❈ A Dreamer Once More ❈

The night that Gemini - now known as Linnea - returned, Aeluri felt that she could finally relax. For the first time in a week or so, she didn’t drink herself to sleep. She actually didn’t drink at all, which was something that rarely happened. After getting dinner at a local seafood restaurant, the dark mage had retired to her room and promptly fallen asleep. The turmoil of losing Gemini and then finding Linnea once again was exhausting. A good sleep would return her to her normal state.

It had been a while since Aeluri had dreamed. Dreams weren’t something that plagued the woman as her childhood imagination had long cooled down. She never was the creative type as a youth, and as such her mind didn’t wander in the dreamscape very much. When she did dream, it was usually recounting memories buried deep in her mind.

For a while, she slept peacefully, Umbra curled up by her feet. Then dreams began to manifest in the form of memories. Each time one surfaced, she either relived the memory from her own view or from a spectator view. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to which perspective a memory had.

As Aeluri slept, slowly a scene manifested in her mind. It was a room, quite large, that was painted a soft pink. Wallpaper edged the walls from floor to ceiling, a pattern of cartoonish black cats repeated the whole way along. In one corner was a large white chest with a few plushies on top. In another, a dresser and a changing table. Close to the window was a large crib made of fancy white pine wood, carved to perfection.

Inside the crib was a baby, likely just days old. A thin mess of raven-black hair sat atop its tiny head. The little being squirmed in its blankets. The ability to be mobile was something excitingly new. Though the muscles weren’t very strong just yet, the young human moved quite a bit.

Leaning over the edge of the crib was a man and a woman. They peered down at the little human lovingly. On the crib railing, the man’s hand rested atop the woman’s. They appeared to be the proud parents of the baby below.

“She’s beautiful, Alexander,” the woman whispered. He nodded in agreement, an indestructible smile forming on his face. Alexander looked up at his wife, his blue eyes softening. His other hand reached up and tucked a strand of long, black hair behind her ear. He then cupped her cheek in his palm. The woman leaned into it, her crimson eyes fluttering shut. The two lovebirds stayed like that for a moment.

The baby let out a gurgle and both parents turned to watch her. She squirmed for a second, ruffling the red onesie she wore. Alexander’s smile only seemed to grow more.

“Valencia, I think she’s close to opening her eyes!” he exclaimed quietly, his voice laced with excitement. “The doctor said she would be late to open them and it’s been a few days.” Val nodded in agreement, the corners of her eyes crinkling into a small smile. There was still worry in that glance, though.

The two resumed watching their beautiful little girl. Alexander looked like he was thinking hard about something. "My dear," he began pausing to form the words he was about to say. "I know you've been set on the name Serena, but… what do you think about something different?"

Valencia raised her eyes to look at Alexander. It was unclear how she was feeling as her ruby red eyes gave nothing away. The two looked at each other for a while as if having a silent conversation.

"I suppose I'm open to new ideas… what did you have in mind?" Val asked, her voice calm and cool. Alexander didn't seem phased by her tone.

"I was thinking…" he said, trailing off as he looked down at the little baby. The affection in his gaze was strong.

"Felicity."

As he spoke the name, the baby's eyes began to open. First, her left eye crept open, it's unfocused iris moving around and taking in the light. It was a vivid crimson, just like her mother's. Valencia and Alexander let out a sigh of relief.

Their satisfaction was cut short as the right eye opened. Both gasped in shock and horror. "Oh no," Valencia whimpered.

The right eye was gold.

Both parents looked frantically at one another. Valencia's panicked crimson eyes were opened wide.

"Alex, I was so sure…" she began, breathing rapidly. "When we found out she was a girl I was sure she would look like me! I thought we had nothing to worry about! Martha assured me-" Valencia's worried words were cut off as Alexander embraced her. The two stood silently for a moment.

"We'll have to get it masked. She wasn't supposed to have any Dexter features… we were so careful…" His voice was low and quiet. "No matter what I will protect her. You know how I feel about my birth family… I want her to be accepted as one of yours. We should get that fixed as soon as possible." Valencia nodded vigorously in agreement.

"You know Nanna would lose her mind if she found out about this. She always said if Dexter and Sinisterre blood mixed, a curse would befall us all… I refuse to believe that. How could something so small and pure be a curse?" She looked down upon her daughter with love as a fierce protectiveness filled her from head to toe. Despite her family's rules, her child would never be a mistake to her.

"I think she liked that name though," Valencia added with a smile. "So Felicity it is. Let's contact Martha about the eye, and do it swiftly." The two exited the room, locking the door behind them.


Aeluri slept peacefully for a while before the second dream came. She found herself playing with two plushies, one a black cat and the other a two-headed white cat. She made the two mock battle, one knocking the other down in a dramatic defeat before it spring up and attacked once more. Fierce yet adorable noises came from her mouth as she narrated the battle. The dreamer couldn't move, only watch through the eyes of her younger self.

The sound of a door closing came muffled through the wall. Little Aeluri jumped up excitedly. He's home! she thought as happiness filled her body. The girl dropped her toys and ran to the door, reaching up above her head to open the handle. Upon exiting she ran down a long hallway with fancy maroon carpet. She rounded the corner to the top of a majestic staircase that went down a level, split around the sides, and went down another level. She took each step carefully, as her short legs couldn't go too fast.

Finally the girl reached the bottom of the steps, where she began her race once more. She approached a giant carved wooden door and pushed with all the strength her little arms could muster. The door creaked open and she skipped into the room.

"Dada! You're home!" The girl cried. Aeluri ran right at her father, who had just returned home from work. She leapt forward and tackled his legs, barely making any impact.

"Fliss, my dear!" the man cheered with a hearty laugh. Despite his exhausted state and the worry lines creasing his face, the man would never greet his daughter with anything less than love. He reached down and picked the toddler up, spinning in circles with her in his arms. The little girl giggled. When he was done, she leaned her head against his shoulder.

"I missed you," the girl whispered, snuggling her face into her father.

"I missed you too, little one," he replied with a smile. "Oh, that reminds me! I have a gift for my favorite daughter!" He sat her atop the oaken desk in his study and walked around the side to his work suitcase. Little Aeluri kicked her legs in excitement.

From his suitcase, the man withdrew a tiny box, carved with beautiful patterns and hand-painted. Turning around, he hid it behind his back as he approached the girl. Aeluri watched through her younger eyes and could feel the excitement that was building.

“What is it? What is it?” she cheered, trying to peer around Alexander’s side. Crimson eyes were open wide in anticipation.

“This item,” he began, circling the desk and his daughter. He still held the box behind his back. “This is from a magical land far away called Joya. This place is inhabited by people who are part cat, part human.” The child’s eyes opened wide wonder. “These cat-people live in tribes deep in the jungles of Joya. They love and nurture one another. Wonderful markets are held every day in the various tribes - a place where craftsmen and artisans can sell their wares. And that-” With a flourish, Alexander pulled the box from behind his back, “-is where I found your gift.”

Little Aeluri clapped in excitement and reached out her hands. Her father placed the box gently in her hands and opened the lid. Within the box was a little feline figure with a yarn ball that was framed by a mirror that was attached to the inside of the lid. Velvet covered the inside of the box in rich crimson.

“I saw this one and it reminded me of you, Fliss,” Alexander whispered as the child looked over the box in amazement. “Now watch what it can do!”

He reached to the back of the box and used a little metal handle to wind up the gears beneath the velvet. All at once the feline figure began to glow as the magic lacrima within the box animated it. It shuddered to life, looking around but not seeming to actually see anything. Painted wooden eyes noticed the yarn ball that was at its feet. The feline figure jumped back, then began to stalk towards the ball, its wooden joints creaking slightly. With a sudden leap it caught the ball! For a few seconds it wrestled the yarn, then lazily patted it around. The figure then returned to its original position and stopped glowing as the lacrima powered down.

The whole time little Aeluri was watching with fascinated ruby eyes, completely enthralled by the cat figure. When it ended, she was speechless for a moment. Then, with an excited squeal, she jumped into her father’s arms.

“I love it! It’s amazing!” she cried. The two embraced and the dream faded out, returning to sleep.



Aeluri found herself blearily shoved into the waking world once more. It took a few moments for her vision to focus and her mind to wake. It felt as if her head was filled with static. Every thought felt slow and forced, and movement proved difficult for the time being. She sat up and rubbed her eyes lazily. A large yawn interrupted the action.

The dark mage looked around the night-filled room. She picked out Umbra’s form among the sheets. He was sleeping on his back like some sort of weird dog, which was amusing but she didn’t have the energy to laugh at him. Mismatching eyes moved on to the floor, where the white-furred bulk of Linnea moved slowly up and down with each breath. The creature was curled into a tight ball with both tails draped across its noses.

Aeluri shuffled over to the side of her bed and reached a hand over the edge. Her lithe fingers wove into the feline’s pale fur. The texture was soft and she spent a moment petting Linnea. The beast rumbled a purr in its sleep but did not wake. She found its presence comforting in the darkness. It didn’t take long for Aeluri to drift back to sleep, her hand resting on Linnea. The dream-memories had made their appearance but were kept at bay once more.