A Witch And Her Kin Pt 06

He was in that dream again, it started like it always had. Always with those moments he could firmly remember, awake but not really - a prisoner in his body as he dreamed. Never able to change the events in his dreams as they happened, only able to watch them play out again and again as parts of what he remembered, frustratedly became lost to him through the sands of time...

Rays of sunlight hit his face as he slowly came too, he was always waking up in that same bed in that room. Morning rays of bright sunlight streamed in from a window, showing outside a sea of dark green and brown and blue as far as he could remember.

A gentle breeze rustled the fabric drapes causing them to rise fanning out for mere seconds before slowly falling down. His wolf-ears could faintly hear the morning calls of the local wildlife - their high and cheery voices gently ringing out loud for all to hear, echoing throughout his room from what only must have been the local wood thrushes.

He wearily remembered sitting up in his dream, and gently rubbing his eyes with his small hands, then slowly as it always had in his dream, he had a dawning moment of excitement.

That was right, today was his _______! The reason for why he was so happy had left him from multiple of these same dreams. Frustradedly leaving him confused as the reason why was forgotten in the annals of time - but he knew that from his excitement it was important.

It had to be, If only he could force himself to remember why?...

Slowly he remembered climbing out of his bed, wearily but with excitement in his young mind of what was to happen today, his bushy black wolf-tail gently swaying intune with his emotions. He drowsily shambled into a room with a large mirror, illuminated by bright candles and him the sole person in that room - brushing his small blossoming fangs and teeth, someone long ago he remembered vaguely had always stressed the importance of looking clean and healthy.

A moment of indecisiveness washed over him before he dutifully set about combing his messy black hair - taking extra care in combing out his bushy tail, to what he hoped "that person" would find reasonably fine. Setting the comb down he looked at his complexion in the dimly lit room, the mirror showing him a young youthful ivory colored face with black wolf-like ears and small blackish furry tufts, a messy head of black hair and golden-yellow irises, just like his...

Staring at the mirror the boy slowly watched in fascination as his reflection seemed to change, warping in the mirror with the flickering candlelight of the dark room illuminating his morphing features until finally what looked back at him was someone he could not fully recognize.

The figure had longer, messier hair than he had, and those same wolf-ears but more bushier and unkempt, but as he looked at the face of the figure in front of him he watched as the candle light slowly illuminated the persons face, he watched in horror as the person's irises began to glow, not that of a the familiar golden-yellow but of a bright purple hue - the only part of the figures face that stared at him, seemingly staring straight into his very soul.

He watched in horror, as the figure seemed to scream on the other side of the mirror, a sound-less scream. His face contorted in pure fear and anguish, before the purple-eyed figure reached out of the mirror - grasping, no - reaching for him.

He closed his eyes in fear, attempting to get the face of the figure out of his mind. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking realizing - the figure was no longer there... the orange candle light flickering in the dimly lit room showing only the same face the boy had seen over and over again in his dream.

Awkwardly he remembered getting dressed, before opening the door to the room he was in. A brief walk through the creaking wooden hallway led him to the impressive balcony overlooking the impressive stone foyer beneath illuminated by a bright hanging chandelier. He walked down the wooden staircase holding the wooden railing, vaguely remembering when he was younger a important "person" had taught him not to run up or down the staircase without clutching the wooden railing as he was now.

As he made his way throughout the first floor of the house, he heard his stomach growl. Giving in to his basic instinct to eat his first meal of the day he walked past the stone hallway that led to the library, his favorite place in the house, as he walked to the kitchen he remembered how much he enjoyed reading those stories of the brave adventurers and hero's of times of old, and rather vaguely - two people playing with him, acting out his fantasies of saving others and dreams of being a hero, as small as he was when he was younger.

Smiling as he walked the stone floors to the path that led to the kitchen, his tail slightly wagging to and fro, he opened the doors to the impressive dining room - passing by the long dark table with its many chairs, before heading to the single doors on either side that hid the kitchen room in the far back.

As he entered the single-doorway to the kitchen storehouse, he ran into a tall figure behind a large island counter. She had a feminine figure and sounded so familiar with that distinct feminine voice. Turning only her long brown-haired head to him as he made his way to the counter, he saw that the woman's face was still obscured by a hanging cloud of black shifting miasma, only her lower facial features discernible to him.

He had frustratedly given up on trying to remember her name or who she was long ago.

He watched her figures back moving around a hidden bubbling metal pot on the stove he could not see and produced a ceramic bowl, filled with oatmeal and even his favorite topping BLUEBERRIES! - His tail wagging furiously at the sight of one of his favorite morning dishes.

As she made her way to him, He slowly sat at the counter's granite table top after pulling out a wooden stool and after sitting realizing that the high stool caused his legs to hang off the tall seat, dangling along with his now limp black tail on its ledges.

He watched as the female figure moved around the island counter and placed the bowl of oatmeal in front of him, his tail wagging slightly before the figure leaned in and hugged him, ruffling his black hair and wolf ears. She said something in his left black wolf-ear that he could not discern but he felt himself becoming happy, reminding him once again how important the female figure was to him and of what today was.

He heard the wooden door to the kitchen open again, turning as he watched another new figure enter the doorway into the stone tiled floors of the kitchen. This figure was taller and more robust than the female one to his left, his face was also obscured. But he said something to him that made him smile, closing the distance between the two of them at the counter, and leaning in for a hug, the figure's strong arms enveloping him and the woman on his left in a tight but warm embrace.

This figure had a more masculine voice, and unlike the female figure to his left sported black wolf ears peeking out of his lighter black hair, his tail was neatly combed unlike the more bushy nature of his own.

This was someone he knew was important but he could not for the life of him remember his name or facial features, only that he was someone that he knew was important just like the woman was to him.

As he was released from the figure's warm embrace, he felt his tail wag. This figure like the last had talked about the event for today and had brought him excitement. He could make out a few words of what the man was saying but he felt himself overcome with joy at man's final sentence, the words "Going out fishing?"

This he knew was something that was deeply important to him and the obscured man on his right, who was like the woman next to him ruffling his hair and ears. Finishing his sentence the man left him to eat his breakfast oatmeal waving at the woman on his left as he exited the kitchen.

Returning to his bowl and spoon, the obscured woman's face leaned in close to his and kissed him on the cheek, saying something that caused him to smile giddily, his wolf ears moving excitedly. She too, after moving the empty pot into the soapy water in the sink - left the kitchen from the wooden doorway, leaving him alone to finish his oatmeal and blueberries.

The room now punctuated in the warmly lit kitchen of one boy hungrily scarfing down his breakfast, the gentle calls of birds and lit by bright rays of sunlight.

His dreams always seemed to cut around from scene to scene, like reading a story and jumping to a separate one with the same characters but different settings.

This time instead of sitting at a counter, he found himself sitting on a large wooden log firmly settled on a gravel bed, with the sounds of a flowing river cascading through natural rocks on a riverbed punctuating throughout a large densely populated forest.

He heard someone saying something next to him, turning his head he saw the same tall muscular figure from before gently handing him a fishing rod, he felt himself nod his head taking the rod, and positioning his hands as the figure next to him had taught him- he let the hook with the accompanying bait fly into the rapid flowing river.

He could not remember how long the two of them were there, or even if what was happening in his memories were the truth. But at some point in his dreams he always noticed the figure next to him looking mournfully at him, his obscure face only vaguely expressing sorrow and regret, jokingly he felt himself ask the figure next to him, addressing him by a name he had forgotten.

"____?, what's wrong?" He heard himself ask the tall figure next to him looking at the figure's obscured face and downtrodden ears.

The figure simply replied, "_____, you know me and your _____, are proud of you?, and that no matter what happens or what you choose to do in this world we will always love you? "

He heard himself joking, laughing, smiling at the tall person next to him, "of course ____!, no matter what, I am so glad to have been raised by you and ____."

He heard himself continue "You and ____ have supported me and given me so many privileges and opportunities that - I can't wait to go out there ___, and start my own life like you did." He felt himself smile at the end of that sentence.

The figure next to him seemed to interpret his words his sadness on his face changing into a nervous but then confident smile, he watched as the figure leaned in to him and gave him a warm hug just like in the kitchen that same morning, this time though it felt longer and more drawn out - he swore he could hear the figure crying softly over his shoulder as he told him again "how proud he was" nestled in his warm embrace.

Then he felt the fishing rod in his hand tug - gently at first then strongly attempting to break free from his grasp. Exclaiming loudly with excitement and standing back up from the log while gently breaking free from the figures hug, he began to try to pull in the creature he had caught with his line, his lithe arms reeling in with all their might with his heels digging into the gravel bed, with much strained effort he slowly reeled in the catch. Producing from the rapid water's a flailing bright red, salmon large and beady eyed. He heard the figure next to him shout in excitement.

Placing a hand on his shoulder the figure began exclaiming something about having a nice dinner with the fish he had just caught, his voice supportive now and filled with happiness.

All the while, he felt his tail wag in pure happiness, his wolf ears blowing back in the gentle winds that shook the branches of the tall trees around them a chorus of singing branches, causing leaves to flow down with drifting small colors of green and yellow a few getting caught in his messy black hair - A bright, happy smile plastered on his face from his catch with the man next to him.

He was now realizing - dimly in his mind, he was nearing the ending of his repetitive dream, dreading what would come next but still never able to do anything but watch in horror as everything would unravel, playing out like a twisted nightmare.

He was now in the familiar bright dining room, seated next to the end of the impressive dark mahogany table on the right of the obscure male figure, while the female figure sat in front of him on the male figure left. They were eating the salmon he had caught with the man.

The woman had scaled and cooked the fish into beautiful and delicious filets, along with a strong heaping of broccoli and rice from the kitchen's stores. Finishing the meal while the two figures talked amongst themselves he heard the two address him together. They both said something that made him jump with excitement, his ears and tail betraying how excited he was for the event yet to come.

The woman and man slowly got up from the table pushing their chairs in, before walking to the kitchen doors and disappearing behind them. He watched as a few minutes later they reappeared, the male figure carrying a small delicately frosted chocolate cake with lit candles on its frosted base. Their flames dancing as the man walked, the female figure followed close behind him.

Both of them stopped where he was seated, on either side of him. The woman held in her hands three new white plates, placing them on the clean table and placing one next to his empty dinner plate - while the man set the small cake in front of him.

He watched in awe as the flames of the small candles lapped and danced in the lightest of drafts. Realizing there was a message on the cake, but even in his dreams he could not remember what the cake said, its sentence an unintelligible mess of fuzzy and clouded white frosting.

Regardless both figures leaned in and whispering softly to him, their voices lapping on either sides of his black wolf ears - his tail now furiously wagging brimming with excitement as the two sang a unintelligible song to him, before finally he watched with dreaded finality through his eyes as he blew out the candles, streams of gray smoke dancing up and fading out of sight. The two figures ruffled his hair and ears and placed their hands on his shoulders laughing and smiling with him.

He watched as the woman cut the cake, her face though obscured by a veil of black haze - seemed just like the male figure before at the river, was momentarily heaped with an air of mournfulness before quickly being replaced with a foggy gentle smile.

The woman had cut three slices of the chocolate cake, giving a slightly larger piece to him.

On his plate - after removing the candles from his slice, the boy happily devoured his slice of cake, internally screaming all the while, at his futility to stop himself from what would take place next.

It would only be a few minutes later as he finished spooning the last bit of icing off his cake into his small mouth that he realized the two figures now seated at the table had not touched their own slices of chocolate cake.

Rather foolishly he felt himself ask if everything was alright between them. Watching through the shifting black veil that hid their eyes and faces them only smiling, assuring everything was alright and that they would eat their slices of cake tomorrow over coffee.

Smiling happily, the boy then felt the gentle pulls of drowsiness taking effect over him thinking of how full the meal had made him. The boy thought to himself it was only right that eating so much would make any person tired.

Fighting this urge to close his overbearingly heavy-sleepy eyes, he remembered thanking the two figures for the meal they had jointly cooked for him for his special day, attempting to leave to his room where he could collapse in peace.

This time though, as he tried to get up from his wooden chair he felt himself falling back down splaying his arms out towards the table in order to catch himself. Now fully overcome with drowsiness - He felt his head sink, now resting on the clean wooden table.

He watched internally begging, pleading for the dream to end as all the while - the two obscure figures slowly got up from their chairs, the wooden floor "creaking" all the way as the two moved around to his slouched over back before his vision faded slowly into a black all consuming haze.

Parts of his dreams overtime had become spotty, he felt himself being carried through the stone hallway to the library before blinking sleepily, dimly realizing that he was now in the grand library where he had played in when he was a mere child.

Looking down he noticed how high he was supported on someone's shoulder, his arms and legs dangling loosely as the person walked, his bushy tail bouncing with each step - He began feeling the effects fading into blackness again.

He awoke this time somewhere he had never been or seen before - a weird stone spiralling staircase that seemed to go-on without end in front of him but towards the back of the figure carrying him.

It was illuminated by weird glowing blue rods in the walls. He felt himself being jostled with each step over the person's strong shoulder, foolishly being lulled back to sleep with the gentle "Clicking" sounds of two pairs footsteps which reverberated off of the stone walls.

The drug induced sleep he had been under had seemingly ended once the pair had brought him into that room. He awoke, drowsily finding himself on some sort of cold, hard metal bed - a curved pane of glass slowly finished moving up to a tall metal ceiling "hissing" lightly after sealing in place.

Drowsily he dimly shook himself awake, getting all the more scared at the predicament he was in, those two figures in front of him - the female one was wearing a weird white coat. Standing just outside the plane of glass he felt himself gently touch the curved window separating him from the outside world.

"Subject has been placed in the chamber " - Pausing after a minute, the female figure continued "begin... stage two."

The male figure still in the clothes he was in from the dinner they had all shared nodded solemnly moving just outside of the boy's line of sight - causing him to crane his neck to where he had disappeared to. He heard a large audible "Cranking" noise, before an even louder "HISS" outside his glass pane caused him to jump, his ears and tail on end.

Then at his feet, he felt an icy, tingly sensation. with his hands on the pane of glass, looking away from the obscure figures in front of him, he slowly looked down watching some weird purple liquid seep slowly from cut out holes on a metal floor of the thing he was in slowly pooling at his feet, swallowing them in the icy purple liquid, that seemed to get darker hiding his soles.

Exclaiming loudly, he jumped, landing back in the now growing purple liquid that had covered his heels - looking quickly back at the two figures in front of him, concerned about hiding his impending growing knot of fear in his chest.

He jokingly remembered exclaiming "Hey_____, ______," There was a pause "I get this is supposed to be some kind of joke but really isn't this too much..." Both the figures stared at him and he could not discern any emotion on their hidden faces under that black veil causing him to feel a larger honed pang of fear.

The purple liquid was now rapidly covering his legs, bringing with it a growing numbness and a cold touch that caused him to start shivering. Realizing through his fear, that the rising purple liquid had a strong intangible smell.

The liquid kept advancing now at his waist, he realized with horror he was beginning to rise from the vented bottom where the liquid was. It was seeping into the fur of his black wolf tail and was now covering his lower body in the strange cold, purple liquid - sending icy, numbing sensations over his body.