Consequential Dreams

Alice noticed the shotgun as she walked down the hall to get her morning cup of coffee. It had not been there when she went to bed last night. A chill ran down her spine. What had she done now?

The coffee forgotten for the moment, she began what was becoming a morning ritual. Walking cautiously from room to room, she looked for anything out of the ordinary.

She found it in the back bedroom. There was blood splattered against the far wall. Closer examination revealed bits of flesh and fur stuck to the wall and floor. A lamp had been knocked over and the bed was rumpled.

For ten nights and days now, something had broken down between the world of sleep and the world of wakefulness. At first, Alice thought she was just being forgetful. Maybe she forgot about moving a chair from one room to the other. Maybe she didn’t recall bending all of her metal clothes hangers and piling them in the living room. But now, she could no longer deny something was going on. She went to bed last night having never been in the same house with any type of gun.

Now this.

She was afraid to sleep fearing that it would result in some waking horror. Alice called the police; wanting to get some help before this went any further.

An officer arrived a few minutes later. Answering the door, she found that the visitor was more than he seemed. Alice could see the reptilian persona beneath. Fortunately, she had the ax and took care of the threat quickly.

The woman lumbered back inside, dragging the body behind her. With a knowing glance, she saw herself napping on the couch. She paused only a moment to consider where she would leave this little surprise.

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