Chapter 3: Sand Castles

I like shiny things; I really do. Then again, who doesn't? They're just so pretty and sparkly. Inside the castle, there was a central light source; what looked to be a giant glowing bubble emitted enough light to illuminate the entire castle but somehow was dim enough not to blind us.

"It's so pretty," said my companion. I just nodded in agreement. The light reflected off of the sandy walls, making the very room seem to glitter. Before us was a purple and gold carpet and tapestries adorning the walls to match. Beautiful shells lined the carpet and our path forward. We stopped just under the bubble to take in our surroundings some more. In front of us was a pair of thrones; for the king and queen. On either side of the thrones were winding staircases and on either side of those were large doors leading to the rest of the castle. The light in my eyes died down, along with my excitement.

"What's wrong?" NiGHTS asked me, somewhat alarmed at my crestfallen look. I sighed,

"This is just how I'd always imagined it."

"Imagined what?" I looked up at him,

"When I was little, my nanny would always take me to the beach on hot days. Her excuse was always 'the animals no wander the desert when is hot, Pisoi, they find water, and so will we'." I sighed, "She used to tell me about the castles back in her homeland and how something once so great had fallen into ruin. I'd help her rebuild these castles and we'd have parties and banquets and balls and…" I stopped. Why the hell was I telling him this? If this was all my dream, surely he should already know. I must enjoy hearing myself speak since I do so, so rarely.

"And?" I heard him ask. I looked up to see his face right in front of mine. I jumped back and fell on my rear. This was becoming a trend. NiGHTS, who had until recently been floating next to my head, smiled sheepishly and offered his hand out to me. Taking it reluctantly, I stood once more.

"Sorry… I guess I got a bit excited." So apparently the whole "Peter Pan Happy Thoughts" factor applies here too.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" In an instant, NiGHTS gripped my hand tightly and I found myself behind him. Another being, this time in a much darker color scheme than NiGHTS, stood before us. NiGHTS seemed tense, though I brushed it off. This was my dream after all, why should I be afraid?

This other… thing, I'll call him Nega-NiGHTS for now, approached us in the same cocky, floaty manner that NiGHTS had seemingly all of the time.

"Another visitor?" Nega-NiGHTS came closer, getting in both NiGHTS's and my faces. "One would think that you would have learned by now."

"Leave her alone, Reala!"

Reala? That's an interesting name. This 'Reala', unlike NiGHTS had a distinctly male voice, and a mask covering his face, as well as a feather fetish, apparently, which made me quirk an eyebrow.

"Or what? Are you going to play the hero again?" Well, it looked like this was going to get ugly fast, and I had no wish to witness this scuffle when there was so much to do before I awoke. I wriggled my hand free from NiGHTS's grip and began to walk toward one of the thrones that had so gathered my attention.

"Al, what are you doing?" NiGHTS squealed in alarm,

"Well it looks that this little visitor had grown tired of you, dear brother!"

"Actually, I'm rather tired of your bickering, so either you two can fight, or you can watch as I just sit here and find something else to capture my attention. Either way, I don't intend on paying any attention to what you're doing." I said, sitting in the thrown to the left and swinging my feet over the armrest so that I was sitting sideways. Both NiGHTS and Reala looked shocked, not that I cared very much, though, I had to admit, the looks on their faces was rather amusing. Reala's astonishment quickly turned to rage as in the blink of an eye, he was in my face, snarling and gnashing his teeth.

"You want to play with me, little girl?" I batted my eyes innocently.

"You want a breath mint, mister?" Reala seized my throat and hoisted me in the air. I happily fell limp in his arms and he shook me around a bit. How cute, he thinks he's scary. There's nothing to fear in my imagination except fear itself. So I kick him between the legs. It must've hurt, even though there was nothing there. He screamed and dropped me back onto the soft cushions of the chair.

"You little…" He reached for me again, but NiGHTS, who had since awoken from his stupor, rushed to my aid. He knocked Reala away from me and stood between us protectively.

"This isn't over, brother." Reala growled before disappearing. NiGHTS and I were silent for a moment before the silence became uncomfortable and I spoke,

"That was fun."

"Fun?" He turned to me, "You're insane! He could've killed you! Weren't you scared?" I blinked,

"No."

Fear? There was nothing to fear in this world, my dream, was there?