5 - Dream, Again

After working out the details of reiryoku storage, Rumi started to think about her next steps. Firstly, she needed to come up with a pre-sleep ritual to fulfill the requirement of Guardian's Vigil.

'It could be anything..what should I make it?' Rumi thought to herself. She wanted to make a pre-sleep ritual that is simple, easy to follow everyday but at the same time, she didn't want it to be like a boring chore she had to complete everyday.

What if she put a twist to it and make it fun?

And if the ritual was fun, was there any reason to feel like a chore?

"It's decided then. Let's come up with something fun!"

There're a lot of possible fun actions that she could make to be her pre-sleep ritual but then a thought hit her.

"What's better than a mantra praising my awesome self!" Rumi exclaimed as she got an idea.

It's a bit narcissistic, probably but Rumi didn't see much problem about it.

After all, why shouldn't she praise herself?

With her reasoning, Rumi worked out her new pre-sleep ritual mantra.

"By the power of my unparalleled beauty and unmatched brains, I shall now rest my superior self."

Rumi chanted her mantra and nodded in satisfaction. It was catchy, rhythmic and most importantly, fun to say every time.

[Pre-sleep ritual registered. Please perform the pre-sleep ritual everytime before bed.]

Hearing System's voice, Rumi nodded excitedly, "Of course! haha. This is gonna be so much fun!"

"Alright, let's test this out."

After coming up with the ritual, Rumi decided to test it out. Since she still needed to sleep 7 hours, Rumi decided that it could be great to do it now. While the cave was still dangerous, she was familiar with this cave more than anywhere else right now and with her new passive skill, she was confident that she would be okay.

So, she chanted her ritual mantra.

"By the power of my unparalleled beauty and unmatched brains, I shall now rest my superior self."

With that, she laid down on the cave floor and drifted off to a deep, relaxing sleep.

---------------

Rumi didn't expect to find herself in the same amusement park from the last dream. She was now her child self excitedly running to her favorite rollercoaster ride, then got onto the ride and happily waved to her parents and friends, just like in the beginning of the last dream.

Then, the ride started, and as the rollercoaster got higher up in its trail as it moved forward, she found herself looking back at her parents and friends, but she found herself being barely able to see them.

Rumi felt the familiar feeling of ach in my chest as the ride continued ,and her parents and friends disappeared from her view bit by bit.

She wanted to cry again as she felt like she was being torn away from her precious people.

She was scared and it hurt in a way Rumi could feel her heart throbbing, yet, she didn't want the ride to stop this time.

If the ride stopped, would she see them again?

In a moment of hesitation, Rumi found herself in her old house, making dinner for herself, going to bed, then going to her tedious work until she came home again, looking rather like a robot than a human.

Rumi hated that life with every ounce of her being.

Yet, she saw herself repeating that same cycle again and again.

'Please stop it...' She muttered.

Then, she found herself back on the rollercoaster ride.

Rumi could feel the fresh breeze blowing onto her hair and face as the ride continued, and ascend.

The sky was blue, without any clouds as if to show her how broad the world was and how much there was to explore.

Rumi found herself looking back at where her parents and friends stood, then at the sky and the trail of the rollercoaster ride.

She closed her eyes for a moment and breathed in the fresh warm air, basked in the warm sunlight and the breeze on the ride. Then, she turned to look at her parents and friends, and smiled, before turning back and looked forward where the ride was going.

She wanted a change, instead of the repeating cycle of crying to stop the ride or the tedious cycle of life.

She wanted to change it all.

"Finally, Rumi..." She heard the same mysterious voice. It laughed as if it was finally happy, "Enjoy the ride."

-----------------

Upon waking up, Rumi opened her eyes slowly to see the familiar cave ceiling with stalagmites. It was still dark, as there was no sunlight in this part, so there was really no way to tell time by studying the surroundings.

But, Rumi's mind wasn't in telling time right now. She was so entranced in the dream she just had that she felt like she needed a moment to reflect on it.

It was the same dream she had earlier today, not exactly the same but it was kind of the same.

It started off with her heading to the fun amusement park, then getting onto the rollercoaster ride.

Rumi remembered she had always loved rollercoasters and thought it was the most fun experience one could have.

She recalled that in the previous dream, she cried for the ride to stop when she saw she was losing sight of those who were close to her.

And at her cries, the ride stopped and she had seen the scene changed into an abandoned amusement park.

But, this time, Rumi had stayed on the ride even if it hurt to let go of the fear of losing sight of them. She rememberered that she stayed on it and looked forward.

And, as a result, the repeating cycle of crying rollercoaster ride and abandoned amusement park was broken in this dream.

So, all she needed was to let go and move forward?

It made her feel more at ease and sense of control, yet, she couldn't help but feel there was something else she was missing.

"Enjoy the ride, Rumi."

After thinking and recalling for a while, Rumi remembered the mysterious voice.

It told her to enjoy the ride.

"Right, I kept saying I wanted to break free from the boring cycle, yet maybe..I was too scared to actually let go of my fear and move forward. I have always loved the thrilling fun ride at the amusement park, yet I had stopped it all since...since that day.." Rumi recalled, her memories flashing back to the day she went onto the rollercoaster ride as a child. She looked at her parents and waved to them before the ride took off.

That was the last time she had ever seen them...

And, that was the last day she had ever been on a fun rollercoaster ride or any other ride in an amusement park.

With an ache in her heart as she recalled the painful memory, Rumi started to realize that she had been the one to put a stop to all of the exciting, fun things she used to do.

She kept saying she hated the boring cycle, yet she was too scared to do anything else.

Maybe deep down, she thought that by not taking any risks, she wouldn't lose anything more.

Yet, she felt like she was losing a piece of herself everyday.

She had always thought it was the world's fault that she was stuck in this cycle and wished for it to end.

But, turned out it was her own fear that was locking her in place and robbing her of her own happiness and purpose.

It was funny yet it was like a joke Rumi couldn't laugh at. It was bitter in her mouth, just like the saying "Truth is bitter". Maybe she had kept blaming the world and others because it was easier that way than to confront herself.

Rumi felt that her chest kept tightening and there was this urge to just cry it all out.

Tears started to fall down her cheeks without even giving her a chance to control it, and Rumi found herself giving in.

It felt stupid to be crying like a baby, yet with all the tears and sobs being let out, she felt a weight on her chest was being lift off.

For the first time in years, she felt free.

"Enjoy the ride..." Rumi muttered again, but this time, she recalled the feeling of being on the rollercoaster ride when it reached the top.

"I will." She said.

At that moment, she felt that something had changed deep within her. Not that she could point out how exactly it was, but she felt like she was reborn again.