushes against my face, rubbing into my cheek while I rub its glass body with a thumb, a smile splitting my face. "Are you feeling any better?"

"While they're still currently recovering, they're certainly far more energetic than before." The lady answers for the golden orb, the light inside flickering for a moment before pulling away. I hum and look into the thing, it's glass body seems… more dulled, I suppose, the light inside doesn't shine as bright as it did once before. I suppose that's what she means by recovering.

"I'm glad, really glad that you're okay, little buddy." My smile shrinks a little as I pat the orb with a finger, the way they press back against it ignites a spark of delight in my chest. God, I'm surprised that I was so worried for the thing, I'm glad they're okay.

"While this does seem to be a waste of our collective time, your 'little buddy' here was rather insistent on meeting you once more." The golden orb lets out a shrill chime as it zips away from me, bonking itself against the cold lady, though she doesn't show a reaction to it. It's weird to see someone with the face of the human be so cold, while what would be the inanimate object is the emotive one.

Then again, neither actually exist, probably anyways. I'm gonna get a headache if I think about it too much.

"Actually, I have a question I wanna ask, specifically for you though, little buddy." The orb ceases its chiming, it's attention diverted to me, keeping an eye on it as it hovers close. The more I look at the light that flares inside the thing, the more… alluring it seems, I suppose, and the more my heart seems to race. Fucking gold, that colour always seems to follow me around, in dreams and in reality, it must mean something, right?

"...Am I doing a good enough job for now? For Mabel specifically, I-I know I've probably made some mistakes here and there, but I know I must've made a promise to… whoever you are, you have to remind me of her for a reason, there has to be something to that." I trail off as a jolt off as I rub the back of my neck, my throat clogging up. Fuck, I fucked that up pretty bloody well, didn't I? I don't think that makes a lick of sense, why am I expecting an answer from something that can't respond anyways? "Ah, never mind me, just overthinking things again."

The smile on my face feels forced, the short laughter that comes afterwards awkward, looking away from the golden orb. Tch, good going Zeke. It's chimes echo in my head as it brushes against my cheek, it's lovely warmth spreading throughout my body as its noise drones on. It's a comfortable feeling, one that I welcome. It's not exactly a proper answer, but I think I can understand the feeling behind the action.

"Thanks, little buddy." I thank it with a smile, an honest one, it's celebratory chiming making me chuckle as it dances around my head. Such a cute thing, really…

"A rather heartwarming scene, are you prepared to leave?" The cold lady's voice brings my attention to her, blue eyes glowing within the dark of the room. I spare a glance to the golden orb as it zips beside her, giving her a nod.

"I'm ready." The woman nods in return, her hand blurring as she waves. I feel the dark creep in my vision, a numbness seeping into my limbs as my eyelids close. Heh, told her I'd remember them.

I saw that smile of hers, too.

…..

My eyelids flicker open, my vision smothered by a mess of white and brown, gentle breaths fills the air as warmth spreads throughout my chest. My lips curl up into a smile as I run my fingers through her hair, digging a digit behind an ear and massaging gently. She mumbles in her sleep, stirring a little before returning to rest, a happy sounding sigh coming from her lips as she presses her forehead against my chest. God, this kid…

Ich, this is something I'm gonna have to get used to, aren't I?

Oh, hey there Adrian. Are you feeling okay? And yeah, most likely, I don't exactly plan for this to happen, it just does.

Yadda yadda, something something it makes the kid happy. I know how you think, much to my immense disappointment. I'm feeling just fine.

I feel my lips curl up into a smirk, letting out a happy little sigh as I wrap my arms around the kid, holding her closer for a moment longer. This, this is a peaceful little scene, it's nice and quiet, not even the chirping of the morning birds. Did I wake up early or something? If I did, then I certainly can't feel it. I feel so energetic, oddly enough, although it's subdued by the warmth that surrounds me.

...Did you hear that?

Hear what? I purse my lips together as I pull myself away from the kid, my ears poking up as I focus. Despite his words, there's still nothing, as far as I know anyways, what's he on about? Are you sure you're okay Adri-

My ears twitch as a light laughter pushes its way into the room, turning my neck to face the door. That, is an oddly familiar laughter, though I can't seem to place where I've heard of it. Hm, I kind of want to investigate.

If they're already in the house, then they're likely friends of Annas. Up and at it waste of skin, don't get us into shit.

You know just what to say to get me going, I'm always grateful for your input parasite.

Any time, someones gotta keep you in check.

I roll my eyes and slowly slink out of the bed, ever so gently and quietly, I don't want to wake the kid. There's a pang in my heart as I look over the small frown that forms on her face, the girl shuffling around slightly before becoming still. Alright, nice and easy.

I tiptoe across the room, glancing over to the kid for a moment. I feel bad leaving her, and the warmth, but I can always come back to it. I just hope she doesn't worry when she wakes. My hand wraps around the handle, pursing my lips together, hesitating for a moment.

Why am I hesitating? It's probably one of Anna's friends, so why do I feel so on edge?

Hurry up and open the bloody door, I can't believe I'm saddled with you.

Alright alright, fine. I let out a soft sigh and gently pull the door open, taking a peek into the next room. A familiar pale face sits at the table in front of Anna, neither seem to notice me, the both of them chattering idly.

Ah, Lucy met Anna, no wonder I'm shitting myself. But, there's something more to that, something that niggles at the back of my mind. Sure, the both of them 'experimenting' on things can go awry, given Lucy's tendencies, but that's no real reason to be so spooked, right?

Adrian, you got any ideas?

Well, she is tagging along to help you with magic, right?

Yeah? We haven't practised in a while, neither has she experimented with it.

Isn't Anna rather protective of you since the night she took you in?

Yeah?

And, as an ex Templar, isn't she aware what happens to basitins when they get their hands on magic? The whole brain dead thing?

...I can begin to see the issue here.

Did you tell her about the whole magic thing?

That, might've slipped my mind.

For fucks sake Zeke.

Whoops? I'm sure I can salvage this, probably, just give me a moment.

"Hiya Fuzzy!" Lucy's shrill voice yanks me from my thoughts, the miniature mage waving a hand. Anna looks behind her, a small smile on her face, an eyebrow raised. Suddenly, I feel a bit less prepared. Adrians aggravated groan fills my ears, and I can imagine the ghost pinching the bridge of his nose.

God fucking dammit.