Dreaming of the Devil

2

Thea stilled, her face paling before she struggled to regain her composure.

"What are you talking about?" she answered, her voice wavering slightly. I knew immediately that she had lied, and I felt myself frown. I had always maintained an honest and open relationship with my grandmother. Sometimes she would say things or do things that I pegged down to old age. Maybe I should have been more observant in those moments.

"I heard the two villagers talk of a demon who lives in the forest, waiting for his name to be called" I replied. She turned to fully face me, taking a deep breath, releasing it slowly. After staring at each other for what felt like a lifetime, she closed her eyes, bowing her head slightly.

"It is time for her to know" she said, speaking out loud to herself. I scrunched my brows together as she spoke a prayer I had never heard before, and in a language I did not recognise. I tilted my head slightly in confusion as she opened her eyes and met mine.

"The story I'm about to tell you is for your own protection, so heed my words wisely" she said. I sat down in the meadow and crossed my legs against one another. Leaning back, my hands pressed softly against the grass, and waited for her to begin. I felt her hesitation to tell me, but after a moment she knelt beside me, running her fingers against the longer grass strands that shifted with the breeze.

"There is a legend that the ruler of the netherworld himself has a soulmate, a mortal woman who walks the earth" she paused, looking at me for a moment too long before continuing. I pursed my lips, tugging my brows downward in confusion.

"It is said that once she reaches her twenty-first sun cycle, the peak of maturity, he will feel her soul connecting with his like a tether, and he will begin his search to find her" she said, shivering slightly. A sick feeling overwhelmed me as I silently encouraged her to continue.

"It is said that he will find her physical form in the land between heaven and hell, and he can reach out to her through her dreams, or her nightmares. But he cannot find her, and therefore he cannot come to claim her" she paused, bringing her eyes to meet mine with a steely look before saying, "unless she says his name".

A shudder ran down my spine, through my fingertips and deep into the base of my feet. The feeling of dread crept up my throat, threatening to spill out the small bit of bread that currently sat heavy as lead in my stomach. My heart stammered, the feeling caused me to reach up and rub the spot against my chest.

"Grandmother..." I started, feeling unsure of how to tell her about my dreams.

They started the night of my twenty-first birthday, three months ago.

I found myself in the middle of the ocean, struggling to stay afloat. Something heavy held onto my feet, trying to pull me under. It felt so, so real. The constant pressure against my ankles began to grow heavier. Eventually my body grew so tired I could barely hold my head above the waves and after a moment, I began to sink. Submerging deeper into the freezing water, I could feel consciousness slipping away as my lungs burned for air. My body stopped fighting and I began to inhale just as I heard him. His deep, smouldering voice like velvet against my skin. He called out my name for the first time and I awoke in a sweat, struggling to catch my breath. It was both equally terrifying and exhilarating.

"I need to tell you about my dreams" I declared, "I think it might be..." the words got lost in my throat, and I sat, unable to finish my sentence.

"I know darling, I know" she answered, "I think I've known for a long time that it was you. You were always different somehow. Something about the darkness always seemed to call for you, even as a child you preferred to play in the moonlight over the sunshine" she finished, a small smile graced her face as her mind replayed some memory. We sat in silence for a moment until then she spoke again.