That night, I woke up once again as I hear whimpers coming from the girl. I walk up to her and try to nudge her when I am suddenly transported and all hell is breaking loose around me. Fires are breaking our wildly around us and explosions and shouts ring in the distance as my eye scan the area wildly. Finally, I see her, the girl on the ground hunched over a body, fallen face down, besides her as she looks murderous towards man before her with his back to me and his hand extended ominously overhead.

“This is the last time you will cross me.” She says quietly at the figure before, her hand clutching the hand of her fallen companion. I sneak closer to the scene as I can’t see much from my angle behind them. Faster than I anticipated of the chit, she grabs a three pronged weapon the size of a large dagger and jumps into a defense position, putting herself between the two, her body now so much closer to the challengers.

I couldn’t hear what the other person said because of their proximity but then he spoke up louder, his voice low and gravely. I couldn’t help myself and crept closer to them still until I was directly in line with her and behind him. I saw the shock in her eyes as she shook with either restraint or rage, I couldn’t tell but that last line he uttered snapped something in her and she roared into action.

Ms. Atoa yells back and sprang back to charge. It was like watching a predator making the final leap for their prey as she lunged at the man before her and actually tackling him with her whole weight behind it.

Next thing I knew, the man disappeared and I was left in his wake to take the full brunt and force of the attack, knocking the air out of my lungs. I open my eyes to find the girl has me in an arm-bar at my throat. She is hovering above me, bearing the brunt of her weight as well as directing all her anger and hatred in her eyes at me. 

I don’t take my eyes off her but I know that something around us has changed. I don’t hear the screaming nor the crackling of the fire that once surrounded us. Rather I feel we are in that limbo that is meant to resemble her room like last time we were both trapped in a shared dream. Though she may not have a weapon on her now and is back to normal, there is something in her eyes that is still so very raw, almost feral. I know I have to tread carefully as I’m the one that will likely get hurt in this situation.

“It’s just a dream, again.” I say soothingly as I try to get her out of her dream-like trance.

“Lies. You caused all of that.” She hisses her angrily down at me as it seems like she cans barely contain the emotion in them. It soon turns into sorrow as I look into her eyes and see that tears pool in them; I know another emotion hides deeper within her. “I let them die.” This time she whispers hoarsely and her eyes finally spill over, blurring her vision momentarily as her breath hitched in her chest. I used that moment to gain control of the situation and flip her over as I restrain her from trying to attack me once again. She struggled against my grip but this time, I had the upper hand and held her in place until she finally sags from exhaustion.

“Let go of me.” She relents finally, not wanting to look at me as all the fight seems to have left her beyond tired. I look at her resigned as my holding her still and sag almost lifelessly; I know that she is done struggling. As soon as I release her, I move to the other side of the bed and watch her as she turns slowly to her side away from me and curls up into a fetal position. Soon her body trembled and I hear small sniffles coming from her side of the bed. Though I try to ignore it for a moment or two, looking to my side and blocking the sounds of her misery, I couldn’t stand to be by someone so miserable and lost.

I sit upright and lean over towards her and put a hand on her shoulder and give it a slight squeeze. Her soft cries turn into loud body wracking wails as her dammed up emotions have finally spilled over and there was no stopping them now that I knew. With that, I move a little closer to her and patted her head uncomfortably. She turns towards me and cries against my midsection, smothering her face against my side. She wraps her arms around my midsection and hugs me tightly as she cries uncontrollably. 

I sign, not sure what to really do but put my arm around her back and pet her hair as she wept freely. She tried to get control over herself but I just held her tight until her sobbing turned to soft whimpers.

I don’t know why I fell the need to comfort her but her emotional threshold falling apart brought about a protectiveness I have not felt in a long time if ever. It was the most secure I’ve felt in myself and my ability to help someone else. I know she had fallen asleep when her breathing evened out, her hold on me loosened and her body no longer trembled or hiccoughed because she was overwrought with emotion. Securing the blanket over her sleeping form firmly, I pulled her closer trying to keep as much warmth between the two of us as I can and find my own eyelids falling victim to sleep. My last thought before I let sleep take me was we’re both safe now.

AMBER:

My dream this time unsettled me as I keep on having horrific events revolving around me and a platinum blonde haired man around my age. Sometimes through the progression of the dream, he’ll look around 15 years of age or so or be around my aunt and uncle’s age but still very much the same looking man. 

I feel as though I’ve lived through some of the hardest times in his life through my dreams and yes, they don’t always make sense. Most times, I forget what I’m dreaming about as I’ve only been able to recall a few of them after I awaken as of recent. 

Last night’s dream was very strange and vague as I’ve seen him both in his youth and perhaps his present age all in the same dream. I just remember that the tone of the dream was dark and I was emotionally drained when I woke up. I do, however remember him snapping me out of whatever emotional funk I was experiencing and getting me to relax to the point that I could fall asleep again. Now, here I am without much of a hint of what I saw in those dreams but I felt a bit relieved and refreshed this morning despite all that.

Oddly enough, I couldn’t find Lucy in my room so I just assume he’s down stairs eating whatever morsel of food he can find from my aunt. Fine with me as I lumber out of bed to get ready for the day. It didn’t take long for me to hunt for my clothes and grab a towel from my door hook and shuffle down the hall towards the bathroom. To my utter surprise, I see the dog waiting in front of my bathroom sitting there patiently and looking expectant of me. 

This dog is a trip! I don’t know what to expect from him, especially after he put up a huge fight with me yesterday to get out of the bathroom but now he’s waiting here as though it’s the most natural thing to do. Well, maybe he doesn't know that it’s a bathroom yet and will probably think twice about wanting to go in. Yet, when I open the door to let myself in, he rushes in, sits in front of the shower door waiting for me. 

I give him an odd look saying, “What are you doing, crazy dog?” and almost on cue he barks and looks at the shower once again. I sigh and open the door to let him into the small shower stall at the corner by the tub, but when he didn’t rush in, I looked down at him and he just barked again. 

Such a weird dog! 

He must be expecting something, so I reach in and turn the knob to start the shower but still no move from the dog. I tentatively touch the water feeling it to make sure it’s not too hot or cold and make the proper adjustments with the temperature until it feels just right for myself. Satisfied, I find that I didn’t need to do anything as the large mutt seems to know what I was doing before stepping in and immersing fully into the shower, laying like under the heavy rays.

Yup, I’ve got a strange one on my hands. 

I use the toilet and continue to strip and step into the shower and it seemed to have startled the lazy dog. He was laying down basking under the shower's warm spray until he saw me. When I was officially hogging all the water, he scooted over giving me enough room but giving me the cold shoulder and turned towards the door as though he were ready to go out. 

Whatever. 

I wet my hair and the weight of the water brings it down past my waist and I notice that Lucy’s fur is also sodden and weights down his own longer fur. I might as well really wash his hair as well, so I grab my shampoo - I don’t have doggie shampoo on hand - and start to lather his back coat until it’s all sudsy and let it sit for a bit. He continues to look at the shower corner as though the soap dispenser is the most interesting item he’s ever seen but at least he’s not squirming like yesterday. When I finished washing him and my own hair, I let him out and he waited patiently on the mat drip-drying. I guess having an older dog is not too bad; they are patient and less likely to wreak havoc around the small confined space in the few moments I’m not watching and are perfectly content to sit there and relax. I quickly finish up my shower and towel dry myself before wrapping it around me and then proceeded to towel dry the dog. He waited patiently by the door as I continued to get ready for the day and take him on his walk.

“Sorry boy, we’ll be doing short walks in the evening until I can figure out the housing situation but you’ll get your time out when I get back.” I told him as I exited the house with him looking disappointed as I left.

I decided after walking around the different apartment complexes, today will be the day I am going to look for an apartment and move on with my life finally. I’ve been living under my aunt and uncle's roof and protection far too long and I think it’s high time I get back on my own two feet. A new place to call my own would help, I think, and also get me to get out of my comfort zone. Granted I won’t be completely alone as I’ll have Lucy with me.

Yes, I’ve come to the point where I do admit that having him around has helped with my recovery as grudgingly as I am to say it. That mutt did leave an impression, that’s for sure and has helped me break up the monotony of my life.

I won’t go into the boring details about my search for a new abode but I was determined to hit the ground running with my recovery while the iron is still hot, so to speak. Granted, I couldn’t break my routine as easily as I would have liked. I’d still wake after aunt Cissy and uncle George had their morning coffee, juice, gossip from the tabloid - some royal scandal or another; I don't know why she reads that since we don't have a monarchy! Getting caught up with world politics - each respectively - only to enjoy breakfast and a now brisk walk with Lucy to kick off my day. From then on out for two weeks , I ended up walking various neighborhoods, getting realtors and owner’s information and scheduling to view apartments and small ‘flats’ at uncle George likes to call them. I actually even ventured in the city, but I personally, didn’t like living in the city since I’ve always been a small town girl. A few appointments by the park close to the one I lost track of Lucy at a few weeks back are actually some of my favorites and so I decided to make an offer.

It takes me two weeks, October is all but over and done with but not without seeing the beginning of the holiday season unfold. It know this time of year is supposed to have some sort of sentimental value hinged upon it’s arrival but my past is blank and I enviously watch as kids scamper around with their parents in shops or talking animatedly about seeking out candy on all Hallows Eve .

Nothing. I still feel nothing.

I walked Lucy on Halloween to see if it sparks anythings as ghouls and goblins come out of the woodwork that evening, and I’m both bewildered by the excitement the children and parents are exhibiting but I still feel oddly empty about this joyful holiday that most kids look forward to every year.

Sign:
Outdoor Haunted Maze

That catches my attention and curiosity got the better of me. "Let's go and try it out, Lucy."

I pulled him along as I followed the signs with arrows and screaming children.  If I got lost for any reason, I need only to look for the streams of children both scared and thrilled as they streamed out of a large maize maze. Lucy walked by the side, also seeming to be unsure of what to make of this situation but being the human here, I would expect that I should lead.

"Com'on, Scaredy-Cat. Let's go and check it out." I nudge him gently with my knee and pat his head before walking to the entrance.

Spooky sounds blasts through the maze and a chilling wind funnels through the narrow walkways as though we are in a wind tunnel. We cautiously walk the first corridor and I peer around the corner before proceeding to the next section of the maze. Suddenly, as though the there was an earthquake, the ground beneath us shake and we stumble against one of the bushy walls. When I look at the wall it self, it opens up and something pops out of the wall and a hand grabs me! 

I scream bloody murder and I pull the hand out so it would let go of me. Lucy springs into action and grabs a hold of said had in his massive jaw. I sharp scream escaped from the bushes. The shrubbery parted into a 'V' and revealed a scraggly older man that stepped into view and promptly closed behind him.

"That's it!" the old wild-man looked at us with fury in his eyes and made a wide sweeping gesture. "Out!"

Just after his proclamation, the wind picked up once again but almost at punishing pressure and the bushes whip us hard until we came back the way we came. As soon as we were back at the entrance of the maze it promptly closed up as it did for the older man.

Lucy and I looked at each other and then back at the wall of maize that seemed to have grown in place of the path it once had open.

"Let's never do that again." I mutter to Lucy, still very unsure about what just occurred and if it actually happened.