Beast in my dreams (1)

"Aurora! Aurora!"

Aurora's eyes fluttered open hearing someone call her name but instead of waking up in her bedroom where she had just gone to sleep, she woke up lying on the ground in a beautiful forest.

"I'm still sleeping," she mumbled, closing her eyes thinking she was just dreaming. However, the cold wind biting at her skin and the grass tickling her arms and legs felt all too real. She then knew she was awake and not dreaming but how did she end up in a forest?

Aurora slowly opened her eyes hoping to be greeted by the sight of her bedroom but she was still in the forest. Had Samuel and Regina played a trick on her again or had she hit her head against something and died? Maybe this was the afterlife.

Confused, Aurora sat up taking in the view of the strange yet beautiful place. Large trees with red petals surrounded her. The red petals fell from the tree like the snow from the sky back at home. The ground was covered in red petals with only tiny spots of the green grass showing. As beautiful as the scene was, she was more focused on knowing where she was and how she got there.

She wouldn't put it past Regina and Samuel playing a trick on her but as she looked around, Aurora could not see any nearby houses. And as far as Aurora was concerned, she knew there weren't any forests like this one nearby.

"Am I really dead?" She questioned. She wouldn't get any answers by simply sitting and looking around so she started to get off the ground to search for someone to help her.

It was then she noticed she was still in the night undergarments she wore to bed. She did in fact go to sleep in her room. Aurora blushed knowing whoever she comes by would have to see her like this. It will be extremely embarrassing but she couldn't consider appearances if she wanted to get home.

Aurora spun around unsure of which direction to go as the forest all looked the same. Now that she stood up, Aurora realized how far the forest continued. This had to be a crazy dream she was experiencing. There was no other reasonable explanation of how she ended up at this place.

Aurora decided to just walk and maybe she would run into someone who might be able to help her get out of here. The more she walked the more she felt like she was in the same place she woke up at. The shape of the trees looked familiar and so did the pile of leaves on the ground.

"I might just be dead."

The sudden sound of leaves being crumpled behind her startled Aurora. It sounded just like when she stepped on the leaves but someone was behind her. "Hello!" She called out to who might be behind her. However, she started to walk backward figuring if the person was stalking her they couldn't be up to no good. She also couldn't be certain what was following her wasn't an animal on the hunt. "Is anyone there?" She called again, carefully stepping backward.

The sound of leaves being stepped on moved from behind to beside her.

'More than one person?' She thought turning to the side where she heard the noise. This wouldn't be considered a dream anymore but more of a nightmare. Why couldn't whatever was following her just show itself and save her the fright? She had nothing to protect herself with and wished Samuel was here with her.

Low growls could be heard echoing around her which confirmed it must be an animal stalking her. But the growls didn't sound like the ones from the dogs back home, instead, they sounded wilder. She sped up her pace walking backward while examining her surroundings but this, unfortunately, caused her to stumble over a tree root sticking out of the ground.

Aurora fell hearing a large thud noise as her body connected to the ground. Thankfully, the soft leaves which had piled up created a soft landing so she wasn't hurt. But the moment she took her eyes away from looking in front of her, the growls grew louder and so did the crumpling of leaves.

She quickly looked back up to find a man in the distance. With how close the leaves and growls sounded, she expected he would've been closer. From the distance between them, she couldn't clearly see his face.

The man's chest was bare with only ripped pants on his body. Aurora didn't need to think twice that this man was dangerous. She quickly got up in case she had to run away. For now, he was just staring in her direction and not moving. When Aurora finally got back on her two feet again while keeping her eyes on the man, she noticed he moved whenever she moved but she did not want to be stuck there unable to move.

Aurora had to think of something quickly to avoid him. She was thinking of just making a run for it and hoping for the best when she noticed the forest was starting to become darker. She looked to the sky and saw how quickly the sun was setting and a full moon was making its appearance as night drew in.

Now that that full moon was in the sky, the growls from the man grew even louder and he started to groan as though in pain. He hunched over until he fell to the ground. The sound of cracking bones reached Aurora's ears.

"I'm definitely going to die," she whispered, watching the man's appearance start to change. His appearance of a man changed to something like a beast. She never saw anything like this in her life. Was this the beast Minnie always warned her about? But she hadn't done anything naughty. Did it come for her in her dreams?

Aurora stumbled backward watching the beast stand on two feet like the man from before. Its appearances reminded her closely of a wolf. The beast's bright golden eyes stuck out to her in a way she could tell they were watching her every move. The creature positioned itself like it was getting ready to charge her.

So Aurora did the only thing she could in this situation.

She ran.