From the Cosmos. [gxg]

xxxv. wake up.

When Marisol went to sleep the third time, she woke up in a storm. Angry grey clouds stretched endlessly towards the horizon, pooling around her feet and shifting above her. Heavy droplets battered down on her, stinging her with frigid water. Lighting struck down over and over, followed by a torrent of booming thunder.

Marisol looked down. She wore a dirty white sundress, holes ripped throughout. It stuck to her body, soaked from the rain. It was a terrible place, but a familiar one.

She was in the Cosmos. The once peaceful universe of rolling pink clouds had turned apocalyptic. Marisol remembered the text that she had read just hours before: The Cosmos look different for everyone, based on the relationship between the people there and the mood of the magic user.

The thought that Colette's current mood was enough to change cotton candy clouds into a hurricane made her shudder. Marisol looked around, her vision blurred by constant rain. She couldn't see any sign of Colette, but if she was in the Cosmos, then Colette had to be there somewhere.

"Colette!" she yelled, screaming against the thunder. Her voice seemed so quiet despite the breathlessness from yelling at the top of her lungs. "Colette!" She could barely hear her own voice against the pouring rain. She tried to swipe water away from her eyes but it was no use - the downpour was overwhelming.

A lightning struck less than 10 feet from Marisol and she flinched. Thunder exploded in her ears and she covered them, feeling them begin to ring. When her eyes recovered from the flash, she saw a figure standing where the lightning had struck. Despite the darkness and the pouring rain, Marisol could tell it was Colette.

Marisol stumbled over her own feet as she ran forward and jumped on Colette, bringing them both to the ground. She hovered over Colette who looked at her with a confused expression.

Colette looked tired. The familiar optimistic spark was missing from her eyes, where bags now hung down, grey and dark. She seemed a lot more frail, even if it had only been a couple days since they were together in South Dakota. Her skin seemed as if the color had been drained from it.

"Colette," Marisol said, her hands buried in the wet storm clouds next to Colette's head, "I've found you."

Colette looked back up, her confused expression morphing into a sad one. A sob ripped from her throat as she stared up at Marisol. "I'm going to miss you so much," she said, her voice a whisper in the storm, "You're so beautiful, even in my dreams, even in this storm."

Marisol stared down, her heart wrenching at the sight of the strongest person she knew being so desperate under her. Colette didn't know this was real. Colette didn't know about the Cosmos.

"Don't cry," Marisol said, cupping Colette's cheek, "This is real, I'm here. I'm going to see you again in New York."

Colette shook her head, damp curls dragging with the movement. "I want to wake up. This is torture. He might be tricking me-"

Marisol held Colette's head still so that they made eye contact. Marisol poured as much sincerity into her eyes as she could. "Colette, I would never lie to you. This is real." Marisol leaned down, connecting their damp bodies completely and pressed a quick kiss to Colette's lips. "This is real," she repeated.

Colette's expression shifted from sadness to slight doubt. She was still tense under Marisol but she nodded, willing to listen. Marisol gave her a sad smile and rolled off of Colette, sitting next to her. Colette sat up as well. The rain continued to pour.

"I saw you get taken by Cesar through our Facetime call," Marisol said, grasping Colette's hands. The memory of Colette passing out on camera surfaced in her brain. She forced it down. "A lot has happened, but just know that I found out how to get here with you. We're in the Cosmos."

Colette still looked at her with doubt, but continued to listen.

"It happens when a witch and someone else have a strong relationship. When they are both asleep, they meet in a pocket dimension, called the Cosmos. That's where we are right now."

Colette squeezed Marisol's hands. "We were here before," she said, "A night or so ago. It was so much prettier then. There was no rain."

Marisol nodded. "I read that the environment changes based on the mood of the witch or the relationship between the people." Marisol glanced around. The stormy atmosphere was desperation, anger, and sadness all at once. She sighed. "We're going to find you, but we need your help."

"We?" Colette asked.

"Mr. Schultz, me, Thalia, and the government. I'll have to explain later."

"Oh."

"I don't have much time. Mr. Schultz has been told to wake me up every hour. I don't know how long it's been. I need to tell you the plan, alright?" Marisol didn't wait for a response before she continued speaking. "We have tons of government workers around the United States looking at the sky. Some are in helicopters. You need to create a flare using magic, making it as bright as you can so that we can see. As soon as someone sees it, people will be on their way to rescue you."

"I can't," Colette said.

Marisol furrowed her eyebrows. "Did he do something to you? Are you not able to use your magic?"

"That's not it," Colette said, "If I disobey Cesar, he'll brainwash me into obeying him. I'm not strong enough to fight him off, and there's no way he won't see the flare."

Marisol put her hands on Colette's shoulders. "This is our only plan," Marisol said, "I don't know how much longer I'll be here with you, but I might not be able to contact you again. You're the strongest person I know, Colette."

Colette looked down, her eyes furrowed in concentration. Marisol could practically see the gears turning in her head. After a few seconds, Colette looked up. "He's planning on brainwashing me tomorrow if I don't agree by then, so I don't have much to lose."

There was a lot to lose, and both of them seemed to know that.

"This is it," Marisol said, "We're going to find you, I promise." Marisol's voice wavered as she spoke. Her hands shook on Colette's shoulders. Colette shook under her touch. They sat there for a moment, silent. When Colette's eyes found Marisol's again, there was determination and fear pooled in her irises.

Colette grabbed onto the front of Marisol's tattered sundress and yanked her forward, pressing their lips together. Lightning flashed around them as they kissed. It was tender and desperate, like a 'goodbye' and a 'see you later' wrapped up into one. Water poured down their faces. When they separated, Marisol cupped Colette's face in her hands. Marisol was crying. She hoped the rain hid it.

"I love you," Marisol said, tears pooling in her eyes, "I love you so much."

Colette stared back at her with wide eyes, not responding. That was okay, though. Marisol didn't need it to be reciprocated. She could deal with the sudden confession once they were back together. She could deal with it when she could say it in the physical world, with Colette right by her side.

"Wake up, Colette," Marisol said, smiling at her dumbfounded girlfriend, smoothing her thumbs over her wet face. "Wake up."