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How many times have you relived this same nightmare? You weren’t sure anymore at this point. All you knew was that you were starting to lose sleep from it. You couldn’t even do anything as you watched your own body struggle to control itself. Every person your hands touched corrupted - their flesh twisting and burning as you corrupted them into something akin to a voidsent.
Stop. You cried out. You were begging for your dream self to stop trudging forward. The desperate plea fell on deaf ears, for this was a dream that you could not control. This was a situation that was out of your hands.
You watched as Thancred stopped your dream self in their tracks, only to falter as that version of you slowly began to overpower him. You could hear Thancred pleading for you to stop - pleading for you to come to your senses as the other Scions all around were doing their best to prevent those that you have corrupted from spreading the taint any further.
Please. Please don’t hurt them. Your ethereal body hovered near your dream self, and you hesitantly reached out in an attempt to pull that thing away from Thancred. Yet your hands pass through this tainted version of yourself and you can only watch in horror as that corrupted being screeches. The sound was ungodly, and it stunned everyone who was within range to hear it. You placed your hand over your ears in reflex, but even then it couldn’t drown out that sound.
It was during this moment of weakness that it reached forward, its fingers barely grazing Thancred’s cheek, yet that was all the contact needed for the corruption to begin. You watched in horror as that corrupted being swung its arms at everyone within range, each one of them slowly burning, turning, and twisting into something they are not.
Stop. Stop. Stop. Please, please make it stop. Your voice felt hoarse even though no sound came out. No matter how much you screamed and shouted, no one heard you, and you were rendered helpless and out of control. You were desperately doing anything you could - which wasn’t much. You slowly stopped chasing after the corrupted version of yourself, watching it slowly dragging its body onwards to find more victims. The scent around you was horrible and made you want to turn all your insides out. The screams. The cries.
They all just wanted it to stop.
Please..
Your body trembled as you felt yourself slowly losing grasp on the dreamscape to the sweet release of reality as you felt your body shaken awake. Your eyes open quickly and you can hear your heart beating rapidly in your ears.
“Love, love!” G’raha’s voice slowly grounded you to reality and you mumbled, “Raha?”
“Love, you’re okay.” One hand gently held yours and the other was cupping your cheek while gently wiping your tears away. You let out a soft sigh and whispered, “I had that nightmare again.”
“The same one as last?” he gently asked as you slowly sat up. You instinctively moved closer to him, resting your head on his shoulder and nodded. “Yes.”
“Oh, love.”
G’raha pulled you closer, and the way your arms quickly wrapped around his waist to bring yourself as close to him as possible while desperately clinging to him was a sense of desperation he never expected to feel from you. You rarely ever faltered. You rarely showed any signs of vulnerability. After all, you were the Warrior of Light, Savior of Eorzea, and now of Etheirys, yet in a situation where you were literally rendered useless - G’raha could fully understand just how vulnerable you were feeling right now.
“It’s alright, my dear,” G’raha gently pats your back, occasionally lingering in a spot to rub circles. Slowly but surely, your heart beat gradually slowed to a more normal pace, not the fast-paced rapid beating that pounded loudly in your ears. Your breathing was no longer shallow and rapid, but slower and steadier.
A shaky exhale leaves your lips and you softly mumbled, “Everyone… they…” you paused, “By these hands of mine, they were being corrupted. Their bodies twisted and burned into something abhorrent. And I- I couldn’t stop them, Raha.”
Your grip on his shirt tightened and you pulled yourself as close as you possibly could. His warmth and his arms around you was all that was keeping you from falling back into those feelings of despair. In doing so, you felt his grip around you tighten and you let out a breath of relief. It was the small push that you needed to steady yourself again.
“I felt so helpless. I couldn’t do anything as I watched myself ruin everything and everyone that I love,” you recalled the events of your nightmare vividly to him. You recalled the scent of burning flesh, and the screeches of pain and fear. Your eyes watered and your voice cracked, and all he could do was hold you tightly, his touch and his warmth being the constant reassurance that he was there for you.
By the time you finished, your voice was hoarse, but at least this time, you were heard. His comforting warmth never left you and he softly whispered, “Everything is alright now, my love. You’re safe. We are safe. Look,” he gently pulls away so you can see the sincerity in his eyes. His hand gently holds your wrist and brings a hand to his heart, “See? I am here. I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere. I promise.”
There was a soft smile on his lips, and he brought your hand up to his face, pressing a small kiss against your palm. The pained expression on your face softly faded away and your head lowered. Whether it was from relief or exhaustion from the nightmare, it didn’t matter as you feel the tension finally fade away from your body.
“How are you feeling, love?”
“A lot better,” you admitted. G’raha squeezed your hand slightly and asked, “Shall we head back to bed, my dear?”
Hesitance flashes across your visage and G’raha pulls you towards him.
“I’ll be here. I promised.”
“And you never break your promises with me,” you softly responded. He nodded and he slowly pulled you on top of him until both of you flop back onto the bed.
“Raha.”
“Yes?”
“Thank you,” you snuggled up to him, happily taking in the warmth, comfort and safety that he brought to you. His hands gently rested upon your head, petting it and soothing out stray strands of your hair every now and then until he could hear your breathing settle into a slow rhythm.
The smile on his face widens ever so slightly before he gently kisses the top of your head.
“Sleep well, my dear,” his voice barely audible from how hushed it was. Yet he could tell that finally your nightmares were gone, and although it may only be for tonight, at least you can rest peacefully for the first time in a few days.