Have a Nice Day

Dreaming of Nightmare's Past (Part one)

When I landed on a carpeted floor, I knew that the spell worked. I looked down to see the carpet an emerald green with my hands stroking the soft yarn. I stood back up and looked at myself. I was still in the short-short overalls from that day, but noticing a mirror in front of me, I looked back at a small child wearing a pink shirt and green pants, red sneakers hiding my feet. My hair was ink-black, with no red in sight. I had to be five.

Looking at myself, I knew that I was the only one that could see myself as my present self. Everyone else would be looking at my five year old self.

"Meep, what are you doing?" I heard someone say behind me. I turned around to see a woman in a slender rose-colored gown, her blond hair draped over one shoulder. Her feet were covered with pink slippers with diamond sparkles, and her arms were held out to me.

It was my mom.

I knew that this was a dream, my father had said that I would know. I also knew that these were memories of my own mind. There was no way for me to change the past, but I could do whatever I wanted in these dreams. It wouldn't change them, but it doesn't mean that I had to follow them exactly either.

"Mom!" I screamed, running over to her and tackling her middle. She seemed surprised, but she hugged me back once she stopped stumbling.

"How's my special girl?" She asked.

I didn't respond, but I suddenly pushed back. I couldn't cry. I wouldn't.

Crying is a sign of weakness, a sign of vulnerability. I wasn't weak, and I wouldn't show that I was vulnerable. It would only give my dad a reason to hold being good against me.

"What's wrong, Meep?" My mother asked me.

"I'm fine." I said, walking past her. I went out of my parent's room and headed for the front door. I knew what day it was, and I knew where I wanted to be. Parading through the Emerald City, I went straight through the green gates and climbed the field of poppies. The spell the Wicked Witch of the West had put on them had been removed after the fight between her and Dorothy of Kansas, so they were safe to venture into like I had done multiple times. It was my favorite place in all of Oz, because the colors of the orange, red, and yellow flowers blended beautifully in with the green background of Emerald City. The sky was cloudless and bright blue, but from experience, I knew it wouldn't last for long.

I sat on top of the meadow and looked back at the Emerald City. It glimmered in the sunlight, like a giant jewel in the middle of the meadow. The yellow-brick road cut through the flowers so evenly it almost looked like it had grown up from the grass and placed itself there.

I put my hand aside and picked up a red poppy. I put it up to my nose and closed my eyes, inhaling the sweet smell of the flower.

But when I opened my eyes again, I was once more crouching on the green carpet in the room where I was first placed. I jumped back in surprise, but I stood up very quickly once I got a hold of what was going on.

"Really?!" I screamed at the ceiling. I remembered that my dad was controlling the path of my dreams. He wanted me to do something, but I didn't quite know what.

"Meep, what are you doing?" My mom asked me from behind. I turned back around and blazed past her.

"Hi mom." I mumbled. She grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" She asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine." I said. I pulled my arm away and walked out. 

When I got back to the front gates of the Emerald City, I was surprised to see that the door was locked. I dug into my pocket to find the key that I always had on me at all times, but it wasn't there. When I jiggled the doors again, there was a sudden shimmer to them, like Feather's fairy dust. The shimmer took form, and I could read what it said.