The Girl Who Dreamt of Dolphins (5 page)

‘
I hope you’re not going to make a habit of this’ said Mrs
Penhaligon to her, not unkindly. Lucy slipped into her seat, her
exercise book in front of her. Mrs Penhaligon was in her late
fifties, grey-haired with a kindly smile but a sharp tongue to
anyone who made trouble in her class. Anyone over the age of forty
seemed impossibly old to Lucy and Mrs Penhaligon was one of the
oldest teachers in the school. Mrs Penhaligon said more than once
that she was counting the days until she retired, though on other
days she said that she would miss the children when she
did.

Lucy liked Mrs Penhaligon’s class and always felt inspired
whenever they did creative writing.

‘
Now I want you all to write about a dream you have had’ Mrs
Penhaligon was telling the class, ‘and write as much as you can in
thirty minutes’ she continued. Worried looks crossed the faces of
several children and hands shot up with questions.

‘
Of course you may not remember your dreams’ she went on ‘and
if that’s the case I want you to make one up, using some of the
words I have written up on the board.’ She pointed at a list of
words to get the children’s imaginations started.

‘
Cool!’ said Lucy under her breath to Amy next to her, ‘this is
the kind of lesson I like.’ Amy didn’t look so sure and was chewing
the top of her pencil with a scrunched up face as she studied the
words on the board.

‘
And remember’ said Mrs Penhaligon, ‘I want you to use similes,
metaphors and lots of adjectives and adverbs to tell me what things
looked and felt like. If it’s a frightening dream, tell me how you
feel when you wake up. If it’s a nice dream, tell me how that
feels. I’ll be coming round the class to see how you’re getting
on.’

Lucy had an open, flowing style of handwriting and now only
made the occasional spelling mistake. She had recently experimented
with little circles instead of dots over her i’s but now she’d
decided not to do them anymore. She set to her task
enthusiastically. Lucy knew exactly which sort of dream she wanted
to write about.

‘
I have had the same dream, almost every night, since when I
was a very little girl. I am suddenly in a blue, underwater world.
The sea is dappled with light from the surface above. The blue goes
on forever and becomes darker and darker in the distance. The water
is clear but there are bubbles and things floating about so it is
not easy to see very far.

I can hear the slosh of waves above me. Then in the distance I
can hear clicking and whistling. I turn in the water and I can see
my friends the dolphins coming towards me. They are always friendly
and swim right up to me with their smiling faces and nuzzle into
me. They swim around me, above me and under me. I feel their
smooth, skin as they brush past me. It is like wet silk. In my
dreams I am sort of swimming and sort of just there. I can follow
the dolphins wherever they go. Sometimes the dolphins all race
along the surface of the water. It’s like flying. There is one
dolphin that can jump really high into the air. Sometimes in my
dream there is a boat and the dolphins speed along next to its bow.
Mostly they are happy to play, or hunt for fish.

I love all the dolphins, but there is one in my dream which is
particularly my friend. I think he’s a boy, though it’s hard to
tell. He is smaller than the others. He swims right up close to me
and sort of looks into my eyes in a special way. It’s like he is
staring deep into my soul. Sometimes I think he is like my twin,
but that’s silly because he’s a dolphin and I’m a human. In my
dreams I can understand the dolphin’s clicks and whistles, though I
can’t speak to them. But when the small dolphin looks into my eyes,
I think he can understand everything that I am
thinking.’

Lucy looked up from her writing. One or two of the children in
the class were finished and Matthew and Simon on the next table
were whispering and giggling to each other. Mrs Penhaligon gave
them a stern look and they went quiet. A shadow passed over Lucy’s
face, as she remembered her dream that morning and turned back to
her writing.

‘
Mostly I wake up from my dolphin dreams all happy’, she went
on. ‘This morning though, the small dolphin was all on his own and
he looked worried. I wanted to help him but I didn’t know how to. I
tried to swim towards him, but whatever I did, he just seemed to
get further away. Then I woke up and I felt all worried. I hope I
don’t have that dream again tonight.’

Mrs Penhaligon had been working her way around the class and
arrived at Lucy and Amy’s desk. She looked at Amy’s exercise book,
gave an appreciative chuckle at the funny dream she’d made up and
suggested a few words to make the story more descriptive. Then she
leaned over Lucy’s shoulder to read what she had written. She read
silently for a minute, then glanced at Lucy’s face with a searching
look.

‘
That’s a good description of your dream’ she said. I like the
way you’ve brought the scene alive and written about how you feel.’
She hesitated and seemed about to say something more, but all she
added was ‘Good work Lucy’ before moving on to the next
table.

Lucy was pleased. She was so used to her dolphin dreams that
she didn’t even bother to tell anyone anymore. Besides, she didn’t
want to get called ‘Flipper’ in the playground. The boys already
made fun of her sometimes for swimming like a fish. Lucy didn’t
care though. They were just jealous because they couldn’t. Somehow
it was good to share her dream with Mrs Penhaligon. She used to
tell Mum sometimes, but she couldn’t do that any more. Amy glanced
over, but Lucy had curled her left arm around so no one could see
what she had written.

Soon the lesson finished and the children turned out for their
mid-afternoon break, chair legs scraping noisily as they all
crowded to the door to get outside.

‘
Err Lucy’ called Mrs Penhaligon with a smile, as Lucy was half
way to the door. ‘Could you stay a moment?’ Amy went off outside to
play and Lucy went up to Mrs Penhaligon’s desk. Mrs Penhaligon
paused again, not quite sure how to begin.

‘
Have you really had the same dream since you were a little
girl?’ she asked.

‘
Since I was a baby I think’ replied Lucy. ‘I can’t remember
not having dolphin dreams’ she added, ‘not really.’ Mrs Penhaligon
smiled again.

‘
And the special dolphin you wrote about. Has he always been in
your dreams as well?’

‘
I think so’, answered Lucy. ‘All the dolphins are always
there, but the small dolphin has become more special to me, well,
in the last few months I suppose.’ Mrs Penhaligon
nodded.

‘
And can you easily tell them apart?’

‘
Oh yes’ exclaimed Lucy enthusiastically. ‘They are all
completely different. They may look the same to us, but they have
quite different personalities. I can tell them apart
easily.’

‘
And when they click and whistle, you know what they’re saying?
Do you hear their clicks and whistles, or do you hear them as
though they’re speaking like you or me?

‘
Oh I hear them clicking and whistling’ replied Lucy. I just
sort of….know what they mean instinctively.’ Mrs Penhaligon smiled
and nodded again.

‘
It’s lovely to be at the seaside isn’t it. Have you ever seen
a dolphin in real life?’

‘
Dad told me that when I was small he took me to a dolphinarium
once when Mum was away. He said that I started to cry and make a
fuss because I wanted them set free. I don’t really remember, but I
do think that they should be out in the open sea, don’t
you?’

‘
Yes I certainly agree with you there’ replied Mrs Penhaligon
emphatically. ‘An over-sized swimming pool is no place for a
dolphin. Have you seen any in the sea?’

‘
No’ said Lucy, ‘I’d love to, but Dad hasn’t taken me to the
sea for ages and ages. I don’t think he likes it.’ Mrs Penhaligon
paused.

‘
Do you think it was seeing the dolphinarium that made you
start dreaming about dolphins?’

‘
I don’t know really’ replied Lucy. My dolphin dreams are
always, well almost always happy dreams and the dolphins are always
in the open sea.’

‘
Yes I can imagine’ nodded Mrs Penhaligon. She hesitated again.
She leant in slightly and spoke with a softer less teacherly, but
more urgent voice.

‘
Listen Lucy’ she said. ‘Where I come from, it’s very special
to have dolphin dreams like the ones you have described. It’s a
gift. It means that….well, it’s silly really I suppose, just
folklore really. Maybe it doesn’t mean anything at all, but it’s
lovely that you have those dreams. I’m so glad that I
know.’

‘
Goodness’ she added, glancing up at the clock. ‘It’s almost
the end of break and I haven’t even marked these exercises yet.
You’d better run out and catch some fresh air whilst you can.’ Lucy
turned to leave, but then glanced back.

‘
Mrs Penhaligon, where is it that you come from?’

‘
Oh I come from Cornwall Lucy. Right down near Lands End.’ Lucy
ran out into the playground.

After school that afternoon Lucy and Amy both went to choir
practice and then Amy’s Mum picked the two of them up and Lucy had
dinner at their house before Dad collected her at half past six.
Lucy wasn’t very good at singing, but she liked being in the choir
and all the voices joined together so she didn’t stand out. Amy was
better than her, so Lucy tried to copy her as much as she
could.

Dad looked tired and obviously wasn’t in the mood for talking.
Lucy wasn’t prepared to let that put her off though.

‘
Dad, I want to go and see Bethany in Cornwall in the half
term’ she announced to him as they drove home. Dad
sighed.

‘
Look, I’m sorry Lucy, but I just don’t think that’s such a
good idea.’

‘
But why?’ Lucy complained.

‘
It’s just….for the best’ Dad replied, turning into the parking
space outside their house. ‘It’s not that I don’t want you to see
Bethany’ he added, ‘You’ll see her soon enough, I expect’ he
continued. ‘I’m not ready for you to go off gallivanting around on
your own here and there, you’re just not old enough and I don’t
have the time to take off work.’

‘
You just don’t want me to be happy do you!?’ exclaimed Lucy,
getting upset. They’d got out of the car and Dad had his key half
way into the key hole. He turned round slowly and gave Lucy a
measured look.

‘
Sometimes Lucy your parents know what’s best for you.
Sometimes parents can’t explain and you just have to accept
that.’

‘
Mum would’ve let me go’ Lucy responded angrily, as they walked
into the house.

‘
Look, I’ve just about had enough of this’ replied Dad, his
voice rising in response to hers. ‘You’re not going to Cornwall
this half term and that’s that.’

Lucy stomped upstairs angrily and went to her room. She
thought about banging her door, but decided against it. She threw
her school bag down and collapsed onto her bed. She didn’t see what
right Dad had to be such a misery. He could easily put her on the
train at this end and, just like Bethany had said last night, she
could collect Lucy off the train at the other end. Kids her age
travelled like that all the time.

It would be so perfect to go down to Cornwall and spend time
with Bethany. She could swim in the sea, explore the coast, see
Bethany’s studio, look at her pictures and meet her friends. It’d
be a lot more fun than being stuck at home for a week. It would be
great and Dad knew full well that Bethany would take care of her.
In fact, Lucy thought, Bethany would take better care of her than
Dad would. He’d only dump her with one baby sitter or another all
week. It was just like him to come over all mysterious when she
tried to put him on the spot about why he didn’t want her to go. He
certainly wasn’t telling her everything.

Then Lucy thought that since she had started asking him about
going to Cornwall the day after he and Bethany had argued about
that very thing, Dad must be wondering how much Lucy did hear of
their conversation the night before. She’d not let on that she’d
heard most of it, but Dad would soon put two and two together.
Would he say anything and would he explain what Bethany had been
talking about? Lucy doubted it.

Lucy looked out of the window. High in the sky she saw the
full moon, shining brightly. The moon made her think of its
reflection in the water and water made her think of dolphins. She
thought of the little dolphin of her dreams and the anxious, far
away look in his eyes. In her dream she had tried to swim to him,
but he had just seemed to get further and further away.

Lucy took up a pencil and idly drew a dolphin swimming on a
spare piece of paper. She was quite good at drawing dolphins. She
could draw dolphins leaping, dolphins playing, dolphins riding the
waves. Mrs Pancaldi, her art teacher, said she had a ‘distinctive
way of bringing them alive.’ Lucy was very pleased when she told
her this. Well, she thought to herself, I do dream dolphins pretty
much every night. It’s not surprising that I should be able to draw
them as well. Dad really never asked much about all her dolphin
drawings even though they were everywhere in her room.