Visioness by Lincoln Law

she had been
dropped off here, handing her to Lady Abeth, dishevelled and frightened. So
much had changed here on that night. It was astonishing to think how much of
her life, of her daughter’s lives, had been affected by that single moment;
that single choice. She imagined her mother’s pain and frustration, at not
knowing what to do, of what would come; and in that moment she understood so
much. She felt so much of what her mother would have felt. It only served to
remind her of the troubles at hand, though.
    “You don’t want to know about
Dreaming, or the Oen’Aerei. Please just make do with the knowledge that you
needn’t worry yourself, especially with issues such as these. You’re far better
off not able to dream than having to see what I see.” She quickly realised what
she had said, and added, “Sometimes….”
    Charlotte looked up at
Adabelle through a slightly downturned face. She felt judgement in that gaze.
    “You would tell me if there
was anything I needed to worry about, yes?” Charlotte asked.
    To that , Adabelle thought, I can
tell the truth.
    “There is nothing you need
worry about presently ,” she replied. And it was the truth.
    Charlotte’s gaze burned
between them, her scrutiny almost palpable. Adabelle struggled to keep her gaze
locked down on her sister, her eyes wavering only to blink.
    “Okay,” Charlotte said. “I
believe you.”
    Her tone didn’t sound
entirely convinced, but it was always difficult to lie to her sister. Her
sister ascended the last stairs and entered the University, leaving Adabelle
alone for a time.
    A massive part of her wanted
to accept her father had returned. That she needed to seek help, find a place
to hide. But an even greater part of her spoke of its impossibility. The dream
spheres were unbreakable, at least from the inside. And even then, one would
have to have a body to break out entirely. From her knowledge, after his mind
had been sealed away, Therron’s body had been destroyed. Cremated and his ashes
released onto the wind. He could enter their dreams, but he could not harm them
in the real world.
    But that’s not true, Adabelle corrected herself.
He had cut Larraine, had tortured her for information. But that would suggest a
Sturding; a Sturding needed a body.
    But then again, she thought, a Sturding
could only physically harm another Sturding ,
    It was all getting a bit too
much now. Her head began to thump with confusion, the headache seeming to come
out of nowhere. She pushed her thoughts aside, and went inside, hoping to find
some peace and quiet.
    But she didn’t. The rest of
the afternoon, she spent troubled by dark thoughts of her father’s probable
release, and also of its impossibility. At night, her sister pressed her
further for answers. Why had Adabelle been absorbed into the dream? Why hadn’t
she run like she usually had? Why had she been so transfixed by the dream
tendrils that then snapped her up like a bear trap and forced her to meet her
maker?
    Only the following morning,
after a dreamless sleep and a chance to clear her mind, was she able to think.
None of this made much sense at all, so there was no use dwelling on it. She
went about her day as normal. Despite trying, she could not deny the feeling
within that she ought to do something about this confusion. But how was one
meant to seek clarity when so few others would be able to see sense?
    On her way to her room, she
stopped in the hallway. She moved to the side for a time to allow any students
to pass. Despite her best attempts to suppress any unneeded thoughts, she
couldn’t find a way to hide them entirely within the recesses of her mind. She
needed to let it out to someone. She needed a confidant, to help clear her mind
a little.
    “Mrs. Abeth,” she whispered,
switching directions suddenly, walking brusquely down the halls towards Mrs.
Abeth’s office.
    She found the woman at her
desk, door wide open, and the window, too, to allow the fresh air in.
    “Mrs.