"Mama, tell me a story."
Sira gave a start at the voice next to her. Her thoughts had been words away from the tiny apartment bathroom and the child splashing around in the tub. She was seated on the floor, the magazine she'd been thumbing through had fallen out of her lap. Bubbles must have gotten on the open pages, as they seemed too blurry to read.
"Mamaaa?" Whined the boy in the tub. He couldn't be any older than five or six. He'd grown bored of his games with his boats and action figures. His black hair was worked into a faux hawk with soap and the remnants of a bubble bear still clung to his chin.
She couldn't help but smile at the pleading, puppy dog eyes he'd fixed her with. They were a soft honey brown, a little more gold than her own. Not for the first time she thought to herself that her son was going to be quite the lady killer when he grew up.
Her son. She frowned a little at the boy.
"James." Yes, that was his name. That was the name she and Liam had decided on if they ever had a boy.
He gave her such a look of concern. She wanted nothing more than to reassure him that everything was okay, even though none of this was right.
The world began to fade.
——-
Bryn was barking alarm. He rarely ever barked in play, but that was a much, much different bark. That was a light, playful wuff.
This was deep, loud, and punctuated by tense growls.
Sira struggled awake, at first disoriented to find herself tucked safely in bed. At home. Where she was least likely to find danger. Or so she thought. Another deep bark made sleep flee from her mind.
"What is it?" She asked, like the dog could even answer her. He was standing at the foot of her bed, looking towards her open doorway. The hallway was dim, but not totally dark.
She slid from the bed and crept towards the door, but Bryn raced ahead of her like he had seen something. Swearing softly, she grabbed the shotgun Mercy had given her that was hidden just inside her closet, and bolted after the dog.
He was too fast for her to keep up. Down the curving hallway, he was up the stairs before she had even reached them, and she nearly tripped over the dog who had stopped dead at the top.
She spluttered out more harsh words and limped past the dog to the open doorway. No door covered the portal, and it hadn't bothered her before now. There was nothing to slam, to lock, to barr.
The dog had stopped barking. For some reason it bothered her far more than when he'd been alerting. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she edged towards the door. She peeked out, shifting left and right to try and see if anyone was waiting just out of sight.
Not seeing anyone, she pressed a hand against the door frame.
"Show me who entered last." The ward responded right away, but it was her face that stared back at her in the doorway. "When?" The ward didn't show her time, but rather the position of the moons when she'd gotten home. Yes, that seemed right.
The image faded when she pulled her hand away. A glance to Bryn showed the dog was" fine. He wagged his tail at her.
"Might as well go out while we're up?? She told the dog and he obliged by heading out to do his business. She kept guard with her shotgun, eyes scanning the forest. There was nothing but the morning birds singing in the first rays of morning.
Minutes later they were headed back inside together, neither noticing the all white fox that went bounding away.
Sira put out food for the dog, and it wasn't until she had made it back to bed to try and catch a few more zees that she was bothered by a niggling thought that she had been dreaming something important before being awoken.
She fell asleep still trying to recall what it'd been.
Sira gave a start at the voice next to her. Her thoughts had been words away from the tiny apartment bathroom and the child splashing around in the tub. She was seated on the floor, the magazine she'd been thumbing through had fallen out of her lap. Bubbles must have gotten on the open pages, as they seemed too blurry to read.
"Mamaaa?" Whined the boy in the tub. He couldn't be any older than five or six. He'd grown bored of his games with his boats and action figures. His black hair was worked into a faux hawk with soap and the remnants of a bubble bear still clung to his chin.
She couldn't help but smile at the pleading, puppy dog eyes he'd fixed her with. They were a soft honey brown, a little more gold than her own. Not for the first time she thought to herself that her son was going to be quite the lady killer when he grew up.
Her son. She frowned a little at the boy.
"James." Yes, that was his name. That was the name she and Liam had decided on if they ever had a boy.
He gave her such a look of concern. She wanted nothing more than to reassure him that everything was okay, even though none of this was right.
The world began to fade.
——-
Bryn was barking alarm. He rarely ever barked in play, but that was a much, much different bark. That was a light, playful wuff.
This was deep, loud, and punctuated by tense growls.
Sira struggled awake, at first disoriented to find herself tucked safely in bed. At home. Where she was least likely to find danger. Or so she thought. Another deep bark made sleep flee from her mind.
"What is it?" She asked, like the dog could even answer her. He was standing at the foot of her bed, looking towards her open doorway. The hallway was dim, but not totally dark.
She slid from the bed and crept towards the door, but Bryn raced ahead of her like he had seen something. Swearing softly, she grabbed the shotgun Mercy had given her that was hidden just inside her closet, and bolted after the dog.
He was too fast for her to keep up. Down the curving hallway, he was up the stairs before she had even reached them, and she nearly tripped over the dog who had stopped dead at the top.
She spluttered out more harsh words and limped past the dog to the open doorway. No door covered the portal, and it hadn't bothered her before now. There was nothing to slam, to lock, to barr.
The dog had stopped barking. For some reason it bothered her far more than when he'd been alerting. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she edged towards the door. She peeked out, shifting left and right to try and see if anyone was waiting just out of sight.
Not seeing anyone, she pressed a hand against the door frame.
"Show me who entered last." The ward responded right away, but it was her face that stared back at her in the doorway. "When?" The ward didn't show her time, but rather the position of the moons when she'd gotten home. Yes, that seemed right.
The image faded when she pulled her hand away. A glance to Bryn showed the dog was" fine. He wagged his tail at her.
"Might as well go out while we're up?? She told the dog and he obliged by heading out to do his business. She kept guard with her shotgun, eyes scanning the forest. There was nothing but the morning birds singing in the first rays of morning.
Minutes later they were headed back inside together, neither noticing the all white fox that went bounding away.
Sira put out food for the dog, and it wasn't until she had made it back to bed to try and catch a few more zees that she was bothered by a niggling thought that she had been dreaming something important before being awoken.
She fell asleep still trying to recall what it'd been.