She was reading the feelings I’d buried deep, my secret wishes and temptations I tried so desperately to hide, even from myself.
“I’ll think about it,” I finally managed.
She smirked, and I knew she’d read both of the forbidden fantasies filling my heart. “Don’t take too long; we both know you don’t have much time.”
She handed me Mother’s notebook and turned to leave, but paused when she caught sight of the dark leaves from my nightmare flower sticking out of my bag. Before I could hide it, she snatched it and held it by its prickly stem, questions in her shining, knowing eyes when she turned back to me.
“I found—” I started, but she interrupted with a trilling laugh. I stiffened as I felt the slithering, searching feeling of her powers return to probe my insides and uncover the truth.
“No, you created it.” Delight filled her tone. “However did you manage it?”
“I don’t know.” I could barely force the words out. “You’re a Cultivator. Do you have any idea how I could have done so?”
She thoughtfully twirled the nightmare flower by its stem. “Hmm, I have a theory…but I’m not sure you’re quite ready to hear it.”
My heart flared to life. “What do you mean?”
“My powers extend to also sensing feelings one is unaware of. Sometimes the heart keeps secrets even from ourselves.”
She returned my flower and unhooked the gate, and without another word she slipped into the Nightmare Realm, leaving me alone with my swirling, fearful thoughts.
Chapter 31
“We really shouldn’t be here right now, especially when you’re on probation.” Stardust’s gaze darted back and forth, as if she expected the Council to be lurking in the surrounding trees. “The Council is already suspicious of the previous times you snuck to Earth. If they catch you…”
“They won’t,” I said. “We won’t be long.”
Stardust floated gracefully above the forest surrounding my old village, lightly brushing the treetops caressed with soft golden dawn. Despite the risks, I couldn’t help but repeatedly return here, drawn to this place despite it never having felt like home.
“Why are you risking suspension? Haven’t you bottled enough dreams?”
“I’m interested in more than capturing them.”
I clutched my dream locket, bursting with fresh dream dust. Last night I’d managed another win, my fourth this week, an event so unusual I half wondered if Darius was still letting me win on purpose in order to appease the Council. I finally had enough magic to explore the possibilities that had filled my mind ever since Trinity had suggested them—to break away from the dreaming Mortal’s consciousness and explore their dream.
Although I couldn’t deny that the thought of increasing my powers was tantalizing, I had another, far greater motivation: if I could succeed in finding a more powerful way to create dreams, then I could help other Dreamers, a gesture that could both counter the frequent dream dust thefts and restore the tipping balance.
Stardust gnawed her lip. “Only view one, two at most, so we can leave before the Council detects your presence. You’re in no position to be caught doing anything suspicious, not to mention I have a detective reputation to uphold.”
The balance was of far greater importance than any consequence that could potentially befall me. “Stop worrying, everything will be fine.” I couldn’t afford for it not to be.
We landed in the top bough of my dream-watching tree. I maneuvered my way easily through the familiar branches to my usual perch directly above the village. I peered through the leaves to the villagers below setting up their booths.
I squinted at this morning’s offerings. Dozens of different dreams bobbed amongst the droopy-eyed villagers, but hardly any color shone amidst the floating grey nightmares that hovered near their viewers like shadows.
I frowned. “That’s strange.”
“Mmm?” Stardust didn’t even look up from the coloring book she’d already pulled out.
“There are a lot more nightmares than usual. Typically the number of dreams and nightmares is fairly balanced.”
Stardust gasped and squished beside me to peer through the leaves. She sighed. “If only I could see them myself. Count them for me and I’ll take notes.”
My heart sank as I did; there were more nightmares than I’d initially thought. “There are twenty-one total, eight dreams and thirteen nightmares.”
Stardust rapidly jotted the information down. “That’s almost three-fourths nightmares. What is it normally?”
“Roughly fifty-fifty.”
Her frown deepened. “That’s what it should be when the Universe is in proper balance. This proves that the warning from the flying colors was more than a threat—the balance is tipping dramatically in the Nightmare Realm’s favor.”
Despite the warm breeze blowing through the surrounding branches I shivered. “Is there any way to stop it?”
Stardust didn’t answer. My worry escalated before my determination eclipsed it. I refused to allow the balance to tip any further, not when I might have a way to stop it. Which meant I had a dream to enter.
I nestled more comfortably on the branch to select a dream, several of which were already faded and forgotten. After much failed searching, I’d almost resigned myself to returning another day when Alice emerged from the baker’s, a cheerful sunshine dream floating above her head. I smiled. Even with the strange Nightmare events and her suspicions that Blaze was cheating, I could always count on Angel to pull off a win.
I took a deep breath. It was time to put Trinity’s theory to the test. I made sure I was secure enough in the tree that I wouldn’t fall out before I focused on the dream and tumbled inside.
I was immersed in a world made entirely of sweets. Edible flora lined the magenta river twisting through a forest of giant lollipops. Candy sprouted from licorice grass—bubblegum flowers, peppermint sticks, asteroid pops, nebula cream, and star fruit. Even the gentle breeze blowing through the tangerine sky
