DUSK TILL DAWN • nightmare.

[DELILAH.]

DELILAH EVERGARDEN

"The Gods have forsaken us."

Get her arms. No, not that one. She's only got three legs, how hard can it be?! Get her on the ground. I have a little gift.

Crunch. Crack. Rip.

Sharp fangs snapped around her body, limbs twitching and spilling over until..

"Stryker, please- please, please, stop-no-"

The cries as the dragoness kicked in her sleep, lying amongst the bed of herbs she had started growing. She didn't want to sleep in her house. She didn't..

"I didn't do it.. It wasn't me, mama.. It wasn't.."

She could feel the earth judge her, eat her skin and tear her alive but she.. She was merely dreaming. It was painful.

"Ren.. Ren.. Don't leave, you loved me- you.. No, don't.. please, don't take him from me- he's all I have left no-"

So much for moving on.

tags - penned by [member=1260]ryuu-tan[/member]

template by orion

[wormwood.]

Nightmares were nothing new to Aurum, unsurprisingly. He had been forced to deal with them since childhood, although their subjects had varied wildly since the days of his cubhood. First they were plagued with jealousy, and fear for his brother's life, then guilt and rage over his attempt on Poet's life, then anxiety over the Pitt's threats, then his mother's dead gaze, boring holes into his body... the list went on and on. The nightmares were less frequent nowadays, but they were hardly entirely absent. Thankfully, nowadays he had a room all to himself, which meant he no longer had to explain to anyone why he would wake up yelling and teary eyed. Maybe it wasn't so fortunate, since it meant he no longer had anyone to comfort him and offer him reassuring words when he awoke.

Either way, what was fortunate for Delilah was that the lion happened to be nearby, having been out for a patrol when he heard soft and panicked rambling words leaving her muzzle. Frowning slightly, the former proxy made his way over to where the dragon was laying, eyeing the herbs that surrounded her for a moment before he stepped closer. Leaning down, the large male pressed his muzzle very gently into her side, his deep voice trying to rouse her from her slumber, "Del? Delilah? You've gotta wake up. You're just dreaming, I promise..." He had no guarantee that she wouldn't wake up thrashing or trying to attack him, but he was willing to take that risk for his friend.

[glow=black,2,300]— ✘ —[/glow]

[VIGENERE CIPHER.]

[glow=white,1,400]EVERY FEELING IN MY BONES TELLS ME TO LASH OUT AND TELL YOU TO FUCK OFF ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

Nightmares were all too familiar to Vigenere, albeit for a completely different reason. His species were manipulators of the mind, they could change a dream into a nightmare and vice versa in a snap. That being said, it was a lot more complicated than what people think. But that is what lured Vigenere to the scene; he didn't the awful auras surrounding those who were having nightmares, and the savannah was searching for the source. He couldn't save everyone, and he knew this - but he had to try.

Aurum's approach wasn't quite what Vigenere would go for, but the demon reminded himself that Aurum likely didn't have the ability to try and stop the nightmare from its source. "Aurum, be careful..." The savannah whispered to his friend, frowning. "I'm going to try and see if I can fight this from the inside." Might as well explain what he was going to do. Vigenere's gaze went to [member=1277]DELILAH.[/member] , attempting to reach out into her mind with his telepathy. If he was successful, the General would try to speak to her that way, "Delilah? It's Vigenere. Can you hear me? I'm going to help you get through this."[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[DELILAH.]

DELILAH EVERGARDEN

"The Gods have forsaken us."

Delilah was used to the warmth of others, to feel their happiness was something she longed for. She had spent so many years confined to helping others that she had forgotten to help herself.

And look where that got her.

Loud snarls ripped from pastel lips as she felt something- someone nudge her. Stryker's face grinned down at her, and Delilah felt fire spill past her lips in dead sleep.

Then, she heard a familiar voice- penetrating the nightmares, almost. Vigenere's voice. She could see her little self curled up in the corner of the face, fur worn ragged and three legs exhausted from blood loss. From trying to fight back against the Pitt.

"I didn't mean to get caught.. Stryker had taken me while everyone wasn't looking.. I got everyone else taken because of my wrecklessness.."

The soft telepathic voice responded in kind, the dragoness watching the small pastel cat tremble in fear. Lilith had been long dormant, the demon couldn't help her.

"Leroy.."

tags - penned by [member=1260]ryuu-tan[/member]

template by orion

[wormwood.]

Aurum had known full well that it was risky, choosing to try and wake someone up when they were having a potentially violent nightmare. After all, there had plenty of times when he had just barely managed to avoid lashing out at his children when they snuck into his room in the morning to say hello. He wished he could've avoided it entirely, but the fear and panic that gripped one so firmly when they were in the throes of a nightmare? He knew it could motivate one to do some crazy things. Despite this, the former proxy couldn't help but recoil when Delilah snarled, backing away from the flames that licked forth along her maw. Although he had his own fire elementals, and knew he could just arc the flames away from himself, he also didn't want to make her awakening more difficult. A pained look on his face, the angel looked towards Vigenere, asking worriedly about his friend, "Vig... is it working? Is she alright?" Given how she wasn't already up and giving them a reassuring smile, he was fairly sure the answer was no, but he had to hope. Del was one of his oldest friends, after all.

[glow=black,2,300]— ✘ —[/glow]