"Vien? Vien, are you awake? Vien!" came a soft voice, raised in fright and concern."Vien!" the voice called again, and when its owner reached for the nightmare-entrapped boy's arm he jolted awake with a gasp. His hands flew to his throat, struggling for breath as icy blue eyes flicked in and out of focus. The voice's owner jumped back in surprise, clutching the raggedy brown teddy bear she held to her chest as she watched Vien struggle. "Are you okay, Vien?" she asked softly, voice barely above a whisper as the older boy began to calm. He took a deep, shuddery breath, fingers moving from around his pale throat slowly to grip at the mass of pillows he was sitting in.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm o-okay," he murmured, index finger twitching as he waved him off. He scooted back against the large pillow behind him, sinking into it gingerly as he reached for the book he had knocked onto the floor. He grabbed it by its cover, frowning at its worn pages as he closed the book. He had lost his place again. How annoying. He closed it and set it against the window, grateful he hadn't fallen off the window seat in his panic. He reached up with a shaky hand, rubbing at his eyes as he took another deep breath.

"Do you want some cookies?" his sister asked gently, hugging her teddy bear close as she stared up at him. "Mommy and I made cheesecake cookies, and I knew they were your favorite. There's drinks, too, that funny green tea you and James like." She clambered onto the window seat with him, her short legs scrabbling for purchase on the dark wood as she pulled herself up by Vien's feet. He couldn't help but let a small smile tug at the corners of his lips. "Do you need a hug before you go down for food?" she asked. "You can even hug my teddy, if you want," she added, holding the bear in her hands out to him.

"I'm alright, Meredith," he assured her softly. "But I'll take a h-hug from you and your teddy anyways," he said, his smile widening ever so slightly as he held his arms out for her. At that his sister beamed at him, shuffling forward on her knees so she could wrap her short arms around Vien's middle. He wrapped his own arms around her, letting his chin rest on the top of her head as he held her tightly. They stayed like that for a long moment, Meredith embracing him silently as he made a conscious effort to calm himself. After a few minutes Vien let his arms drop away from her, watching as she slid back off the window seat.