The horizon and the balcony

Chapter thirty-six

It felt as if they were falling. Time came to a steady halt around them as they hit the ground.

"I should not be here"They whispered. The winter frost bit their nose and ears raw. It was absolutely freezing, they surveyed their surroundings. The night lights twinkled throughout the trees. They slowly lifted their feet off the ground and stomped on the ground beneath them, fresh snow. It had probably just fallen, it was still white. They wore a cloak of emerald green, it was long and encompassed their large frame surprisingly well. They knew where they were, they were home. This was a trail they knew all too well that led to their castle. It was steep and originally only meant for a horse and buggy but they would climb it everyday. It was their only time alone, their little slice of freedom.

The big question was why were they there? They were 99.8% sure it was a dream, they've had this dream before but what was the meaning? Slowly but surely they began to hike the trail panting along the way. Their legs were freezing underneath the cloak. They were wearing breeches, they just knew it. Opening the cloak they sighed in realization, it was this dream again.

"Whenever I wake up I'm suing my subconscious"They grumbled. God why was the castle so far? Was this a long winded way of their subconscious telling them that they needed a better diet?

They broke a branch off a tree with a grunt and continued stalking up the trail. The closer they got the more their heart pounded, why weren't they waking up? They've never reached the castle before, Sure they've gotten close, one time they even managed to get their hand on the door knob but they were always yanked back to reality. Where was John with his doting amber eyes and his soft words to comfort them? To tell them that it was all alright, it was only a dream.

They walked up the cobblestone path and shook slightly waiting to be proven wrong, to suddenly wake up in John's arms. They paused for a second and looked up at the sky, it was most likely past midnight. The moon was high in the sky, illuminating their features. Whatever it was they weren't ready to confront it. But when would they ever be truly ready? This seemed like the most mundane day compared to their life now but it burned fiercely in their memory. If they spaced out too long their mind always found its way there burning and blurring their vision with tears.

They were face to face with the French doors. They were steel with panels of stained glass, they're as beautiful as the day they left. Lafayette quickly grabbed the door knob and screwed their eyes shut expecting this to be the end. When they opened them to their dismay they were still staring at the doors. They looked up, the lights were on upstairs. They knew what was happening. Quickly pushing the door open they fell inside and groaned quickly rolling over onto their back. They heard a small growl and soon a mass of fluff was biting at their leg.

"Ow! Ow! ça suffit snowball!"They yelped pulling the small dog off their heel. The dog whined and stared at them in confusion sniffing them. Lafayette chuckled and rolled onto their knees petting him.

"It is good seeing you so young snowball, I've missed you"They said warmly. Snowball was their Christmas present from the past Christmas, he was only six months old. Snowball tilted his head and licked their hand.

"Ah yes you don't speak English, bon garçon snowball un si bon garçon!"They cooed. The puppy went wild and barked jumping up on his hind legs. Lafayette laughed and rolled back over onto his back.

"baisers!"they called out. Snowball padded over to their face and licked it happily whining and wagging his tail. Lafayette ran a hand through his fur and smiled picking the dog up setting him on their lap.

"This dream could last forever if it means I get to play with you"They said with a grin. Snowball simply whined more and nuzzled against them. Little did they know   a curly haired boy peeked around the corner. He stared in bewilderment and quickly hid behind the wall. There was a strange man sitting on his carpet playing with his snowball. He looked closer and furrowed his brows, the man shared a striking resemblance to Randolph Jefferson. That couldn't be right though, it was the middle of the night and Randolph now lived in Germany with his bride.  He took a deep breath and stepped out from behind the corner.