"Virginia is for lovers," said the old tourism slogan, and you'll hear no objection from the thousands of couples who flock there each year, lured by the cozy accommodations and Southern hospitality offered by the bed and breakfast establishments that dot the length of the Shenandoah Valley. And so it was that one of these couples was Marshall and Debbie, young, budget-conscious newlyweds from nearby Silver Spring.

They arrived at the bed and breakfast shortly after sunset, looking forward to spending the first night of their honeymoon engaged in some strenuous conjugal activity, but when they entered their room their gazes fell upon the king-sized bed. It was an antique four-poster, with a dark wooden frame clearly a century old. All thoughts of amorous athletics fled as Marshall and Debbie realized just how exhausted they were, from the drive as well as the pent-up stresses of months of wedding planning. With barely a word, they stripped and collapsed into the giant bed, sinking into the soft down mattress, and into a deep, comforting slumber.

Debbie woke up with the light of the full moon shining in her eyes. She looked over at her husband sleeping beside her, his body nestled in the soft bed. She smiled at the sight of him, lying there so peacefully, but then something caught her eye. Something wasn't quite right. Slowly, impossibly, she realized what it was. Marshall wasn't merely sinking into the mattress. He was sinking through it. Most of his left leg had already vanished below the surface, and the rest of his body was following.

Debbie screamed, and lunged towards her husband to shake him awake. He didn't stir. She grabbed his shoulder and shouted his name, but still he remained sound asleep, sinking into the massive bed. Terrified, Debbie leapt onto the floor... or, rather, she tried to. Her legs, like her husband's, were already being absorbed into the mattress, trapping her. She screamed again, and struggled, but she couldn't tear herself out of the bed's grasp. Slowly, inexorably, both Debbie and Marshall sank deeper. Marshall was the lucky one, for he never woke up as he disappeared beneath the surface of the bedclothes. Debbie, however, was fully conscious when her face, bug-eyed and gasping for breath, finally vanished from view. Her outstretched hand was the last part of her to disappear.

When the sun rose, not a trace of Marshall or Debbie remained, except for their clothes and luggage on the floor. Birds sang melodically outside, greeting the new day. The morning was peaceful. The bed had had its breakfast.