CHAPTER 110: THE NIGHTMARE

Ashen stood there, damp hair clinging to his face, his robe loose over his shoulders.

His eyes lingered on her face a little too long, as if reading every thought she tried to hide.

"Ashen..." she tried to call, but the words stuck in her throat.

He took a step toward her, his gaze boring into her face.

"Lumina..." he called her again and then crossed the room and sat at the edge of the bed as he pulled her to the bed.

His calm presence made her chest ache, but he didn’t ask her why she looked shaken, nor did he press her to talk.

"Are you alright?" he asked finally, she didn’t even know what was going on in his head but she couldn’t give him the chance to doubt her.

"Yes," she lied quickly, pulling the blanket over her legs. "Just tired."

He studied her a moment longer, but didn’t argue. Instead, he nodded once, stood, and turned away.

Lumina exhaled slowly, her chest tight. Did he hear everything? Did he hear Aunt Seraphina yelling at me?

She wanted to ask, to know, but every time she opened her mouth the words died on her tongue.

"Do you want me to sleep on the bed or far away from you?" he finally throws the question and she swallows hard.

"Your choice." she whispered and lay on the bed, "Good night," she murmured, turning her back to him.

She pretended to be asleep, though her body was stiff as a board. He did not disturb her, slowly wearing his night robe he laughed out again.

"I will be lying beside you." Then lay beside her, his warmth brushing against her back, and that almost made her feel worse.

Lumina still lay on the bed, staring at the canopy above her, rolling from side to side until her frustration boiled over. Sleep wouldn’t come, after what seemed like an hour she finally closed her eyes.

But in the middle of the night, Lumina could be seen tossing around her face moving sideways.

Her mother’s voice echoed faintly, distorted and far away.

"Luminaira Asteria Calanthor, daughter of Enchantress Elena Moonwhisper, accepts all my power!"

The words rang like a bell in her skull severally and just then that moment she always wanted to forget all came forward.

The light shattered and she saw flashes of blood on the floor, a sword glinting, her mother’s hair tangled and wet.

"Lumina..." her mother’s lips moved, but her voice was warped, pained.

The other flashes and it was of Elena falling, her neck cut, blood pooling around her.

"No!" Lumina cried out in the dream, running toward her, but her feet wouldn’t move.

The world blurred, her mother’s face changing, her mouth twisting into a scowl.

"You don’t care," the voice rang out. "You have forgotten me."

Lumina shook her head, her chest heavy as she tried to catch her breath.

"You are weak," the voice hissed, turning into a chorus of whispers. "You have ruined the plan... You let me die."

"Stop!" Lumina screamed, clutching her ears.

Then darkness swallowed everything, and she woke up screaming.

Her chest was heaving, her nightgown clinging to her damp skin.

Lumina thrashed in the sheets, trapped inside the nightmare.

"No... I didn’t forget... I will save you... Mum!" she cried out of her sleep but still isn’t waking up.

"Lumina!" Ashen’s called frightened, now seeing how her forehead is filled with sweat.

"Stay away... mum... I will av..." her words paused as Ashen called for her name again.

"Lumina! Please open your eyes! I am here with you! It’s a nightmare... wake up."

Just then her eyes flew open.

"You are safe," he murmured, and he crushed her against his chest, one hand cradling the back of her head, the other pressed firmly against her back as if he could keep the nightmare from taking her again.

"Ashen." Lumina clung to him desperately, shaking, her fingers gripping his robe. "I...it... was..." She couldn’t get the words out, her voice breaking.

"I know," Ashen whispered, his lips near her ear. "Breathe, you are here with me," he assured her.

"I didn’t abandon her.." she cried out again still in a daze from her nightmare he had just woken her from.

He doesn’t understand what her dream was all about but seeing how terrified she is makes him so worried.

He rocked her gently, as if she were something fragile, until her sobs quieted and her breathing steadied.

"Are you hurt?" he asked softly, pulling back just enough to search her face. His thumb brushed away a tear, his expression dark with worry.

"No," she managed, her voice hoarse.

He didn’t look convinced. "You were screaming," he said again, as though the sound had carved itself into his mind.

"I am sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up," she whispered.

He shook his head. "Don’t be sorry. Just..." His jaw clenched "...don’t scare me like that again." The way he said it made her chest ache.

Without another word, he shifted, scooping her into his arms as though she weighed nothing, and laid her back down but this time he didn’t leave.

"You can sleep now, I promise I am here." he let out.

He slid onto the bed beside her and pulled her against him, her back to his chest.

"You are trembling," he murmured against her hair.

"I am fine," she lied, though her voice cracked.

He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head, his hand covering hers. "Sleep. I will stay."

She wanted to protest, but his warmth and his heartbeat against her back were too steadying, too safe. Her eyelids grew heavy.

"Ashen..." she whispered.

"Sleep," he said again, softer this time, almost like a promise.

And with his arm curled securely around her, Lumina finally drifted off, her breathing evening out.

Ashen stayed awake long after, watching her face, as his thumb brushed over her knuckles as if to reassure himself she was still there.