Ulric had been in slumber for what seemed like five hours. It was before dawn darkness, and his chamber was as dark as outside. He opened his eyes. His eyes narrowed, and he sat up in his bed. It was a four-legged bed with a furry coverlet, and he was in his night-clothes. He didn't know why he woke up but felt a presence. He looked towards the window — a red bird undulating its swing, gazing at him curiously. It flew right after a second. He looked around curiously. He tried to remember his dream. It was half-completed, but something woke him up. What was that, which woke him up? That bird appeared again, but with a shadow of a bizarre man behind it. That shadow was dark and pitch black, but he could sense that the presence of that shadow matched unevenly with that bird. It was as though that shadow was of that bird. Nevertheless, that shadow was so extraordinary, which seemed of a giant.
He narrowed his eyes again. He stood from his bed quietly, careful not to wake his mother or sister. He leisurely and serenely moved towards the window. The site behind the window was the garden, which only in that moment, in that very time, he felt so deĵa vù and couldn't resist the feeling, the sudden sharp feeling of emptiness and loneliness of something extraordinary he could sense from the garden. He lived many years. He was twelve in that time. He approached the window and blinked only to hear a murmur: "Come..."
That voice seemed familiar. He looked behind, and again, in front. That shadow began to move. It floated towards the garden and sat on the bench. He tried to act brave. He set his foot outside the window and climbed over it. When he was outside of his chamber and looked, again, behind, towards his bed, he could sense someone was watching him, and something was talking to the thing that was watching him. It was bizarre and strange. He had never felt that thing before. He tried to walk to his mother to tell her the thing but he couldn't. He tried not to think himself as a coward. He wasn't a mommy-boy. His ambition was much deeper.
"Come..." That shadow called him again.
He abruptly looked at the shadow and began to walk towards that bench and, especially, that shadow. Its voice sounded like a human, like a man. He sensed another person watching him from bushes. He couldn't avoid that, but he needed to see. Because of darkness, he needed lanterns, which were in his chamber. He, again, climbed the window and entered his chamber, grabbed up his lantern from the bedside table, and climbed out the window to the garden again. He saw Shadow still there, floating around the bench, and it sat.
"W — what do you w — want?"
"Don't worry, ulric. Just sit down."
It knew his name. That sound from the shadow of a man was smooth. Additionally, politely like a gentleman, and it told urlic not to worry. Ulric was relieved, just by the sound of that shadow. He leisurely walked towards the bench, sat down, and saw the shadow floating up again. It looked even more bizarre now. This was strange. Was it gentleman but trapped in a shadow because of some curse by an evil person? Ulric had heard a lot of fantasy tales, and his imaginations were from there. His dejà vù became stronger, stronger, and stronger. He felt another feeling of being watched.
The sound of footsteps became louder — "ulric I don't have too much to explain —" sound became even more louder — "ulric, just three words —" the sound even became more louder — "tomorrow — Forest in South of your house — near the steel tower —" and CREAK!
"Ulric! What're you doing back there?"
Ulric turned his gaze towards the door of one corridor in his house, which led to the garden as well. His mother was there, staring and furious. "It's nearly dawn. You should be asleep."
"Mother, I was out here for peeing. It was too dark in the bathroom."
"Well?" She pointed to the lantern in ulric's hand, which he was clutching. "You could have utilised that in the bathroom like you have now?"
"My claustrophobia can't just be controlled," he answered. "You know I always like to use the bathroom in the daytime."
She walked towards him and led him to his chamber. She lay him down and kissed smoothly in his forehead. "It's okay. Sleep well."
Ulric saw his mother leaving and out of sight. That was quite a moment. Why didn't he tell his mother about that? There was something in him, something around his house, that told him not to, and he didn't know why.
But He knew where to go: Steel tower.
He closed his eyes and withdrew back to finish his left dream.