World of Shadows

He lifts the lantern high above his head
Lighting the cobbled stone road
His face in shadows
Eyes gleaming with an inner light

Pretty…pretty, he says
I look to him with plain wonder
Confusion painted across my features

Pretty, I ask

Look around you…this world it shines
He spreads his fingers, hand held out
With a wide sweep of his arm he bows
Welcome to the Shadows, M’Lady
Tis the world from which you’re born
But then you’ve always known
Have you not?
Gleaming eyes flick up to me
A smirk playing on his red lips

Yes…always, my voice ethereal
I look to see him at last
Beyond the darkness that hides him
Through those eyes of shining light
And there he stands waiting
Smiling broadly, knowingly
I remember, my mind becomes clear
Whispered words float past my lips
I am home at last

Yes M’Lady…at long last
His hand remains held out to me
A smirk plays across my red lips
I take a single step to close the gap
My fingers meet his
Interlacing and clasping tightly
My eyes had dulled outside the Shadows
Filling with an inner light
Once more they find their gleam

My voice comes strong and confident
Have you kept the Hearth warm, my friend

That I have M’Lady, as requested.

And So We Meet Again, My Love

Laughing, loving, needing, wanting, giving, living…

The water is warm as we take the time to splash and play despite the danger that is coming on the horizon. We feel it will be our last day and we spend it celebrating our love together. No fear, no regrets. We have loved with a passion to match the ages and together we will stand united to die the same way we have lived, as one. We will make the final stand, outnumbered and against all odds…not that unusual for us. But this time, we know our path may end come nightfall. We leave the pool of clearest water and lay side my side in the grass, entwined in love and pleasures. The world that awaits us melts away and we revel in one last day of basking in one another’s glory. There are no tears. Only the tender smiles that light upon soft lips with gentle kisses and fevered caresses. An urgency meets our lovemaking with the dying of the light and we melt into one another, drinking down each others soul with every heated touch and gasping moan. We devour our love for one another. For tonight we will face death and as one we will conquer it without a flinching eye…for we know that we have had each other in our lives always, and we always will. We take the final steps into the jaws of hell and a fierce battle cry is echoed through both of our chests.

Our last words…my love, we will meet again! We once more unite as our lives bleed out to soak into the ground and mingle along with our last breath of air...

And so those words have echoed throughout time...one life to the next...until you came to me once more. So you see my love, we were right...we conquered death with unflinching eyes and have returned to one another's arms. This is true love that survives all, life, death, pain, joy, fear, courage...we are meant for one another as we remain together, forever united. I love you darling...forever.

What Dreams May Come...

I lay in bed with the same feeling as always for restlessness has settled in and I toss and turn. Please God let me dream tonight, I silently pray, for it's been too long. I close my eyes and concentrate, willing slumber to wash over me as I imagine a warmth that speads down me from head to toe. Each muscle I consciously calm and relax as they loosen and stop their tightened reactions. My breathing deepens and I pull the darkness around me, a cloak of solitude and peace that I hold close. From deep within my heart there is a cry of hope. Will tonight be the night I will once again walk in the world of dreams?

I open my eyes to a scene I am familiar with but one I've never lived. I look around me and see that I am in our small, humble, yet happy home. The shaggy grey dog is chewing on a stick that he brought in from outside our little haven of peaceful solitude. The fire crackles and brings my attention to it. Oh, how could I have forgotten of the task at hand? I reach out and slowly stir the bubbling mixture of rabbit, broth and the few vegetables we still have. Thankfully winter is almost over and we will once again go into the woods to reap the bounties it has to offer. I breath in the rich scent of the rabbit as it slowly cooks on the hearth. He will be pleased tonight. I turn and walk to the wooden chair that sits next to the door and begin again to work on my sewing of his new tunic. It will be a surprise and I hope a happy one for I am almost done, just a few more stitches remain. Pulling the sinew tight after each hole the awl has punched, I make each and every stitch a reflection of my feelings for him. A sound of distant thunder rumbling throatily through the sky and I smile. I have finished! I turn the tunic back around and look at my handiwork, pleased to have completed this particular show of affection. Before the dog has caught the scent I know He has arrived and is walking toward our home. It is the only true home we've either known for it is ours. The location and materials that make up the room is of little consequence but the feelings that are within it are indeed what makes this a special place, a place of belonging. I open the door and walk to meet my Love, the tunic neatly folded and held behind my back. From a distance, I can see His long dark hair being whipped by the wind of the coming snow. It trails up and away from the rockface that He has turned the corner round, reaching for the sky like little arms calling to god to be held. His smile is brilliant and I love that He always shows it so when He looks upon me. I quicken my pace and reach for Him as my feet carry me closer, wanting to fall into His arms and tell Him how I've missed Him so. His eyes sparkling with the fire of life, He opens his arms to welcome me into their warm protective circle. A beaming smile graces my lips as I take the final two steps that remain before I am home in His embrace.

The harsh, echoing, metallic sound of sirens awakens me and my eyes fly open. No! Not again! I was so close, I could almost recall the scent of His hair and the warmth of His touch. The dream fades and as always is replaced with sorrow and loss. Silent tears trail down my cheeks and soak into the cloth as I hug the pillow close to my face and cling to what little I remember before it too gets swept away. For the second time tonight I pray...tomorrow night, please let me dream once more.

Homecoming…

The grounds surrounding the castle are shrouded in shadows. I stand on the balcony and smell the rich scent of flowers unlike any other. Sweet, honeyed, soothing and fruity all at once, they give the sense of homecoming. Every time I have ever crossed the bridge onto these grounds I have been greeted by the aroma of them and it always brings me peace, a knowing that I am where I belong. The balmy breeze blows, gently ruffling my hair across my features and the caress of the air against my skin as it penetrates the gauzy fabric of my nightdress brings a slight shiver at the sensation of touch that is so much like his fingertips brushing across me.I feel a tug at the edge of my mind and a smile touches my lips softly. He has returned. I can sense my love approaching at this very moment. My brows furrows suddenly when I notice he is attempting to ignore the fact that he is in pain. The smell of his blood greets my mind and I turn abruptly to run through the attached bedchamber. My bare feet create a slapping sound against the stone beneath them as I am carried down flights of stairs and through a series of rooms in ever quickening succession. My heart is in my throat when I reach the entrance and just at that moment we comes into view.My wide eyes take in the site of him, surveying what damage there may be as I rush to his side. There is a gash across his brow that causes half his face to be hidden behind the crimson of his essence. I touch his arm and he turns to me with no hint of pain, a loving smile across his bloodied lips. Tears pour from my eyes and I hug him to me fiercely. A low chuckle emanates from his chest and he holds me close.“I am fine little one. Don’t fear for me, I have returned to you whole and well. This appears worse then it is, I assure you. Besides, do not think I had not seen the look of hunger that crossed those pretty eyes of yours before your emotions took hold.” He smiles mischievously and pulls me close as we walk back the way I had come.A brilliantly bright blush creeps up my throat and face and I hide my evil grin by burying my face in the crook of his arm. I cannot hide the giggles though. It is always the same with him. He sees what no one else does. He sees the dark within and loves me all the more for it. I close my eyes and say a quick thanks to the Source as I do upon every return he makes to our home. I lift my head once more and stop us in our tracks as I pull him to me and lap gently at his lips, drinking him in and making a promise for more to come.