Throne of Lies ▸

⚔️𝔗𝔢𝔫⚔️

Scratches emanated from outside the dorm, puncturing the wood of the sturdy door with a nail on a chalkboard effect. Following was a low growl, starting off soft but bellowing into a harsh rumble, ripping into the soft fabric of silence. The room suddenly became void of heat, casting the breaths that billowed from the sleeping boy into cool vaporous wisps into the air. Caspar's teeth chattered as he turned his head to one side, squeezing his eyes shut tighter than they already were. Persistent as the growling was, it finally came to a stop and then nothing. Dead silence.

Footsteps padded lightly into the room now, and he turned his head to the other side muttering incoherent babble. Despite the room being freezing, sweat beaded his forehead underneath the swath of blue hair, and he struggled to draw in an even breath. Whines passed his lips now, as he all but kept himself together to keep from writhing off of the bed.

The end of the bed caved in as something moved in to take a seat. Caspar grit his teeth. Slowly inching its way up the bed, the blankets tightened around him as it moved to hover over him. Trapping him.

His heart beat faster and faster, the sweat now trailing down his temples and onto his cheeks. The babble was now a cry for help. His eyes were glued shut. Hot air radiated across his face, the sound of breathing like the thrumming of his heart in his ears. It grew increasingly louder until it stopped just above his ear, growling again.

"Caspar."

"Aaaaaaaaeeeeeehhhhhh!!!!!" Caspar sat up in his bed, clutching anything he could grab his hands on to.

Edelgard stared at him with frightened wide eyes. "Caspar! It's okay! Caspar, are you listening to me? You're okay!"

Caspar heaved for breath, clinging to her for dear life. He was drenched in sweat, whimpering and gasping all at the same time.

Edelgard rubbed his back consolingly, her delicate eyebrows pinched together in concern. "It's a good thing I walked by just as you were talking in your sleep." She spoke as if she were talking to herself, and not to her surprise, Caspar didn't respond.

His face was sheet white almost, his lips purple and trembling. He kept shaking his head, but that was more likely due to the tremors his body was experiencing. All she could do was hold on to him until it stopped.

Minutes passed, which eventually turned to an hour. Gradually he managed to calm again, at least enough to attempt talking. "I - I haven't had a nightmare that bad since - since I was six."

"Would you like to talk about it?" Edelgard offered softly. Her eyelids were growing heavy, but she was too worried to leave him in this state. In fact, she had been worried about Caspar since overhearing the exchange between Cassandra and him. She wondered if they had a relation of any sort, to be indicating that she knew something he didn't. That was something she would have to inquire about later.

"Edelgard... I couldn't describe this to you, even if I tried. I felt like... I was being pinned down by some invisible force. It was hard to breathe, and it was breathing in my face and in my ear." He shuddered again, and she tightened her hold on him in response.

"Did it feel like you were paralyzed?"

Caspar lifted his head to look up at her, a question in his eyes.

"I've had this happen to me before. They call it sleep paralysis. It feels so real, but it's all just a wild illusion. You're safe. I promise." She gave a reassuring nod of her head.

"I - I wonder if Linhardt knows much about this sleep paralysis," Caspar wondered out loud.

Edelgard smiled. "I'm happy you have Linhardt. You two have known each other a long time, yes?"