Reflections of Light

The Ivory Tower

Nyx was awoken by the low rumble of thunder and the howl of the wind shrieking outside.
Sleepily pulling herself awake, she slid out of bed to walk barefoot across the room to close the open window.

Her long skirt swished around her feet, the white fabric of the unfamiliar dress dragging across the floor behind her like the train of a wedding gown.

Stepping up to the window, she noted with puzzlement the lack of shutters or blinds, the window instead an arched opening in the wall, bleeding strange light into the room; flickering reds and purples that stained her skin, licking greedily over her pale form.

At the base of the window lay a ledge, of  width and breadth large enough for two to step out upon. Taking hold of the edges of the arch, Nyx stepped up onto the sill, peering out into the beyond.
A wave of vertigo suddenly swept over her, as suddenly she realised she couldn't see the ground. Below her, around her, the storm clouds swirled; barring her vision from the rest of the world.
Lightening lit up her tower, splashing it in various inky hues; lashing out of the darkness like some long-forgotten sea creature rising from the deepest depths of the ocean.

She seemed to have been struck dumb, for no noise fled past her lips; no sound of surprise or word of exclamation.
Shielding her eyes with a hand as the wind whipped her hair viciously against her skin, she gazed out into the turbulent sky, trying to pick shapes out of the roiling blackness.

Suddenly, there was a loud Crack! as a finger of lightning wrent the sky apart, striking out towards the the bone-white tower in a ferocious stroke; Nyx shrieked as a shower of sparks exploded next to her face, singeing her skin.

Practically clinging to the outside of the tower now, she forced her eyes open against the buffeting wind, ignoring the shadowy figures that danced and swooped in front her eyes, as she negotiated her way back along the edge to the safety of the room.

The acrid smell of burning reached her as she turned back to the room, her mouth falling open in a silent cry as she saw.
The room was on fire; hungry flames growing higher and brighter as they lucked up the walls, consuming everything in their path. Hotter and higher, glowing bright as they turned the safety of her ivory tower to ash.

And there, haloed in flames, stood a silent shadow.

Nyx awoke with a stifled cry, gasping for breath with broken sobs.

"It's okay, you're okay." A concerned voice reassured, catching her as she reflexively thrashed in a half-formed effort to escape from the non-existent threat.

"I can't..." She gasped, fighting for breath, the tangle of sheets feeling too restrictive around her. "I can't... I can't breathe!"

Deft hands stripped the blankets off her, pulling her from her prison of fabric and down. Cool air hit her skin, shocking her back into the real world in a bracing wave.
Warm hands found her arms, propping her upright against her pillows as she took deep, healing gulps of air.

"Ha... Thank you." She said finally after a few minutes, the panic leaving and a strange bashfulness flooding into its place.

He ignored her embarrassment, looking at her with an expression of great concern. "Are you sure? You haven't had a nightmare in weeks."

"That's just how it goes." She dismissed, punctuating it with a miserable cough. "Sometimes they go, sometimes they come back. I'm used to it.
I'm supposed to take a medicine Mum makes for it, but... Sometimes it doesn't work, sometimes I kid myself I don't need it. You know how it is."

He did not appear reassured. "Are you certain you're alright?" He insisted.

Nyx yawned, eyes growing bleary and heavy with sleep and repressed tears. "Yeah... No... I'm tired. Can you just... Just hold me until I drop off? That'd be nice."

With a swift nod, he moved to settle besides her, pulling the covers back up to partially cover her as they lay facing each other.

"Do you want to tell me what it was about?" He said, face conveying easily that he still didn't feel right about the situation.

Nyx yawned again, brain already fogging over the details with sleep as she snuggled closer to him. "... In the morning..."

Well, this one took forever! Blame coursework and fast-arriving deadlines.
Anyway, I hope you like it; I personally feel I have a particular affinity for writing dream sequences, I don't know, I just get the feel of them, you know? Anyway, feel free to give me your opinion and feedback! :)

Image up top is similar to how I imagine the dress in the dream, although on a second look it seems a bit more bluer than what I described. Not that it's a bad thing, still looks good XD