Information

Dream has a minion!

Zees the Mallow

Dream

The

Chibi Zentu
Owner:

Pureflower

Age: 2 years, 10 months, 3 weeks

Born: June 1st, 2021

Adopted: 2 years, 10 months, 3 weeks ago

Adopted: June 1st, 2021

Statistics

Level: 88
Strength: 163
Defense: 10
Speed: 10
Health: 10
HP: 10/10
Intelligence: 364
Books Read: 357
Food Eaten: 0
Job: Hotel Chain Owner

The Dream Guardian

Dream bounded from one cloud to the next, her trunk testing the air as she waited impatiently for her mother to catch up. Vision had been a Dream Guardian for years but it was Dream's first night on the job.

She couldn't wait to see Earth!

Vision took a firm grip on her tail to keep her from knocking the other Dream Guardians on the Staircase down like so many bowling pins.

Eight Dream Guardians descended on a suburban neighborhood with several households. Dream tugged gently on Vision's tail.

"Mother...why don't those two houses get Guardians?"

"The people there never remember their dreams, my love. They have no need of us."

"Oh...that's so sad!" She fell silent for all of five seconds. "Why do some houses have more than one Guardian?"

"Those of us blessed with little ones watch over families that have children. The family we've been assigned has three, along with a faithful family dog. By the time the youngest child is grown, you will be too. Then you'll be ready for a house of your own."

"I'm glad that's not for a very long time. I couldn't imagine facing all those nightmares without you."

Vision cupped her face. "It's hard to leave a family, whether it's the one you're born into or the one you adopt. It's all part of growing up."

"Maybe I could grow down instead."

Vision laughed though her heart was heavy. Dream was her second calf. Honeydew was a marvelous Guardian...and a complete stranger, stationed halfway around the world.

It didn't do to dwell on memories when she had a spunky youngster in need of training.

"Follow me."

The first bedroom was done in shades of neon blue and deepest black. The girl sprawled on the bed was just entering middle school. The bubble-gum pink highlights of a botched dye job were just starting to grow out of her jet-black hair.

"Touch your trunk to her brow, just like we practiced."

Mattie's dreams were a swirling confusion of conflicting emotions. She wanted to stand out, but only to the right people. It's not like she wanted to be popular or anything. Ugh. That was so giving into the system. This one boy she had a crush on...he was all anti-establishment and totally would never bow to "The Man". He had a job (an actual job!) at the Smoothie Shack and he always sounded all deep and stuff.

He didn't even know she existed.

Her childhood best friend, on the other hand, totally had a crush on her. Lou was a great guy but he was still into cartoons and comic books. She wanted to date a man, not a boy.

(If her parents would ever let her go on a real date. Grr.)

She was nervous about the upcoming school year but trying to convince her parents she could care less. She didn't want them to keep treating her like a kid. She was practically high school age!

Dream withdrew her trunk, curling the tip as she puzzled over the turbulent worries of teenage girls. Mattie sighed and flopped over so her rear was sticking up and one leg dangled over the edge of the bed. Dream's touch had erased the edge of fear that lingered over her dreams. As long as the Nightmares couldn't find a weak point in Vision's defensive net, Mattie was in for a restful night of sleep.

Vision gave dream a trunk-hug. "Very good. Now look around the room for your reward."

Dream Guardians were always allowed to claim something for their services...as long as the object had been totally forgotten by the owner.

(That's the real reason those objects you remember three years after you lose them are so rarely found.)

Dream found a mostly empty purple gel pen under the bed. She thought it would make a fine decoration for her personal cloud.

Harold was only eight. The walls of his room were covered in posters from his favorite sports teams. Baseball cards and action figures littered the floor. Dream stepped carefully. While humans couldn't see Guardians, they could see objects moving on their own. Guardians lived in fear of old-fashioned dream catchers, though the devices were supposed to be a snare for Nightmares. The devices didn't discriminate between friend and foe.

Harold's dreams were more straightforward. He dreamed of becoming a star athlete and having his name on a jersey, his face on a cereal box and his smile on national TV. He went back and forth between football, baseball and hockey as his sport of choice. Mattie played soccer which ruled that out and he didn't have the height for basketball.

It's not that he didn't like Mattie. They used to be almost friends before she turned into a girl. Now she talked on the phone for hours and obsessed over boys. It was so annoying! Andrea would be the same way someday. She was just a baby now but she'd figure out she was a girl and then he'd have to deal with two annoying sisters. He'd really wanted a little brother. His dreams used to be about teaching Bro the names of monster trucks and the two of them setting off firecrackers with Dad. Now he would be the only boy...he was pretty sure Mom and Dad were done having kids.

He liked school. He wasn't nearly as nervous as Mattie about going back. He sort of hoped Royce would be in a different class...or held back a year. Royce called everybody "doofus" and was always cutting the lunch line when the teachers weren't looking. He didn't just pick on Harold - half the third graders were scared of him.

Harold was smiling when Dream pulled away. He'd had a nasty nightmare while the Guardians were in transition, one where Royce was tall as a building and swallowed him whole. Some deep part of his mind recognized Vision's protective net and the banishment of ugly Nightmares.

Dream selected a baseball card lying inside the trash can. Harold already had three of that particular card.

Andrea's dreams were the easiest to read. Only two years old, she hadn't yet encountered a Nightmare. Her dreams were filled with random shapes in primary colors.

Dream found a handful of cereal the girl had flung to the floor. The oat shapes were dull but the rainbow marshmallows...

Dream had her first good idea of what falling in love meant.

She snuck over to the kitchen, secretly hoping for more of those glorious poofs of sweetness. There she encountered Rowdy, the family dog. His legs were twitching, gentle whines escaping his snout. Guardians weren't required to share the dreams of animals but Dream was curious. The dog's dreams were full of rabbits that always evaded his fast legs and snapping jaws. He stilled at her gentle touch.

Her duty fulfilled, Dream crept to the end of the upstairs hall, to the master bedroom where Vision did her work.

Nightmare shadows the size of train cars loomed over Mother and Father. Their tentacles kept shooting out, trying to make contact with vulnerable adult minds. Vision lashed out with trunk, tusks and feet, driving the awful shadows back. Dream watched her mother's complex dance in awe.

Vision wasn't perfect. Father groaned over a brief image of his work presentation going horribly wrong. Mother whimpered when the dentist yelled at her for waiting too long to put Mattie in braces. She'd laugh over the dream-image of Mattie with walrus teeth in the light of day but there was nothing funny about it at that moment.

The Nightmares lasted for only seconds. Vision was one of the best. As dawn approached, the Nightmares withdrew, their edges sizzling in the first rays of the sun.

Dream and Vision walked side by side down the center of the street, making their way to the Staircase. Vision quizzed Dream on all she'd seen.

"Teenage girls are really confusing, boys think sisters are annoying and babies dream in the most beautiful colors."

Vision smiled. "Those are good observations for your first night. What was your favorite moment?"

Dream piped up without a moment's hesitation.

"Marshmallows!"