It is the middle of the night, and they all pretend to sleep. Several things are about to occur, and they all occur at once which is very confusing, but alas the world they now live in is confusing.

~~~

Bev slowly creaks out of bed, her eyes scanning the others. Though the fireplace casts a dim glow over her compatriots, their faces only seem darker. She imagines that everyone is sleeping.

Bev.

It calls her name. The sound isn't something that rings in her ears, but that resonates in her skull. She knows it isn't an actual voice, but it seems real all the same. So real, that she turns the door handle and exits the cabin.

In the darkness, the ground has grown moist. Each step has her shoes growing muddy, though they don't soak through. It seems that the people in Alaque truly mean business. When she turns towards the ocean, staring up at the tall lighthouse, she realizes it is not the ocean calling out her name.

From within the cabin, Mickey pulls himself upright. He knows when people are sleeping and when people are lying awake at night, waiting for a bomb above. Since no one else seems keen to go fetch Beverly, it's on him. As it always is.

He creaks out of the cabin, following after her. Outside, Mickey gently shuts the door and listens. The sound comes from behind him; from within the forest.

As he rounds to the back of the cabin, he feels the numbness spreading throughout his body again. It reaches his lips, like too much liquor. Mickey feels himself begin to fumble.

"My, I was worried I was being followed," Beverly approaches him, a smile on her face. When she sees spit begin to drool out of his mouth, she takes a step closer to him, delicately holding his elbow. "Are you alright?"

Mickey nods and the feeling passes. He looks down at his hands, to be sure that in their sleepy they haven't washed away. "Sorry, I just... It's Bev, right?"

"Bev," she echoes, her brows furrowing. "And Mickey?"

She turns around, to look back at the trees. They want to whisper secrets to her; she is sure of it. Since she didn't hear its call earlier, she doubts it will answer tomorrow. Still, the man in front of her needs her help.

"Let's sit down," she suggests, bringing him down onto the soggy ground. Their clothing is so thick that they both still feel warm. Once they are settled, she speaks again. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Mickey answers to quickly. It's hard to explain because if he wanted to, he couldn't. It's against the few rules that they've established, and Mickey knows that he isn't clever enough to understand.

"You can lie to me if you'd like, but I really want to go exploring," she tells him. She would suggest he come, but Bev feels like she needs to go alone.

"What are you looking for?"

"Nothing," Bev answers too quickly. She sighs, looking longingly at the forest. "Let's just sit here for a while, okay?"

~~~

Inside, Clara realizes that Bev and Mickey have been gone for quite some time. She slips out of bed, pulling on her shoes. The old floorboards creak beneath her feet. However, she manages to slip outside undetected.

Or so she thought.

"What are you doing here?" Hubert asks, standing across from her.

Clara gasps. It feels like she has been submerged underwater again, and she is swimming in the ocean that is Hubert's eyes. "I'm... sorry. I just needed air."

She decides not to rat out her compatriots because everything could be fine. After all, from the few moments she's talked to Mickey, he seemed like the most pleasant man in existence. Beverly is quite kind as well, though more prone to trouble. However, from the raised eyebrow and the way he wipes his jaw with his hand, it seems that Hubert can tell that she is lying.

"What do they call you?" he asks her.

"Miss Bennet," she tells him. "Clara, specifically."

Hubert takes a step closer to her, he reaches his hand forward, and she stares at the exposed skin. Her hand inches closer until it slowly rests in his.

He leads her up to the lighthouse and then they stare at the shore. A shiver goes through Clara, and she can't tell if she is freezing because she is wearing a nightgown and it is barely the spring, or if her body is rigid because she can feel how much warmer Hubert is than her.

When they get to the shore, Clara notices that the waters have calmed substantially. It almost looks like a pond, rather than the ocean. She stares up at the night sky, which is clouded over. Clara has never been the biggest fan of the outdoors (it has been an entirely neutral part of her life), but she is enraptured by the way the ocean seems to shimmer despite the light and the way the clouds seem to carry with them the storm she feels within her.

"Why did you bring me here?" she turns around to face him.

Hubert nods to the water. "The waters are never this still. Something is going to happen."

Clara thought that they were in the midst of something happening.

~~~

Tim is the only one who managed to fall asleep. And as he does, he cries, because he is having a nightmare. They are a rare occurrence for Tim, perhaps not even happening since he was a child. There he was, though, trapped in a dream where a doctor is trying to give him a vaccine, but first must stab him with a coloured pencil to draw blood. No matter how much he moves and kicks, Tim can't escape the threat.

At the same time, Ivy cries out in pain. She sits up and drinks from the cup resting on the side table next to her bed. Each gulp she swallows more intensely than the last, trying to force it down her throat.

Finally, Maverick yanks himself out of bed. It is practically impossible to wake him while he is sleeping (which is why he is sure that this is some hellish nightmare). He eventually moves next to her bed and kneels down beside her. "Are you alright?"

"Never better," she says, and she can't decide if she is lying or not. She's never experienced something so marvellous, yet there is something deadly inside her. Ivy can't imagine what arcane illness crawls over her skin. "You should go check on him."

Maverick looks over to Tim. He sighs, because really, he should go slug over to Tim and wake him. "It's only a dream."

Ivy lives in the world of dreams. "Well, you don't want to catch what I've got."

That's why Maverick has been careful to tuck his hands behind his back. Ivy breathes away from him, thankfully. He doesn't like the idea of abandoning her, but if the illness spreads between them, the group might die before they get home.

"You'll be okay," Maverick reassures her. "I'm sure your doctors will be able to cure whatever this is."

Tim bursts up in the bed. His whole body feels hot and wet, and for a second he thinks that he is covered in his own blood. Then, he realizes that he is actually just sweating.

~~~

Due to the noise, Adwin can't sleep. He pulls himself out of bed and spots the pile of clothing on the floor. He moves over to rustle through it, when he feels something in the pocket of one of the coats.

Rather than sleep, Alvaro had his eyes resting on his leather jacket, and the gun inside. He quickly pulls himself out of bed, rushing over to Adwin. Alvaro puts one arm tightly around Adwin's and puts a finger to his lips. In response, Adwin only nods, gulping down the bile rising in his throat.

With the coat in hand, the two of them walk outside together, brushing past Maverick and Ivy, ignoring the sleeping Adwin. Outside, they are finally free to speak, as Clara has only just slipped away.

"Why do you..." Adwin trails off, his voice quiet. "Is that a gun?"

"Yes," Alvaro answers, biting his tongue. He has no explanation that would make sense to Adwin. Rather, he was hoping to keep his criminal past private.

"We need to dispose of it," Adwin continues. "You brought... okay. Give me a second." He exhales heavily trying to gather his thoughts. Even though he probably could easily slip from Alvaro's grip, Adwin hasn't bothered to try. He'd rather keep Alvaro calm. "Bringing a gun back here is severely going to mess with a timeline. Especially one so small. We need to dispose of it."

"They had guns in 1653, did they not?"

Adwin guffaws. "That's hardly the point."

Alvaro casts a glance over his shoulder. It seems that no one has followed them, which is the beginning of a good sign. He cannot get rid of the gun. If they find a way back, he will be dead without it, quite literally. He can't remember if he pulled the trigger on his target or not. It's been a long day.

"Just," Alvaro pauses. The night air is cold. He finds it relaxes his shoulders and eases a tension deep within him. "Listen, I can't bury it. We need to hide it in the floorboards, or something. I need it in my time."

Adwin tenses. He had heard talk of the war and had hoped it wasn't as bad as the last. It seems that violence has continued into Alvaro's age, whenever that is. Perhaps Adwin cannot go save his family. Perhaps it is all over, for the rest of time.

"I won't tell anyone," Adwin says. "As long as you promise not to use it. Deal?"

When Alvaro sticks out his hand, Adwin shakes it.

~~~

Flo tries to sleep. She really does. She can feel herself existing in the space where dreams bleed into the night. All around her, she can hear whispering. It's impossible to find its origins, but it is there none the less.

"Ditez rien à personne."

"C'est seulement un rêve."

"Tu cherches-tu quoi?"

"Vous entendez-vous ma voix? Mes chuchotements sont mes cries."

"T'es bien?"

Despite her exhaustion, she understands every word. Worse, she hears the pained syllables, the panic and exhaustion, and occasionally, the certainty. And, she is very, very frightened.

~~~~~

Oh boy, writing this took so long, but I promise now that I have a roof over my head and my work has sort of come to an end, I can actually dedicate some time to this. Besides, I've only got three chapters left to write for Uprise, so I should be able to give this one a whack soon.

Anyway, it's been quite a while since I've worked with your characters, so let me know if they feel right over if they do not. I'm worried they've become a bit generic since it has been weeks since I worked with them. 

Thanks so much!