Sebastian frowned thoughtfully at the screen of his phone. It defiantly seemed logical but nothing about this really was logical, to begin with. As he began fidgeting with the string of his hoodie, Lydia came over.

“Dude, are you okay? You keep on spacing out.”

“Hmm, I’m fine.”

“Then why did you rest your elbow on that sticky paper again.”

“What, oh, gross,” Seb winced as he pulled the paper off his elbow.

“As entertaining as it is to watch, you’re worrying me bud.”

Sebastian sighed. “You and everyone else, apparently.”

“What?”

“With the whole nightmare situation going on, I seem to just be worrying people. One of my classmates even noticed I was off and offered to interpret my dream for me.”

“You have a classmate who can do that?”

“Well, actually, his mom collected some books on the subject, and I told him about the things that stood out in my dreams that could possibly be interpreted. He doesn’t really have all the facts but he was able to give me an interpretation of sorts.”

“Oh? So, will that help?”

“I don’t know. The whole thing was a shot in the dark but...”

“But?”

“But I think he might be on to something. With this interpretation.”

“Okay, so what’s the problem that’s got you staring off into space for answers?”

Sebastian hesitated to answer, rubbing the back of his neck almost embarrassedly.

“Seb?”

“It’s stupid.”

“If it’s really bothering you, then no, it isn’t.”

“...what if it doesn’t work?”

“The interpretation?”

Sebastian nodded.

“Then you’ll figure out something else.”

“And if nothing works? What if I’m stuck in this cycle of nightmares?”

“That won’t happen. And until this is over, you’re not alone at least. You’ve got your parents, Edmund, Persephone, Hayden, and me, and I’m sure there are plenty of other people in your life who’d support you.”

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“But it keeps on getting worse. My parents keep on waking up to my screaming and Ed has barely gotten any sleep this week because he can sense when I’m feeling restless. I feel like I’m going crazy and taking them down with me.”

You’re not. Your parents probably don’t like waking up to the screams, but they comfort you afterwards, right?” Seb nods in confirmation. “They want to be there for you. The same with Ed. He can sense how you’re feeling because he’s close to you. The unique bond you both share means he can feel what you’re feeling, for better or worse.”

“That is not making me feel any better.”

“Well, look at it this way. He’s also feeling all your positive emotions.”

Sebastian paused. “I... I hadn’t thought about that. How come you know so much about this kind of thing?”

Lydia smiled almost sadly. “It’s a long story, but I’ve had experience with similar stuff, so to speak.”

Seb wanted to dig deeper, but before he could, Persephone burst in from the back. “I found it!”

“Found what exactly?” Lydia asked.

“That damn acorn.”

“The ember okay seed that weird guy was trying to use in place of money?” Sebastian recalled.

“That’s the fucker. Well, look at this thing now,” she said, holding up the acorn, which had a weird reddish-black sprout growing from it.

Lydia tilted their head to the side curiously. “Is that... normal?”

“For a regular Ember Oak, no. For a Shadow-Ember however, yes!” Persephone cackled.

Sebastian frowned. “What the hell is a Shadow-Ember?”

“Well, it’s this thing. An Ember Oak seed that’s been messed with will sometimes have weird mutations. In this case, it evolved into a Shadow-Ember Oak seed, which can grow at an accelerated rate in dark places.”

“Which means...?”

“I can sue Malcolm for trying to sabotage my business,” Persephone declared with a bright grin. “These things are highly dangerous and I have evidence he was trying to trade it in my shop. Malcolm is known for his horticulture skills; that, along with the insulting insistence of using my deadname, will count towards a malicious act that can evict him from the clan.”

“The clan?”

“My clan. Or the one I was adopted into after turning. That was literal centuries ago though. I still have contact with them and my oath keeps me from turning away its members, but since I have this evidence, I can properly be rid of that Mal-dumb.”

Lydia snicked. “Mal-dumb? That’s your best insult.”

Persephone remained grinning. “Laugh all you want; nothing will ruin this moment for me.”

“Congratulations on your discovery, Seph, but what are you going to do with that thing?” Sebastian inquired, eyeing the sprout. “You just said it was dangerous?”

“Oh, yeah. If it was left in the storeroom during the upcoming full moon, it would have absolutely ruined things. Now that I’ve found it though, I’ll just burn it and bury the ashes later.”

“Right, the full moon’s coming up. What are you and Ed going to do?” Lydia inquired.

“What do you mean?” Seb asked.

“He hasn’t told his dad, right. And your parents don’t know either. Where’s he going to shift?”

“Shit, I didn’t think about that. I don’t think he did either.”

“You better decide on something soon then. The moon is going to be full in just 9 more days,” Persephone declared.

Sebastian buried his head in his hands and groaned. “Why is my life like this? Couldn’t I just have normal problems?”

Lydia smirked in amusement. “What are normal problems?”

“I don’t know. Bullies, school grades, styling my clothes so that I don’t look like an awkward weirdo.”

“Well, guess you’re just one of the gods’ favourites. Now, who wants to burn this thing with me?”

“Persephone, you can’t burn that thing inside the store.”

“Says who?”

“It’s going to make things smell like smoke.”

“So?”

“So?!”

Sebastian watched silently as the pair argued about burning the acorn and decided maybe life wasn’t so bad. Sure, he had plenty to worry over, but life hadn’t changed all that much. He still had his best friend, his job, and all the people who made his life special. He catches sight of his phone again however and remembers Luke’s earlier message:

This dream is defiantly a warning, but also a call to action. There is something that you need to embrace/accept to move on in your life. Something that will lead you to a huge change.