Swirls of golden sand fell like pure light through the glass windows of the town that sat drowsily among the hills of England – Yorkshire, to be precise- and a cloud made of the same substance hovered over a particularly high roof. The Sandman cast a gentle eye over his temporary kingdom that would melt away from his protection when the Sun turned its gaze over the rolling moors, but tonight the Moon was the silent watcher and the Sandman was the one who managed the different fantasies of the children and their parents, the former being mostly interested in journeying with terrifying dragons, unscrupulous pirates, wise elves and always a sense of music being played even if no ear was able to hear it. The landscapes of their dreams would be scorching desert sands, dark and looming jungles and rolling seas which tiny boats seemed able to survive upon despite the harsh weather. The adults, by drastic comparison, would dream of childhood times, pleasant train journeys, and of falling asleep in fields of flowers that simply did not exist in reality.
But the Sandman was always happy to cater to their whims, and the air swirled with different dreams, trees sprouting from the cobbles and those flowers clustering around them. Winged beasts flew over the houses with figures like children perched ever so precariously on their backs but miraculously never falling.
One child, however, was not asleep at all, but crying with loneliness and begging the watching Moon to speak to him once more… a request that had not changed or been granted over the last three hundred years. Jack was sobbing, and the Sandman's heart went out to the boy. It was always the same when he was in the area – but he would always pretend not to see the tear tracks, as the boy had his pride as any other child might. Instead, he sent some sand past the boy, watching as Jack laughed suddenly, running his fingers through the golden grains. Momentarily, dolphins appeared in the air, glowing against the soft indigo background of the night sky, along with the stars scattered like diamonds across that same sky.