9. Shared Nightmares

The wanderer of shadows, his vanity is his downfall and his rise. – Bloodsongs.

*

(Art)

Art blinked as he stared into Aurora's room. His heart thrashed and pounded. He wiped his sweaty palms againt his pajama pants as he blinked twice and then looked again. 

There in her room was what looked like a fire. Orange, glowing. It was like the nightmare was manifesting in her room. 

It was very small, but Art didn't want to take any chance. Through the glass panes of the windows, he could see it slowly getting bigger. Fear and panic gripped his throat as he started to run, blind to everything on his way. He banged on the front door and whipped past when a disoriented Matthew opened the door.

"Wha-" He didn't stand there to answer Matthew. He had to hurry before anything happened to the girl with blue, blue eyes.

Art knew the interior of the house. It was the twin of his home. He stepped past the kitchen and raced upstairs, and opened the room door in hurry, praying that everything was alright. He stared at the small fire on the side of the desk... It was not life threatening, but what the heck.

Art flicked his finger out with a soft sigh. A glowing light came alive as he muttered under his breath. The fire died in an instant. 

The flame was so small, but it was like a forewarning –what is happening here? – for what would come next. He didn't know what this meant for him, for her, for them.

Art turned towards Aurora, and felt the pinch in his heart. She was thrashing in her bed, blanket twisted around her, face flushed with fear, hair drenched with sweat. She seemed to be murmuring something. He took a step close to her and unable to help himself, sat down on the bed, as Matthew and Paula stood on the door. They had a look of concern on their faces. 

"... It is so... hot. I- please- get me out of here." She muttered again and again, her voice a shaking whisper.

Aurora looked as if she was in pain, and he knew how these nightmares felt. They always felt so real. Sometimes, he even felt it physically, just as he had felt it mentally. 

"Aurora, Rory, ssh, hey, you're fine. It is just a dream. Just a dream. You're alright. See. I am right here. It will be okay. You are okay." He soothed her, pleaded with her to wake up, and when she didn't obey, he shook her hard, hoping, wishing he could somehow relieve her of that agony and torture.

"Is it her magick?" Paula asked, fear evident in her face. Art sighed. He didn't know whether his mom had told her friends about his magick. “This is why I didn’t want to-” She started and then stopped when Matthew gave her a look. Her sighs were weary and loud in the silent night.

"I don't think so." He said, but he didn’t know what it really was. "I don't really know."

He knew it was the nightmare, but then... this had never happened. Why was there a fire in her room? Was it her magick coming alive, to fight the darkness, without her control or her knowledge or was it something else? Art was confused, as well. He didn’t have the answer he was looking for.

"So what is it then?" Matthew looked scared. "She doesn't know anything about her bloodline and I- we should tell her soon, Paula." Matthew sighed as he looked at Paula. "I think she needs to know. We have hidden it long enough."   

"We just moved here. I hid it from her because I wanted her to be safe. And now here we are, and…” Paula sighed. “This move is already a big change for her. Do you want to throw this at her right now? I never wanted to come here, Matt." Paula said. "My girl was safe in NY. This town- I love it here, but will Aurora be safe here?" Paula looked heartbroken. 

"We will protect her. But this is her blood, her history and she needs to know." Matthew said as he rubbed a hand against his face.

Art didn't want to talk to them. He wanted to tell them to go away. This wasn't the time to talk about that, but he couldn't blame them. They didn't know about Aurora's nightmares. They didn’t know how strong it was, how hurting it was.

Only he did. And he needed to pull Aurora out of her nightmare and Matt and Paula standing there, asking questions was not helping him. Art knew Aurora was inside the glass door now, feeling the flames licking her flesh and bones, slowly burning her down to ashes. The pain he felt was nothing, the panic was nothing when compared to what she would be going through.

“Rory, please… come on.”

After another minute of his continuous pleading for her to open her eyes, her eyes shot open, horrified, and miserable and wet with tears and as they looked at him, first confusion and then relief replaced the vulnerability and pain. She pulled herself up and then threw herself at him, holding on to him in a hard, unrelenting embrace. He held her closer, his voice a singing comfort in her ears and her tremors slowly receded.

Even as he was comforted knowing she was safe and unharmed, he could feel the need to stay here, by her side, always.

"Nothing will harm you, Aurora, as long as I am here." He promised, his voice strong, hiding the actual panic, and she sagged in his embrace, as if his words had somehow lifted the weight in her heart and body, leaving her feathery.

"Yes." She sighed and her breathing relaxed and then he smiled.

She went back to sleep. He looked at Matt and Paula. They both sighed. He knew it would be hard for them to leave him alone in their daughter's room, but he had to stay. 

"I won't do anything-"

Paula sighed. "We know. We just wish we can help her in any way." 

"Telling her about who she is... is the beginning." Art said and they nodded and left.

She snuggled closer to him and his whole body tingled. He pressed a soft kiss on her head as he stayed right there. There was no place else he would rather be. For a long, long time he stayed. 

***

(Azakeal)

"This is stupid." Azak said as he shut the 'Book of Guardianship' with an agitated look on his face. The fire in Aurora's room had shaken him completely. 

"What are you going to do about it?" Castiel asked. Azak sighed and shook his head. 

"Nothing I could do about it." He said. He didn't want to poke his head to where it is not needed. She had these nightmares forever and she had survived it. She would survive longer, she would survive until the battle.

"You can, but you won't."

"I won't."

***

(Aurora)

Sun awoke from her slumber, slowly painting the darkness with her colors. The gray shimmered down, as the light overcame the darkness, as it always would.

The golden rays stealing past the open windows seared her tired eyes. Aurora woke up, feeling groggy, head-achy, embarrassed and grumpy. She could remember all the details of her nightmare, but more than that, she remembered Art and how she had hung on him like he was her lifeline. She felt like that, as well, then.

She had always been strong. Since she was thirteen, she had swallowed every scream, every fear and had handled it all by herself. All alone. It was scary at first to know that she and her nightmares should stay inside the door, within, but she knew she must face it alone, because it was even beyond her understanding, and she was too old to ask her parents to check under her bed for monsters. It was difficult for her, but she had to do it. 

But last night, Art was there for her, and she had finally fallen apart, and she did it with a bang.

She remembered squeezing the air out of him in an embrace, refusing to let go and then finally falling asleep in the protective cover of his warmth. She had never slept after one of her nightmares, but yesterday, with him by her side, and his promises-she trusted his words like they were holy and inscribed in blood-she had felt relaxed, safe and protected, against whatever it was that always lurked in her dreams. The Snake. The man from the shadows.

And now, in the glare of the morning light, she was ashamed of herself. She didn’t want to face him now, in the light.

What would he think of her now? A pathetic, pathetic girl who thrashed and cried for one of her nightmares? 

'I am not pathetic.' she thought to herself. In fact, she had been stronger, alone, all those years and the nightmares... 

Those nightmares, they weren't just that. They weren’t just some nightmares. They were more, they had always been more and their intensity was so staggering since she had came to Coven Groves, this weird town with weird noises, as if the reason for her nightmares had gotten closer. Closer still. The dreams were vivid and frightening.

She let out a breath, pressed her fingers to her head and wished for the hundredth time that she hadn't hugged him like that, desperate and with need, but she was thankful. 

She was thankful he was there. With her. For her. That was the first time she had ever felt safe and protected and he had given that to her. 

"Rory, baby, are you okay?" Her mother walked in, looking pale, her eyes painted with purple shadows beneath the eyes, talking of her sleepless night. Her mom looked tired and heartbroken. There were unsaid words in her eyes, and Aurora knew it, knew what her mom wanted to ask, but they both refused to broach that subject. They had too much to talk and this wasn't the right time. 

"I am fine mom." Aurora said with a sigh. For once, she was fine, too. She wasn't lying. 

"If it wasn't for Art, I didn't know what would've happened, you know, it is such a small flame, but fire doesn't need to start strong to destroy." Her mom shivered and pulled Aurora close to her heart. "Oh, my baby, I was so scared. But Art, he was so-so, thank God, he saw it. He took care of you."

"I am fine mom, don’t worry about that. Also, yes, I am glad he came. I didn’t- I don’t want to die yet."

“God, I don’t want you to die ever.” Her mom said with a soft sigh and Aurora smiled a little. Only a little, but it was something she needed.

It wasn't a coincidence that she dreamed about fire when the fire in her room started. No, it wasn't a coincidence, and she was going to find out what the hell it was, but right now she had more important things to do. Yes, like getting ready for school.

Her mom hesitated at the door for a second. Aurora looked at her with question in her eyes. "Yes, mom?" She looked at her and her mother looked a little guilty as she looked at Aurora, which made her wonder what she was so guilty about. 

"We- we need to talk about something, Rory. How about this evening?"

"What? This is not going to be like the time dad proposed a move to this town, right?" She asked with irritation and her mom nodded her head, looking abashed. 

"No, just about your grandmother and our family." Her mom almost looked nervous. Why would she feel nervous about that?! Aurora was confused about that... 

"Okay," Aurora shrugged, knowing this one might not be such a horrible, difficult conversation. 

If only she knew!

___