How the Joy wanes

005

Morpheus made his way over to your bench where he had found you last time. The bench was at edge of a field the very end of your realm under a willow tree. The last time you were sitting with your feet up, knees bent with your arms across them. Now you were you laying on your bench, curled in the foetal position, facing towards your realm. Both hands curled together by your face, dressed in your peplos. There was a light breeze which caused the honeysuckle to bob in the wind with the smell mingling in the air. The small heady and breeze against his cheek became overwhelming as he began to look over your figure. He could see the tracks of tears on your cheeks as he looked closely at you. All your sparrows raised up themselves up in the air when they spotted him. Morpheus held his hands up palms out as best he could, surrendering. "I come only to apologise." They looked to you and when you didn't say anything, Claire spoke, "leave the Lady Joy and help her sisters."

Morpheus took in your hunched figure, the tear tracks on your cheeks and how you had grown pale. Your realm was no longer the vibrant cheerful world it had once been, now the colour was dull, grey, and tea stained. He saw the goblet and plate on the ground, the goblet with dregs of nectar and scrapes of ambrosia on the plate. The spoon had been flung away evidently your sisters had been fighting you to continue to eat. He moved forwards leaning the ambrosia amphorae against your bench, kneeing he reached for the goblet after unstopping the nectar. He filled your goblet, holding it out to you, "my joy, you should drink some nectar." You blinked not responding. Matthew and Claire moved to the roots of a willow tree to watch on. There was a film of tears in Morpheus' eyes as you remained motionless. His essence seemed to congeal under his skin as he saw what his jealously had done. His anxieties seemed jack rabbit wildly in his chest.

When you still refused to take it, he stopped the amphorae and leaned it against the bench. He placed the goblet down with reach of you, carefully he reached out and tucked a stray hair behind your ear. Then he carefully reached again but he paused and curled his fingers back. He reached out once more before tracing his index finger down along your nose, following the apple of your cheeks and then up your cheekbones down again to rest at your jaw. Carefully he adjusted his kneeling position so that he was kneeling on both knees in front of you. His fingers brushed against your cheek again before he cupped your face. His other hand moved against the bench, his fingers brushing against the lacy leaves of the trees in your realm. He picked up one of the leaves and twirled it around, admiring and fearing the skeletal lace. His hand dropped helplessly to his knees as he breathed deep. After a moment it came up from resting on his knee, to entangle with yours which were resting on your bench.

Morpheus seemed shocked at how cold you had become laying on your bench, he removed his coat of stars and lay it over your figure. His tears grew but did not fall, your anguish would come before his. After he took your frozen hands in his once more, he drew them to his lips. He blew gently onto your fingers to warm you a couple of times he would stop to kiss your fingertips. "What can I do to bring back your joy, the joy of the Waking World and my own?" You still remained silent. Morpheus remembered his sister's yells about how you had used him to bring joy back to world when he had been imprisoned. He would now do the same. "All living things need joy and joy can be found within each of the Endless, I see that now." Morpheus tucked both of your hands into one of his, he cupped your cheek with the other. Your dull eyes flickered to his briefly before shifting away. "I feel your joy everyday in my realm, whenever you entered my citizens, our citizens would bring more joy to dreamers. I knew when you had crossed paths with dreamers in the Waking Realm as their dreams would only be of joy. I felt your joy when we danced in the rain, walked Fiddler's Green at sunset. Whenever I presented you with your favourite flower, when I would weave the lavender and honeysuckle into your hair. Your joy would bring the Dreaming back to life whenever you joined me for a meal. I know I offer nothing more than shallow words and pretty memories but perhaps I can convince you otherwise." He shifted closer to you, his hand slipping from your cheek to the collar of his coat. He moved it forwards over your shoulders, before moving it underneath the fabric smoothing against your peplos.