A legendary object
notoriously described throughout oral
folklore history as "Australian or Aboriginal in origin." The circumstances that brought
about the creation of the Leash of Dreams is unknown. The Leash of Dreams is approximately 24 inches long. It's
composed of strips of
light and dark leather
strips braided in a
striated pattern. On one end of the leash is a rectangular metallic clip used to attach the object to an animal's collar. On the
other end is a
collection of brown feathers that serves to adorn the leash.
The
Leash of Dreams has made its presence known
throughout oral folklore in
different parts of the world, ranging from a
rural village in Beijing to urban life in Canada. It is believed that the Leash of
Dreams has the power to make the owner's most desired dream come true. However, in all the instances, the object has brought about death to persons associated with the owner of the leash.
The
original creator of the
leash came from a
tribe that believed that
dreams were a manifestation of reality. In order for one to envision a dream, that situation in the dream must have reality underpinnings. For example, if a shaman had a vision that the tribe would win a battle, it should come true. Also, the creator's tribe believed that
there was a close
affinity between wildlife and reality's natural environment. Thus, the leash's power stems from the merging of
these two ideas. However, the Leash of Dreams
derives its energy from
human life. In order for the owner to make his dreams come true, the leash needs to choke the life out of its victims. In addition, as the
dream comes true its
reality is somewhat ephemeral. It needs human life to sustain the dream's existence.
Among all the folk tales with the Leash of
Dreams in them, the most eerie instance, in my opinion, was when the Leash of Dreams
became the possession of
Aubrey Ross, a firefighter.
I'll try to reconstruct the
story using the notes from my Folklore course in my university
It all started out when the fire station responded to a call at the residence of Mrs. Cox. While inside the burning home, Aubrey and another firefighter got into an argument. During the fight, Aubrey grabbed for a weapon to "defend" himself against the other firefighter. The weapon that Aubrey grabbed without thinking was the Leash of Dreams. Aubrey used this to choke the life out of his fellow firefighter. After the killing, Aubrey feared the police discovering the murder so he took the weapon and made it look like the other firefighter got tangled by an air hose.
When Aubrey got home, he attached the leash to his terminally ill canine. During this time in his life, Aubrey was going through a divorce with his wife Lea and Aubrey didn't want to let Lea go. So, Aubrey's most desired dream at the time was a wife that would be with him unconditionally like his dog. The next morning Aubrey's dog miraculously recovered from its illness. However, as the day progressed Aubrey's dog's health deteriorated and had to go to the veterinarian. When Aubrey thought the veterinarian was going to perform euthanasia to his dog, Aubrey's instincts kicked in and he choked the veterinarian to death with the leash.
As days went by, Aubrey noticed that his dog was beginning to act the way that his wife used to when they were newlyweds. Aubrey soon figured out that the leash was transforming his dog from the appearance of an ordinary dog to the image of his wife. Aubrey kept on killing to make his most desired dream come true. Finally, Aubrey decided to kill Lea because he believed that she was preventing his dog from fully retaining a human body. One night, Aubrey called Lea and told her that he would sign the divorce papers. Lea came over and Aubrey struggled to choke Lea. As Aubrey tightened the leash around Lea's neck, Lea was slowly transforming into a dog while Aubrey's dog was transforming into Lea's body.
Aubrey was caught after this final murder. There were three strangers outside who heard Lea scream during the struggle. They broke into the home to find a naked Lea in a dog collar and Aubrey with his hands on a leash with a choked-out dressed-up dog. Aubrey was imprisoned and witnesses said that Lea decided to stay married with him after all. They also said that she exhibited strange behavior after the attack such as constantly panting like a dog and bringing slippers to Aubrey in prison.
The Leash of Dreams disappeared during a police examination of the crime scene and its current whereabouts are unknown. This was the most eerie story to me because it struck me weird that a person could switch bodies with a dog without any decision in the matter. Also, it was eerie for me because it gives into the possibility that a person who wants to start a new life could end up in a horrific situation where death was the only escape. It made me think about that the reality of someone's most desired dream could mean the deaths of people surrounding the individual. Well anyways, if you should encounter the Leash of Dreams just be informed of its history and try to be careful with it.