Dreamscape

Chapter 2

"Eeeek!" Susan shrieked.

The boy looked up and tried to move away, but it was too late. He grunted as Susan flew into his back with her arms shielding her face.

"What the heck?!" The boy exclaimed, spitting out grass.

Susan rolled off of him and looked up. I'm finally back, she thought with relief.

She got up and watched the boy with amusement as he lifted himself up and turned to her.

"I'm back," she sang, smiling.

"What do you me-," He stopped once he got a clear look at her face. "Princess?"

They stood still, trying to process everything that was occurring. Finally, Susan broke the silence.

"Whatcha up to, Rune?" She asked, tilting her head slightly to the side.

Rune snapped out of his trance at the sound of his name. "Oh, um, nothing much. I was just waiting for you to come back, but you're earlier than usual. Are you taking a nap, princess?"

Susan shook her head. "Nope! I came through a shiny portal I found in an alley."

"Wow! So this is actually you?"

"Yep!"

Rune smiled. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's play!"

The two of them played a brief game of tag before switching to play catch when Susan made an orange ball appear out of thin air. About an hour later they decided to visit a small town nearby called Rinehart. Huge bubbles floated above the town, popping out of the chimneys of the people's cottages. Horses pulled elegant carriages and wagons across the old cobblestone road; trains brought people in and out of the town, too. Today was Wednesday, so the town was bustling with activity as they hurried to prepare for tomorrow's Market Day.

Rune and Susan observed as they shared a banana split on a bench outside.

"It's awfully busy," Susan commented.

"Yep. They're usually done by the time you come, but today, you're here early, which is very unexpected, except when you're napping."

"But I'm not napping- I'm actually here."

They smiled and continued eating their ice cream, unbothered by the day's hot dry weather. Some of the people stopped to greet Susan, also surprised by her early arrival.

"What brings you here so early in the day, princess?" A kind old man asked her.

"I found a new way to visit without having to sleep!" Susan exclaimed.

"Why, that's wonderful!" She and Rune grinned. "Well, this is very unexpected. Princess, if I may offer a pice of advice, I'd ask you to be very careful."

"Why is that?" Rune asked.

"There are some bad people here who are starting to congregate for bad reasons. I heard that they mean to harm the princess and her friends, the Six Lights."

Rune frowned and reassured both the man and Susan that the bad people will not harm them, much less the princess. Despite this, Rune began to observe the people around them more intently because he feared for the princess's safety.

Susan thought of Rune's bold statement, and smiled at the thought of her dream world friends fighting for her sake; it warmed her heart. She ate another spoonful of chocolate ice cream with whipped cream and banana, savoring the delicacy.

Suddenly, a cottage near them exploded. The force of the explosion sent them flying across the street and into a glass window. Susan felt the shards of glass tearing her skin and clothes as she crashed into the window and slid to the end of the store.

"Princess!!" Rune yelled. He landed gracefully and sprinted to her. "Get up, quickly. We're leaving!"

Susan forced herself to her knees, crying in pain and shock as they ran hand in hand past the dead people and the rubble. People everywhere began to scream amd run, blocking their escape. Rune and Susan squeezed past the frantic citizens and ran as fast as they could to get out of the town and to the field that she had fallen into. A tiny golden portal waited for her in the distance as they headed to safety. She glanced at Rune for a split second before she tripped and fell.

His piercing gray eyes were filled with fear, his dark brown hair shining with glass and debris, and his fair exotic skin pale and sweaty. Never in her life had Susan seen him so afraid for her, nor did she think she ever would.

"Please, princess, just a bit farther. We're almost there!" He pleaded desperately, lifting her back to her feet.

"What was that, Rune? What -"

"THERE THEY ARE!!"

They halted and looked behind them. A strange group of people wearing blood red cloaks were heading their way, carrying pitchforks, torches, and -

"Bombs?! Where did they get bombs?!" Rune exclaimed. He spun around and pulled Susan out of her trance of fear. "Run, princess, run!"

Susan summoned the last bit of her energy and did as Rune commanded: run.

The golden portal stood right on her crash landing site, which was beneath the spot she had appeared and fallen from. Behind them, the crowd was closing the distance between them at an alarmingly rapid pace.

"Hurry, princess. Get in!" Rune urged, pushing her to the portal.

"Wait, Rune- come with me! They'll hurt you!"

"I can't. This is my world, remember?"

"But -"

"Stop arguing get with me! You created me for situations like this, right? So trust me!" He shouted. "Just go back to your world! I'll be fine here!"

Susan knew he was right. After all, defending her in combat was one of the reasons she created him in the first place.

Hesitantly, Susan passed her hand through the portal and was roughly thrown back to the alley.

A few minutes later, a policeman found six year old Susan Rinehart unconscious and hurt. When she woke up in the hospital two days later, Susan had completely forgotten everything that had happened.

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Thanks for reading! I'll try to put up a chapter every week, but do not be surprised if I don't: I'm a very forgetful person.
Anyway,....thanks a ton for reading this!!!!!
I'd ask you to vote, but I'm feelin' pretty iffy and nervous now, so please comment!!!!

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