Read Online Dream Magic: Awakenings by Dawn Harshaw - Free Book Online

awareness hit him: this was his own body! His real, physical body lying on his bed, resting in the state of sleep. He could feel the tension in some of the muscles, the slight cold in his feet where the blanket was brushed aside, his eyelids closed, but waiting to open. His nerves gradually offered more of themselves, passing sensations and readying to receive commands...
    No!
    Many times he went through this process before in his life, so many times in fact that his consciousness didn't even bother remembering being here after being awoken. Eric kept as still as he could; he didn't want to wake up.
I'm not yet finished with the dream; think about something else! Think about something else!
    The memory of the dreamworld was still fresh in his mind. He imagined being back by the bench, holding the hands of Rose and Lucy. He remembered the sound of rustling leaves and swishing grass; the feeling of gentle sunlight caressing his skin. He imagined opening his eyes there, and momentarily tightening his grip to see if his sense of touch was working.
    It worked! I think.
    Eric felt like he was balancing on the tip of a needle. He was a bundle of light in the emptiness. He was a sleeping consciousness in a physical body, lying on a bed. He was a boy holding the hands of his friends in a dream setting he has grown to love. He knew if he lost focus just for a moment, he wouldn't be able to maintain this state and might wake up.
    The needle tipped. Eric was back in the emptiness, his presence receding from his physical and dream bodies. Yet, it was not quite the same as before.
This emptiness isn't really so empty,
Eric thought. His mind worked to latch onto anything to experience himself, but Eric forbade it to go in the direction it just came from. He was determined not to risk waking up just yet.
    He became aware of two other bundles of light in the emptiness. He was moving towards one of them at high speed, reaching out to it - he couldn't stop himself. His light began to merge with it.
A strange sensation...
A flash of experiences surged through him, but he didn't have time to make sense of any of them. He felt a heartbeat, a breath, and eyes opening only to provide him sight that seemed somehow off. The eyes blinked once, twice-
I'm looking through the eyes of another person! What...
    A powerful, blinding light suddenly hit him from somewhere else and he was knocked back into the emptiness. It spoke to him:
"Whoa there, tiger. There'll be time for that kind of grokking later. Just stay put, we're almost done."
    Eric obliged the best he could. It was easier now to just exist there, but this state didn't last long. Eric was falling at great speed; first he went through a mist, then he saw the ground and four specks holding hands before he crashed into one of them.
    His hands clenched, then relaxed. He opened his eyes, and saw Rose, Lucy, and Master Joe.
    "Hhhhhhhhhhuuuuu," Eric exhaled audibly and sat down on the grass to let the vertigo pass.
     
    * * *
     
    "What the hell was that?!" Lucy cried out, obviously startled.
    "Well, that was fun! In a scary way," Rose remarked cheerfully.
    "Don't worry, such restlessness is common. That's what you get when you have too much fire," Master Joe said.
    Eric felt...
flat
. The vertigo passed, but there was still a lingering emotion of being not quite here. It was a strange experience, and Eric was processing it.
    "Fun? How could that be fun?" Lucy asked Rose.
    "What are you talking about? How was it not fun? Didn't you find it interesting?"
    "Hmpf." Lucy crossed her arms. "You're an adrenaline junkie!"
    "Well then, you're a comfort-zone hugger!"
    "What does that even mean?"
    Master Joe held up his hand. "I'm happy to see you girls feeling better already, but if there's going to be any yelling here, I'll be the one doing it... All in all, it went better than I expected. I guess you won't need any tweaking from the earth side, but let me just double-check."
    Master Joe lowered his arms and