Dream Lover (Dusty the Demon Hunter)

by D Michelle Gent

say any more, she waited for Dusty’s reaction, which didn’t arrive.

  Angie waited for the outburst but Dusty sat in the chair across from her, sipping her coffee and waiting for her to continue, so she continued.

  “Well, it was all very funny to start with, only one girl refused to play with it but we called her chicken until she gave in. I’m not sure we should have goaded her like that because as soon as she touched the plant... the plan... whatchamacallit?”

  “The planchette.” Dusty helped.

  “Yeah that. As soon as she touched it, it started to move.”

  “You were touching it too?”

  “Yes. There was only me and her touching it, the others put their fingers back on it as soon as it started moving.”

  “Then what happened?” Dusty prompted again.

  Ange looked at her friend and tears welled in her eyes. “What have we done, Dusty? Have we released something?”

  “I don’t know yet. Tell me when your nightmares began.” Dusty put her mug on the table and went to sit at the side of her friend. She didn’t sit too near because she could sense that Ange wasn’t feeling comfortable with the closeness of her. Dusty could wait until Ange did feel comfortable but for the time being, she sat where she was, next to her on the sofa, but not touching.

  Ange looked into her own mug and sighed again. “The planchette was going crazy, it was whizzing all over the board and we couldn’t tell which letters it was pointing to. Bella was laughing for a bit until the planchette flew off the board and hit her mum’s photo. She got mad at us then and said we’d gone too far. The girl that started it grabbed her coat and left the house. She didn’t take her wine or anything, she just went. I think she ran down the path after she slammed the door. I was a bit scared then. We didn’t throw the planchette, well at least I know I didn’t.”

  “OK, I’ve got that bit, now, did anything happen that night?”

  “Well yeah, as a matter of fact, I think something did. I had a fabulous dream but I can’t remember what it was about. There was a really gorgeous bloke in it and...” Ange stopped speaking because Dusty’s face had taken on an expression that she didn’t like. It scared her because Dusty’s face had gone pale enough to make her dark eyes stand out in sharp contrast and it was quite weird how her eyes seemed to glow in her face. Ange thought that the irises had a red ring around them but Dusty blinked and the effect was gone. Dusty looked pale and worried but Ange assumed that was because she was concerned for her own health.

  “Did you dream that you had sex with this gorgeous bloke?” Dusty asked in a quiet voice.

  Ange’s cheeks grew hot as she blushed. “Dusty! What sort of question is that?”

  “It’s an honest one. Did you dream that you had fantastic sex with him?”

  “Well, yes...”

  “Are you on the Pill?”

  Ange’s cheeks had not had time to cool from the previous embarrassing question and they coloured up hotter and redder than before but this time she answered truthfully and immediately.

  “Yes I am.”

  “Well that’s some good news at least.” Dusty said almost under her breath but Ange heard her.

  “Really, Dusty? I mean, really? You’re happy because I can’t get pregnant by a dream lover?”

  “Yes Ange, really. That’s not a dream lover, it’s a nightmare one. You’re being attacked by an Incubus. I don’t know if the Pill will be enough to stop your body from becoming pregnant by the Incubus. My thoughts would suggest that if you can remember to take it, you’ll be ok but if your subconscious takes over and makes you forget to, well then you could be in trouble.”

  “What the hell, Dusty? What are you telling me?”

  “I’m telling you that you’re being attacked by a demon and he wants nothing more than to make you pregnant because if you survive that experience, he’ll have the chance of a semi-demon offspring and that will be no good for you, not at all.”

  “How do you know all of this?” Ange was Dusty’s very best friend, the closest she had and because of that fact, Dusty decided to tell her.

  “I know all of this because my mother was attacked by an Incubus. She was a virgin when it attacked her and she eventually became pregnant. My grandparents were religious and at first wouldn’t believe that she was pregnant but when she started to get a little bump, they realised that it was true. They didn’t believe her that she was a virgin though, not until they had her examined, thoroughly.” Dusty watched Ange’s expression as she took in what Dusty was telling her and the realisation of the type of examination Dusty’s mother had been put through at first shocked and then disgusted her.

  “So what did your grandparents do then?”

  “Well, they tried, I suppose. They took her to see their minister who offered to bless the pregnancy. Some hope that was. Then they decided to get a proper priest in to do an exorcism and the Incubus showed up for that one. It threw things at them all, it laughed at the ceremony and it assaulted my mum, in front of her parents and that priest. They could all see her clothes being moved around as its hands were all over her. It was very bizarre of course and mum was nearly hysterical. I think that when it pulled her dress up and it became obvious that it was trying to have sex with her on the table that she was lying on, the priest threw holy water on it. I don’t think it did anything really, from what mum told me, but it made it angry enough to slash at the priest’s face before it left.”

  “Did it come back?”

  “Not before I was born but after that, yeah, it came back and it wanted to take me but my mum fought hard for me.” Dusty became solemn then and Ange waited in silence. Dusty’s eyes welled with tears and they appeared to be a lighter shade than they had a few minutes before. “It killed my mum on my eleventh birthday. It came for me and mum wouldn’t let it have me and instead of being invisible, it appeared to her as it had when it first seduced her. I saw it too. He was so handsome, he was almost beautiful. He had long blonde and wavy hair, his eyes were bright blue and his mouth just asked to be kissed.” Dusty saw Ange’s expression of shock. “Yeah, I know but even at eleven I knew that he was gorgeous, but it was a ‘Glamour’. It wasn’t its real image and mum saw it reflected in the mirror over the fireplace and she threw salt at it.”

  “Does salt work then?”

  “No, it may have burned it a bit but it made it angry again. It snapped her neck and then snapped her back and left me alone. I don’t know why it didn’t take me with it when it had the chance but my grandparents came round for my birthday party and found me crying over her body. I went to live with them after that.”

  “Oh my God Dusty, is it going to kill me?” Ange started to shake but Dusty still didn’t reach out to her.

  “No, you’re not going to die. I won’t let it kill you. I’m going to get rid of it.”

  “Kill it?”

  “No, I can’t kill it, it’s a demon but I can make it wish it had never thought of choosing my best friend to seduce.” Dusty’s eyes had the red ring around the irises again and this time, Ange didn’t mistake it for her imagination. She saw the sparks dancing in the irises and she knew that her friend was going to kick some Incubus ass! “Now, show me the sheets.”

  They went up the stairs, Dusty following her friend into her bedroom. “Woah! It stinks in here, Ange.”

  “What do you mean?” Ange turned to her friend and was very puzzled.

  “I mean it’s a mixture of tom-cat pee and...” Dusty paused, she didn’t know if she should go so far as to describe exactly what she could smell, but then she decided, in for a penny... “Well, you know when someone’s had sex and they’re not exactly hygienic to begin with?” Dusty asked carefully and waited for Ange’s nod. “That horrible sharp, fishy smell?” Dusty left it at that and allowed Ange to catch her meaning.

  “Oh God, no! My bedroom doesn’t smell that bad does it?”

  “Yeah, it does, but it won’t in a while, don’t worry.” Dusty bent to pick up the sheets and saw
the sticky mess that Ange had begun to clean up. It had soaked through the bottom sheet, onto the bed and left a large stain like an old bloodstain that someone had made a half-hearted attempt at cleaning. The sheet was in much the same state but the stain was still wet, and cold was emanating from the centre of the bundled sheets.

  Dusty held the sheet out to Ange and against her better judgement, she bent forward and took a sniff.

  Dusty threw the bundle out onto the landing as Ange recovered from the overpowering stench that had assailed her nostrils.

  “Come on, we’ve got to clear the room.” Dusty told Ange.

  They worked together for the rest of the morning, taking out the mattress together and leaning it up against the banister and then moving the bed and standing it up against the wall. They were fortunate in the fact that the bed was one of those low, modern ones that didn’t take much shifting or hefting. Then Dusty began to lift the carpet at the corner of the room. Ange asked what she was doing and Dusty explained.

  “I’ve got to draw a pentagram on the floor. I have to make sure that the floor is perfectly clean because if there’s any chance of dirt in the pentagram, you’ll be in a lot of danger, and so will I. Fetch the hoover will you? Don’t take the sheets please,” Dusty called as Ange went to do as she was asked.

  Once the floor was cleared of the carpet and vacuumed thoroughly, Dusty fetched her tankbag from her motorcycle.