Just a dream.

His heart beat hit hard against his rib cage. Thump. Thump. Thump. He stumbled to an awkward stop at Nova’s approach, gold eyes still wild, watching her come near.

Just a dream.

He was awake now, wasn’t he? This cold biting at his flesh wasn’t imagined, was it? Nova, with concern written so clear on her face, she wasn’t imagined? She wasn’t going to disappear as a flurry of snowflakes the moment he allowed himself to relax, was she?

“Nephilim, what happened? Are you alright?”

Just a dream.

Nephilim relaxed and the effect was visibly obvious. His tight, wound muscles loosened, bunched shoulders pressed down. The anxious lines of his face became lax, the wild look in his eyes subsided. The energy which had been coiled within him from panic all but evaporated, leaving him exhausted. He exhaled in a cloud of white and stepped the last few steps to meet her, brushing his face against her neck until they were chest to chest. Muzzle lay on her shoulder; he breathed and trembled against her. “It’s okay,” he promised her once he could find his voice, “everything’s okay. You’re still here.”

Everything was silent. Nephilim could hear her heartbeat, hear Nova breathe. He could smell her, scent so thick there was no way this could still be a dream preparing to tear him, yet again, to pieces.

“It was just a dream.”

He remained close to her, half because he liked feeling her physically close and half because it hid his face. Nephilim hadn’t shown fear to anyone before, hadn’t had a reason to. He didn’t tell his mares how he worried they would one day walk from the Bay and leave him in solitude. Shame crept thick inside him, hand-in-hand with embarrassment, for how panicked he’d just behaved. He couldn’t show his herd, his children, that he feared something so meager. If he feared they would leave him, wouldn’t they think they should?

“I went to Crossing Isle earlier this morning and when I came back, my daughter told me a stallion had nearly stolen her mother away, but let her return to the herd and told my daughter he only wanted to talk to me. I went immediately to Atlantis… Nova… he’s a kid. Not even two years yet.” His voice tightened. Nephilim was still angry, even if he didn’t possess the energy to be as enraged as he wanted to be. “I wanted to beat him bloody for daring to touch my family, but… I couldn’t…” Nephilim trailed off and pulled his weight back, stepping from Nova so he could finally look her in the eyes. “I came back, the swims… they exhausted me. Too much in one day and the sea… the sea has grown angrier than it was this morning.” He trailed off, looked away from her and back again. “I’ve… I’ve always been afraid that I’m going to fail, I’m not going to be able to protect you, protect the herd, that I’m not… good enough.”

Those gold eyes dropped, pupils trained on the ground, on her hooves, not wanting to see her face if she was disgusted by his lack of bravado.