stirred the trees, the shadows changed in a disquieting way.
― Stephen King
The last thing on my mind that evening was romance. I was exhausted from marking the first set of papers on Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles.
It was a simple assignment actually, to let me gauge the abilities of my graduate class. They were to write an analysis of Hardy's sub-title, A Pure Woman.
I had no preconceptions, but frankly, I didn't expect much.
There was one last paper to evaluate and when I merely picked it up I felt an energy pulse through me that was wild and disquieting.
It was the dead of winter and I was working at the dining room table rather than in my study.
The window curtains were pulled back so I could see the moonlight as it illumined the snowy ravine below my townhouse.
As I touched the paper the room was suddenly crossed with shadows as if a wind had stirred the nearby trees.
But outside, the nearby maples stood bare and motionless, their limbs naked of leaves.
I closed my eyes momentarily and my sight was filled with images of Victoria Mercer, the girl from my graduate class.
It was eerie since earlier that day, my colleague, Janice Turner, pointed Victoria out to me in the dining lounge saying she gave her strange vibes.
I wasn't sure what Janice meant by her remark but I knew what I felt―an overwhelming wave of desire and a passion that surprised me with its force and suddenness.
I'm a realist and pragmatist, not given to metaphysical experiences and skeptical of anything smacking of spiritualism, so, to put it lightly, I was unnerved.
The most disconcerting aspect of the incident was the unbidden images of Victoria that streamed through my mind.
It's funny, because at that moment I felt I was being observed. I drew the curtains on the dining room window, locked the house securely and went to bed.
That night I dreamt of Victoria.
The dream seemed more symbolic than literal. I saw her in the snowy ravine, dressed in a hooded dark maxi coat.
She was incredibly beautiful, her hair long and dark and she was cloaked in mystery, staring out over misty hills and valleys.
I had never experienced such a strong passion before, everything heightened by moonlight and shadows and opposing forces of approach and avoidance.
I was frightened yet drawn like iron to a magnet.
This was definitely going to be a compelling and intriguing semester.