07-02-2024, 10:58 PM
Mara's eyes slowly lifted from the worn book in her hands. It was a paperback copy, the only version allowed in the ward. The cover was strewn with violent artwork and the author identified as “Mara Sóng” in English.
The air felt colder as she focused on Nox, an unfamiliar face yet eerily reminiscent of a dream.
The silence settled like the many pets sleeping beneath her chair, the somber quiet of the ward amplified by the soft rustling of the shadows that surrounded her like a living cloak. Her gaze was unsettling, a blend of curiosity and recognition that hinted at a knowledge awareness deeper than her youthful and naive appearance suggested.
"Nightmares,” she whispered, her voice like the soft rustle of dead leaves amid her heavy accent, "they do more than like me. They are my companions, my pets.” Her eyes flickered to the nearest one, and it seemed to respond, its form shifting subtly as if acknowledging her words before settling back into its slumber.
Mara tilted her head slightly, studying Nox with an intensity that bordered on unnerving. "You seem familiar," she murmured, her eyes narrowing as if trying to pull a fragment of memory from the depths of her mind. "Have you wandered through my dreams, or perhaps... have my dreams wandered through you?”
The air felt colder as she focused on Nox, an unfamiliar face yet eerily reminiscent of a dream.
The silence settled like the many pets sleeping beneath her chair, the somber quiet of the ward amplified by the soft rustling of the shadows that surrounded her like a living cloak. Her gaze was unsettling, a blend of curiosity and recognition that hinted at a knowledge awareness deeper than her youthful and naive appearance suggested.
"Nightmares,” she whispered, her voice like the soft rustle of dead leaves amid her heavy accent, "they do more than like me. They are my companions, my pets.” Her eyes flickered to the nearest one, and it seemed to respond, its form shifting subtly as if acknowledging her words before settling back into its slumber.
Mara tilted her head slightly, studying Nox with an intensity that bordered on unnerving. "You seem familiar," she murmured, her eyes narrowing as if trying to pull a fragment of memory from the depths of her mind. "Have you wandered through my dreams, or perhaps... have my dreams wandered through you?”
"Come, mistress"