Hikago/Sandman x-over, part 1/4
Well.... what can I say? Strange crossovers give me no peace. At least they're fun to write.
A Hikaru no go/Sandman crossover. I'd been thinking about it a long while. Probably ever since I first read the part where Hikaru has the dream about Sai. So, in summary: after the said dream, Hikaru doesn't wake up. Instead, he goes to search for Sai, in the Dreaming.
Note to the possible Sandman fans: It's been years since I read the books, so I'm sorry if I've got some canon errors. This takes place during Brief Lives, just because it's one of my favorites and I remember it better than most books. (Not that the Sandman timeline were that important here.)
About the title and the chapter titles... In general, I just can't come up with titles. This fic was no exception. But when I was writing the second chapter, a line from Bokura no bouken (first ending for Hikaru no go anime) came to my mind, and in this context kind of... amused me, so I decided to use it as the second chapter's title. And when I thought about it, I figured I could take all the titles from that song.
So, the fic's title (yume no tabibito, which could be roughly translated as dream traveler) and the chapter titles all are from that song. (This doesn't mean they'd fit the fic perfectly or anything like that. Mainly they just amuse me. And now I don't anymore have to think about the *censored* titles.)
Dream Traveler
A Tiny Prologue: Open the door to your dreams
“How... how did you feel when you disappeared?”
“Were you sad?”
“Or were you smiling like you are now?”
“I hope you were... smiling...”
He's looking away. Into the distance. Still quiet, without saying a word.
“Sai...”
“Sai! Don't go! Say something! Don't disappear...”
“Sai?”
The fan. Offered, with a small, gentle smile. Hikaru reaches toward it, and the moment his hand closes round the fan he knows he's about to wake up.
“No...” He pushes back, with all his strength, and for a moment the dream breaks, turns black. He doesn't let go, though, holds on to the traces of the dream, refusing to wake, and then he is back floating in the bright blue sky, in the soft wind and sunshine. There is no Sai. But down there... there is a path.
Chapter 1: Now, to a great adventure
The path led to a forest, and Hikaru followed it. Had someone asked, he wouldn't have been able to tell why, but somehow he was certain Sai had walked this very same path, just a moment ago. At times, he thought he saw something white flash among the trees and he hurried on, rushing after it, but if there was someone walking ahead, it was impossible to catch him.
After a while he suddenly realized that the forest had changed. It was hard to say exactly how, but there was something off with the trees, in their shape, in the way wind whispered in their leaves. His heartbeat quickened and he started running again, suddenly afraid and not anymore so certain that he was following the right path. Why would Sai come to a place like this?
He didn't understand the sound of the wind, but there was menace in it, and although it was not dark, the bright sunlight was gone. (But never mind the light... the wind, if he'd just escape the wind, all would be fine.) He stumbled on, and the path disappeared. Between one step and the next, it simply wasn't there any more, and he stopped, uncertain.
The forest was dense around him. The old trunks were dark and crooked, and the branches reached out to block his way. He glanced around, but the only way open was behind him, the way he had come.
“Sai?” he called quietly. “Where did you go?”
Sai... whispered the wind, as if mocking. Sai...
Hikaru clenched his teeth. He wasn't about to let some freaky wind and old trees to scare him - Sai had went to this direction, and even if he had, somehow, lost the correct path, it was no use stopping now. So he pushed on, determined, and the branches gave way.
He stepped out of the forest, and felt immediately relieved. With new confidence, he went on, but soon stopped as he heard loud shouting from ahead.
He was standing on a road. How he had come to it, he couldn't tell, but there he was, on a fine and wide stone-paved road. A bit further down, the road went by a big cemetery. Then he noticed two houses at edge of the cemetery, a broad one and a tall one, and as he watched, the door of the tall house suddenly burst open and a plump man ran out, screaming somewhat incoherently. Another man ran after him. Hikaru froze when he saw an axe in the pursuer's hands.
“Ah-ah-I... di-didn't mean to! I'm s-s-sorry!” the man shrieked, but to no avail. The man with the axe was catching on him, and the mad gleam in his eyes promised nothing good. Then, covering the distance impossibly quickly, the plump man reached Hikaru and dove to take cover behind his back. Before he could react, Hikaru found himself face to face with the axe man, while the other hiding behind his back held on to his shoulders and did his best to keep the boy between himself and the attacker.
“T-t-tell him I'm s-s-sorry!” the plump man whimpered to Hikaru, and his attacker rolled his eyes.
“You're getting more pathetic day after day,” he snorted. “T-t-tell him I'm s-s-sorry!” he repeated mockingly. “Now, don't you get any outsiders involved, this is a family matter.”
“Umm...” Hikaru eyed the axe quite worriedly. It was sharp and shining. “Umm...”
“Just go on.” The man waved the axe dismissively. “This doesn't concern you. Let him go, Abel!”
“Ye-yeah...” the man, sweating a lot, finally let go of the boy. “B-but... ah... I...”
Hikaru swallowed. Decided he couldn't just walk away. “Eh, what... what are you doing with that axe?” he asked. “I mean, surely you're not... that is... can't you talk about it?” he finished a bit lamely.
The axe man gave him a weird look. “Talk? That idiot brother of mine can barely talk, as you've heard. Besides, it does no good. He broke my favorite cup, that fact doesn't change of talking.”
“Your cup? You mean you're going to kill your brother because of a cup?”
“Oh, he d-doesn't need a reason to k-k-kill me,” Abel said, still standing behind Hikaru's back. “He's done it just for f-fu-fun, a few times.”
“Huh?” The boy glanced at him, confused. “What do you mean?”
“Never mind what he means.” The man waved the axe around. “Go on, wake up, little dreamer. You shouldn't be here, anyway.”
Hikaru turned his confused stare at him. “Not be here? Dreamer? What?”
“You're just dreaming, boy, that's all. Now, wake...”
“Oh, yeah, that's it!” Hikaru's face brightened. “I'd somehow forgotten. Yeah, of course, this is a dream. I wonder if I can get Sai back here, if I really concentrate... sometimes I can make things happen in my dreams.”
“You can?” The man was resting the axe on his shoulder and looked at Hikaru with a raised eyebrow. “Yes... you seem to be a rather strong dreamer. That might explain how you've come this deep.”
“And if I'm dreaming...” Hikaru went on, not really listening, “well, no one kills anyone in my dreams. I should be able to get rid of that axe, if I want to. Or... change it into something else.” He frowned and stared intently at the axe, but nothing happened. The man chuckled.
“You see,” he explained, “we are not a part of your dream, so you've got no control over us.”
“Not a part of my dream?” Hikaru blinked at him, confused. “But... whose dream are you then?”
“Not a dream, really...” the man said musingly. “More like... a story. Though maybe there isn't much of a difference, nowadays. Anyway, sorry to shock you, boy,” he grinned and didn't really look very sorry at all, “but this is how the story goes.” He raised the axe again and slid a finger on its blade.
“What kind of a story is that...”
“The First Story,” the man whispered. “What, haven't you guessed yet?” When Hikaru shook his head hesitantly he threw his head back in exasperation. “What do they teach the kids these days!?”
“Co-come now, don't be mad at the boy, he's just dreaming...” Abel was watching him sympathetically, and for some reason he couldn't quite fathom Hikaru felt he was beginning to like this plump, nervous fellow. “You're l-looking for someone, right?” When Hikaru nodded, he went on, “Well, as you've already come this far, you could just fo-follow the road, and, um, go to ask Lord Morpheus. If the one you're looking for is in the Dreaming, he should know...”
“Why don't you just shut up!” The other man had seemed to have calmed down a little, but suddenly his face was again distorted in anger and his eyes flared. “You blabbermouth! The lord's got other things to do than help all the silly dreamers to find things they've lost!” The axe rose.
“Ca-cain, no...!”
“No!” Hikaru as well yelled, raising his hands, but too late. The axe fell, and behind him the plump man was cut down. Cain hit again, and again, and bent then down to pick up the severed head.
Hikaru backed off, feeling nauseous, and when he realized the head was still babbling, still begging for mercy, he turned on his heels and ran.
.
He kept on running, and as often in a dream, he didn't feel at all out of breath. His steps were light and easy, and it was, almost, a joy to run - if he just had been able to forget what he was running from. He glanced behind and found he couldn't anymore see the houses, nor the two men. Gradually he began to slow down, and when he looked forward again, he saw the castle.
It was big, bigger than he could really figure out, as he had a feeling he saw only a small part of it. It appeared to stand on a high hill, though the mist that whirled around made it hard to see properly - it was as if the whole building stood in the clouds. There were several towers rising high from the mist and the clouds, and a long, white stairway, floating in the air, which led up to the front gate.
Hikaru watched it a moment in silence. Then, he took a step forward, and laid his foot on the first stair.
It was a long climb, but not impossibly so; and not so much tiring (this was a dream, after all) than it was boring. Finally the stairs ended, though, and he stood in front of the main gate. There were statues around it: some kind of a winged horse on the right, a griffin on the left, and above it, a dragon. He gave a long look at the statues, then reached to knock on the door.
“Wait, dreamer. Why are you here?”
“What?” Hikaru gave a start and glanced behind, but there was no one around. Then he realized the voice had come from up, and as he looked up he saw that the dragon was watching him. “I... ah, I'm...”
“Unusual, visitor, truly,” another voice said, and Hikaru jumped again, as a horse head suddenly reached down to look at him more closely. “Are you lost?”
“Don't be stupid,” the griffin snorted. “How could someone who's lost find his way here?”
“You never know... stranger things have happened.”
“No, I'm not lost,” Hikaru put in. “At least I don't think I am...” Coming to think of it, he really didn't have a clue where he was. Oh, but... this was a dream, right? Once again, he had almost forgotten. So in fact he was lying in his own bed - hardly lost, in that case.
“I'm not lost. I came to see... see...” What was the name again? “Well, the lord of this place.”
“Did you now?” the griffin sounded amused. “And what business do you have with Lord Dream?”
“I... I'm looking for someone. Someone who was here, but then I lost him.”
“So he is lost, after all!” the horse said triumphantly.
“I'm not lost! Sai is. And I need to ask this lord of yours if he can help me find him.”
“So who is this Sai?” the griffin asked. It was lying on its pillar looking quite relaxed, front legs crossed. For some reason Hikaru was getting the feeling that all three of them were somehow amused. “A dream? Or a dreamer?”
“No! He's... Sai is...” Hikaru swallowed. “He's dead. But he was here.”
“Oh...” the dragon whispered. “A dream, then. I'm sorry, boy. You can't find the dead here, just dreams and shadows.”
“But he was...!”
“No. Go back, boy. The lord is busy, and he can't help you with this.”
“I'm not going anywhere!” Hikaru shot a stubborn look up at the dragon. “I've come this far. At least tell your lord that I'm here.”
The dragon looked away for a moment, and then back at the boy. “I told him. He said no.”
“What? Just like that? But I...”
“A no is a no, boy. You didn't gain entrance, and we can't let you in.”
“But...” Hikaru started again, but then he realized he was about to start arguing with a statue. With a great sigh he sat down. “Fine!” he finally snapped. “I can be stubborn, too! I'm not going anywhere before get to meet him.”
Nobody answered him. Not that he had expected them to.
He sat there a long while, alone. At times his thoughts were wandering, and he almost slipped somewhere else, but he quickly pulled himself together again, concentrating as hard as in a serious go match.
But nothing happened.
Until, just when he was about to start dreaming of his grandfather's attic and the day when he first met Sai, there came a quiet creak, and the door opened. He gave a start and stood up, looking at the door expectantly. To his surprise he saw that the door had changed since he'd last looked at it - and so had the place where he was sitting. The stairs were gone, and the castle wall wasn't as white and shining as it had been, now it was normal, gray stone wall, and the wooden door was just a fraction of the size it had been - it looked more like some backdoor than the main gate. There were no statues, but on the door there were carvings of the dragon, griffin, and the winged horse.
A girl stepped out of the door, carrying a basket with a lid in her hands. A very strange girl - short, wearing a ragged, sleeveless dress, with a wild mop of brown hair and very long elfish ears. She stopped for a moment, her mouth forming a surprised 'o' when she saw Hikaru.
“Are you still here?” she said when she closed the door behind her. “You truly are stubborn, aren't you.”
“Could you please let me in?” Hikaru started eagerly. “I really wish to speak with, umh, the lord.”
“Apparently. But I'm sorry.” The girl started walking away. “If the gatekeepers say you can't enter, then you can't. It wouldn't be wise to intrude. Besides... you have a bad timing. The lord just left on a trip.”
“A trip?” Hikaru left after the girl. “What kind of a trip? Will he be gone for a long time?”
“Who knows... he's again traveling in the waking world with his sister, Lady Delirium. They might be back any moment - or maybe next year.”
“Next year? I can't wait that long! If I don't meet him tonight, I don't know if I'll ever be able to come back here again!”
“Probably not,” the girl admitted. “It's quite surprising that you are here now.”
“Can't you help me, then?” Hikaru asked, desperately. “I really need to see him...”
“Lord Dream? I just said he's not...”
“No, I meant Sai. I met him here, a while ago, but then he left, and I can't find him. Do you know how I could find him?”
The girl shrugged. “Usually, if you are thinking about someone in a dream, you might next see them.”
Hikaru snorted. “I haven't been thinking about anything else since I came here. And haven't seen a glimpse of Sai. Besides, I want him, and not something that's just a dream.”
They walked in silence for a moment. “There's no such thing as 'just a dream',” the girl finally said. She stopped and looked at Hikaru with a sad smile. “I wish I could help you, but I can't. I hope you'll find him.” She nodded, as in goodbye, and walked away. Hikaru considered a moment and ran then after her.
“What about you?” he asked. “Are you dreaming, too? What are you doing here?”
“I? No, I'm not dreaming, I live here. At the castle. And...” she glanced at the basket in her hands and sighed. “I'm searching for something, too. Some nightmare fledglings happened to escape - it was an accident, but my fault, I guess... so I'm hoping to find them and bring them back before the lord returns. They aren't ready yet, so they shouldn't be out here.”
“Nightmare... fledglings?” Hikaru blinked. “What?”
“Something like... baby nightmares. They're very young. And like all youngsters, very eager to show what they've got. It would be easy for the lord to find them, but...” she swallowed. “He's been in a bad mood lately.”
“Baby nightmares, huh?” Hikaru looked at the girl thoughtfully. “Hey, could I help you?”
The girl glanced at him with a wry smile. “First time I've met a dreamer who wants to find nightmares.”
Hikaru grinned. “Well, if I know they're only dreams, it won't be that bad, you know?”
“Only dreams....” the girl muttered. “You don't listen to what people say, do you? But anyway.” She stopped and looked at him with a smile. “I'm Nuala. If you wish to help me, I’d be grateful.”
“Shindou Hikaru,” Hikaru said with a tiny bow. “And if I'm anyway going to walk around here, searching for Sai, I might as well keep an eye out for your nightmares. Besides... it might be good to have someone around who knows this place.”
(In truth, he'd probably never find his way back to the castle on his own. The way behind looked nothing like it had when they'd walked through it.)
“So, where should we look for them?”
Nuala sighed. “I wish I knew.”
“How big is this place, anyway?” Hikaru asked, looking at the formless plains that spread out around them.
“The Dreaming? As big as all the possible and impossible places put together.”
“That's... big.”
“Yeah.” She sighed again. “But... very improbable things can happen here, so who knows. We might have luck.” She didn’t sound too confident, and Hikaru said nothing.
Second chapter
A Hikaru no go/Sandman crossover. I'd been thinking about it a long while. Probably ever since I first read the part where Hikaru has the dream about Sai. So, in summary: after the said dream, Hikaru doesn't wake up. Instead, he goes to search for Sai, in the Dreaming.
Note to the possible Sandman fans: It's been years since I read the books, so I'm sorry if I've got some canon errors. This takes place during Brief Lives, just because it's one of my favorites and I remember it better than most books. (Not that the Sandman timeline were that important here.)
About the title and the chapter titles... In general, I just can't come up with titles. This fic was no exception. But when I was writing the second chapter, a line from Bokura no bouken (first ending for Hikaru no go anime) came to my mind, and in this context kind of... amused me, so I decided to use it as the second chapter's title. And when I thought about it, I figured I could take all the titles from that song.
So, the fic's title (yume no tabibito, which could be roughly translated as dream traveler) and the chapter titles all are from that song. (This doesn't mean they'd fit the fic perfectly or anything like that. Mainly they just amuse me. And now I don't anymore have to think about the *censored* titles.)
Dream Traveler
A Tiny Prologue: Open the door to your dreams
“How... how did you feel when you disappeared?”
“Were you sad?”
“Or were you smiling like you are now?”
“I hope you were... smiling...”
He's looking away. Into the distance. Still quiet, without saying a word.
“Sai...”
“Sai! Don't go! Say something! Don't disappear...”
“Sai?”
The fan. Offered, with a small, gentle smile. Hikaru reaches toward it, and the moment his hand closes round the fan he knows he's about to wake up.
“No...” He pushes back, with all his strength, and for a moment the dream breaks, turns black. He doesn't let go, though, holds on to the traces of the dream, refusing to wake, and then he is back floating in the bright blue sky, in the soft wind and sunshine. There is no Sai. But down there... there is a path.
Chapter 1: Now, to a great adventure
The path led to a forest, and Hikaru followed it. Had someone asked, he wouldn't have been able to tell why, but somehow he was certain Sai had walked this very same path, just a moment ago. At times, he thought he saw something white flash among the trees and he hurried on, rushing after it, but if there was someone walking ahead, it was impossible to catch him.
After a while he suddenly realized that the forest had changed. It was hard to say exactly how, but there was something off with the trees, in their shape, in the way wind whispered in their leaves. His heartbeat quickened and he started running again, suddenly afraid and not anymore so certain that he was following the right path. Why would Sai come to a place like this?
He didn't understand the sound of the wind, but there was menace in it, and although it was not dark, the bright sunlight was gone. (But never mind the light... the wind, if he'd just escape the wind, all would be fine.) He stumbled on, and the path disappeared. Between one step and the next, it simply wasn't there any more, and he stopped, uncertain.
The forest was dense around him. The old trunks were dark and crooked, and the branches reached out to block his way. He glanced around, but the only way open was behind him, the way he had come.
“Sai?” he called quietly. “Where did you go?”
Sai... whispered the wind, as if mocking. Sai...
Hikaru clenched his teeth. He wasn't about to let some freaky wind and old trees to scare him - Sai had went to this direction, and even if he had, somehow, lost the correct path, it was no use stopping now. So he pushed on, determined, and the branches gave way.
He stepped out of the forest, and felt immediately relieved. With new confidence, he went on, but soon stopped as he heard loud shouting from ahead.
He was standing on a road. How he had come to it, he couldn't tell, but there he was, on a fine and wide stone-paved road. A bit further down, the road went by a big cemetery. Then he noticed two houses at edge of the cemetery, a broad one and a tall one, and as he watched, the door of the tall house suddenly burst open and a plump man ran out, screaming somewhat incoherently. Another man ran after him. Hikaru froze when he saw an axe in the pursuer's hands.
“Ah-ah-I... di-didn't mean to! I'm s-s-sorry!” the man shrieked, but to no avail. The man with the axe was catching on him, and the mad gleam in his eyes promised nothing good. Then, covering the distance impossibly quickly, the plump man reached Hikaru and dove to take cover behind his back. Before he could react, Hikaru found himself face to face with the axe man, while the other hiding behind his back held on to his shoulders and did his best to keep the boy between himself and the attacker.
“T-t-tell him I'm s-s-sorry!” the plump man whimpered to Hikaru, and his attacker rolled his eyes.
“You're getting more pathetic day after day,” he snorted. “T-t-tell him I'm s-s-sorry!” he repeated mockingly. “Now, don't you get any outsiders involved, this is a family matter.”
“Umm...” Hikaru eyed the axe quite worriedly. It was sharp and shining. “Umm...”
“Just go on.” The man waved the axe dismissively. “This doesn't concern you. Let him go, Abel!”
“Ye-yeah...” the man, sweating a lot, finally let go of the boy. “B-but... ah... I...”
Hikaru swallowed. Decided he couldn't just walk away. “Eh, what... what are you doing with that axe?” he asked. “I mean, surely you're not... that is... can't you talk about it?” he finished a bit lamely.
The axe man gave him a weird look. “Talk? That idiot brother of mine can barely talk, as you've heard. Besides, it does no good. He broke my favorite cup, that fact doesn't change of talking.”
“Your cup? You mean you're going to kill your brother because of a cup?”
“Oh, he d-doesn't need a reason to k-k-kill me,” Abel said, still standing behind Hikaru's back. “He's done it just for f-fu-fun, a few times.”
“Huh?” The boy glanced at him, confused. “What do you mean?”
“Never mind what he means.” The man waved the axe around. “Go on, wake up, little dreamer. You shouldn't be here, anyway.”
Hikaru turned his confused stare at him. “Not be here? Dreamer? What?”
“You're just dreaming, boy, that's all. Now, wake...”
“Oh, yeah, that's it!” Hikaru's face brightened. “I'd somehow forgotten. Yeah, of course, this is a dream. I wonder if I can get Sai back here, if I really concentrate... sometimes I can make things happen in my dreams.”
“You can?” The man was resting the axe on his shoulder and looked at Hikaru with a raised eyebrow. “Yes... you seem to be a rather strong dreamer. That might explain how you've come this deep.”
“And if I'm dreaming...” Hikaru went on, not really listening, “well, no one kills anyone in my dreams. I should be able to get rid of that axe, if I want to. Or... change it into something else.” He frowned and stared intently at the axe, but nothing happened. The man chuckled.
“You see,” he explained, “we are not a part of your dream, so you've got no control over us.”
“Not a part of my dream?” Hikaru blinked at him, confused. “But... whose dream are you then?”
“Not a dream, really...” the man said musingly. “More like... a story. Though maybe there isn't much of a difference, nowadays. Anyway, sorry to shock you, boy,” he grinned and didn't really look very sorry at all, “but this is how the story goes.” He raised the axe again and slid a finger on its blade.
“What kind of a story is that...”
“The First Story,” the man whispered. “What, haven't you guessed yet?” When Hikaru shook his head hesitantly he threw his head back in exasperation. “What do they teach the kids these days!?”
“Co-come now, don't be mad at the boy, he's just dreaming...” Abel was watching him sympathetically, and for some reason he couldn't quite fathom Hikaru felt he was beginning to like this plump, nervous fellow. “You're l-looking for someone, right?” When Hikaru nodded, he went on, “Well, as you've already come this far, you could just fo-follow the road, and, um, go to ask Lord Morpheus. If the one you're looking for is in the Dreaming, he should know...”
“Why don't you just shut up!” The other man had seemed to have calmed down a little, but suddenly his face was again distorted in anger and his eyes flared. “You blabbermouth! The lord's got other things to do than help all the silly dreamers to find things they've lost!” The axe rose.
“Ca-cain, no...!”
“No!” Hikaru as well yelled, raising his hands, but too late. The axe fell, and behind him the plump man was cut down. Cain hit again, and again, and bent then down to pick up the severed head.
Hikaru backed off, feeling nauseous, and when he realized the head was still babbling, still begging for mercy, he turned on his heels and ran.
.
He kept on running, and as often in a dream, he didn't feel at all out of breath. His steps were light and easy, and it was, almost, a joy to run - if he just had been able to forget what he was running from. He glanced behind and found he couldn't anymore see the houses, nor the two men. Gradually he began to slow down, and when he looked forward again, he saw the castle.
It was big, bigger than he could really figure out, as he had a feeling he saw only a small part of it. It appeared to stand on a high hill, though the mist that whirled around made it hard to see properly - it was as if the whole building stood in the clouds. There were several towers rising high from the mist and the clouds, and a long, white stairway, floating in the air, which led up to the front gate.
Hikaru watched it a moment in silence. Then, he took a step forward, and laid his foot on the first stair.
It was a long climb, but not impossibly so; and not so much tiring (this was a dream, after all) than it was boring. Finally the stairs ended, though, and he stood in front of the main gate. There were statues around it: some kind of a winged horse on the right, a griffin on the left, and above it, a dragon. He gave a long look at the statues, then reached to knock on the door.
“Wait, dreamer. Why are you here?”
“What?” Hikaru gave a start and glanced behind, but there was no one around. Then he realized the voice had come from up, and as he looked up he saw that the dragon was watching him. “I... ah, I'm...”
“Unusual, visitor, truly,” another voice said, and Hikaru jumped again, as a horse head suddenly reached down to look at him more closely. “Are you lost?”
“Don't be stupid,” the griffin snorted. “How could someone who's lost find his way here?”
“You never know... stranger things have happened.”
“No, I'm not lost,” Hikaru put in. “At least I don't think I am...” Coming to think of it, he really didn't have a clue where he was. Oh, but... this was a dream, right? Once again, he had almost forgotten. So in fact he was lying in his own bed - hardly lost, in that case.
“I'm not lost. I came to see... see...” What was the name again? “Well, the lord of this place.”
“Did you now?” the griffin sounded amused. “And what business do you have with Lord Dream?”
“I... I'm looking for someone. Someone who was here, but then I lost him.”
“So he is lost, after all!” the horse said triumphantly.
“I'm not lost! Sai is. And I need to ask this lord of yours if he can help me find him.”
“So who is this Sai?” the griffin asked. It was lying on its pillar looking quite relaxed, front legs crossed. For some reason Hikaru was getting the feeling that all three of them were somehow amused. “A dream? Or a dreamer?”
“No! He's... Sai is...” Hikaru swallowed. “He's dead. But he was here.”
“Oh...” the dragon whispered. “A dream, then. I'm sorry, boy. You can't find the dead here, just dreams and shadows.”
“But he was...!”
“No. Go back, boy. The lord is busy, and he can't help you with this.”
“I'm not going anywhere!” Hikaru shot a stubborn look up at the dragon. “I've come this far. At least tell your lord that I'm here.”
The dragon looked away for a moment, and then back at the boy. “I told him. He said no.”
“What? Just like that? But I...”
“A no is a no, boy. You didn't gain entrance, and we can't let you in.”
“But...” Hikaru started again, but then he realized he was about to start arguing with a statue. With a great sigh he sat down. “Fine!” he finally snapped. “I can be stubborn, too! I'm not going anywhere before get to meet him.”
Nobody answered him. Not that he had expected them to.
He sat there a long while, alone. At times his thoughts were wandering, and he almost slipped somewhere else, but he quickly pulled himself together again, concentrating as hard as in a serious go match.
But nothing happened.
Until, just when he was about to start dreaming of his grandfather's attic and the day when he first met Sai, there came a quiet creak, and the door opened. He gave a start and stood up, looking at the door expectantly. To his surprise he saw that the door had changed since he'd last looked at it - and so had the place where he was sitting. The stairs were gone, and the castle wall wasn't as white and shining as it had been, now it was normal, gray stone wall, and the wooden door was just a fraction of the size it had been - it looked more like some backdoor than the main gate. There were no statues, but on the door there were carvings of the dragon, griffin, and the winged horse.
A girl stepped out of the door, carrying a basket with a lid in her hands. A very strange girl - short, wearing a ragged, sleeveless dress, with a wild mop of brown hair and very long elfish ears. She stopped for a moment, her mouth forming a surprised 'o' when she saw Hikaru.
“Are you still here?” she said when she closed the door behind her. “You truly are stubborn, aren't you.”
“Could you please let me in?” Hikaru started eagerly. “I really wish to speak with, umh, the lord.”
“Apparently. But I'm sorry.” The girl started walking away. “If the gatekeepers say you can't enter, then you can't. It wouldn't be wise to intrude. Besides... you have a bad timing. The lord just left on a trip.”
“A trip?” Hikaru left after the girl. “What kind of a trip? Will he be gone for a long time?”
“Who knows... he's again traveling in the waking world with his sister, Lady Delirium. They might be back any moment - or maybe next year.”
“Next year? I can't wait that long! If I don't meet him tonight, I don't know if I'll ever be able to come back here again!”
“Probably not,” the girl admitted. “It's quite surprising that you are here now.”
“Can't you help me, then?” Hikaru asked, desperately. “I really need to see him...”
“Lord Dream? I just said he's not...”
“No, I meant Sai. I met him here, a while ago, but then he left, and I can't find him. Do you know how I could find him?”
The girl shrugged. “Usually, if you are thinking about someone in a dream, you might next see them.”
Hikaru snorted. “I haven't been thinking about anything else since I came here. And haven't seen a glimpse of Sai. Besides, I want him, and not something that's just a dream.”
They walked in silence for a moment. “There's no such thing as 'just a dream',” the girl finally said. She stopped and looked at Hikaru with a sad smile. “I wish I could help you, but I can't. I hope you'll find him.” She nodded, as in goodbye, and walked away. Hikaru considered a moment and ran then after her.
“What about you?” he asked. “Are you dreaming, too? What are you doing here?”
“I? No, I'm not dreaming, I live here. At the castle. And...” she glanced at the basket in her hands and sighed. “I'm searching for something, too. Some nightmare fledglings happened to escape - it was an accident, but my fault, I guess... so I'm hoping to find them and bring them back before the lord returns. They aren't ready yet, so they shouldn't be out here.”
“Nightmare... fledglings?” Hikaru blinked. “What?”
“Something like... baby nightmares. They're very young. And like all youngsters, very eager to show what they've got. It would be easy for the lord to find them, but...” she swallowed. “He's been in a bad mood lately.”
“Baby nightmares, huh?” Hikaru looked at the girl thoughtfully. “Hey, could I help you?”
The girl glanced at him with a wry smile. “First time I've met a dreamer who wants to find nightmares.”
Hikaru grinned. “Well, if I know they're only dreams, it won't be that bad, you know?”
“Only dreams....” the girl muttered. “You don't listen to what people say, do you? But anyway.” She stopped and looked at him with a smile. “I'm Nuala. If you wish to help me, I’d be grateful.”
“Shindou Hikaru,” Hikaru said with a tiny bow. “And if I'm anyway going to walk around here, searching for Sai, I might as well keep an eye out for your nightmares. Besides... it might be good to have someone around who knows this place.”
(In truth, he'd probably never find his way back to the castle on his own. The way behind looked nothing like it had when they'd walked through it.)
“So, where should we look for them?”
Nuala sighed. “I wish I knew.”
“How big is this place, anyway?” Hikaru asked, looking at the formless plains that spread out around them.
“The Dreaming? As big as all the possible and impossible places put together.”
“That's... big.”
“Yeah.” She sighed again. “But... very improbable things can happen here, so who knows. We might have luck.” She didn’t sound too confident, and Hikaru said nothing.
Second chapter