Chapter 31: Freeing from Nightmares

5 months passed in the blink of an eye. Anya barely remembered what had happened during that time. But she vaguely remembered being grounded for that long after she had left the hotel that night. She at least still had her silver brooch given to her by Alastor, kept in her commode.

Speaking of Alastor, she made the other two notes on her notepad that same night, even though she knew he wouldn't care much. She also added a note thanking him for saving her from that demon, and that she promised not to tell anyone, anyway.

And of course, Anya had eventually gotten sick months ago, due to constant nausea and vomiting. The hotel staff had been desperate about how to get her to get better from that fever, especially Princess Charlie, Angel Dust, and Vaggie.

There were even nights when she had nightmares about what she had witnessed at Angel's job, and she would always wake up in the middle of the night and run to the spider's room to ask to sleep with him.

Until that moment, no one else knew about her first secret exit that day. Although Husk had suspected her, he didn't seem to know exactly why. But his judgmental expression had never changed when he saw her shaken in his bar.

She could barely eat properly without feeling sick. And whenever she went to take a bath, Anya would take the opportunity to vomit what she had eaten into the toilet to get rid of the discomfort. And tonight was no different.

After expelling her dinner from her mouth, the child finished her bath as soon as possible and put on her black dress. She walked towards her bed and lay down.

Once she closed her eyes, she had the same nightmare. Of the studio, of Angel's aggression that she witnessed and of what she had seen in his mind. And then, the little girl stood up abruptly, this time not having time to go to the bathroom and vomiting everything on the floor next to the bed.

After coughing a little more, the little girl went to the bathroom to wash her mouth, unable to remove the bitter taste from her mouth. Moments later, she picked up her chimera doll and left the room.

She was about to knock on the door to the spider's room, when a familiar voice whispered behind her. - "This is already the 29th time you've walked the halls, Anya. Is everything okay?"

Looking up, Anya realized it was Alastor, smiling at her. Knowing he wouldn't care, she just sighed and muttered. - "You wouldn't mind knowing, Sir Alastor. Anya knows you don't care about anyone here. What would you do if Anya told you?"

The Radio Demon simply turned his head to the side and replied. - "I may not mind, but that doesn't mean I can't help with anything. Why don't you come to my room instead?" - he offered, as he turned around and started walking towards his room.

Although hesitant, Anya decided to follow him. She wanted to see what he would do to help her or something.

With that, they both entered his room and sat down in the two armchairs, preparing for another interrogation. After seconds of anxious silence, Alastor began:

"So, what's wrong, little girl? I've seen you've been waking up almost every night and leaving your room. It has something to do with that spider or something, doesn't it? Given that you always go to his room."

The child looked around, sweating coldly. And before she could blink, the Radio Demon approached her and put his hand on her forehead, as if checking her temperature. And then, he walked away and returned to the armchair.

"I see I'm right. It has something to do with him, doesn't it? What did you see in his mind that made you like this?" - he asked, before adding darkly. - "And I don't want any delays and excuses for not saying anything."

After swallowing hard, Anya sighed and confessed. - "Yes, it has something to do with Mr. Dust. Anya simply saw what Anya shouldn't have seen and... now, Anya can't sleep or eat properly, and without vomiting."

As she vented, she hugged her doll tightly, while feeling tears start to flow from her eyes again, which she tried futilely to hold back.

Although he didn't know exactly what she had seen, Alastor just sighed and snapped his fingers, summoning a small dreamcatcher, which he caught in the air. - "Come here a second, will you?" - He stood up, walking towards his bed.

Confused, the little girl slid out of the armchair and followed him to his bed. Before she could ask, she was pulled from the floor and placed on the bed by him.

Once she recovered from her confusion, she looked at Alastor, who simply explained. - "I don't know if it'll work, but this might try to pull out whatever's giving you nightmares, dear. So just try to sleep and this dreamcatcher will do the rest, okay?"

Having understood about his voodoo magic or something, Anya nodded and allowed herself to lie down on Alastor's bed and try to sleep. She had to admit that his bed was much more comfortable than hers, which made it easier for her to fall asleep.

After a long period of disturbing and tense nightmares, the child woke up with a gasp and a sigh. She looked around, seeing that she was still in Alastor's room, who had already taken the dreamcatcher, now completely dark.

After taking a look, he declared. - "From what I see, it seems that was all the nightmare you were having, dear. I can assure you that from now on, you can go back to sleep peacefully, now."

With that, Anya nodded shyly and began to carefully get out of bed, avoiding making too much of a mess. She timidly bowed in thanks, and asked,

"So... Sir Alastor will want another favor from Anya or something?"

The Radio Demon just stared at her for a few seconds, before chuckling and replying. - "Don't worry. Giving the hallways some peace at night is already a great favor for me, little Anya. Now, you can retire and sleep."

With that, the little girl nodded and walked towards the door, which was opened by one of Alastor's shadows, who waved at her and gently closed the door as she left.

After realizing that she could be free from sleepless nights due to nightmares, Anya took a deep breath and began walking through the hallways, towards her room. But as she got close to her room, the sound of footsteps and another voice was heard behind her.

"A-Anya? What are you doing up at this hour?"

She turned around and saw Angel Dust watching her, tiredness and confusion on his face. The little girl didn't know how to explain the truth, but she thought for a moment and said. - "Anya... was thirsty and..." - She felt bad about lying, but she didn't want to break the deal and expose her secret.

Fortunately, the spider was too exhausted to notice, and responded. - "What a coincidence, I was also going to get a glass of water. Do you want to come with me?"

With that, Anya nodded and began following Angel to the kitchen, hoping not only to drink water, but also to be able to eat something without feeling sick and vomiting again. And luckily, there was still some dinner left.

And what was supposed to be just a glass of water, ended up becoming a late-night snack. They both chatted briefly about random things, and in the end, they both finished with two mugs of tea.

That brief moment made Anya feel good and happy. She felt that from now on, she would sleep well, without waking up in the middle of the night or vomiting all the time. While she was still thinking, sleep began to take over her eyes, and she found herself sleeping peacefully at the dining room table.

04/23/2025: Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I decided to change the previous chapter to this one. But don't worry, I will still continue writing the next chapter, and I will try to post it either on Friday or on the Weekend.