I couldn't leave 'Haunted' as it was... consider this an ending... of sorts.

An autumn chill hangs in the air and the sun sinks beneath the tree line.  I've left my haven for good, left my piece of heaven - it holds no such feelings for me anymore.  I've moved further up into the mountains, away from from everything and everyone.... I seek peace and solitude.  My cabin is rustic but comfortable, and the fireplace warms the rooms so.  A simple life, myself and my dog - and heavens don't forget the cat... she does keep the mice away.  Just the three of us to while away the days and I spend my nights staring into the fireplace... dreaming.  Not even my favorite music brings much comfort these days, my mind just won't settle.  My heart still yearns for the impossible, I finally have to admit that I am in love with a dream, a ghost, a remnant of an earlier life. 

Oh but I can still hear his voice whisper my name, still feel his hand touch my hair, his breath on my face... Is this what a lost soul is like?  Half in this world and half in another?  Not able to reconcile either and only half alive?  I thought that my self imposed exile would bring me some type of closure, it hasn't.  Only more questions, more dreams, more memories.  Sometimes, when I'm walking with my dog among the fruit trees I can almost see him walking beside me, can almost feel his hand holding mine.  Then I shake my head and chide myself for daydreaming again, letting myself get lost in the memories again.  When this happens I go and stack more logs for the fire, or work in the garden, or just sit and dream, remembering...

The snows come early in the mountains and this year is no different.  The birds have flown south for the winter. They left right after the last leaves fell from the trees, leaving everything barren and gray.  The bobcat is calling to his mate as the fire burns low and I dose on the pillows of the couch.  My coffee cup has grown cold, I don't notice, my dreams are becoming too real... don't want to leave them.  My dog sleeps quietly on the floor beside me and the cat is curled up at my feet.  A figure bends over me and pulls the blanket over my shoulders, gently brushing my hair and stroking my cheek.  I barely hear the whispered murmur... can't quite make it out.  My head raises up from the pillows, I look around the darkened room... no one.  As always, no one. I lay my head back down with a sigh, watching the fire with far away eyes.

The winter storm rages outside my window, the night makes it more ominous and threatening.  The winds slam against the cabin as the rain and snow beats against the windows.  I stay curled up in my bed, beneath a down comforter that is tucked beneath my chin.  Funny, the thunder sounds like cannon fire, off in the distance.  I find myself slipping back to sleep but it's not any normal sleep... this time I drift and am being lifted and carried in two strong arms... out of the dark and into the bright sunlight.  I open my eyes and look up into a pair of familiar eyes, eyes that I've know for a millennia.   A rakish smile greets me, as does a welcome kiss. "But... how?  Why?  How? Where..... " I stammer on, foolishly I realize as he throws back his head and laughs.  I'm set on my feet and thoroughly kissed.  "You didn't think I'd leave you there?  That time and place wasn't right for us."  He tells me, still smiling.  "And this one is?" I ask as I am being pulled into a run behind him.  "Yes," he shouts... "it's ours... of our making."