I suddenly awoke to a strong pulling feeling, lifting me up by the neck. I was floating in the air. My door was open. Stalking down the hall to the right was a hulking mass of shadow, with no discernible features. I was thrust up against the door to my apartment by some unseen force.

I knew I had to do something. I tried to call but all I could make were muffled moans. Then, suddenly, I found my voice. I broke free.

I was back in my bed, the door closed. It was too vivid to be a dream, yet the door had been opened when it all happened. For an hour thereafter, I hunted after the thing in the darkness, using every manner of symbol and invocation to banish it. Finally I succeeded. I lost a lot of sleep, and suffered yesterday because of it.

This sort of thing has only happened once before, when I was asleep, near my entryway. A semi-transparent, humanoid-like cloud colored black pulled me. It said it's name was Mariah, I think. I also banished it, but it left quietly. I've dealt with the dead or whatever spirits are before, but my home is sacred. It is the only place I can think for myself and be free.

These events do not bode well for me. It's not my sanity I worry about, because I quite obviously have no psychotic symptoms. There is nothing irrational about things one learned as a child, nor the many times since then that I've dealt with things of this nature.

It's. Puzzling. The last time was when I was living with Brian. The house had always had the wrong feel to it. I could smell it at night, downstairs, in the dark, the way I prefer to be with no contours or shapes. It visited Brian semi-frequently, appearing to him as an obviously dead older man in his 50's. Beyond the inconvenience of waking up due to the screaming, I sensed some interest on the part of this thing toward me.

I'm a magnet.

It makes sense given that being a Shaman chose me; by that turn I can deal with the dead and to a very limited extent communicate--in emotions and received scenes rather than words.

So I dealt with it too. The frightening part was hearing the thing moan. I was disturbed but I kept up with the necessary steps. It seemed to work, too. I don't recall Brian being visited any more after that.

And now something had the audacity to come into my home and attempt to harm me. I can speak truth to word that absolutely nothing violates the sanctity of my space, least of all some elemental. It's unusual to randomly have one show up. Yet who could have sent such a thing? I haven't had any dealings with people who'd know how to do such things for years upon years--and with good fucking reason.

So for the first time in a great long while, I have the lights on and may well go to sleep with my bedroom likewise at the ready. I already made a few seals in the accustomed way. I'd feel better if I had some sage, a turtle shell with bones in it, and a smudge stick, but what's a guy to do.

Anyway, enough about my day, how was yours?

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