Chapter 2

Cara ran through the dense forest, her black hair streaming out behind her. The muscles in her legs were beginning to ache; she had been running for longer than she knew. Stars twinkled in the night sky above her, only visible in patches, for the forest was so thick. It seemed to be going on forever, she couldn't see it thinning.

She kept running for another five minutes then collapsed on the hard floor in exhaustion. Her legs were screaming. The floor was cold and bits of tree roots stuck into her. She raised herself up onto her knees and groaned. Her body was desperate for a rest, yet she knew she could not stop now. She was very close to where she needed to be, she had been here before in her dreams.

She stood up, swaying, and forced her legs to propel her forwards. She could hear someone chanting something, perhaps in her head, she wasn't sure. The chanting was getting louder, and her head was throbbing.

"Silivren penna miriel, galadhremmin ennorath. Silivren penna miriel, galadhremmin ennorath. Silivren penna miriel, galadhremmin ennorath. Silivren penna miriel, galadhremmin ennorath..." It was in a language that she did not recognise, and it puzzled her.

She turned to her left, and saw something moving between the trees. She skidded to a halt and peered into the shrubbery. She thought she could see something there, something shiny, glinting in the moonlight. She slowly walked towards it, her feet making no noise on the rough ground. It flicked out of sight for a moment, then reappeared, six feet to the right of where it had been a second ago.

She kept on walked towards the foliage behind which the creature was positioned. It was making odd noises, almost similar to the whinnying of a horse; she had heard them before. She reached out a hand and pulled back the leaves to discover what this creature was that was haunting her dreams...

Cara flicked open her ruby eyes and sighed. She had had that dream again, the one that had been plaguing her mind for almost three months. She had never been able to find out what was behind the bushes; she always woke up before she could.

She rolled out of her king-sized bed and crossed her room. She wandered through the corridors of her mansion and stopped when she reached the kitchens. She flicked the lights on and blinked in the blinding light. She strode down to the door at the back of the long room. It was open at the moment, and she could see into the next kitchen. She pulled the door closed and lifted a bunch of keys from on the side. She pushed one into the slot and twisted it. It flashed white briefly then back to normal.

She opened the door and stepped through it. She breathed in the cold air and looked up. Snow was falling from the cloudy sky. The dark, metallic kitchen was longer there; instead a magnificent stone balcony that looked over the frozen landscape of Northern Russia had replaced it.

She leaned against the stone artwork and breathed out heavily.Her breath came out in a plume of steam and she smiled. She always came here to relax, because it was so beautiful. Her black silk nightdress did not keep her very warm; she would have to go soon. She stood for a while, then walked back into the kitchen.

Cara closed the door again and opened it to reveal a small kitchen/dining room. She stepped out onto the soft carpet and closed the door behind her. She walked into the next room where a sofa bed had been opened out to accommodate a sleeping lump. She crossed the room and prodded the heap gently and the figure woke up.

"What?" Kai mumbled sleepily.

"It's me! I woke up and can't get back to sleep. I'm freezing!" Kai flung the covers back and Cara climbed in next to him. She shivered and snuggled up against him.

"I had that dream again," she whispered into his chest.

"Go to sleep, we can talk about it later," Kai murmured back. She closed her eyes, and was glad that Kai was close.

Cara groaned and blinked a few times. She waited a moment for her eyes to adjust to the light and looked next to her. Kai was still fast asleep, his head next to Cara's. She smiled and sat up. It was getting late; she was glad that she didn't have school. Kai shifted slightly next to her. She bent her head and kissed his tattooed cheek then climbed out of the double bed.

I know, that chapter was rather boring, but I needed to sort a few things out. And yes, for any of you who noticed, the whole door thing WAS from the Matrix, but I thought it was really cool and wanted to use it in one of my fics.