A Window to the Past

A Second Chance

Emelyn found herself in a very green meadow. Trees were spread out along the horizon, and a pond lay in the middle of the green expanse. The grass was dotted with multi-colored flowers. Emelyn felt entirely at peace. She had been here before in her dreams, but she was sure that she had visited this place in person.

She found herself exploring the meadow, stopping in patches of flowers to run her hands over the bright and fluffy petals. She was smiling. The sun was out, the field was warm, and the light wind passing through rustled the foliage in such a melodic way. Emelyn was alone in the meadow, and there was no evidence that any homes or any beings were nearby. It was just herself, the flowers, and whatever might exist in the pond.

Emelyn made her way to the pond slowly, just enjoying her time. The closer she approached the pond, the darker the sky would get. But Emelyn didn't care; she was entirely at ease with everything in her life.

The pond was just as brilliant as the foliage surrounding it. Cattails rocked in the breeze at one end of the pond. A few lily pads lay smack in the middle of the water. The underwater vegetation was just as beautiful as the rest of the meadow. Long trailing grass threatened to tickle the pond's surface. Rocks looked to be laid down in just the perfect manner as if someone had gone in and laid everything in the pond by hand.

As she admired the pond, she felt the wind picking up. She felt the air growing colder, the sky becoming darker, and she could swear that she heard the rumble of thunder somewhere in the distance.

Emelyn was incredibly alone in that meadow with nowhere to run if a storm were to arrive. She looked off into the distance, judging how easily it would be to get to the trees. But you're not supposed to go to the trees if there's lightning, Emelyn thought to herself. She looked around quickly and noticed that there appeared to be a small cabin that she hadn't seen. Had it appeared out of nowhere? Or was the cabin always there? Emelyn wasn't sure, but she did know that she had to make it to the building for shelter.

In an instant, the sky opened up. Heavy rain began to pelt Emelyn and the ground, putting large rippling divots in the pond. Emelyn began to run.

As she ran towards the hut, she found herself looking towards the trees again. The once empty expanse on the horizon now had large dark figures slowly exiting the trees. She found herself running faster, watching the dark masses starting to move towards her. The hut seemed to be moving further and further away as she ran while the creatures were moving closer and closer.

Suddenly, she heard a howl...

Emelyn awoke with a start, her heart pounding rapidly in her chest. She took in a deep breath, feeling as though the air in her lungs had disappeared entirely. She had dreamed of the meadow before many times, but she had never had strange creatures appear. She sat up, rubbing her eyes quickly, trying to clear the blurriness and sleep.

The wetness of her eyes was startling, and she shivered as she registered the cold sweat that covered her body. Though she had been sleeping in the same room for a few nights, everything seemed grossly unfamiliar. The half-drawn curtains had light filtering in, though the room was still bathed partially in darkness.

She looked down at her hands that were shaking in her lap with shuddering breaths. She began to run them shakily through her hair, needing something to do. That particular dream had never been so vivid before in all of the years she had it. It was like breaking through a fog that she wasn't aware had been there. Was it because she wasn't taking that odd potion Remus told her about? It had to be. There was no other logical explanation that she could think of.