𝐆𝐔𝐘𝐒 𝐌𝐘 𝐀𝐆𝐄, eric northman

𝟎𝟎𝟒. the nightmares

She checked the time. It was only two in the morning and the moon was low, signaling sunrise would be soon. Rory couldn't still and contemplate over her nightmare, that sent shivers down her spine, anymore. She got up to take a quick shower and change into clothes suitable for the warm weather that would quickly hit Bon Temps.

Rory needed to keep herself busy, it was the only way for the nightmare to be pushed to the back of her mind, the only way to feel sane. Rory decided to work on the front yard and garden this day, sense it was her day off of work.

She started with picking weeds from the garden, watering the flowers and plants to ensure they grew healthy and patted the soil, then she decided to pick up all the sticks off the yard so she could run the lawnmower on it. By this time, it was already 9 in the morning and she made a lot of progress.

Pushing the heavy machine made the muscles in her arms and legs burn, but is was just the right distraction she needed. It made the unsettling feeling of ominous despair and dread in her stomach vanish, or at least be pushed aside. She didn't even pay attention to the sweat dripping down the side of her face and kept pushing the machine.

"Rory!" Rory blinked, bringing her hand up to shield the sun from her eyes so she could see Gran walk out onto the front porch, calling her name. "You're gonna faint out here in this heat, honey. It's barely 9:00 and already 80 degrees." Rory shut off the lawnmower and met Gran halfway, who extended a glass of cold liquid towards her. "Here. I made you some lemonade. Fresh-squeezed."

"Thanks, Gran." Rory didn't even realize how parched she was until she grabbed the glass and almost downed it in one go, taking a breather so she didn't choke.

Gran looked around the yard that had been cleaned and the amount of garden tools laying around. "Goodness, what has got into you?"

Rory shrugged, swallowing a gulp of lemonade. "I just need to stay busy right now, that's all. Keep my mind busy."

"What? How long have you been —"

"I started, uh, when the sun came up." Rory replied before she could finish. "But I was up much earlier than that. I just stayed inside." Rory was about to take another sip but she noticed Gran's worried gaze on her.

"Are you having those dreams again?" Gran asked, eye brows pinched together. "Rory, is it the nightmares keeping you up?"

Rory let out a breath. "Yes, but, I'm fine, Gran, it's nothing out of the ordinary."

"Was it the same? Or was this one different?"

"The usual, I get the feeling of the stink of fear, like something bad is going to happen." Rory paused as she recalled the nightmare she spent all morning trying to forget. "But, this time I heard choking sounds as if someone was choking on something. And then, i felt like I couldn't breathe either, like the air was being ripped from my lungs, it's never been that bad before."

"Oh, dear." Gran breathed out in extreme concern for her granddaughter. It wasn't a good sign that the nightmares began to take it's toll on her physically like that, as if they were going to kill her. "Why don't you come on inside and let me make you something to eat? If you're gonna be out here, working like a horse, you ought to at least to have something in your stomach."

Rory shook her head as she handed Gran that now empty glass. "Oh, no, thanks. I'm not hungry."

Gran gave her a stern look, tone low. "I didn't ask if you were hungry." Rory frowned, before following her back into the house, knowing better than to defy Gran and the consequences.