Something More, Something Unique Chapter 10

Attention! I will start every chapter with a quote and whoevers perspective it is in!

“Flo, mornings are for coffee and contemplation. ” - Jim Hopper, Stranger Things

Nayleth - Chapter 10

My leg hung down from the tree, my eyes closed and the warm breeze running over me. It was a nice change from a stuffy room.

Griffin was laying below me, asleep. His pulse was slow, deliberate. Sully, on the other-hand, kept looking up at me and working on his giant leather book. J was playing her guitar, which I just figured out she had. Her fingers strummed the chords, filling the air with tunes that I knew.

"She asked me, Son, when I grow old, will you buy me a house of gold?” I softly sang along to the chords that J strummed, a smile playing across her lips. Griffin woke up then, a smile also crossing his face. Sully kept drawing but I could tell he was listening.

"Who is singing? And you have music from the humans world too. And woah, I just said humans world, okay then."

It’s not that weird… I thought. Really, it wasn’t.

"Indeed, we do. Ooooo, look! Rose is back! Hey, my little moth, how you doing hon?" J asked this puppy sized moth. Now this.. this thing, was made of rose vines, it’s eyes a bright gold, the size of softballs. But it was still fuzzy. Please, someone explain this to me. Like, seriously.

I watched warily as the giant cousin to the butterfly gargled happily. That thing was weird.

Sully loudly shut his book, climbing up the tree to show me what he had done.

He reopened the book, to the page that held my picture. It was stunning, a perfect drawing of what I looked like. But my form wasn’t what it was. I mean, how could either of them know, considering me and Griffin had yet to tell them?

Sully had scribbled all over the second page, what he thought I could do and ready to change it once he knew.

What he thought I could do was manipulate light and dark. Change spaces from having lights on to off. It was the oddest thing, he went into such detail. For Griffin, well, he thought he had a better sense of smell and that he could talk to dogs all of breeds.

I shook my head at the drawings, Sully looking crestfallen.

Smiling at him, I jumped off the branch beside Griffin and woke him.

He shot up, his eyes wide, fear in them but the it flickered away. He rubbed his eyes and stood up.

“It’s getting dark, we should head back.” I told him, a hand on his shoulder. Griffin only looked at me, nodding in agreement.

J settled Rose atop her head, the moth gurgling sleepily while Sully tucked his book into a bag and followed suit. With a moth-carrying-J and shoulder-aching-Sully, we headed back to the room.

But I stayed at the tree. I liked the night and always have. Its peaceful, quiet and filled with things of unknown. Once I saw that they have reached the room, hearing them open the door a bit away, I unleashed my form.

The same pain rippled through my spine, shoulders, everywhere. But it was worse than the first time. Gasping for breath, I fell to my knees. My fingers spasmed, ripping the soft grass. I could feel my skin rip apart more than before, the pounding in my eyes and burning in my lungs. I gagged, for the pain was spreading to my gut.

I coughed and coughed after I was in my form. My throat felt raw from dryly throwing up.

Standing up, I leaned against the tree. The stars filled the sky by now, the moon high in the sky.

Nighttime air, perfect.

I launched into the sky, feeling the cool air run over my scales and skin. My hair was down now, flying behind me. It felt like I had dropped all of my worries away, the weight of knowing that I was something I had never even known.

My breath came out like frost almost, I was that high up. I didn’t feel sick anymore. But then I heard a sound that made me chuckle.

Looking below me, I saw a blur of white and gold, the sound of claws and hands pounding against the ground also noticeable.

“Hey, slowpoke! Up here!” I yelled down to him.

The blur stopped moving, startled by my voice. He tumbled over himself, landing face first into the tree.

I could hear his muffled shouting, along with seeing thrown-back ears.

After laughing to the point where I couldn’t breath, I landed beside Griffin.

“I oke my ose.” Griffin practically hissed at me, holding his nose gingerly.

“You broke your nose? Doesn’t seem like it. You’d be in more pain then that,” I retorted. He was in his form now, his wolf ears back against his head. “And you would be bleeding.”

“I was just a second ago, while you were laughing like a jester.” He snarled, teeth bared.

“Oh, the poor puppy is gonna bite me. I am sooo scared!”

Griffin lunged at me and in turn, I dodge it. 

Taunting him, I went to the very top of the tree. The branches scratched at my scales and skin, the leaves hiding me easily. Griffin, on the other hand, was not well hidden. He stood out like a lantern in a cavern.

I wrapped my legs around a thick branch, keeping my arms level with the leaves to hide. I hung as if I was a sloth, slowing my breathing as well.

Griffin was right in front of me.

His pulse was quick, adrenaline rushing. His eyes flickered back and forth, trying to find me. I could see him as if it was day out.

Grunting, he climbed just to the side of me, looking right at my face. But he climbed away.

Stifling laughter, I held still, waiting and watching.

After about five more minutes of this, I fell out of tree from laughter, Griffin scurrying down.

“Oh my gosh, Nat, are you okay?!” were the first words out of his mouth.

“Damn right! That was hilarious, Griffin. Okay, we need to head back. We have about ohhh, five minutes, till curfew is here.” I replied.

“Well, I can hardly see you, so help me.”

“And you're a walking lantern, Griffin. Let’s help one another.”

With a grumbling Griffin, I headed back to the room.

---

I shot out of bed, the time 2:47am. I was sweaty, sticky and just panicy. Nightmares have always been horrible for me. So, in effort to relax, I got up and made some cocoa while recollecting my thoughts.

“Why the hell… what the hell…” was the only thing I could say. This was new. It was a dream but… it felt so real.

---

I was just opening my eyes when sour breath breached my nose.

The man in front of me was wiry and had this I-am-a-horrible-person vibe. He was face to face with me, his slimy fingers caressing my cheek while I tried to pull away.

“Don’t worry darling, you won’t suffer long.” was all the man had said, his voice sleek and low.

Out of the corners of my eyes, I could see J. She was unconscious. Blood dripping down her nose and a shuriken of her’s was embedded into her gut.

My eyes watered.

Then it switched to a violin playing, colors dancing across my eyes. It was calm now, the feeling of this dream. Nothing was out of place or seemed too real.

Then the music went away, just blackness. And I lost my dreams. 

---

With swimming thoughts, I went to grab my cocoa but… the mug was gone. Only the books that it laid upon were still there.

“What the…” I mumbled and turned around to find a cloaked figure drinking the rest of my beverage.

“What the fu-?!” I whisper-yelled and stopped myself short.

The figure looked up, shame in his eyes. Well, eye sockets. He had no eyes. Setting the mug down, the figure walked over and smiled a Pennywise smile.

“Hello, Abis. I am the Grim Reaper.” he said, holding out a bone-like hand.