"Dreams can be such dangerous things: they smother on like a fire does, and sometimes they consume us completely.

~ Arthur Golden

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Alice's P.O.V

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"Are you done yet?" I hear a voice ask impatiently.
"Stop rushing me," another voice snaps.
"You're Will freaking Robertson!" Lewis whisper-yells. "You're the best at codes and lock picking."
"Well, I don't know if you noticed, but this is a very old fashioned safe. It's not one I can open under ten seconds."

I roll my eyes at their petty argument, deciding that I should wait until they've managed to open the safe before I walk into the room to confront them.
Lewis continues to rush him. "Then figure it out. I have to talk to Jo."
"Don't you think I'm trying my best?" Will asks. "I need my daily dose of caffeine in the morning or I won't be able to function."

"We have other things to worry about other than your caffeine withdrawal."
Will mutters a colourful curse under his breath.
"I'd say the same to you," Lewis replies.
They both stop bickering at the sound of someone walking down the stairs.

"Hurry up, that might be Alice!"
"I'm trying, damn it!"
"Well, try harder."
"You try figuring out what combination it is while under pressure."
"How hard could it possibly be?"
"Very hard," Will tells him. "There are approximately 90000 different combos for a five digit code. You can't figure it all out in two min-"

A solid click sounds in the air as the lock to the safe door opens.
"So much for there's 90000 different combos," Lewis says, mocking Will's voice.
"I can't believe I didn't guess this combination earlier."
"Why?" Lewis asks. "What was it?"
"13-7-9-3. She used a Cipher code."
"Well, what does that mean?" Lewis asks.

I choose that exact moment to walk into the room.
"Good morning, boys," I greet, making myself known to the duo.
Will fumbles with the lock as Lewis tries to distract me.
"Oh- hey, Alice," Lewis replies, trying to use his body to shield Will from my gaze.
"Hello, Lewis." I lean to the side to see Will. "Hi, Will."

Will stops trying to close the safe door, stepping out from behind his parabatai. "Hi, Alice."
"So, what you boys doing on this fine morning?" I ask, leaning against the door frame.
"Nothing," Lewis answers, pretending to act causal.
I raise my eyebrows. "Will?"
"I give up. Here," he says, handing me his Starbucks card.

Lewis shake his head as I walk over to the two of them. I take Will's Starbucks card from him then turn to face Lewis. I hold my hand out towards him expectantly, placing my hand on my hip. Lewis sighs before reaching into his pocket and handing me his phone.
He turns to face his parabatai. "Will you have a terrible poker face."
"I know, I'm sorry."

"You guys are gonna have to work on that if you ever want to get past me," I say.
"What's the point?" Lewis asks. "Your basically psychic."
"Just because I know you well to know when you're lying it doesn't make me psychic."
"It does when you're always right," Lewis counters.

Will rolls his eyes, walking past us. "Well, you guys have fun discussing this pointless argument I'll be back in two hours, so tell me who won."
"Wait, where are you going?" I ask.
"Nowhere, just don't be alarmed if I'm back late," he replies before walking out the front door.
I glance at Lewis. "Is it just me or has Will been acting strange recently?"

He nods. "Yeah, do you think it's because of Tia?"
"I don't know," I say, shaking my head. "But whatever it is, it doesn't seem to be bad."
"We'll see, we still have three more weeks here to find out what it is."
I hum in agreement. "Okay, you've got to get out now. I'm going to change the password."

"Hey, just out of curiosity, what does 13-7-9-3 stand for?" Lewis asks, stopping by the door.
"Why, magic, of course."

****

"Where's Will?" Ray asks. "I didn't see him in the house."
"He left earlier this morning before you guys woke up," I reply.
I glance up at the sound of Cassie calling me.
"Mummy! Mummy! Look what I found!" he whisper-yells excitedly as he runs towards us with a book in his little hands.

"What'd you find, Cas?" I ask, kneeling down.
"Read the title," he says, handing the leather bound book to me.
I smile at him before glancing at the old book. It's cover may be faded and worn due to it's old age but the words are still readable. I look at Cassie's smiling face again before read the title of the book aloud.
"Peter Pan."

"He's really cool," Cassie says.
Ray shoots me a nervous look at Classiest statement.
"Um, Cas, has Peter Pan been visiting you in your sleep again?" I ask.
He nods. "Uh-huh."
"Does he say anything to you?" Ray asks.
"He just talks to me and tells me that I'm not alone," Cassie replies, taking the old book from me.

"He doesn't scare you?" I ask.
Cassie shakes his head and looks at me as if just said something impossible. "He's really nice. He tells me stories about how you guys met."
"He tells you about how Ray and I met?"
"No, not daddy. Peter Pan."
"Cas, could you do something for me?" I ask nicely. "Could you try not to talk to Peter Pan if he visits you in your sleep next time?"

"Why?"
"Because I don't want you to talk to him," I say. "Can you do that for me, Cas?"
Cassie nods obediently. "Okay, mommy."
I smile, ruffling his hair. "Now go find your brothers. Tell them we're leaving soon."

Cassie clutches the book in his hands before running back in the direction he came from.

I sigh, standing up. "Should I be worried?"
"About Cassie?" he asks. "No, I wouldn't be."
"Why?"
Ray places the book back in the shelf. "Cassie's still young and he loves reading. His imagination could've created Peter Pan through what you told us about you."
"So you're saying that Cassie and I might've imagined Peter Pan?"

"You are kinda sleep deprived," Ray points out. "I'm joking," he says when I cast him a look. "I'm just saying that Cassie can a wild imagination sometimes."
"Well, I guess we'll never know if this "Peter Pan" is real or not," I say. "Speaking of dreams, we have to go back soon, it's almost time for Cassie's afternoon nap."

"Do you want me to keep you company?" he asks. "I could bring the twins to the park later."

I shake my head. "No, it alright. I'll stay with him. Emma Carstairs will keep me company while he's sleeping. Plus Asa and Isaac were really looking forward to checking out the skate park."

"Okay, could hand this to Cassie later? Tell him it's a gift from daddy," Ray says, handing me a white plastic bag. "You can open it first if you like."

I stick my hand in the bag, feeling something soft. My eyes widen when I see what's inside.
"Ray, it's beautiful," I say, holding the dream catcher up. "Cassie'll love it."

"That's what I thought when I saw it in the store," Ray says. "You can tell him the legend behind the dream catcher before he goes to sleep."
"I will," I say, placing the dream catcher back into its bag as Cassie and the twins approach us.

"Come on, Cas," I say, extending my hand out for Cassie to hold. "Let's head back to the rental house."
"What about us?" Isaac asks.

"Dad's gonna take you boys to the skate park," I say as we walk out the door.
"Come on boys, let's grab your skateboards from the van," Ray says, leading the boys towards the parking lot.

I wrap my hands around Cassie's waist, lifting off the ground and onto my hip. "Someone's sleepy."

"Mummy, where's uncle Lewis?" Cassie asks, rubbing his eyes.
"He's still using the payphone to call aunty Jo," I say.
"Mummy?"

"Yes, Cas?" I ask as the two of us cross the road.
"The crazy boy from yesterday is following us," he tells me, peering over my shoulder.

"Just ignore him, Cas. If we pretend that we don't see him, he might not approach us."
Hopefully, I add mentally.
Unfortunately for us, that was not the case as I soon hear the boy from last night call my name.
"Alice!"
I sigh as he catches up with us. "Hello, Henry. What can I do for you?"

"I found the book," he says, holding a leather bound book with the words "Once Upon A Time" written in gold letters on the cover for me to see.

"I see," I state, not stopping for him to catch up with me.
"Just take a look at Peter Pan's story and you'll understand why he's been trying to reach out to you," Henry tells me.

I stop in my tracks when he says that. "How'd you know he's been trying to contact me?" I shake my head, willing myself to continue walking. "Never mind, you probably overheard my friends talking about it."
"No, I didn't," he assures me. "It's right here in the book."
I mentally roll my eyes. "Listen, Henry, this is fascinating and all, but I have to go now."

"But-"
I walk off before he can finish his sentence.
That boy needs serious help.

****

"Ready for your nap?" I ask, placing the toddler on his bed.
Cassie nods, yawning as I pull the covers up to his shoulders.
"What's in the bag, mummy?" Cassie asks, pointing at the plastic bag on top of the wooden dresser.
"Oh, I almost forgot," I say, picking the bag up. "It's something daddy brought for you."
"What's that?" Cassie asks, pulling the dream catcher out from the bag.

"It's called a Dream Catcher. Do you wanna hear the legend behind it?" I ask.
He nods excitedly. "Yes please."
I smile, ruffling his hair up. "Dream catchers originated from Native America. They are known to protect people from bad dreams while letting the good dreams come through. The good dreams go through the hole in the center of the dream catcher and then glide down through the bead and feathers to the person sleeping below."

Cassie giggles when the feathers brush across his nose. "It's ticklish."
"You're supposed to hang it over you, Cas," I say, smiling at the laughing toddler.
"Can you hwelp me, mummy?" Cassie asks, yawning.
"Of course," I reply, pulling a chair over to hang the dream catcher over Cassie's bed.
"There," I say, stepping of the chair. "Now you'll be able to have sweet dreams."

"Tell daddy I said thank you," Cassie says as he rests on his pillow.
"Will do, Cas. Sweet dreams."
"I luve you mommy," Cassie mumbles almost incoherently.
"Love you, too, Cas," I reply, kissing him on the forehead.
I glance back at his sleeping form before closing the door.
I hear someone clear their throat as I exit the room. "A dream catcher? Really Alice?"

"Hello to you, too, Jerome." I nod my head in greeting as I walk past the blonde boys. "Hunter."
"You guys might as well tell him that Peter Pan is someone who terrorizes people and that he shouldn't talk to him," Hunter says, following me down the stairs.
"And ruin his imagination? I'd never do that to him."
"Well, he's still young, we can afford to let him have imaginary friends for now," Jerome says.

Hunter rolls his eyes. "You're just saying that because you had one when you were younger."
I turn to look at Jerome. "Really? You never told me that."
Hunter nods. "Uh huh, he was a dragon."
"Shut up," Jerome grumbles.
"I believe his name was Michael," Hunter continues, his smirk broadening at the embarrassed look on his brother's face.

"I was three years old, give me a break."
But Hunter carries on as if Jerome hadn't spoken. "He used sing this song he made up. What was it...?"
"Hunter," Jerome growls warningly.
Hunter snaps his fingers as realization washes over him. "Oh, I remember. It was, Michael the magical dragon. He's made of fluff and was my birthday present."

"And if you asked him nicely, he'd-"
"If you finish that sentence I swear I'll shove Alice's sword so far up your ass that you'll be tasting metal for weeks," Jerome threatens.
"Okay, okay," Hunter says, raising his hands in surrender.
Jerome rolls his eyes muttering something under his breath.
"-He'd give you a tasty present!" Hunter finishes before running off.

"I'm gonna kill you!" Jerome screams, storming out the room after his older brother.
I watch as Jerome chases his brother. "That doesn't even rhyme."
"I was three!" Jerome yells agitated, not stopping to continue our conversation.
I cover my mouth with my hand, stifling a laugh.

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I don't know about you guys, but I love Alice's relationship with the Bloodlust Trio here. It's gonna be really hard for all of them (and for me) when they get their memories back. Anyway, like I said before, I like to keep the emotions in my book balanced so prepare yourself for another sad chapter as the next chapter will be in Peter's P.O.V

Hope you guys are ready for the feels trip in this book bc it's gonna be a hell of a ride, if you know what I mean 😉😏 (pun intended) Well, that's all for this A/N, I'm gonna watch Supernatural with my cousin for the first time ever. Bye, guys.

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Are you homophobic? If you are then I apologize for nothing - everyone else, get ready for that LGBTQIA+ shit *hint hint*

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Should I make imagines like this more often?

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Vote, comment, rate, do whatever you want <3

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