Mystified

Torn away yet again, Corinne found herself swirling in an abyss of darkness. Technical difficulty? What in the world, could Morpheus mean by that? She wondered, a myriad of emotions encircling her very soul, she was getting tired of this odd dream and somewhere in the depths of her heart wished she were still in her normal humdrum life.

In the distance, she could hear water lapping gently against the shore as the darkness began to fade. “Am I still at the beach?” Corinne wondered aloud, “I couldn’t be,” she surmised, for the salt tang of the air was now ripe with the scents of pine, moss and damp forest floor. Unclenching her eyes she glanced about in frustration. She was at a lake now, a thickly wooded area that she felt was high in the mountains… a private retreat for some wealthy family.

The place seemed normal enough… at least there was not another dreamer floating about, lost in the same confusion Corinne herself seemed to be stuck in. Taking a closer look about her surroundings, she saw a massive log cabin, partly hidden behind the trees, a large deck jutting out from some thirty feet above her.

“MORPHEUS!” She cried out in agitation, her frustrated cry falling flat to the ground as the woods swallowed her plea.

Overwhelmed with what felt like grief she sank to the ground and cried, as she had not since she’d been a child. The fat drops sliding easily from her eyes and over her cheeks. When suddenly a massive dog rushed over to her, its tongue lolling happily out of the side of its mouth.

“Hello,” Corinne barely whispered, receiving an avid bark of joyful acknowledgement. “What’s your name?” she questioned.

The canine was obviously as confused as she was, by the cock of its head, “I suppose I should know you, huh?” Corinne smiled through the tears that still streamed over her face.

“I knew I would find you here,” The voice was masculine, rich and as smooth as crushed velvet.

Startled she jumped up and turned, coming face to face with a rather large and imposing man. With deeply tanned skin, raven black hair that glowed beneath the warm sun and a combination of gold and green eyes that twinkled with humor.

It was a humor that soon faded into concern, “Sweetheart, you’ve been crying!” he cried out in surprise, engulfing her with his arms. “Whatever is wrong?” he murmured, his breath ruffling the fine hairs by her ear.

“Nuh…nothing,” Corinne sniffled as she hurriedly put an end to the waterworks and pushed away from him. She had never met this person before at least that she remembered, and other than the terminator, plastic flamingos; having a dog in her dream was a first. More puzzling was what this man had to do with her, the keys or the music boxes.

“I don’t believe you for a second. Come we will sit and talk about it,” He murmured soothingly as he dropped to the rocks and beckoned her to follow suit with a pat of his hand.

“Did you guys have an argument?” the mysterious man questioned with a look of fatherly concern. That made Corinne realize that whoever he was, he certainly was not one of her lovers.

“With who?” she questioned in surprise, wondering if he was talking about Morpheus.

“You’re a goof, Corinne,” he laughed, the sound echoing across the lake like thunder.

“No, I haven’t really argued with anyone,” Corinne replied in surprise and confusion. “I am just…” what should she say, what should she do? By now, she had realized that this dream was one of strange proportions. The thought occurring to her that yes this was a dream and in a dream one could do anything, say anything they wanted.

“Have you ever felt like you were trapped in some third dimension?” Corinne questioned, deciding that this was her dream and in a few minutes to a few hours, it wouldn’t matter if he thought she was crazy.

“Yes,” he replied with gusto, standing to play with the dog. “Come on Zoey, fetch the stick.” He playfully bellowed as he tossed the object in question far across the rocks. Invoking an irrepressable laugh from Corinne as the canine nearly tripped over her own feet to tear off in the direction of the prize.

“The day Cassandra and I got married, you should remember.” he continued, turning his attention back to Corinne, a quizzical look in his eyes.

“If it hadn’t been for you, I doubt I would have gone through with it,” he laughed as he playfully punched her arm. “I remember it clearly. That day I had been up in arms, and felt like I was walking through fog.”

“But good ol’ Corinne Blake, advice columnist and keeper of hearts was there to the rescue.” His smile warmed her heart, she felt comfortable and at ease with this fictional man. So comfortable that she didn’t even realize that he’d spoken of her last name and job. “So, is there anything else bothering you?” he questioned with genuine concern.

“I guess I have just been plagued by some weird dreams, dreams that are so far beyond boring old me that I can hardly keep up,” Corinne stated with a small smile, as she turned her head towards the sky in search of a bird whose cry had echoed through the air breaking the serenity of the lake for the briefest of moments.

“You boring?” he laughed out, “Come on now, ever since you met Morpheus you’ve been anything but. I swear that man has done wonders for you,” he smiled lovingly.

“Andy, Corinne,” a woman’s voice cried out from the deck above, “Lunch is ready.”

“Ooh, Lunch,” Andy cried out excitedly, “I am starving.” Andy laughed as he started towards the house. “You coming?” he called out from the trees.

Corinne stood in silence for a moment, contemplating whether she wanted to go up or not, her stomach making the decision for her as it grumbled loudly. “Yeah I’m coming,” she smiled following after him. As Corinne made her way up the stairs she couldn’t help but feel more settled having been able to release some of the tension that she’d been feeling lately.

The interior of the house was rather masculine in taste with its wood walls and yet had the unmistakable feminine touches. “Corinne, glad to see you’ve made it,” Morpheus smiled as he stood at the base of the first set of stairs, his moon colored eyes gleaming deviously.

Turning in surprise towards the sound of his voice, Corinne narrowed her eyes upon him. “Morpheus, you and I need to talk,” Corinne quietly murmured through clenched teeth, so no one but he could hear.

“Yes I believe we do,” He countered, a slick smile spreading over his face, as he descended the few more stairs and came to stand in front of her.

“Lunch will get cold if you two don’t hurry,” A very pregnant woman that she assumed was Cassandra, interrupted before Corinne had a chance to say anything further. “You two are so beautiful together, I just wish you guys would act upon it.” She continued playfully as she reached out to wrap Corinne into a warm hug. “I hope you don’t mind I set lunch out on the front deck, figured I would take advantage of the beautiful weather, while I still can.” She laughed with a playful rub of her expanded belly.

“Where is everybody, I’m starving,” Andy loudly bellowed from the front deck. “You all know she won’t let me eat until you are seated.” He playfully laughed out, as he set eyes upon the three people.

Throughout the brief time that the four of them dined, the tension between Corinne and Morpheus was palpable. Yet Cassandra and Andy didn’t seem to notice the exchange in the least.

Corinne ate in silence, as she tried to wrap her mind about this newest piece of the puzzle. Why now, was Morpheus interacting with her, for normally everytime he came to her it was a signal that her stay in that time was at an end…

“Thank you Cassandra, but if you don’t mind, Corinne and I must discuss something of importance,” Morpheus stated smoothly when his plate was cleared. A wicked smile crossing his face as he penetrated Corinne with his silvery gaze.

“Oh!” Cassandra stated in surprise, a slow smile spreading across her face. A smile filled with wonder at whatever they could possibly have to speak of in private about. Her gaze returning to Andy as Corinne and Morpheus stood and headed into the house.

Morpheus nearly dragged her up the stairs and into the large guest room, where he gruffly let her go. “I want the key,” Corinne stated lowly to his back, keeping her anger to a minimum as she glanced about the room for the music boxes. “And I want to know what you meant when you said there was a technical difficulty,” she added, placing her hands on her hips in dismay as she realized that wherever they were, the boxes were not.

“You chose wrong,” Morpheus sneered through clenched teeth, not bothering to face her. “Not just that you are taking far too long to make your decision,” Morpheus continued abrasively.

“I chose wrong? How could that be when I have no idea which key is the correct one?” Corinne snarled, seething with anger at his sudden lack of concern for her feelings, frustrated because he’d yet to address the key that he held. “I want the key you have,” She re-iterated, with a thrust of her hand.

“You want the key?” Morpheus suddenly challenged, his tone significantly darkened, as he turned and penetrated her with his gaze. His eyes sparkling with emotions Corinne couldn’t decipher. Was it love, lust or something else entirely? All she knew is the look he fixed upon her sent a shiver down her spine.

Before she could think more about the matter, Morpheus was upon her and had her pulled against his body, “are you ready to do what is necessary to get it, my love?” He emotionally and fiercely questioned, his eyes all she could see.

Corinne’s, blood began to pound through her veins at his touch and her heart pounded within her breast. Nervously she watched, as Morpheus inclined his head towards hers, his lips merely a whisper away from her own, causing a warmth to spread through her very soul. “What am I supposed to do to get it?” she questioned, through the thickness of her mouth and the roar of her heart in her ears, confused by his response.

“Only you know,” Morpheus murmured into her ear, suddenly altering his position in what she determined was annoyance. “Although I must warn you, your decisions affect more than just yourself.” his whisper brushed over the sensitive skin just below her ear. “You know what it is that needs to be done, and until then I can’t help you…”

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