"Elder Rhys?! What has he to do with this?"
Isabella felt confused and conflicted, not sure what was the right thing to do. She looked at the plates before her and Adrian, resolved to include him in her discovery.
"Let us eat and then I wish to show you something. It might be difficult to understand - it is impossible for me to understand - but it is real nonetheless."
Adrian looked at her and took her words as being sincere. Turning to his food he began to eat quickly, his mind churning over so many possibilities about what could be happening that had her interest so captured.
~~~~~
When they had both finished eating, Isabella took another two bread rolls and stood to leave. Adrian quietly followed her, not asking what the bread was for.
After washing, drying and putting away their dishes they walked out of the dining area together, initially saying nothing whilst walking.
"Adrian, I don't know if you will be able to see what I see, so please be patient with me and just trust that I believe in what I am seeing," she said, intriguing him further. On a regular day he would tease her about such words and the drama of them, but tonight he remained silent.
~~~~~
Trent was lying down on his back with his head on his backpack, enjoying the feeling of warmth coming from underneath him. He didn't know how it could be, but he could certainly appreciate it regardless.
Hearing her footsteps coming across the dirt, he quickly sat up to look at her. He was not oblivious to the fact that she was looking as if someone was right beside her, even though he himself could see no-one.
She came and sat down on the ground before him, and indicated to the invisible person to sit with her, before she turned her eyes to Trent.
"Put your hands down," she said, looking directly at him.
Adrian had no idea who she thought she was talking to but remained silent, hoping something would be revealed to him soon enough.
Trent lowered his hands, nervous as he could tell that someone else was definitely there but for the moment both were completely oblivious and invisible to each other, but as he lowered his hands down, he closed his eyes and once again felt the power surge through him. When he opened his eyes he found he was once again immersed in colour - the green of the grass and the trees, and the orangey terracotta colour of some of the buildings around them.
But of greater note was that he could see the person - a man - sitting next to her.
And he was looking right back at him.
~~~~~
Adrian jumped up in shock.
"What is this magic, Isabella?" he asked with the sound of fear rich in his voice.
"Adrian, please sit down," she said quietly, trying to indicate him to keep calm and not draw attention to them.
"Well I guess that answers my curiosity about whether other people would be able to see me when I did this," Trent said, smiling as if he had told a great joke. But no-one was laughing.
Isabella pulled the bread out and started to rip off a smaller piece.
Adrian sat down and watched her, not knowing what to say.
"Adrian, this is Trent. He is not … of our time. You were curious the other day about the warmth coming from the ground…" she started to say and saw him nod in recognition of her words. "Well this seems to be another … gift … of it. When Trent touches it like this with two hands, he is here, with us. But when he does not touch it with his two hands, he is not in our time at all. He is in … our future."
"Isabella, I believe you must be jesting me. You know that is not possible."
She nodded and looked into his eyes, and Trent could see how close they were. As friends? As lovers? While pondering that question he felt a strong unease at the possibility of the latter.
Trent saw Isabella nod at him.
"Show him," she said with a fair degree of force, and he immediately followed her instruction and raised his hand, the next moment being completely alone with her.
With a nod of her head, she guided him to put his hands down once more, resulting in him and Adrian once again being able to see one another.
"I cannot watch any more of this … madness. Isabella, come with me and I will walk you home. This is some kind of … trick. Please come with me," he said to her, standing up and then pleading in his voice, but she only shook her head at him.
"No, Adrian, I shall stay here. Trent needs sustenance and I brought this bread for him. Do not worry for me. I shall see you at breakfast."
Adrian looked at her, scared for her, but knew how strong willed she could be. He turned and walked away without looking back.
Trent looked at her and saw a trace of distress on her face.
"You care about each other," he said simply and she nodded at him.
"Yes, very much."
"But you let me kiss you."
Isabella blushed at the thought.
"He and I are friends … good friends. We are nothing more," she said as she started to break off a small piece of the bread that she held in her hands.
"But one of you wishes it were something more."
Trent saw her nod again, softly and with a look of affection mixed in with dismay at the observation.
"The other night he asked me about pairing…"
"Pairing?"
Now Isabella blushed profusely, making Trent consider what it could mean, and suspected he understood.
"In our village a man and a woman pair … and then produce offspring so that the village can maintain population."
Trent nodded at her, not wanting to make her any more uncomfortable. But he was surprised when she continued to speak.
"He asked me but I did not feel I was ready so I … I told him I was not ready and he accepted that," she continued and then paused, looking him directly in the eye while she raised one piece of bread and eased it toward his mouth, allowing him to take it in and start chewing the first taste of something so filling in a long while. "I did think then that I was not ready but … when you kissed me … when I kissed you … I felt … different."
He watched her as he enjoyed and savoured the flavour in his mouth. Now that he was 30 years old, it seemed an eternity ago when he had lost his virginity. Sex seemed so … easy … where he came from. Like it was hardly worth anything at all really.
"Different to … how it felt when you kissed others?" he asked her boldly, curious now because she was like an enigma to him. She had invaded his dreams, and then become a reality before him.
"Oh, no … I have never kissed anyone before," she said and he was surprised but at the same time sensed a feeling of relief flowing through him. "No, I would only kiss someone I was pairing with."
She saw Trent's eyes go wide, as if he was worried he had been committed to pairing with her, but she laughed softly at him and he was mesmerized by the sound of it.
"Oh, do not look so scared," she said with humour in her voice that made him even more captivated. "I am not saying you are now paired with me. I do not know why I enjoyed you kissing me, but it did not come from knowing each other over a long time, knowing what we each like and dislike…" she continued, now remembering the way Adrian had explained things to her when he had suggested the two of them pair.
She tore off another piece of bread and again offered it to his mouth. He was desperate to move his hands but at the same time he knew he needed the food so would not risk losing that opportunity. His body needed so many things - but the feeling most able to be felt inside of him was that he needed her. He could feel the pull he had toward her and believed it was mutual. Something unknown that had pulled them to be near to one another.
But for now he would eat. She only had limited food with her, and that was good as he would have to build up the quantities he could eat, slowly, letting his body gradually adjust to proper food once again.
They looked at each other as she slowly fed him, and once the food was gone he took a moment to enjoy the fullness in his stomach.
"I would lik
e to kiss you again, Isabella," he said and she nodded.
"Yes."
"I want to stand and put my arms around you. But although people will not see me, they will see you."
Isabella realized the predicament there and nodded again.
"Yes, we need to go somewhere where no-one else will see. I cannot see the dangers you can, so point me in a direction and I will tell you if I can go there," she said and stood up, watching him as he lifted his backpack in preparation for following.
She laughed at him.
"You can probably leave that if you wish to. No-one else can see it so it will not be taken."
He laughed in agreement with the point she made, and it was an easy moment for them before she came closer to him and stood before him.
He was desperate to kiss her, so quickly looked around and started walking toward the outer wall. Between them - him saying when he could not walk over or through something, and her doing the same - finally they reached a discrete corner behind a building.
"Are you safe here?" he asked her to be certain. He was hungry for her and did not want to deal with the two-hands-on-the-ground saga now.
"Yes, no-one can see me here," she said and stepped forward to him.
Together they moved their arms around each other and then his mouth was on hers, so much hungrier now than he had been before. She was finding her way in kissing, he noted, but the desire and passion emanating from her was overpowering. He felt like he should break away from her but at the same time he felt like that was the last thing he could do.
He pulled back only slightly so that he could look at her. The brilliant red hair was like a wild mane but he could not help but slip his fingers into it, feeling it run across his palm like it was silk, it was so soft.
"Isabella, you are so beautiful. I don't know where you have come from but I am drawn to you. I've been drawn to you since before I was even here, with you in my dreams," he whispered to her before kissing her again, this time more softly.
Isabella revelled in the feelings flowing through her body. Never had she felt anything like this. She never had even dreamed of feeling like this. And being able to touch him … hold him … invigorated her even more.
When he pulled back again to look at her once more, she moved one of her hands to his cheek, feeling the short hair over his chin and face, and he naturally moved his head to move his face against her hand. It had been so long since he had experienced any human interaction at all, let alone touch.
In a fleeting moment he thought back to life as it was before. He had been seeing a married woman for many months and they had often had sex, but he had never felt anything like this. Just the touch of her hands on him was enough to make him crave more.
"I shall need to go home soon, Trent. My mother and father will be worried about me," she said, suddenly seeming so young and innocent, even though he knew she had great passion inside of her, waiting to be set free. "I cannot help you to find somewhere safe to sleep…"
Suddenly he was aware of the dilemma also. He looked around but as far as he could see, there was not one building standing.
"I have a small tent in my bag…"
"A … tent?"
He smiled at her. Of course she would not know what a tent was.
"A small shelter that I carry with me. I will set it up where we were sitting earlier and will be able to sleep there for the night," he said and she nodded, looking down. "I can walk you to your house now though. I mean no-one is going to see me, right?" he said and she could hear the amusement in his voice, making her laugh lightly in return.
"Yes, of course. Thank you."
She held out her hand to him and once more they negotiated the way to her home, both of them pointing out the obstacles they could see that the other one could not. Finally she stopped and leaned in close to him, but not touching him.
"I am here," she whispered and he nodded at her.
"Will you come and find me tomorrow?" he asked and she nodded slightly, seeming to be worried that someone might see her. "I can see that you cannot move toward me, or kiss me, or say anything right now. But I can lean in and kiss you," he said, leaning and just lightly kissing her lips, ever so softly. "Goodnight Isabella. Thank you for a remarkable day."
She watched him walk away and then she turned and entered her family home, wondering what adventures could possibly come her way next.
9 ~ THE DISCOVERY
Throughout the night Trent felt incredibly warm and safe in his small pup tent and sleeping bag, although he could hear wind gusting around the outside of the tall village walls. It was a strange sensation, knowing that people were nearby, sleeping, and yet they weren't really there at all.
With his mind working so much, he found sleep difficult. Nothing made any sense and he kept returning, over and over, to the possibility that perhaps he had perished on one of the mountains, and was now drifting as a spirit without a body. He didn't know if he believed in ghosts, but then, after such a day he had to acknowledge that anything could be possible.
He thought about Isabella. That morning when he had walked into the interior of the large grey walls, he had been sure no-one could be around, and yet he could feel her before he saw her. Not only had he known there was a presence, but he could feel it was her - the woman from his recent dreams.
Throughout the day so much had happened to keep his mind busy and thoughtful, but now that he lay in the quiet and calm of his sleeping bag he found his mind drifting specifically to her. And when he thought about her - her flowing red hair, her flawless skin, and her plump, full lips, he felt himself become aroused. It hadn't been something that had been on his mind for so long - sex. And even through the day today it hadn't been something that he had thought about. Even when they were kissing, there was something so different about the kisses - about kissing her - that they seemed to have a different effect on him than kissing and being so close to a woman would normally have on him.
He knew … believed … that she was a virgin, unaware yet even of what sex entailed. She had told him she had never kissed anyone before he kissed her. And yet looking at her face he knew she must be in her 20s. By that age many women had already succumbed to the temptation of passion in his world. It was common. It had become too common, he supposed. That was why sometimes it had never felt so special to him. He was attractive and he had his share of women approaching him whenever he went out to bars. Sometimes he would use them for sex. Sometimes he would end up dating them. But even then he would still have sex with them. He could not remember when he spent quiet time with a woman without them eventually having sex.
The trek to this place had taken its toll on his body but even just having the one apple and small amount of bread that she had brought to him, he knew was already resuscitating him.
He had so much to think about, but now, finally, he found himself starting to finally relax and become sleepy. No more thinking tonight. More thinking could be done tomorrow, he thought to himself as he quietly drifted off into dreams once again.
~~~~~
The dream had begun but it was different. He was back where he had met her this very morning, but instead of seeing rubble now, what he could see was a large building with symbols vividly carved into the stone frontage, either side of the doorway and over the top of it.
He turned as he felt her approaching, and when he turned around he was overwhelmed by the beauty before him. But now, instead of just her porcelain skin and long flowing hair being what attracted him, he could see a glow emanating from her. He stepped forward as they walked toward each other and he stopped still, facing her and within arms length of her. She came closer to him and kissed him, and even in his dream he could feel the depth of passion that resulted deep within him as she touched her lips to his. He didn't move, keeping his hands by his side. Eventually she pulled back from the kiss, smiled at him and placed her hand on his heart. As she did, he felt incredible heat and power coming through from her and into him. It
was like ecstasy to him, as if they were making love and she were taking him into an extremely deep and long-built-up climax. He had never felt anything like it. And in the depth of his dreaming, the thought made him smile…
~~~~~
As Isabella prepared for her night of sleep, her mind wandered to the stranger she had met during the day. It seemed as if nothing that had happened could be real, and yet it felt as if it were very real. Even the things the ancient had told her did not seem like they could be real. Perhaps she was dreaming - perhaps even now, climbing into her bed, she was actually already in bed, dreaming about everything that had happened since that morning.
She lay down and pulled the covers over her and remembered his kisses. Her first kisses. She had never anticipated that kissing would feel like that, but kissing him had touched her in places she had never felt before. She shouldn't have kissed him - it was not right to do so. And yet, at the same time it was right. She had never been more certain of anything in her life.
~~~~~
In her vision of the night she saw him again. This time he was different. There was an aura around him, shimmering like a wave. But it was alternating between a light blue and a deep orange, like he was changing back and forth, over and over, from cold to warm. They stared at each other until she could not bear to see him like that any more, and she moved closer to him and placed her lips on his. The feeling from that kiss was overpowering to her and in her head she could only see brilliant yellow. When she pulled away to look at the man who was driving her forward in her need for passion, he was still changing, cold to warm, cold to warm. She reached forward and placed her hand on his heart and the changing stopped as she saw him become engulfed in a steady, warm colour of flame.
He opened his eyes and reached out to her, pulling her close to him and taking her mouth with his, before his hand reached down and touched her…
Suddenly Isabella jolted awake. She had never seen anything like that in a vision of the night before. Where had that come from? And why did she feel so heated, as if she had enjoyed such a vision?
The Golden Desires Page 6