"Oh! Come on, Bailey! It couldn't have been that bad, right?"

Bailey had gotten home a minute ago from the small mission with Mia, Paige, and Will. Drew sat across from him, worry painting his face. "I guess it wasn't, but it was right there. I could see every feature of its face. Everything. I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight." Bailey pouted, covering his face with both hands.

Drew crawled over, trying to get a good look at Bailey, "sure you will! Just think, if you're able to get that close to the monster, the mission could be easier than everyone thinks."

Bailey sighed, moving his hands to look at Drew. "I guess, but how can I talk to it if it won't let me? I try, but it's like I don't know how..."

It all felt hopeless, like everything that could go wrong was going wrong. Drew, on the other hand, stayed optimistic about it all. "How about this: before it can get into your mind, you go face to face with it in real life. You can talk to it there, it has no control over you when you're actually face to face with it. There must be a reason it talks to you, but we just don't know it yet!"

     Bailey thought for a moment. It was true, he can talk to it in the real world. But why won't it let him? There was something there, something that he didn't know. Maybe the monster wasn't a monster?

     Drew placed a comforting hand on Bailey's head. "No one knows what's going on. But I know you all can do it. I trust you, Bailey. Why else would Aurora ask me to bring you here?"

     Bailey remembered that day. It was the last moments of his life that were normal. And now... he truly isn't. "What's going to happen when it's all over? Will I never see you again?"

     Drew looked shocked for a moment. "Of course you will! You're one of us now. You can go between both worlds whenever you want! And, not to mention, when it's over you have to unfreeze time in the human world!" Drew giggled, giving Bailey a big smile.

     Bailey had forgotten that he had frozen time back in his world. He could only imagine what would happen once he did unfreeze it. Would Drew go back with him? At the end of the day, he does go to his school.

     "Now, enough of that! I'm hungry~" Drew whined, dramatically falling into Bailey's lap like a dog. "Well, I'm not much of a cook, so you're out of luck." Drew pouted, trying to give a puppy dog look. "Please? If you don't, I might die. I'm too young!" Bailey patted his head, looking a little annoyed. "Okay, fine. I'll make you a sandwich or something." Drew leaped up in joy, clapping his hands together.

     "Yes! Bailey's sandwiches are the best sandwiches!" Bailey awkwardly smiled, shaking his head. "I mean, you've never had them before but I'll take the compliment."

***

     "That was so good! But I'm still hungry..." Drew trailed off, giving Bailey a sneaky grin. "You want waffles don't you?" Bailey said, eating the rest of his sandwich. In a swift motion, Drew jumped out his seat. "I always want waffles! Actually, I always want food... maybe it's just my animal genes." Bailey blinked his eyes, looking a little blank in the face.

"Erm, in that case, we should probably get you more food." He joked, heading over to the fridge. Drew followed, beaming with joy.

***

It was nighttime. The sun had gone down hours ago, leaving the house dead quiet. Bailey turned on his side, staring out the window. He watched as the trees swayed with the wind, and the stars twinkling against the dark.

Bailey thought of the monster. He pictured its dark black face staring into his soul. The red of its eye bleeding into his mind.

It was a weird thing to think about. The monster wasn't even that scary until its in front of him. Bailey closed his eyes, covering his nose with a blanket. The monster resembled a fox. The only difference was its size, fur color, eyes...

'But why?' Bailey thought, 'what does it want?'

     He remembered what the thing had told him, yet those words could mean anything. A sigh escaped his lips. Slowly, Bailey turned onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. If there was one thing Bailey wanted the most out of this mission, it was to solve the mystery of the monster. Thinking more and more about it, maybe the monster wasn't a monster.

***

     Aurora stared at her reflection, mumbling some words under her breath. A thing, in the distance, washed away her image into a new one. She didn't curl away in fear, she only looked with curiosity. "Who are you?" She asked, cocking her head to the side.

     The monster stared ahead with wide eyes, barring its white fangs. "Who I am doesn't matter. What you're doing does. You can't stop me, no one can. I've waited years for this. Years to escape this prison of reality."

     Aurora smiled, giving a knowing look. "Ahh, so my suspicions are correct then?" She asked, giving a curious look. A hum came from the monster, its features melting into a neutral one. "Who you think I am are the least of my worries. What I want is my priority. I'll be home one day, just tell them to wait for me."

     A sigh escaped her lips, giving a quick nod. "I truly don't think it's my duty to tell them. There's one you've talked with many times before, I believe telling them together would be much more satisfying, yes?" A surprised look washed over the monsters face, "I had a feeling, but knowing is much different..."

     Aurora allowed her hand to faze through the mirror, placing it on top of the monsters head. "He won't know, sadly. But they hold the key to his memory. I know you're still in there, just keep fighting, okay? No one needs to die, I know you wouldn't want that."