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I knocked.

A minute passed.
The slight chill bit mercifully
at my cheeks and down my spine.

Silence.

I knocked again,
somewhat more frenzied,
now ever so lightly shivering.

Silence.

I tried the handle:
it was locked.

It was cold.

So cold.

"What a strange thing,"
I murmured to myself,
"that a cabin would be here,
unattended,
in this surreal place.
Could this be a dream?
Perhaps a vision?
No.. I must be awake... right?"

A creaking then came
from within the cabin:
"Patience," boomed out
a voice both deep and distant,
"all shall be made abundantly clear in due time, mortal."

Had I awoken something
better off left dormant?

My heart felt as if it were racing and standing still at the same time.

A faint glow now emanated from the window in the door.
It flickered with the rhythm of a candle in mild wind,
but was persistent enough to stay aflame, nevertheless.

The glass was too foggy to discern a figure within.

A metallic rattle
echoed within my now startled mind:

The handle slowly turned,
and, for some reason,
I had the tenacity
to simply await it's opening:
Somehow, I was eerily calm.

"Hello," said a voice
that alone had more character
than anyone I'd met
in all my vast travels.

"Do you take your tea
with cream or sugar,
or just leaves in some water?"

Inquired the figure
cloaked in white
who I could only fathom to be
the Oracle I presently seek.