Darkness.
A pitch black abyss seemed to suck her in like a whirlpool, and despite all her attempts to swim out—it was useless.
An aching fear gripped at her heart and she found it hard to breath. Panic consuming her.
'Georgie!' She tried to scream, 'Annabel! John!'
She grew desperate.
The more she seemed to fall the more her vision began to blur.
She tried to look down at herself only to see her own hands fading before her.
Tears pooled in her eyes and she began to hopelessly twist and turn and throw herself around in an attempt to slow her fall.
".../N).."
'Georgie!' She tried again, 'Annabel! John!' Her voice began to fade, failing to reach her own ears.
So she tried to scream.
'Help!' She tossed and turned once more, her own voice seeming to grow further and further away.
"...(Y/..N)..!"
'Arthur! A-Anyone!' It hurt. Everything ached.
Her ears began to ring.
'Arthur..!'
"...(Y/N)!"
She awoke with a gasp.
Her chest heaved up and down in desperate breaths, the ringing in her ears slowly dying down. She jumped and let out a short scream as a hand grasps her shoulder.
"(Y/N)! Love..!" Arthur flinches before moving to comfort her once more, settling into her line of sight by her bedside, "it's me, Arthur! It's alright!" The tears in the girl's eyes cleared as she blinks them away, gaze focusing on the face the the blond male in front of her. She sits up.
"A-Arthur!"
"Yes, love," The Brit stands from his crouched position and sits on the bed, "it's me—you're alright," he gently grasps her shaking hands to comfort her, concern plastered on his features.
"W-Where's Georgie? A-And Annabel? And John!?"
"—Just breathe, (Y/N)," He takes in a deep breath, inviting her to follow. She does so, copying him as he takes in a few deeps, long breaths, soon finding herself calm, "there you go..." his voice is low and soft, as to not startle her, "your brothers and sister are in their room being tended to by Ms. Poppins. It seems everyone's a bit unsettled tonight."
"Oh, Arthur," (Y/N) starts, forcing back the tears that began to surface, "I had an awful dream! It started out wonderful with everyone but then they began to take our things, and then they took Georgie! I went after to go after him, but then John and Annabel got into the mess and then we had to jump from the carriage and—"
"Goodness, love," Arthur furrows his brows and raises a hand to cup her cheek, gently tracing his thump beneath her eye where a tear threatened to fall, "you're absolutely shaken. It was just a dream..."
"Yes, but-but it felt so real..." She chokes back a sob and lowers her head, letting out a long, ragged breath, "...everything has gotten so much harder without mother," She closes her eyes in reminiscent pain as she hugs herself, "and I miss her terribly..."
Watching her attentively, Arthur's eyes soften and his shoulder sag more comfortably.
"I believe she had a great impact on you, didn't she?" He hums as the girl nod slowly, sniffling quietly. He sighs softly, "you're under so much stress. Take it easy on yourself, love. You're not alone, not ever." He gently raises her head by her chin, giving a gentle smile to reassure her as he spots her slightly puffy eyes—his heart ached at the sight of them.
"Do you ever lie— awake at night?" He starts, voice smooth and delicate, just for the girl to hear.
"just between the dark,
and the morning light?
Searching for the things,
you used to know~
Looking for the place,
where the lost things go~"
His smile brightens when the girl's head lifts by itself, her attention drawn to him and away from the sorrow she previously held. As he sings, he moves quietly and gracefully as to not disturb the silence of the night. Her eyes follow him as he reaches to her bedside table, grasping onto the hand sewn teddy bear that rest upon it, a gift from her mother, "Do you ever dream, or reminisce?" She giggles lightly as he makes the bear wave at her, the male grinning at her reaction, "wondering where to find, what you truly miss?" He hands the teddy bear to her, watching as she takes it from him and traces its features with fondness, a glimmer of pain in her eyes at the memories it brings.
"Well maybe all those things," His voice brings her attention back to him, and she looks up at him with innocent eyes.
"That you love so~
Are waiting in the place,
where the lost things go...~"
She watches as he stands and heads towards the window across from her bed—the window where she usually sat to read—and brushes aside the curtains to reveal the starry night sky, simultaneously propping open the pane ever so slightly to let the fresh air in.
"Memories you've shared~
Gone for good you feared.
They're all around you still,"
"Though they've disappeared~" He lets a smile trace his lips as he looks back at her, his emerald gaze leaving her breathless. (Y/N) finds herself lost in his words, both listening intently and dazed as she grows sleepy. Arthur's lips twitch upwards at the notion of her eyes fluttering. He chuckles under his breath.
"Nothing's really left,
or lost without a trace~
Nothing's gone forever,
Only out of place~"
He makes his way back to her bedside, leaning on the mattress space beside her as he looks at her adoringly. (Y/N)'s heart thumps in her chest and a blush rises to her cheeks, whilst the Brit sings once more, "So maybe now the dish, and my best spoon~" Feeling flushed, she holds her teddy bear close and hugs it, hiding her face and peering out bashfully causing Arthur to chuckle.
He grins at her and gestures to the bed, motioning for her to lay down. She does so, and he fixes her pillow for her and draws the covers back over her body, his next words a slightly playful, poking at her for having hidden her blushing face from him, "Are playing hide and seek, just behind the moon~" His heart flutters as the girl shrinks back into her covers shyly.
"Waiting there until,
it's time to show~
Spring is like that now,
Far beneath the snow~!
Hiding in the place
Where the lost things go~"
Sitting down beside her laying figure, he brushes the stray strands of hair from her face and onto the pillow so she can sleep comfortably. He gives her one last check over before reaching over to turn off the lamp on the bedside table, soon after getting up and starting towards his own room—until a hand urgently gripping his own stops him in his tracks, "Hm?" He glances back over his shoulder, "is something the matter?"
(Y/N) takes in a shaky breath, grip loosening sheepishly, "I... um... can..-can you stay with me?" Arthur's heart jumps into his throat and his face grows warm, "I-I just," the girl stumbles over her words, "I.. don't want to be alone..."
Without any hesitance after her plea, Arthur simply nods and smiles gently, "Alright then, move over a bit, love." The female complies, allowing room for the Brit to slip into bed beside her. Pulling the blankets over himself and the girl again, he attempts to even his breathing in fear of disturbing her. They lay facing each other, noses almost touching. (Y/N) clutches her teddy bear with one hand, the other resting by the man's chest whilst one of Arthur's arms serves as a pillow for the both of them, his other sitting atop the covers across her waist. Despite the embarrassment of both parties, neither complain about the closeness of the other.
He continues to sing, voice velvety and almost at a whisper.
"Time to close your eyes,
so sleep can come around~
For when you dream you'll find,
All that's lost is found~
Maybe on the moon,
or maybe somewhere new~!
Maybe all you're missing lives,
inside of you~"
(Y/N)'s gradually dozing eyes drift over Arthur's shoulder, spotting the window he had opened and begins gazing at the stars. She ponders over his words as she does so, unaware of her growing sleepiness. Arthur smiles at her distracted form, admiring her as much as he can in the little light provided from the window. He uses his free hand to stroke her hair, watching as her sleepiness increases, eyes soon fluttering shut—she deserved a good nights rest.
"So...
when you need her touch,
And loving gaze~
Gone but not forgotten,
Is the perfect phrase~
Smiling from a star,
That she makes glow~
Trust she's always there,
Watching as you grow~"
A relieved sigh escapes him once (Y/N) falls asleep. She works so hard—the Royal Doulton music hall was the first time in a long time he had seen her have so much fun, it was a shame it was ruined... oh, how he despised the ones that scared her to the point of tears, and it angered him to know that some character similar existed in her conscious life, otherwise the nightmares events never would have occurred. 'I promise,' he thinks to himself, 'I promise to help make everything easier. Even if only a little bit...' And with that, he places a delicate kiss on her forehead before settling beside her comfortably, and slipping his eyes shut, eventually falling asleep.
"Find her in the place
Where the lost things go~"
—————————A/N—————————
I hope you enjoyed!
I hope you liked this cute chapter with Arthur ☺️
At the top was a male version of the song from Mary Poppins Returns, 'The Place Where Lost Things Go' and here is the original.
(Not edited)
1667 words