In the Land of Dreams

I came out of the hole in the cloud behind Moonface and the first thing I saw was an old woman, offering me a poppy.

With the flower in my hand, I gazed around at an extraordinary landscape undulating like a patchwork quilt thrown across a vast bed.

I looked around for the others, and the woman with the poppies, and realised I was alone, in the landscape of my dreams.

I walked on, wondering how I would get back to the Faraway Tree. Maybe I would dream my way back to it, or maybe I would never wake and remain here forever.

The soft grass under my feet gave way to something cold and crunchy. I looked down and saw the ground was covered with snow - but it wasn't cold. I gathered a handful to make a snowball but it didn't feel like snow either. I licked a bit off my fingers - it was salt. I was walking through drifts of salt, sparkling in the moonlight.

There were footprints in the salt and I followed them to the edge of a vast ocean. It was black, tipped with white capped waves, and the footprints led straight into it.

Suddenly the surface of the water broke into a shower of sparkling drops and I saw a head appear. It was a girl, with long hair drifting like seaweed across the surface of the the water.

``Come in!" she called, but I hung back. She leapt from the water and flipped in the air and I saw her shining fish tail as she dove back in.

Of course, I thought - she has legs on the land. She must think I am a mermaid too. I thought I would just paddle in and show her that I was human but as the water came over my knees something strange happened. My legs gave way and I fell over. I gave me a fright and I struggled, but my movements propelled me further out. I gave a mighty kick with my fish tail and dived under the water.

I saw her in the distance, beckoning me - but it looked so dark and deep that I didn't want to go further. I turned back and swam into the shallows, and once again I had legs.

I thought I was heading in the right direction, following my own footsteps back through the drifts of salt - instead I found myself wandering through a maze of streets filled with curious shops.

I went inside one of them to ask my way and found myself in a very curious bookshop - the books had no words on the pages but when you opened a book it sang you a story. One of them told me the most beautiful story I had ever heard - but I can't remember what it was about.
When I came outside the moon had gone and the sun was shining. I was near a park where children were playing an there was a road winding up a hill with a house at the top. I followed the road and as I approached the house, the door burst open and I heard voices from inside.
``Oh, it's you - you're here at last - welcome home!"

I ran forward eagerly but just as I was about to cross the treshold, I heard a loud ringing noise. It echoed across the Land of Dreams and though I tried to ignore it, I couldn't. Next thing I knew, I was standing near the hole in the cloud and Moonface was holding an alarm clock.

``Sorry," he said, ``But's that's the only way to make sure you come back from the Land of Dreams."

As I followed him down the ladder, I asked, ``Moonface, are dreams real? Sometimes they seem more real than being awake."

He winked at me as we reached the Faraway Tree.

``Wait til the Land of Know-It-Alls comes by," he said. ``they can tell you."