• Rumble, rumble. A loud thunder clap and someone screamed. Two small heads of blonde hair fumbled to find somewhere to hide under a sea of blue blankets, both scared beyond words. A little girl with snow white hair and light blue-silver eyes sat on the bed, her thumb in her mouth, tears on her eyes as she gripped the black stuffed rabbit in her arms; another thunder clap, followed by lightning and all three children tried to hide this time. Another white haired boy just focused on his blocks on the ground before him; a red-headed boy pretended not to hear though he too was frightened.
    The door to the room opened suddenly and a girl, much older than them, walked in; she wore a long white nightgown and her long black hair lay gently on her back and shoulders. All of the children looked at her and one of the two blondes, a little boy it seemed, with the most beautiful blue eyes, crawled out and latched onto her, "Okasan!"
    "Aw, my poor Mihael, what's wrong?" the girl said picking him up.
    "The thunder, Okasan," mumbled the other blonde, a girl with golden eyes, still hiding.
    The girl looked at the other children who all nodded, even the ones not trying to show their own fear. The storm spoke again though and she saw them all shake; she gave a soft smile and walked over to the big bed, sitting down with Mihael still sitting on her lap, "its just a storm, I promise you it can't hurt you, really."
    "but the lightning," said Mihael and the girl picked him up and set him on the bed, under the covers.
    "now Mihael, you're a brave boy, right? A little thunder and lightning can't scare you."
    He pouted then shook his head, "nuh-uh."
    "good," she said stroking his hair, "now Nate, Mail, get into bed; Hanayuki, Alex, get under the blankets. I'll sing you a lullaby to help you sleep, okay?"
    "okay Okasan!" Nate stopped playing with his blocks and the red-headed Mail got up, both fumbled to get up and into the bed; the blonde Alex and little Hanayuki got under the covers until there was a little line of children under the blankets. She started to sing;

    "Little child, be not afraid
    Though rain pounds harshly against the glass
    Like an unwanted stranger
    There is no danger
    I am here tonight.    "

    More thunder, more whimpering; Alex hid again but the black haired girl kept singing;

    "Little child, be not afraid
    Though thunder explodes and lightning flash
    Illuminates your tear-stained face
    I am here tonight.    "

    The little ones started to calm and Alex came out of hiding with a small yawn; her eyes started to flutter close. She snuggled close to Mihael and drifted off to slumber. The girl smiled but continued for her four other audience members;

    "And soon you will know
    That nature is so
    The same rain that draws you near me
    Falls on rivers and land
    On forest and sand
    Makes the beautiful world that you'll see
    In the morning.    "

    The thunder struck again and this time Nate gave a soft whimper; he was usually the calmest and least emotional of the group. The girl reached over and patted his head;

    "Little child, be not afraid
    Though storm clouds mask your beloved moon
    And its candlelight beams
    Still keep pleasant dreams
    I am here tonight.    "

    Nate rubbed his eyes like a sleepy child would then looked at her with droopy black eyes. They closed slowly and he cuddled close to Hanayuki as he like Alex fell asleep; the girl continued her song;

    "Little child, be not afraid
    Though wind makes creatures of our trees
    And their branches to hands
    They're not real understand
    And I am here tonight.    "

    Now Hanayuki looked scared as the storm persisted; she buried her head in the pillow for a moment. She too needed to be lulled asleep.

    "And soon you will know
    That nature is so
    The same rain that draws you near me
    Falls on rivers and land
    On forests and sand
    Makes the beautiful world that you'll see
    In the morning.    "

    Both she and Mail fell asleep, both drifting off beside their closest friends; Hanayuki with Nate, Mail with Mihael. Mihael watched the girl still, his beautiful blue eyes very slowly falling; she smiled and once more stroked his hair.

    "And you'll know, once even I was a

    Little child, and I was afraid
    But a gentle someone always came
    To dry all my tears
    Trade sweet sleep for fears
    And give a kiss goodnight.

    Well now I am grown
    And these years have shown
    That rain's a part of how life goes
    But its dark and its late
    So I'll hold you and wait
    Till your frightened eyes do close

    And I hope you'll know.....    "

    He finally drifted off and she stopped there, leaving the song unfinished. She kissed each little childs forehead and wished them goodnight before leaving the room and quietly closing the door.
    She walked silently down the hallway to her own room where the last boy, her age and not theirs, lay waiting; his messy black hair hid his closed eyes and he lay silently on his side.
    She smiled and got in beside him, kissing his forehead too before closing her eyes; two arms wrapped around her and a voice spoke, "finish the song."
    The girl blinked then nodded, "alright.

    That nature is so
    The same rain that draws you near me
    Falls on rivers and land
    On forests and sand
    Makes the beautiful world that you'll see
    In the morning
    Everything's fine in the morning
    The rain'll be gone in the morning....    "

    He smiled and kissed her gently on the lips to stop her, "good night Sabrina."
    "good night Lawliet," she said before drifting off, the last line drifting in her mind;



    But I'll still be here in the morning.