Where EQ meets the Old West

AU from the world of ElfQuest  •  Posted at EQ Forums  •  EQ Mainsite

Day Six - Part Nineteen

By Rainflower

Hey, I know we're on the seven'th day now, but I hope you don't mind that I put in an evenent at night before where we are now.


Dewshine had trouble sleeping that night, and when she finely managed to fall asleep, she had horrible dreams. Dreams of darkness, dreams of horror; of Scouter.

"Scouter!" Dewshine whispered in her sleep before she woke up in a moment letting out a yelp. The sight in her dream didn't let go and it took a moment before she managed to get control over her breath again. In the beginning she didn't remember where she was before she heard Tyleet make small whimpers beside her before she woke up.

"Dewshine?" she said. Her eyes were large of shock. Dewshine laid down in bed again and looked at her. "You're awake?"

"Yes." She whispered. "I had a nightmare…"she said before taking a breath. "I - I dreamt... that Scouter was shot."

"You too?" Tyleet said as she rose and sat in the bed. Dewshine crawled up in sitting position herself, suddenly completely awake.

"You dreamt that too?"

Tyleet looked down for a moment, thinking back on the horrible nightmare. "Do'no. I just dreamt that he was hurt and that he was bleeding a lot." Then she looked at Dewshine. "What about you?"

Dewshine looked at her friend, then up at the sealing. "In my dream he fell from somewhere tall when he was shot. I didn't see much blood, but I could feel his pain, like I was there with him."

"But how come we both had the same dream?" Tyleet whispered nervously.

"Do'no myself. I don't want to think about it."

Tyleet looked down again, and for a while she was silent. "I… dreamt about Papa too. I just saw him. He had many people around him and..."

Dewshine couldn't see her clearly in the dark, but she had the feeling Tyleet woulg break into crying any moent. She laid a hand at her sholder, Tyleet leaned to Dewshine, who in the next moment figured out that she was right. She started patting her hair and Tyleet slowly calmed down. The two girls went silent for a while; none of them knew what to say. It was Tyleet who at last broke the silence. "Do you think they're alright, Dewshine?"

"I'm sure they're fine. I don't think there's anything to worry about yet. It won't help that we get scared. For all we know, they might be back tomorrow."

"Do you really think so?"

Dewshine smiled taking her friends hand. "Let's hope so." Tyleet let out a sigh, smiling and taking Dewshine's hand. "Thanks."

The two girls smiled and got closer to each other. For a while they were silent again. "What do you think of, Dewshine?" Tyleet asked.

"About my father," Dewshine said and then her face turned into a grimace. "I'm still a little mad at him for packing that stupid pink dress for me."

"But it's pretty." Tyleet said.

"That's the problem. It's too pretty to use in an ordinary day. And I don't like to dress up too much."

"You won't look like you dress too much up, Dewshine." Tyleet said laughing.

Dewshine made a grimace in the dark. "I that dress I will." They laughed a little, before Dewshine got serious again. "And I think my father and the school mistress has something going on."

Tyleet stopped laughing and went serious. "Do you think they'll wed?"

For a moment Dewshine was silent. The thought of having your teacher as your mother wasn't very tempting. She had once asked Scouter about how he felt and he had said that Mrs. Clearbrook turned to one person in the classroom and the moment she got out of there, she started acting like a mother again. "Do'no, but if that's the case… I don't think I ready for that."

"But wouldn't it be nice to have a mother again?" Tyleet carefully asked.

"I don't even know how is to have one. Why should I care?"

"I've never had a father, but I'd really like to finely get one." Tyleet said with a sad tone in her voice. Dewshine knew she was worrying about Redlance again. she leaned closer to her.

"And you will get one, but please respect that I don't need two parents, okay? I've managed it fine, why should I start now? I'm almost grown and I know that if I had one, she would have forced me to wear that stupid dress anyway."

Tyleet started laughing again and couldn't stop, and Dewshine could only join her. Soon they were laughing out loud and when Brownberry suddenly entered the room, they went as silent as a desert.

"I don't seem to remember that you girls were allowed to sit up the whole night." She said in the doorway. The girls didn't answer at first, but then Tyleet broke the silence. "We had nightmares, Grandma', and we needed to talk a bit before we went sleeping again."

"Well, now you've talked, so NOW you girls go sleeping. High Ones, I hope you two won't get worse than Nightfall and Crescent." she said and waited till they were lying under the carpet again before she left the room.

"We better get back to sleep again. Good night, Dewshine."

"Night' Tyleet."

But Dewshine had trouble to sleep at first. She caught herself thinking of Scouter. Would he be alright when they returned? And would he still be mad at her?

He hadn't been exited at all for her mentioning flying. What the heck was so wrong about him? He didn't have to get that mad.

On the other hand she understood better now why he was so fixed up in Mr. Strongbow being gone. It had probably reminded him in his own father's disappearing five years ago. They were a little different at that point she and Scouter; he wanted to include himself in the problem while she wanted to get as far away from it because it scared her. She didn't like problems she didn't always know how to get out of them.

I better apologize when he return, she thought before cuddling under the carpet finely feeling sleep arrive.