Till The End Of Time

I could hear the child's quick breaths echo in my ears, even though he was leading the way a few yards ahead of me. All I saw was the back of his small head, and his chestnut locks seemed to be shining as if from sunlight, though there was nothing but the thick grey fog around us. Who was this child? Where was he taking me?

He seemed to be talking to himself, I noticed. I'd thought he was talking to me at first, but he couldn't have been. How long? How long? His little whispers were all I could really hear, along with his and my footsteps. Everything else was silent. Where is he?...Need to show her!..

The journey seemed endless, but it had only been a few seconds in reality. The little boy stopped at the edge of a tiny clearing where the sun shone mystically through the treetops. He slowly turned and gazed up at me. His big blue eyes were filled with what looked to be love, to my surprise, and he took my hand into his smaller one with nothing but tenderness as he led me towards the light.

It was...blinding, almost. It was beautiful. All of a sudden, I could hear again. Birds were chirping in the distance and the trees rustled in the light breeze sweeping by. It was warm, too. The child tugged on my dress, making me open my eyes. Mama. I looked at him inquisitively. Surely he wasn't speaking to me...But, he said it again, this time taking my hand a little more earnestly. Mama...And within our locked gaze, something clicked. I knew he was mine. He looked away before I did, and I realized he had given my hand to someone else.

I looked up to see who it belonged to.

*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*

My eyes shot open to the morning light. My right hand was tingling as if it had been shocked and my whole body was shivering in a cold sweat. That dream was more vivid than all of the nightmares I used to have; It felt so real. And what was that child- my child trying to show me? I shook my head to get all of the thoughts out of my head. I just needed to focus on where I was right now and breathe.

"Sleep alright?"

My body jolted upright and I couldn't help the shriek that escaped my lips.

"Oops...Sorry," Robin chuckled. I scowled at him. "You seemed pretty peaceful every time I checked on you, which is good. Not like the other times." I gave him a questioning glance, but he payed me no mind. "I noticed your fingers twitch a bit." He nodded at my still tingling hand and proceeded to walk across the room and pull back the curtains from the window. I hissed at the sudden brightness and he turned to me, amused. "Well, sorry there, Miss Vampire. Would you like me to make the sun go down?" Damn him and his sarcasm, I'm out of here. Just as I threw the sheets off me and my toes touched the cold wooden floor, Robin stopped me. "Woah, woah, missy! Have you even healed yet?"

I gritted my teeth and yanked my wrist away from him. "I am perfectly fine, thank you for your concern. Now if you'll excuse me..." I stood up and the world turned sideways.

"Shit!" He caught me surprisingly fast. When my dizziness faded and I looked up at him, though, all of his concern turned into that same smugness and he gave me this half-smile that would have made me faint again, had I not fallen into his arms. "Still feel up to walking, love?"

Realizing how close we were, I pushed him off of me and brushed myself off as if he had cooties. I needed a shower- badly. As I made my way through the tiny house we were in, I took some time to look around. The walls were a cream color and there was pictures of an old couple on the wall in the hallway. I looked away before I could let it get to me. There was a floral patterned rug in the sitting room with an old television and the kitchen was tiny with a dead potted plant on the windowsill. When I finally found the bathroom, the walls a pale green and a porcelain tub, it dawned on me that there was probably no water for me to bathe. I turned to ask Robin what I should do and he was right there, leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded. I opened my mouth to speak, but didn't say anything. Did I really want to ask him for help? "Do you need anything?" he asked expectantly. My mouth shut and I raised my head confidently.

"No, I do not."

He eyed me curiously. "Nothing at all?"

I crossed my arms and shook my head slowly. "Nope."

"Are you...sure?"

"Yup."

"You're sure?"

"Yes."

He put a hand to his chin and looked as if he was thinking. "I mean, are you really, really sure?"

"Ugh! I need water! Water, okay?" I finally exclaimed, throwing my hands in the air. He smiled triumphantly. "Now, how do you get it?" Silence. "You do bathe, right?" He looked at me, appalled. I'm not sure if he was joking or not.

"Do I look dirty to you? I'm offended."

I rolled my eyes. "Just help me out here, please. I haven't had a 'shower' since the morning before, er, you found me. Do you make water shoot out of your palms, Oh Godly One?"

Robin disappeared from the doorway and down the hall. He was back before I made two steps after him. In his hands was a bucket full of water. "I expected you'd want to clean up when you woke, so I heated this up for you." He poured it into the tub and left again before coming back with more.

"Where did you get it?"

"Snow," he shrugged and stood up to look at me.

"Snow?"

"Yes. Snow. You know, frozen precipit-"

"I know, I know. I just didn't realize how much time had gone by since, well, everything," I said.

He nodded. "It seems like forever, but it went by fast. It was only October, you know."

"Yes, well."

"Yeah."

We stood silent for a moment. "Thanks for, um, the water." He nodded. "Can- can I...?"

Robin looked confused for a moment, but his eyes flickered between me and the waiting water and his face lit up in realization. "Right! Right, then..." He cleared his throat and began to close the door behind him. "Call me if you need anything," he winked and left.

I shook my head and locked the door.