The Everdark had many dangers in it, arguably more dangers than wonders. It hardly surprised him that something scared his daughter.

So he did what any good father would have done, and consoled her. Listening to the explanation of her nightmare made him wonder why she had it. In one sense, it did make sense, she was not always a child that lived in the dark. Once, she was a woman who happened to have crossed paths with Jack when the Earth was endangered. But in another way, he didn't know who the old Annika was, at all.

They sat on the couch, the roof was illuminated by purple candlelight. He didn't know how much he should have told her, Jack didn't know much from that time. It had only been hours, and now she was only a kid who couldn't possibly have earned that kind of burden.

"Nightmares are said to be a window into that which has yet to happen, but might come to pass," He suggested, holding her close. Jack was speaking quietly, out of habit. "They tell us of the things we wish to avoid, and remind us of what has long passed. I do not know what you witnessed, or why, but it is a memory, child. It will pass, as many things do. Perhaps... Perhaps there was a deeper meaning to this dream, but for now, let us distract ourselves with something else."

Jack waved a hand out in front of himself and Annika, and the dark room spilled open into bright, sunny wilderness. Time was strange in their home, it was always day somewhere, and always night somewhere else. But there, past the edge of the portal he'd just snapped open, it was perfectly warm and bright. It was Earth, somewhere in North America, an open wilderness spreading out before it.

"I have often found that a walk through the world is the best cure for an uneasy mind." He stood, and reached out. A coat flew across the room and into his hand. "Go to your room and prepare for one of our usual trips, we'll head to any place in Earth-666 that you'd like, Annika. We haven't been there in some time, have we?"

Jack's voice vibrated through his chest, tickling Annika's cheek where it rested next to his heart. She cried and sniffed while he spoke, covering his shirt in tears and probably snot. Jack was always good like that. He always gave Annika what she needed at that moment.

She listened to his words, finding comfort in the simplicity of them. Annika felt the same. These dreams held some truth to who she was, or at the very least who her family was. The problem with this particular nightmare was how real it felt.

While Annika mulled this thought over, the last of her tears finally faded, and a bright light invaded the dark she had grown used to. Annika pulled away from Jack, blinking away the dark spots that formed in her vision. Yellow sun, blue sky, and white clouds filled her now cleared eyesight. The smell of cut grass and fried food assaulted her nose. Annika gasped and jumped up, recognizing the scents of Earth. She looked at Jack and grinned, the darkness of earlier gone, and she ran to her bedroom to change and pack a small bag.

Annika returned a short time later, wearing a purple dress with white flowers. The top of the dress was styled like a halter top before it flowed away from her waist. She made sure to stuff a jacket in her bag but she went without for now. Annika wanted to feel the sun on her skin, even if she got a chill from the wind.

She bounced over to the portal, her toes just touching the space between her and there. A large grin claimed her face, her excitement plain. Annika knew a lot about the different Earth's from her studies, but she was having a hard time pinpointing where she would want to go.

”Mmm London? No Paris! Or, Orlando? Maybe New Orleans. We could visit Uncle Max or California! Somewhere with a beach and the ocean.” Annika's words tumbled out, her body vibrating with excitement.