Chapter Text
Shauna's awoken to a light tugging on her sleeve. She's up fast, like she's trained herself to be.
A quick glance around their hut doesn't flag any immediate danger, just her little boy staring up at her with tear stained eyes and a still unmoving hand on her arm
“Bee, what's wrong?” She asks, her voice still hoarse from sleep
“I- i had a- a nightmare” He hiccups out
“Come here” She says opening her arms with a tired sigh, he wastes no time burying his face into her shoulder
“I'm not gonna let anything hurt you, you know” She reassures him, running a comforting hand through his hair
“But what if you don't see the monster or- or if it gets you first” He replies through tears
“Bee” She says, moving him so he can see her eyes “No monster is gonna be able to get me. I’m too strong, they'd all be scared off even trying” that gets a small smile from the boy if only temporarily
“Can you keep guard anyway…?” He mutters, looking down “Just in case it shows up again?”
Shauna pauses for a moment, she would really like the sleep but looking at her son like this. She wouldn't fail him, not again “Yeah, yeah I'll keep guard”
“You promise? You'll stay up and you'll make sure nothing gets in”
“Yeah, Bee. I promise”
“Pinky promise?” He confirms. The kid had definitely been around Melissa too much
“Yeah pinky swear” She promises “now lets get you back to bed or you'll be grumpy tomorrow”
“Will not” he refutes but crawls back under the covers nonetheless
Shauna keeps her word and dutifully keeps an eye on the entrance to their hut all night long, she's not sure what sort of monsters Bee sees in his dreams but she refuses to risk it, not out here
-
“You look exhausted” Mel says coming to a stop beside the other woman “Like about to pass out and collapse exhausted”
“I'll be fine” Shauna states, her eyes never leaving Bee
“You wanna talk about it?” She tries to push gently, still not all too sure on where the boundary for too far was
Shauna pauses before answering “Bee got scared last night and wanted me to keep watch”
“You're a good mother” Melissa says reaching out to place a hesitant hand on her shoulder
Shauna turns her head away with a look of uncertainty though Mel can't decipher how much is about her hand or, the more likely option, her comment
“If you want I could keep an eye on him while you nap?” Mel breaks the silence with the abrupt question “He won't leave my sight i promise”
Shauna takes a moment pursing her lips “If anything happens to him-”
“He'll be fine, scouts honour” Melissa swears
“I mean it Melissa” She says while walking backward finger pointed toward her and all, it was almost threatening if not for the small smile creeping onto her face
“So do i” She yells back with an eye roll
Shauna trusted Mel and she was pretty sure the other would never let anything happen to Bee
Lying there staring at the entrance of her hut, she finds it an uphill struggle to convince her brain of the same
She's freed from the back and forth contemplation as the exhaustion finally sets in and her vision fades into what she hopes will be a peaceful sleep
-
“Hey kiddo” Mel crouches down next to the boy “What are you doing?”
He lifts his hands to show a collection of sticks and rocks before timidly replying "For The Wilderness”
“They look great, good choices” she affirms, he grins proudly in response “You want some help? I know a good spot near the creek where the pebbles are really cool”
Bee nods his head enthusiastically a shy smile creeping onto his face
“So nightmares huh?” Melissa questions as they begin their trek
He freezes and anxiously fiddles with his hands as he stares at the floor
“I won't tell anyone else and it's only us out here” She tries to reassure him
“It never really is…” Bee mutters under his breath
“What was that?” She asks genuine concern for whatever was going on with the boy, supernatural or not
Quick to change the subject Bee pipes up again “Aunt Lottie says my dreams mean something but i don't want them to”
“Your Aunt Lottie says a lot of things” Melissa snarks out causing a giggle from the boy “Have you told your mom? Im pretty sure she's told Lottie to stop scaring you with her voodoo sh- stuff”
He shakes his head “...i dont want them to fight”
She goes to refute his claim but he isn't exactly wrong. Shauna was quick to temper these days, especially when it came to her son, even more so when it involved Lottie
“Well how about I talk to her on your behalf?” Melissa suggests
Bee thinks it over for a moment “...And you won't tell my mom about it?”
“It can be our secret” She confirms, miming zipping her lips for extra measure
“Promise?” He says, finally raising his gaze from the ground to look at her
“Pinky swear” She says holding her finger out and ever the obedient child he raises his own and she hooks them together and shakes their hands
“So since i’m already not telling, can I know what your nightmare was about? It helps to talk about these things y'know” She prompts gently
“The scary antler lady was there again and…and she spoke this time. None of it made sense but she kept talking and then- then she was right there in front of me and i- i tried to run but my legs- my legs wouldn't work and-” He cuts himself off with a sob
Jesus no wonder Lottie was all over that, Mel isn't even one of the more devout and she can see the obvious weirdness about it
“Well that sounds very scary but it's just a dream, ok kid? no matter what your Aunt Lottie says” She tries to reassure him despite her own doubts
The crying halts “You- you really think so?” He asks, staring up with tear filled eyes
“Yeah, yeah i do” She says, pulling him into a hug of only to hide the worry on her face
-
The kid seems to be thoroughly cheered up by the time they get back to the village
Shauna is sat near the fire her eyes panning around for their return, she's trying to seem unbothered but Melissa can see her leg twitching
She's up in an instance once she has eyes on them and spends a good moment or two checking the boy over for any injury before pulling him into a hug
“He's fine, not a scratch i promise” Melissa says, though the comment gets ignored
With Bee now settled in her arms, half asleep from an admittedly tiring walk she turns to Melissa
“...Thank you for today Melissa” She says in what's almost a whisper, Mel hears her nonetheless and returns it with a beaming smile
“It's no trouble, I'm happy to watch him whenever” Mel says before backtracking in a panic “Not that I think you're not doing a good job or that you wouldn't-”
Her ramblings are cut of by a soft kiss “I got what you meant” She says, and maybe Mel was seeing things but she swore the look on Shauna's face was fondness
“Totally” She says, half aware still stood stunned as Shauna takes Bee back to their hut for his nap
A very productive day indeed. Now she just had to figure out how the hell she was supposed to get Lottie to listen to her without getting Shauna involved
-
She finds the woman staring at the skyline from her spot beside the lake
“Lottie. We need to talk” Mel tries to sound confident, authoritative. All the things that make people listen to Shauna
“I was wondering when you were going to come” Lottie replies, smiling like she'd just been reunited with an old friend
“I was just with Bee” She says pointedly “Apparently he's been struggling to sleep recently because someone giving him nightmares about the wilderness”
Lottie doesn't respond so she continues “He didn't get too specific about what the nightmares were but he sure mentioned you being the one making into something bigger”
“You keep calling them nightmares, they're not. He's having visions, he just doesn't know what to do with them yet”
“No matter what you want to call them you're the one making him scared of them” Mel reiterates once more
“I'm just trying to help him understand” She states with sincerity
“Well you're not. So stop it before i have to tell Shauna, we both know she won't be happy about something like this”
“Why haven't you told her already?” Lottie questions with a following muttered comment “Last i checked she had you at her beck and call”
Mel replies, ignoring the slight “The kid didn't want u two to fight”
There's a moment of silence before the other speaks up again
“It won't make him stop seeing things” Lottie states, a small grimace on her lips
“Maybe not, but it'll stop it freaking him out so bad” Melissa replies, crossing her arms tightly in front of her chest
“He'll come around” Lottie says, her face blank “He just needs to realise there isn't anything to be afraid of”
“Right” She nods along with a grimace, there's no point in trying to convince the other of anything other than what she believes “Just don't bother him with your…interpretations anymore, understand?”
Lottie just nods and after a moment of waiting Mel takes it as the best she's going to get and leaves her be
-
Travis is pretty secluded these days a combination of Lottie's constant dragging him into the woods to talk to trees and trying to make sense of whatever he ends up seeing once she gets him high off his head
When Melissa finds him he's sat alone in the animal pen a duck cradled to his chest as the other animals wander around him
“Can we talk? I'll be quick” Mel asks, the other doesn't give much a reaction but she continues anyways “Lottie thinks Bee is having visions”
Travis face contorts slightly, his eyes drifting to the floor. He still doesn't reply
“I told her to leave him alone but it's Lottie so” Mel drags the word out, they both know what she means “Can you just keep an eye out?”
He looks up briefly giving her a nod, before setting the duck down and walking back off to his treehouse
-