Chapter 28

Huh? Take my nightmares? I didn't know what she was talking about, and I was pretty sure she didn't want the ones I had anyway.

"Your expression says you doubt me. But I can. No lie."

"Fine, I believe you, but I don't want to give them to you. They're pretty bad, and I don't even know what it means to take them. Do I lose memories? Because if so, then I don't want that either."

"You don't lose any memories. I'll just store them in a tail. Nobody else can experience them either unless I release them."

"Honestly, if they're really bad, you'd be helping her. She doesn't have a good grasp on most of her abilities yet, but she can use that one well." Katsumi had walked over and joined us now.

"So they just get stored, and what? I don't really want anyone looking into my dreams or nightmares. That's kinda personal."

"Nobody can see or experience them as you do. They get pulled into her tail, and Ruri can use them to inflict the experiences on her target. If you dream of being chased and bitten by a giant spider, the person won't see anything, but they will experience the raw fear of being chased by something, and the pain of being bitten."

Well, Ruri didn't show any signs that there were lies, so it was my best bet. I really didn't want to worry about waking up screaming anymore. However, I also really didn't like the idea that I was giving her a weapon like that. My nightmares were often about dying and being on that table in the dungeon. What would happen if someone experienced that? Maybe my sleep-deprived state was clouding my judgment, but I was leaning towards accepting.

"Alright. I'll do it. What do you need?" I asked.

A tail came out from under Ruri's cloak. The color was a bit darker than her hair and ears, but it was fluffy.

"Lay your head here." She laid it on the ground next to her and patted it.

Suddenly this was a very good idea. It felt kinda weird, but I didn't argue. I laid back on the grass and let my head rest on her tail. It was like laying on a cloud. Katsumi was looking at me again.

"Seems you changed your mind quickly for some reason..." Katsumi said while glaring at me.

"E-eager to be rid of these nightmares. Really looking forward to a good night's sleep." I responded. Not a lie, just not the whole truth.

"You'll either have no dreams for a bit, or they'll be replaced by good ones. Eventually the nightmares may return, but others have told me that it's had long-lasting and even permanent positive effects." Ruri said.

"So What do I do now? Just lay here and it will cure me?" I asked.

"You sleep, silly." Ruri said.

"You sleep, idiot." Katsumi said.

They both responded at the same time. I didn't know how they expected me to sleep while they both stared at me from above. It was embarrassing and weird.

"Uh... can I get some privacy?"

"You're laying your empty head on her tail. There's no way I'm leaving you unsupervised. You better not try anything, even in your sleep, or you'll regret it."

"Just try closing your eyes." Ruri said calmly.

"Alright, but I'm telling you, this is a bit too awkward for me to sleep."

I passed out almost immediately.

...

I had no idea how much time had passed when I woke up. The sky was darker, but it was still day. More importantly, they were both looking at me with concern. Had I been lied to? Could they actually see them?

"Um, what's wrong? Did I drool?" I tried to joke about it.

"No. It's just- ... you filled it up." Ruri said.

I sat up as I spoke. "What does that mean? Filled what?"

I turned to see her tail had become an extremely dark color, almost pitch black.

"It usually takes 2 people months of nightmares to do that. Or dozens of people, and you still had more to give." Katsumi said, still looking concerned.

It was weird for me to have her to be acting like this towards me.

"I still had more? So, will I still have nightmares then?" I asked.

If so, then this was a waste of time, and made things uncomfortable between us.

"No, you should be mostly alright. You might still have a few, but they should be severely weakened. Especially with how much was extracted." Katsumi said.

"Alright ... Thanks. Um, how long was I out for? I still need to gather some wood." I tried to change the subject.

"It's been a few hours. It'll be dark soon, but Katsumi caught you some fish to take back while you were out so you don't need to chop a tree down. Is that ok?" Ruri said.

This was a mistake. I felt better physically, but if they were going to act weird around me now, was it worth it? I stood up. It was getting late. The sun would dip behind the mountains soon, and it would get dark much faster after that.

"Sure. Fish are great. There's someone down there that wants to buy them for a good price. I'll come back tomorrow."

"Are you Ok?" Katsumi asked, but Ruri looked like she wanted to ask it as well.

Was I? Probably not, but I didn't want them worrying about it, and I could deal with it myself. All I wanted was the nightmares gone. Now I had to dodge the question. Suddenly this felt pretty invasive.

"Don't worry. I'm doing a lot better now. I slept the whole day away, sadly, but I'm eager to see how well that worked."

"What happened?" Ruri asked.

It wasn't her business, I obviously didn't want to talk about it, and she had a power that gave her more information than I was willing to share. If it had been Katsumi I would have snapped at her. But Ruri was just a kid. She probably just wanted to help and didn't realize the position she was putting me in. Katsumi spoke.

"Ruri, that's too personal. If he doesn't want to tell us, you shouldn't force him. Be aware of your blessings."

Blessing? Blessings?

"Right. I'm sorry William. I'm glad I could help you. Please come back tomorrow!" She said with pleading eyes.

I had planned to anyway, but I felt a bit better now. At least she apologized for it. That was also surprising for Katsumi. Maybe she was actually a nice person.

"I will. Let's just keep things how they were, ok? I don't want you acting weird around me now. See you both tomorrow."

I went over to pick up my bag and saw a stick with 4 fish pierced through on it. I picked it up too. They looked pretty fresh, but if I wanted to sell them before they went bad, I would have to hurry back.

They were talking with each other. I couldn't hear it, but it was brief.

Ruri smiled bright and waved at me. "See you tomorrow, William!"

"Tomorrow I'll beat you for sure, so get a lot of sleep. No excuses!" Katsumi said while also waving.

"Oh... right. Ruri, you go back to treating me like before, Katsumi you stay being a nice and reasonable person."

"Wha-!? I have always been nice and reasonable! You're just too dense to see it!" She shouted.

"Dense!? Ah! No! That word is reminding me of everything from my tortured past! How could you be so cruel!?" I made a show of being in pain and staggering around.

"Jerk! Idiot! Fool! Don't come back! I'll show you what being mean looks like!" She kept shouting as I laughed and walked into the woods.

Eventually the sounds faded into the distance.