Aureus lay half in his den and half out. He'd had a bad dream and woke with his gut twisting and turning from the stress of the nightmare, but he didn't want to wake his mom. He didn't want anyone to think of him as a cry baby and so he crawled to the front of the den to wind down. It was just a dream. It didn't mean anything. He felt the need to get moving and so he slipped quietly from his den and started heading toward the Cattail Creek, near Risen's old lands. He wasn't sure why but he just wanted to be home home for a bit. He had no idea that he was being followed.

When Aureus arrived at the creek he was stunned to find it full of fireflies. They winked and sparkled. It was amazing! There were so many they gave a soft, warm glow to the whole area.

You Wash Your Hands, You Come Home Clean...

Ashiel had been dealing with nightmares of his own. Fire, fire and more fire. There'd been a voice speaking to him but he could not make out what the voice had said, nor whether it was a man or woman that spoke. He remember the smell of blood burning in his nose but not the rest of the dream. He didn't think it was any sort of premonition, just a run of the mill nightmare but there were times when he wondered how exactly he was supposed to know the difference? He supposed if it happened again then he'd have his answer.

He'd been resting quietly outside his den, feeling invigorated by the cool night air when he saw little Aureus sneaking off. His first thought was to wake the boys parents but he hated to do that unless it was absolutely necessary. Malleus and Serene needed their rest. So he followed the kid all the way back to the Cattail Creek. A massive host of fireflies twinkled around them. "Aureus, are you alright?"


"Talk"