Wild

Chapter 21

'I need to wake up....' something was wrong, he could feel it. Something was tugging just on the edge of his senses. So hard to see behind the thick fog surrounding him. It was blinking, something was blinking so far away. Darkness was all around him, circling him, suffocating him.

The eyes, the horrible yellow eyes were back. Glaring at him from the darkness, so bright and so blinding. He couldn't get away, everywhere he turned the yellow light blinded him. They got so bright, so much that he would surely never see again. But just when the light became too much, overpowering every sense in his mind....

Dream gasped awake, jolting up out of his pile of blankets. The light, he could see it now. His glowstone was shining brighter than he had ever seen it, blinking rapidly from his belt. "Shhh its ok, I'm awake" Dream was quick to reassure the panicked stone, gently petting it. Slowly the stone dimmed its light, calming its flickering to a slow blink.

What was going on? He must've only been asleep for a couple hours at most, so why was his glowstone panicking? His head felt so stuffy, like he had cotton in his ears. And it was cold, why was it so cold? Dream blinked in the dim light cast by the glowstone, trying to see the fireplace. It came as a surprise to see the cold ashes sitting still in the stone frame, not an ember in sight. There was no way the flame could have died out that fast, he just fell asleep!

"No no no no" Dream muttered, pushing the suddenly suffocating blanket off himself. He stumbled to his feet as his heart started racing again, how long had he been asleep? He cried out in pain the second he put pressure on his leg, barely catching himself against the couch. Dream took gasping breaths, eyes wide in the dark room as he tried to see the bite on his leg. He could only see what the glowstones light reflected off, thick liquid seeping through his pants.

It must have gotten infected, he wasn't sure how but it definitely wasn't healing. Dream gasped, grabbing his head as a pulse of pain hammered against his skull. His headache was coming back, worse than ever under the new stress. He needed help, he needed to get help fast before this bite got any worse. Wilbur wasn't here, he wasn't sure how much longer he would be so he couldn't wait on him.

George! He would go to George, explain what happened and get more potions. Dream pushed off the couch, this time prepared for the flare of pain from his leg. He stumbled out of the living room and into the main entry, grabbing his bag from the bench on his way. He just barely remembered to run a hand across his face to make sure his mask was there, comforted when he felt the cold surface. He would be ok, George had plenty of potions and supplies to help. He wouldn't end up like the countless borrowers before him that died from infection.

Dream felt his heart slow to a more calm pace while he traversed the tunnels. His head still felt horrible and his body felt like it was made of lead, but he was starting to think a bit clearer. Of course having a clearer head made him remember the blurry memory of what he heard while sleeping. He stumbled over a nail in the wood in surprise, hearing the voice echo back in his mind. He did know that voice! It was George's voice, he must've been looking for him after he didn't show. That meant he was asleep for at least a day, not a good sign for his health.

Dream cursed at himself for sleeping through that, George was probably worried out of his mind. He picked up the pace at that thought, guilt at worrying his friend flooding his mind. He never even realized he had started calling George his friend, it just felt natural to him.

He came to a stop when he finally recognized the entrance in the wall, one of the hardest ones to see. The flat wood was just the same as last he saw it, only this time he couldn't see the subtle glow of daylight shining through the crack. Was it nighttime? He hadn't even thought of checking.

Dream shook his head, slowly pushing open the door and slipping outside. He stilled at the entrance, immediately noticing the difference in the room. Never before had he been here at night. He could see one long strip of moonlight stretching across the floor from the window, could even hear the gentle leaves rusting outside. He grimaced when he felt a cold breeze run across the floor, rustling his hair. He glanced down when he felt the cold air run across the blood soaking through his pants, thankfully it looked like the bleeding had all but stopped.