Autumn Dream

Walking along a gravel driveway I looked up to see Autumn’s house. It was a large well maintained Victorian with a wide open porch wrapping around the whole building. The place was five or six stories. I couldn’t remember how many years she had been living there but I knew it was a long time. The front yard was immaculately groomed with tasteful arrangements of brightly colored flowers placed along the driveway’s edge. To my right I glanced over to see Autumn had planted a garden of sunflowers that had grown quite tall. In the distance on her property there was a single, giant oak tree.

Stopping for a moment I looked upwards towards the sky. A few wisps of pure white clouds were here and there, but it was a mostly calm clear blue day. Peacefully still air. With each footstep forward my black wingtips crunched down hard on clean gray shale. Then I remembered I had to be extremely quiet. If I made enough noise her dragon would hear me, and I’d be toast. The last time I was here I got caught.

Autumn’s house is guarded by a dragon. I may not have mentioned that before. It’s one of those flying fire breathing types with an extra bad temper. Fortunately it’s eyesight is rather poor, but it’s lacking vision has been more than made up for by it’s keen hearing abilities. I would have to creep through her house to the very top floor without making a sound. Standing at the front door I placed my hand on it’s decorative iron latch and silently let myself in.

Suddenly I was standing on the last step of an endless flight of stairs. I teleported to the top floor of the house.

Near the attic is where Autumn dwells. Why she chose to live and sleep there I never really understood. But that’s the way it always has been. Autumn’s bedroom door was wide open. Walking stealthily as possible on hardwood flooring I arrived in her doorway. Without saying anything Autumn seemed to already know I was there, she sat up from her desk and stared at me. My unannounced visit had interrupted her afternoon reading. Autumn looked beautiful, her jet black hair shone brightly in sunlight coming from a nearby window. She was wearing a long, flowing cream colored dress that hugged her curves nicely. Her lips were the color of blood.

Opening my mouth to speak Autumn swiftly rushed up out of her chair and across the room to where I was standing. I needed to tell her something.

“I…”

Autumn’s hand rose up towards my mouth. Placing a finger across my lips she said sternly, “You have to be quiet. You know this. Don’t say anything or it will hear you.”

“But… I…”

“Be quiet.” Autumn frowned.

“I… mi…”

With a strong rush of wind a huge hole opened in a outer wall of Autumn’s vintage house. I could see blue sky outside through that gaping void. The dragon materialized out of thin air and came flying through the wall. Down the hallway like a Japanese Kamikaze pilot, it was headed for me on a collision course. Autumn saw it at the same moment I did, and she gracefully took a few steps backwards away from me through her bedroom doorway. There was nowhere to hide, nothing I could do. I was caught again and I knew it. Flying with fury and speed I was knocked backwards by the dragon’s passing body. As I was falling away, Autumn continued to stand there blankly staring at me. I had made a long tiresome journey to say something to Autumn. Once again it was a wasted effort.

Barely managing to speak, I said “I miss you.”

Autumn couldn’t hear me of course. There was too much noise coming from the hallway commotion. It didn’t matter anyway because I fell backwards over a wooden railing and did a somersault into nothingness. Free falling downwards into total darkness I couldn’t see anything beneath me. I was picking up speed descending towards a bottomless pit. High above Autumn’s house became a tiny speck far away, then eventually it disappeared and was replaced by thousands of stars. They were everywhere in all directions as far as I could see. A terrible sense of despair and sorrow, welled up inside me. I was feeling pain in every part of my body as I continued to fall.

With a strong shock my whole body jumped and twitched into consciousness. I was sleeping on my stomach in the exact position I had been free falling. Rolling over in bed I immediately kicked off my covers and sat up. Placing my face in my hands I continued to feel a great sense of loss. I sat there like that motionless for quite a while shaking myself free of a sleepy confusion and a vivid nightmare.

Today was going to be a difficult day.

~ by factorypeasant on June 10, 2008.