Two sides of a face (Michael Afton x RWBY) BOOK One

Chapter 9: Fresh start

Mikes POV

I was under the couch. Silent as a big cat hunting its prey. I soon heard hesitant footsteps creeping towards the tv. Once i saw a familiar pair of brown shoes come into view, i lunged.

"RAGHHHH"
Evan fell to the floor with a shriek, entering the fetal position while sobbing. I began laughing at him.

My laughter sounded distorted and creepy. I then looked down at Evan.
"Happy Halloween Loser!" I exclaimed before turning and walking back to my room. The hallway, the carpet, and Evan, all fell away. I was now in a dark void. I looked around and started to hear voices. They were faint and whispery. But then it all began to get louder, chanting 'Your Fault' loudly. My head began to pound. The voices got louder, then even louder. Then unbearably loud. it hurt. It felt like my head was going to explode from the inside. I managed to look up and saw my mother in front of me. She died a long time ago, when I was five years old. Her dark gold hair was blood caked. An eyeball popped out of the socket. massive gash in her torso, right arm missing below the elbow. She was maimed beyond belief. The pounding got louder. "Mike..." I heard her speak to me. I tried to answer but i couldn't. It was like my throat was clogged, no matter how hard I tried, words wouldn't leave my mouth. I heard my name being said again, but louder this time. It grew louder and louder. It was unbearable. "MIKE!!!" I snapped out of the darkness with a scream. "STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPPPPP!!!" I cried out in fear before I realized where I was.

 I was in my dorm room office chair. I looked around and saw Charlie staring at me with fearful eyes. I took a few deep breaths and tried to compose myself.

Mike: "I-I'm ok, I'm ok. Just a bad dream is all." Charlie the hugged me tightly.

Charlie: "Don't scare me like that! I thought you were dying!" I stared at Charlie for a few seconds in confused silence. Charlie stared back before she had a deadpan look on her face.

Charlie: "Oh yeah..."

 It was silent for about five seconds before I let out a chuckle. I yawned before getting up out of my chair. I stared up at the clock and saw it was four-thirty in the morning. I went towards the kitchen within my dorm room. I made my way to the counter and made a pot of coffee. After filling a mug, I made my way out of the dorm and down the hall with Charlie in tow. I walked for about five minutes before  i found myself in the ballroom. I made my way to the balcony with my coffee. I stared up at the stars in silence. Charlie stared up at them too, and for the first time in a very long time, i saw sparks in her eyes, she looked amazed.

 Charlie: "Wow, i forgot how pretty the stars were."

 I looked back up at the sky before responding.

Mike: "Yeah, they are pretty beautiful."

 I just stood there in silence with Charlie, watching the stars. And relaxing for the first time since nineteen-eighty-three. It felt, odd being able to relax for once. I wasn't sure if it was a good feeling or bad, but i ignored any feelings i had on the matter and just enjoyed the night sky in silence.

 ???: "Hey uncle mike." I heard a quiet voice say behind me.

I turned to see Ruby standing there with a blanket around her shoulders and cup of what looked like hot cocoa in her hands.

Mike: "Hey kiddo, what are you doing up this late?" i asked Ruby who looked like she had just woken up from a very bad dream. She stared at me before slowly inching over and leaning into me while shivering.

Ruby: "I... I had a nightmare is a-all." She mumbled while sipping her hot chocolate. I ruffled her hair and beckoned her to take a seat in one of the folding chairs that were sat around the balcony.

Mike: "Sit down and tell me about it, we might be able to figure out the cause and stop it from happening again." I said as i sipped my coffee. How i was able to drink coffee was a mystery to me, but I decided it was better to not question how Henry made the disk allow me to do multiple things.

Ruby: "Well, it was dark, I couldn't see much other than my hands. Then I heard creepy laughter. It was super unsettling. Then it just blanked out. And I woke up crying." she said while sipping her drink. I stared at Ruby for a moment, before I decided to speak.

Mike: "I bet that was pretty scary. I'm sorry you had to experience that, kid." I said while staring at my drink.

Ruby: "D-did you ever have nightmares like that Uncle Mike?" She asked the young man hesitantly. Mike froze for a moment, before deciding to answer.

Mike: " Yeah, I did, a lot actually. I had quite a few night terrors when I was younger. The Incident only made them worse, far worse." I replied while staring up at the stars.

Mike: " I still get them even now." I felt Charlie rest the upper half of her body on my head.

Charlie: "I know that a lot of...bad things happened to us Mikey, but that's why we have to be strong. So, we can make sure no one else has to suffer nightmares like we did." she said while looking down at me with a smile.

I smiled. Charlies' optimism was a rare gem now a days and it was comforting, to say the least. I could see that even Ruby looked a little happier at Charlies response. I smiled a bit more, glad that the tension was easing away thanks to Charlie.

Mike: "Hey Ruby, how about you head to bed for the evening, you're going to need to get up in a few hours for classes and we don't want you nodding off." I say with a hearty chuckle.

Mike: "And Charlie? Why don't you go with her? Help her fall asleep, as well as wake up later?" I ask the small ghost sitting on my shoulders.

Charlie: "Ok Mikey!" She said with a wide smile, before hopping of my shoulders and grabbing Ruby by the back of her cloak before floating away, dragging the young dark-haired girl with her.