Glow In The Dark

Chapter Twelve

Cool air brushed Dani, stirring her from her slumber. Bleary eyed and sleepy she sat up as much as she could finding herself sitting in an uncomfortable plastic chair. Feeling confused she quickly wiped her eyes and looked around the room she was in. It was her mother’s room in the hospital. Everything looked the same way that it had when she had visited her mother the day before. Her mother’s bed sat a few feet away from her, her mother’s body still on the bed. The only movement was that of her chest moving up and down with each breath she took.

            Her mother’s head turned towards her, her eyes shining with love for her child, “Hello Luv.” Her voice was like a whisper, her hand reaching out to Dani.

            Dani quickly got out of the chair and rushed to her mother’s side. Taking her hand she fought back the tears threatening to come, “Mother, you’re okay.” Her voice shook slightly, “I thought I had lost you.”

            Her pale lips curved into a gentle smile, her hand cupping Dani’s warm cheek, “No luv, I’m still alive.” Her eyes closed, a soft sigh escaping from her, “Their taking me into surgery now, but everything going to be okay. After all, this is just a dream.” She opened her eyes a little to look at Dani, “I’ll wake up and everything will be okay again.”

            “No mother, this is my dream, not yours.” She covered her hand with her own.

            A soft chuckle came from her, “Well, that’s exactly what one would say in another’s dream isn’t it.”

            “Mother…” A single tear rolled down the side of her face, “I don’t know what to do mother, I’m supposed to help everyone but I don’t even know what I am doing.”

            She brushed away the stray tear with her thumb, “Don’t worry luv, I’m sure you will figure everything out.” Her hand fell away from her face, “I must go now… I’ll see you when I wake up.”

            Dani laid her head on her mother’s chest, hugging her tightly. Then everything was gone and she was lying on the floor of a small hut in the middle of world that still seemed to be nothing more than a dream. Early morning light was streaming in through the open windows and everything was still. She could hear the faint sound of the lizard woman snoring. Sitting up she smoothed out her hair than stood and did the same with her clothes.

            “Child?” The woman’s voice drifted to her from the bed getting her to turn to look at her. She had her eyes closed but was clearly awake now.

            “I’m sorry… Did I wake you?” She squatted down and busied herself with folding her blanket.

            Getting up, she fixed her bed and shook her head, “No, I was just resting my eyes, waiting for you to wake. We should get going though, don’t need your friend to go looking for you.”

            Dani smiled and nodded in agreement. She put away the blanket and pillow and went to the door to wait. The woman smiled at her and picked up the basket with the egg. Looking around, she picked out a spot and hid the egg. Once she was happy with the hiding spot she straightened up and walked over to Dani and opened up the door. The smell of fresh rain filled her mind even though there were no signs that had rained or would rain.

            “What a lovely day.” She mused. Stepping from her home she took Dani’s hand and pulled gently to get her to step out. Not letting go of her hand she started to walk in the opposite direction from what Dani had been going on the day before.

            Her grey eyes flickered over to catch her yawning and she couldn’t help but smile, “How was your mother?” She asked softly.

            The question caught Dani by surprise, “What do you mean how is she?” Her brow furrowed a little.

            “You saw her in your dream did you not? That was the truth behind the lies swarming your world right now. Is she alright?” Her eyes focused on the path ahead.

            “Yes…” Her voice came out soft, “She said that this was her dream and not mine…”

            She smiled little, “Maybe this isn’t a dream at all child, maybe this is real. Or maybe, it’s someone in this worlds dream. No one really knows.” Her shoulders lifted up a little as she shrugged.

            “Yes, I suppose your right.” Dani lowered her gaze to the water. She watched the tiny ripples that they both created with each step they took. They would go on for a few inches before disappearing, leaving room for new ones. The rest of their walk was in silence, neither of them having anything more to say or talk about.

            After a while Dani caught sight of the village. She could see Blue sitting in the center area staring out into the distance. In his hand he held a stick with a roasted fish to it that had a few bites taken from it, a bottle of milk sat next to him. Slightly his whiskers twitched, his gaze turning to where they were as they stepped into the opening. He shot up in his spot letting the fish fall from his hand.

            Dani let go of the woman’s hand and rushed towards him. Never had she thought that one day she would be so happy to see a large cat walking on two legs and can talk. As soon as she got to him her arms flew around his waist in a tight hug. She didn’t want to be apart from him again, she felt safer and surer of herself with him around. Once she let go she got ready to thank the woman but found that she was gone, and there was no sign that she had even been there.

            “Dani.” Blue’s voice drew her attention back to him, “Something happened yesterday night… Something bad…” His eyes looked sad. Gently he took her hand and led her to the stairs to sit down on them, “The old woman here… She died.”

            She looked at him in shock, “What? But, how?”

            “Did the snake die?” He asked first, his gaze dropping from her when she nodded, “She was connected to the snake… That’s why she was sick. She was even starting to lose her sight just like the snake had. Their life forces were intertwined… One could not live with the other so when the snake died… So did she…”

            Tears burned her eyes, “So I killed her.” Her eyes fell to her lap, “But there’s a new snake… The old snake had a child Blue, so wouldn’t that mean that a new child here would be born when the snake hatches.”

            He nodded, “Yes, and they will share their life with each other.” He gently took her hand, “Do not be upset Dani, you did what you had to, you saved both of them and took away their pain. Now there are only three more that need your help. There is no time for us to sit and cry over this loss.”

            She nodded, brushing away her tears with the back of her hand, “Where are we going next…”

            “A city that is underground.” He stood up, “The entrance to it is a little ways outside of the marsh, and we should get going now if we want to get there by night fall. I have already gotten directions on how to get out of here safely, and it’s not that far away.” He offered her his hand to help he stand up.

            Taking his hand she stood and hugged him again, hiding her face in his chest. “Blue… Promise me that we won’t be apart again… You’re the only one here that can help me… I can’t do this on my own…”

            Slightly his ears flattened back, his arms slipping around her to hold her tight, “I promise Dani, I will stay by your side throughout the rest of this journey. You won’t have to do anything alone again as long as I am here. Now, let’s go.” He smiled down at her before letting her go.

            She grinned up at him and let go, nodding her head. He said goodbye to the villager they had met when they had arrived for the first time before they left. As they walked Dani told Blue about all the things her family had done and seen together and he told her about his own life and the journey he had to do on his own.