EDITED: 01-16-2019

Blood…it was everywhere, no matter which way he turned. It was like an everlasting bucket of red paint, splashed messily within the corners of his mind. The screams he heard were ear-splitting and slowly tore at his sanity, and yet a sudden realization hit him for a brief moment. Who was screaming? Who was crying? Who was…laughing? Turning again, he found no one but himself slowly breaking into pieces, because deep down he knew he was the one who screamed, the one who cried and the one who laughed – like the mad man that he was.

The sounds of cracking bones could be heard.

"What is 1000 minus 7?" His voice rasped out, and he felt himself cracking his own fingers. He heard the bristling sound of a centipede in his head, and he continued to cackle, the tears spilling from his eyes.

"…-san!"

Who was that? Was someone calling him?

He was so fucked up.

"..Sassan!" The voice continued, and he raised an eyebrow. Sassan?

What was his name again?

"Sassan, wake up!"

"…."

Sasaki Haise's eyes shot open, blurry from the tears he had wept. With his breath ragged and heart thundering within his rib-cage, Haise immediately went to scan his surroundings. Wiping the remaining tears from his eyes eventually cleared his vision, and his newly gained sight was met with the familiar face of a very worried looking Shirazu Ginshi. As reality settled and – far too few – memories returned, Sasaki knew that he was in his room at CCG, and the fact that the current squad leader – whose ears were far too sensitive for their own good – was in his room also informed him that his nightmare had once again woken one of his charges.

Shaking his head, Haise sat up in his bed and swept a hand through his hair.

"Sassan…" Shirazu began, but was cut off when the half ghoul held up a hand.

"I'm fine…" He said, pausing briefly to touch his chin. "It was just a…nightmare."

"Yeah," The squad leader nodded. "It must have been one hell of a nightmare...because you were cracking your fingers and asking what 1000 minus 7 was…" He laughed, but it sounded off and entirely without mirth. "It honestly freaked me out."

"I was…?" Sasaki blinked. "I'm never able to remember my nightmares once I wake up, but the feeling is always there afterwards. The crippling sounds echoes inside my head, as if something's crawling in there…" He mumbled, the last part mostly to himself.

"…." Shirazu seemed to have no idea how to respond to that, and Sasaki couldn't blame him. The poor guy had most likely lost several hours of sleep due to his dreadful nightmares, and Haise suspected he wasn't the only one who cursed his keen hearing.

He shook his head once again and mustered a small smile.

"Never mind that…I was speaking to myself. It would probably be best if you went back to your room again. We have a busy day tomorrow."

"…But, Sassan-!" The Quinx started, but was once again interrupted.

"Really, Shirazu, I'm fine…" The half ghoul stated, closing his eyes as his hand once again found his chin.

Sasaki suspected he wouldn't fool anyone with his half-hearted excuses, but he still opted not to tell the worried squad leader of his current feelings as the boy reluctantly trudged out of his room and back to his own. He knew this wouldn't be the end of their conversation, that it would most likely be brought back up at another time, because if nothing else, Shirazu Ginshi was one stubborn guy.

Sighing, Sasaki ran a hand through his two-toned hair. In a way, what he said about his nightmares was a lie. In most cases he couldn't actually remember his dreams, but this time was different. He shivered as he recalled the feeling of something in his ear, and as a response to it he unconsciously cracked his fingers. Raising an eyebrow at his action, Sasaki couldn't help but question when that had become a habit.

Knowing full well that he couldn't go back to sleep, the half ghoul rose from his bed to browse his variety of books for a light read.

It was once again going to be a long night.