Author's Note: Wow, it's been a long time. I've had massive writer's block since the last time I posted to this. This is another excerpt from the overall story that I'm trying to piece together. The Dream, occurs in Perpshone's second reincarnation. In this lifetime, she is a 22-year-old woman named Carolin living in the Victorian era. Carolin is currently being courted by a young man named, Christopher, who has a slightly uncanny resemblance to Hades. Hades is not Christopher in human form. In fact, they have no relation whatsoever. Carolin is unconsciously remembering what Hades looked like in her past life and is projecting those buried memories onto her taste in suitors. In this dream, Carolin relives a mixture of a past memory and a dream as a strange woman. This strange woman being Persephone. When Hades appears to her in the dream, he looks like a blend between Christopher and himself. His form in the dream subtly changes from looking like Christopher to looking like himself throughout the dream. This morphing of Hades' "dream form" is due to how conflicted Carolin (Persephone) is. On one hand, she loves the man she's courting in real life. On the other, she's fallen for the mysterious man in her dreams, yet knows that he can't be real, right? Anyway, I hope you enjoy this second excerpt. Let me know what you think. Reviews and feedback welcome.

P.S. I find this particular excerpt is best read while listening to Still Here, by Digital Daggers.

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The Dream

I was in a modest, dark room standing in front of an oval shaped, bronze mirror. The only light in the room came from two candles attached on either side and a tall candelabra nestled in a corner, whose flames flickered in the mirror's reflection. In the mirror, I saw a strange woman staring back at me.

Her blonde hair was done up in a braided bun with a black circlet resting on herforehead. Shewore a high-collared, black form fitting dress. Its design mimicked the intricacy of a spider web. It appeared to be softer than any silk. She raised her arm and with a flick of the wrist she was instantly adorned in all sorts of jewels and finery. Fierce, grey-blue eyes stared back at me as she gave her appearance a once-over. Eyes painted coal with a light gold dusting along the eyelashes, they roved the curvature of the woman's frame noting and assessing every line and every crease. Critiquing slowly, but silently until they gleamed in satisfaction. I slowly raised a tentative hand to the mirror's surface. As I did this, the woman did the same.

The mirror was icy and smooth to the touch. I curiously splayed my hand across the clear surface, as did the woman. I caught a glimpse of manicured nails painted auburn. In the corner of my eye, I saw that the nails were my own. My eyes followed an invisible trail from my hand; up my arm; to my shoulder. I caught sight of the dress' web-like sleeves as I looked. Surprised, I hurriedly stared down seeing the skirt of the dress hugging my waist, with the train splayed outwards covering my feet.

The strange woman is…me, I realized.

Before I could ponder anymore on my reflection, I heard someone calling me. I could not make out the name, yet knew it to be my own. As the disembodied voice kept calling it alternated between two voices I recognized all too well. The first being the familiar, soothing tenor of my lover. The second, a deep seductive timbre that haunted my every waking and resting moment.

That voice, I thought. His voice.

Finally, the calling ceased when a hand landed on my shoulder. Startled, I spun around only to find a man staring back at me. Helooked exactly like Christopher except, with much longer black hair and a similar circlet around his head. Hehad my love's features, however there was something unusual about it all. The only distinction from my Christopher were the eyes. They were a deep blue that contrasted with the rest of his face, unlike Christopher's which were brown. In Christopher's voice, and yet not, he asked why I seemed so speechless. I didn't answer.

Instead, hejust grasped my hand and led me to another room. Once we reached the next room, I was in awe by the grandeur of the room. It was huge and dripped of palace elegance with a hint of Greek architecture. There were elaborate bejeweled decorations hanging from the columns and the ceiling. There were dozens of seats lined up symmetrically along marble tile, forming a clear-cut aisle to the forefront of the room. Flower petals were scattered across the length of the aisle ending at the foot of an altar. I looked to see if my lover's imposter were still around, but I was alone. Instead, Christopher was on the other side of the room near the altar. He appeared…different. No long hair, no intimidating presence, no fierce, yet intense gaze and no otherworldly aura, yet he looked tired and drained. Like a man whose search had finally ended. As though he had lived a thousand lifetimes and would live a thousand more if it meant finding what he sought after.

An eerie, yet hauntingly beautiful melody began playing from unseen strings of violins and pipes of an organ. Relieved it was him, I began walking towards a stone dais to ask what was going on. As I did so, the once empty seats began to slowly fill with people and strange creatures as they faded into existence around me. When I reached him, he had his back turned towards me. A sinking feeling began to envelope me as I drew closer. I grasped his shoulder and turned him around.

"Christopher! What is g-," I froze.

Turning to face me, was none other than Him. The one who haunted my dreams and my nightmares. The one who struck fear into my heart, yet fascinated me all the same. The one with midnight blue eyes that both threaten and adore.

Those eyes stared at me intently, yet softly. He grasped my hand and pulled me closer. As he slid a ring with an amethyst gem on my finger, he drank a pomegranate wine from a chalice.

Christopher's voice echoed from His lips, "Eternal bindings never break, only falter."

Then I was handed a similar intricate ring and was motioned to slide it onto his finger. I took the band and gazed looked at his face. His eyes began to change sporadically from midnight blue to deep brown and back again. This made me feel very dizzy. Somehow, I managed to slip the band onto his finger as he handed me the chalice. Despite the dizziness, I lifted the chalice up to my lips and noticed my reflection in the contents of the cup. The reflection gazed back at me, no longer of the strange woman, but of myself. The chalice fell from my hand to the ground with a harsh clang. The liquid contents spilling out across the dais.

He looked at me with a soft, yet sad smile and two eyes glistening back at mine, one deep brown; the other a midnight blue.

Then I woke up.