Forewarned (BEING REWRITTEN)

I See Blue

I woke up crying. I'm not sure if I ever actually fell asleep. I drifted. I think someone picked me up, covered me with something. It was coarse. Tasted like sweat. A horrible noise, like the bray of a donkey. Was it coming from me? It ripped through my throat, up from my heaving, blistering, bursting chest. Blood and pus and saliva and snot, that was me. My arms shook uncontrollably. Somewhere deep inside I retreated, trying to distance myself from this mess. If I got too close it might actually start to hurt.

I was set down on cool metal. The surroundings were pitch black. Somehow it was comforting, like a cool balm on the skin. Aloe Vera, thick and yellow. Break it and smother it on you when you get a sunburn. Never could get it to grow up here.

Figures in the corner of my eye spoke and gestured, yelled even. Furniture rustled. Gloved hands curled around my shoulder, careful to touch as little of my skin as possible with latex fingers. With a quick move I was on my back staring up at the blue-green hair. Puffy as a cloud. The face was concerned. Cute even. I think she poked me a few times. Her mouth moved. She had such a cute mouth. Plump. Blue like a raspberry. Like that blue raspberry ice cone you get from that little trailer at the corner of Main Street in August when everything's hot and school's back. Everything was a little blue, outlined like a comic strip.

The ceiling moved and the wheels rattled a little, wobbly. She was still talking, yelling to the other figures. Then the last sliver of light vanished. A warm weight settled beside me. And coolness spread over me, into me. I let out a breath, finally feeling my spirit settle and stretch itself over my limbs again. My inner ears shuttered, then like a whoosh of wind they were clear again, clear enough to hear my own panting breath and a smaller, faster little puff. I sat there, assessing my situation. Was anything broken? I didn't feel any pain. My fingers moved. My toes moved. I pushed myself to a sitting position, looking around. The room was empty, except for a few cabinets. Everything was still outlined in blue and otherwise mostly colorless. I blinked hard, trying to clear my vision but it only became brighter.

"Me-meep," A tiny squeak came to my attention. I looked down to find none other than the tiny dragon sitting there, looking up at me with eyes that glowed a soothing purple. I felt a surge of some kind of emotion that caused me to swoop him up and hold him close to my chest, feeling his fast little pulse against his warm scales and my skin. My fingers, which had been human flesh corn dogs only moments ago had shrunk back to their original size without so much as a blister or scar . I raised one up to look at it, turning it in front of my face.

Caedmon didn't like that I became distracted. "Meep!" he said, grabbing my thumb with a paw, his claws popping out as he pulled my thumb down to his face and bumped his nose into the palm of my hand.

I felt like crying more than anything but I choked out a giggle as I pet his head. "You want more pets huh," I mumbled before looking around. "Where... where is everyone?"

Before I could get a sickening claustrophobic terror the door opened, letting in just a little light. The puffy hair announced it to be the puffy haired lady I'd seen before. The one who I had kinda thought was the angel ushering me to heaven. She was squinting. "Justin?" She called, looking somewhere to my left.

She needs glasses if she really can't see me. "I'm here," I croaked, then realized right after I said that that giving away my location was probably not the best thing.

"How do you feel?" she asked, her voice lowering an octave, taking on a motherly tone as she stepped further in as if she had been acting on a dangerous dare.

Somehow the simple question seemed absurd. Caedmon turned and his deer ears curled back, his lips raising in a snarl. His muscles bunched against me as if preparing to spring off. I stared at her for a moment. "Are you... guys gonna... kill me?" I asked, my voice sounding pathetic and weak.