Ben's POV-------------------

In my line of, um, work, I would've thought that the scene at the chapel where I found Phobus would not have had such a negative effect on me, but as I woke up from the third nightmare in the night I was not so positive in holding my bearings anymore. I mean, what the beast had done to everyone...

It was a massacre. It had murdered everybody brutally, not caring if they were man, woman, or child. The people that I put up with would not have done such things in such a manner.

Then again, the people I dealt with weren't some kind of lizard-like creature seeking out Phobus. The normal assailant didn't leave their victims in such a state, Not with the victim's entrails dangling from their serrated bodies, or their faces all torn apart.

With the images in mind, I decided that what I needed was a glass of milk to calm my nerves; Especially my stomach. Or if necessary, I'd have to sneak some alcohol into my room tonight to knock myself out for a few hours.

Firstly, though, came option A.

I eased myself out of bed, noticing that it was nearly three in the morning as I checked my alarm clock on my nightstand, frowning and cursing myself for the inability to sleep.

It was too early to use the microwave to heat my glass of milk. That was just splendid!

I put on some sweatpants that had been laying on my floor and made my way to the kitchen in the dark, feeling the walls hum with the warmth from the heater and attempting to fix my senses on anything out of the ordinary whilst climbing down the stairs, but like many nights, the house radiated nothing but silence.

It seemed to jog a memory from the past. One where I had been left alone In Japan a couple of days after I had been taken in by my Mistress. She had told me to stay in a tent that had been built especially for me by Mourner. It was meant to provide me a space of my own, but when my Mistress left with Mourner tagging along, it only proved to be damaging.

I remember bawling that night as the sounds of the forests around me quieted in silent respect. Except for the wind. It seemed to howl with me, shaking the walls of the tent just as I shook as sob after sob left my body. I had lost something precious and the only thing to remind me of it was a necklace. It was a beautiful necklace, but it was cold in my hands. Lacking the warmth of its previous owner.

I cringed in the present as I stopped at the bottom of the stairs, my memories bringing forth the ghosts of my emotions at the time. I remembered clearly that night. It had been the first night where I had my first panic attack. I touched my throat, remembering the lack of oxygen I had been feeling, opening my mouth, wanting to feel the cool air entering my deprived lungs, but it was stuffy.

Too hot. Too cramped.

Then came the shaking.

I attempted to stand from my fetal position, but the earth seemed to shake from under me. It seemed to be moving faster then I could manage to keep up with. It sent me falling on my head, crashing and hitting the blankets that had been set under me hard. I continued to cry, but now I was wailing. hot tears spilled from my eyes, and in the present, my eyes seemed to water.

After the shaking that night, I cried myself to sleep and woke to the campsite completely in havoc. Mistress stood above me, with her elegant kimono on from the previous night and her violet eyes full of pity. I would later find out that there had been a terrible storm at night, resembling a typhoon. Mistress told me that a trail of wagons had been wiped out and a nearby village had been demolished...with no survivors yet found.

And it was my fault. I was the one responsible for the climate and the deaths of so many people. Mistress insisted it was an accident, that I had lost control of my abilities, but in all honesty...I didn't think that was the case. It wasn't my abilities I had lost control of...it was my emotions. And if there was one thought and emotion that had been radiating off of me that fateful night, it was anger...and wishes of death.

"Damn."

I whirled around and faced the person responsible for the comment and found myself staring into the glowing eyes of Phobus. I relaxed my body from the sudden tension and sighed in relief, soon after tensing once again. How had I not sensed Phobus? It was nearly impossible to escape my senses. Had he snuck past me?

In question, I raised an eyebrow and voiced my thoughts. He smirked and moved from where he had been leaning on a counter in the kitchen to stand nearly in front of me. "I've been here for a while and saw you walk in and just kind of stand around, spacing out. Whatever you were thinking about must've been very important."

I felt myself blush and was about to ask what he had been doing in the dark and in the kitchen when he suddenly turned from me and moved to the counter again, staring out a window. I moved towards him and when he didn't object, I situated myself near him and stared out the window as well, searching for whatever had captivated his attention when again, he spoke. "You know, I don't remember if I did, but I would like to say thank you."

I gaped at him and he continued, "You saved me from a prison I didn't know I had been trapped in for who knows how long. Every minute that passed and the very little interactions I had with the... people in charge made me think I was losing my mind. That's why when I first saw you, I thought you were a figment of my imagination."

"Thanks to you, though, I am finally free and experiencing things I hadn't ever even thought about before. Like this view." He sighed appreciatively, motioning towards the view from the window. I watched but I couldn't find anything interesting. You could only see the view of the house in front of mine. Did he like houses?

"Isn't it funny? From inside the chapel, I was never able to see the moon, and I had no idea such a thing even was here." He muttered and I glanced at the moon and was struck with a realization. He hadn't seen the moon before, but it was something I took for granted every night. Hell, I often didn't even think about it because of the necklace, but looking at it now, the barely visible orb, it did look nice.

Although, as I said, it was barely visible due to the light pollution from the millions of lights glowing in town. Just as I thought of that, though, I had an idea.

"Phobus, I would like to show you something," I told him, and he immediately perked up while looking at me. I thought about averting my gaze but instead decided not to and felt the whole weight of his curious stare. I eventually looked away and told him to wait for me by the entrance while I put on a shirt.

Sometime later, we left the house and were in my car. Phobus was seated on the passenger seat with his eyes covered by a piece of cloth. I was driving down the road on the way out of town. I couldn't wait to show him the surprise awaiting him.

Of course, Phobus kept asking me where we were going, but I refused to tell him. I told him it'd be worth the wait. That didn't quell his excitement and curiosity, though. It seemed to ignite it even more.

Once in the planned destination, I asked him to wait for me while I opened his door and led him to the place. He didn't object and instead smiled. I left the comfort of the car and into the cool, fresh air of the little park outside of town. I breathed it in and relaxed a bit, though why I was nervous, I didn't know. I just hoped that Phobus liked what I was going to show him. Finally out of the car, Phobus took in a breath and exhaled with a satisfied smile. I smiled and felt my face grow warm.

I took him by his hand reluctantly, feeling a tinge of electricity surge from his warm palm, leading him to a little clearing where the grass had not been wet yet. I asked him to sit down and he laughed but obliged. He sat with his back straight and with his legs crossed in front of him.

I told him that I was going to take the cloth off but he should close his eyes until I told him to open them. He nodded and I quickly took the cloth off from his eyes, affirming that he indeed had his eyes closed. I smiled as I took in his complexion. He was facing forward and had his eyes closed softly, with his eyebrows furrowed slightly. I regained my composure quickly and lifted my hands to the sky, whispering a spell that had the clouds drifting away.

When I was content with the results, I asked him to open his eyes. He did, and I heard his breath hitch in his throat, with mine as well but thankfully he didn't comment or I didn't even think he noticed. I made sure of that.

"Wow...," He breathed out and I smiled, turning to see my work. The moon was a little more on its way around the world, but far from the town's lights, it shone much, much brighter. It seemed to emit its own glow and the stars around it only proved to accent its beauty. Although I had no control over the stars, I had made sure to dispose of any clouds that could hide any from Phobus's view.

"This is very pretty, Ben. It's...incredible." He said, as his eyes brightened in their hue. They were already glowing but accompanied by the light of the moon, the fire dancing in his eyes seemed to still itself in a constant and orchestrated rhythm. I tried to keep a straight face but failed to do so. As he looked at the moon, then turned to face me he grinned, questioning me but I couldn't give him an answer.

I knew I was staring, but something about Phobus beckoned my full attention. And at this very moment, I knew what I was experiencing. My inability to look at him and blushing all the time. I knew what it was, and I had one word in mind that I breathed out before leaning towards him, "Shit...