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themorbidsocialite Persephone startled awake with a gasp, sweating and coughing and trembling. A hand settled on her back and she flinched slightly before leaning into the warm body beside her. It took her a fair few minutes to remember how to breathe, think, be, but she eventually settled into a passive shiver.
She was so cold...
Her father's voice whispered into the top of her head. "A nightmare?"
She didn't have to say a word for her father to understand, just nodding as his hand rubbed her back and eased her body into relaxing.
"It must have been quite startling. I'm sorry you're plagued."
Percy just sniffled, leaning in closer for warmth and comfort, body held in a loose ball.
"Do you wish to speak of it?"
She shook her head. No, it was... It wasn't pleasant and she didn't want to relive it. They sat in silence for a while as Percy tried to calm her thoughts and trembling hands and her father rubbed her back and hummed some soft, distant melody. He interrupted his own humming with a pat.
"May I offer you advice that may help?"
Percy sniffled, but nodded, letting her father talk.
"When you have dreams or nightmares of any kind, you live them in a realm beyond the mirrors, like with Alice. That means there's something real on the other side. The rest is thought and imagination, but here's what I want you to do: the next time you have a nightmare, look for a scarlet lizard. Look away and look back and, if she stays scarlet, follow her. Her name is Pomegranate and she belongs to a friend of mine. If you see her, follow her, and she'll lead you to a magnificent building, a hotel, by the name of the Royal Bethlehem." Her father's hand traced along her hair as he spoke, gentle and easy. "Find a man with a stovepipe hat and a maroon tailcoat. Tell him you're the daughter of the Seventh Player. From there, he should welcome you to a room. If we're sleeping at the same time, I'll find you. If not, there you can rest more easily there."
Per her request, Percy's father repeated the instructions a few more times before she fell asleep once more, thinking about scarlet lizards and red and gold hotels.
Persephone Malodrema still sometimes got nightmares. That was the cost of living, especially doing so in London. But now, when she did, they were often interrupted by dreams awash in red and gold.
She was so cold...
Her father's voice whispered into the top of her head. "A nightmare?"
She didn't have to say a word for her father to understand, just nodding as his hand rubbed her back and eased her body into relaxing.
"It must have been quite startling. I'm sorry you're plagued."
Percy just sniffled, leaning in closer for warmth and comfort, body held in a loose ball.
"Do you wish to speak of it?"
She shook her head. No, it was... It wasn't pleasant and she didn't want to relive it. They sat in silence for a while as Percy tried to calm her thoughts and trembling hands and her father rubbed her back and hummed some soft, distant melody. He interrupted his own humming with a pat.
"May I offer you advice that may help?"
Percy sniffled, but nodded, letting her father talk.
"When you have dreams or nightmares of any kind, you live them in a realm beyond the mirrors, like with Alice. That means there's something real on the other side. The rest is thought and imagination, but here's what I want you to do: the next time you have a nightmare, look for a scarlet lizard. Look away and look back and, if she stays scarlet, follow her. Her name is Pomegranate and she belongs to a friend of mine. If you see her, follow her, and she'll lead you to a magnificent building, a hotel, by the name of the Royal Bethlehem." Her father's hand traced along her hair as he spoke, gentle and easy. "Find a man with a stovepipe hat and a maroon tailcoat. Tell him you're the daughter of the Seventh Player. From there, he should welcome you to a room. If we're sleeping at the same time, I'll find you. If not, there you can rest more easily there."
Per her request, Percy's father repeated the instructions a few more times before she fell asleep once more, thinking about scarlet lizards and red and gold hotels.
Persephone Malodrema still sometimes got nightmares. That was the cost of living, especially doing so in London. But now, when she did, they were often interrupted by dreams awash in red and gold.