Alice in the Sun-Bleached Mansion

"This can't be real. This can't be real" I repeated to myself, as I stepped through the front gates of the mansion.

"This can't be real."

The house was exactly as described, in every detail: the ivy creeping up the walls and peeking in through the small windows, the flower pots overflowing with tangled weeds, the large oak door with its tarnished brass handle. As I reached out to knock on it, my hand passed right through it.

"Okay... this must just be a dream," I said, my voice quivering slightly. "But a lucid one..." It still felt like a dream, but dreams don't usually make you feel so afraid.

I began to walk around the perimeter of the house, looking for an entrance. I walked all around, and then back in front of the house again. There wasn't a single window that wasn't covered with shutters or curtains, and besides the main door there was no other way in. The gate had been locked behind me, and there was no other visible access point.

I considered going back inside and trying another route into the house, but I didn't want to risk losing sight of my first (and only) lead into this mystery. My heart began to pound even faster than before as the reality of my situation finally set in.

I heard footsteps behind me and quickly turned around, certain that this would be when I was caught trespassing by some night watchman - but it was just a woman dressed in black from head to toe walking past me down the street without even a glance in my direction. As she walked past me her body seemed to dissolve into thin air until nothing remained but her heels clicking on the pavement in perfect rhythm with each other.

My heart racing even faster than before, I frantically looked around for any other signs of life - but there were none to be found. The city around me was completely empty; not even a car driving by or someone walking their dog somewhere nearby could be seen or heard anywhere around me. A strange feeling overcame me as I realized how alone I really was. For the first time since waking up here, I began to feel true fear creep up inside me: what if this dream never ended? What if I'm stuck here forever? What if... The thought trailed off unfinished as another woman dressed entirely in black appeared out of literally nowhere in front of me and began walking down an alleyway between two buildings opposite from where I stood. Again, as she walked past her body seemed to dissolve into thin air until nothing remained but her heels clicking on the pavement in perfect rhythm with each other... until she disappeared completely into thin air herself and all that was left behind was silence once more..