Forum Thread

Artemis looked around, but there were no useful supplies around. "There's nothing here to be taken..." she began. A thought crossed her mind. "Say, Erin. Would you like to come with me? You're the first person I've seen and...who knows if I'll ever see anyone again. There are some dangerous individuals out there...I think one of them was following me at the Mall." Artemis shuddered. But then again, Erin might turn out to not want to come, then she'll be alone, and feel awkward. Even worse, he could backstab her....she shuddered again at the thought. Artemis decided to try and trust him, and see how it went. If things didn't go well...the mark count would be 4.

Canna watches the newcomer like a hawk, Faolán standing in front of her protectively, but no longer growling. Her trust wasn't something that Canna gave just anyone the luxury of. Hence why she couldn't just turn her back on them either. She was fast, but she certainly didn't have eyes on the back of her head to watch out for a surprise attack. And if one person had made it here, who was there to say that there wasn't more out there, potentially waiting to ambush her?

"Who are you? And where are your people?" she calls out.

"My people?" Kaylan laughed, "I'm all alone, always have been, since the start of the Apocalypse. 'Name's Kaylan, what's yours? You don't need to tell me it though....many people around these parts don't. A bit too paranoid in my opinion..."he said calmly. He gazed at the newcomer, and watched her dog. Judging by her look, the stranger was calculating if she'd attack, and what to do. Kaylan also thought about it for a moment, the odds weren't in his favour. Without the dog, yeah, he could possibly be able to defeat her, but he didn't think he could outrun her dog...

So she was thinking the same thing... Well, it's not like he didn't want to travel with someone, he was just worried about what would happen if he did. He gave another sigh and looked at her, pain shining in his eyes. "Sure, why not." He didn't care much about the positives or the consequences of agreeing, he would worry about it when the time comes. He had been backstabbed before, and he himself had done it to someone that trusted him. He let out a short yawn, one that was the result of waking up too early, and walked past Artemis and out the door. "So what now?"

---

Zelda began to cry in help as the pain devoured her. She couldn't help herself so she had to call for help as she had dropped her bag on the way. "Hello! Anyone out there, I need he-!", She stopped as a thought entered her head 'What the hell were you think, you idiot' She said to herself angrily but also frightened at the thought of survivors that could've heard her.

Artemis smiled. "I don't know. It's getting late, maybe we set up camp?" She asked, pointing to the Park. She turned towards him, "Do you, by any chance, have some spare medical equipment? I'm running low on them, I'll trade you those for some food, I've got plenty." Artemis said, indicating to her battered cans. The sun was setting, and it was soon turning nighttime. She let out an annoyed sigh, nighttime was the most dangerous time of the day...

Erin looked towards the park and stopped, considering the option. He was already living in a pretty well intact apartment, but it wasn't very large and he was getting tired of living there. "Sounds good. I put most of my supplies somewhere, I'll go and get them." He had quite a lot that he was never going to need, so he was fine with giving them to her. It also gave him the chance to pack up. He continued walking towards the rest of the city, not expecting Artemis to follow.

---

Zelda passed out due to the amount of agony she was in.

Hearing the scream for help Yūki turned around and began to run in the direction of the shouting. 'Could it be her, please be her,'. She whispered under her breath. Yūki suddenly came across an old battered school bus where she guessed the plea of help came from. She squeezed through the doors to find a girl. She let out a sigh of disappointment and debated to leave but then thought 'I can't just leave her, can I?' She knelt down beside the now passed out girl and pulled out bandages, penicillin, and some alcohol from her backpack and started by pouring some alcohol onto the wound and then rapped it up with the bandages. She saw the girl wince and give a little flinch. When she was done unraveling the roll of cloth around the girl's leg she slipped a small pill of penicillin into the girl's mouth and gave her a sip of water. She then packed away the excess pieces of bandage, penicillin and alcohol into her bag she reached into her bag and rolled out a sleeping bag and a pillow and laid upon and within a couple of moments drifted sound asleep.

"Okay, I'll be in the park if you need me," She replied and set off to the park. Underneath a tall tree, Artemis created a small shelter, with the use of her many blankets. She also placed two sleeping bags down, her usual one and her spare, for Erin. The girl took out a few cans of peaches, and placed them next to his sleeping bags, so he could eat. She didn't risk creating a campfire though, that could attract unwanted attention. Artemis placed her weapons next to her sleeping bag, her eyes drooping heavily. Overcome with fatigue, she clambered into the sleeping bag, curled up and closed her eyes. In a few minutes she was asleep.

Remaining quiet, she takes a minute to assess the situation she's in. A bit too paranoid, he says. He really must not have anything to lose if he's this calm during an apocalypse. So then... If that's true, and he is alone...

"Canna. My name is Canna. With a 'C' not a 'K'. That's... all you need to know about me, right now."

That was all she really had left: a name. So, in a way, they were somewhat similar, perhaps? Canna exhales deeply, her hands trembling slightly, anxiety fueling the urge for an early cigarette.

"I'll believe you, I guess," she says bluntly with a huff, "I need to go... get some air. If you want... I'll be sticking around the city for a little longer. If you want to... partner up after you've got whatever you've come here for. I mean, if you're not too paranoid that I might bite..."

She shrugs on her backpack and pulls her hood over her head. The fluffy faux animal ears stitched onto them were a childish feature, for sure, but Canna secretly loved them. She flashes him a small, empathetic smile.

"I'll see you around, Kaylan. Faolán, let's go."

Turning on her heel, Canna leaves, calling for Faolán to follow as she lights up her second cigarette.

Coby rushed out of his makeshift treehouse in a hurry, nearly falling off of the rope ladder. Due to his staying up all night on yet another "toy", is what the grown-ups would call it, and having fallen asleep around 7:00 in the morning, he had slept nearly all day and had not given himself enough time to gather resources for the next step of the invention. Although he was technically an adult himself, he figured that since legalities no longer mattered during the apocalypse, he could still consider himself a child until he reached 20 or 21. His mind was very immature, at the very least. As he rushed out of the already falling apart treehouse built in the middle of a desolated cul-de-sac, he glanced back at his 'house' before turning to sprint away. The tree was entirely dead and the bark was rotting, and the wood he had used was already falling apart, but he had nowhere else to go and refused to leave his home, so he forced it to stay together and utilized every prospect of it that still worked.

As the young boy raced through the streets with his satchel clutched at his side, clumsily swerving around piles of rubble and debris, and making his best effort to avoid the various smoke-filled alleys and buildings, he realized his feet had brought him to a shopping mall. There were many of these scattered about the now-ruined city, and this one's front sign was still mostly intact, but he could not read it without his glasses. His glasses had broken quite swiftly, as they usually do, but due to his family's money and prestige he could always just get new ones and never had to go with blurry vision for longer than 2 weeks. Now, his entire vision had been blurry up close for almost 6 months (he's far-sighted), and he's even clumsier than ever. He didn't know how to make glasses, nor did he know his prescription or how to get all the tiny screws in the right place, so he could not replace them. It made surviving a lot more difficult, and he seriously should have been dead by now, but by some miracle he was still alive, and he took that for granted way more than he should.

Coby decided not to enter the shopping mall. He figured that would be already looted and grieved, plus it would be too wrecked to traverse safely. Instead, he continued wandering, steering himself towards the Calvin D. Park. He didn't know why he bothered to remember the name of it- some stupid rich person probably. Nonetheless, he made his way towards it, knowing the water fountain there worked. Somehow. As he approached, the sun had already almost entirely set below the horizon, and his anxiety began growing. There was no way he would be able to replenish his water and get back to the tree before nightfall. It was already almost too dark to see. It was way too dangerous to wander alone at night- that's when the majority of the monsters that dwell among the forest get a bit more confidence and try to snatch up some better-tasting food. Coby shivered. He could never forget the screams. He had been there for the Fall, and he had been there as the entirety of humanity, give or take a dozen or so, were wiped out before his very eyes. He tried finding his family, but they were all gone. His old castle, where he grew up, was now nothing but a few ragged walls, debris, and dust. His mind threatened to wander further, trying to fall back into a memory he longed to forget forever, and he struggled to bring it back to the task at hand. He had arrived at the park, a rusty and worn-down children's playground sitting upon dead, gray grass and barren rocks, and had nearly walked past it. Making a sharp left turn he scouted out the working water fountain- there were many broken-down ones strewn about.

Eventually finding what he was looking for, Coby reached into his satchel and pulled out his canteen that he found in a shop once. Unscrewing the lid, he pressed the button and waited as water spewed from the fountain and fell unevenly into the container with a unique dripping sound. As the canteen began to fill, Coby noticed something behind the fountain. It was a shape, but it was so dark and Coby could see so poorly that he could not discern what it was. It was only until the thing began growling that he made a guess. Could it be a dog? He couldn't imagine how an animal had the wits to survive out here, but if he could do it, anyone can. Then the dog started barking, and panic began to well in his chest. That was going to attract some monsters. The sun had disappeared and the moon was rising steadily, very few stars visible through the clouded sky, and monsters were bound to be venturing out of the forest by now. Halting the flow of water and re-screwing on the lid to his canteen, Coby shushed the dog quietly, but it did not stop. Suddenly, he heard a voice.

"Arrow, quiet."

Immediately, the dog went silent. Confused and a little scared, Coby glanced around, but could not pinpoint where exactly the sound had come from. Just then, a survivor appeared out of the black of the night, and it could just be his horrible lack of sleep, but Coby thought he could see them glowing a little bit. Their milk chocolate colored skin was peppered with white freckles that seemed to radiate light, and their hair was short, fluffy, and auburn colored, hanging over their eyes so that he could not tell what color they were. They held a long staff with a cracked gemstone on the end of it, which was pointed at the edges. They wore a loosely fitted red and white plaid shirt covering a dark black turtleneck that was dirty and worn down, and they held themselves with an air of confidence and security. Coby gulped.

Even though Coby could not see the newcomer's eyes, he felt them glaring at him. "Who are you? Why have you come here?"
"Look," Coby said, trying to keep his voice from shaking. He did not want to be out here for any longer than he had to, and this was wasting time. "I'm Coby. Coby Hevenn. It's very wonderful to meet you an' all, but I really gotta go-"
"Why are you stealing my water?"
Coby froze. This was their water?? "Oh, uh, sorry 'bout that, I didn't know it belonged to you. I was just getting some to refill my bottle here, because, y'know, I don't want to die."
The survivor sighed. They lowered their spear, though it wasn't raised very threateningly anyways. "I am Gino."
Coby waited. They said nothing more. "Ok... Gino, may I go now? 'M sorry for taking your water, k?"

Gino was shorter than him, and when they relaxed, as much as you can out here, they looked much smaller and more helpless than when he first noticed them. They nodded and looked away. Their dog, who Coby assumed was named Arrow, had lost all signs of hostility and was wagging his tail at him. Coby smiled at him, and looked back to Gino. He wanted to say something more, but he didn't know what to say, so he simply turned to walk away.

"Wait."
Coby stopped, turning himself back around to glance over his shoulder.
"You can't just go off into the night on your own. Not out here. Let me come with you and ensure that you reach your home safely."

Coby hesitated for a moment. He knew that this could be a trap, that if he accepted he could be leading an enemy straight to his house. But with all of his previous heritage and power and fame thrown out of the window, he felt as though Gino simply wanted to tag along, and not visit his very extraordinary house that was not nearly falling off its foundations. Plus, Gino seemed lonely, and this might be Coby's last and only chance to make a real friend. Deciding that if this does go wrong, he wasn't going to make it much farther by himself anyway, and nodding to Gino, he said, "Alright. Just don't kill me. I can do that to myself just fine."

He thought he caught a smile through the seemingly glow from the young human, but it was too dark to make sure. Turning back around and heading off into the night, now with a dog he still did not know the look of and a possible new friend, Coby was feeling a little better, and was anxious to get back to his home.

---

Erin took his time as he walked towards the building, his mind blank as he did so. He saw nothing on the way, which is what he expected, but he had secretly hoped for something. Once he arrived, he travelled to te 3rd floor and searched for his room, which surprisingly had a lock that still worked. He entered and stood motionless for a minute, thinking about the events that had happened today. It was all too risky, but he couldn't figure out why. After thinking about how he was going to do this without everything falling apart, he took a deep breath and began grabbing bags and supplies to fill them. He could think about it later, it wasn't important. That's what he always told himself, he would think about it later. None of it was important. He never tried to sort it out, he just brushed it off. He always knew something had to be done, but he never acted on it. He was getting so mad at himself at this point that he punched the nearest wall, stopping him from thinking once he realized what he did. Well... no one else was going to live here, the hole would never be seen or cared about anyways. He sighed before leaving the room and heading out, finding his way to the park.

It took a while, but Erin eventually found the area he and Artemis decided to set up camp. He was surprised to see a sleeping bag and some canned food waiting for him, that is, until he realized it was just common courtesy. He got into the sleeping bag, and instead of laying down, he just sat there. He didn't exactly feel like sleeping, no matter how tired he was. He decided to eat a little something before calling it a night, making so he fell asleep almost 10 minutes later than he arrived.

---

Fog snuck up, behind Kaylan, an angry expression carved into his blue face. With a quick flash of steel, Kaylan dropped to the ground, dead. A wide, red smile and been cut on his neck. Fog wiped the blade on Kaylan's clothes, and grimaced.

"I beg your pardon ma'am, you didn't have to see that. This lad here has been proving a real nuisance 'round these parts, you know...the usual. Backstabbing, stealing, honestly, some people have no manners. Anyways, I had to get rid of him. If he teamed up with you....perhaps you would be lying dead in an alleyway in a couple 'o days." the man explained.

"Pardon me, ma'am, but I've gotta dash. There are more people around here and I don't wanna get into any more fights. I hope you and your dog survive, and, if you ever need anything, come 'round to the Spindle River, and I'll be there."

Fog walked a few metres away from her, and spoke, "The name's Fog, ma'am. Fog Kauraudo." He walked away, and in a few minutes, the blue boy was out of view.

Zelda woke up with a shudder to see another girl next to her. She stumbled away startled at the newcomer doing so she found herself on top of what was left of one of the ancient school bus seats. Then almost like a lightning bolt struck her dozens of questions ran through her head 'What happened?', 'What's all this stuff?', 'Who's that?', 'Is she friend or foe?', 'Shall I attack her?' All these thoughts abruptly came to a halt when the girl work up.

"Who are you?" Zelda asked with a little tremble.
"How do you feel?" Yūki replied in a sort of calming voice in order to show the other girl that she was a friends and ignoring the girl's question as she thought that the girl's health was more important than grettings.
"I asked who are you?" Zelda said slightly annoyed.
"My name's Yūki Aoi, I came to your aid, don't you remember?" Yūki asked concerned.
"Yūki," Zelda whispered under her breath "I'm Zelda, Zelda Sallinger and now I dont remember all I remember is coming upon this school bus and passing out," She replied a little bit worried.
"You shouted for help and well I came to your aid," She said in a slow voice.
"Mhmm, well I guess I should thank you for that," She said calming down a little bit.

Now that Zelda knew who this stranger was she was more relieved an relaxed now knowing that Yūki wasn't a foe about to steal all her goods as she had the chance when she was passed out. She signaled with her eyes to Yūki to sit on the patchy, worn seat opposite thinking that it must be much more comfortable than the hard school bus floor.

Yūki sensing the gesture sat opposite Zelda "What do we do now?" She asked.
Thoughts of working together with Yūki ran through Zelda's head like cheetahs chasing after their prey until she finally blurted it out "Well I guess we could work together as you're the only survivor I've seen and maybe the last.".
Yūki was thinking the same thing as she didn't want to be alone for the rest of her life "Sure, we can work together," Hse said with a smile on her face.
Zelda suddenly overwhelmed with thrill and excitement smiled back at the girl.

Mouth agape, Canna had been left speechless by the sudden scene that had just been played out before her. Even Faolán, himself, didn't have the time to react: the blue-faced stranger had left as quickly as they'd appeared. She's frozen in that spot for what feels like hours, her ruby eyes now glassy from tears that threaten to spill. But they never come. Canna swallows down the sick-feeling in the throat, following through with some deep breaths in an attempt to regain her composure.

"A bit too paranoid," she quotes again, with a light-hearted chuckle, "Maybe I am."

It's only when Faolán whines once more, that Canna is brought back to reality. Crouching down to his level, she lays her head upon his, scratching the base of the dog's ears with her free hand, the other still clutching onto her cigarette that was, more than likely, now misshapen. Nonetheless, she wouldn't let it go to waste, as cigarettes were considerably hard to come by now, and she was almost desperate for a hit of nicotine. As if supply 'shopping' wasn't already stressful enough-

"It's okay, I'm fine," she hums, "Let's get going, okay? You want food, hm..?"

She's met with a wet tongue to the face, taking that as Faolán's 'yes'. Unable to help but crack a smile at the dog, she wipes away the slobber with the back of her hand as she stands, and the two leave the shopping mall behind them. As soon as her feet leave the building, Canna takes a long drag of the cigarette, finally. But despite the temporary relief, Canna was still left with a lot of questions. Who was that blue guy? Fog? Odd name. Why didn't he kill her too? Come to the Spindle River - where ever that was - if she ever needed anything? Sounded like an invitation to visit death itself-

Canna settles in a playground, in a nearby park, seating herself on one of the swings, which squeaks with her every movement. She takes out a packet of beef jerky, breaking off small pieces and throwing it to the ground where the dog lying at her feet waits patiently. Personally, Canna finds the smell of the dehydrated meat unpleasant, so she settles for snacking on her 'glorified bird food'.

"Well then are we ready to leave?" Yūki asked breaking the long silence between the two.
"Go where?" Zelda asked.
"Well we could find a somewhere I guess," She replied hoping that Zelda would tag along with her.
"That sounds great!" Remembering that her 'home's was pretty much done for and she needed to move.
"Come on then," Said Yūki gesturing to Zelda to follow.

They both walked through the desolate city towards the direction of a park when suddenly they found a mysterious looking girl. Zelda signalled to Yūki to hide behind a rather large piece of rubble nearby. From there they watched the girl.

Artemis rolled over in her sleep, her brows touching. Her body felt heavy, but her head, light. The darkness that one would see whilst dreaming disappeared, and a forest-like landscape filled the void-like emptiness. It was a dream, although, she didn't realise it yet. Two figures appeared, a tall, smiling woman, who had the same hair as Artemis, but the facial structure and her eyes were different. A loud giggle echoed around the forest, and a tiny little baby was crawling around in the mud, dirt on her face and knees. The baby giggled again as a butterfly fluttered past her, and landed on the woman's nose.

The lady picked the child up, and poked its belly. "Oh my sweet Artemis, one day you'll grow up to be a big strong fighter, just like your father," she woman whispered to the baby Artemis. The woman, who was her mother, had a sweet, melodic voice, that reminded Artemis of the gushing of a river, or the twinkling of wind chimes.

The baby put a hand on the mother's face and giggled. The woman smiled further and hugged the child close to her. Wind whistled past the two, making Artemis' mother's hair fly in the wind. The baby grabbed a lock of hair and started to play with it, intense curiosity in those tiny eyes.

Deep in the meadow, under the willow.
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow...Artemis' mother sang, her voice ringing throughout the clearing. The baby closed its eyes peacefully.

Lay down your head, and close your eyes.
And when they open, the sun will rise.

Birds cheeped as the flew past the two. The grass rustled under the cool breeze that whipped through the tree branches.

Here it's safe, and here it's warm.
Here the daisies guard you from every harm.

The dream vanished, and Artemis was presented with darkness again. She sniffled, curling up into a ball, tears pouring down her cheeks.

Here your dreams are sweet, and tomorrow brings them true.
Here is the place where I love you.

She whispered to herself, overcome with grief. Artemis sat up suddenly, rubbing tears from her face. She glanced to her left, Erin was fast asleep in the other sleeping bag, so she was careful not to wake him. Bringing her knees close to her chest, she rocked back and forth slowly, trying to calm herself. Artemis was scared, she had been, since the Fall of the City.

The Apocalypse frightened her, but she didn't show it. Around others, showing weakness was a bad idea. But Artemis couldn't supress those emotions for long, so at night-time, they enveloped her. She missed her mother, and her father. But most of all she missed her sisters.

Lin, Katerina and Delphi, were her sisters, and she loved them so much. Artemis longed to be able to spend time with them, but she couldn't. When the City crumbled, they disappeared. She never got to see them again.

"I never got to say goodbye..."

She had not long turned six years old when the man she knew as her uncle came to visit. However, the banging on the front door when he arrived, followed by his loud demands to be let in, had scared the small child, causing her to run and hide under the frame of her bed. The banging stopped shortly after she heard the door open, yet the yelling continued. Her father was quick to bite back, the sound of her mother's crying could also be heard in the background.

Young Canna clutched onto the stuffed toy she'd gotten from her most recent birthday: a grey, scruffy but soft dog. Unlike the previous years, this year, it had been her only gift. She knew her parents had been struggling with money for a while now. Whilst they never told her directly, Canna wasn't blind to the smaller portions during dinner, the sudden change of beans and rice most nights, and how empty her parents' plates were, compared to hers. Naive, she'd often offer her parents some of her food, but they'd always decline with 'I'm not that hungry right now, sweetie' or 'You need to eat it to be big and strong!'. Sometimes, when she couldn't sleep at night, due to storms or nightmares, she'd seek out her parents for cuddles, only to overhear them worrying about money and loans, whatever they were.

The arguing gradually got quieter as if the adults had moved on outside. She waited, and waited until it got to the point where Canna could no longer hear anything. Hesitantly, she wriggles out from under the bed, and moves over to the door where she pokes out her head. Still holding the teddy, prying ruby eyes take in their surroundings, only to find no sign of her parents.

"Canna," a voice calls out that is, neither, her dear mama's or papa's, "Canna, come on out."

Her uncle comes into view, his clothes slightly dishevelled, but appeared otherwise calm, as if everything that had just happened was just another nightmare and made up by her imagination.

"Where's... Where's mama and papa?"

"They've gone away for a while. I'll be taking care of you until they come back, okay? It's been a while since you've last visited, and your cousins miss you a lot. Wouldn't you like to see them again?"

Canna bites her lip, nodding meekly as she reaches out to hold her uncles' own outstretched hand. She wasn't fond of visiting her uncle and his family. His sons were always rough with her, leaving her to go home each time with bumps and bruises, whilst their parents excused them with the classic, 'Oh, Canna had an accident today whilst the kids were playing. She tripped and bruised...". But if her parents had said that she had to stay with her uncle, who was she to defy them?

However, days soon turned to weeks, which then turned into months... years... with no sign of her parents.

Yūki leapt up and gestured to Zelda to follow, the two ran through the crumbling city managing to miss the occasional rusty bike on the way until they found themselves in a decrepit house that stood on its own as the two houses that once accompanied the rubble littered house where long gone.

Zelda opened the door with a creak as if the house was saying 'Welcome'. They walked further into the building stepping over the fallen chandelier that hung from the ceiling. Suddenly, an owl noice filled the atmosphere blocking out any other sound. Both Zelda and Yūki swirled around and peered out of a peeling window to see a group of people dressed in earthly materials swarming the road, however, Yūki's attention swiftly turned to something else, a women standing in the middle of the peculiar people. She noticed that the dwellers where sort of obeying the women via her selection of hand gestures and animal noices she would present.

Zelda turned to look at Yūki and asked with a quiver in her voice "Who is she?"
Yūki was debated with two scenarios "Should I tell her" or "Should I keep it a secret" were sprinting though her head.
"Ummm...hello?" Zelda asked with a concerned tone of voice.
"She's the leader of the Alquita," She said seriously choosing to tell Zelda the truth.
Zelda picking up a sense that Yūki knew the women asked "How do you know that?".
"Well...I'm her daughter, I'll be the next leader of Alquita," She said hoping Zelda wouldn't take it the wrong the way.
"WHAT!" Zelda shouted surprised.
"Shhhhh!" Yūki exclaimed.
"What!" Zelda said whispering this time.
"C'mon we need to get out of here," Yūki said indignantly, ignoring Zelda's question.
"How do you expect us to do that?" Zelda said.
"We'll go through the back door and though the gardens away from here!" She said worry in her voice.
"But why do you want to run away from your moth-," Zelda was cut off due to the jolt of Yūki pulling her towards the back of the house through the hallway thorugh the dining room and then through the kitchen.

Once they reached the back door Yūki kicked it open sending it flying of its hinges onto the dead grass. They jumped over a labyrinth of brick walls until they where far from the house they were in, away from the Alquita.

Erin had fallen into a light sleep, one where he could easily be awoke but was strangely able to have a dream. Well, at that point it's probably not even light. The dream was as he expected, it was always the same one, over and over, torturing him until he finally woke up and escaped the horror and left it for another night.

Erin was just a little kid, trying to live his life so that he could have fond memories of it later, if he even lived to that point. All he wanted was for them to stop, for them to finally get ahold of themselves, but that day never came. Every day Erin came home to see wine glasses, beer bottles, and shattered shot glasses on the floor. The room was always drenched in the smell of alcohol and smoke, some days it even hurt to breath. Every day he would hear shouting that shattered his heart, or drunken and random mumbles. His parents looked like a mess, so much different than what he vaguely remembered to be their normal selves. Every time he came home it was like this, followed by them yelling questions or demands to him. It hurt to hear their words, because they always tried to make it sound like they cared. 'Where have you been? We were worried about you!' 'Come on sweetie, if you love me you'll get me something from the fridge!' These were just a few of the things they would say, followed by a beating that would leave him unable to get up off the floor. Each time he fell asleep, he would remember a different day, a different scenario that always had the same outcome. The more painful memories were the ones where he tried begging them to stop, or yelling at them that they needed help and that he missed them. None of it ever worked, it just hurt more to live through the day.

His eyes flew open before the dream could continue, a few tears were running down his cheek. He was still in the sleeping bag, and he was facing away from Artemis, well, if she was still there. He began to hear the sounds of very faint crying, coming to the conclusion that it was coming from her. He stayed still, hoping she wouldn't notice. He would usually get up and take a small walk whenever a dream like that happened, but he refrained from doing so. He closed his eyes yet again, making it less obvious he was a wake, and simply laid there.

---