Nightmare

(By "My leg is cramping! OW OW!" Zarla)
(Note: I am not responsible fer any mental damage caused by readin this fic.)

He wasn't sure whether or not he was dreaming. He was sure that others knew when they were dreaming, but he was one of the few (or so he imagined) that did not. As it was, he was standing in the midst of what seemed to be a great ballroom of some kind. Simply the fact that he was standing in a large ballroom should have told him he was dreaming, but at the time it seemed perfectly normal, as did the fact that there was someone walking towards him.
He wasn't surprised at who it was. It was his angel, as usual. His guardian angel. He often appeared in his dreams (if this was a dream) and he never knew for sure whether this was from his own thoughts or a mental link of some kind. At any rate, he walked towards him, his feet never touching the ground, as usual. In this room, however, there was a reason for that. There were wings coming from his back, beautiful feathered white wings. And a halo. This also came as no surprise, because this was how he usually appeared, although it was unclear whether this came from his own desire or his angel's. The wings beat slowly, giving the impression of floating effortlessly compared to that of wings beating at flying speed. The halo, was of course set at a jaunty angle above his head where it stayed firmly. It matched his angel's personality perfectly, as did the arrogant smile he was wearing.
So here he was in this ballroom. He still wasn't sure whether or not he was dreaming. It seemed real and feasible to him, but he knew that could be the effect of a dream. When you dream, he knew, everything is possible and you believe everything that happens. It is simply an unavoidable side-effect of your minds own acceptance of it's own situations which gives everything the plausibility of reality.
Shrugging, he decided that there was nothing for it except to simply go with what happened. It was certainly out of his control.
He waited for his angel to approach him. As usual, he towered over him, although they both had the same, thin frame. His angel authoritively took hold of his wrist, pulled him close with his other arm, and began to dance with him.
As stated before, this was nothing unusual, considering the surroundings and the whole atmosphere. The fact that neither of them could dance was also seen as non-important and apparently non- existant. He could see the moon overhead and noticed there was no roof to the strange ballroom. This was also seen as perfectly normal. The dance continued for quite a while, even though he could not recall there being any music of any kind. They were just dancing. He felt safe in his embrace. His angel always took control of everything...his angel was always watching over him and protecting him. His angel was strong and knew what he wanted, while he could never stand up for himself. But as long as his angel was here, he didn't have to. His angel would do it for him. This thought brought him some comfort. He trusted his angel, who was smiling at him with that infernally cute smile, the one that was like a small child's, one that seemed to say not to trust him, but was irresistably seductive.
Everything seemed to be right, until all at once something seemed to be wrong.
He could feel it. Instead of the acceptance of his environment there was a feeling of danger and suspicion. Of some kind of intrusion into the private sanctuary of his dreams. Not sure of where this had come from, he looked downwards and saw what appeared to be a long, pointed tail lashing about. He traced it and found it leading into his angel's back. He looked at his angel and found the halo to be gone, replaced with horns. The wings were replaced with cruel bat wings, the ends of the long thin fingers tipped with razor-like claws. Instead of gentle white there was a sick, dark, black color pervading his senses. Panic and fear overtook him.
"Get away...!" He tried to break free and surprisingly he was able to. It seemed almost as if there had been no resistance to his struggles. He fell back, unable to stand because of the sheer unfeasability of what he was seeing. The demon, for that was what it now was, stalked towards him, glaring malevolently.
"Oh, is the little one upset?" It's voice was like broken glass cutting flesh, pain and fear and horror all combined into sharp, piercing tones, meticulously spoken without a trace of his angel's comforting accent. "His little fantasy ruined? So sorry..." The demon held forward his inch long claws on the end of each thin, bony finger. He tried to back away, but found his muscles refusing to respond. He stared at the claws in horror. The demon seemed to smile, revealing long fangs. "But it's time this fantasy was over."
"Who are you..." he managed to whisper.
"I'm not your 'angel', that's for sure." The demon spat at the mention of the word 'angel'. "I'm here to make sure your 'angel' never comes back."
"What are you going to do?" He spoke with fear, as anger was unknown to him.
"I'll just take care of him. Don't worry, you won't ever see him again. Even in dreams...because I'll be here."
"Don't you dare touch him!" He managed to stand unsteadily, forcing himself to anger. He hated to get angry, it was against his nature, but now he felt as if he had to do something instead of wait for his death. He had to be strong.
"You can't stop me." The demon lashed out and grabbed the front of his shirt, dragging him forward. He held him above his head, where he struggled futily. He wanted to give up, but he knew somewhere within him that he had to stand up for his angel, wherever he was.
"Don't you hurt him..." He gasped, trying to control his voice with the intense fear that was running through him. The Demon smiled horribly again, it's fangs glimmering.
"Little one all upset because I'm going to stop your fantasies...well, don't worry. Because the only place your 'angel' exists is in your dreams now, and that won't be for long." The demon drew back it's free hand, extending the claws. "And soon, you won't exist at all."
The hand flew towards his face, the claws gleaming in the moonlight.

~~~

Dr. Dowasure surged upwards from the desk he was sleeping on, so fast that his chair toppled and he fell on one side.
He was unsure what had happened or what was reality for a few moments. He gasped for breath, lying on the floor, his eyes wide. Slowly he reached a hand towards his face, making sure there were no clawmarks, no signs of any kind of injury. Sighing shakily, he slowly sat up. Reaching about blindly on the desk, he grabbed his glasses and put them on, bringing the world back into focus. He shakily pulled himself back onto his recently righted chair.
"Just a dream...a bad dream, that's all..." he breathed, his voice apparently gone. He stared down at the papers on the desk. No doubt he had been working when he had fallen asleep and had that nightmare...
Well, it was only a nightmare. Nightmare's can't come true...can they? If they can, what did that mean...was his angel...
He stood up, dizzy for a few seconds from the sudden change in altitude. He put a hand on his desk to steady himself momentarily. He had to see him now. He couldn't wait and see whether the horrible vision had been true or not...
And to tell the truth, he was frightened. And he wanted some comfort. So he left the office and began walking down the halls. In his dizzy and frightened state he wasn't exactly sure where he was going. He hoped that some kind of inner sense was directing him correctly. Maybe his angel was helping him find his way...he hoped so. He hoped that his angel could feel his distress...
He ran into Prof. Denka who was walking down the hall. Prof. Denka glared at him irritably.
"Why don't you watch where you're going?" Prof. Denka sharp reprimanding voice cut whatever confidence that had built after he had woken. Dr. Dowasure tried to summon enough courage to speak.
"I'm sorry, I was thinking of something..."
"Come on...Dr. Kagakusha and I have been looking for you. We need your help for some tests we're running."
"Tests? I thought we were done with the tests."
"Don't worry. You just have to analyze the results and tell us whether or not they are feasible."
Sighing, Dr. Dowasure let Prof. Denka lead him down the halls. He hoped that from wherever he was going he would have a vantage point to find where his angel was being held.
Prof. Denka's grip on his wrist was harsh and rough. He knew this well...Prof. Denka always dealt with him in this way. It was usually the matter of his misuse of the sleeve of his labcoat which warranted such unwanted contact, but being led somewhere was not unknown. He could feel Prof. Denka tugging sharply on his wrist, which hurt. As it was, his dream had disturbed him greatly and this was not easing his thoughts. But he couldn't stand up to Prof. Denka...he just didn't have the courage. Especially now.
Prof. Denka was talking about something, but he wasn't really listening. He could hear some sentences, however, but these seemed to run into one another.
"What are you doing, honestly. I don't understand why I put up with you sometimes, with your disappearing acts and your inconsideration for where other people are walking, we've been looking for you for more then an hour, just plain inconsiderate-"
Dr. Dowasure tuned out for most of it, nodding submissively whenever Prof. Denka would ask him whether or not he was paying attention or would look back at him. He wondered whether or not he would get some time alone with his angel before or after he had to check the data.
He watched as Prof. Denka entered a complex sequence of numbers into a pad and the door slid open. He knew that after he left or entered this room, there was no way he would ever be able to get in or out without someone else's help. He could never remember the numbers required to open the door. That was why there were a majority of touchpads around the facility, although there were some rooms that had the number pad. It was well known that there was no way he could ever get into those rooms, so he often wondered briefly why they number pads were still in existence. He didn't suspect anything, however. What would they have to hide from him?
There was a computer nearby that was pumping out a series of numbers. Prof. Denka led him to a table and told him to sit down. Dr. Dowasure did so distractedly, his thoughts wandering wildly.
"Just stay here and examine the numbers, you can handle that, can't you?" Prof. Denka's tone clearly gave the impression that he did not think that he could.
"What are you doing?" Dr. Dowasure managed to form a sentence.
"Just conducting some tests. Nothing you need to worry yourself over. I wouldn't trust you with it, anyway. Just stay here."
Dr. Dowasure watched as he left and picked up a pencil from the table. He looked at the first sheet of paper, a seemingly meaningless series of numbers. He knew that it should mean something to him, but his dream had disturbed and distracted him so badly he couldn't concentrate. He slowly lowered his head until it was leaning against one arm and stared at the printout. He knew it should mean something, but at the moment it meant nothing to him. He found it mildly frustrating, but he just didn't seem to care enough to try and fix the problem. He found his hand idly doodling in the margins of the printout, small meaningless shapes, some sharp and jagged, some soft and round. One had horns, the other wings, and other things that were just random scratchings of his pencil.
He had been doing this for quite some time when the thought that Prof. Denka would come back struck him. He sat upright and again tried to focus, but found that he couldn't. He decided he might as well say the numbers were feasible if he came in and asked. He simply couldn't concentrate, but he wasn't about to tell Prof. Denka that.
However, Prof. Denka wasn't the one to enter the room at all. It was Dr. Kagakusha. He moaned inwardly. The woman was temperamental, violent, short-tempered, and moody.
And had no tolerance for him whatsoever.
"What have you found out?" Her voice had a remnant of Prof. Denka's reprimanding tone, although this sounded more angry and annoyed then scolding.
Dr. Dowasure was suddenly painfully reminded of his doodles and swiftly placed an arm over them. "They seem to check out, I think." Dr. Kagakusha regarded him curiously. "Really."
"Yes, they seem fine to me." Dr. Dowasure laughed nervously. She walked over and pulled out the printouts from under his arm. He tried futily to grab them back.
"What's this? Stupid shapes? Meaningless doodles? You always do this!" Her statement was rather of an exaggeration...Dr. Dowasure was not a known doodler. He would usually stare blankly into space if he was not concentrating, but for some reason, he could not stop his pencil.
She was rolling up the paper in her hand. Dr. Dowasure, sensing that the paper was now out of his control, put his hands over his head. He was right in doing this as a second later Dr. Kagakusha had whapped him over the head with the rolled up paper rather harshly. "Can't you take anything seriously?!"
"I'm sorry, I was thinking of something else-" He cringed away from the woman, wondering whether or not she would hit him again.
"You can't AFFORD to think of something else in this field! Don't you realize how important this is!?" she jabbed him in the chest with the paper, making him step back. "You never think about this whole project! You're always off in some weird fantasy land, mumbling about who-knows-what..."
Dr. Dowasure desperatly wanted to be somewhere else, and before he could process the thought properly, it escaped his mouth. "Can't I go now? I have something to do, I'm sure I do, I probably wrote it down..."
She stared at him and spoke slowly, prodding him with the rolled up paper as if emphasizing every word. "I'm going to tell Prof. Denka about this."
She watched as Dr. Dowasure was filled with fear. He didn't want another lecture from Prof. Denka...especially if he was truly angry and not annoyed. He always ended up in tears after it and it made him feel terrible. She watched him silently for a few moments, then sighed in contempt and turned away from him, throwing the paper on the table with vague frustration. She walked to the pad on the door and pushed the correct sequence of numbers.
"But you can go, I suppose, you worthless-"
He was out the door before she could finish. He was glad to escape the room, leaning against the closed door and breathing a shaky sigh. He was under a lot of stress while she had yelled at him...but that would be nothing compared to when Prof. Denka found out what he had been doing. He slowly pushed himself away from the door.
He walked down the hall, wondering what he should do. He was certain that he had wanted something, but he had forgotten it by now, with all the stress and fear. He couldn't remember...
The horrifiying vision of the demon in his dream came back to him all too clearly. He shivered. That was it. He wanted to talk to his angel...have him comfort him. He was feeling even more depressed now then ever and he desperatly needed someone to talk to and someone to hold him. He was feeling vulnerable.
Fortunatly, his angel was not too far from the room. In fact, it appeared that his angel's room was only a few doors down. He pressed his hand against the touch-pad and the door slid open. He slid inside, glad to find some respite from his hectic life outside.
"Hey, Doc. Need somethin'?" He heard the voice of his angel behind him and instantly he felt safer. He turned to find his angel sitting on the bunk, leaning back in a relaxed way, regarding him with a smile. He breathed a sigh of relief.
"Just a place to stay for now...I-"
"Th' other's pickin' on you again? You got to stand up for yerself sometime, Doc." he didn't move, only staring at him with those eyes of his. He walked over and sat down on the bunk near his angel.
"That's part of it, but not all...I had a horrible dream..."
"A dream?"
"Yes...it was terrible. I dreamed you were there and you were dancing with me...and then this horrible demon thing took your place...it said that I would never see you again and that we would both die..."
"That IS pretty freaky. Hmm...I had a dream kinda like that."
"You did?"
"Sure. Not as bad as yers tho', I think. You were walkin' towards me, an' all of a sudden you got like th' Lady an' th' Prof. All cold an' mean. You said you were done with me an' that you were goin' to kill me or throw me in th' garbage or somethin' 'cause you learned all you could from me. Also kept callin me my letter."
"I'm sorry-"
"Not yer fault, Doc." he didn't appear disturbed by the dream at all. "Wasn't real. Wasn't you. I know that. I knew it was a dream from th' beginnin'."
"I didn't...mine seemed real...very real...right to the end, with the terrible claws..."
"C'mere."
He oblidged willingly, letting his angel hold him protectively. He sighed deeply, listening to his angel's heart beat, letting it calm him.
"Look, nothin'll hurt you as long as 'm around an' 'm still alive. Dreams don't mean nothin', Doc. You shouldn't get all worked up about it." His angel's voice came comfortingly to him as he smoothed down his hair. He felt fear and sadness rising within him.
His voice was shaky. "I was worried that you wouldn't be here when I came..."
"I ain't leavin' for a while, Doc." his angel smiled. "They still got lots to learn from me, or so th' Lady says."
Dr. Dowasure noticed what seemed like a long cut down his angel's arm. He looked up at him, concerned.
"What happened?"
"That?" His angel laughed humorlessly. "Side effect of some tests on me today, as usual."
"They cut you?"
"More then that, really. Nothin' to worry about. 'M okay now."
Dr. Dowasure thought for a moment. He had been doing something before...he wasn't sure what it was. It had something to do with tests, but he couldn't quite remember what it was. He lamented his horrible memory and sighed.
"Is it okay?" He looked at the cut, which seemed to be healing awkwardly.
"'S fine, Doc. Nothin' serious. Shouldn't worry about it. What've you been doin'?"
"I...I couldn't focus...I was supposed to do something...I can't remember what it was now...but I had to do something...and I couldn't focus...Prof. Denka's going to be mad at me."
"Th' dream, right? Distracting, I bet. Would distract ME...Prof goin' to chew you out again?"
"I guess...I really don't want to talk to him now..."
"You never want to talk to him, from what I know." His angel smiled. "He's always yellin' at you."
"I can never do anything right for him. It makes me sad...I always cry after he yells at me...I don't want him to yell at me, but no matter what I do, I can never..."
His angel tightened his grip around him comfortingly. "Don't worry 'bout it, Doc. Least 'm here for you now. Maybe you can tune him out an' think of me instead, or somethin'."
"That might work..." Dr. Dowasure sighed. He hated being yelled at by Prof. Denka...he always made him feel stupid and worthless. And everything was always his fault. It was as if he were a small child. He spoke his thoughts outloud. "Sometimes I feel like I don't really belong here...like I'm a little kid in a adult's body."
"Same here, Doc. 'M only one an' a half, an' look at me." his angel laughed. "Feel th' same way."
"I wish I could stay here and not have to deal with Prof. Denka...I want to stay here with you forever. You never make fun of me or call me names or say I'm stupid or anything."
"That's 'cause yer not. Th' Lady an' th' Prof don't know what they're talkin' about. They don't know nothin'. Yer everythin' I could ever want. Don't ever change, even if those two jerks yell at you."
Dr. Dowasure felt comfort at the words, for once helping his confidence build. He clutched his angel's shirt. "Don't ever leave me alone...I don't know what I would do if you didn't make me feel like I was worth something...I don't know if I could handle it."
"Don't worry, Doc. 'M goin' to be here for a long time, so th' lady says...an' someday, we can go an' find someplace nice. Away from them."
"That does sound nice...I hope my dream doesn't come true. That horrible thing...it said that...that I wouldn't even DREAM about you, because it would be there..."
"Don't mean anythin', Doc. Just a bad dream, nothin' serious."
"I hope so..." He closed his eyes, brushing his fingers against his angel's collarbone. "I'm tired, but I don't want to sleep...it'll come back..."
"...I got an idea."
"What?"
"I can go in yer head an' watch for it." his angel smiled at him. He lifted a hand gently and removed Dr. Dowasure's glasses, placing them to one side after folding them. The large brown eyes stared at him. As close as he was, he remained in focus, but everything else became blurry. His angel continued speaking, brushing his hair away from his eyes gently. "Won't be hard. If there really is a demon in there, 'm goin' to beat it up an' make it leave you alone."
"You can do that?" he stared at him hopefully.
"Sure. No problem. Just sleep an' let me watch out for you."
Dr. Dowasure yawned, closing his eyes. He gently faded into dreams, aware of the bluish-purple glow that was coming from his angel's eyes in the last few seconds of consciousness.

~~~

Soon he was back in his dreams. This time he was in a blank bare room, with only a table and two chairs. He knew this room. This was where Prof. Denka would sit and yell at him for hours on end. He cringed, wanting to run, to hide, but he felt Prof. Denka's presence looming somewhere around him, making him sit passively in one of the chairs, waiting.
On the other end of the table, the form of the demon that had tormented him before slowly appeared. It smirked at him, making him shudder, leaning back in it's chair. He could see it's tail slowly flicking underneath the table in a lazy, bored way, the barb at the end glinting dangerously.
"Here's a real place of nightmares for you, isn't it?" The demon gestured to it's surroundings, although Dr. Dowasure knew instantly what it was talking about. "A simple, blank room. Source of uncountable amounts of emotional trauma on your part. To think, most people wouldn't give a room like this a second thought, and here it personifies fear and self-hatred to you."
Dr. Dowasure was bothered by the demon's words, but tried to hide it. "Who are you?"
"You don't know me." The demon looked at it's claws, as if examining them. It then returned it's disturbing gaze back to him. The demon's eyes were frightening...like his angel's, only tinted with black and red. They seemed to speak of horrors beyond his knowledge that could be unleashed upon him at any moment. "I'm not surprised, either. I'm here to ruin your dreams. Aren't these your only source of comfort? Your only solace from the outside world? Ruining them would leave you nothing."
"Why would you want to do this? Dr. Dowasure cringed under the demon's gaze as it stared at him, it's eyes half-closed. It flicked it's tail onto the table.
"Look at me. Why do YOU think?"
"I still have-"
"Your 'angel', correct? He won't be around for much longer. Soon you'll be all alone and even your dreams won't give you hope. I wonder how long you'll last, alone, unloved, unwanted..."
"Who, may I ask, are you?" a soft voice spoke from behind the demon, who turned around, startled. It lept on the table, spreading it's bat- like wings and baring it's claws. It hissed angrily.
His angel stood calmly, his white wings beating the air evenly, his halo glinting dangerously. Dr. Dowasure was glad that he had finally come. He wasn't sure whether or not he would after the demon had begun tormenting him. He ran over towards him, not sure of a safer place to go. His angel easily lifted him in his arms, holding him protectively. He closed his eyes, not wanting to look at the demon anymore.
"Stay back!" The demon hissed. "This isn't your place!"
"'M only goin' to ask you one more time. Who are you?"
"You can't stop me." The demon seemed to ignore the question. "You can't be here for him ALL the time. I'll get him when you least expect it. I'll take him away from you. You can't stop me."
"Who are you." This time it was a demand.
"I'm not going to tell YOU." The demon spoke with deep hatred, causing Dr. Dowasure to shudder.
He felt his angel floating forwards and heard the demon hissing warningly.
"Don't get any closer! I'm warning you, you have no power here! I can destroy you with the flick of my hand." He could sense a tone of alarm in it's voice. It wasn't as sure of itself as it sounded.
"I have more power then you think, apparently. You stay away from him or 'll make you. Don't push me."
"Try it. You can't fight me. You won't."
His angel didn't respond to this. Dr. Dowasure looked up for a moment, seeing the demon flick one of it's claws.
His angel dissapeared.
Dr. Dowasure gasped in surprise, landing roughly on the floor. He stared at the demon in horror, who was laughing.
"I told you! Your 'angel' can't hurt me now!" It sounded almost relieved underneath it's laughter.
He saw a bright flash behind the demon then heard it scream in pain. It fell to one side, a bleeding hole burned through one of it's wings. His angel withdrew his hand, pulsing with bluish-purple energy.
"I won't warn you again, whatever an' whoever you are. Get out of my Doc's dreams an' stay out."
"You...can't...make me." The demon spat with incredible hatred towards his angel. Bluish-purple energy flared around his angel, causing his halo to flash brightly. The demon recoiled against the brighter light.
"I can an' I will. Get out."
"Never." The demon hissed and extended it's claws. It's wings flared, even the one with the hole through it, giving it the impression of a greater size then it truly had. It's tail lashed. "You'll pay for harming me."
The demon lept for his angel with blinding speed, but he was ready. The demon hit the wall, shrieking horribly, as the energy had seared it's back. It lept upwards, it's tail lashing wildly back and forth, hissing like an injured cat. His angel smirked confidently.
"Don't leave yer back open. You should know that."
The demon glared balefully at his angel, it's voice dripping hatred. "I'll kill you. I'll rip out your bones and display them as a trophy."
"Go ahead an' try."
It bent back on it's feet, which Dr. Dowasure noticed for the first time were clawed and bent back at the ankle, much like the feet of a animal. More like a panther, considering it's black color and retractable claws. It sprang forward again, a blinding blur of black and grey. It jumped on the table easily and grappled with his angel. It's original intent was to strike him harshly across the face, but his angel met it's hands with his own, twisting it's wrist painfully, causing it to shriek horribly. It's tail began stabbing forward, trying to distract his angel momentarily. It worked and the demon was free. It extended it's claws, leaping for him once again. His angel ducked and then pushed upwards with his energy, sending the demon flying over his head screaming in pain. The demon flipped in the air and skidded roughly across the table with the sound of nails on a chalkboard, then it again rushed forward at an incredible speed, attempting to tackle his angel. His angel ducked to one side, but the demon pivoted on one foot and struck his angel across the face with his claws, leaving five glaring gashes. The two paused at this, as his angel looked at the demon with enough hatred to burn holes. The demon panted, it's claws red. His angel's wings flared brilliantly as blood dripped from his face.
"That's it. Yer goin' down, boyo."
With a roar of rage, he jumped at the demon, knocking them off the table and sending them skidding across the floor. The demon did not expect an attack of such ferocity and was too surprised to fight back for a moment. Dr. Dowasure lept back, frightened from the conflict. He wasn't sure what he could do, except give his angel his support.
"Keep going...you've almost done it." he whispered, unable to make his voice louder.
The demon attempted to claw him again, but he grabbed it's wrists, preventing them from moving. He pinned them to the floor harshly, trying to put enough pressure on them to snap or break them. The Demon hissed and writhed beneath his angel, it's tail moving wildly across the floor. Finally the tail moved upwards and lashed the back of his angel, the sharp edges causing a deep cut. His angel rolled off, wounded, and the demon lept upwards, nervously balancing from one foot to the next, moving backwards all the while.
"You won't find me easy to defeat. This is my realm, not yours!" It pointed at his angel with it's claws. His angel touched a hand to his back, feeling the cut.
"Yer gonna pay for that..."
The demon gave a shriek of rage and rushed towards his angel again, but he was ready. He grabbed the demon's wrists again, holding onto them tenaciously. The demon was about to sink it's fangs in his arm in desperation when his angel flared with brilliant purple-blue energy. This flowed into the demon, causing it to scream in pain. It writhed in his angel's grip, but he wouldn't let go.
It finally broke away from his angel, more because he had let it, and held it's burned and blackened wrists, smoke flowing off of most of it's body. It glared at his angel balefully, who stared at it with equal hatred.
"You can't stop me." The demon spat at him. "I'll just come back when you can't help him. He's helpless without you, easy prey. You may be able to protect him now, but when you're gone, he'll be mine."
"Bad news, blackie..." his angel's eyes glowed gently. "I ain't gonna leave him alone. Yer never gonna get MY Doc, not while 'm alive."
"We'll see about that!" The demon moved with frightening speed, heading straight for the frightened Doctor on the sidelines. Dr. Dowasure, too shocked to scream, whimpered and raised his arms as if that could stop the horror streaking towards him. It's claws were shone with crimson light.
A massive blast of purplish-blue energy rocked through the room, sending the demon flying into the opposite wall. Instantly his angel was in front of him, his shining wings flaring brightly.
"Don't you even try an' TOUCH him! 'll kill you myself!"
The demon nursed it's broken wings, shattered on impact with the wall. They hung limp on it's back, broken remnants of what they were. It touched them gently, then turned towards his angel. A forked tongue appeared momentarily as it spoke to him.
"I'll get him, don't worry about that. I'll get you for hurting me by hurting him. Someday when you aren't watching..." The demon turned to the wall it had just collided with. A hole ripped through the metal, revealing nothing but blackness beyond it. Dr. Dowasure realized that it must be a hole in the dream fabric of some kind. The demon hissed at his angel one more time before jumping through the hole.
"Oh no you don't!"
His angel rushed futiley towards the rapidly dissapearing demon, it's tail the only thing remaining to go through the hole. He grabbed the end, only to find it coming off in his hand. Angry, he threw the end of the tail after the demon, watching as the hole closed itself. He knew better then to enter the hole and follow. The demon would have every advantage.
"You did it!" Dr. Dowasure exclaimed joyfully. He stood next to his angel, hugging his arm, staring at where the demon had dissapeared. "You got rid of it!"
His angel touched a hand to the gashes on his face, his fingers marred with blood. "I don't think I really got rid of it...I think it just ran off for now."
"It'll come back? I don't want it to come back!" Dr. Dowasure shivered at the thought of encountering the demon again. No doubt it would be even worse when it returned from it's anger at him bringing his angel to his dreams alongside him.
"That was pretty weird...That thing was strong. An' it still looked like me...kinda. Hmm...Doc, you don't know anyone with psychic powers, do you?"
"No, not that I know of. Not anyone who would attack me."
"I KNOW that was some other psychic...not just yer routine dream phantom, Doc...this could get very serious. You better try an' sleep with me whenever possible, 'kay Doc?"
Dr. Dowasure nodded, rubbing at his glasses. "I don't know what it could have done if you weren't here...what if I hadn't woken up before..."
"Don't worry, Doc. It won't be back for a while...not 'til it thinks 'm gone. Meanwhile, let's change th' atmosphere, 'kay? I know you hate this place. Let's make it somethin' more...pleasant." his angel waved his hands, changing the place of his nightmares with no more effort then moving his hand. Dr. Dowasure watched entranced as his angel transformed his nightmare into a dream. Thus, undisturbed by the horrible demon, Dr. Dowasure, accompanied by the mental representation of his angel, had one of the best dreams he had had in a long time.

~~~

"Wake up, Doc...wake up!" He could feel his angel shaking him. He whimpered a little...he didn't want to wake up. His dream was just at the best part.
"What is it..."
"Someone's comin', Doc. You got to get out of here before someone see's you."
"But I was having the most wonderful dream..." Dr. Dowasure yawned slowly and tried to sit up, rubbing at his eyes. He felt his angel putting his glasses back on his face gently.
"Me too, Doc, me too, but you got to go now."
Dr. Dowasure felt some apprehension, but he could not understand why. He was sure there was something he was dreading outside his dreams, but he couldn't remember. He was still half-way into his dreams, not quite sure yet of what was fantasy and what was reality. He smiled dreamily as he tried to remember what had been happening. He felt himself being pushed upwards, someone steadying him and walking him towards the door.
"'M sorry as you are that it had to end so fast, but don't worry, Doc, as soon as you come back we'll finish it, okay? You got to go now."
"I don't want to go..." Dr. Dowasure mumbled softly, staring at his angel as he came more into focus. He sighed gently.
"I know you don't want to fight with th' Prof, Doc, but you have to. Come back as soon as you can, okay?"
With that, he was in the hallway, confused and frightened. Prof. Denka...what had he done wrong? He couldn't remember...but Prof. Denka was going to yell at him again. He wished there was somewhere he could hide, but knew there was no such place. No safe place for him to hide from him.
"THERE you are!" Prof. Denka's angry sharp voice instantly woke him up completly. He turned fearfully as he saw him approach him angrily, holding some papers in his hand. He wondered whether they had anything of importance to him. "I've been looking all over for you!"
"Prof. Denka..." Dr. Dowasure couldn't think of anything else he could say. Prof. Denka halted right in front of him, seeming to debate whether or not to strike the shorter man. Dr. Dowasure, sensing this, cringed in fear. In the end, however, Prof. Denka only grabbed his wrist painfully.
"I need to TALK to you about this!" He waved the papers in his face, but he could not read any of the words. He found his thoughts wandering back to his angel. He wished he was here now, to make Prof. Denka leave him alone. "This is simply...I can't express my frustration and disappointment at your behavior!"
Dr. Dowasure spoke before he thought of what he was saying. "What did I do?"
Prof. Denka heaved a sigh of frustration. He began leading him roughly to the room he knew so well. "I can't believe how stupid you are sometimes! The way you forget everything that's important, how can one person..."
Dr. Dowasure began to tune him out, not wanting to hear it. He wished he was anywhere but here. He could think of one place he wanted to be in particular-
"You don't even LISTEN to me!" Prof. Denka swung him forward out of the way as he pressed the buttons on the number pad in front of him. Dr. Dowasure stared sadly at it, knowing it was effectively a lock he could never get past. Perhaps if they told him the combination he would have written it down and known how to get through it, but they never told him the crucial numbers. He wasn't sure why. Prof. Denka roughly shoved him inside, nearly causing him to fall. Prof. Denka roughly led him to a chair and nearly pushed him into it. Dr. Dowasure was beginning to feel tears forming in his eyes, even though he hadn't even been truly lectured yet. It was simply the effect that Prof. Denka seemed to have on him. Prof. Denka took his seat opposite of him, sliding the papers he had been carrying across the table to him.
Dr. Dowasure picked them up, not sure of what he had done wrong. When he stared at his own drawings, however, he remembered at once. He had been doodling...although he didn't understand what any of them meant. The ones with horns and wings were fairly obvious to him, though.
"Care to explain this?"
Dr. Dowasure paused for a moment, keeping his eyes focused on the paper in front of him, not wanting to make eye contact. He didn't want to tell him about his dream, as it may raise questions, but what other reason could he use...
"I...I couldn't focus..."
"THAT's obvious!" Prof. Denka nearly shouted at him. Dr. Dowasure cringed again, not sure of what to say. The desire to protect his angel kept him from stating the truth. "That's not the answer I was looking for!"
"I'm sorry, I just couldn't...it didn't make any-"
Prof. Denka interrupted him, beginning the terrible lecture that he always received. It followed the same pattern as it always did. First Prof. Denka would explain, in detail, how stupid or pointless what he had just done was. At this point Dr. Dowasure would feel guilty and apologize, but he could never apologize enough. After that would come the personal attacks on his memory, his nature, his behavior, and other faults in him. This is where he would begin to cry softly. He would again try to apologize, but this would continue to be useless. Nothing could stop Prof. Denka once he began speaking, although Dr. Dowasure wished desperatly that there was. He wondered whether his tears had any effect on Prof. Denka. The last phase would be threats and promises of stricter punishment, although Dr. Dowasure could not think of anything worse then this. He would be crying full out now, sobbing hopelessly. He wouldn't even try to speak at this point, although if he could it would have been pleas for him to stop. And those would be useless and met with even more lecturing. Finally, Prof. Denka seized his wrist again, led him out into the hall, and said the same thing he always said, which Dr. Dowasure could never understand.
"You have to stop doing things like this. I don't enjoy hurting you, but it's the only way to make you understand. Just stop acting like this."
And then he would leave.
Dr. Dowasure slumped against the wall, letting his feelings take full control over him. He sobbed uncontrollably, feeling as if there was nothing more worthless and stupid in the world then he. He would question his own existence and at points wish for his own death, simply because he believed that it would be benefitial to everyone. Eventually his tears stopped, mainly because he tried to keep his angel in his mind. Standing shakily, he wandered aimlessly through the hall, looking for his angel's room. Tears still ran down his face, although he was no longer sobbing. He didn't bother trying to wipe them away.
He wasn't sure how he managed to find his angel's room. He couldn't remember the journey he had made at all. He supposed some inner sense had led him here. He was relieved and opened the door, finding his angel napping on the bunk. As soon as the door slid open, he sprang upwards. Dr. Dowasure was so relieved to find his angel after all his pain that he could no longer stand, but this was typical. His angel was already next to him, holding him protectively in his arms. He rocked him back and forth gently, speaking soothingly.
"'S okay, Doc, 's okay, 'm here now, nothin' 'll hurt you anymore, okay? Nothin' will hurt you as long as 'm here. No one can reach you, 's just you an' me. Th' Prof's gone now, 's over, 's over."
As he had expected, his Doc broke down into hysterical sobs, unable to control his feelings. His heart hurt to hear him like this. He hated the Prof for doing this to him. He hated anyone that caused his Doc any pain at all.
After being so frightened and alone for so long, Dr. Dowasure was overcome with both joy and sadness as he reunited with his angel. He was so relieved to find him again, but what Prof. Denka had said weighed heavily on him and he felt that he didn't deserve to feel like this. Like he deserved more pain. He couldn't stop crying. Unable to think of another way to calm him down, his angel kissed him. Slightly startled, his tears slowed slightly. He let himself sink completly into what he was feeling, trying to forget his sadness and self-hatred. His angel kissed him again and again until his tears finally stopped. Exhausted, he leaned against his angel's chest as he continued rocking him back and forth.
It was a while before either of them spoke. His angel was the first to break the silence.
"That bad, huh?"
Dr. Dowasure didn't feel as if he could talk, so he nodded slowly.
"I hate th' Prof for doin' this to you, you know that, right? I hate seein' you like this."
Dr. Dowasure coughed gently. "I'm...I'm sorry..."
"You don't have to be sorry for anythin'. I bet you said you were sorry for a lot of stuff that wasn't yer fault while he yelled at you. Yer not th' one who should be sorry."
"I...I wished you were there...I really wanted someone to save me...it was so terrible...I couldn't try and focus on you, because I was worried he would get more and more angry at me..."
"Shh...'s okay now." His angel hugged him tightly. He felt safe in his angel's warm arms. "He won't hurt you when 'm here."
"I'm so tired..." Dr. Dowasure closed his eyes, believing his angel's words completly. "I wish I could fade away sometimes..."
"Don't talk like that. I promise 'll protect you, as long as I live."
He noticed the exhaustion in his eyes. "You sleep all you want, Doc."
His angel slipped one of his arms beneath his legs and the other under his arms and lifted him off the ground easily. Dr. Dowasure didn't feel like he had the energy to do anything, just leaning against his angel, wanting to forget what had happened to him. His angel carried him to his bunk, where he leaned against the wall, letting him sleep in his arms. As soon as he was assured he was asleep, he gently took his Doc's glasses off as usual and put them to one side. He gently entered his Doc's mind, ever watchful for the demon that haunted his Doc's one refuge.

~~~

This time, Dr. Dowasure was standing in the middle of a large, blank room. It seemed like a storage room of some kind. He looked around, unsure of where he was. It seemed familiar to him somehow, but he was not sure why.
He heard something behind him, but before he could turn around something had grabbed his ponytail viciously. He gave a short cry of surprise as he heard the demon hiss in his ear.
"Not so strong without your 'angel', are you Little one?" The voice sounded even more hateful then it had before. "I'll make you pay for what he did to me, oh yes...pay dearly."
He could hear and feel the claws on his back and he closed his eyes in fear, wishing that something would come and save him. He heard a sound like something fast traveling through the air and he felt some pressure on his head release. The demon released him suddenly, causing him to fall on the floor. In confusion, he raised a hand to his head and noticed the long strands of hair that flared around him. Touching the back of his head, he realized that the small band that he used to keep his ponytail tied had been severed. He looked at the demon, who had the band hooked on one of his claws. Dr. Dowasure felt awkward as his long hair draped over him as he sat upwards.
"Hmm...why do you have such long hair? It seems strange, don't you think?" The demon almost sounded amused as he methodically shredded the band. "And why keep it in such a ponytail..."
"I keep it like that so it doesn't get in my way." Dr. Dowasure was not sure why he told the demon this. The demon shrugged, it's wings having repaired slightly, but still essentially useless.
"Why not just cut it? That would be more convenient."
"I don't...I don't have to tell you." Dr. Dowasure spoke with more confidence then he felt. He absentmindedly took one of the long strands of hair and ran it through his fingers while he spoke. The demon simply walked over to him and seized his hair, pulling him up quickly. Dr. Dowasure gave a cry of pain as he was held above the ground by his hair. The demon glared at him.
"Think you're strong because someone else always fights for you? Without your 'angel' you're nothing. I could kill you with no effort at all. You're not a challenge."
Dr. Dowasure tried to speak, but only made a sound of pain. He tried to make the demon release it's grip, but it was far too strong. The demon ran a claw slowly down his face, as if deciding where to use it's claws first. Without warning, the demon ripped his hand away from his face, tearing off Dr. Dowasure's glasses and flinging them out of his sight. He could hear the sound of glass shattering. Dr. Dowasure now could barely see anything except the horror in front of him. The pain from the stress on his hair was causing helpless tears to build in his eyes.
"Even if I only took off your glasses, you'd be helpless. You're pathetic."
"Aaa..." Dr. Dowasure tried to bite back his cries of pain, wishing something would help him.
"If you think I'll kill you now, then you're mistaken, Little one. You haven't suffered nearly enough. To kill you now would be mercy on my part."
The demon finally let him touch the floor, but kept his claws entwined painfully in his hair. Dr. Dowasure finally found his ability to speak.
"Why are you doing this?" His voice was laden with pain and tears. He stared helplessly at the demon in front of him as it again touched a claw to his face, directly between his eyes. Shivering uncontrollably, he closed his eyes, not wanting to see what the demon was going to do. The only reply he got from it was cruel, mocking laughter. He began to feel the pressure on the claw increase, causing sharp pain in his forehead.
The demon hissed sharply and the claw withdrew. Dr. Dowasure found his hair released and fell awkwardly to the floor, touching his forehead gently. His fingers came away with blood. He looked up and found the angel and demon again locked in combat. The only way he could tell was the simple bright white and black colors that seemed to move so quickly.
Deep within his soul he didn't want the two to fight, he only wanted his angel to comfort him and tell him everything was alright. As long as the demon was there, his angel would have to fight. He didn't want his angel to be hurt because of him.
His angel's previous injuries remained, along with a few new ones gained in the course of combat, mainly some torn feathers and slashes around his arms. The demon was not doing much better.
He felt a strange wind blow by and he saw his hair flow past him as the wind picked it up. He looked to where it was coming from, but saw nothing. He could barely see anything without his glasses as it was. He tried to squint and saw some vague shapes at the end of the large room, but nothing more. Standing, he stared at the two shapes as they battled across the room, shouting insults and threats at one another. He walked as close as he dared, although this did not improve his view of them any, and wished there was someway he could stop this meaningless combat.
The angel finally threw the demon into a wall and pinned him there, breathing hard. Dr. Dowasure walked towards the two, not sure of what to do.
"Tell me what yer doin' here." His angel spoke slowly. The Demon struggled wildly underneath his angel's powerful grip, but the purple- blue energy flowed forward again, burning it badly. The demon narrowed his eyes at his angel.
"I've got as much right to be here as you."
"What's that supposed to mean?" His angel asked suspiciously. The demon refused to speak until his angel sent more energy into it.
"I'm here because..." The demon seemed to be hating itself for speaking. It's sharp tail lashed wildly, but wasn't in a position to attack anyone. It narrowed it's darker eyes at his angel. "of you."
His angel laughed shortly. "Me? How did I put you here?"
The demon struggled again, trying to escape his grip, but his angel would not let it go. "I'm...your fault."
His angel was rapidly losing his patience. "If you don't start makin' sense in th' next ten seconds-"
"Listen..." The Demon struggled for breath around the grip on it's neck. It focused it's eyes on Dr. Dowasure, causing him to shiver. "I was created by you."
"I created you." His Angel's voice was skeptical. "An' how'd I do that?"
"I am your hatred." The Demons gaze returned to his Angels. "I am everything you fear, you despise. I am your loneliness, your hopelessness, your frustration, your fear. I am everything that you try to hide. Your hate of almost every scientist here. Your hate of yourself."
"Shut up!" His Angel was upset now.
"Your feelings grew too strong to be ignored." Despite his Angel's protests, the Demon continued to speak. "But you kept them away. I was formed from them. Since I could not stay within your mind, I decided that I would find another. Little One was the perfect host. He was a veritable bed of fear and submissiveness. It's easy to manipulate him."
"You stay out of my Doc's head." His Angel growled at it. The Demon no longer appeared frightened.
"You can't stop me. I am you. I can always come back. I'm going to stay here." The Demon smiled slowly. "You created me, so maybe you should take some responsibility."
The Demon screamed as energy ripped through it's body.
"What can we do?" Dr. Dowasure stood awkwardly nearby, not sure of what else he could say. "If it's right, then we can't get rid of it. But...I don't think...I don't think I could handle having it..."
"You aren't goin' to have it." His angel mumbled lowly. "Th' thin's right."
The Demon stared at him in confusion.
"I created it, 's my responsibility. I have to get rid of it."
"How? It's you...how can you get rid of it permanently?" Dr. Dowasure wished he had his glasses. Squinting to be able to see anything was becoming a strain. His angel looked at his wings, his halo, and sighed. He shook his head.
"This isn't me..." He released the demon, which didn't move, apparently confused and intrigued by how his angel was acting. "I ain't an angel..."
The demon clapped slowly. "You're finally understanding. Good for you. Now..."
The demon moved towards Dr. Dowasure, who stepped back. To him, the demon was a mass of black. He couldn't tell what it's expression was or exactly how close it was to him. This frightened him.
The demon was knocked back as his angel moved in front of him, the wings slowly retreating back into his back. "I ain't an angel, but I ain't a demon either."
"Really. What makes you think that?" The Demon was trying to ignore the pain it was feeling. "You really are rather demonic, if you think about yourself long enough. In fact, technically, you are me, not the other way around."
Dr. Dowasure could sense the painful struggle going within his angel as the halo flickered out of sight. He knew that the demon was trying to confuse his angel, but he didn't know how to counteract this. Unable to think of anything else, he placed a hand on his angel's shoulder.
This apparently reminded his angel of his presence. He turned back towards the demon.
"I ain't a demon neither. Demon's don't have any feelin's."
"Are you claiming you have feelings now? Don't be absurd." The Demon held up it's hand, the tips still shining with blood. "You have a few moments where you try to imitate the emotions of humans. They aren't emotions. You're just a parrot that mimics what it sees."
"I know I can feel." His angel crouched low, preparing for an attack. "I've felt more then anyone here. You can't try an' trick me into thinkin' different."
"It's the simple truth." The demon turned, walking away. "I'll be here when you figure it out."
Turning it's back was a mistake. Dr. Dowasure watched as the vaguely lighter blur rushed towards the black, knocking it to the ground. He wondered whether or not they would begin fighting again and hoped they would not.
"'M takin' you back." His angel's voice reached him. He stared at the two forms, unable to discern anything more distinct then colors. "You ain't goin' to hurt anyone anymore."
"What do you mean?" The Demon sounded confused.
"Like you said...'m goin' to take some responsibility."
The Demon seemed to realize what he meant. "You can't...it's not possible. You can never take me back. I've gotten strong while I was free."
His angel took a deep breath, apparently composing himself for what he had to do. "I hate th' Prof an' th' lady, 'cause of what they do t'me an' to th' Doc."
"This won't work." The demon sounded panicked, although it tried to hide it. "You're just fooling yourself."
"I hate m'self." His angel closed his eyes at this. As Dr. Dowasure had moved to join the two figures, he was able to at least sense the disappearance of the bluish-purple as a sign he had closed his eyes. His angel seemed to have to fight to free the words. "I hate th' fact 'm not human, I hate how I look, I hate how I act, I hate how I feel, I hate how I have no power, no rights, 'cause 'm not human."
Dr. Dowasure stared at him sadly, unable to think of anything to say. He looked down at the demon, who's black color seemed to be fading. When he squinted, he was able to tell the black that once dominated the demon was fading into a lighter grey.
"You're weak." The Demon hissed, unable to escape his angel, weak as he was. "You're so weak. Listen to yourself. No wonder you hate yourself so much. You have nothing to like. You're worthless. You can't fight me."
"I hate humans, 'cause they all hate me." A small blotch of blue- purple appeared, staring at Dr. Dowasure. "'cept for one." Dr. Dowasure hoped he was smiling, as his bad eyesight could not allow him to see for sure. "All other humans are cruel t'me, so I hate 'em. I hate 'em 'cause they're somethin' I can never be. I hate 'em 'cause I can never be with 'em, 'cause 'm different."
"They wouldn't want you with them anyway. They don't take kindly to freaks." The demon definitly sounded frightened and it's voice was faint. Dr. Dowasure could see the tail fading. At the same time, he could see what seemed to be the same tail emerging from his own angel's back, lighter in color.
"I hate 'em 'cause they don't know how bad they can hurt others. I hate 'em 'cause they hurt m'Doc, an' I can't do anythin' about it, can't protect m'Doc like 'm supposed to. An' they don't even care when he cries, when it hurts me t'see him like that. I hate 'em for that. I hate 'em so much..."
Dr. Dowasure still could not say anything. The demons wings were retracting slowly and appeared to be growing from his own angel's back. The demon seemed to be fading away, barely able to speak.
"I hate m'self, 'cause I can never change. 'M stuck th' way I am forever. This's what I look like, this's what I always am an' always will be. I have no future, 'cause 'm always stuck at one point. I have no life, so I have nothin' t'hope for."
The wings were gone, fading slowly from Dr. Dowasure's blurred vision. They were hanging limp on his angel's back, as if broken. Again, they were a lighter shade then the demons, almost a silvery grey. The demon seemed to be slowly fading away from the end of it's clawed feet to it's head. It's horns seemed to be vanishing before Dr. Dowasure tear-filled eyes.
His angel's voice was laced with pain. "I hate m'life, 'cause I'll always be alone...there's no others like me an' there never will be. 'M always goin' t'be alone, totally an' forever alone. I have no one but m'self...an' I hate m'self..."
The demon finally faded away completly. Dr. Dowasure edged forward until he was in front of his Angel, staring at him. From this range, he could at least see his face clearly. His angel had buried his face in his now clawed hands, shaking.
"'M scared...'cause even tho' I hate this place, I got nowhere else t'go...an' if I leave, I got nothin'...'m scared of what others will say...will do t'me, if I leave...an'...m' scared I'll lose th' only thin' I got..."
"It's gone." Dr. Dowasure's voice was soft and shakey. His angel looked up at him, resembling the demon that had tormented him almost perfectly. But instead of the horror behind his still blue-purple eyes, there was only the clinging sadness.
"'M no angel." His angel's voice was quavery with barely suppressed emotion. "Never was. 'M a demon...jus' a demon..."
"You're still an angel to me." He took his hand, trying to stop it from shaking. "You always were and you always will be my angel."
His angel stared at him in confusion. Not sure what had come over him, Dr. Dowasure reached a hand forward and touched the horns on his angel's head. Like he had expected for some reason, the horns disappeared. His angel continued to stare in confusion as he touched the wings, the tail, his feet,and finally the claws on each of his fingers. He held the now harmless hand to his chest.
"You can look at yourself any way you want, but this is still my dream...and you'll always be an angel to me. Not a demon."
"But...I ain't good enough-"
"Shh." Dr. Dowasure felt more confident now that the demon was gone. Perhaps it had taken some of his own insecurities along with it. He kept his own eyes focused on his angel's, trying to keep him from thinking of the demon that once again resided within his soul. "You don't have to be perfect to be my angel. You just have to be there when I need you. Rescue me when I'm in trouble. You just have to care for me."
His angel paused, as if contemplating his words. He then smiled gently, finally his face clear to him again. "I can do that."
"Then you can be my angel." Dr. Dowasure smiled brightly, regaining some of his old enthusiasm that he had thought he had lost long ago. "That's all you need to be."
His angel took a deep breath, as if collecting himself, and managed to stand. He stared at his surroundings briefly, as if remembering where he was. He raised a hand, where a small ribbon appeared in the air.
"Turn 'round for a sec, Doc."
Dr. Dowasure did so, wondering what he was doing. He could feel his angel tying his hair back in the long ponytail that it was always in. He turned and stared at his angel, trying to understand what he was doing.
"I would give you yer glasses back, but I don't know what...pre...y'know..."
"Prescription." Dr. Dowasure supplied.
"Right. I don't know that."
"Well, I don't have any regrets..." Dr. Dowasure touched a finger softly to his forehead where he could feel a trail of dried blood from the wound he had recieved. Having his hair tied back again made him feel more confident for some odd reason. "Even though this whole experience was very painful, I think it was important on some level."
"I don't care." His angel shrugged, smirking. He was glad that his Angel was feeling better, as when he was weak it felt awkward for him to try and be strong. "'S long as it's over."
"Actually, there is one thing..." Dr. Dowasure sighed deeply. "This is still just a dream...when I wake up, I'll have to go back to my life, with Prof. Denka and Dr. Kagakusha yelling at me..."
"An' 's back to th' tests for me." His angel sighed in almost the exact same way. The two stared at eachother.
"Well, we can always meet in dreams."
"That's where everythin's th' way we want it."
"Where everything is the way it should be."
"'Zactly."
Dr. Dowasure could feel himself slowly coming back to the waking world. He touched his hand to his angels, lingering on his touch. "I'll see you?"
"Promise." His angel faded from his vision.
When he woke, he would be back to who he was, trapped in his life that was constant torment to someone as sensitive and submissive as he.
When he woke, he would be back to who he was, unable to fight his own pain, nothing more then an idle curiousity to be studied.
But then they slept...
Things changed.

The End
(Author's Note: Aaagh, this took even longer then Devotion ta finish. ^_^o Darn it, Dr. Dowasure's so freakin cute. He could kill someone with that cuteness of his. And Cyrus combined with him is almost too much cuteness. ^_^ But that's prolly cause I'm a CyrusxDowasure fan at heart. ^_^ What would da word fer that be? Somethinshipper...agh, I'll think of it later. ^_^o Heh, at points, they could rival DrakxTeishi fer cuteness, if it weren't fer Cyrus' rough personality. ^_^)

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