Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

Droplets of water splashed into a puddle near to a body

Shadows.

Flickering lights. The taste of ash.

He received blurred images, for he had just awoken. His semi-conscious mind could not comprehend the information he was receiving from his senses. His fingers twitched, scraping the floor. Dirt gathered underneath his fingernails as he pushed himself upright into a kneeling position.

Attempts to look around resulted in piercing pain and dizziness. He closed his eyes hurriedly. A hand went to his eyes to rub out the dizziness he experienced. The effects were minimal. He gave himself time for his brain to fully awaken, there was no point in him trying to move around when he didn't even know where he was.

It took less than five minutes before the boy felt able and comfortable enough to move around. His legs were numb. There had been too much pressure on his legs. He stretched his legs out and rubbed them with his grimy hands so his blood could circulate. The numbness did not fade completely but it subsided enough for him to stand up without his legs feeling weak.

The boy opened his eyes, finding himself in darkness. He walked with his arms outstretched, aiming to locate the walls of the room he supposed he was stuck inside of.

He soon figured out the size of the room. The walls were within ten steps of each other on each side. The boy used his hands in an endeavour to locate an exit. His efforts were futile as he could not find anything. He stopped his frantic scouring as it didn't yield any results.

Soon running out of things to do, the boy began to panic. The realisation that he had probably been kidnapped set in. His fists clenched.

Knowing the size of the room didn't help. He didn't do well in tiny enclosed spaces such as this one. His breathing was erratic, feeling his knees give way as he collapsed onto the floor. He didn't know how to escape. There seemed to be no exit. He had investigated the entire room. The boy had questions in his juvenile mind. Questions that would surprise even those who have matured.

He wondered who would ever throw him into a room with no exits. Were his kidnappers hoping for him to die of hunger? He doubted it. Why do that when they could kill him quickly? It didn't make sense to the boy. He could only continue to question the situation he found himself in to stave off the worry and panic he was sure would devour his thought processes.

He began to cry.

He didn't have any other coping mechanisms for situations such as this. Why would he? A young child such as him should never be subjected to such horrors. But alas, here he is, stuck in a dark room with no exits.

The boy did not bother retrieving himself off the floor. He didn't think it would be of any use. He decided it would be better for him to conserve as much energy as he could. He wasn't certain if he would ever receive any kind of food or water. His parched throat didn't allow him to form noises louder than groans and grunts. The boy did not force the issue on his dry throat.

Hours must have gone by after the boy had adjusted himself into a laying position. His once closed eyes opened to stare at the dark ceiling. He imagined the ceiling a sky, and his mind took over his imagination. He visualised thousands of stars littering the sky, lighting up his day. With all the darkness he had been subjected to, it was bound to brighten up his day slightly.

He smiled.

As he closed his eyes once more, his breathing evened out, until he was breathing no longer. The slow rhythmic heartbeats stopped.

He had fallen asleep.

A deep sleep he would never wake from.

-Line Break-

Nick's eyes opened suddenly, sitting upright as he gasped at the dream he just had. It was a recurring dream that came and disrupted his sleep every single night. Every night the dream seemed to go a little bit further. Nick's messy hair covered his eyes as he placed a hand on his chest, attempting to steady his breathing. 'I'm not sure if that is the last dream of the series. It certainly seems like it is the end.'

Once he judged his breathing regular, he pulled the blanket away from his body. He swivelled his body so that his legs were hanging over the bed. He placed his feet on the ground. Having both his feet on the ground allowed him to be sure he was no longer stuck in a dream.

Nick's hand went on a search for his spectacles which he left on the bedside drawer.

He massaged his temples before putting on his glasses. The difference in the clarity of his vision with and without his glasses was amazing. A low hum uttered from his throat. 'I'm still amazed how quick my vision has deteriorated. I'm certain I'll go blind at a younger age than even mum.' His attention was diverted by the beeping alarm which signified the start of his day. 'I guess I had a good sleep. At least I wasn't woken up in the middle of the night. It would have been a nightmare falling asleep afterwards. My brain is just too active for my liking, though I can't complain as it gives me so many good ideas for fanfictions.'

A few static stretches to rid himself of the kinks in his body. "Ah, just perfect." He moved from the bedroom and into the toilet. Nick had the need to relieve himself. 'Nothing like a good ol' piss in the morning to relax my nerves eh?' He continued to hum as the contents of his bladder was released. Shaking the body part off, he pulled his pants back up before washing his hands and face.

Nick had a very specific daily routine and he would not change it even if the world was ending. Rheum always dried on his face, irritating as it is, he made an excuse for him washing his face to wake himself up every day. 'I wonder what new Harry Potter fanfics there are today. I hope they aren't the low-quality ones.' Nick shuddered at the thought. 'I can't believe so many of these fanfic writers don't even bother checking their work. The grammar and spelling mistakes make me cringe every time.'

He shook his head in exasperation. 'I mean come on, there are programs online which at least help you with grammar. Something like Grammarly would do wonders for these fanfictions. I do have to admit my own standards for writing is absolutely low considering I read all these terrible fanfics in the first place.'

He squealed in delight as he saw multiple notifications on his phone, announcing the updates of several of his favourite fanfictions. 'I just can't stop myself from indulging. There are obviously jewels in the fanfiction community, it takes effort to find them though. But, it makes me think. There could be so many more of these so-called jewels if they bothered to check their work. Even if they didn't use something like a spell-checker or grammar-checker, a beta-reader would be in their best interests.' Sighing at the lost cause, he scrolled through his emails.

'Hm, there's a Harry Potter convention today?' Nick sunk into deep thought. 'My schedule can be cleared for the convention. I'm not going to miss something as big as a convention. I can miss a day of writing. It's not like I can't increase my writing speed for the next two days.' Nick nodded his head. "Yes! A convention I'm not going to miss. I wonder how much money I should bring? Wait... I should check what time the convention starts. I don't want to be going too early." He skimmed the email again, searching for the convention's details. "It starts at 12 P.m., I have plenty of time. It's only 6 A.m. Right, then I still have enough time to write. I'll finish my daily quota by the time it is 10 A.m." Nick cackled as he cracked his knuckles.

After drinking a glass of warm water, Nick had focused himself on the task of achieving his daily quota. He had forgotten the time as he lost himself in his writing.

The next time he looked at the time, it was already past 10 A.m. His eyes widened comically. "Oh my God! I'm already late. I need to shower and brush my teeth, and, and, and..." Nick trailed off as he smacked his head. "I don't think the convention will start immediately. I won't miss too much. Okay, calm down. I need to get something to eat after I shower. Should I cook something or should I just go to a local convenience store to get something to eat? What a hard decision to make. Cook a good meal or buy a snack worth less than ten pounds?" He tapped his chin in thought.

"Gah, I'll just buy a snack." Nick decided to buy the food. "I don't want to waste time. Time is scarce." Nick ran into the toilet with his clothes on, but ran back out to strip and grab a towel. "Right, can't forget the towel. Don't want to be dripping wet all over the floor." He finished his shower in record time. Nick brushed his teeth whilst washing his hair, it cut the time taken for cleaning up dramatically.

Rushing out of the toilet with a towel wrapped around his waist, Nick slammed the door to his bedroom open. He searched for appropriate clothes. He had no idea what to wear to a convention. It was the first time he had went to one. He never went to one before because he did not have the time. And now that he had the time to do so, he was going to make sure he experienced a convention properly. Nick grabbed his phone and googled for information. A few seconds later, he put his phone down in frustration.

"What do they mean when you can wear whatever you want? That doesn't help me!" He looked at his wardrobe, ranting as he did so. "I don't care anymore! I'll just wear a casual outfit. Nobody will judge me, right? I'll just say I ran out of time to get ready." Nick retrieved a pair of socks from a drawer and ran down to the living room. "Uh, what do I need. Keys, phone, wallet... yeah, that's everything." He poked his head into the kitchen to check if anything was on. "Nope, everything is off. I can leave the house with a light heart." Nick put on his socks before looking for his trainers. "Where did I put them?" He found them next to his dress shoes.

He closed the front door and locked it. Nick tested the door to make sure the door was locked properly. "Right, off we go!" Nick began his journey to a local convenience store on foot.

In his excitement to go to a convention, Nick's usual awareness for the traffic was less than stellar. He never noticed the sirens that blared in the distance.

His inattention to his surroundings led to a car crashing into him. How was he to know there was a car chase going on between a criminal and the police? Nick cursed as he watched the ground below him. "Fuck."

He was greeted with darkness when he landed on the ground.

-Author's Note-

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This fanfiction is written for entertainment purposes only and no money is earned from this. I do not claim any characters besides my Original Character, Corvus Tonks, as my own. They are the sole property of J.K Rowling, Marvel Comics and any others which have a claim.