A Winter Dream

Yari was standing over Dana with her arms crossed over her chest, “I still say we should just smash it while we’re holding onto her and each other and we’ll just go where she goes. She’s been sleeping a long time.”

Lila considered it, “She’s still breathing at least, but it has been a while. I tried to wake her twice and she didn’t even move…maybe I can try to steer us towards dad somehow?”

Yari nodded, “Sure let’s try that. I’m not certain how any of that works since I just got sucked in with you, but maybe, considering your lineage, you can choose where we go.”

Lila turned to look Yari over, “What do you remember of your dimension? Have you ever seen my dad or Ransom, for that matter?”

“I’m not sure,” she answered and paused to think about it a minute, “if I had seen Ransom, I would probably only notice his parallel and I wouldn’t know his name unless he spoke to me. What does his parallel look like?”

“Hmm…well he’s similar to you in a way. He looks like a solid white lion-tiger-cat with fluffy fur, but he doesn’t have any wings.”

“Oh, he’s a tambick. My species and the tambick are genetic relatives, although we evolved differently some time ago because of the differing regions from which we come. I’m from the mountains, where we needed wings to get around safely. Tambicks are from the forests where they didn’t need to be anywhere other than the ground,” Yari explained.

“Your species is…” Lila searched their joint memories, “…the tamperra.”

Yari looked impressed, “Very good. Although, I don’t think I’ve met Ransom’s tambick. They aren’t all white. Usually only the dominant and strongest of the forest species are white because they don’t need to camouflage so they can flaunt their beauty.

“My brightly colored wings are a symbol of my strength. A white tamperra could camouflage in the snowy mountains, but I could never do so with my bright wings. It’s because I was born a leader. I’m genetically designed to lead and protect. That’s why…” Yari winced a bit, “…you haven’t seen all of my forms yet. Like the one I was in when I scared you up a tree.”

Lila chuckled, “I won’t be scared of you now if that’s what you’re worried about. No matter what form you take, I know it’s you and I know your heart and mind.”

“As I do yours, it’s just that my battle form isn’t quite as…elegant…as my natural state or even this one,” Yari made a gesture to indicate the whole of her human form.

Lila smiled at how cute Yari was being, “I guess we’ll see, won’t we?”

Yari grimaced, “Eventually.”

Lila nodded, “Ok, I’ve decided. Let’s go with your plan. We’ll hold onto mom and each other and smash the stone. I’ll concentrate on thinking about a room in my father’s house and hopefully it will direct us there.”

Yari placed the stone on the floor by the bed and Lila climbed up to hold onto her mom. When she was settled, Yari reached across the bed to grab Dana’s hand and Lila’s.

“Are you ready?” she asked.

“Let’s do this,” Lila replied with a firm nod.

Yari lifted her booted foot and stomped the brick once, twice, and on the third stomp it crumbled beneath her foot, and they were pulled away until they found themselves lying on a hard floor in the dark.

Lila was still holding onto her mom, but her other hand was empty.

“Yari?” she called out into the darkness.

“I’m here,”came the answer telepathic answer.

Soon Lila felt a soft furry face nuzzling her cheek.

“Where are we? Can you see anything?” Lila asked.

“Yes, I can see in the dark. We’re in a dungeon cell,”she replied grimly.

“What happened? This is mom I’m holding, isn’t it?” Lila asked and heard Yari sniffing and huffing in response.

“Yes, it’s Dana. We’re in the pink grass dimension. But I think she’s been here for a while. She looked like herself when we were at your house, now she looks dirty with ripped clothing. I think she didn’t wake up because she was here in her dream. Now that the stone is destroyed, we should all be able to get out of here,”Yari theorized.

“But why is she in a cell? What happened?” Lila wondered aloud.

After a moment of silence Yari replied,“I think someone doesn’t want her in this dimension. We can ask her if she’s awake. We need to figure out how to get out of here and the quickest way might be to talk to her.”

Lila had to admit that seemed like the best way. She began to shake her mom and call to her, “Mom, wake up!”

Dana stirred with a groan and then replied, “Lila? What’s going on? Why aren’t we home?”

“I was hoping you could tell me that. We found the stone that was anchoring you to your mom’s dimension and we destroyed it, Yari and me. It sucked us here. Were you dreaming about this place? We couldn’t wake you at home,” Lila explained.

“Oh, no! Lila, we have to get out of here…she’s going to…we have to get out of here,” Dana was frantic.

“Mom! Calm down, ok? We’re going to figure it out. Right now, we’re alone in some kind of cell. You aren’t bound to the other dimension now which means you can travel at will, just like your father taught you,” Lila patiently revealed.

Dana’s quick panicked breaths slowly subsided to a normal pace of slow and steady, “Ok. You’re right. I do feel a little lighter now. I’m not in as much pain, either. We can figure this out.”

Lila gripped her mom’s hand to reassure her, “You need to teach me how to travel dimensions at will. I don’t know how to do it, but if you can tell me then I can help.”

Dana nodded and sat up slowly, “The first thing is, you have to promise me that if you hear someone coming towards the cell, that you’ll use everything you know to run. I will follow you if and when I can, but you have to promise you’ll go!”

Lila frowned into the darkness, “Mom, you’ve got to give me more info than this. What is happening?”

Dana let out a shaky breath, “In my dream, I ported to my dad’s home. It’s the first time that’s happened since I was a teen. I think…I don’t know, I just wanted to say goodbye to him. I thought he bound me to my mother’s realm all those years ago, but he didn’t. He’s been grieving and wondering where I’ve been all this time. He thought mom’s realm was destroyed because he couldn’t get back there.

“I only know because when I first arrived, I was in some kind of closet and the door was open. It turned out to be my dad’s bedroom closet and it sounded like he and his mate were having an argument they’d had many times. She was telling him that she already told him she discovered that realm destroyed, and I was gone, and he needed to let go and focus on their children, not the one that he could never see again.

“She sounded so cruel and selfish. My father yelled at her that she would never understand. That he loved all of his children the same and losing one was like losing a limb. Then I heard the door slam. I thought she had left, and I was going to come out and tell dad I was still alive, but she flung open the closet door and found me.

“Lila, there was so much hatred in her eyes. She practically spat at me, saying ‘how did you get here, I thought a blocked you from this dimension for good,’ then she grabbed me and drug me down here. It feels like I’ve been here for days. I don’t think my dad even knows I’m here. I think she plans to kill me but wants to make sure my real body will die, too. She somehow knows I came here in a dream.”

“But your real body is here now, mom. Either way, if she kills you now, you’ll die,” Lila revealed, trying to stay calm.

Dana’s breath came out ragged before her sad voice echoed in the cell, “I’m dying anyway, sweetheart. I just want you and Yari to get out of here, so you won’t be harmed, too.”

Yari snorted into the darkness,“Some cowardly, wicked human can’t even come close to hurting me, and I won’t let her hurt you.”

Lila chuckled, “Mom, you aren’t actually dying. You were sick because you were trapped in a realm that wasn’t yours. Your people might be made to travel dimensions, but I don’t think they were made to be trapped in one. Now, how do we teleport or whatever you call it?”

“It’s a simple thing, really, but whether or not you can accomplish it quickly is entirely dependent on your ability to focus your mind. Some people can do it right away and others have to meditate and practice. Even then it can take an hour to get into a frame of mind for them to make the trip,” Dana’s voice sounded sad.

“Which one are you, mom?” Lila asked, a feeling of dread in her belly.

“I’ve never been able to focus easily enough to do it quickly. My fastest transition was one hour and fifteen minutes,” Dana admitted regretfully.

“Then we better get started,” Lila urged, “tell me exactly what to do.”

“Close your eyes,” Dana instructed, and Lila obeyed.

“Now…imagine the place you want to go in your head. It can be a memory of someplace you’ve been or a vague impression of a place,” Dana began.

Lila imagined the main hallway of her dad’s manor as Dana continued instructing her.

“Right now, it will be a faint impression or memory of the place. But focus in on it further…force yourself to look for the details. Fill them in with your mind until the place looks so real, you can almost convince yourself you’re there. Then…step into the place,” Dana finished.

Lila opened her eyes and found herself standing in her father’s foyer. She was taken aback for a moment. She had made the journey almost instantly. She didn’t expect it to happen so fast. Looking around she noticed that one of the doorways down the hall was lit up and the door was ajar. She walked towards the light and stepped into the room, looking for her father.

Stunned was such an understatement in describing what Lila was as she took in the walls. This room’s ceiling was at least thirty feet high and nearly every available wall surface was covered in a portrait. There were pencil sketches, oil paintings, watercolors, charcoals, and more. There were even sculptures lined up along the walls.

In the center of the room, beneath a large skylight, was an easel set up with a half-finished sketch. Lila walked over to it and her eyes blurred with tears.

Every piece of art in this room was dedicated to Lila and her mother. Each was an image of one or both of their faces. Most of Lila’s likenesses were when she was a child, but the one in progress on the easel was of her now, as an adult.

She ran to the door and stepped into the hallway calling out into the house, “DADDY! ARE YOU HERE, DAD? PLEASE HURRY!”

The yelling attracted Yari from the place which she had landed in the foyer. She hurried over to Lila and said,“Your mother didn’t make the journey with us. Something is wrong…she’s bound somehow.”

Lila reached out and wrapped her arms around Yari’s fluffy white-maned lioness neck and held on for support, “What do we do, Yari? How do we get her here?”

“I have an idea, little flower. Let’s find your dad,”she answered with confidence.

Lila steadied herself before letting go of Yari, “You’re right. Let’s find him.”

Lila ran down the hallway, back through the foyer and in the direction of the library. She flung open the doors and scanned the room. Her dad wasn’t there. Next, she ran upstairs, with Yari close behind. Lila wasn’t sure which room was her father’s, so she began flinging open every door along the hallway and scanning the inside before moving to the next.

After a quick search of the house, they found no one home.

Lila ran back downstairs and out of the front door, which she vaguely noticed was one of the largest doors she’d ever seen in both height and width, and onto the porch. Just as she was about to step onto the very steps on which she’d enjoyed the sunset with her dad, Yari’s voice in her mind halted her.

“Lila, look ahead,”she sounded excited.

Racing toward the house were two large beasts. As they neared, Lila realized one was Ransom’s parallel, and the other was an enormous white fluffy bear that was similar to a polar bear in her own dimension, only the head was larger and fluffier like a grizzly.

Lila jumped over the front steps and landed softly in the snow. She started running to meet them. It only took a few seconds to connect the dots and realize that the bear was her father’s parallel.

When they met in the middle of the snowy front lawn, Lila looked to the bear.

“Mom is trapped in her father’s dimension. We broke the cornerstone that was binding her to the earth I grew up in. Her…stepmom, I guess…did it. Her dad doesn’t even know she’s alive. But she’s not really dying! She was sick because she was trapped. I need to bring her here…you need to get a doctor or healer or something ready to see her. I have to go back and find out what’s binding her so she can portal here.”

Yari and Ransom’s parallel made eye contact. Something was going on there, but Lila didn’t have time to process it. She just made note and moved on.

“Where’s my dad?” she asked the bear.

“He’s on the way now. He’s not with me because mind-bonding means he can’t move his body and he needs to get it here, but I relayed your words to him, little one. He should arrive shortly,”the gruffy bear voice said into her mind.

Ransom’s parallel spoke into her mind next. It was a different voice than the one that she’d heard from him. That one must have been Ransom’s voice rather than his parallel.

“Ransom is with him and they’re about five minutes out. We heard you shouting from the neighbor’s land, so we came quickly. How can we help?”

Yari’s voice sounded, Lila presumed, into everyone’s mind,“Lila, come inside and wait. You need to eat and drink something. Your energy smells low and you’re going to need it to get back to the pink grass dimension.”

Before Lila could respond, Yari was lifting her gently with her paws and flying her above the bear. Yari softly placed her on bear’s back. It was then Lila realized, with the adrenaline receding, that she was so tired.

She allowed herself to lie down on the soft bear and wrap her arms as far around him as she could while resting her cheek against his neck.

She realized now why the front door to the house was so huge, and all the ceilings high, as Bear carried her inside and knelt down by the plush leather sofa in the library.

Lila slid off his back and onto the couch, then gave him a scratch through his fur, “Thank you, Bear,” she mumbled.

The bear chuckled and said,“My name is Remus, but you used to call me Russ when you were a cub.”

Remus settled on the floor by the fire and Yari came up behind the sofa, resting her head on the back next to Lila.

Ransom’s parallel sat in front of her and bowed his head speaking in a rich, deep male voice,“We’ve met before, in a way, but I’m Ghauth.”

Lila smiled softly at him, “It’s nice to see you again, Ghauth.”

Just then, Lila heard the front door burst open in the distance and footsteps running towards the library. She stood and turned around to see her father coming in with the most beautiful man she’d ever laid eyes on.

Lila forgot everything for a moment and held her breath, her eyes taking in all of him. He had light brown skin and straight white hair that fell past his shoulders, though Lila knew he was close to her in age.

His eyes were a deep blue with flecks of silver, and they were fixed on her in adoration. Lila felt heat creeping up her chest and onto her cheeks. He was large, several inches taller than six feet, with broad shoulders and a slim waist. Under his long-sleeved shirt and jeans, Lila was sure he was packed with gorgeous, lean muscles.

Her attention was drawn to his hands, and she could see they were large, masculine, and calloused. Lila suddenly felt shy and tore her eyes away from him to focus on her father with a dazed expression.

“Pumpkin, let’s get you changed, fed, and ready to go. Remus, can you get a message to Lycan for the Elder King to be on standby?” Callum instructed, not missing the chemistry between his daughter and Ransom, but directed them back to the tasks at hand.

Remus stood from the rug by the fire and exited the room.

“Who’s Lycan?” Lila asked in a daze.

Ransom came towards her and smiled gently, “He’s my father’s parallel.”

“I’m going to make you something to eat really quickly. Ransom will keep you company,” her dad said and left the room.

Yari walked around the sofa and nudged Ghauth with her snout, who took the hint and lead them from the room.

Ransom came around to the front of the couch, where Lila was standing awkwardly. He took one of her hands in his and gestured for her to sit. She did.

“You must be worried sick about your mom. I wish I could go with you,” he said soothingly.

Lila nodded as she glanced at him from under her lashes, “Yari will be there. She won’t let anything happen to me. She’s really strong and capable.”

“Just like you,” he smiled.

Lila smiled back, even as tears streamed down her face, “Sorry. I’m a little overwhelmed. I just want to get my mom here safely.”

“No apologies necessary,” Ransom said softly as he wiped her tears away with a handkerchief he’d pulled from his pocket.

Lila sniffled.

A frustrated groan escaped Ransom’s lips just before he reached over and lifted her up, placing her on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and guided her head to rest on his shoulder, “I’m sorry, Lila. I can’t just sit here and do nothing while you’re crying. Please just let me hold you like this.”

Lila didn’t object. His arms around her felt natural and right. She relaxed into his hold and nodded against his chest.

They sat there quietly like that until her dad brought in a plate of food. It looked like scrambled eggs, bacon, and a biscuit with jam, only the colors were slightly different. They were more vivid, richer somehow, like a professionally edited photo of food with the saturation turned up.

Lila moved to pull away from Ransom, but he strengthened his arm around her waist and shifted slightly, taking the plate from Callum.

Ransom held the dish steady with his other hand while Lila took the fork and began to eat from it, still sitting on his lap.

Callum nodded, satisfied that she would be properly nourished, and set down the drink he’d brought in on a nearby table before leaving the room again.

After Lila finished eating, Ransom placed the plate on the seat cushion next to them then reached for the glass of water and handed it to Lila, who drank it all quickly.

She sighed in satisfaction and handed the empty glass back to Ransom, who put it on top of the plate. Then he stood up, lifting her into a princess carry and took her out of the room.

“Where are we going?” Lila asked breathlessly.

“I’m taking you to your room so you can shower and get dressed. I recommend wearing something tough that can protect you from small injuries as much as possible,” Ransom explained.

Lila nodded, “Alright.”

Ransom climbed the stairs easily and carried her to her bedroom. He set her down outside the door and opened it for her, not entering with her.

“I’ll be out here when you’re ready,” he said.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

He kissed her forehead and whispered back, “Anything for you, my love.”