"Sarah." It was a husky murmur that beckoned her from the etched contours of her sleep or drove her deeper into the swiveling clouds. She never could tell anymore. Her spine tingled as again her name was ushered out into the spaces surrounding her, a dreamed up land that she had so desperately wished real. Her heart trembled, the heavenly voice circling her in a swirl of wind. Why did it sound so familiar? And why did she feel like she could bend to the will of such a faceless voice? In a daze, she turned, unable to stop herself. In a sudden burst of silvery light he appeared just as the book had said. In all his finery he towered over her; muscular and proud. His eyes a strange, wolf-like blue in one and a molten honey-gold in another surveyed her and as they gathered an intense twinkle, he prowled towards her, like a predator closing in on its prey and perhaps that was exactly what she was...
Bolting up right, Sarah clutched at her chest, almost as if it would cause the chaotic flutter to subside. It was the same dream she continued to have since she had discovered the book in the attic. Looking down at her lap, she found the worn lump. It had slid down from her stomach in her sudden rise from sleep however, it was not unusual finding the thing next to her when having such dreams. She would often fall asleep reading the Goblin King and perhaps it's close proximity was what resulted in her dreaming of the holder of the title. Pushing the blanket away from her, she contemplated returning the thing to the attic. Taking a hooded look towards the dilapidated spine of the novel, she heaved a sigh. Something told her she was completely helpless to it's aura; unable to break from it.
"I suppose you're unaware of your charm and if you aren't you certainly take pride in luring people in" she scoffed in a half heart manner. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she moved towards the window across the room and touching a hand against the pane, unlatched the window and swung it open. The night air soothed the heat that had rose in her face and calmed the pound in her temple. Looking out at the night sky, she watched the shades of blue condense and blend with each other, making it impossible to identify where one ended and another started. The twinkle of the starts beamed a silvery white, yet the outlines of their hew held a soft gold. The whole of the night sky served to remind her of her dream and turning from it, she almost missed the shadowy creature perched on a branch in a nearby tree. Almost.
As quickly as her head had turned, taking in the scenes outside her room and swiftly brushed past the outlined creature in the tree, just as quickly it had snapped back focusing on the night owl that sat and looked back at her. It's wise eyes seemed to gleam at her in amusement but shaking her head in the absurdity of that, she narrowed her eyes at it and hurriedly closed her window. Hesitating to draw the curtains, she chastised herself and for extra precaution drew the dark curtains and moved back towards her bed. Placing the book on the other side of the room, she settled on avoiding it for awhile.
Little did poor Sarah know, she was already too far gone...