Chapter 5

Harmony felt a sense of disorientation as the lullaby pulled her down past the point of normal sleep and into what felt like some kind of out-of-body experience. The notes of the lullaby were like a tether to her consciousness as it led her deeper into a world of fantasy. She could still feel her sense of objectivity and sense of self, which were usually the first things to go in her dreams.

She stared around at half formed ideas and imagery curiously. She had tried augmented reality glasses at an airport once. This seemed oddly similar, but more realistic and with an emotional attachment.

The lullaby led her back in time to her memories of several days previous, except that now she was watching herself from the third person. She had just picked up Aurora and Serenity from the bus stop. They were walking past Rhapsody on the road that first day, but instead of wearing a trap hat, sunglasses, and jacket, Rhapsody was wearing a green dress that went to midthigh and displayed a generous amount of cleavage. Her hair spilled over her shoulders and down to her waist in cascades of auburn sheets. Large fairy wings of iridescent light were visible coming out of her back. Her face was the most striking feature. She had enormous lavender eyes much more reminiscent of an anime character. The irises were large and had what looked like Sanskrit symbols circling the outer edge. Her face looked like it had been sculpted by angels, with an innocence and openness that reached right into your heart.

The scene changed again, now showing a few days later when Rhapsody had spoken to Azeban. Once again, Rhapsody appeared in her fairy form to Rhapsody’s dream eyes. When she looked to where the racoon had been following them, she gasped. In place of the racoon was a complex web of light and energy that pulsed like a strobe light. She could feel the consciousness of the entity known as Azeban, recognizing it as so much more than a racoon. It held a kind of power, or more accurately, influence. It saturated the area around them so strongly that she couldn’t believe they hadn’t felt it in the real world.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

As she became aware of the influence of Azeban, she also became aware of the same power emanating from Rhapsody. However, in Rhapsody’s case it seemed to go on as far as the eye could see. Azeban’s power was like a candle to Rhapsody’s raging wildfire. Rhapsody’s influence seemed to be linked to something in the distance, in the direction of the giant rings.

Harmony watched her past self as she bantered with Rhapsody, totally oblivious to the glorious fairy’s true nature.

Rhapsody glanced in her direction and winked.

Harmony stared in stunned silence at the transcendent being. In this dream state it seemed so obvious that Rhapsody was more than she had appeared to be in the waking world. Harmony felt like an idiot for her stubborn refusal to accept the reality of what was in front of her. She felt an odd desire to get down on her knees and worship Rhapsody as she walked past. As the thought flitted through her head, Rhapsody’s gaze locked onto her dream self. She smiled and it was like a thousand sunrises. Harmony’s mouth was dry as she stared at the beautiful creature.

“I don’t want your worship,” Rhapsody told her with a rueful shake of her head, auburn hair dancing with the motion. “I want your love and friendship.”

Rhapsody stepped closer to Harmony until they were nearly touching. Rhapsody’s head was a few inches below Harmony’s shoulder. Rather than crane her head back to look up at Harmony, she slowly levitated into the air as her wings glowed a little brighter. They stood eye to eye as Harmony stared into those mesmerizing eyes with wonder.

“You’re safe with me, Harmony,” Rhapsody told her gently. She pulled harmony into warm embrace. “I’ll always keep you safe.”

XXXXX

Harmony jerked awake as the sound of inexperienced hands attempted to play her drum set in the music room. Loud booms and crashes reverberated throughout the house. She let out a rueful sigh, wondering which of her nieces had decided to become a drummer.

As she stood up and stretched with a bestial shriek, a flicker of her dream danced fleetingly through her mind, too ephemeral to hold onto. She knew it had been an amazing dream. She could still feel a golden glow of well-being filling her like liquid optimism. It had something to do with Rhapsody, but she couldn’t remember what. The thought of Rhapsody was like an electric shock coursing through her system, and a sense of longing filled her. I wonder when we’ll see her again.