Raven Saga 01 - Raven

fortunate that Oliver was interested in the same things as me. We spent much of our time watching spooky TV shows and movies, before discussing them in depth. Oliver, assuming that we just shared a common thrill for the supernatural, when I knew that the majority of what we saw was, more than likely, true.

CHAPTER TWENTY

    As the end of January drew near, so my dreams began again. It had seemed like so many weeks since I'd had such vivid experiences during my sleeping hours that I had almost forgotten about them.
    As the dreams intensified, one night I found they had an altogether different effect. I awoke to find myself sleepwalking through the house. Although it worried me a little, I decided against telling Gabriel. I didn't want to concern him, and the fact that I'd woken up while still within the house reassured me that I probably wasn't capable of opening the front door.
    I was wrong.
    Just a few nights later I had one of the most vivid dreams to date...
    Voices called to me from within the forest. Ethereal voices sang my name, beckoning me to follow.
    Before I knew it, I found myself approaching the tall trees that swayed in the softly blowing wind. I couldn't stop myself from following the sounds. Peering through the trees, I tried to see who the voices belonged to. My vision seemed blurred and I couldn't quite see but I did catch sight of a figure dressed in white. I pushed through the long branches and gently tiptoed through the cold mossy ground beneath my bare feet.
    It's strange that in dreams I could walk barefooted in the snow and I didn't feel the slightest bit cold. In fact, the snow felt more like soft balls of moist cotton wool, squelching underfoot. I looked ahead and saw the figure moving like an angel in front of me. Or a ghost. She was not stepping but gliding along, almost as if she was on roller skates being pulled along on a smooth surface.
    She didn't turn so I was still unable to identify her, yet the smooth tones of her voice continued to sing my name, beckoning me to follow.
    “Lilly.... Lilly.... come Lilly.”
    The forest soon became darker as the trees thickened ahead, the path we walked upon disappeared completely and I was forced to climb over huge tree roots that exploded from the ground underneath my toes. In areas it was slippery and I stumbled a few times but managed to stay upright.
    Although I was vaguely aware that I was dreaming, I was conscious that the cast on my leg had only recently been removed so I had to be extra careful on my delicate bones.
    “Lilly... Lilly...” sang the voice. Soon I heard another voice and she too sang out my name. I quickened my pace, feeling like I needed to know who was calling me, and why.
    Just as I was close enough to see, I noticed that both women had long black hair. They turned and I gasped. Serena and Neleh stood before me, reaching out to me. My mother and my sister had called me this far but why? I tried to speak but no words would come out of my mouth. At the same time, they put their fingers to their own mouths, indicating that I shouldn't make a sound. Then they pointed ahead of them and as I tried to reach out to them again, I stumbled. But that time, I couldn't stop myself and I fell to my knees.
    The jolt woke me immediately, but I found myself not in my bed. Not even in my home. But in the forest. In exactly the position I had dreamt I was.
    I shivered uncontrollably and as I looked down I saw why. I had sleepwalked out of the house and into the forest in nothing but a pair of thick cotton pyjamas.
    I panicked, thinking if I stayed out there like that, I would surely die of hypothermia. I would find myself with the same fate as my mother. Looking around, I tried to see a way back home but I was well and truly lost. Why would Serena do this to me? She wouldn't want me dead, so there must be a reason for her and Neleh to bring me here.
    I recalled the dream and remembered that they had been pointing in the opposite direction. I had no choice but to go where they had told me to go. After a minute of stumbling through the freezing cold, something caught my eye. A flicker of light. I quickened my pace. It wasn't just light, it was fire. Warmth.
    I began to run, not caring about the scratches my poor feet and ankles were picking up as I went. Warmth was much more important to me at that point. As I approached, I could hear another voice. It was the voice of a man humming to himself, in perfect tune. Because it was a kind voice, I