:o Hello again, I'd better start with an apology for the ridiculous delay in posting this chapter. I've been busy, and writing other stuff, and… just being crap. So…… SORRY!!!!!!! The next chapter should be up much sooner because it's already started.

Anyway, please enjoy, let me know your thoughts :)

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Chapter 13: Visions

The sound of running water woke me, chasing away the last strange fragments of my dream. I was disoriented for a moment, taking in the unfamiliar dimensions of the room, but then I remembered where I was. I looked around for Kurtis, then realised that he must be in the bathroom next door where the sound of water was coming from. I turned over slowly, and felt the weight of a blanket lying across me. Kurtis must have put it over me while I was asleep. It was a touching thought, although I felt a twinge of regret that I hadn't been the one to wake first. I had hoped to take a peek at him while he slept, and see how he looked when he had his guard down.

I pulled the blanket aside and sat up, then shivered as my bare feet touched the cold tiled floor. My clothes were crumpled and I felt dusty and stale. I wished I had something clean to change into. Maybe I would have time to stop at my room in Nevsehir today and get some fresh clothes. I sighed. By the time we had turned in the night before we still hadn't any clear idea of what our next step should be. Our inability to accurately translate the symbols on the medallion was holding us up. And we didn't want to venture into the enemy camp until we had a clear idea of what we needed to do there.

The sound of the shower stopped as I got to my feet and stretched. I went over to the window and pushed the curtain aside, letting some morning sunlight into the room. It looked like another fine day.

The bathroom door opened and I turned to see Kurtis emerge, still rubbing his hair dry with a towel. He was already dressed.

"Morning," he said when he saw me.

"Good morning," I replied, hoping I didn't look too scruffy after my night's sleep.

"Did you sleep okay?"

"Very well, thanks. Were you okay on the floor?"

"I was fine. Weird dreams, though." He frowned slightly. He went to the window and looked out thoughtfully.

"I'm not surprised, after the day you had."

He shook his head. "No, it wasn't about Karel. There was this old guy talking to me, real clear, telling me that I had to go meet him…" He trailed off.

"Mind if I use the bathroom?" I asked.

"Of course, go ahead," he replied, still staring out of the window.

I went into the small room and closed the door. I would have liked a shower myself but I was a little unnerved by the fact that there was no lock on the door, and I didn't want to take too long, so I settled for a quick wash. As I was letting the water drain from the sink afterwards, something about my own dreams flashed back into my mind, triggered by what Kurtis had said.

I had heard a pleasant male voice saying my name, distracting me from whatever else I had been dreaming about, and I looked around to see a man standing nearby. He seemed old, but had a youthful spark in his dark eyes. He had dark skin and short grey hair, and wore a neat white suit.

Lara, he had said. Forgive my intrusion, but I need to speak with you.

As I recalled more of the dream I felt my eyes widening in surprise. I dried off hurriedly and pulled on my top again, then rushed out of the bathroom.

"Kurtis, what did the man in your dream look like?" I asked breathlessly.

He looked puzzled, but described the man anyway. I shook my head in disbelief as he told me.

"Did he tell you to go to the museum in Nevsehir?"

Kurtis gaped at me. "Yes. How did you know that?"

"He told me the same thing. I dreamed about him too. He said – oh, I can't remember it all, something about being able to help us."

"God. This is screwed up," Kurtis said, rubbing his face. "Shapeshifters, telepathic visits in the night…"

"What do you think it means?" I asked him. "Do you really think this was someone trying to contact us?"

"Could be," he replied.

I sighed. "This is insane."

Kurtis smiled. "Lara, I can move things with my mind. That's no more insane."

"I suppose you're right. But what should we do?"

"I don't know. I don't know what to trust." We were silent for a few moments. I closed my eyes tight and tried to recall as much as I could about my dream.

"He said he knew it would be hard for us to believe him, but he had to meet with us. He said his name was…"

"Ozan," Kurtis finished for me.

I looked back at him, eyes wide. "Yes".

"Well, I'm out of other ideas. I suggest we go to Nevsehir and see if we can find anyone called Ozan at the museum."

I nodded, and we got ready to go. I put on my boots and gathered up my possessions from the floor, packing them back into my bag. While I fastened on my holsters, Kurtis collected up the papers from the table.

"Ready?" I asked. He gave me a quick nod, and we walked out into the daylight. It was warm, with a welcome breeze.

"Let's take my car," I said, and we headed for the parked jeep. As we climbed in, Kurtis grinned suddenly.

"I almost forgot," he said. "Knickers."

I smiled back as I slipped on my sunglasses. "Mermaid," I replied, and started up the engine.

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I pulled over as we arrived in the outskirts of Nevsehir, and rummaged in my backpack for my map of the town. Although I had looked around the day before, I didn't remember seeing the museum, so we would need directions. Or so I thought.

"Lara," Kurtis said, interrupting my perusal of the map. "It's over there."

I looked in the direction of his outstretched finger, and saw a large, modern building on the hillside some distance away. I didn't have to ask him how he knew it was the museum because I already understood. Like him, I recognised it from my dream. I seemed that this man, Ozan, had already given us the directions we needed. We set off again, and a few minutes later were climbing out of the car outside the museum.

From the main entrance hall we made our way through large, light rooms filled with glass cases. The museum had a fascinating collection of archaeological finds from the region, as well as an extensive ethnographic section. Given the opportunity I could have spent many hours there, but we had more pressing concerns. There were only a handful of visitors at the museum at this early hour, but none of them looked like our mysterious contact.

"If this guy had to poke around in our brains he could at least have given us a more specific meeting place, or a time," Kurtis said in exasperation after we had been walking around for about fifteen minutes.

As if in reply, we heard brisk footsteps approaching across the shiny wooden floor, and both turned to see the man from our dream hurrying towards us. He was wearing the same white suit, and seemed delighted to see us, a broad smile on his lips.

"Lara, Kurtis!" he said in a familiar voice, his arms spread as if he were planning to hug us. In perfect unison, Kurtis and I took a wary step backwards, still unsure what we should expect from this stranger.

"I'm so pleased to see you at last," he continued, and reached out a hand towards me. I held out my own, unable to resist the man's infectious enthusiasm, and he shook it vigourously. "I am Ozan," he added unnecessarily. I couldn't help but smile. He had the same brightness in his eyes that I had noticed in my 'dream', and his animated manner made it difficult to judge how old he was. Ozan shook Kurtis' hand next, just as eagerly as he had mine, despite Kurtis' doubtful expression.

"Forgive me for making you wait so long, I knew you were on your way so I was in the office, making a pot of coffee. Please, shall we go there now? We will be able to talk in private." He nodded and beckoned us to follow him as he headed for the corridor through which we had entered the room. Kurtis and I looked at each other. He raised his eyebrows as if to comment on the bizarre situation. I nodded in silent agreement, and we set off after the odd little man. Hurrying along in his smart white suit he reminded me of the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland.

"Curiouser and curiouser," I muttered.

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