Quietus

balance

It wasn't silent. The breeze made the grass dance softly around his body, the trees swayed gently along as they were scarcely scattered about the unfamiliar field he laid in.

Dream's eyes blinked open slowly. He saw the night sky above him, the stars twinkled brightly and milky ways coloured the normally plain dark sky. It was beautiful.

He had seen this place before in his dreams. When he spent the nights in the cove gazing at the galaxy above, he saw the scene he was in now. It felt empty yet so full. He remembered imagining running through this field chasing after George, them tumbling down a hill and landing in each other's arms, and the little house they built to live in. Just the two of them in their perfect fantasy.

He couldn't feel anything, he was numb. Dream forced himself to sit up—he definitely was not where he was a few minutes ago. At the cottage in the snow woods...Facing Technobladr in a sword fight... He was lost, but a sense of him felt at home. It was calm. He wasn't tense. He couldn't feel the wound of the blade in his torso. It was peaceful.

Was this death?

He looked down on himself. There was no armour or weapons on him. Just his green sweatshirt, his cloak, his pants, and his boots. It was strange not having the extra weight attached to him.

In all the years of his long life, he had never felt so relaxed. The world's responsibilities were no longer dependent on his shoulders.

Freedom.

But he was alone.

He didn't want to be alone.

The got to his feet and took in a deep breath, shutting his eyes and taking the new reality in. He could get used to it. No kingdom to worry about, or a crazy anarchist...No training or work. No one but himself.

This meant he lost though. He didn't avenge George the way he promised he would. He couldn't carry on George's story. A novel that came to its end much too quickly, never to be touched again. It was fine, though. Maybe this was how it was supposed to be. It was a sad ending, but it was the good one.

Maybe he wasn't meant to meet George again. Their love was only temporary, meant for beating hearts. Now that the beating in their chests existed no longer, there was no reason for their fingers to intertwine again and dance into oblivion. There was no feeling after death, his body was empty. Dream didn't even take a moment to recollect the events that happened, he just accepted it.

It had only been two days since he lost George, but it felt like decades. He wanted to see him again. To caress his cheek, to show him just how in love he was. He wanted to experience the world with him, take him far away to all the places he explored as a child. It ended too fast.

Dream's fist clenched as his thoughts pressed on. But getting upset would get him nowhere. He dropped his head, defeated. He couldn't continue thinking about the life he would never see again. Moving on was his only option to die contently, without wishes on his plate. Just acceptance.

He looked ahead again, shaking off any of his mindset. He wanted to reach out and grab the past, walk back into a time where they were in the cove. To walk back to when he had George in his arms, happy and laughing. Change the past—stall a little longer at their secret hideout.

He squinted his eyes, seeing a red cape flow with the wind in the distance. He blinked a few times in disbelief, contemplating if his eyes were deceiving him. It was a sick mind game...

But Dream's legs started moving, and they wouldn't stop moving. They walked on to discover what it was, determined to find the answer.

The figure became more prominent as he got closer... He came to a halt, unable to fathom what was ahead of him. The figure turned around just enough to stare back at him.