He still has them.

Nightmares.

They don't come in any particular pattern, but on the nights that he does have them, we're both completely unprepared.

I'll be woken by a strangled scream, thrashes, sometimes even whimpering or accompanied by tears.

I wake him up, assure him that it was just a dream, even though I know he's reliving past experiences.

Tonight was no different. I was woken by almost being pushed off the bed and the small scream, the small scream with his voice cracking at the end.

"Nezumi…"

It pains me to see him like this. To see someone as strong as him, breaking down like this. I always remind him that he has weaknesses because he's human like the rest of us, but somewhere along the line, I forgot about it instead.

I crawled over to him and shook him gently, trying to stop the tears from flowing down his cheeks. I don't want to see him in any more pain. I don't want to see him cry ever again.

"Nezumi, it's okay, it's just me, Shion," I told him, still trying to make myself heard over the whimpers. Tonight must be a bad one.

Then he woke up, his eyes flying open, and once he realized where he was, he let out a huge breath that neither of us knew he was holding. He sat up, wiped his eyes on his sleeve, and stood up.

"I'm going for a walk."

His voice was quiet, but firm.

"Nezumi-"

"No. You can't come with."

"But-"

"I said no!"

I stood up and wrapped my arms around him, hugging him tightly and looking up at him.

"You know that I'm here for you if you need to talk about anything, right Nezumi?"

"... Yeah."

Even though his eyes were smiling slightly they were still panicked and puffy from the tears. I leaned up and kissed him gently.

"That better not've been a goodbye kiss, Shion."

"No," I replied. "It was a comfort kiss.

"Thank you." He smiled briefly and separated himself from me.

"Come home soon," I gave him a worried smile and waited until he was out the door. Then I got back into bed, sitting up with the covers held around me and waited stubbornly for his return.

I think I fell asleep, though, because the next thing I remember is Nezumi climbing in next to me and kissing my forehead, then us falling back asleep, in perfect harmony once again.