Just Take My Wallet - Gojo Satoru

Awake and Unafraid (Asleep or Dead)

If you know me, you know that I've never been this put together in my life, and I'm currently very proud of myself. This chapter is kind of ass, I may revise it later, I just needed to get this concept out for her character. Recommended Songs: Famous Last Words, No Surprises, and Right Where You Left Me.

It was uncanny, walking half-asleep through the aisles lit by the same fluorescent lights in the morgue, if she closed her eyes it was as if she never left, and yet she had. She was walking through the aisles, practically hip-to-hip with someone she had hated for years, learning from their small talk that she would fade in and out of, that he had grown, and yet he had stayed just the same. A breath of fresh air in these current times.

The checkout was quick, surprisingly so. However, that could be the fatigue from the combined mission and contact with an ancient spirit. Mari doesn't even remember paying.

"Let's get you to bed, yeah?" The voice was muffled, a gentle guiding hand on her back as she began to stumble to the car. "Yaga didn't tell me you just got back from your mission today." The hand left her as soon as she was settled, she swatted that same hand away as her muscle memory guided her other hand to buckle herself, despite her tightly closed eyes that she could not force open.

"I don't need you to do all of this for me, I've been functioning just fine on my own." She slurred, leaning her entire weight onto the car door. 

"Yes, because falling asleep in a convenience store is exactly what I'd call functioning." Gojo taunted, sliding into his seat and motioning for Ijichi to drive. "Be careful on the road, I don't need her concussing herself on the window." 

"I won't get a concussion from a little bump to my head." Mari groaned, "Now shut up, I'm trying to sleep here." She pulled her new blanket tighter around herself as she spoke.

Her dreams were always the same. They had been since she lost what had been most dear to her just a few years ago. Not her dignity, her pride, or her family name. No. Mari had lost her child, and ever since, her brain tortured her with dreams where she hadn't.

The bassinette sat in the middle of the plain white room, it would change once she bent over and grabbed the baby, but for now, the room was bright and the baby was the only thing there. Her hands blindly reached out for the baby, a little girl this time, and the room shifted.

"Hey honey, I'm back." And wasn't that new? Someone else in the dream, someone in the room with her, and the baby she failed to protect. She turned to see complete static in a human shape as if the dream wasn't even sure who it was. "What's wrong, are you tired, did she keep you awake?"

"No, I'm fine." Mari replied shortly, sitting down on the couch and basking in the moment, "How was your day at work?"

"It was alright, I've been aching to see my girls." The static replied, crossing the empty space and sitting directly next to her on the couch, "I got to visit him today." It became clear that no answer would be straight so she didn't bother trying to get to the bottom of anything.

"How did that go?" She asked, suppressing her surprise at the weight of the static man's head on her shoulder.

"It went well, he wants his mom to visit though." He replied, shocking her further, "It's been a while since he's seen you, y'know, so I invited him over for dinner." 

"What time is it, I should probably get cooking." Mari rose from the couch only to be pulled back down by the static hands. 

"He couldn't come tonight, he has exams, but he said that after exams he would visit for a while." The static replied, pulling her closer. "I miss him too."

"I just want all of my babies together again." She lied, faking a yawn and pulling away. A slight blue light broke through the static.

"Wake up, we're almost back." An entirely new voice beckoned, and the blue was quickly suppressed. 

"Don't worry, dear, they'll all be back together before you know it-" The final word was cut short by the blue, permeating the barrier once again. The static gripped her tight enough to bruise.

"Wake up!" 

Mari jolted, her breath quickened, free from the tight clutches of the odd man in her dreams. She turned quickly, making eye contact with the blindfolded man.

"You had me worried for a minute, almost resorted to shaking you." Gojo stated in a joking tone, "Figured you'd want me to wake you up when we got back." 

"Yeah, thanks." She replied, stretching out her tired and cramped limbs, "Do you ever have any weird dreams like that?"

"Like what?"

"That are hard to wake up from?" 

"No." Gojo lied smoothly and watched as she winced.

"Oh, I guess it might be a family thing." Mari shrugged, opening her car door and sliding out, blanket firmly wrapped around one arm and her bag in another. The morgue wasn't too far of a walk, she needed the fresh air and time to truly process what she had seen. Her dreams never really strayed from their normal theme, but this one was odd and somewhat concerning.

Seeing the boy still lying there when she came back didn't help, she'd be bunking with a corpse. No one to pull her out this time, maybe it would be better to avoid sleep for a while. And yet, her eyelids were so heavy and it seemed like such a sweet treat after the day she had. A little bit of sleep couldn't hurt. 

The song Damn These Vampires by The Mountain Goats is a banger and I think it deserves a little more appreciation, it's the most emotional piece about cowboys vs vampires that I've ever heard, and I grew up watching Supernatural. Also, Strange Magic is a masterpiece and I won't take any argument.