PART 1: THE DREAM
I stood petrified. The mysterious figure loomed over me, a knife gleaming under their cloak. I couldn’t run, and there was nowhere to hide. This was the end. I have always taken my life for granted, and now it is gone… All of the sudden, the cloaked figure stopped walking. I watched in horror as the murderer slowly lifted off their hood. I was finally going to see the person’s face before they killed me…
RING RING
I jolted up from my bed, my face covered in sweat, panting. I quickly turned off my alarm and headed to the restroom. I splashed cold water on my face and stared into the mirror. It was only a dream…only a dream… Yet it felt so real. Part of me felt aggravated that I could not see the person’s face.The other part of me wanted these dreams to stop. Every night I have the same dream, and every night I always get closer to seeing the cloaked figure’s face.
I headed back into my bedroom and looked at the clock on my wall. 6:30 AM. Like always. Just like my dreams, I always wake up at 6:30AM. Whether it is my alarm, my dog, or even some cars on the street, I always wake up at this time. Always. It was like something or someone was trying to stop me from finishing the dream. I knew there was no point in trying to go back to bed, so I put on my robe and went downstairs.
Both of my parents were still asleep. I checked the calendar which was on my fridge. Saturday. With a jolt I realized today was my school’s dance. Unfortunately no one had asked me out (if anyone did I probably would have said no by accident), but I was very excited all the same. My two best friends, Katie and Sara, will be there, and that by itself will be very fun. I grabbed some cereal and orange juice. While eating I looked on my phone to get inspiration for some cute hairstyles to wear. Just as I finished eating, my mom walked downstairs.
“You’re up early.” she said, yawning.
“I forgot to turn off my alarm,” I replied. This was a lie. I turned off my alarm last night since it was the weekend, yet it still went off. Another unsolved mystery… My mother shrugged and helped herself to some toast and jam. It was a couple minutes until she talked again.
“Are you excited for the dance?”
I responded while making myself some hot chocolate, “Yes, very, it’s my first one, and I love the dress that you helped me pick out!” My mom smiled and stared into her coffee mug. I all the sudden reminded myself that I have a girls date with my mom today. I smiled, excited to go get lunch with my mom. She wanted to help me get ready for the dance, so we were going window shopping and getting lunch. After drinking all of my hot chocolate, I changed into casual clothes and prepared for my mother and daughter date.
PART 2: LUNCH AND THE BLACK CLOAK
“Well Helen, where do you want to go and eat?” asked my mom. I smiled and observed the restaurants at the mall.
“Mmh, I am not sure, though some burgers sound nice.” After walking for a couple minutes we decided to go to Shake Shack, excited for some delicious burgers and cheese fries. My mom ordered our lunch, and while we waited we sat down in one of the booths. We talked about school and colleges, (which I was determined not to think about right now) until our order was out. As we ate, I glanced out the window watching the hustle and bustle of teenagers, adults, and children walk past, all busy with shopping and talking. One very large group of teenage girls around my age passed the window. As they passed I thought I saw a person, wearing a black cloak, walk swiftly past them. All of the sudden I got a familiar feeling of fear that I often have in my dreams. Disturbed, I quickly finished my food, and then asked my mom if we could head home. She reluctantly agreed and then we walked to our car.
I walked through the front door and sprinted to my room. Something didn’t feel right… I considered not going to the dance, but quickly dismissed that thought. I was probably imagining that person. After all, I have an overactive imagination. But still… What if something happened? No, I had waited so long for this dance, I was not going to waste this opportunity. I looked at my clock, 4:05. I should probably get ready. I went into the bathroom to do my hair and makeup.
Makeup first. I sighed. My mom allowed me to borrow some of her cosmetics and I was determined to do this right. 10 minutes later, and my mom was redoing my makeup. Let’s just say… I am definitely not a natural. After my mom finished with my makeup, she helped me curl my hair and then put it half up, with a ribbon matching my dress. Following my hair and makeup, I went to my closet and took out my dress. As I was about to put it on, my mom came and dropped off some heels she got for me as a surprise.
“Since you’re 15, I am sure I can trust that you won’t twist your ankle, but maybe bring some regular shoes too, just in case.” my mom advised. I gave her a big hug and packed some sneakers in my purse, just to be safe. I then put on my dress, took a deep breath and looked in the mirror. The dress was a beautiful rosé color, with laced sleeves and a long skirt, and a matching bow in the front. It was beautiful, and I felt beautiful. I glanced at my watch, 4:49, I should call my taxi.
I walked down the stairs, careful not to step on my skirt. When my mom saw me she gasped with delight. My dad kindly offered to call the taxi, and while I waited, my mom insisted on taking a million photos.
When my dad came back, he took my hand and said, “Well, princess, may I please escort you to your carriage.” I laughed and walked out the door with him to the taxi. When I saw the taxi, I got the same feeling of fear that came over me during lunch. The taxi looked very familiar. I tried to remember where I had seen this taxi, but was unable to. Unlike most taxis, this taxi was a pale shade of yellow and the taxi almost appeared to have no driver through its tinted windows. My father, of course, did not seem concerned about anything, (he very rarely is) but instead gave me a big hug and told me to have a good time. I dismissed my feeling of fear, probably from the excitement of the dance. I got into the taxi and waved to my parents. I gave the directions to the taxi driver, and looked forward to seeing all my friends at the dance,
I never made it there.
PART 3: THE UNSEEN DRIVER
I was not concerned at first when the driver did not respond when I gave him directions to my school. He is probably nervous, I thought to myself. I was a little anxious when he turned the wrong way on the street. Again I dismissed my worries by telling myself that the map is probably taking him on a different route. I resolved to pay attention to where we were driving, just in case he was going the wrong way. We continued to drive for a while, getting farther and farther away from my school. I then decided to speak up.
“Umm, excuse me sir? I think we are going the wrong way. My school is the other way.” No response. “Sir? Can you hear me?” I tilted my head to look at the driver. There was no driver. I started to panic. The car was going deeper and deeper into the city, into parts I had never been to. I opened my purse to grab my phone but it wasn’t there. I distinctly remembered putting my phone in my purse. Then, all of a sudden, I remembered where I had seen this taxi. In my dreams, when I am about to be murdered, outside of the alleyway was this very taxi. I remembered the pale yellow color and the tinted windows on the taxi.
I tried to open the car door, in hopes of being able to escape. The door was locked. I attempted to climb into the front seat to stop the car and unlock the doors. To my horror I found myself not being able to get out of my seat. It was like there was an invisible force holding me in it. As the taxi went deeper and deeper into the city, night time approached. I surrendered myself to my fate, and laid my head on the cold window, drifting into a deep, troubled sleep.
I was in the alleyway unable to move, waiting. They are coming, I thought to myself. All of the sudden, all the street lights flickered at the front of the alleyway. And then, I saw the cloaked figure. But this time, something was different. The hooded figure quickly glided toward me, inches from my face, until I could feel its hot breath. I could not see its face, as a strange shadow masked it under its hood. Then, quite suddenly it spoke, “I will see you soon Helen…”
I jerked awake banging my head on the window. The sky was totally dark. That dream… it wasn’t like my normal ones. And…the person’s voice… there was something unique about that voice…it sounded like my voice. At this thought I grew deeply troubled. I glanced at my watch to see the time, 11:09. The dance is probably getting close to being over. I wonder if my parents know that I had never arrived at the dance? Suddenly the taxi started to slow down and pulled along the sidewalk. When I looked out of the window my heart jumped. There, right before me was the alleyway I saw every night, every night in my dreams. Just then, the invisible force that was keeping me seated, forced me out of my chair pushing my hand toward the car door handle. I prayed that the door would still be locked, but to my dismay the door opened, allowing a gust of cold winter air spread throughout the car. I would have done anything, ANYTHING, except enter the alleyway. I knew what was going to happen, and this time it wasn’t a dream. But again, the invisible force took hold of my body, forcing me to walk straight in the alleyway.
PART 4: In the Alleyway
I could barely see. The alleyway was pitch black except for the few street lights illuminating the entrance to it. I didn’t really need the light, since my legs seemed to know where they were going. Despite my hardest efforts, I could not overcome the magic controlling my body. Quite suddenly my legs jerked to a stop and turned so that I faced the entrance of the alleyway. I knew then what would happen next: the hooded figure would appear, come close to me, lift off their hood, and probably kill me. Then reality hit me. They are going to kill me… I was going to die. My vision grew blurred from my tears as a sob escaped my throat. I didn’t want to die. Not like this. I cried for what seemed to be an eternity. I prayed to God asking for help, asking to forgive all of my sins, and to help me escape this nightmare. After a long time, I calmed down and accepted my fate. I am going to die and I am not afraid. If this is my destiny, then so be it. I was scared, but also resigned at the same time. I knew I didn’t have long before my murderer appeared, so I spent my last few minutes praying before I was killed.
The lights flickered. I jerked my head up and stared out the alleyway, waiting. And then, the cloaked figure appeared. I watched in trepidation as it pulled out a knife, a knife I see every night in my dreams. Why should tonight be any different? The person slowly walked toward me, spinning the knife in their hands playfully. This was a joke to them. The figure drew closer and closer. I knew what would happen next. And just like I had guessed, they stopped in their tracks, a couple feet away from me. “I was wondering when I was going to meet you in person… Helen,” the hooded figure said softly as they lifted off their hood. I braced myself to see some horrible person, to see a monster, or something that represented all the horrors they inflicted on me. But what I saw was far worse. I stared in shock at the true identity of the cold blooded, vile monster, who unleashed upon me dreams of cruelty that I have had to deal with for years. The hooded figure was… me.
“Hello Helen, it is nice to finally meet you in person.” I was unable to reply, still numb with shock. She, me, continued, “I guess I should formally introduce myself. The name is Sabrina, and I am you, but I am from the realm of darkness, or sometimes also known as The Mirror Dimension. As you can see with the name, in our realm, everyone has the exact opposite personality than you guys, with a few exceptions. Unlike your realm, our world is flowing with magic, Dark Magic, that we can control.” I stuttered while still processing everything that I had just heard. Millions of questions formed inside my head. And out of all of the million questions I could have asked, I just asked, “ W-why? H-how? W-w-w-what?!?!?” An evil smile spread across Sabrina’s face, a smile I hope that I never imitate. Sabrina then started to walk around me, twiddling her knife, whilst talking. “Lots, and lots of questions… I guess I can spare some time answering them…” Great. Anything to delay her killing me. Sabrina sighed and continued speaking, “ It is a bit complex to tell you the truth, but I love a good story so I can tell you…”
“In my realm, we have a school of darkness, where every child learns one or two magic abilities. Most children are satisfied with their meager amount of power. But I? I wanted more. I decided to learn all of the magical abilities, but I chose two subjects to major in. Those two magic abilities that I have excelled at are Dream Walking and Time Control. Our school graduates once we finish learning our abilities, when we are around 18. But for me, I graduated on my 15th birthday, thanks to being able to stop and go back in time,” I listened patiently while carefully watching Sabrina twirl her knife nonchalantly in her hand. A knife that could very well soon be the death of me… no, I shouldn’t think about that. I realized that I was zoning out, and then switched my attention back to Sabrina’s storytelling, “I was one of the most powerful sorcerers in my age, I was even more powerful than some of the Elders, but I wanted more power. I wanted so much power that I could rule all of the Mirror Dimension. Unfortunately, the only way I can achieve my maximum power is by uniting myself with my mirror version, you.”
Sabrina looked at me, smiling at what she seemed to think was an “affectionate” smile. I glared at her with the deepest loathing. Sabrina frowned and resumed, “ Of course I knew you were obviously going to say no. Your personality is completely the opposite of mine. Unlike me, you’re kind, selfless, and…” Sabrina then grimaced as if it pained her to speak. Sabrina took a deep breath and spoke painfully slow,“humble. But thanks to my powers I knew just the way to convince you to say yes. As I commented before I have the ability to dreamwalk, or also control and form others’ dreams.”
“Hey, that’s just like Voldemort and Harry Potter!” I shouted, interrupting Sabrina. “SHUT UP,” she hissed, “As I was saying… I decided to control your dreams, every night showing you visions of tonight, of you about to be murdered by me. Every night you feel helpless, alone, and scared. But! I can stop these dreams. You can sleep in peace, only if you join me.” At this, Sabrina held out her hand looking me dead in the eyes. I would never join her.
I knew this would not lead to anything good, so I decided to stall by asking, “How did you make the taxi kidnap me?” Sabrina laughed maliciously and looked at me with amusement, “You silly goose, I didn’t send the taxi, the taxi just happened to work to my needs! Please don’t tell me you have never heard about the Taxi of Fate?” I shook my head. Sabrina raised her eyebrows and glanced in the direction of the taxi. She then looked back at me. “I will keep this brief. That taxi that you rode in is thought to be a legend. It is supposed to take the passenger not where they want to go, but to where they need to go. Unfortunately for you, the taxi can be very easily confused when there is an identical version of a person in the same realm. The taxi drove you here, thinking it was somewhere you needed to go, while it was actually where I needed you to go. If the taxi recognized that it was you as the passenger, it would have taken you as far away from me as it could.” Sabrina finished, staring fiercely at me with her dark brown eyes. I racked my brains trying to think of another useless question to ask her. I avoided her gaze. I asked timidly, “ W-w-wh-h-h-hy is there no d-d-driver?” Sabrina stared at me with annoyance and suspicion as if she knew I was trying to waste her time. Suddenly, she swiftly pulled out her knife and cut my cheek. I felt blood trickle down my face as Sabrina stepped away from me, looking satisfied. “There. That’s what you get for stalling. Now time to get to the point. You will unite with me, allowing us to reach our maximum potential.”
“NEVER!!!” I shouted back at her, attempting to free my body from the force keeping me standing. Sabrina lost her look of amusement and replaced it with a look of uncontrollable rage. She pulled out her knife and spoke in a hostile, murderous voice, “ I wasn’t asking.”
PART 5: DON’T BE A HERO
Sabrina rushed towards me, her knife prepared to stab me. Whether as a coincidence or on purpose, I broke free from the magical force and ducked. Sabrina swung her knife and missed my face by an inch. Sabrina tripped and fell, giving me a chance to hide in one of the dumpsters. I quietly searched through my purse for a weapon of some sort. Meanwhile Sabrina called to me, taunting, as she searched the other dumpsters, “ You can’t hide forever Helen… I will find you… you don’t have to do this. You just have to join me and this will all be over. Don’t try to be a hero.” Sabrina’s voice grew closer, and I couldn’t find anything besides my sneakers. Wait a minute, my sneakers! I thanked God for my mother and swiftly tore off my heels and jammed on the sneakers. I held one of the heels in my right hand, the tip facing outward, so I could use it to defend myself. I then heard Sabrina’s voice right above my dumpster, “ I will find you Helen. I can sense you. I know you’re close.” I felt Sabrina slowly open the lid of the dumpster. A ray of light allowed me to see the evil grin spread across Sabrina’s face. I then decided to attack, praying to God that I would survive.
I jumped out of the dumpster throwing one of my heels at Sabrina’s face. She stumbled backwards, dropping her knife. I quickly grabbed the knife, holding in the opposite hand of my heel. Sabrina saw me with the knife and hissed. She dove for me, attempting to tackle me to the ground. I dodged her, but landed on my right foot irregularly, twisting it. I fell backward, dropping my heel to break my fall. My foot throbbed with excruciating pain, as Sabrina approached me, the area above her left eye bleeding profusely, with a triumphant look on her face. “Well Helen, I must admit, that was a good fight. But, you lost. Now, I will give you one last chance. Join me, or be murdered.” Sabrina thrust out her hand, and looked at me with a fierce, hostile gaze. I gripped her knife tightly in my hand, while glaring directly into her eyes. I gathered all of my remaining courage and spoke with a trembling voice, “I will never join you, no matter what you or anyone does to me.” At this I kicked her with my good foot. I scrambled to my feet and pointed the knife at Sabrina, backing her up against the wall.
“Good job, you have me cornered. We would make a good team, Helen.” Sabrina watched me carefully, with…could it be…admiration? Sabrina sighed and continued to speak, “You won… and I lost. Now let’s get it over with. Kill me.” “W-w-w-wait w-w-what k-kill you? W-who said I was going to kill you?!?” I stuttered and almost dropped the knife with shock. What was she thinking? I wasn’t a monster like her. The fact that she expected me to kill her was…well it was unthinkable! Sabrina smiled and nodded and spoke, “Aah, I should have expected this. Of course. You’re trying to be merciful. Do not be a hero. Get revenge. I did horrible things to you. I gave you visions of you being murdered. I have given you mental and physical pain unimaginable to anyone your age. I know what you truly want. It’s not that hard. Kill me.” My hand shook. A million thoughts flew through my head. She deserves death. No, she is a human. More like a demon. What would mom and dad do? Mom and dad aren’t here. Kill her. No. Kill her. No. KILL HER!!
“NO!!!” I shouted, coming out of my trance I stared at Sabrina and calmly stated, “ You did horrible things, things that are very, very hard to forgive. I could very easily kill you… but your punishment is not my choice.” I dropped the knife and pushed it away. I took a sigh of relief. I was free at last, I had defeated Sabrina!
I was wrong.
Sabrina stared at me, smiling wickedly. She shook her head while laughing maniacally. “Oh, oh, Helen. So noble. Yes. But so foolish.” In the distance I could hear the church bells chiming midnight. Sabrina walked closer to me, as I backed away. My back was against the wall of the alley way and I was weaponless. How could I have been so stupid! Sabrina walked closer and closer until she finally stopped, only a couple feet away from me. Sabrina spoke ferociously, “You may have won the battle Helen, but I have won the war.” As the bells chimed the twelfth time, Sabrina snapped and hissed, “See you soon…”
PART 6: THE TIME LOOP
RING RING
I jolted up from my bed, my face covered in sweat, panting. I quickly turned off my alarm and got out of bed to head to the restroom. However, the moment I set my feet on the floor, I felt an extremely fierce pain on my right leg. I fell to the ground clutching my foot. As I laid down, I felt something trickle down my cheek onto my carpet. Concerned, I put my hand to my cheek and was startled to find blood on my hands. And then, the memories of the night previously returned. It could not have been a dream, due to my injuries… but why was I in bed when I was previously in the alleyway seconds before? Exhausted and confused, I limped towards the bathroom to clean my cheek. Once I had cleaned up the blood, I returned to my bedroom to glare at the clock. 6:36 AM. Wait, that must have meant that I woke up at 6:30…
I ran as fast as my leg would allow me downstairs to see if either my parents were awake. Surely they are concerned as to how I disappeared last night, and magically came back? No one was awake yet. While I waited for my parents to wake up, I put an ice pack against my leg and sat at the kitchen table. Just then my mom came downstairs. Yawning, my mom said, “You’re up ear-” My mom stopped in her tracks when she saw my leg.
“OH MY GOSH, Helen what happened???” My mom tore the ice pack out of my hands and tenderly tended to my leg. I was about to speak when my mom interrupted saying, “Hopefully this won’t impact your dancing today.” “Dancing?” I asked, confused, “ What dancing?” My mom looked at me bemused and answered, “You know, the school dance! Today is Saturday! Don’t you remember?” “I guess I forg-“ I stopped speaking. Saturday? Yesterday was a Saturday! I sprung out of the chair and sprinted to the calendar, ignoring the pain in my leg. Saturday. No, no this can’t be right. I grabbed my phone and looked at it. January 27, 2024 Saturday. I felt myself go dizzy. Last night was not a dream… it could not have been… what about my injuries? My mom rushed towards me and led me to the couch. She was talking to me, but I couldn’t hear her. I zoned out, confused, scared, and worried. What was happening?
Just then, a letter fell through our mail slot. I glanced over and saw in neat big handwriting: Helen Woodsmith. I stood up and picked up the letter. The handwriting was the exact same as mine, yet I hadn’t written this. I suddenly realized who this was from. Sabrina. My mom mumbled something about making breakfast, but I didn’t care. I limped towards the couch and sat down. My earth was pounding dangerously fast as I opened the letter. In writing identical to mine the letter read:
Dear Helen,
I enjoyed being able to see you last night. No, it wasn’t a dream. I have simply sent you back in time. You told me that nothing would make you unite with me, nothing. Well, I will be the judge of that. I warned you, Helen, that saying no was foolish, but you didn’t listen. Now, you must face the consequences. I have stuck you inside of a time loop. For the rest of your life you must live out today. No matter your attempts, you will always find yourself in the alleyway with me. I have made sure of that. I told you not to be a hero. You should have killed me when you had the chance, but you were too busy being “merciful”. See you tonight… 🙂
Best,
Sabrina
AKA The Dreamwalker
By Regina Maricich ‘29, Staff Writer
29rmaricich@montroseschool.org
