What if it followed me home? Needing some semblance of protection, I decided I would stop by the local breeders, and purchase a guard dog. When I arrived, the breeders were discussing an event that had occurred in the days previous. Dothri, the eldest son of a renowned city councilman had gone missing. People were starting to fear that he might be dead. Currently, only the city leaders and those close to them were aware. They were trying to keep circumstances discreet to avoid mass hysteria. (inner smile-chan: it won’t be a secret for long if you leave it to these two.) “Dothri is among the most powerful casters in the city, what or whoever took him would have to be hellacious, but I sure ain’t mad at the uptick in business.” one of them chuckled. “The funny thing is he swore that someone or something was following him, in the days before his disappearance. His father even amped his amount of security casters, but no one ever saw anything out of the ordinary.” The other replied. I couldn’t have overheard at a more inconvenient time. Unable to fathom why; I feared whatever had abducted Dothri was now after me. Scanning the room for a dog that would best suit my needs, my eyes landed on a black doberman pinscher. Its eyes eerily resembled obsidian. Although this would have normally caused apprehension, when our eyes met I felt safe. “I would like to purchase this one,” I proclaimed, naming him Lucky. Commanding him forward we returned home. Muddled, I debated whether it would be better for him to keep guard in or outside, presuming it would be sufficient for him to remain with me. I gathered a few old pillowcases stitching them together to construct his bed. I then made us dinner, stewed tomatoes, potatoes, and meat. After we finished eating, I drew a bath and headed to bed. Sweet dreams eluded me. I dreamt of my mother. How would she have handled the news of my death, I hoped she wouldn’t blame herself. I continued to toss and turn, imagining what Reisa experienced as she witnessed my mangled body. Did she castigate herself? I hoped for her restitution. I gave up on sleep and navigated towards the kitchen for a drink of water. As I placed the cup into the basin, I heard rustling outside of my window. An elongated silhouette stood before me, it struggled to gain access into my home. Holding my breath, I crept towards my room. Upon entering I could see the same silhouette now standing outside of my bedroom window. "Let me in", it asserted alerting lucky awake, he barked causing the figure to scatter. As I tried to slumber again, my perturbed mind stirred. Previously, I assumed that it was a creature following me, yet the silhouette beyond my window had resembled that of a man.