CHAPTER EIGHT - PARTY OF FIVE

I stop shrieking, clearing my throat sheepishly. Maggie and Anton are both covering their ears and staring at me with concern. Out of self-preservation and a growing sense of embarrassment, I take a deep breath and some time to collect myself. I can feel everyone’s eyes on me for those brief few moments, and my heart is pounding so loud I’m sure they can hear it too.

“Er… I think we kinda started things off on the wrong foot,” I feel my face turn bright red, “Sorry. Let me try again. You’re Tim Smith from Cardiacs, yeah?”

“Yes, yes, I am,” Tim nods, taken aback, “I wasn’t expecting to be recognized.”

“Well,” I stick out my hand for him to shake, my embarrassment wearing off, “My name is Hong, and I’ll have you know that I am the WORLD’S BIGGEST FAN of Cardiacs. Your music is just so–”

He shakes my hand very cautiously, and I feel myself get choked up a bit, unable to continue whatever spiel I’d begun. Even though it’s a dream, it’s still quite heart-stopping to meet someone you’ve admired so greatly and for so long.

“Hong, was it? I’d better remember that name; it’s not every day I meet Cardiacs’ self-proclaimed ‘biggest fan’… And I do appreciate you shooing away those pesky crows. Crows… normally don’t have a problem with them– quite lovely animals, really– but when they’re hoping to make quick work of your body… That’s where the problems begin.”

Tim looks around a bit, his eyes landing on Anton and Maggie.

“Now, might I ask who you two are?”

“I am Anton,” Anton replies awkwardly, having been put on the spot, “Educator and perpetual scholar of magic and the esoteric. Hong is my protégé. Please pardon their enthusiasm, they are somewhat maladjusted.”

I glare at Anton. Like our meeting with Jodie, I’m very tempted to say some choice words to Anton, but I decide that I don’t want to argue with him in front of my idol. I’d already made an enormous fool of myself earlier trying to fight him, anyway, and I really don’t want that to happen again.

“So, wizards have we? Maybe I’ll get to see a magic trick or two so long as I’m here. And you?” Tim asks, gesturing vaguely towards Maggie.

“Oh! My name is Maggie, it’s nice to meet you, Mister Smith– I-I mean, Tim!” She unrolls her sleeves and fidgets with her hair a bit, “I’m a mage, too. Hong and Anton aren’t the only ones who know magic here!”

“I’m feeling a bit left out, this magic company and I can’t even pull a stupid rabbit out of a hat! Anyway, I’ve got one final question. What is this place? Clearly we’re not in Salisbury or anywhere near it.”

“You’re dreaming!” Maggie smiles, “This is a place in your imagination full of wonder and terror. But not to worry, I am a dream guardian and am here to make sure your experiences are as safe and pleasant as possible! So stick close to me, and you won’t have to worry about this dream turning into an awful nightmare.”

“Well, then, looks like I really am passed out… Once I wake up I’ll never hear the end of this,” Tim groans, brushing the hair out of his eyes and massaging his temples, “Guess I’ve got no choice but to accompany you all for the time being, then.”

And so with that, we gained an additional member to our posse! I can’t help but feel a bit intimidated in Tim’s presence, but as we walk and talk aimlessly, I find he’s rather soft-spoken and down to earth and not at all like the madman he portrays himself as while he’s performing. I ask him very many questions about Cardiacs— about his composing process, his thoughts on the other members of the band, etc., and he answers all of them in great detail (and he doesn’t seem the slightest bit annoyed at my incessant questioning!). It’s very enlightening, and I feel quite privileged as likely no one else outside the Cardiacs inner circle knows this information. And as it turns out, we both have quite a bit in common! We are both massive fans of XTC (he complimented my shirt!!), and we both really like insects! (Though he didn’t seem too happy when I told him that I enjoy eating insects from time to time; he started muttering about how it’s shameful to harm them since they’re “God’s most defenseless creations” or something to that effect.)

Maggie and Anton, of course, remain silent, and it’s almost like they ceased to exist once Tim joined us. I mean, they could join our conversation if they wanted to, but it’s not like they’re interested at all. Maggie has likely never heard of Cardiacs because she’s a kid, and Anton doesn’t care about the band as greatly as I do because he’s more into goth stuff.

As we approach the beach, the path takes on a great decline. The dirt beneath our feet is a bit unstable as we get closer to sea level, and so we step carefully to avoid falling. Directly ahead of us are some white houses near the beach, all lined neatly in a single row. They are exactly the same in size and appearance, making a pale scar that divides the beach from this meadow.

“Houses?” I muse aloud, stopping in my tracks and turning towards Maggie, “Maggie, does anyone live in them?”

She stops too, Anton nearly bumping into her.

“No,” she replies, “Look closely.”

And I do, walking up to one that’s closest to the path. It’s very strange; it has windows, but on the other side of those windows are white plaster walls. There’s nothing on the inside except for plaster. The windows are fake, and the houses are too.

“How odd,” Anton says, coming to the same conclusion that I did, “These houses seem to be full of plaster and nothing else.”

“Ooh, creepy,” I look around, stepping half-behind him out of habit, “And they’re all lined up perfectly in a single row as far as the eye can see.”

“One day, these houses just appeared out of nowhere,” Maggie adds, “I’m not the one who brought them here.”

“Then how exactly did they come to be?” Anton asks. He steps away from me and in the distance, something catches his eye.

“Dreams are strange. Sometimes things pop out of the ground or fall out of the sky like you wouldn’t believe. Anything can happen for any reason at all,” Maggie replies cryptically, not really answering Anton’s question at all.

“Wouldn’t it be excellent if the real world were this interesting?” Tim asks, a glint of mischief catching in his eyes for a moment.

“P-Pardon me for a moment,” Anton interrupts, suddenly darting off before I can even respond to what Tim had said. I dart off after him instinctively, though I’m not entirely sure where he’s headed.

“H-Hey!” Maggie shouts at us, hands cupped around her mouth, “Where are you guys going?! It could be dangerous over there!”

I ignore her, chasing after Anton. Since he’s much taller than I am, it’s quite difficult to match his speed. After a few moments of running, he stops in his tracks. I stop and nearly stumble over my own feet, but he catches me before I fall and points wordlessly to the rooftop of the house nearest to us.

He lets me go and I look up. On that rooftop there is a purple-haired woman holding a strange, star-shaped device. Many wires extend from it, seemingly attached to her head. The device makes a few bell-sounding chimes, and she sighs, shaking her head in disappointment. She takes notice of us, and the wires de-attach from her and retract back into the device. She leaps off the roof and stands before us, her huge leather boots making a loud thump as she lands.

“Ah, Anton, long time no see,” she smiles, her short hair tousled by the ocean breeze, “It’s been too long!”

“Catherine…” Anton mutters, catching his breath, “I can’t believe you’re here. What strange circumstances to meet again under.”

“Well, didn’t I always say we’d meet again by the seaside?”

“Yes, but this is a dream… How am I to know it’s really you and not my mind playing tricks on me?”

She steps closer to Anton and whispers something to him that I can’t make out. He stumbles backwards, his face turning flushed.

“I suppose that is proof enough. Only you would know such a thing.”

I stare at this woman for a moment. Upon closer inspection, I notice that she has two gear-shaped hairclips affixed to the side of her head. They move slightly, and I’m not sure if it’s because they’re really mechanical or if it’s just because of the wind. She notices me staring at her, and looks me up and down with a bizarre expression on her face.

“Wow. Is this my replacement?” She asks, her lips twitching into an awkward smirk as she places a hand on her hip, “She’s so scrawny… I guess you really do have a type, after all!”

I gasp, turning bright red. It’s clear she’s talking about me, and even though I have no idea who she is or what she’s talking about, I know it’s nothing good. I look at Anton, much too stunned to speak, and he’s equally as shocked and embarrassed as I am.

“This is Hong. They are my protégé, Catherine, a teacher-student relationship and nothing more,” he groans exasperatedly. It is only then I start to understand what exactly is going on, and my face turns even redder than before!

“Ohh… So you really did get that fancy mentoring job and weren’t just moving to California to avoid me,” Catherine replies nonchalantly, oblivious to Anton and I’s mutual discomfort, “Well I’ll be.”

She tucks her star-shaped device under her arm and pulls out a compact mirror and some lipstick from… somewhere and applies it meticulously as I start to get over my initial shock.

“My name’s Catherine,” she says to me, peering at me briefly from over her mirror, “Although I think you already know that by now. Anton and I were high school sweethearts, and he really broke my heart.” She puts away the lipstick and compact, a wistful expression befalling her face.

I look at her, then look at Anton, my eyes wide and my jaw nearly on the floor.

“Wait a minute! Hold the damn phone,” I exclaim, “Anton, you never told me you had a girlfriend!”

“Yes,” he sighs, his tone weirdly shameful, “It is indeed true, Catherine and I were romantically involved during my high school years. I never told you because it was never relevant to any of our conversations.”

“S-So you’re telling me… a woman dated you?! Like, she actually consented to spending time around you?! Romantically?!?!?!?!”

Anton glares at me as I’m unable to hold back my laughter. It’s clear his ego hasn’t just been bruised; it’s been crucified!

“She wasn’t the only one…” he mutters under his breath frustratedly in a desperate attempt to remedy the situation and save his reputation.

“No way, Romeo, you have GOT to be lying!” I gasp in-between laughs, “Next you’re going to tell me you’re the king of England!”

“If only one person on this forsaken earth treated me with the respect I so rightfully deserve, I’d consider perhaps life truly is worth living,” he hisses, “Forget it all. No more discussions of my love life, and I am to double the time of your lecture on boundaries and respect once we’ve woken up.”

His glare is deadly serious, and he genuinely seems enraged now. I straighten up right away, not wanting him to get any more upset. Although he is pretty irritable, it’s rare that he gets this genuinely upset.

Catherine watches all of this in fascination, like she’s watching zoo animals. How authoritative, I swear I hear her mumble under her breath, Never change, Anton.

I hear footsteps and ragged breathing behind us; Tim and Maggie have finally caught up. Their timing is perfect– if they’d arrived a few seconds earlier they’d have heard Catherine asking Anton if I was his girlfriend… URGH! Just thinking about that makes my stomach do twenty backflips (in disgust, of course)!

“Don’t run off like that!” Maggie pants, hands on her knees, “You guys r-really scared me!”

Catherine raises an eyebrow.

“Who are these people? Your friends?” She asks.

“M-My name is Maggie, I’m a dream g-guardian,” Maggie huffs, standing up straight and wiping the sweat off her forehead, “Stick with us and you’ll be safe from the bad stuff lurking in this dream.”

“Er, and I’m Tim,” Tim replies awkwardly, adjusting his glasses and fussing with his hair a bit, “Not exactly sure what’s going on…”

“Right, nice to meet you both or whatever. God, all of this is so weird,” Catherine smacks her forehead, “I’d say I must be dreaming, but it’s obvious I am. Where else would I be accosted by my ex and his ‘protégé’, what looks to be an escaped Sunday school student, and some English guy in a dirty outfit?”