Father Like Son

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Fear soon takes over and Chris dashes out of that area as quickly as possible. Silently cursing himself out for not being more cautious. He tripped over an invisible force. Almost dropping the kitten in the process. Good thing he held onto Cloud with his life. There was no way he was going to let him go. He fell onto the side of his left arm. He lied there in the fetal position. Not caring about his life that could be on the line it was the kitten's life he was concerned about. Chris took notice that the cat's tail was tucked under its body. Cloud was scared and he knew it. Somehow he felt guilty for bringing him along. He took a good look at Cloud and he seemed fine for the most part. But his arm was probably going to bruise because of how hard he fell. He tried to get up but he winced in the pain his arm brought to him. He put the kitten down and it hid under his cloak just by his backpack.

"Well, well look who finally decided to show up. Now explain this to me. Where the hell did you go, Chris." Nightmare hissed as Killer stood behind him.

He got nervous and started to shake as beads of sweat started to become more visible.

"I-I was...w-well you k-know, I-"

"Spit it out, kid. You're already in trouble for multiple reasons so don't bore me with your stuttering."

Before he could say anything a hiss emerged from a certain animal.

"Boss, did you hear that?"

"Indeed, Killer. I'll make you a deal Chris. If you show us what you have I'll have an easier punishment for you to handle." Nightmare lied.

Nightmare did that rarely since they rarely argue. But now. Everything changed. Where did that little kid in him go? Chris knew his ways and he wasn't falling for it. Not again.

"Stay away!" Chris screamed getting a firm and tight but not too tight grip on the cat.

"Boss, is he scared of ya?" Killer asked wanting to laugh at Chris's futile attempts but didn't.

As if he didn't feel suffocated enough Dust and Horror came over there as well. The two skeletons looked at him with a shocked look in their sockets.

"Chris?! I thought you- How? Are you alright?!"

He felt too scared to respond to Dust's questions. He couldn't move, he felt like he couldn't breathe. His mild shaking was turned into trembling. He closed his eyes and black tears came out of them. This eye became black while the purple one became a darker shade with a firey aura became noticeable. Nightmare kept a blank stare while the other three stepped back. Nightmare unphased stepped closer. Testing the young one's limits.

"Stop it! Get away from me! You'll only get yourself killed! I'm warning you!"

"What are you going to do if I take another step closer, hm? What then? What are you planning to do with me if I take another step? Would you even care if I did? Deep down you know that you have no chance of beating me like that."

"Stop it! You're nothing but a heartless monster! I'm just something you can easily dispose of?! What am I to you!?"

A black substance came out of his mouth. He didn't see what color it was so he thought that it was saliva so he wiped it off his face like it was nothing. He stood up effortlessly and placed the bag down and the kitten was placed onto his shoulder looking unbothered by the screaming.

"Chris. You're losing control. If you don't settle down you're going to pass out."

"Then let me! I'm nothing compared to you Nightmare! Won't you leave me here to die already!?"

"If you'd shut up and listen to me for once I would've explained why I needed you to do that for me. The longer you keep this up the longer you're going to be grounded." He hissed causing Chris to cower.

Lately, Chris's magic has been changing due to the strong emotions he's been feeling. Looks like making him 'kill' Delilah over some prophecy wasn't the brightest idea. Now he's seen what he's turned into. Nightmare sighed knowing there's another way to fix it. Nightmare rubbed his temples getting frustrated.

"This may sound dumb to you but try to pet the animal on your shoulder. Feel how it breathes and try to find its breathing pattern and do the same but slower until you manage."

Chris surprisingly did as Nightmare told. He got the kitten off his shoulder and started to pet it slowly being gentle with the little storm cloud. He could hear it purr softly. A few minutes go out in silence. The black stuff faded away into nothing as his eyes went back to normal. He put the kitten down and took in a deep breath just realizing what he's done to himself. The cat never left his side. Chris looked to the side before feeling a sharp pain in his soul. He flinched but the pain faded away quickly. He didn't get stabbed or anything. What's going on? He wasn't sure. It was a weird mixture of fear and confusion and then that sudden wave of pain was all too much. He looked down at his hands. He felt like he wasn't himself.

"I-I lost control again. D-Didn't I? I guess I really am crazy aren't I?"

Chris shut his eyes as tears came out slowly, he didn't even try to hide it from them this time. Mostly in utter shame in himself. Suddenly he felt arms wrap around him. Collecting him into a hug. It was Dust's arms who wrapped around him.

"Kid, you don't even know the definition of crazy. Trust me, you're far from it." He whispered in Chris's ear softly. "Now stop crying and let's go home alright?"

"Y-yeah your right Dust."

"Glad to hear it."