Alone in the Dark (Eve/Josh)

[Eve Mallory]

Tossing and turning the sheets were a wild mess around her. She was burning up but she couldn't get the haunted vision out of her eyes. There were shadows, darkness everywhere of course it had to be dark, and then there was her mother, screaming, crying. Eve was trying to get to her, trying to do something anything, but she couldn't.

She knew she had to be still but she couldn't be still anymore her arms and her legs hurt they were cramping and her mother needed her, her mother needed her so badly.

"Mama...mama please!" she pushed at the walls around her to no avail she couldn't get out, she couldn't wake up.

Finally everything was still she didn't know what had happened but now it was just dark completely and utterly dark only she knew what was coming she knew...knew that after the darkness ...was death.

***

Eve jolted awake in her tangled sheets. She was sweating and trying to take deep breaths. Her roommates were kind and always asked if they could help but she hated waking them she hated being a bother so she had moved out of her dorm room, well for sleeping anyway and found an empty closet where she curled up and could scream to her her hearts content a sound barrier on the walls so no one thought there was anything wrong. But there was something wrong, something very wrong everytime she closed her eyes to sleep.

She wondered why she tried sleeping on her own at all, some nights she could get through but sleep would be rough and she'd wake up with bags under her eyes an obvious indication that she hadn't slept well, but most nights she caved to temptation.

Temptation was sneaking out of the girl's dorm and into the boys tiptoing to the twins room and climbing into bed with Josh. She hated to bug him, she knew that he was asleep and that everytime she did this she was probably waking him up, but tonight it was bad, she had nearly the full nightmare instead of just flashes and images. She knew she wouldn't get back to sleep at all at this rate.

Still she sat on her make shift bed and contemplated her relationship with Josh, where it was going, what was happening to the four of them. Between Viv and Lance and then...Josh and her...what was happening? He seemed so much more affectionate lately and she wasn't in anyway complaining, she just didn't understand it. It was almost as if he liked her...well in a romantic sort of way...but Eve wouldn't let herself believe that, it would be too disappointing if she turned out to be wrong. No, she wouldn't take Josh's subtle hints, it would have to be something bigger. She wondered what that something was as she knocked on the twins door once again standing awkwardly in the hall.

[Josh Jordan]

Josh laid awake in his bed, staring up at the dark ceiling. Where did he and Eve stand? She seemed to respond to his hints, but she had always responded to him no matter what he did. At the ball he was going to pull off something big. Something that required a lot of courage and just a few words.

He heard a knock on the door and knew automatically who it was. Josh climbed out of bed and went the door as Lance was still in a deep slumber. He was probably dreaming about Genevieve and the thought nearly sent him laughing, but he hid it. He knew that he was just in his boxers and a t-shirt, but Eve had seen him like this several times and it didn't bother him at all. Opening up the door he saw her on the other side. Josh automatically knew that she had a nightmare.

"Come on in," he whispered. Josh held out his hand for her to grab so he could lead her into the darkness of his room so that he could keep her protected.

[Eve Mallory]

Eve, though contrite enough to follow like a zombie, did something she didn't do ever before in this situation she clasped her arms around his waist in a tight hold and shivered her tremors out of her. She hated going to him weak, over anything, her mother, her father...though she hadn't told Josh about him yet still she wished when she did go to him it was with a smile and laughter something that he could enjoy being embraced with.

It had been years since her first nightmare but she kept having them, and she never once explained to Josh what they were, he might have asked once or twice but he didn't push and she appreciated it, but now, perhaps it was time to tell him.

"Could you come with me...?" she whispered still seeing Lance where he was asleep, she sniffled a little looking at him and then back at Josh really hoping she wasn't interrupting even though she knew all of this had to be troublesome.

[Josh Jordan]

As Eve latched her arms around his waist, Josh put his arm around her. He knew that she had another nightmare, and he was going to help it not come back for the night. He was happy that she would come to him because it made him feel like he could chase all the bad things away for her.

"Of course I'll go with you. Let me grab a pair of pajama pants. I'm sure not just anyone wants to see me in my boxers. Take a step inside with me so I can grab them and put them on. Nothing in here is going to get you. I promise." He took one step inside his room and grabbed the pair of pants that were on the chair. After sliding them on, he put his arm around Eve again and led her out the door, shutting it softly behind them.

"Where are we headed? The common room?"

[Eve Mallory]

Eve wrapped her arms around herself and waited for him to dress. While she was pretty sure no girl in Hufflepuff would mind the view she was treated to she was glad he covered himself, that was some jealous pitch in Eve, that she didn't want to examine.

" Think we can sneak to the astronomy tower?" she asked. She knew some kids went there after dark to make out but it was late enough she was hoping that they could be alone. Something about the stars was soothing.

[Josh Jordan]

"Of course we can. I don't think anyone would be up right now anyway," he said. Josh would go anywhere for Eve and if it involved traveling through the school at night, then so be it.

"By the way, you didn't wake me up. I was already awake, I couldn't really sleep." He figured that he would go ahead and mention that before she started to apologize that she woke him up. It was ironic that he was thinking about her just before she happened to knock on his door.

With his arm wrapped firmly around her, Josh led them both the the Astronomy Tower. "You okay?"

[Eve Mallory]

She shook her head no when he asked and she had followed him up the stairs pretty much like a zombie, but for once she wasn't wearing her excessive robes. She often forgot when she was sleeping because she had a huge blanket she often wore little to sleep in consisting mainly of a tanktop and shorts, she was smart enough this time to bring a robe but it cut at the knee and was made of some extremely soft material.

" I don't think I am okay Josh..." she said in rush of breath, " I don't think I've been okay for a long time."

[Josh Jordan]

He looked down at her with a frown. Josh was going to have to make her feel okay and be okay. He couldn't have her being down. It seemed like whatever Eve was feeling, he sort of did too in a way.

Reaching the Astronomy Tower he pulled her to him. "I'm here now. You'll be okay," he said in a whisper. "I'll make sure of that." He kissed her head and walked over to a nice spot. Josh sat down and gently pulled her into his lap. "Do you want to talk about it?"

[Eve Mallory]

"I do." she said nodding and letting him pull her around, " I finally want to...to talk about it." she said firmly as if making her mind up then and there but her gut quivered, she didn't want Josh to see her in another life, didn't exactly want him to know the truth so when she looked up and found his eyes she asked a question that had nothing to do with her nightmares, " Why are you always here for me Josh?"

[Josh Jordan]

Josh didn't push the answers from her. He believed in letting her take her time. She would tell him on her own accord. Anything that she had to tell him, he would not look at her any differently. She would always be his Eve no matter what.

"I'm always here because," he stopped. Why was he always there? He never stopped to ask himself that. "because you need me and I like being here for you. I like being the one who helps chase away all your nightmares and worries. I like being there to comfort you when you need it. I can't explain why. I just do."

[Eve Mallory]

She nodded and swallowed, " That...sort of makes you my hero doesn't it? My White Knight..." she whispered, funny how she had dreamed of a white knight for a long time and here he was perfectly sitting in her lap...well she was sitting in his but metaphorically speaking he was within arm's reach.

" I havn't been the same since you guys left for school." she admitted to him after a bit of silence. She had her head against his chest under his chin and had tucked herself sideways against him.

[Josh Jordan]

She considered him her White Knight. That made him feel better about himself, and made him feel better about telling her how he felt. But tonight was not a night of that. Tonight was a night for her to just talk about what she needed. He would always be willing to listen.

Josh put his arms around her waist as she sat in his lap, and rested his chin on her head. "If you don't mind me asking, why haven't you been the same since we left for school?" Josh immediately thought that he had something to do with the way she was feeling. He hoped that he wasn't the main cause of it, because he never wanted to hurt her.

[Eve Mallory]

"I missed you." she answered honestly, "It wasn't the same...being apart for so long. I wasn't the same. " she nuzzled her nose against him " I missed everything we used to do together, you and Lance...you were the first people I saw in the morning and the last I saw at Night. We had something then....like we alll shared a part of the same soul and when you two left, it was two thirds of my soul being ripped away." she finally looked up at him.

"Oh Josh, don't feel guilty, don't. Please don't, that's not what I wanted to tell you...I knew you and Lance had to leave, of course you did, none of this is your fault...if anything you're the only thing that gets me through the night...please don't feel guilty."

[Josh Jordan]

"I missed you too Eva. It was hard for me to adjust really. It wasn't the same, I admit that." He looked down at her as she did him. "I'm okay. Really. You're here know and things are sort of like they used to be. That is all that matters. And you know, the first couple of nights I was at Hogwarts, I cried? I cried because you weren't here. You're like my other third, I guess you would say." He managed to give her a smile.

[Eve Mallory]

She felt better that he wasn't blaming himself, and when he mentioned the first couple of nights crying she laughed a little since he was trying to make her feel better, but she was so close to tears herself. Cried the first couple of days? No, she had cried every night before she found oblivion in sleep. Finally she shook herself out of the silence, it would have been easy to end it like that and just rest against him but she had more to say. She had a story she had to tell somebody and Josh was her somebody.

"I cried." she said, " I cried and couldn't get to sleep the first few nights without you guys. My father didn't think it was normal and wanted to take me to the doctors. How a ten year old could carry such grief was beyond him...but my mama knew... she knew that I was hurting since you guys weren't there, and she tried...she tried to fill that void herself."

[Josh Jordan]

Josh frowned. He didn't know that his and Lance's leaving caused such an impact on her. If his parents would have let him, he would have waited a year so he could have stayed with Eve.

"I am so sorry Eva," said Josh in a whisper. "I didn't know. If I would have I would have tried to hide out in your house until the next year when school started. Honestly I would have tried." He kissed her cheek in an apologic way. "I should have written more to you. Even though you couldn't read my handwriting that great, nor could anyone, but still." Josh buried half his face in her hair since it was down. He brought his head back up and looked at her before pushing her hair gently behind her ear.

[Eve Mallory]

"It wasn't your fault." she emphasized again. Then he kissed her...again

Eve could curse at how often he was kissing her these days and if she wasn't so upset with what she was telling him, she was in a mood to tell him to either kiss her for real or stop teasing her. Still she let it pass with a deep sigh, " Mama started doing things...little things she'd bake me a pie...pies that we used to eat together...she tried playing the games we used to play." at that her breath hitched and her hand fisted in Josh's shirt.

"We were playing hide and seek when...when it happened."

[Josh Jordan]

He raised an eyebrow. Josh didn't mind that she had a hold of his shirt. She could tear it for all he cared. But what he did care about was the expression on her face and then way her voice started to change. Josh swallowed and tightened his grip on her gently. He was going to prepare himself if she started to cry.

"What happened Eva?"

[Eve Mallory]

" Mama had looked out the window...then she said that we should play hide and seek...I..I wanted to play hide and seek with you guys...I missed that...but mama wanted me to play with her. So I did. She told me I had to be very quiet or she was going to find me and she wasn't supposed to find me. I went to hide..." she said gasping a little as the vision played over her eyes, " I went to hide because mama was coming...she was going to find me...and I wasn't going to say anything...I wasn't supposed to say anything. I didn't know where to hide so I went to her room...mama had a chest." she whispered, " It was beautiful mahagony ...so pretty and big enough for me to climb inside. It was empty...I...I crawled in and pulled the top down...it was so dark."

[Josh Jordan]

Josh knew that Eve was afraid of the dark. He never picked on her about it. The only people that knew about that was him and Lance. He would never tell anyone of it.

He began to run his fingers through her hair. Her hair was soft as ever and it ran across his skin like silk. Josh still was not certain what was about to happen, but he hung onto ever word she said. "What happened next?"