Dreaming of Demons (Dream x oc)

[46] Thank You

I groaned. My whole body felt sluggish and the sparse grass poked my arms as I rolled onto my side. The smoke was quickly clearing, but I still had to squint to see through it. The ringing in my ears had quieted, and I realized just how quiet it actually was. There were no Withers, no more explosions. Only shapes moved behind the smoke, and I managed to make out the shape of a person moving not far from me.

Their back was turned, a sword in hand and their red and white shirt looking more red than white.

Red and white shirt...and was that blonde hair? I blinked to clear my blurry vision. It was Tommy.

He was moving away from me, his body tense, his weapon held steady in his hand. It looked like he was creeping up on something—something I couldn't see.

I pushed myself up onto my elbows, squinting again. Dream was on the ground, unconscious, and Tommy was heading right for him.

"Wait." I croaked. I struggled to get up, my limbs weak. Tommy didn't hear me.

"Wait, stop." My voice was stronger this time, and my feet managed to gain purchase on the dirt, pushing me up and towards him. "Tommy!" I shouted, now running. "Tommy, stop!"

I stumbled to stop myself when I got to him, grabbing his arm and pulling back his weapon.

"What are you doing?" He shouted incredulously, ripping his arm out of my grip. "I'm trying to kill Dream!"

"Just stop, stop." I blocked him with my arms to keep him from advancing any further.

"This is my chance, Taryn!"

"Just hang on! Give him a second!"

"Are you crazy? No!" He pushed me aside, marching closer to Dream.

"Tommy please! I need to see if it worked!"

He stopped. Then his head whipped around and he gave me a highly suspicious look. "If what worked?"

My arms dropped, and I found the time to catch my breath before my words started spilling out. "He was possessed, Tommy, and—and, I know it sounds crazy and you probably won't believe it, but I was trying to fix it—to help him."

His eyes narrowed. "Oh, so you're like one of those girls."

I huffed in exasperation. "Tommy..."

Someone coughed behind me and I turned to see Dream was awake now. He was still on the ground, though, trying to push himself up and only making himself cough more. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tommy move, and I stepped forward to put a hand in front of him.

I gave him a look, keeping my voice down. "Please...just let me see if it worked." I searched his eyes, looking for understanding. "And if it doesn't work—" my gaze flicked down to his sword and I took a breath. "I'll let you handle him."

His mouth twitched, his eyes moving between me and Dream. "Fine." he grumbled.

"Thank you," I whispered, finally turning to Dream.

He was leaning on one elbow, and he finally looked up, his green eyes strikingly bright. It was a noticeable difference compared to the dark and empty ones I had become so accustomed to. His mask had fallen off again, laying just a foot or two away from him.

His gaze hovered on mine before he glanced around at the countless craters in the dirt and the people watching silently. Intense confusion settled on his face. He looked back at me again.

"What's going on?"

I stepped closer. This felt awfully similar to the time Dream and I had fallen off the cliff, when he had gained control of himself again. Was this the same? Would it happen all over again and he would be possessed by the demon in a matter of minutes?