Date: 11/10/04 [night of]

My mind must be really twisted if it keeps on inserting this guy in my dreams. And the sad thing is, I've never seen him in real life! Curses!

[edit] Err, further evidence of a twisted mind: The first thing I do is complain I've never met him when the first thing I should have done was to say, "Why do I keep dreaming of this guy doing stuff like this to me?!"


My fingers curled - I was alarmed to find they were twitching ever-so-slightly. But could I help it? I could feel it in me, a strange twisting that felt as though I was being wrung tightly from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet. A strange tension that brought me past the point of stress and anxiety.

It felt as though I was the calm, the eerie silent moment, before an explosion.

"It won't be too long now" a voice, not the voice I wanted to hear, not the person I wanted to see, purred. That voice, his voice, so alike yet so different, was all sadistic satisfaction.

Now my fingers clenched into a fist. Behind me, I could feel him stretch a hand out, almost languid in its slowness. In my current state, I could feel my Self extend past my physical body, a peculiar shimmer. It looked like a shield. Or a coffin.

His fingers trailed down its surface, a gesture that made me want to bare my teeth and sink claws into his arm. Then without warning, he plunged them through. I shuddered; it felt ugly, as though he was tainting my essence with his touch.

My aura, for lack of a better word, withdrew away from him instantly, a reaction that brought a smile to his lips.

Now he moved past me, pushing a glass door to the side in a mockingly courteous manner, "I believe you are here for my brother".

Gods, but how can two siblings be so different? True, that they looked the same, what with the rather angular shape of their faces, the exotically slanted coffee-black eyes. Their chestnut hair with the golden highlights. They appeared almost identical.

But...

They were born a year apart. And despite their similaries it was easy to tell them apart. The younger was the innocent, all wide-eyed and with the ever-present easy sincere smile. Always cheerful, all kindness and understanding. Everyone adored him. I loved him.

Then there was the older, the one standing before me now. This one... he looked at the world with half-lidded eyes, as though nothing was ever interesting, no..., worthy enough for him to pay full attention to. And now there was a disturbing light in his eyes as he gestured me through.

So unlike his brother.

But now I straightened myself; I had a duty to do right now.

"Ahh, you're here!"

I smiled as a young man stood up from his seat. There was a happy sparkle in his eyes, and for a brief moment I indulged in thinking it was because of me. But the older brother was still here, and the way he was watching me...

I felt like prey running from a hunter, motionless and smirking, knowing I was running straight into a lethal trap.

And in a flash, I saw it.

Another girl was sitting on the couch, a slightly vacant though relieved look on her face. A blink, and I saw. Tendrils of energy was wrapped around him, the same pinkish hue as the ones trailing down from the girl's palms and belly.

He had already found a soul vessel. I envied this girl, and at the same time I felt bitter. She didn't deserve him. She didn't have enough soul to provide him with enough energy to fully explore his magic.

And... it hurt. It hurt, that he didn't choose me.

Now I heard the brother speak, a low taunt for only me to hear, "It's not rare for one to pick two soul vessels."

Meanwhile the younger brother was looking at me with a rather sheepish smile, "She was hurting and-"

I cut him off. She was hurting? So was I. "Don't get me wrong. I didn't come to be bonded with you."

I had to lie. It was humiliating if I admitted otherwise, and despite what the older brother had said, I would never lower myself to become second place. Which was why he had suggested it, the bastard.

A hand on my shoulder caught me by surprise, having torn through my aura faster than it could react. Biting back the pain, I heard his voice, "I have yet to find my soul vessel."

No.

"Ahh, really?" the younger brother looked pleased; he was the only one who was blind to his elder brother's cruelty. In fact, he looked relieved, thinking his brother was saving me from embaressment. Proud, infact. To me, "You'll be perfect with brother! He's much more stronger than I am, so he'll balance out your energy better."

No! I started to turn away from him, from them, and I heard my voice say loftily, "I just came to pay my respects to you".

His grip on my shoulder tightened as a hint of possessiveness came across his features, but he released my shoulder and with a nod towards his younger brother, stolled to the other side of the room.

Now the tightness in my chest was starting to burn, and I hated myself for doing what had to be done.

I followed him, and once he took a seat, I whispered, "Bond with me."

The feral grin made me want to run, to just say 'To hell with this!' and find some other to use up the energy building up inside me. But there wasn't time, and I knew I was starting to die.

He shifted to the side and motioned me to lie down. A cushion under my head, I grimaced, closed my eyes, and tried to prepare myself.

I felt his uncharacteristically gentle hands brush strands of hair away from my forehead, as I heard his voice say, "You do know that after this, you will forever be my vessel?"

I forced a nod. I didn't need to see him to know his smirk was back in place.

At this time I could feel my energy pulsating, and I could feel him draw it up, up through my spine to pool at my forehead.

A soft murmur then; I couldn't tell if it was my imagination or not, "I knew you would come to me. You always will."

Then he fed.

Date: 06-10-04 [night of]

I don't have anything else to say other than "He's Back." Oh, and moo.

[Edit] I'm really brain-dead right now, so if this reads a bit weird... it's cause I'm missing most of my brain, and whatever's remaining of my brain is tuned to Fable.


The girl looked around as she slipped into her seat; the lecture hall was huge, easily able to accomadate over a thousand students. However, seats were few and sporatic; small clumps of them located here and there with rather large spaces in between.

The oddity was lost on her as she toed the plush red carpeting, idly wondering if this particular course was so well-financed it could afford such luxuries.

"Hi!" an enthusiastic voice quipped from beside her, and she turned to see a short-haired girl beam a grin her way. "Isn't this amazing?" she continued, taking a seat right next to the first girl, completely oblivious to her new companion's startlement, "I can't wait for this course to start! We're so lucky to be picked!"

"Um, yeah." The first girl returned the friendly smile with one of her own, still looking a bit bewildered in the face of such enthusiasm.

"I'm Lucy," the girl confided, sticking a hand out. Suddenly noticing the object leaning nonchalantly against the first girl's desk, Lucy's eyes grew wide, "They let you handle that?! I thought rifles weren't allowed at this stage!"

"Yes," the girl replied, tactfully moving the weapon away before Lucy could inspect it, "But I was given exception."

"You must be really good!"

"Not that good." She couldn't stop from sounding wistful as she glanced at the rifle next to her. Strange, but she felt no affiliation towards the weapon. Long as her arm and steely grey, she admired the weapon for what it could do, and the craft that went into its making, but she felt no connection with it whatsoever. Such bonds were sacred, and practically essential if one was to live to see the next day. So far though, she had been lucky.

She smothered a sigh. It wasn't a very good start to the program.

A sudden "Ahhh!" jolted her out of her thoughts, and she found Lucy staring behind them. "Oh my god, it's him! He's in our class!"

"Who?" the girl turned halfway in her seat, but Lucy spun her back to the front.

"No! Don't look! He'll see us!" Followed by, "He's so hot! I've heard he was sponsered for this program! He- hey! Don't look!"

Despite Lucy's protests though, the girl craned backwards to see who exactly had set Lucy into raving fangirl mode.

A slight raise of eyebrows, and a small smile crossed her expression. Aahhh. "I'll be right back."

Lucy stared at her, mouth agape, "You're not going to approach him are you?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah, I am. Wanna check out his gun."

"What?!"

The girl could understand her disbelief. Their weapons... the weapons were as an extension of their selves (with her being the rare exception). To actually touch someone's weapon was, in this program at least, considered an extremely intimate gesture.

The concept was ridiculous to her, but perhaps it was because her weapon didn't suit her so she regarded it as nothing more than a tool.

However...

"I'll be right back" she promised again, and started towards the young man.

She could see he spotted her almost immediately, his dark eyes inquisitive. The girl next to him - a very pretty one, she noted- noticed his distraction and followed his gaze.

The girl grinned inwardly as a scowl flashed across the elegantly made up face.

"Heya," she greeted when she was within earshot.

"Hey yourself," he replied easily, sitting back in his chair. He was curious, she could see. It made the grin on her face wider.

"Mind if you lend me your gun for a moment?"

A gasp from the girl beside him, but for him, his eyes lit up as he leaned forwards. Winking to the pretty girl, he turned back to the girl standing before him, "Kyra... I'll be more than happy to lend it to you if..." and he leaned forwards now, a full-fledged smirk settling on his lips, "... if you ask nicely."

The girl, Kyra, looked back at him and answered his smirk with a slow, slow smile of her own. "Hey... mind if you..." she leaned down to him, so close her lips almost touched his ear, her voice now breathy, "...lend..." and she hears a low hiss of surprise and amusement from him, and she pulls back a fraction so she's looking straight into his coffee-brown eyes, ".. me your gun?"

He seems a bit dazed, and only when her hand slides away caressing from his inner thigh under the table, did he regain his composure. The pretty girl beside him was glaring daggers, but he paid her no heed as he smiled, amazed, at Kyra. All his confidence and self-assurance returned, "Sure thing."

Kyra grinned back at him, taking the gun he offered and walked back. She heard the girl speak up, annoyed, "Who was that?", and she grinned when she heard the answer.

Lucy's mouth was still agape as Kyra returned to her seat. "You know him?!"

Kyra's grin didn't fade as she turned to her new friend, echoing his answer, "A very old friend." Then, her voice bordering on reverence, "Shit."

Sighting down the barrel of the gun, she relished the feel of it in her hands. It was a reassuring weight, a strangely familiar solidity despite being more than half the length of her own rifle. Without even looking at its ammunition, or even knowing its specifics, she could sense it packed far more firepower than anything she had handled before.

Now, if there was only something to-

"Kyra! Get down!"

But the warning came a little too late; she turned to see a face, the remnants of a face, right before her before the figure barreled into her. She cried out in pain as she was sent flying backwards, only to feel the back of the chair behind her splinter and shatter upon impact.

A whimper escaped her. It hurt!

But now... now the pain was pushed far to the back of her mind as she managed to focus. Crouched over her on all fours...

"Shit!"

Fingers scrabbling at her side, she couldn't take her eyes off the widely grinning creature. Strips of flesh hanging off its face, the muscles undernearth twitched furiously, visibly. All flesh below its head was already the matted purple and brown of decay, and with adrenalin heightening all her senses the acrid stench was more than overwhelming.

It might have been human once, but now it moved its limbs as a spider. Blank eyes blinked at her, and still the too-wide grin remained.

She couldn't help but notice its blood-stained teeth.

A familiar shape under her palm.

Flight or fight dilemna resolved. A snarl in her throat, she whipped up the gun, and with an ease she never felt with her rifle, she flipped a few switches, aimed and pulled the trigger.

The creature shuddered and reached out a hand that was all claws and thorns.

Kyra looked at the gun blankly. This isn't your weapon. You can't use something that's not yours.

"Kyra!"

Now she operated on auto. "-!" she yelled, in one quick motion throwing the gun at its owner, currently running towards her. A high-pitched whine from the creature, prompted by her action, and it grabbed lightning fast at her wrist.

I can't let it cut me. I can't let it infect me! Two shots. She heard two shots, two raw bursts of explosive power that resonated with something inside her. And somehow, her rifle was suddenly in her free hand.

She shot. She must have shot. The lingering smell of gunpowder hung thick in the air around her, and empty clips were lying in her lap. The rifle was beside her, and her finger was still on the trigger. He was before her, kneeling, his hands on her shoulders, asking her something.

She couldn't make out what it was. She made no effort to concentrate.

She was staring at her wrist. Torn and bloody from the creature's claws. From the creature's infectious claws.


"Hey."

"Hey."

"You know..." and he looked a tad bit flustered, with the breeze teasing his hair, blowing his bangs into his dark eyes, "You shouldn't hang out here."

He was making a point to not look at her bandaged wrist.

"Why not?" Kyra shot back. Her arms resting on the wooden fence, she didn't turn to look at him. Instead, she was just staring at the cows grazing peacefully in the field.

"Well... it's not that safe."

She shrugged off his concern, "They like me." She sneaked a sideways glance, and was a little touched by the concern in his face.

"You do know what they are, don't you?"

A small sigh from her; the cows looked up briefly from their feeding to look at her curiously, before resuming their meals.

"I know. I know, ok? Vampire cows. Bred for extra udders and thus more milk, and we end up finding out the extra udder gene is coupled with a vampire gene."

"... you don't have to stay here."

She knew what he was trying to say. She knew he was disturbed with their acceptance. But unlike him, she wasn't going to deny it. What was the use? It would only hurt her, in the end. Not to mention make things more difficult if she refused to move on from denial.

Absently, she wondered if clarity of thought came with death. It certainly did with hers.

"I'm one of them. I'm becoming one of them" was all she said next, and she rested her chin on the fence now, her arms still outstretched before her.

"I can't stay here long..." he trailed off.

Of course he couldn't. To the cows he'd be fresh meat, and it was better to not rile them up. So she nodded her understanding, and continued to watch the cows.

He made no move to go, either.

Date: 17-07-04 [night of]

Aha! I knew I wrote this down somewhere. Just to prove to all of you that I don't dream of that guy all the time, I'll post up this dream I had a while ago.

This one dream is rather surreal (But then again, it's a dream. What can you expect, right?).

Dream notes:

The Mall is a recently built shopping complex here in Brunei, and thus is a rather popular hangout spot.


They had finally finished the Mall. A huge, glitzy monstrosity of a building, it stood over 30 stories high, though only the bottom five floors were for shopping purposes.

Currently I was to meet my two friends, Dal and Shel, at the top floor. We were to watch a movie, though as usual we hadn't made up our minds on what exactly we were watching.

That brought a little quirky smile out of me.

I stepped onto the escalator then, not giving any thoughts to why exactly it was the flat, sloping kind instead of the normal steps. Criscrossing the empty area right in the center of each floor, it rather reminded me of the Toowong Shopping Village in Brisbane, Australia.

My pleasant thoughts turned into puzzlement though, as I finally reached the top floor. The entrance to an arcade yawned before me. Void of the crowds I usually associated gaming arcades with, and no flashing lights or loud merry music, the place looked absolutely forbidding.

However, it was clear that the only way to the cinema was through this arcade, so with much reluctance I stepped in.

The first thing that registered in my mind was that the air was dank and musty. With the faint light coming in from outside the arcade and from the dusty windows lining a wall (which faced inwards of The Mall, not to the outside of the building, strangely enough) I briefly noticed the dark blue carpet, patterned with dull red stars here and there.

If anything, that detail accentuated the gloom.

As I strolled past, I saw all the games were switched off, and that not a soul was around. Various titles and logos caught my attention, the familiarity of some sparking a small measure of interest. The games ranged from the bowl-up-the-ramp kind to the ever present metal-claws "Pick up a toy - 3 tries for a dollar!!!". But the normally bright and cheery lights were dead, and no merry tune hummed from the various contraptions.

All was dark and all was still.

This was no arcade; rather, it was the ghost of one, where people abandoned it to collect dust and sprout cobwebs in the corners. And here, the pinball machines took on the silhouette of tombstones; eulagies to the hustle and bustle of days gone by.

A sudden sound behind me, gratingly loud in the unnatural silence. I turned, and was greeted by the sight of several large, burly men wearing black.

A small detached thought floated past, Man. Talk about stereotypical. That was quickly silenced when the men started to raise objects - guns, I realized, half a second after my feet were already moving.

They were shooting at me!

I ran for it. My eyes darting wildly in the gloom, I spotted an escalator leading to the floor below and I rushed for it. I lost my balance for a split second as I stepped onto it, but momentum carried me forwards and I somehow recovered.

I ran down the length of the escalator, and when I glanced around to gain my bearings, my steps faltered.

The hell...?

I was back in front of the arcade.

The gunshots behind me gave me not a moment of hesitation, and once again I was running through the arcade.

Around me, brief bursts of life; translucent images of people laughing, chatting with one another, children running past. Tantalizing hints of what the arcade was once.

"This isn't how it's supposed to be," I muttered to myself, ducking away from the sharp ping of a bullet ricocheting off one of the machines. "I'm supposed to be protected from this!"

As if on cue, I suddenly noticed a door to my left. It was one of those fire exits, with a large EXIT sign lit up in fluorescent green. The door swung open then, and there was a large silhouette of a man. Strange too, but though the corridor behind him was painfully bright, blinding to look at, the light did not seem to reach into the gloom of the arcade.

My eyes adjusted, and I could see him a bit more clearly. Tall, his large long coat lend him a menacing appearance. And if I squinted, I could just see the outline of wrap-around sunglasses.

Now what drew my attention was the bird perched on his right outstretched arm. Somehow, I knew it was newly hatched. But as it held its four wings open, wingtip to wingtip, it was as long as the man's arm.

What light managed to escape from the corridor behind showed it to be black feathers, but with a tint of irredescent purple with the texture of velvet. The bird was staring directly at my direction, and I realized then it had no eyes.

Then a female's voice echoed in my head, calm and ageless, "I am the eater of souls. I devour those who refuse to move on. I feel on the undead. And this guardian of yours... I shall devour him whole."

The man merely smiled at that, and I could see he knew her words to be foolish.

And in that very instant, I knew he was no man. Not even human. This being felt familiar to me and I knew it to be older than the ages...

Date: 09-09-04 [night of]

Odd, this. The guy keeps on popping up, and weirder still, it's the same dream setting as A Stranger in a Friend's Face .

Personally, I think this guy just wants an entire blog dedicated to himself.


Regardless of how I tried, I couldn't keep my eyes from tearing up. Instead I decided to mask it by slamming the locker shut; I might not be able to get rid of my inner-cry baby, but I definitely could try hide it.

"Hmm?"

Or not.

I blinked furiously to rid the tears that threatened to spill before turning around.

Oh no... of all the people...

The class president stood before me, looking rather tall and intimidating. Light glared off his glasses for a moment, and it took me a moment to realize he was staring at my locker, rather than at me.

"Open it." His voice was low and commanding, and strangely tense.

He's pissed.

Wordlessly I did so, the clicks as I turned the lock combinations loud in the sudden silence. A small glance around showed me that I had gathered a small audience, doubtless intruiged by what had gotten my class president riled up.

Not that it showed. Rather, he had simply become more... focused; his gaze much, much more penetrating than usual. That, and that rage radiated off his form so much it was almost a physical barrier.

As the final sharp click sounded, I hesitated.

Behind me, he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, and without a word reached past me to pull the door open.

Dark eyes narrowed into mere slits, the line of his chin tightening as his jaw clenched. Around us people jostled, trying to get a clear view of my locker, but he pushed it shut just as quickly as he had opened it.

A sense of relief when I released a breath I wasn't aware of holding; he wasn't intending to make a public spectacle of what had been done to my locker.

"You have no classes now, correct?"

I nodded, unsure of where he was going with this.

"Good. Follow me." Not given much of a choice, I shrugged to myself and did.


"Hey, prez..." I hurried to match his steps; his much taller form gave him a wider stride, something that was really starting to bug me. "Are we allowed to get off school premisis during school hours?"

That made him pause a moment, and I gratefully took the time to catch up. "Not really..." he trailed off a moment, running a hand through his hair and seeming a tad sheepish.

Odd... but suddenly it was as though he was a completely different person. Just now he was all sternness, authority personified. Now he was just a regular student, just like me.

"But the ice-cream parlour's just across the street, so it shouldn't be a problem. Besides," and he gave me a sideways glance, "It's not like we're skipping class."

I couldn't help but point out, "You're the president. I'll just say you told me to come along. Dump all the blame on you."

His only answer was a smug smile.

Yup. Definitely a completely different person, I thought in amazement.

Once in the ice-cream parlour, and after having a small argument over who was to pay for what, I settled on a banana split and he a simple sundae.

There were very few people in here, I noticed, and most if not all were students from my school.

"Popular spot" I remarked, sliding into the seat across him.

"It's convenient" he corrected.

"Fair enough." I pulled a notebook out from my backpack then, flipping the pages till I found what I was looking for. There was a quiz in the next period, and I wanted to refresh my memory. I couldn't help a sigh though; studying was not a habit of mine, but if I wanted to keep my scholarship in the school, I needed to keep my grades up.

His hand reached out to flick the notebook shut then, "You know, I didn't bring you out here so you could study."

I couldn't help my glare, "You know, that was bloody rude." Seeing no change in his slight smile, I added, "So why did you bring me out here?"

Now his smile faded, "Why are they picking on you?"

That made me shift uncomfortably, "Hmm?"

"They" he emphasized slowly, "Why. Are. They. Picking on you?" He continued then, picking away at my reluctance, "The three girls from class. They're bullying you. I thought you were getting along with everyone."

"I was" was all I said, absently poking into my banana split.

His own sundae was untouched, "If I'm not mistaken, one of them was even from your old school."

At that moment I let my curiousity override my apprehension, "How do you know all this?"

A very brief smile at that; there and gone in a moment, "The one you keep calling Blondie told me. But seriously... what happened?"

Now he was getting on my nerves, "Why don't you ask him?"

There was no change in the calm of his voice, "I'd rather hear this bit from you."

"Well I don't see why it's any business of yours."

Now his dark eyes hardened, "I am your class president. I have a right to know what's going on in my class." Authority was seeping back into his tone and I found myself wanted to comply.

What the hell...?

My confusion must have shown, and he hastily backed down, his gaze softening. "I just want you to fit in," he explained quietly, "You're only been here a week. Having 3 people who you thought were friends suddenly turning on you like that..." he trailed off, but I could read the rest of his thoughts from his expression.

I saw you cry.

There was something else too, from the way he wasn't looking straight at me.

Promises... are so hard to keep... I couldn't help myself. I stood up, grabbing my bag and hoisting it on my shoulder. "I'll be fine" ; my words were wooden even to me, but it didn't even seem worth the effort to rephrase.

I left.

Date: 06-09-04 [night of]

A little delayed, but I couldn't help but think it over for a couple of days. A bit odd, but something about the one scene I remembered bothered me a bit. Only now did I realize the guy involved is the same one from the dream mentioned below (Flipping Through). It's really strange, but it's as though he's had a complete personality change.


It was strange, I thought. A little light-hearted, I strolled down the side-walk. School had been good; I hadn't been yelled at by the teachers, and the entire class had been let off with no homework since, by some strange miracle, not one of us failed the pop quiz a couple days ago.

I looked around then, smiling faintly in appreciation of my surroundings. Who would have suspected this place was a school, with its large modern buildings and well-tended gardens? Around me students laughed and chatted, our uniforms of black and white peering out between bushes, trees and the dove-grey walls of the school.

Underfoot, I felt the irregular bumps of the path; a rather interesting pebble and tile mix. It felt kinda thereputic.

I had transferred into this school for only a week, and I was already enjoying myself.

"Woi, Kyris" a voice suddenly called out from above. I looked up to see a young man leaning dangerously out of the window, hands waving madly, his long blonde hair hiding his features save for the too-large grin.

I bit back a groan; he was from my class, and was all-too-fond of teasing the new girl - me. "What is it now?" I yelled back. Despite myself I couldn't help but laugh as he lost his balance for a moment and grabbed wildly at the windowsill.

"Heh" was his sheepish comeback as he sensibly drew back to a safer position. Then, "Do me a favour?"

"Sure" I stepped away from the wall onto the lush grass. My neck was hurting from craning upwards, and now I had to shade my eyes with my hand to avoid the glare of the sun peering over the roof.

"Find the class prez? We need him for the club meetings and he hasn't shown up yet" His voice put on an exaggerated petulant edge, "He's forgotten his responsibilities. Can't he keep track of anything? Honestly!"

I bit back an uncharacteristic giggle; it was nice to see someone else on the receiving end for once! And the class president, of all people.

His smirk turned into an easy smile, "He's probably at the pool. You know where it is?"

"Yup, I remember!" I pulled off a lazy salute - which he answered with a shoo-ing motion - and I jogged off.

It wasn't too hard to find. The pool was actually just around the corner, and anyway the well-placed direction boards were there to help the directionally-challenged.

Now the footpath changed from the pebbly surface to smooth, slick tile. It was after classes after all, and the pool was a nice place to cool off in the hot afternoon sun. I shaded my eyes once again, squinting at the moving bodies dipping in and out of the water surface and trying to see if there were any that were familiar.

I gave up. Too much glare, and the fact that everyone looked the same behind water-slick hair and goggles did not help. Instead, I wandered over to the walls where belongings were carelessly scattered.

It seems like the students here aren't scared of having stuff stolen, I thought to myself, seeing wallets and other valuables out in the open.

That they were still there was a pleasant surprise.

I spotted what I was looking for then. A duffle bag, with a neatly folded school jacket lying on it. Embroidered on the jacket was my class number, along with the symbol representing class president status.

At least I could confirm he was still here.

"Hey."

I turned at the greeting, then almost bit my lip in embaressment. He was there, our class president, clad in only regulation school pants and a towel around his neck. Chestnut hair was tussled, and still slightly damp, but had already begun to take on the normal apprearance of his bangs. His dark eyes looked at me in slight confusion, as though he was wondering why I was there.

Duh. Of course he'd be confused. I'd been staring at his duffle bag.

"Hi" was my ever-so-brilliant reply. I kicked myself mentally; he was hot, but that didn't mean I'd have to auto-inarticulate myself. "Blondie sent me to find you cause of the club meetings." Judging from the way he was staring at me, he was confused by what I said. I paused and ran the sentence through my head one more time, and winced.

I'm confused by what I just said.

"Erm..." I tried one more time, "Err..."

Great. What a time to forget the blonde guy's name. I tried one more time, "You're needed for the club meetings, right now." When in doubt, paraphrase.

"Ah." Pulling the towel away, and grabbing a t-shirt lying just under the folded jacket, his voice was slightly muffled as he pulled it on, " -- asked you?"

From the tone of his voice, he wasn't confirming who sent me. He was confirming it was me who was sent.

"Ahh... yeah." I watched him curiously as he slung the bag onto his back and slipped on his frameless glasses, all of a sudden looking every inch the responsible and highly respected class president.

Save for the light pink of his cheeks.

On an unspoken agreement, we started walking back towards class; him, with one hand resting lightly over his shoulder holding onto his bag strap whilst his other hand was shoved deep in his pocket, and me holding onto my schoolbooks.

Calculus. Animal biology. Programming. I hefted the books a moment; too heavy for my backpack, and turning out to be too heavy for my arms. I turned to face him for a moment; maybe he'd know if somewhere there'd be lockers to stash them in, "Hey prez..."

"Huh?" he seemed to be startled out of his thoughts, and his cheeks flushed again.

I blinked. He'd been looking at me...

A slow grin then, mostly to hide my own blush, "Nothing."

"Nothing?" he seemed skeptical.

Now it had turned into a fully wicked grin, "Hehe.. nothing."

Date: 26-08-04 [night of]

I called this one Flipping Through mainly cause with each scene, I wrote Flip. In the dream... it was as though I was shifting through realities, each Flip taking me into a new one, or back into a past reality.


"That way! We should head for that house!"

My shout was carried away by the wind; for all the effort I put behind it, it was but a whisper amid the howls of the storm. Behind me, the small group of people picked up their pace, eager to reach the security promised by solid walls.

Solid brick walls to buffer us from these powerful winds, to shield us from the harsh stinging rain. Head lowered, eyelids almost shut, I could almost ignore the terrain.

I knew this place when it was filled with gentle slopes of jungle and fertile land. Now, behind the curtain of mist and whirling debris, the landscape was barren, with large lumps of overturned earth and dead grass, scarred by huge ruts.

Something caught in my throat, and I choked on it a moment. Funny, I thought to myself, I never expected to be this patriotic.

"Stop."

Instantly, I felt the group following me literally stop in their tracks. Then I felt his presence next to me.

I didn't need to look his way to know he was staring straight ahead, the only one of us not cowering before the storm. And in that moment, I hated him.

"The tornado's gonna come over us" I pointed out flatly.

"We're not going into that house."

Something snapped in me, and I yelled, "Are you trying to kill us?!" I stepped forward, and the people behind stirred, yet made no move to follow me.

Of course not, I thought bitterly, Everyone follows him. And it was true... His lean form demanded attention. His quiet voice carried authority and confidence. Him, with his chestnut bangs, and his dark intelligent eyes.

People would follow him to the ends of the earth should he just speak one word of it. People would willingly sacrifice themselves at his command.

... many have.

And now I stare them down, furious that they chose death because he had refused shelter. Ashamed with myself because I couldn't bring myself to glare at him.

"Are you angry, little rabbit?" Quiet, mocking, yet louder than the storm raging around us. And I hated him more.

A thunderous crash then, and I whip around to see the house crumble as a tornado engulfed it. The entire front was ripped away, exposing bare stone and metal before the other walls collapsed inwards.

My palms clenched into fists as embaressment burned away at me. He couldn't have known!

As I stared down to the ground, I heard his voice, mocking as always, "You should find your friends and warn them of the storms."

Flip

"Dal! Lil!" Everything was a blur through this thick curtain of rain. Many times I felt my feet slip out from under me, and it was through sheer terror that I managed to keep myself from falling.

I couldn't waste time. I had to find my friends.

The floor -marble? my mind registered hazily- was as ice. Dripping water, I ran through the gleaming features of the Mall, trying to spot my friends through the thick crowd. Everyone seemed to have chosen this building as shelter, and I couldn't blame them. As glitzy as it was, the architecture was still solid.

A small beep came from my pocket; an sms. Time is running out, little rabbit.

"Kyris!"

Suddenly I was mobbed, and after a moment's panic, I recognised them. My friends had found me.

"What's happening?" came the questions.

"We have to get out of here. We need to find somewhere else to hide" was all I could manage, before the entire building suddenly started to shake. Above and all around, lights flickered wildly before exploding in a shower of glass and sparks.

Darkness. Chaos.

"This way!" I heard one of my friends cry out, and before I knew it we were outside, trying to keep together in the human stampede.

For a brief moment the rain let up... and I caught a glimpse of the storms.

The sky was dark, almost black, and thick with clouds. Every few seconds lightning flashed, crisscrossing the sky, blinding and fierce. And coming down from the sky were tornados miles wide, ripping apart everything in their path.

My mouth dropped in shock, my ears not registering the screams of people around me. Then the rain began to pelt down hard again, blissfully hiding Nature's horrors.

An unanimous, unspoken conclusion between my friends and I, we need to get out of here, fast.

Then we were running, all of us hand-in-hand, fearful of losing sight of each other. And not 10 meters past before an ear-shattering explosion. A glance to the side showed MD, its buildings ablaze and in ruins.

Lightning.

We ran.

Flip.

And there I was, standing before the large oak doors. Beyond here was the Court; where history was created, where the fates were debated and determined.

I stared at the doorknob. It stared back.

And I realized then... that I really, really needed the loo.

[Woke up - Went to loo - Went back to sleep]

I barged in through the doors, realizing that I was late, and had done the unthinkable.

I made the Court wait.

As I rushed in, I made quick note of the room. Though large, it was crammed with seats. The front though was dominated by the Judge's Chair - the large, elaborately carved wooden stand. And at the sides...

To the left were the Choices. Those who argued for and against a certain fate. Whether to allow a person to live or die, for example. Whether to allow an action to happen.

To the right were the Watchers. They who watch the decision making, thus making it a reality. And of these Watchers were four.

The Rabbit, whose hat were bunny ears of plush fur and velvet.

The Hatter, whose hat was tall and supported with gold.

The Jester, whose hat was of silk with gems dangling off the pointed ends.

And the Other, whose hat was cloaked in shadow, unseen, not wanting to be seen.

And at that moment... only the Hatter seat was empty, the Hatter's Hat still awaiting its bearer.

I hurried forwards, taking up the Hatter's Hat and putting it on with as much ceremony I could, despite the scowls and glares directed my way. Then with as much sincerity as I could muster, I bowed low before the judge, asking forgiveness for my insolence at making the Court wait for one such as I.

After what seemed like eternity, the Judge accepted my apologies and waved me back to my seat.

And as I sat down... a small beep signaled an sms.

Well handled, little rabbit...

And I knew I could love him.

Flip.

"Kyris, are you ok?!"

The voice jolted me into the present. Or was it the moment? I shook my head a little to clear my head.

"It took us a while... but we should be safe here." I had to agree with my friend. After the shock of seeing MD explode wore off, we remembered our high school, STPRI. And with it came the memory of the auditorium.

And for some strange reason, safety. So there we rushed, trying desperately to race the storms. And somehow... we made it.

Beep beep.

I clicked the sms open.

Do you really think you're safe now, little rabbit?

Before I could think about it, two voices exclaimed from behind me, "Jerk!" Two friends of mine, Dal and Lil, were peering over my shoulder and had read the sms. Recognising the sender's name, they warned me against him, telling me he was trouble, and that he was an ass for sending rude comments.

And I knew they were right... but I also wanted them to be wrong.

Flip.

"Don't you dare look down on me!"

The roomful of laughter hurt. Yet I refused to give in and cry. I refused to be upset. I wanted to get angry.

"Stupid little human," someone called out, "You only have a horse. You don't need skills for that!"

My palms stung, and I realized then that my nails were digging hard into the tender flesh. Using the pain to fuel my anger, I yelled back, "If you think it's nothing, then you try ride it!"

Gods, but I hated my 'comrades'. We were supposed to be a team, and yet... yet... just because my familiar was a mere horse, not a fancy beast of myth, they thought it funny to look down on me?

"Bring it on, girlie." A huge, hulking, leering man answered the challange.

My mind focused then, all concentration on a single point in space and time. My will ripped it open, calling out for it to come to me...

And suddenly it was there. A great beast of a war horse, standing at twice my own height. Huge muscles shifted under a coat that gleamed as satin. Feathered hooves as large as plates stomped onto the wooden floor, making it shake. It was a bay; the body brown, the colour deepening down the legs. The mane and tail were black, and it was thick and long.

It snorted then, and pawed the ground once, twice.

The class seemed a little bit awed, till someone called out, "Geez, it's just a horse."

The man stood up then, sneering, "So where's yer riding equipment?"

"I don't use any," I replied cooly, "I ride bareback."

A glint of dark eyes from the back of the room caught my attention then, drawing it away from the man currently struggling to throw himself onto the back of my familiar.

It was him. He sat there, with a knowing smirk. No one had approached him, no one spoke with him, nor did they even glance his way.

I had the feeling that the rest of the team were too afraid of him to do so.

He spoke then, soft words that only I could hear. "Fiesty little rabbit... aren't you?"

Flip.

I couldn't. I had to pull out.

With a nudge of my knee, the stallion leapt up into the air, skeletal wings beating lazily. Below me I watched, a little coldly, as my comrades died one by one, in the hands of the enemy.

I couldn't help them. So I didn't. Our post had fallen, and the survivors had to pull back to the city.

It seems I was the only survivor.

With a last glance below, I urged the stallion to fly off. The city was not too far, and it alarmed me the army had reached us. And the numbers...

My familiar and I soared above legions of monsters, all armed to the teeth, and ready to spill blood - whether it be ours, or their own comrades.

My urgency was felt by the war horse, as he neighed and strove to speed up. Not too long, we caught sight of the pristine walls of the city, and it assured me to see it still standing strong and defiant.

Maybe... just maybe...

I spotted a familiar figure atop the battlements. Mounted on an emerald gryphon, he was facing my way. The direction the legions were marching in.

From below, the enemy hollared and hooted, the archers attempting to shoot my familiar and I down. The arrows fell short though, falling back upon their own troops. The screams of pain, the abrupt cut off of death... I felt numb to all of it.

And still they tried. And this time I caught sight of the catapults. I saw their load of sharpened stakes, winding down, ready to be launched.

The stallion dodged the first volley easily, slanting a wing to roll to the side. But the second and third...

A wave of fire surprised me then, as it narrowly missed us to burn the stakes to ashes. A belated moment later and I realized my mount was back on solid ground, and that he was before me.

Leather reins gathered in one hand, he sat on the gryphon with natural ease. The beast itself was panting; replenishing oxygen supplies to breathe out fire again.

His dark eyes scanned the horizon, a slight frown as he said, "You are the only survivor?"

I could only nod.

He was silent, and I knew he was judging the odds of the city surviving against the monsters.

Suddenly he jerked at the reins, making the gyphon sqwak with surprise as it turned to face me. So he could face me.

And for the very first time, we faced each other eye-to-eye.

And now... there was no trace of mocking whatsoever.

"Die with me."

I nodded.