Challenge Posting!!
Challenge: Other Kinds of Love.
Canon: Pre-canon
Rating: G
Words: 665
Summary: Suddenly, emerald eyes flew open as Sakura abruptly sat up, gasping for breath. She clutched her blanket close to her face, a security motion for a small child such as herself. Sobs shook her body as tears poured down her face. She quickly clamped her hand over her mouth and buried her head in the blankets, not wanting to wake her father and brother with her cries.
A rustle.
A stir.
A whimper.
A bad dream, no doubt.
Sakura’s brows furrowed down, obvious distress on her sleep face. She moved around a bit, sleeping, but not resting. Dreaming will do that. The body sleeps, but the mind races, not getting enough rest for the next day. Surely Sakura would sleep right through her alarm because of her mind’s lack of rest. She would be late for school, again.
Her distressed face was troubling. An angelic figure such as Sakura rarely had such pain on her face. And if there ever was any pain, it was covered with a smile so as not to worry those who cared about her. But now, the mask was not there to hide her pain. She was sleeping, and thus unable to involuntarily put on a facade of happiness.
Suddenly, emerald eyes flew open as Sakura abruptly sat up, gasping for breath. She clutched her blanket close to her face, a security motion for a small child such as herself. Sobs shook her body as tears poured down her face. She quickly clamped her hand over her mouth and buried her head in the blankets, not wanting to wake her father and brother with her cries. Her tears continued to fall, and the anguish on her face was evident, along with the trepidation. It was clear that it had not been a bad dream to disturb her sleep, but a nightmare.
The differences between a bad dream and a nightmare are these: A bad dream is just that, a dream. One is in an unpleasant setting with unpleasant people in an unpleasant situation, but all is still surreal. When one wakes from a bad dream, they hardly remember the details. The only certain thing is that is was unpleasant. A nightmare is different. Vivid images fill one’s mind, and every detail is engraved in the mind forever. You feel the fear, the sorrow, the anger, and you remember every moment of it, as well as what caused these bad feelings. Often, the nightmare becomes too intense for the dreamer, and they are suddenly awakened by their inability to handle the climax of these emotions. This is exactly what happened to Sakura.
As she put her head back down on the pillow, she curled into a fetal position, desperately gripping the sheets as she tried to forget the nightmare. Her eyes remained wide open, only closing for brief moments to blink. Sakura didn’t look like she would be able to get to sleep anytime soon. The entire room was dark; the only light was pouring from the cresent moon through the window. Her eyes remained fixed in that direction, drawing comfort from the familiar figure in the sky.
Hours passed before the tears stopped. The fear on her face was still there. Her eyes began to droop as sleep threatened to overtake her. She fought it with all her might, not willing to go back to the world of nightmares that had awakened her, but it was clear that she needed the sleep.
Suddenly, an overpowering feeling of peace enveloped her. The feeling was familiar, one she had felt years and years ago when she was just a baby, but painstakingly familiar. This was a feeling of peace that she had felt when she was in the arms of someone that was now gone, but not forgotten. The feeling was pure love.
The love of a mother.
Nadeshiko smiled gently as she wrapper her translucent arms around the figure of the dream-stricken child.
“Sleep now, angel.” Her voice was soft, unheard by the rest of the world. Sakura’s eyes began to slide shut as sleep took her. “I’ll stay with, child, and the nightmares won’t come back. I’ll protect you from them.”
Sakura drifted into sleep, her face peaceful as the warmth of her mother’s embrace kept her safe from any nightmare that threatened to claim her.
A sigh.
A stir.
A smile.
A good dream, no doubt.
Canon: Pre-canon
Rating: G
Words: 665
Summary: Suddenly, emerald eyes flew open as Sakura abruptly sat up, gasping for breath. She clutched her blanket close to her face, a security motion for a small child such as herself. Sobs shook her body as tears poured down her face. She quickly clamped her hand over her mouth and buried her head in the blankets, not wanting to wake her father and brother with her cries.
A rustle.
A stir.
A whimper.
A bad dream, no doubt.
Sakura’s brows furrowed down, obvious distress on her sleep face. She moved around a bit, sleeping, but not resting. Dreaming will do that. The body sleeps, but the mind races, not getting enough rest for the next day. Surely Sakura would sleep right through her alarm because of her mind’s lack of rest. She would be late for school, again.
Her distressed face was troubling. An angelic figure such as Sakura rarely had such pain on her face. And if there ever was any pain, it was covered with a smile so as not to worry those who cared about her. But now, the mask was not there to hide her pain. She was sleeping, and thus unable to involuntarily put on a facade of happiness.
Suddenly, emerald eyes flew open as Sakura abruptly sat up, gasping for breath. She clutched her blanket close to her face, a security motion for a small child such as herself. Sobs shook her body as tears poured down her face. She quickly clamped her hand over her mouth and buried her head in the blankets, not wanting to wake her father and brother with her cries. Her tears continued to fall, and the anguish on her face was evident, along with the trepidation. It was clear that it had not been a bad dream to disturb her sleep, but a nightmare.
The differences between a bad dream and a nightmare are these: A bad dream is just that, a dream. One is in an unpleasant setting with unpleasant people in an unpleasant situation, but all is still surreal. When one wakes from a bad dream, they hardly remember the details. The only certain thing is that is was unpleasant. A nightmare is different. Vivid images fill one’s mind, and every detail is engraved in the mind forever. You feel the fear, the sorrow, the anger, and you remember every moment of it, as well as what caused these bad feelings. Often, the nightmare becomes too intense for the dreamer, and they are suddenly awakened by their inability to handle the climax of these emotions. This is exactly what happened to Sakura.
As she put her head back down on the pillow, she curled into a fetal position, desperately gripping the sheets as she tried to forget the nightmare. Her eyes remained wide open, only closing for brief moments to blink. Sakura didn’t look like she would be able to get to sleep anytime soon. The entire room was dark; the only light was pouring from the cresent moon through the window. Her eyes remained fixed in that direction, drawing comfort from the familiar figure in the sky.
Hours passed before the tears stopped. The fear on her face was still there. Her eyes began to droop as sleep threatened to overtake her. She fought it with all her might, not willing to go back to the world of nightmares that had awakened her, but it was clear that she needed the sleep.
Suddenly, an overpowering feeling of peace enveloped her. The feeling was familiar, one she had felt years and years ago when she was just a baby, but painstakingly familiar. This was a feeling of peace that she had felt when she was in the arms of someone that was now gone, but not forgotten. The feeling was pure love.
The love of a mother.
Nadeshiko smiled gently as she wrapper her translucent arms around the figure of the dream-stricken child.
“Sleep now, angel.” Her voice was soft, unheard by the rest of the world. Sakura’s eyes began to slide shut as sleep took her. “I’ll stay with, child, and the nightmares won’t come back. I’ll protect you from them.”
Sakura drifted into sleep, her face peaceful as the warmth of her mother’s embrace kept her safe from any nightmare that threatened to claim her.
A sigh.
A stir.
A smile.
A good dream, no doubt.