Am I awake? I ask myself this in my head without saying the words, I peer round in the darkness for a trace of normality that would surely answer the question for me...I can't actually see anything other than shadows, so I shall just have to keep probing the darkness. There is no Goblin.
My feet hit the floor. Feeling round for something to cover them, I stumble across an old book. Ahhh I'm sleeping, I know that wasn't there when I was awake. I slip my feet into my trusty old flip flops & reach down for the book. A snake slithers over my hand causing me to breathe in sharply. Houdini seems to have escaped again, he's a bit of an attention seeker & keeps trying to sneak into my bed for warmth when he escapes his tank. He shouldn't be here, this is just a dream after all. He slides gracefully up my arm & I think 'oh well, he may as well come too'.
We leave the room slowly, feeling the way into the hallway where there's even less light if that's possible. The few shadows cast wierd shapes again as I work my way along, arms outstretched feeling for something familiar. Everything is as it should be, I can feel the picture frames lining the walls & use the dado rail as a guide until finally I reach the first of the doors that lead off the hall. I open it & get blinded by a ferocious light. Houdini tightens his grip & wraps his bent tail around me for comfort. I open the door wider & can feel the warmth of the light pulling me closer. It doesn't feel right. I don't know why, but it's a feeling I can't shake off. Shadows loom behind me, almost as though they think they can scare me into going forwards. The darkness is a blanket I can hide under. I back away from the door & close it gently, pausing to get my breathe back & asses the thoughts blazing a trail through my brain. Houdini rests against my neck again, sensing the danger has passed. I still have the book in my hand & look around for a candle I can light to allow me to see the cover. I don't want to open any more doors.
I feel my way along the wall, I know once I get past the chair, there's a table that has a candle on it in the real world. I sit down on the chair & grope until I find the candle, a match appears in my hand & I light it silently. The match dies with a hiss & the flame lights up the darkness. I peer down at the cover of the book in my hand & absentmindedly give Houdini a stroke. It's an old book, the cover is very well worn leather & it has a slight indentation round the edge, as though it once had a gold pattern. The lettering is very faint, I can't make out what it says in the dim weak light but I can see the pages of the book are gilt edged. I turn it to see if it makes a difference but I still can't tell what it says. It's a long title, I can tell that by running my fingers over the indentation. I need more light, this one candle flame isn't enough. The shadows have closed in slowly while my mind has been otherwise occupied. I feel trapped by them, they form a wall all around me and as I stand up from the chair they close in further until I feel I can't even breathe. I open my eyes & the sun is once again streaming through the window. Houdini is in his tank & happily pokes his head out from under his coconut shell house to say good morning. I feel elated & the main thought running through my head is 'At least I woke up!'.
