Prologue

The rain pitter pattered heavily on the forest. A lone girl sat at the mouth of the den she and her companion had been staying for quite some time.

*KRIKK-THOOM!*

She flinched at the loud bang of the thundering clouds and the flash of lighting. There were times it reminded her of the storm she had flew into before waking up in...that place.

She could still remember it all clearly, all those twisted adults, all those "dolls", that snobby "princess", and...

That girl, Six was it? Yeah, That's the name. She could still remember the proud smile on her face when she pushed that boulder over the psycho-girl, then the face of horror when she and that psycho-girl started falling to the water below her.

She could remember Six's arm stretched out uselessly on the cliff's ridge in desperation as if it would magically save the girl who helped her. But it didn't.

She remembered watching it all as the fog soon engulfed her and the psycho-girl.

Everything was flashing before her eyes as the crazy princess starts falling closer to her. Those eyes were focused on her than what is happening around them, filled with mindless rage and inhuman gaze. It was a terrifying sight, much like falling off a cliff, and the girl's hands were at least inches from her face...

Then everything went dark.

Another thundering bang made her jump in fright. After calming her heartbeat, she inwardly cursed and brought her head down to her hands in frustration, her brown hair drooping over. She hadn't had a phobia other than the abominations out there, but she began to have a big dislike against thunder storms.

She heard soft, heavy crunching of footsteps behind her but she wasn't unfazed by it, not anymore at least. She's used to her companion and savior's presence, something she had been living with for the passed few days. The girl felt him crouching to her right, sensing him laying there and staring out of the cave with his long tail going behind her and resting lazily on her left.

She didn't mind after all. Between all the monstrosities she had encountered, he's much more...civil to put it despite being less...human and more...beastly-like in appearance. It was odd, sure, but he's the only friend she had trusted since. There weren't any other kids her age around where she had lived. Used to that is. It had always been survival, whether every man (or kid) for themselves or as a group.

She turned her head to her right and up. Back then, she was very terrified of him, having to run away screaming the moment she opened her eyes and saw his closed-up face (and his five eyes) the first thing when she woke up. The first scary part of that first day was that her friend was fast.

Very, very fast.

One moment she thought she could escape the moment she saw the mouth of the cave, the next she came face first to a wall of black fur. Her mouth was open in a smile so she got a taste of it.

"Blegh," She couldn't help but scrunch her face in disgust. She can still imagine the taste even if that was a long time ago.

A rumble was directed to her. She looked at him, the farthest eye looking to her questioningly while the rest remains staring out at the rain.

"It's nothing, just thinking back to...our first meeting," she said, looking away and lowering her head in embarrassment.

A deep grumble that sound oddly like chuckling came from her companion. She glared up at him then looks away with a huff and a pout.

A harsh, cold wind breezed at them. She shivered and embraced her arms around herself, rubbing her hands on her forearms and tucking her knees in. Another thing she reminisce is her yellow raincoat, which she somehow lost when she came unconscious. All she wears now are a pair of white no-sleeve shirt and short.

A familiarly big, black-furred arm gently pulled her near the beast as both arms made a perimeter around her like she was a wolf pup under the protection of their guardian.

She snorted at that thought. For one thing, protective is an understatement. She couldn't begin how much of a mama bear the fur-ball is. Though he is more of a brother than a mother to her. If there were ever a ranking of most protective creature in the planet, this guy would most likely be on the top of the leaderboard. He would obliterate EVERYTHING in his path just to protect her.

And she isn't joking.

A thunder clap made her jerked back in shock. This one came out louder than the rest. She had faced against many monsters, escaped deathly situations, and stared into the eyes of certain death. Yet here she was, getting afraid over thunder storms. Something as simple as a harsh weather became something she feared.

Fear. That is all this world is about. Abominations made by children's nightmares, monsters and demons coming from the darkest of corners and blackest of shadows, and places that looks like a living horror story situation, which is terrifyingly and accurately true. Fear is all there is in this world.

Something large rested next to her and she looked over. She smiled at the head resting beside her, eyes looking to her. Even after all she had been through, she felt at ease around this black beast of her friend, she felt...safe.

A yawn broke out from her. She could feel herself about to drift as her eyes starts to droop. Finally, her head rested against her companion's black, warm fur and had fallen asleep soon after.

He watched her slumber peacefully against him, something of an accomplishment he had felt proud of. In a world like this, he could imagine kids having severe insomnia and restless sleeps on a daily basis, rarely getting a proper sleep even for one night. He had some experiences with it the first few days she was with him. Now, his new goal is to at least ease her from thunder storms.

He looked up at the raging sky, eyes narrowed to slits in defiance of this world's own order. He swear, in the bottom of his heart, in the pit of his soul, in every bit of his essence, he will break this curse and free the children from this cycle of nightmares.

With that settled, he rested his head and wrapped his tail around the little girl.

Thunder cracked in the sky, but they just slept through it without a care.