004 - Dark

A storm raged through the night outside the Edelstein estate while those who lived there huddled safely beneath their covers. Among these residents were Adam and Christina, a pair of dark-haired, eight-year-old twins who could not sleep no matter how hard they tried. The low rumbles of thunder, the sound of raindrops pounding against the window, and the wind practically shaking the whole house kept them awake. To make matters worse, they knew that storms such as these often led to power outages, and nothing terrified either of them more than the dark. They both kept nightlights on in their bedrooms, but without electricity running to them, they would obviously be no good.

Christina, the braver of the twins, slid out of bed with her blanket draped over her shoulders. She decided to make her way towards her brother's bedroom in case the power did go out—then they would at least be together when it did, and they would both be a little less scared.

She began at a normal stroll towards her door, but then broke into a run upon reaching the dark hallway. She clutched onto the corners of her blanket as tight as she could and let the bottom of it trail along the wooden floorboards behind her.

"Adam? Are you awake?" She called out upon reaching the doorway to her brother's room.

"Ja"

"I'm scared that the power is going to go out."

"Me too."

Without hesitation, she made her way over to Adam's bed and crawled on top of it, dragging her blanket on top of both of them despite her twin already having one.

"We'll be safe if we stick together," she explained, "so I'm going to sleep here for tonight. At least until the storm is over."

"Okay."

For a few minutes both remained silent, each hoping that the power would stay on. They knew it would only be a matter of time, though, and the nightlight did eventually begin to flicker. The siblings grabbed onto each other's hand and held on tight, snuggling even closer together. For a moment the light went back to normal, but that only gave them false hope. Without a second warning, it shut off completely. Both gasped and pulled the blankets over their heads as quickly as possible, feeling that it would somehow help their situation.

"Now what do we do?" Adam asked.

"We stick together until it comes back on," Christina assured him, reminding him of their plan. She didn't want to admit that she was just as afraid as him.

"I hate the dark so much," he said. He was clearly on the verge of crying, which didn't help his sister feel any better. Even so, Christina tried her best to remain as calm as possible.

"Me too, but we'll be okay if we just stay like this."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

The two managed to calm down after a while, but couldn't help becoming startled every time thunder struck or lightning flashed. They desperately hoped for the storm to be over soon.

Although it showed no signs of slowing down, a little extra comfort did come to them eventually.

They breathed a small sigh of relief when they heard the stairs creaking under someone's weight, knowing that one of their parents was on their way.

"I think it's Mama," Adam said. "She doesn't walk as heavy as Papa does."

"I think so too," Christina agreed.

Sure enough, the Hungarian's voice soon came to them from somewhere down the hall.

"Christina? Where are you darling?" she called.

"I'm in here with Adam, Mama," the female twin called back. She peeked out from under the covers just in time to see the light of a candle appear in the doorway.

"I lit a candle nightlight for you, only to discover you weren't in your bed. How are you two holding up?"

"We've been hiding under the blanket," Adam informed her. Able to see the light through the fabric as his mother entered the room and placed the candle on a nearby shelf, he gained enough courage to poke his head out as well. He felt much better knowing that she was there.

"Were you now?" Elizaveta asked. "You know it's just as dark under there, silly."

"Yeah, but it feels safer somehow," Christina explained.

"I see, I see. Well, I'm going to leave this candle here for you two so you don't have to be so afraid anymore."

"Thanks, Mama," both children said simultaneously.

"You're welcome, sweethearts. Sleep well."

As she prepared to leave the room, a rather loud crash of thunder came from the sky directly above their house, followed closely by a flash of lightning. This caused all three of them to jump, especially the two children.

"Actually, Mama? Can we sleep with you and Papa tonight?" Adam asked.

"If that's what makes you feel better, then I suppose it's alright," she replied. She took her son's hand in one of hers, and carried the candle in the other. Christina followed close behind, clinging to her mother's nightgown as all three of them made their way to the first floor where the master bedroom was. Roderich began to stir in the bed when the trio entered, probably disturbed by the sudden light from the candle, which Elizaveta promptly blew out. She could find her way around in the dark fairly well now.

"I've brought a couple of children with me," she told him in a half-whisper. "Ones who were too afraid to sleep in their own beds without a nightlight."

"Is that so?" the Austrian asked, sitting up. "In that case, I guess we have to let them crawl into bed with us. Not that your Mama would let me have much say in the matter, now would she kids? Is that why you came down here with her?"

"Yes, Papa," Christina said with a small giggle.

"Alright, come on in. All three of you."

Without hesitation, the twins got into bed and lay down in between their two parents. Parents were the best at keeping the scary stuff away. As they lay there, Elizaveta sang them an old Hungarian lullaby. Though Adam and Christina only spoke English and German, they enjoyed listening to the sound of her voice. Despite not being able to understand any of the words, the song brought them a lot of comfort and was enough to soon lull them off to sleep.