“I'm on a tree, on a wobbling branch, and I can't see what's underneath me; It's too tall to see the ground. I tried to hold on to the trunk but it falls apart, and the branch snaps. (The kid mentions he woke up at the breaking of the branch, describing a sudden sensation of falling down) “

“There are creatures walking between the trees, in the shadows. I can feel them surrounding me, and when I try to run away they chase me; They enjoy this chase, and my fear. (to the question of how he knows that, the kid replied that 'they're laughing') “

“Everything's dark. When I try to walk I keep bumping into things, like the rotten trees. And then the worms crawls on me, and try to eat me.”

“Everything's white, like a cloud; everywhere I went, I walked endlessly without reaching anywhere. I was alone. I was scared.”

“There weren't as many creatures this time. Just one. He looked like a human, but he chased me, too. He laughed just like them. (Divi's voice broke and faded as he mentioned this pursuer. It seems to relate to a main source of his fears) “

“I don't want you to take my nightmares.”

Divi's reaction to his usual morning 'interrogation' came as a real surprise to Tris.

After all, they never once talked about “taking” the boy's dreams in anyway, unless “taking notes” somehow implied to something like that.

In an attempt to further clarify this statement, Tris replied, “What would you mean by that.”

“I don't want the nightmares to chase you too.”

It took a couple of eternally long seconds for Tris to process what Divi just told him. By the sound of it, his concern was whether or not Tris will take his dreams, leaving him dreamless, but rather he was concerned at the possibility that he'll experience them as well.

But what really caught his attention was not how Divi interpreted his actions.

It was what he just said – That the nightmares might chase him.

Tris remembered clearly that Divi told him these were things one sees in their head alone, while they sleep.

He was also certain that he told the kid at some point that he hardly ever sleeps, thus keeping himself safe from the threat of mentioned night terrors.

“You have got nothing to worry about.” Tris told him with atonal confidence as they left the room and walked to the kitchen. “I can get by without sleep. Nightmare cannot possibly harm me.”

Divi sat himself next to the dining table as Tris prepared a light meal. “What if they'll chase you while you're awake?” he immediately regretted asking when Tris stopped what he was doing and turned to face him.

“You said they were only things in your head.”

“Y-yeah...” the boy stuttered and looked down.

“Now you're saying they will chase me even if I'm awake.”

“If you'll try to take them.” Divi whispered under his breath.

“This means they chase you when you're awake.”

Divi just nodded, despite not being sure how to interpret Tris' toneless voice.

Tris had a strange feeling, like he's been deprived of an important piece of information with the kid's decision to hide it from him. Something that was probably important to the anonymous author of the journal, as well as to his own understanding of what the kid is going through.

“Why didn't you tell me.” Tris demanded, in his usual expressionless voice.

Divi recoiled in somewhat of a defensive act. “P-please don't be mad at me,” his voice was shaking and his hands were quivering, as if Tris has been shouting or threatening him. “I-I just...Didn't want you to worry too much.”

For the first time Tris felt overwhelmed by confusion, to the point he had to halt everything else, going into some sort of a stasis state, to figure out all of the new information that has been revealed to him.

It started with the kid talking about dreams and nightmares, things he was seeing in his head.

He said there were things chasing him in his sleep, and now they're there when he's awake as well.

Divi's reason for asking these 'sessions' to stop was so they won't chase him too, even when he made it clear he doesn't sleep.

He was so afraid for the well-being of someone else, that he held back information at the cost of putting himself at a possible risk.

All this made Tris wonder just how horrible those nightmarish beings are.

“Divi.”

The kid looked back up at the faceless man, who had gone silent for a couple of long moments.

“You have got nothing to fear.” but for the first time, Tris wasn't quite as confident as he was before.

“But-”

“I'll keep you safe from the nightmares.” Once again, Tris didn't know where his words were even stemming from. He felt a strange need to keep this child safe, especially now when displaying such prominent distress.

He wondered if it came from a sense of obligation to fulfill the request of the anonymous author of the journal he has been steadily filling up, or perhaps a genuine sense of worry towards him – just as he had feared.

“How?” it appeared that the offer scared him more than calming him down, as it was intended.

That was a good question. From the second Divi started talking about dreams and nightmares, Tris wondered how he's going to protect him from things he alone could see.

Only one thing felt marginally reasonable at this point. “I'm going to see them for myself, and make sure they won't be back.

While Tris didn't need sleep to function properly, but he recalled falling into a sleep-like state once or twice, only he couldn't remember how.

“But they'll come after you!” Divi just became more panicked and worried.

“They will not.”

“How do you know?”

“I just-”

Their conversation was abruptly cut by the sound of the front door slamming open, causing the kid to tense up. Vince walked in and slammed the door back shut, looking ill-tempered, even more than his usual self.

Divi took a sharp breath, holding the air in his lungs as if Vince was some kind of a predatory animal. Tris could see tears forming in the corners of his eyes before he quickly looked down and wiped them on his sleeve.

This wasn't a new expression to Tris. He had seen it before, when Divi described to him one of his more harrowing nightmares.

He wondered whether it was Vince's presence alone or his sudden, abrupt appearance that broke some kind of a mental limit for the kid.

“Great, now this critter is leaking.” Vince's teeth were clenched tight, so much that they could be on the verge of cracking.

Something has clearly been wearing his nerves thin, judging by his decision to not ignore the kid this time, as he has been doing effortlessly up until now.

Tris saw new ashy patches decorating the man's coat and skin, and even under his bowler hat, his hair was quite a mess. In a way, it was almost as if he was in as much distress as the kid.

He marched towards the table, and Tris saw how each of his thundering steps was making Divi wince, and by the time Vince was just inches from him, the kid was visibly shaking.

“What's your problem, huh?!” he raised his voice to a hoarse growl.

“Leave him be, Vince.” Tris came to Divi's defense, standing next to him. “He's suffering from-”

“From what?!” Vince barked at Tris. “He doesn't do anything, no one demands him to do anything!”

“Nightmares.” Tris referred to his question alone.

“Nightmares?! You're lucky to get enough sleep for that!” the fire-breather's fury was now directed at Divi, who had to stumble out of his chair so he won't fall over with it in his attempt to gain some distance from him.

Tears welled up again in his eyes, trailing down his face when he looked at Vince's eyes, terror stricken.

Tris could see him taking a couple of wobbly steps back, chest moving in a fast rhythm along with his frantic, shaky breaths. It was another familiar scene, from when they first met.

Even what followed was just the same, and Tris was prepared to catch Divi when both his body and mind gave in and he collapsed in the faceless man's arms.

He said nothing to the enraged performer when he turned to walk into Divi's room, laying him gently on the bed.

Feeling the comfort of the soft surroundings, Divi instinctively rolled to his side and pulled the covers over his head. Even now, Tris could see him shaking underneath the covers, and his breathing was still audible.

He couldn't fathom what he could say to make him feel better.

Vince may have been open about his disliking towards the kid before, but he never threw something so harshly in his face. Tris wondered if Vince was really sick of the kid's presence as he made it sound, or if it was just a result of his already unstable mood.

“Divi collapsed today when Vince addressed him with clear and direct anger, and raised voice. This appears to have a very negative and harmful effect on him, especially paired with his existing dread of the recurring nightmares.”

Tris closed the journal and reached his hands to the covers, pulling it slightly.

He was relieved to see Divi asleep, assuming the fear and fatigue got the best of him.

Pondering whether these variables will affect the type and intensity of his nightmares, Tris remained once again at Divi's bedside, listening to the sounds of Vince outside the closed door as he took his anger out until he was worn out as well, dragging his weary body to his own room, too tired now to slam another door.

A well deserved rest may do him some good, Tris thought and focused his attention back at the kid.

Divi's sleep was surprisingly peaceful after what happened, aside from occasional flinches and shivers, ones that Tris couldn't tell if they were reactions to the cold or to another nightmare.

Tris kept thinking over this dreams and nightmares ordeal in his head. It fascinated him from the very first second he became aware of them when Divi brought them up. He tried his best to rationalize how they work and why they even appear, but he soon realized he doesn't have the means to figure it out, not even knowing if he is able to dream at all.

As Divi remained sound asleep, Tris read the journal again, over and over, trying to compare the content of the dreams to the kid's documented reactions throughout his sleep, but to no avail.

No clear correlation appeared from his findings, and the only thing linking all of his dreams together was that they all seemed to have happened in the same place – a forested area that's slowly getting more rotten and decrepit the more he dreams about it.

He wondered if in his better, nicer dreams the forest was bright and flourishing, or was this environment exclusive to his nightmares alone.

Maybe the good dreams are set in a completely different place.

He had only assumptions to ponder upon, as Divi never shared any of his good dreams with him.

Thinking of this now, Tris began to wonder...

Does he even have any?