Chapter Text
The echo of whistling from distance seemed to fill the empty space around the peach-haired halfling. She turned her head towards where she thought she heard the whistling, kicking up the fog around her feet. Yet she couldn’t see anything through it besides what she assumed to be the shadow of trees. She reached out to press her hand against one of them but she couldn’t sense life in them. As if they were dead. The halfing snatched her hand away from the tree as she came to the revelation. She tried to reach for another tree but they were exactly the same. Scorned yet cold to the touch, staining her hands with soot. It was unnerving to her and the whistling wasn’t making it better. She had to find a way out of this forest or atleast a person to help her. So she began walking. It seemed aimless at first. Especially with all the trees looking the same and the fog around her obstructing her view of the ground. So she had to trust herself that she was hopefully going in the right direction,whatever that was. All that could be seen was trees and fog for miles and miles on. The halfing started to speed her pace up because it felt her surrounds were blending together. Though it became worse as she started to sprint, she noticed that the distance whistling started to pick up. So she picked up her pace. Each step she took began faster and faster as the whistling got louder and closer. The trees and fog blurred together as she ran through the dead forest. She felt free yet trapped at the same time. Nothing alive was in her sight. It was just her and the whistling. It seemed to be the only thing filling the silence beside the halfling’s sharp breaths.
She felt like she had been running forever until she bursted out of the forest. It felt like the ground gave way from under her feet, causing her to tumble down a hill that she could not see. It was a short tumble but the halfling felt the breath was knocked out of her. She rolled on to her back as she tried to catch her breath. It was ragged and short, her chest rising and falling as she felt her heart beating like crazy. Slowly sitting up, an exhausted exhale escaped her before she took in her surroundings. She could just barely make out the shadows from the forest at the top of what she assumed to be a hill. The fog rained down from the hill and surrounded her. This time though, the fog felt like it was dragging her down like water. She had to heave herself up to her feet. Shaking and brushing herself off, the halfling tried to focus on the whistling. That was until she realized it was silent. Almost deafening to her if it were for the pounding of her heart filling her ears. She was confused and disturbed. She had followed the whistling and it had sounded so close when she had emerged from the forest. Who was whistling or what was whistling? As the questions ran through her head, something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. Through the fog, she saw a shadow of a figure standing off. It seemed very vague but it slowly became familiar to the halfling. The silhouette of the shadow seemed to be a tall person in armor with pointed ears.
“Meredith?” spoke the halfling, squinting her eyes.
She started to make her way towards the figure, her spirit rising at the sight of her lover’s silhouette in the distance. Someone who she was familiar with and was alive. Once she was close enough, the halfing through herself towards the silhouette. She expected to cling to the warm muscular frame of the wood elf paladin. Yet she felt herself hit the hard ground under her, temporarily knocking the breath out of her. She gasped for air for a moment before rolling over onto her back. Looking up where she had thought she saw Meredith, her eyes grew wide. It seemed to just be the silhouette of the paladin in the fog and that was it. There was no sign that it was even alive. Confused, the halfling reached out her hand to attempt to touch the silhouette. Yet it seemed to retract from her hand almost instantly. This caused her to jolt back in surprise. Confusion filled her mind as she stood to her feet. The shadowy silhouette of her beloved paladin dripped away like wet paint but floated off into the fog like a feather. A primal instinct seemed to spark in her chest as she chased after the shadow. The chase didn’t seem to last long before the shadow took shape once more. It wasn’t Meredith this time but another lover. The silhouette of a tiefling woman formed from the shadow.
“Sybil?” spoke the halfling, taking a hesitant step.
The shadow silhouette seemed to tilt its head, in a way that was similar to her lover. This time, the halfling began to slowly move towards the silhouette thinking to not scare. Instead, the shadow stepped away every time she took a step. It seemed playful with each step she took, the shadow would take one as well away from her. Though it became more frustrating as it went on. Every advance she made, it only pushed the silhouette further away. So the halfling launched herself just as she had done before. And just as moments before, the silhouette melted away as soon as she was close enough. She groaned as she hit the ground once more. She grumbled with annoyance as she looked up to where the shadow once was. It seems to float in the fog just above her before shooting off once more. The halfling felt like she was being mocked yet she wasn’t going to give up. Back on her fit, she was off chasing after the shadow. It soon became a cat and mouse game as she ran after it. Though it wasn’t enjoyable. Every time the shadow stopped, it seemed to turn into a person that the halfling was close to. Her lovers, her friends, and her adoptive family.Though the one shadow that caused her to freeze was one that she wasn’t completely prepared for. The shadow transfigured itself into the silhouette of two figures, both halflings to be exact. Her breath was caught in her throat as she stared at the shadows. From the silhouettes, one of them seemed to have a large mass of curly hair atop their head while the other had short puffy hair. The large haired figure seemed to be wearing a flowing skirt as it seemed to slowly approach her. The halfling was confused by this and withdrew for a moment. Yet something seemed to compel her to reach out for shadow, for the last time.
Unexpectedly, it felt like the ground under her foot collapsed. She let out a shriek as she was plunged downwards. Her body fell into an abyss that surrounded her like water. Her arms and legs flailed around as she tried to find her way back to the surface. The halfling gasped for air as it felt like she was being dragged under. When she was able to somewhat reach the surface, everything was different. The fog was gone and she was no longer in the field. All she could see was smoke and a burning town just on the shore of the water she floated in. Distance screams could be heard yet the halfling felt like her ears were filled with cotton as the voices were muffled as she struggled to keep herself afloat. She had always been a good swimmer but sometimes the water felt different. Like it was trying to drag her to its unseeable depths. As she tried to fight against it, she saw a glimpse of the shadow halfling couple.
“Help me, please” she cried out, as she stretched out her arm towards them.
The shadows looked down at her as she struggled. It had no face but its body language seemed like it had disavowed her pleads. As water sputtered out her mouth as she felt herself sink, her eyes filled with horror as the shadow began to rapidly switch between figures from before. Every form it had taken, everyone that she held close to her, seemed to be molded together into the shadow as shifted. It was messy to look at but induced a feeling of dread & betrayal as she watched the shadow, of everyone she loved as one entity, walk away from her. They walked away as she was drowning and seemed to allow itself to be enveloped by the fire.
“No, please, come back, don’t leave me,” screamed the halfling, as she stretched her hand pitfully.
Yet her cries were in vain as she felt the void of the water force her under, her body growing weaker and weaker. She kept fighting though, she couldn’t allow herself to die. She didn’t want to die alone. She didn’t want to be alone.
Not again.
“Please,” she whimpered, her voice shaky as tears fell down her cheeks before her entire head was dragged under.
…
The peach haired halfling gasped sharply as her eyes shot open. Everything was dark around her and her limbs felt trapped to her sides. As she began to flail around, a slowly realization came to her. Hesitantly, she pulled away what felt like a sheet over her. Her vision was no longer hindered by it. Whipping her head around, she slowly grasped that she was tangled up in bed sheets. Tangled in bed sheets on the floor. A wave of confusion washed over her before a small wave of pain ran through her back. She had just fallen off the bed while sleeping. A shaky sigh escaped her as she pressed her hand to her chest. Her chest rose and fell quickly as she gasped for air, slowing her panic. As she calmed herself down, her eyes wandered over to the window just beside the bed. The curtains were closed but the distance rumble of thunder symbolized it was raining outside but she couldn’t tell what time it was. Slowly, the halfling shakily stood to her feet to stand beside with the sheet in hand. She threw it onto the large bed before another realization hit her. The bed was completely empty and from the feeling of it, it had been empty for a while since it was cool to the touch.
“Meredith? Sybil?” uttered the halfling, in a quiet tone.
There was no response.
Nervously, the halfling walked around the bedroom and grabbed her slippers to put on. Once they were on, she peeked out into the hallway. A small bit of light coming from the hallway window stretched into the darkness of it. Though it brought a strange emptiness to it as well.
“Axis? Leilani?”called out the halfling, once again.
No response again.
A small ball of worry and anxiety began to build in her chest. She stepped out into the quiet hallway and headed down it. The doors to the other rooms were left slightly ajar but they were empty and almost as dark as the bedroom she woke up in. Emerging from the hallway, the halfling entered into the living room space that was connected to a kitchen.
“Nim? Mantra?” she spoke, looking around the empty cushioned chairs of the living room.
Nothing.
Fresh tears began to build up in her eyes as the worrisome thoughts began to build up in her mind. She quickly walked into the kitchen. There wasn’t even a chair out of place at the small counter bar nor left out mugs by the coffee tin. Not even the reminisce of cooked food in the air. It was unnerving and only made the halfling more distressed. She was about to dash out of the front door as her hysteria built when she noticed something out the corner of her eye. Just in the corner of the kitchen was a door that was left open. The door leads out the house’s patio over the garden. Hastily yet quietly, she moved over to the door and peeked out of it. The smell and sound of rain filled her senses as she stepped out. The humid air was gently against her skin as she walked over to the dry stone of the patio. Her hand reached up to wipe her tears away as her eyes landed on a familiar blue tiefling. He sat on the stairs of the patio to the garden but he seemed to just be watching the drops of the storm bounce and dance across plants.
“Nim?” spoke the halfling, as she tried to hide the shakiness of her voice.
His ear twitched upwards as he looked over his shoulder at her.
“Oh, good morning, Rosie,” greeted Nim, as he looked over at her with a closed eye smile, “How did you sleep?”
“Um, not great, I fell off the bed and woke up trapped in the sheets” replied Rosie, as she tried to bring a bit of light heartedness.
“Are you okay?” asked Nim, with a slightly chuckle of confusion.
“Yeah, sort of” muttered Rosie, as her eyes wandered away from Nim’s, “Where is everyone?”
“Meredith is taking my morning shift at the local archives, Lelani dragged Sybil to do some shopping for the house, and Mantra took Axis to go fishing” informed Nim.
“Fishing in the rain? Doesn’t he know Axis has a weak immune system?” questioned Rosie, as she took a seat beside the tiefling.
“I don’t think so, Mantra’s way of romancing people is doing an activity in the rain or with water. Our unofficial first date was us trying to bear fish in the river just outside of town” shrugged Nim.
“Really, that sounds fun though” said Rosie.
“To you! I got my nice clothes soaking wet and slapped repeatedly by several salmon” scoffed Nim.
“Ha-, I would have loved to see that” exclaimed Rosie.
“Of course you would, I for one, wouldn’t like to experience that again” sighed Nim, as he fixed his glass.
Rosie laughed aloud at the image. It was a ridiculous thing to think about but it helped chase the horrible dream she just had. She could feel the tiefling man’s eyes boring into her but she ignored it until her laughter had died down. As she wiped a tear away and settled down, she rested her chin on her hands. She allowed her eyes to follow the direction that Nim’s were. The rain droplets of rain bounced off of some leaves while others traveled down them slowly and soaked into the earth of the garden. Other drops traveled towards puddles between the smooth stone path that traveled around the back lawn. The ambience was being filled by the pitter patter of the rain, the distant rumbling of thunder, and the breeze gently blowing the wind chimes. It brought a wave of peace of the halfling as a slow sigh escaped her lips. The sky was cloudy but wasn’t dark enough to make the day feel too moody. It was dim enough to where Rosie was comfortable. Especially now since she was aware she wasn’t alone or abandoned by her loved ones.
A soft hum escaped her lips when she heard the familiar voices coming from the kitchen. Rosie leaned back to look towards the door to the kitchen. Walking out was a light peach haired halfling with a smile on her face.
“Rosie, good morning!” she exclaimed, trotting over to throw her arms around Rosie’s shoulder.
“Morning Leilani” smiled Rosie, as she tightly hugged her sister.
The smell of lilies and sugar filled Rosie’s nose as she was embraced by her older sister, a pit of her braided back hair got in her face. She didn’t mind it and didn’t want to break the hug. Leilani seemed to feel the same way but another voice called out catching the halfling sisters and blue tielfing’s attention.
“Are you lot going to help me unload the groceries or what?” questioned a dark pink tiefling, her hand resting on her hip as she held a woven basket of food in her opposite.
“We are coming, mom, no need to whine,” remarked Leilani, rolling her eyes.
“You don’t get to call her that, that’s my job” claimed Rosie, crossing her arms.
“No, you call her ‘mommy’, I call her ‘mom’, there is a difference” retorted Leilani, teasingly.
“Just call me by my name” huffed the tiefling.
“We are coming, Sybil” chuckled Nim.
“Thank you, finally” spoke Sybil, as she walked back into the kitchen.
The halfling sisters laughed quietly to themselves before following Nim back into the house. Re-entering the kitchen, Rosie looked across the counter that had two woven baskets and mesh bags. They were all filled with goods for the kitchen and ingredients for meals. Sybil started telling them which ones are for making breakfast and ones to put away. As they did so, Rosie scooted over to the dark pink tiefling’s side and wrapped her arms around her waist. This took Sybil by surprise for a moment before she looked down at Rosie.
“Good morning, peachy” she cooed, as he leaned down to place a kiss on the halfling’s forehead.
“Sorry for making you wake up alone, your sister wanted to get some early shopping done since the old hag in town predicted that it was supposed to rain all day” apologized Sybil, as she gently rubbed behind Rosie’s pointed ears.
“Don’t call her an old hag, she is a nice woman” argued Leilani, from the other side of the counter.
“I call bullshit” scoffed Sybil.
“You are just grumpy because you didn’t get all your beauty rest,” remarked Leilani.
“Beauty rest is important” stated Nim.
“Don’t side with her,” retorted Leilani.
“Just saying” shrugged the blue tiefling, as he restocked the fruit bowl.
“Anyways, did you get any good sleep?” asked Sybil, as she ran her fingers across Rosie’s face.
“For a little while, though I fell out of bed due to a…” started Rosie, but she trailed off.
She didn’t want to ruin the happy mood that was going around with her traumatic dreams but she wanted to be honest with her lover.
“A bad dream but I’m okay now” finished Rosie.
“Are you sure?” questioned Sybil, her brows knitting together in worry.
“I’m sure, besides I’ve basically forgotten by now” proclaimed Rosie, as she rested her on her lover’s stomach.
“Well, we can talk about it later if you want” assured Sybil, as she ran her hand through the halfling’s bed head hair.
Rosie hummed softly at the affection and the warmth that the tiefling was giving her. She felt another kiss placed on her forehead before she loosened her grip, allowing Sybil to continue putting up the food. She did so as well and the working together made things go much faster. By the time she realized it, Rosie was standing on a stool in the kitchen as she helped her lover make dinner while her friend and sister argued about books in the living room. Though it was mostly background noise as she listened to Sybil ramble about the shopping trip. Her story was all over the place though it eventually started to make sense. Though all the halfling enjoyed was listening to the tiefling’s chatter. It was enough to fill the silence that she had been met with earlier and that was all she needed at the moment. The warm familiarity of the noise had drowned out her memory of cold unknowing of silence.