Page 19 of Prisoner of Darkness and Dreams
“Ana, come find me.”
Even as faint as it is, I know it’s the voice I’ve been waiting for—my anchor in the storm. It’s too faint to be real, but I don’t care that this is a fantasy. I’ll take whatever I can get and cling to it, just like I’ll take my moment to bask in the sun.
I follow the voice until I see him standing there. Tall, broad shouldered. His cropped, dark hair shifting in a light breeze. He turns and his eyes, gray as rainclouds, find mine.
“Leon,” I gasp.
A smile spreads across his face, brightening his eyes.
“I promised myself I’d find you, and I always keep my promises, Ana.”
I run toward him, and he opens his arms to catch me. When they close around me, pulling me up against him, I remember what it is to be safe. He encircles me with all his strength and power, and I know he never intends to let go.
The fizz of his power pulses around me, sparking across his skin as I press my lips to his. It doesn’t frighten me; instead, I feel like I’m being shocked back to life.
“Ana,” he brushes my hair back from my face, and I think I see a hint of fear in his eyes. Strange. Nothing scares him. “I need you to do something for me.”
“Of course,” I breathe. “Anything.” I feel delirious, drunk on his closeness, even just as an illusion.
He sets me down, and suddenly there’s something in his hands. A locket shaped like a heart on a beautiful, silver chain. I lean in to admire the delicate metalwork, giving in to the urge to reach out and touch it.
“Will you accept it, Ana? It means we can be together again, but you have to say yes.”
I sense that once I take the locket, things will never be the same again. But that’s just strange dream logic at work, isn’t it? My heart tells me I must accept his gift. It’s my destiny to do so.
“Yes, Leon. I accept it,” I say. I’m dazzled by his smile as he lifts the locket to position it around my neck. I think I catch a glimpse of some writing engraved on it, but I pay it no mind, focusing more on the touch of his fingers on my bare skin.
He fastens the chain and steps back. My hand goes to it, taking in its comforting weight. Warmth radiates through me, and I feel sure that as long as I wear this locket, Leon will be with me.
Together again.
I turn to thank him for the gift, only to see Leon walking away from me. Panicking, I stumble after him.
“Wait, Leon, where are you going?”
He stops, throwing me a look that shocks me with its raw pain.
“I’m sorry, Ana, but I can’t stay.”
“No!” I shake my head, trying to reach him, but with every step I take toward him, he seems further away. “Don’t leave me. I can’t do this. I can’t be left alone again. Please.”
He looks strained, like he’s carrying a huge weight. “I have to go. It’s because of what the Temple has done to you. It’s too much for us both.”
He keeps fading into the distance, pulled away by some invisible force.
“I’ll find you, Ana.” The voice is a distant echo again. “In this world or the waking one, I’ll always find you.”
I wake in my empty cell, crushed at the loss of the dream. For a moment, I can only clutch my legs to my chest, breathing through the terrible ache of it. He was here with me, holding me in his arms, and now he’s gone.
The body’s gone too. Someone removed the cleric’s corpse while I slept. I stare at the spot where he’s lain for days, suddenly wondering if I imagined it all. I must’ve been deep asleep not to hear them come to take him away.
Deep inside that dream.
Was Leon really talking to me? It didn’tfeellike the dreams he’s visited me in before. This was hazier, like I was in danger of losing the thread of it at any moment. And if Leon had really contacted me, wouldn’t it be to give me a message or ask where I was? Not to hand me some imaginary locket, however beautiful it was.
Maybe I made the whole thing up just because I needed to keep the despair at bay. It’s a solid theory, because after the initial shock of waking up without Leon, I feel different. Rejuvenated, maybe even hopeful.
If nothing else, it has reminded me of the one thing I know to be true: Leon would never leave me alone. I’m certain he’s out there, somewhere, looking for me. Like he said,in this world or the waking one, I’ll find you.
