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“No.” But my mind was reeling. Not only did Mother possess dream dust, but even herplantswere magical?
“Wellsomeonedid, and they’re growing inyourgarden; magical plants don’t just pop out of nowhere, you know.” She frowned at her drawings. “These are the most unusual magical plants I’ve ever seen. They almost seem like hybrids of various plants growing in the Dream World, but proving that will require further research. Rest assured I’ll get to the bottom of this. Since you’re being uncooperative as usual, I’ll just have to discover the answers for myself. Maybe I’ll look more into your mother…”
Oh no she wouldn’t; this had gone far enough. “I’ve had it with your investigation. I didn’t perform any unusual magic, there’s nothing suspicious about Mother’s plants, and I’ve never been to your strange world, so whatever crime you’re trying to pin on me isn’t—”
Outside, something brown and shimmery suddenly shone in the darkness. It bounced against the windowpane, as if knocking to come in, before dashing out of sight. I scrambled to the window and peered into the velvet night.
Stardust appeared beside me. “Do you see something?”
I pressed my face against the glass. A dream emerged, hovering near the forest like a flickering firefly. It followed Charlotte as she creaked the garden gate open and tiptoed towards the house, keeping herself masked beneath the shadows. The dream floated closely behind her, considerably shrunken from its earlier plump size, but unmistakably a nightmare.
“What’s that Mortal doing?” Stardust asked.
I eyed the bulging pouch Charlotte clutched. “Probably paying for Mother’s herbs her grandmother purchased yesterday.”
Stardust gasped. “You’re selling enchanted objects to Mortals? That’s illegal.”
I ignored her, focused only on the murky dream. Now really wasn’t the time to steal a peek, not with an accusatory cloud breathing down my neck, but as usual my curiosity piqued: what sort of dream had lingered in Charlotte’s memory all day?
Charlotte reached the house, dropped the pouch on the doorstep, and scampered away, as if tarrying too long at the home of a suspected witch was enough to cast a spell on her. There was no time to lose.
I scurried from the window and lifted the loose floorboard, where I kept a reserve of empty jars, but when I returned the dream was gone. “Where is it?”
“Where’s what?” Stardust’s tone dripped with impatience. “I don’t see anything.”
“The dream.”
Stardust frowned. “Dreams are impossible to see. After Weavings they immediately disappear because—”
“There it is!” I pushed the window open. Charlotte glanced up, wide eyed, before slamming the garden gate and running towards the village, her dream trailing behind.
I prepared to summon my magic but hesitated at Stardust’s scrutinizing gaze. If I caught the dream in front of her, she’d undoubtedly realize that’s what my jar contained, but I couldn’t let this dream escape; only one of the highest caliber would have lasted so long.
“Could you possibly look away for a moment?”
Her eyes narrowed. “No.”
There was nothing to do but let her watch. My magic brimmed in my hands as I concentrated on the dream, but before I could use it…
I was completely surrounded by greyish brown, but this was no ordinary brown; this kind was dark and otherworldly and made my stomach churn, as if I’d been submerged in a murky lake devoid of color. The stifling air felt layers thick, as if a giant weight crushed me, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't move.
In the midst of this suffocating nothingness, I faintly heard the clinks of a shovel striking the ground, coming from somewhere above me. With each metallic ping, smothering loads of dirt pressed down upon me.
I was being buried alive.
I struggled to move, to scream, to yank myself out of this nightmare, but I was trapped within the confining walls of my dirt prison. I could do nothing but wait…wait for something, anything, to happen. Anxiety squeezed my chest with each shovelful, my only measurement of time in this unbearable torture, until I was sure I’d go mad.
With a sharp pull I jerked out of the nightmare and found myself lying on the floor of my bedroom, curled in a fetal position and drenched in a cold sweat.
“Eden?” Stardust shook me frantically, her eyes shiny. “Are you alright?”
My lungs burned for air, as if I’d really been trapped underground rather than a mere observer of the dream. I took several gasping breaths while Stardust stroked my hair like Mother used to do long ago.
“What happened?”
Stardust carefully propped me against the pillows. “You were in a strange trance, unblinking and unresponsive, almost as if you weren’t even here.” She shivered. “It was scary.”
Long shadows filled the room. Outside, the violet sky had faded into ebony. Although the strange nightmare had vanished, its creepiness lingered and my insides churned. I instinctively pressed myself deeper into Stardust’s soft and surprisingly comforting hold. She nuzzled against me and curled in my lap like a cat. As I pet her, each touch of her frothy body gently pushed the disturbing memory of the nightmare away; gradually my shaking stilled.
