Keywords: Regained, 02, Ch.,

Cassandra dreamt that night. Haunting dreams. Dreams that swept her to far off places, with crumbling castles, dilapidated buildings huddled closely together, and cobbled roads. All so foreign, yet almost too familiar for comfort. In her mind, she knew she was dreaming, yet she felt as though this was simply deja vu. As though she'd been there so many times before. Images darted back and forth behind her closed lids, and as desperately as she try, she simply could not grasp just one, and focus in on it. Little pieces of information, parts of a whole, teased her, before dashing away, others following quickly on their tail.

Until just before she awoke.

A dream, so vivid it may have been real, appeared before her.

It began very suddenly. Tunnel vision consuming her, surroundings seeming to fly by, she was abruptly standing, alone, in what looked to be an empty field.

"She glanced around, her heart pounding wildly within her chest. Her frightened mind worrying frantically, "Where am I?""

" Yet she had no answer for herself. Not one to ever enjoy history, she now wished she'd paid more attention back in school. The buildings perhaps could give her some clue. She cast her gaze about. Nothing. There were no buildings! A field, heather and wild grass competing for the land space. That's where she was. "

" She was not in the present time, of that much she was certain. There wasn't even a road anywhere around. No sound of traffic, no light pollution, nothing to indicate that she was in her own time or place. "

" She cursed, closing her eyes and demanding that her mind waken from this stupid, pointless waste of good dream time. She opened her eyes, to find herself still in the field, and simply shrugged. Well, maybe something good would come of this dream after all. Maybe."

" She stepped forward, barely having time to gasp as she suddenly found herself falling forward, catching herself just before her face hit the ground. "

" "What the hell?" She blushed in furious embarrassment, choosing to ignore the fact that she was the only one around."

" Skirts, many of them, in fact, far too many of them, surrounded her legs. They were dark in color, a deep mahogany in some places, fading into a gentle ginger others. The skirts were not too long in the front, but in the back...Her eyes widened fractionally, brows arching, before she began to laugh. Her behind looked quite large! She chuckled as her eyes followed the tight, brown bodice up her stomach, the sleeves puffed out ridiculously large at the shoulders, tightening marginally as they neared her wrists, which they hugged snugly. Her waist was cinched quite tightly, and her breasts were thrust up and out, revealing quite a lot of cleavage. Shaking her head, laughing silently still to herself, she stood. She reached down, feeling the material, but it was nothing she'd ever felt before. Certainly not the cotton of her favored t-shirts and jeans. Sighing, gathering the yards of material in her hands she began her walk yet again."

" The dark night was silent, save for the wind rustling through the long grass beneath her feet, and the occasional sound of a cricket chirping. Groaning at the situation in general, she began to wander aimlessly, clenching her fists as she suddenly stepped in a pile of something damp, and quite...squishy, for lack of better word. Glancing down at her delicate, be-slippered foot, she cursed colorfully and pulled back from the pile of droppings that some lovely animal had left so thoughtfully for her. Her eyes widened in dismay as the small shoe stayed stuck to the heap leaving her with one shoe on, and a stocking foot to deal with. Hopping away precariously on one foot, she barely had time to drag her skirts away."

" "Grrrrrrrrrr.""

" She left the shoe where it lie, deciding it wasn't worth it, sticking her hands anywhere near there, or cleaning it off. The other was soon kicked off as her calf became sore due to the uneven balance of having one shoe on and the other off. "

" She wandered for what felt like hours, before she spotted something ahead. "

" A small pin prick of light appeared in her vision. It looked to be a lit up window. Or maybe it was just her imagination playing tricks on her. But for a dream, this was getting awfully ridiculous. Her feet and calves were aching, she was hot, and sweaty, and she had stepped in more animal droppings with her stocking feet. What did she really have to lose?"

" She smiled widely as she realized that her mind was not in the mood for playing jokes on her today, as it certainly was a house. A large stone house in fact. She quickly grasped her skirts, pulling them up higher, before simply shrugging and tucking them up under the waist of the dress. She began to run, closer and closer to the large stone...castle. Yes, it was most certainly what appeared to be a castle."

" And how did one go about knocking on the door of a castle? She laughed, her small shoulders shaking easily at her thoughts. It didn't matter, as this was simply a dream. Not as though these people would be seeing her again. Not as though they were real for that matter. "

" She chuckled as she approached the tall door. There was a small archway above it, rising to a point, with an intricate design resting at the top. She marveled at the small ornament, before approaching the door itself. Should I just knock? She thought to herself. But before she could think too far, the door was opened, and a small man appeared. Only three feet in height perhaps, he held himself with a regal bearing, his dark hair was cut so short, as to nearly be shaven, and his eyes looked to be silver. "

" She took a half step back, jumping in surprise. "

" "Umm...hi...I'm..." What was she exactly? Dreaming, but she couldn't tell them that, 'hi, I'm dreaming' yeah, that'd go over well. So her quickly churning thoughts came to her rescue. "Hi, my name's Cassandra, and I'm lost.""

" The small man smiled cordially, stepping away from the door, and waving her in. "

" She followed the wave of his arm and stepped slowly, cautiously, over the threshold. Inside, her mind panicked, screaming suddenly, silently, that she had just made a big mistake. That she had resigned herself to some unknown fate by stepping through that door."

" But that's silly, this is just a...."

" Her thoughts were cut off as she glanced around. Gorgeous. The house was absolutely the most gorgeous she'd ever seen. Beautiful, richly colored tapestries hung about the walls, matched by a plush, thick carpet, just beyond the stone entry. Several paintings and sculptures also adorned the room. A large stone mantle was the focal point of the room, two arm chairs, draped with a deep red velvet, sitting before it."

" The small man both interrupted and startled her from her musings by saying,"

" "Milord has been expecting you. Please wait while I go and fetch him.""

" Her brow furrowed at this, but she said nothing. "

" 'Hey, this is a dream, who cares?'"

" She gazed about the small room for several moments while she waited, before she heard "Him." His voice echoed off the cold stone, despite the padding the wall hangings provided, and she froze, fingers pausing in their descent over a small statue. "

" "Hello Cassandra.""

" She whirled suddenly, her eyes wide."

" "You.""

" It was all she could say. She sputtered over her words as she stared at him. "

" She squinted, stepping only slightly closer as she tried to affirm her thoughts. "

" Oh it was him all right. No mistaking the dark black hair, deep yellowish, green eyes, aristocratic nose, and pale, full lips. His hair was pulled back away from his colorless face, tied with what looked to be a small, black piece of leather. He wore a white shirt, with far too many ruffles for her taste, though he wore it well. His pants were dark, and snug, hugging his slight, yet muscular legs tightly. "

" She quickly forced herself to look back up at his face as she realized she was quite openly staring. "

" "You jerk. What is this? Is this some kind of joke?""

" He shook his head once. He walked gracefully down the few stairs that remained of the stone case and drew closer to her."

" "No, my dear, it's not.""

" She growled softly in her throat, unsure of what to think. "

" Was she dreaming? Or wasn't she? Who was he? Where was she? What was going on?! "

" She quickly grasped the small, marble statue in her hands and dashed it to the ground, smiling smugly as it shattered into a hundred pieces, her frustration taking physical shape quickly and easily."

" He made a "tsk" sound and glanced at the man who had admitted her entrance to the house, they nodded at one another, and he slipped quietly from the room."

" "Now, now, dear Cassandra, as beautiful as you are when you're upset, is that any way for a Lady to act?""

" She flinched away as his fingers drew close to her flushed cheek."

" He seemed to grit his teeth, and pulled his hand away. "

" "Yes, well, in time I imagine. Now, on to more urgent matters...""

" She quickly cut him off."

" "What is this? What am I doing here? Who are you? What's going on?""

" "All in good time sweetheart, but for now...""

" He smiled in a most mocking manner, bowing slightly from the waist, his eyes cold, yet teasing."

" "...I must say that you smell quite awfully. Let's get you cleaned up shall we?""

" She clenched her small hands into fists as she desperately tried to repress the urge to pick up the second statue and throw it at his head, as he turned and began to walk up the staircase, assuming most arrogantly that she'd follow."

" Standing for several seconds, she fidgeted from foot to foot, realizing that she really had no other choice, and releasing her grip on the small stone....she glanced down to see what it was she was holding exactly...it looked to be a dog...or perhaps a tiger...and followed him slowly, reluctantly up the stairs. "


"***"


" It had worked! The link he had made with her mind earlier had been quite strong enough to bring her here.

Keywords: Regained, 02, Ch.,

•  Faery Lovin'
•  Maraschino Cherry: Illusion
•  Wrapped in Despair
•  Once Bitten