CHAPTER 1 : CRIMSON NIGHTMARE

The smoke was unbearable.

Warm. Suffocating.

The crackling of the flames could be heard from the other side of the door. Red and orange lights danced through the gap under the door.

A young Yakko Warner sat cowering in the corner of his once happy bedroom. The drawings, in which he had worked long hard hours on, were beginning to singe at the corners and fall off the walls. The temperature of the room was rising at an alarming rate. Sweat began to form on Yakko's forehead and the back of his neck. Regardless, he remained hiding under his thick, blue striped duvet in the corner. Yakko could feel the heat coming through the wall onto his back. He was obviously surrounded by flames, the walls of his room - the only protection between him and his end. With his chest tightening and his throat beginning to close up, panic began to set in.

'Where's mum and dad!?' Yakko wondered frantically. 'Surely they should have came to get me by now…unless…' He began to fear the worst.

What if his parents weren't coming for him…what if they…

Crash! Thud! Smash!

It sounded like all of the portraits had fallen from the walls in the hallway and crashed onto the marble floor. All of mum's priceless crystal ornaments may have fallen off the sideboard and smashed. With every loud noise, Yakko buried himself further into his duvet. Tears began to well up in his eyes and eventually over flowed onto his hot cheeks.

'Mom….' Yakko whimpered, catching his breath. 'Dad…."

THUD! THUD! THUD!

A mighty force shook the bedroom door. Shaking, Yakko held onto his duvet for dear life.

'MOM!' Yakko shrieked hysterically.

Bursting through the door came a young woman carrying two children, one in each arm. Her fur, which was originally black and white, was charred and severely burned. One of her eyes was swollen shut and a large gash in her leg made it difficult for her to walk. It was obvious she had went through a struggle to make it to the oldest Warner's bedroom. Both kids were covered in blankets, protecting them from falling ash. Their mumbled cries could still be heard.

'YAKKOOOOOOOO!'

'Yakko…YAKKO!' The distant voice became louder and louder, shaking Yakko Warner awake in a cold sweat. He sat bolt upright, almost knocking his younger brother off of the top bunk. Breathing heavily, Yakko wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

'Are you ok? You were mumbling and groaning in your sleep again.' a concerned Wakko placed his hand on his trembling brother's arm, giving it a squeeze. Through his glove, Wakko could feel the heat emanating from his brother's fur.

'Yeah…yeah brother sibling…just a bad dream…that's all.' Yakko sighed, catching his breath. He lifted Wakko's red baseball cap and ruffled his thick head of black fur. He could see the concerned look in Wakko's face, his eyes staring into his own. Somehow, he could tell that Wakko knew he was lying.

'What about?' Wakko asked.

This was the 4th time this week that Yakko had had this particular dream, waking in a panic at the exact same moment every time. It never used to bother him quite as much as the dream used to be so vague that he could hardly remember it in the morning. As the years went on, the dream became more frequent and more realistic. Some nights, in fear, Yakko would refrain from sleeping entirely - unbeknownst to his siblings - avoiding the traumatic scenes that awaited him when he closed his eyes. It was so hard to hide all of this from them. He couldn't help but feel like he was betraying their trust. Wakko had always been such a concerned child. He seemed to have a sixth sense - he could tell when someone was lying. But he would never question your answers. He would always give you a chance to tell him the truth. Dot, on the other hand, was very positive minded. She would never let anything get her down, even when the cosmetic store ran out of her favourite lip shade. She did throw a fit at the time but calmed down eventually. She was still a child after all.

Dot hadn't yet joined the brothers on the top bunk but they could hear her squirming underneath them.

'What's going on? What's all the hullabaloo about?' She yawned climbing the stairs and flopping onto the duvet cover.

'Yakko had a scary dream again.' Wakko explained to his sister then turned his attention to Yakko. 'Are you sure you don't want to talk to Dr. Scratchy about it? What if it means something?'

Dot scoffed. 'Oh please!' She exclaimed. 'Wakko, it's just a dream! Are you telling me you've never had a nightmare before?'

'Well yeah of course I have…but…'

'Then there's nothing to worry about! Nightmares are completely natural. I once had a nightmare about Mel Gibson rejecting me on a first date! Now THAT was scary!' Dot shivered at the thought of her celebrity crush denying her love. Wakko fixed his hat back on his head.

'It's not really the same thing though…those dreams don't wake you up in a cold sweat.'

'Yeah, they do sometimes!'

'Do not!'

'DO SO!'

Yakko switched his gaze between his two younger siblings as they continued to bicker. The continuous 'Do not's and 'Do so's eventually turned into a poking war. He couldn't help but chuckle a little.

'Listen guys! I'm fine honest! It was probably the extra cheese on that pizza we had last night before bed. You know what they say, cheese can give you nightmares.' He smiled at his siblings stretching out his arms and ushering them over. They returned the smile and scooted over onto Yakko's lap.

'Yeah you're probably right.' Wakko said as he shuffled onto Yakko's knee. Yakko wrapped his arms around them, holding them as close as he possibly could. Just like that, his fears melting away. He could always count on his siblings to cheer him up, whether they were bickering or fighting or simply making a fool of each other, it was guaranteed to put a smile on his face. Releasing his siblings from his clutches, they bounded off of his lap and down the bunk bed stairs.

'C'mon! Let's eat! I'm soooooo hungry!' Dot exclaimed clutching her stomach as it made a comical rumbling sound which shook the floor of the water tower.

'Let's have a giant plate of waffles!' Wakko cheered. Dot agreed with an enthusiastic 'YEAH' and they two kids bundled out of the bedroom in excitement. Within seconds, Yakko could hear the clattering of pans and the slamming of cupboard doors in the kitchen.

His smile faded now that his siblings were gone. Lying back down on his pillow, he rubbed his face intensely, attempting to forget his nightmare. It was no use. Whenever he blinked, he could see the crimson colours dancing on his eyelids and he could hear the crackling of distant flames, the crashing of falling ornaments and his own sobs.

'Looks like I won't be sleeping tonight again…' Yakko sighed. Staring at the ceiling, he pondered what his siblings had said.

'It's just a dream!' Dot's high pitched, argumentative voice echoed in his head.

If only it was just a dream.