The Knight of Her Dreams (Dragons and Dreamphasers) (50 page)

Before the half-elf could
protest, Dual quickly replaced the gag over his mouth.  “Ah, no words are
necessary, Alarius. I know just what you’re thinking.  And I assure you, not
only will I take great pleasure in keeping his betrothed occupied, but a
suitable group of attackers will also be here to greet him should he find you. 
After that, your usefulness will end, along with your life.”

Against Alarius’s muffled
curses, Dual rubbed his hands in gleeful musing.  “Yes... all in all, I’d say
this should be a most memorable evening for all of us.”

*****

Julianna decided it was a
good thing Roger had been forced to leave the office on another business matter
by the time she returned from lunch with Marybeth.  Surely he’d complain of her
impromptu departure to Almira the next day, but for now she was reprieved.  No
doubt the whole event would earn Dominick’s amusement later! she thought with a
smirk.

Now much later that night,
she tucked Sammy in for bed, since Crystal was busy putting away the dishes
downstairs.  “All set for dreamland?” she asked cheerfully.  Sammy nodded once,
just before his expression grew curious.

“Aunt Julie, how’s Uncle
Dominick doing?” he asked.

Frozen by surprise as she
clasped the covers, she gradually resumed her task, smiling slightly.  “He’s
fine,” she whispered.  “He even asks after you sometimes.”

“Really?”  Sammy replied
with a grin.

She nodded once, handing
him his toy dinosaur.  “I told him how much you like dinosaurs, and while he
says they don’t have any on Chavernos, they do have dragons there.”

“Dragons?” he breathed,
suddenly frowning.  “Bad ones?”

“Well… maybe a few,” she
agreed, “but he says there are many good ones too.  One of the blue ones is a
close friend of his, called Roderlin, whom he’s known for many years.”

“Will I get to meet a real
dragon?” he asked with more enthusiasm.

Julianna laughed.  “Maybe
someday,” she replied, “but probably not for a while.  In the meantime, you’d
better get some sleep.”

Nodding once, Sammy curled
up with his toy and shut his eyes.  Julianna smiled upon him, kissing his
forehead before leaving the room.  As she closed the door behind her, she
turned to bump into Crystal.  “Oh, I’m sorry,” she said quietly.  “I didn’t see
you standing there.”  Before she could pass, her sister prevented this.

“I think we need to talk,”
she said evenly.

“There’s nothing to say.”

“I heard you telling Sammy
about Dominick again.”

Julianna bit her lip and
met her gaze.  “What of it?  It’s just a game between us.”  At her sister’s
continued silence, her patience reached its end.  “Don’t believe me?  Fine. 
Then what if I told you that my story to Sammy is true and that Dominick really
exists out there?”  As soon as the words were out—successfully leaving Crystal
gaping—Julianna regretted them, pushing past her to head downstairs.

She wasn’t surprised to
hear her sister’s footsteps trail after her.  “Julianna Sherborne, you’re not
going anywhere!”

That’s what she thinks
, thought Julianna, heading
for the front door.  Crystal beat her to it, holding it shut.  “Get out of my
way,” she murmured.

“You don’t have to run this
time, Julie,” replied Crystal.  “There’s no one else in the house with us
except for Sammy, and he’s in bed.  You’ve always been able to come to me with
everything in the past, and I think it’s time you leveled with me about this
Dominick.  Now... who is he really, and where did you meet him?”

Pausing a moment, Julianna
locked eyes with Crystal.  “He’s as I’ve told Sammy, and as you’ve overheard.”

Crystal groaned, rubbing
her forehead.  “I remember.  A dream person who exists on another world, but
meets you each night, that you’re supposedly engaged to.  Julie, if you don’t
want us to meet this man, just say so.  You don’t have to conjure up stories.”

“I didn’t conjure up
anything,” Julianna retorted brokenly.  “Dominick
does
exist on
another world, and we
are
engaged to be married.  I just wish to
heaven I could convince you how true this really is.”  Brushing a hand across
her eyes, she wasn’t surprised to feel dampness upon it.

“Julie, you’re crying,”
whispered Crystal, prompting her sister to turn away.  “I don’t think I’ve ever
seen you get so upset by a story before, whether it’s one you’ve read or one
you’ve come up with yourself.”

“For the last time, it’s
not
a story!” snapped Julianna.  “It’s the truth!”

Crystal shook her head,
clasping her sister’s hands tightly.  “Julie, don’t talk that way.  I know
you’re lonely, and you sometimes wish you had someone in your life, as I have
Jerry and Vicki has Luke.  But we love you too much to lose you to a fantasy
world you’ve conjured up.  If you repeated this to an outsider, the results
could be disastrous.”

“Don’t you think I
know
that?” Julianna laughed bitterly.  “I wouldn’t dare tell anyone, despite the
fact this secret’s nearly choking me to death.  So rather than confide in you
or Vicki, I told Sammy instead.  At least he’s an innocent child who won’t condemn
me for the truth.”  Her eyes dimmed to a withering look, while she shook her
head.  “What’s true already doesn’t need your belief.”

Her sister’s ensuing
protest died, replaced by an odd expression.  “All right, Julianna.  For now,
just between us, let’s assume that your words are true.  Going by that
assumption, I want you to tell me everything from the very beginning.  I
promise not to laugh, and I’ll hear you out before giving anymore opinions.”

Uncertainty in her eyes,
Julianna glanced at her sister.  “You really want to know?” she asked softly. 
Crystal squeezed her hands and nodded with a smile.

“I really do,” she replied,
smiling.  “If your sketch the other day does him justice, he looks like a
handsome man.”

“In more than looks,” she
agreed.

Still hesitant, but too
tired to argue anymore, Julianna gradually told her everything from the moment
she’d first seen Dominick to the present.  She went on to say that although it
sounded impossible, her dreams of him were always vivid each night, and recollected
every morning with undeniable clarity.  A cycle that had gone on for several
weeks now.

When Crystal read between
the lines, she asked her younger sister just how far their relationship had
gone.  Even before Julianna said a word, her flushed face more than revealed
the answer, earning a knowing smile from her sister.  Yet it was Crystal who
was left gaping when her ‘innocent’ younger sister lightly touched on the
numerous romantic encounters she’d had with her otherworld companion.

As ironic as it was, it was
those selfsame descriptions that convinced Crystal that there might be some
truth to her sister’s words.  After all, as imaginative as Julianna was, she
had limits to what subjects she would freely conjure up for stories... and
romance wasn’t one of them, until now.

The mention of Chavernos
earned mixed feelings from Crystal.  After having been brought up in a world
believing the galaxy to consist of the planets she’d known, it was hard to
imagine there being a hidden one.  Yet since it was more than unlikely that
Earth harbored the only humans in the universe, perhaps it could be true.

“Dominick just found out
from his grandfather that there was a time when Chavernians traveled to Earth,”
Julianna commented.  “Unfortunately, a war broke out over this, and those who
knew the means to travel between our worlds were killed or lost.”

Crystal rubbed her chin. 
“If it was possible once, then surely another means could be found.”

“That’s our hope, and he’s
looking into it now.  Anyway, he says that according to the elders on his
world, Chavernos has been in existence roughly as long as Earth, and that those
of his world migrated there many years ago to live.  Their dreamphasers—in
their astral forms—discovered Earth soon after, and before they worried of Earth’s
potential technology, they adapted to our language, which is why the similarity
exists.”

“Since they’re both in the
same galaxy, that makes sense,” agreed Crystal.  Even as she nodded, inside she
thought,
I can’t believe I’m considering this!

Yet truth or not, she
couldn’t deny that her younger sister seemed to have an endless supply of
details for Chavernos.  Something that at least made it sound more believable.

“Once they realized ours was a world of
technology,” Julianna continued, “they shut down the possibility of
communication between our worlds, magically enhancing the mist that hides
Chavernos from view.”

As she finished relating
what she knew, tears blurred her eyes again, earning her sister’s curious
concern.  “I’m crying because this should be the happiest time in my life, but
I can’t tell anyone.  You’re the only one whom I’ve told everything, and I
can’t even blame you for thinking me crazy too.  It would sound crazy to
anyone.”

“Hold it right there,”
interrupted Crystal.  “I already told you to let me reserve judgment, and I
certainly don’t think you’re crazy.  Okay?”

Julianna nodded slowly. 
“All right,” she sighed, “but even if you do believe me, I can’t prove
Dominick’s existence.”  As she shut her eyes, her hand rested against her forehead
wearily.  “Even though I want to be Dominick’s wife more than anything else,
and I won’t let anything change that, I can’t help but feel how difficult this
uncertain waiting is going to be.”

Crystal’s hand on her
shoulder made her look up.

“The proof of Dominick’s
existence is in your eyes,” she said softly.  “Along with your drawing, and the
way you talk so lovingly of him.  As to the restrictions of this rather unusual
engagement of yours, remember this.  To all intents and purposes, you’re separated
for roughly the same amount of hours that a daytime work schedule separates
most couples.  In a way, it’s like you’re living two different lives, although
being married myself, I fully understand why you’ve chosen to remain faithful
in both.”

Her words caused Julianna
to blink with surprise and building hope.  “You believe me?” she whispered.

“As much as I’m able to...
yes,” Crystal sighed heavily.  “After all, you haven’t lied to me before, so I
can’t think why you’d start now.  Especially not with a story like that.”

A new joy lit Julianna’s
expression.  “Oh, Crystal, you can’t possibly know how much it means to hear
you say that.”

“I think I can guess,” she
replied with a smile.  “While I’ll be the first to admit that you still have an
incredible imagination, Julie, your tears convinced me that your words might
somehow be true.  Not to mention,” she added slyly, “I’ve never heard you make
up romantic stories like those you just told me.”  Giving a short laugh at her
sister’s blush, she continued, “I’m just glad you’re feeling better, because we
all love you, and we want you to be happy.”

A worried look crossed
Julianna’s face.  “Crystal, even though you can accept what I’ve told you to
some degree, I doubt Vicki and the rest...”

“Say no more,” her sister interrupted. 
“To avoid any scrutiny from the others, it’ll remain a secret just between the
two of us.”  Before a correction could be spoken regarding a certain little
boy, she added, “Or should I say, between the three of us?”

“Sammy doesn’t seem to mind
the notion of Dominick for an uncle,” said Julianna.  “And from what my fiancé
says, I think he’ll be thrilled to have Sammy as a nephew too.”

“Well, as long as he makes
you happy, I’m sure we’ll all like him when we meet him eventually.”

Frowning slightly, Julianna
shook her head.  “I told you before... that might never become possible.”

Crystal warded this away. 
“Maybe not.  But let’s try and keep open minds about it.  After all, I’ve more
than kept my part of that bargain, haven’t I?”

“Much more,” agreed
Julianna, leaning forward to hug her sister.  “Thank you so much for believing
me.”

“It’s no more than I’ve
always known from you,” said Crystal, giving a slight shrug as they broke
apart.  “Yet even so, I must admit that it would be much easier to accept if
you could somehow back up your words with proof.  Have you given any thought to
the matter?”

Julianna nodded.  “Dominick
and I both have, but it’s not an easy task.  Physical proof is as elusive as a
way to bring us together on the same world.”  Sighing once, she eyed Crystal
knowingly.  “I suppose I can’t have your complete belief until we come up with
something.”

“It is difficult, although
I’m doing the best I can,” she agreed.  “But if you do think of a way, I’ll be
glad to see your story proven true beyond a doubt.”

“That’s good enough for
me,” said Julianna with a smile.  “Crystal, I promise you, if Dominick ever
does find a way here, I’ll be more than happy to introduce him to you, Sammy,
and the rest of the family as well.”

“Yes, and that’s not all
you’re going to do if he shows up here,” Crystal replied firmly, piquing her
sister’s curiosity.  “If your future husband intends to keep his two
sisters-in-law from reprimanding him later, he’d best duly consider the notion
of not only marrying you on
his
world, but on
this
one as well, so
we
can be present for it.  And you can tell him I
said that.”