Aos Sí

Prologue

"No, please!" I cried, trying to scramble away on my broken leg. It's high pitched giggle made my skin crawl. It easily caught my good leg and dragged me back, not even bothering to lift me as I futilely groped at the wood. It loomed over me, the shadow stretching out before me. I felt it lay its head next to me, daring me to stare back. The air glitched around us, the green haze all I could feel.

"Ç'́m͘o̴ņ,̧love̷,̡ d̡òn͡'t̨c̴ha w҉án͜t͜ t҉o ͢se̡e m̸è͝ag͞ain?"

I shook my head, the strained voice ringing in my ears. It started to lift me by the unbroken leg. I close my eyes tight, refusing. Its fingers start to press down hardon my leg.

"L̕o͜ok.A̷t̵.̵ Me," it hissed. Shuddering, unable to resist, my eyes slowly opened...

To see a brilliant blue eye staring back.

I woke in a cold sweat. Cloth surrounded me, gently rising and falling to someone's breathing.

Signe's breathing. And humming. And then she stopped.

"Hey, you awake?"

I poked my head out of the hammock she had made for me and met the sight of her hands against a sketchbook, paused in the coloring of Sam, the little septic eye Seán used as his icon. After a non-committal noise, I sank back into the hammock, just listening to her breathing for a moment.

"Nightmares again?" she asked quietly. I didn't answer. She knew it already. "I don't think avoiding him is going to help."

"I--I can't--"

"I know. Anti is..." She trailed off, a tilt in her voice that felt so familiar. I peered out from my cloth hide away. Signe was rubbing her wrist as she continued. "He's a demon, or might as well be. But ya'gotta get Seán back to deal with Anti."

"...What did he do to you?" I asked before realizing I probably shouldn't. Signe's chest shifted slightly as she chuckled.

"Tried to convince me Seán wasn't coming back." She rolled up her sleeve a little. There was a bit of a discoloration on her wrist. "Thought he could just toss me around a bit. Did you know Seán's ticklish?" I hesitated. Then looked up at her, a little confused. She offered me a wide grin. "Fastest way I've ever been able to deal with that jerk was to get him laughing. Seán has an easier time dealing with him when Anti's distracted."

"You tickle him!?"

I just stared baffled as Signe nodded. "Of course, that's all assuming that Anti shows up at all. Seán's gotten really good at keepin' his tantrums at bay." Her face fell a little. "It shouldn't have happened to you."

My arm pulsed at the memory. My little hammock jostled when Signe shook her thoughts.

"But really. I think you should spend more time with just you and Seán. It helped me through the nightmares the first few times, before I could deal with Anti on my own."

We both fell silent after that, the only sound in the room Signe's quiet coloring.