Rin woke with a start and a small yelp, sweating and panting as the nightmare faded from his mind. It was the same thing nearly every night… dreams about his past life, of running through a field of golden hay as he desperately searched for someone important. Despite his desperate struggles through the hay, which was taller than him and therefore impossible to see through, he never found that all-important person, no matter how hard he ran, or how long he looked… Upon waking, his heart would be pounding and his body dripping with sweat, as if he truly had been running for hours upon hours.

He glanced at the clock curiously. What time was it? One in the morning… He grimaced and ran a hand through his bangs as he irritably got out of bed, threw off his pajamas in favor of cleaner, less sweaty ones, and briefly visited the bathroom to clean his face up. It was all he could do till morning, when his mother would demand he take a bath. He always protested, for the sake of seeming more his age, but in reality he didn’t mind those baths anymore – they helped to wash away the last traces of the dreams that plagued his nights.

As he ran the cool water from the faucet over his face, he happened to glance up in the mirror. For just a second, he saw Shion’s darkly handsome face overlaid on his own. Rin blinked…and his reflection was back to normal. Same grayish-blue, straight hair; same childish face; same bluish-gray eyes… He looked like a normal eight year old.

Another face appeared in his mind’s eye. Alice… She was always there, in the back of his thoughts. But she…she only thought of him as a child, to be babysat and coddled. …Although he didn’t mind the coddling. It was nice to get such attention from Alice. He just wished that there was more to it.

He concentrated for a moment, seeing in his memories Alice’s bedroom. The bathroom suddenly became lighter, as if he were floating, and when he reopened his eyes, he was in the place he had been thinking of – Alice’s very own bedroom.

The girl in question was fast asleep, unaware of the person who’d appeared without warning. Her long, silky black hair trailed off the bed and shone in the moonlight. Her strangely beautiful face was completely peaceful, as innocent and untroubled as a child’s. Rin smiled wistfully at her.

As he stood there watching her, an urge overcame him, and for once, he didn’t fight it. Silently, he crept up to her side, leaned over her, and kissed her delicately on the mouth. Then, ever so softly, he climbed onto the bed and curled up next to her. Perhaps – for just a few hours – he could stay here, cradled next to Alice. And perhaps, just for those few hours…the nightmares would go away.

Within moments, Rin was asleep at her side, so he didn’t see Alice’s eyelashes flutter briefly open, or the smile which appeared on her lips. I’m not sure how he got inside… but at the moment I don’t care. He’s here; that’s all that matters. Goodnight, Rin. Ever so carefully, she slid the sheets he was lying on top of from underneath him and laid them down over his small body…