Crazy For Her Part 1

"No! 25!"

16 shot up on the bed, gasping heavily and covered in sweat. The room was dark and sliced in half with milky moonlight. Beside her, 21 groaned softly and turned on the light. "Darling, what happened?" He asked, sitting up and pulling a blanket over his wife's shoulder. She whimpered and clung to the blanket like a life preserver. Despite the warm temperature, 16 was shaking violently. 21 stared at her in concern. She had never looked this shaken before, not even when they were facing a beast.

"Hey," he said gently, scooting closer to her, "what's wrong?"
16, desperate for any sort of affection, cried out and clung to him, burying her face in his chest. 21 stiffened at the sudden outburst, but he brushed his surprise; 16 needed his comfort. He edged closer to her and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. He could make out silent sobs, felt his chest wetten, and her shoulders shaking. As much as he wanted to ask her what was wrong, 21 held his tongue.

It was almost half an hour later that 16's sobs began to subside, and her shoulders had stopped shaking. He stroked the back of her head and said, "16, please. What did you dream about?" 16 shook her head violently, never letting go of his chest. "N-no...I...I-I don't want to r-relive it." She whimpered. 21 closed his eyes and gently pried her off him. She hung her head, still shaking. A pang of remorse sliced him in the chest. 21 put a finger under her chin and pushed her face towards him, gently brushing her tear-stained face.

"Darling, believe me. You'll feel a lot better once you get it off your chest."
16 sniffed before nodding, pulling back a little and wiping her eyes. 21 leaned against his pillow as his wife began,

"Well, we were all in the library, and everything was fine...but suddenly, the Rebel leader ran in, all bloody and gory. He couldn't speak, but he kept pointing at the door, desperately trying to tell us something. But then, the...the door was ripped off its hinges. Suddenly, we were surrounded by monsters, and 25 was leading them. He c-cackled and pointed at us. The b-beasts began to scuttle towards us, and 19 yelled at us to move. 23 was the slowest, so she was c-caught first. A wolf-beast c-caught her and...and..."

16 cried out and hid her face face in her hands, tears dripping from her eyes and splattering on the sheets. 21 gasped quietly and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her comfortingly. 16 squeezed back and inhaled shakily before continuing,

"...it r-ripped her in two. Oh, 21, it was horrible!" She cried. 21 kissed her forehead and whispered, "It's alright sweetheart, continue whenever you want." 16 nodded and continued,

"Then, 20 yelled that we had t-to keep goin'...but as we passed the big globe, a cat-beast sprang through it and grabbed 19. 20 t-tried to go save him, but he told us to k-keep runnin'. Then, the beast j-jammed a claw in his stomach a-and...pulled out his internal f-functions. Then, we were almost there, but the w-winged beast grabbed 20 and 22 and...and they..."

21 closed his eyes, preparing himself for his companions' nightmared fates.

"...they vanished. Finally, it was just you and m-me. You picked me up and ran for the window, but 25 grabbed your foot. We fell, and as I was getting up, I saw him bring his claw down on...on your..." 16 broke into sobs and 21 said nothing, not sure what to say. He wiped the tears best he could as she continued, "a-and next thing I knew, I was all alone...I had to face 25 all alone, and T-21...you...you were..."

The sobs increased.
21 hushed her and put a finger on her lips. "It's alright, 16. We're all still here. You'll never be alone..." He said soothingly. When 16's wails only increased in volume, 21 surpressed a sigh. That dream, unrealistic as it seemed, had rattled her. What could he do to calm her down?

Idea!

He snuggled closer to her and hummed softly in her hearing sensor. Her sobs subsided a little, and he took courage in this. He began to softly sing her favourite song,

"You're a carousel, you're a getaway car you're the line in the sand when I go too far."

16 sniffed and sighed.

"You're the swimmin' pool on an August day, and you're the perfect thing to say."

16 stopped crying and wiped her eyes.
She hugged him tightly, and 21 smiled and kissed her forehead. "Feel better?" He asked. She nodded and hugged him even tighter. He could make out a muffled, 'Mm-hmm'. Then, she pulled back and looked at him pleadingly and said, "Please don't leave me, 21. Please, I love you so much..." 21 put a finger on her lips to silence her, then pressed his lips gently on hers. She sobbed against his lips and kissed him back. His lips trailed to her hearing sensor, and he whispered, "You will never be alone, my love."

She sighed, then fell on his chest. 21 was surprised at this...only to hear her steady breathing. He smiled at this and gently pried her off him, laying her on the bed and pulling the sheets over her sleeping form. "Goodnight, my love..." He whispered, his eyes never leaving her face as he turned the light off.
He lay down to sleep.

As he closed his eyes, a figure outside shifted closer to their room. It was a male doll, burlap with red canvas patches, and he clicked his sharp copper fingers as he watched 16. She wasn't plain and ugly like 20, nor was she small and quiet like 23. She was...very good looking.

25 chuckled darkly. Yes, she was the fairest of them all, and she didn't deserve such a softie like 21. She deserved someone strong and ardy, not to mention handsome.

"Yeah," he said to himself, "she is SO mine."