Beautiful Dreamer

Chapter 6

Zachariah had just finished telling that my concept of reality was all a lie. He had some sort of magic and all my memories were not real. Was I really supposed to just believe that? Everything he was saying was ludicrous, there is no such thing as magic, and I had a life to get back to. I needed to get out of here. Zachariah had clearly gone psychotic; I would be able to find answers if I left here. I was furious and I just needed to leave. He grabbed my arm and I could feel rage spread through my body. How dare he think he can touch me, even if everything he said was true. That still meant he took my memories from me and had no way to give them back. I took my free arm and tried to push him off of me. Then it felt like the rage left my body and became an extension of myself. Zachariah’s body went flying into the wall. I stood still looking at my hand and then back at him.

“I did not even get to the part...where I explained you also have magic,” he said.

His eyes closed shut and his body went limp. I stood in silence trying to figure out what just happened. There was blood on his hand from where he touched the wound on his head. Did I really just do that? What do I do now? I could easily make my escape now but I had to make sure he was ok. I knelt down next to Zachariah and put my head on his chest. It sounded like his heart was still beating and he was breathing which was good. I did not want to add murder to the list of possibly my only real memories. I went and got a towel and began putting pressure on the wound. I went around the house and found fabric bandages and bottle of brown liquor that had no label. I smelled the bottle, crinkling my nose at the familiar smell of alcohol. I lifted the towel and rinsed his wound with the alcohol, once clean I wrapped the bandage around his head. I needed to get him up into the bed but he was almost double my size. I tried to leverage him up with my arms but I could not lift him up. I took a deep breath and decided to try something different. I closed my eyes and tried to reach in myself for that feeling I had when Zachariah had flown into the wall. I opened my eyes, nothing. Of course, nothing happened. I could not believe I was buying into this for a second. Obviously, I had not flung him back with some secret power inside me. He must have tripped when I pushed him back. I felt anger boil in my blood as I looked at his face. Zachariah had me almost believing his nonsense. Why was he doing this? Who the hell did he think he was! Rage ripped through my body like it once had before and I could feel it again. I reached my hand out towards Zachariah’s body and it began to levitate as I willed him onto the bed. I looked down at my hand after I gently laid him down. It began to shake...how did I do that?

Everything that had happened was really hitting me now. I sat down in the front room of the cottage trying to figure it all out. Maybe Zachariah had not been lying to me. The power that I felt inside me definitely did not feel like a lie. Ok let us look at the facts here. The king was after me for some reason, I still did not know. I was stuck in some sort of medieval time era. The only person I knew from my memories was Zachariah... but that was only because he was the one who put these false memories in my head. I was having such a hard time sorting out what to do. Would it be better for me to stay and figure out more from Zachariah, even though he could just be lying? Or should I leave and try to fend for myself? Zachariah said that there were castle guards out looking for us, but he could have been saying that to keep me here. If I knew what his true intentions were maybe the decision would be easier for me. I buried my face in my hands. This was just too much to take, just a couple days ago I was living a normal life at least in my mind. Hours passed by and I still did not know what to do.

“Hey, you are still here,” he stated, obviously expecting me to have taken off.

I looked up from my hands to look at him and just said nothing. 

“Uh... thanks for taking care of my head. I know I probably would have deserved it if you just left me there.”

We both sat there for a while. It had gotten dark out and I was tired at this point. I needed to clear my head and maybe sleep was the best way to do it, although it made me nervous to do so under the same roof as someone who claimed to steal my memories while I had slept. He had said that he could not alter them anymore, but could I really trust that? I was conflicted but I did not see much of a choice. It would not be wise to leave here so late at night. I would have to take my chances, rather than face the alternative of going it alone just yet.

“I think, I am going to go to bed now.”

“Does that mean you are going to stay?” He asked the beginnings of a smile started to show.

“I will tonight, but that does not mean I trust you or that I will being staying here tomorrow. I might leave but at this current juncture, I think it is safer for me to stay here tonight.”

“I know my word does not mean much to you right now, but I promise you will be safe here. I will not let anything bad happen to you while you are under my protection.”

I did feel a little reassured by his words. It seemed as though he meant them but how could I really know. I did not really know him. He was pretty much a total stranger to me. I just nodded in acknowledgment and headed off to bed. I would deal with this all in the morning, hoping that it would all just disappear and I would not have to.