"Nightmare: The Dreaming"

Warnings: AU, Modern Day. Rated for Language,

Active Imagination and hints of Adult Situations.

X+X+X

X+X+X - Eirika's entries.

O-O-O - Seth's entries.

'Thinking' or 'Emphasis'

"Talking" - Obviously

X+X+X

Three months and a day.

It's a weekend and I'm out at a party hosted by Rachelle. Tana and Ephraim came along with me and I've seen a few people that I know from school, but for the most part the partygoers are comprised of people from Rachelle's church. Tana and Ephraim disappeared a few minutes after we got here, so I've found myself standing in a corner with Vanessa. She's nervously pulling on the end of her short braid, but she smiles when I stop beside her, so I know that it's alright to stay.

There's a table full of various deserts with a full bowl of punch crowning the center. I decline the sweet drink mix, preferring to stick with bottled water, but I notice that Vanessa hasn't bothered to go anywhere near the short line that seems to form around that particular part of the room. I offer her one of the cookies on my tiny paper plate.

She looks at them almost longingly while she slowly shakes her head. "I shouldn't..."

She gives in and takes one when I point out that there isn't any other food to be had and that we are at a party. But only one cookie of course. I shrug and nibble on one of the two that are left. We stand there making small talk - or rather I make small talk and ask questions that she shyly answers. After a while she finally warms up enough to actually do some talking herself; I find out that she runs track, loves cookies (especially girl scout thin mints!), and befriended Rachelle at school. I suspect that it's rather more Rachelle befriending her than the other way around, but it's not important in the greater scheme of things.

Vanessa is smiling now and we almost don't notice when Rachelle finally sweeps towards us through the gathering, dragging a young man with a ponytail behind her. I recognize him from the photos - this must be her boyfriend, Joshua.

Since Vanessa hasn't retreated into her former shell at his arrival, I guess that she already knows him. Rachelle stops in front of me and dutifully makes introductions. I shake Joshua's hand when he offers it and tell him that it's nice to meet him. He grins and returns the sentiment.

He joins us in standing against the wall and I hide a grin when Rachelle takes the opportunity to lean up against his chest. She glances over at us with a weary smile as his arms wrap around her. "Are you both enjoying the party?"

Vanessa and I glance at one another. "The cookies are good." I offer in way of explanation. By now there's only a few crumbs left on my plate. Rachelle laughs.

"Well at least that's one point in my favor, I suppose. I've been trying to wade my way over here since you arrived and I noticed that you both seem to favor the outskirts." Leaning her head back against Joshua's shoulder, Rachelle seems to relax. "But everyone in the way seemed to want to talk to me. It's a wonder I managed to get here at all."

"Price of popularity." Joshua murmurs. He seems amused when Rachelle sniffs in disdain.

"I don't do popular and you know it."

He murmurs something in her ear and she resumes her relaxed stance. Apparently he's also good at placating her, which I suppose makes another point in his favor, at least as far as Rachelle is concerned. I hide a sigh and turn my attention back to the crowd. Sudden motion in the corner of my vision has me swiveling back to stare at Rachelle. She's standing ramrod straight and Joshua has apparently decided to let go off her. "CONNER!"

She's almost growling as she flies across the room. I have just enough time to notice the startled looking man standing by the food table before he rushes away in the face of the approaching storm. I blink and look back towards Joshua for an explanation. He's holding a hand over his eyes and shaking his head. "Stupid, stupid man."

When he looks up and notices the stares he's receiving from the rest of the pillars on the wall, he grins. "That poor soul who just tore out of here ahead of 'Hurricane Rachelle' is Conner. He's a friend of a friend of her father's. And he managed to spike the punch one time at a party that Rachelle hosted." His grin widens. "When Rachelle found out, she almost went as far as punching him. She did get her parents to throw him off the property and he wasn't welcome back for several months afterward. I'm surprised he's trying the same trick again after all that."

I shrug and fold up my paper plate in half and then into quarters. "Maybe he's a masochist?"

Joshua snorts and Vanessa giggles. I smile. "But isn't he a member of your church?"

Joshua shrugs at the question. "No - he's a self professing atheist. I'm not sure whether he actually believes that, or whether he just says that to get Rachelle all riled up. Personally, I think he's too lazy to forge any kind of belief system, so he just goes with whatever will make her mad."

I blink. "But doesn't that make things... awkward? With him not being a 'believer'?"

Shrugging, Joshua folds his arms across his chest. "Why would it?" He grins over at me. "After all, I'm not even a part of her church."

He laughs at my disbelieving stare. "I'm serious. As of right now, I'm only attending occasional services with Rachelle. I don't know that I entirely believe in this whole 'Supreme Deity' shtick, but I do know that I believe in Rachelle." His gaze softens and he turns back towards the crowd. "She helped me to clean up my act when I was into all sorts of shit. I found out that I could be happy just being myself when I was around her. So I believe in her and because she believes this other stuff... well I'm willing to give it a chance."

He grins again. "I still gamble a little, just to get her mad sometimes. It's amusing, but she'll call a coin toss right every single time - even as she's decrying the evil of the act. Dice, coins, cards... whatever luck or providence has blessed her doesn't seem to care about the medium. It's gotten so that my old buddies run in terror any time they see her coming."

"And speaking of running in terror..." Joshua shoves himself into a standing position. "I really ought to see if she needs any help with Conner. Since she doesn't believe in violence, I can offer to beat him down myself. See you later, ladies." With a roguish wink he's gone, striding into the milling crowd.

I turn back to Vanessa and note another boy approaching us. He's a sandy-haired individual, neatly trimmed as opposed to the ponytail that Joshua sported. He wipes the palms of his hands on his jeans once just before he reaches speaking distance.

"Hi girls!" His face breaks into a cheerful grin as he greets us. "I'm Forde - F-O-R-D-E. You can pretend it's French and call me For-day, if you want."

If I hadn't seen the nervous gesture beforehand, I would have thought him a fool. However, I sense he's probably trying to break the ice with his introduction, so I figure that I'll help him out a little. "How about we call you For-dee instead, and pretend you're really, really old?"

Between us, Vanessa giggles again; I'm on a roll today. Forde grins and bows to me. "Touché', milady."

I offer my hand. "I'm Eirika."

He shakes it firmly before turning to the girl beside me. "And you are...?"

"Vanessa."

She takes his hand a bit more hesitantly, but he doesn't press things - a quick handshake and he's released her hand again. He leans against the wall in the same place that Joshua was a few minutes before.

"So what brings you over here to our corner of the world?" I'm pretty sure that it has something to do with a girl, but he might be another person who wasn't truly comfortable with the crowd, you never know.

He looks over at me, but I can see him studying Vanessa out of the corner of his eye. "Would you believe that an aura drew me here?"

"An... aura?" Vanessa sounds slightly hesitant when she speaks.

Forde exhales once before nodding. "Yes! You see, everyone has an aura about them - an energy if you will - that defines who they are." He points towards me, looking almost like a professor, or an enthusiastic preacher. "For instance, Eirika here has an aura that tells me that she's very focused on something. And our hostess has an aura of purity, mixed with a dose of energetic sincerity. But that wasn't what drew me over here."

He draws in a breath and fixes his gaze on Vanessa. She starts to blush under his scrutiny. "The reason that I came over here was because I felt this warm energy, this aura of quiet determination. I wanted to get to know the person who possesses such an aura. That's you, Vanessa."

"So do you think that would be okay?" Forde takes a deep breath and lets it out. He scuffs at the heel of one foot with the toe of the other. "I mean, if you don't want to... that's okay too."

I'm starting to feel like an outsider to this conversation, so when Vanessa hesitantly agrees, I slip away quietly.

Neither seems to notice; they're too busy getting to know one another.

X+X+X

It's dusk out when I finally make my way outside. A few stars have begun to peek down at the world from the sky overhead. The evening air is a bit cool, so I shrug into my jacket and walk over to the porch swing. I still have the bottle of water that I picked up earlier; must be my date for the evening.

The swing chains creak a bit when I sit down. I tuck one leg beneath me and toe the floor with the other, listening to the creaking of the chains as I swing slowly back and forth. The constant sound is somewhat comforting; it feels like the world around me is responding to my slightest effort.

Because of my position on the front porch, I'm treated to the sight of yet another car pulling in to join the vehicles parked along the driveway and street front. A familiar blonde head emerges after the engine shuts off. I'm a little surprised to see Natasha walking up to the house. She stops short of the front door (which I assume is her destination) and gives me a smile and a wave.

"Hey Eirika, are you here for the party?"

It's a question with a glaringly obvious answer, but I nod and smile pleasantly. "Mm-hm."

I can tell that she's wondering why I'm sitting outside of the festivities, but Natasha is too polite to press me for an answer. Instead she gestures to the bag in her left hand. "I've got to drop these off for Rachelle. When I'm done, I'll come back and we can chat for a bit if you like."

I'm not averse to the idea, so I merely nod; Natasha enters the house and I lose sight of her quickly.

Screak, screak... screak, screak...

When Natasha slips back outside, I'm pondering yet again the strong line of my dream man's face. She walks over to the swing and I obligingly stop rocking so that she can sit down beside me. We sit there in silence for a while as the stars become more pronounced against the darkening sky.

It strikes me as odd that she's here at a party for teens, so I ask her about it. "Why are you here, Natasha? Did someone invite you?"

She shakes her head slowly. "No, I was just dropping some things off for my niece. I actually didn't intend to stay very long, but it looked like you might need some company." She tilts her head to the side. "So do you?"

"I guess I could use someone to talk to." I sigh and study my water bottle. "So... what do you think about dreams?"

X+X+X

Talking to Natasha about the dream kind of helped. She listened all the way through my rambling account and didn't laugh or belittle me. She only asked to see the picture that I'd drawn whenever I had the time. Just having someone to listen without judgment was a relief - I was fairly certain that even Ephraim would have tried to laugh it off as the product of an overactive imagination.

So it was reassuring to know that someone else out there now knew what I knew, even if I wasn't sure that she believed in it as strongly as I did.

X+X+X

O-End Part 1-O

X+X+X

AN: End Part 1. Questions? Plenty. Resolutions? Still to come. Characters? More shall follow. Do I know what I'm doing? I'd love to say yes. ^^'

Comments, criticism, and reviews welcome.