Like a Dream Come True(Jane)

[cartertcat4]

It was a nice, quiet day at the beach, No noisy children running around, or screaming lifeguards. It was a Monday though, which was why Alec Morgenstern had wanted to come here. Just to be alone, basking in the sun. It wasn't often that he got some time to himself, with it being so hectic all the time back in Canada.

Alec was part of a group of mutants called the Runaways. He'd been there for almost a year now, but he never made a spectacle of himself. Even with the accidental dream walking, as he called it. Most people didn't remember their dreams, they would wake up and have them poof out of their mind. Ironically, Alec didn't remember most of his dreams. Why was this ironic you might ask? Well this young man could manipulate others dreams.

Dream walking, he called it. Now Alec was among one of the more nocturnal runaways. preferring to sleep during the day. Why? Well for the obvious reasons. Most people were asleep during the night, and the more that were asleep around Alec, the harder it became to stay out of their dreams. Now with a power such as his, sleeping wasn't restful. Often times he would wake up, more exhausted then when he went to sleep.

But out here, so far away from the Runaways, at the beach, Alec thought this might be the perfect spot. He could actually catch some shut eye. He dug his feet into the warm sand, closing his eyes as he leaned against a log. His face was turned up to the sun. For the normal human, it took seven minuets to fall asleep, but for this human, it took less then one. He was out like a light.

Little did he know, he was about to get pulled into some mutants dream. No sooner did he close his eyes they were open again. Looking around, he groaned. The scene of the dream had changed from whatever it had been, to a grassy meadow, filled with daisy's. Alec had seen this sight a million times. Now all there was left to do was wait and see who's dream he was in.

Alec was wearing the same outfit he had been when he fell asleep. A green V-neck and Grey blue skinny jeans. He stood up, bear foot, jeans rolled up to mid shin. A small breeze ran through the meadow. It's tall grass brushing against his jeans. Now where was this mysterious dreamer?

[jane]

Jane didn't know why she was at the Beach today. Sheer coincidence? Escape from her brothers? Maybe she just wanted to tan! Who knew, Jane just let her legs carry her wherever they wanted to go. And they wanted to go to the beach. She'd gathered up some beach supplies, an umbrella, her bright red bathing suit, a long beach towel to fit her six foot height, and, of course, sun tan lotion. It was hard to tell when the girl tanned a little, because of her Native American blood, but if she got enough of it, you could really tell where her roots lay.

Setting up a ways from any other beach goers, Jane didn't spend long rubbing the lotion in, the umbrella set up to shade her face. Soon, she was laying on her beach towel, ear buds in her ears as music blasted in the background. Even with the heavy rock music going on, she soon found herself dozing, before she finally fell into a light nap.

A dream... She must be dreaming. The meadow she crouched in was lush and green, the grass so soft, with daisies popping up everywhere. A calm, cool breeze softly brushing through her hair. For a dream this was rather realistic.

Jane recognized the dress she was wearing, simple and white, it touched her knees, strapless but somehow summery. She'd worn it on many summer family parties. Hah... Her subconcious had an interesting sense of humor. Put her in the dress that she'd last worn. When her Grandparents had finally named the heir to the Family company and family. Her oldest brother. Yeah, like no one saw that coming.

How odd, she was somehow annoyed in her own dream! But, she shook it off, sitting in the soft grass, her gaze slowly wandering the simple meadow. Before... Movement?

She saw someone.. Maybe her age, maybe older, she couldn't tell. But a boy, a boy she didn't recognize... "Who are you?" Her words were soft, and even in her dreams her South African accent somehow came through loud and clear.

[cartertcat4]

Alec turned his head, brunette hair kept in place by a hair band. He had a strange sense of style that was already clear. First off a V neck and second his rather wholly jeans. Third, the hair band that kept his stylishly shaggy hair in place. He enjoyed dressing the way he did though. And then he saw her. She was pretty, she also had no idea what was really going on.

The fact that Alec thought this girl was pretty meant nothing. At the moment, he wasn't looking for any kind of relationship. The last serious relationship he had been in had left him shattered and broken. He'd thought she was the one he was going to be with forever. But, that was a different story. A tree started to materialize behind him. Like one of those nature video's where it sped up the growth of something.

It was a beautifully strong tan oak tree. The golden rays of a summer sun shining through it. Alec leaned against the tree. Hm, he could always tell her that he was God. After a while, you started to think up fun, entertaining ways to respond to that one question. He looked up at the sky thoughtfully. He rearranged the clouds into swans and ducks as he crossed his arms over his chest. The minuet he'd entered this dream. it had become his own alternate world.

"My names Alec. Whats yours?" he finally decided on telling her. The fact was that he really wasn't intent on messing with this girls mind right now. So he just let his mind wander. A few more oaks started to grow rapidly a short way's away. Now the scene was like a summer's fairytale. The sun highlighting everything perfectly.

If Alec had known of this girls powers, then he would have known not to make his actions so obvious. She could probably see the way everything seemed to focus on him. He looked down at his feet. On his left foot was a small piece sign. Through his wholley jeans a treble and bass clef on each knee were visible. The list of tattoo's visible at the moment went on. Most, if not all had to do with music, peace and the balance between good and evil.

[jane]

She watched, with little surprise, as a tree seemed to sprout up behind him, going through years of growing in only a matter of seconds. More trees, the same process. Then the clouds were shifting, making impossible shapes far to quickly. Oh, Jane knew. She knew instantly.

"I'm Jane." No last name. Keep the last name hidden. Don't let him know her family. That was the first rule she was taught when away from her brothers. Don't let anyone know who you really are.

Slowly, so slowly, Jane rose to her feet, smiling slightly. It was instantly obvious that Jane was a bare inch taller then the slightly older boy. It made her happy. She didn't often enjoy her six foot stature, but in a dream, where she didn't control anything, it made her feel a little more powerful. "You're playing God in my dream." There was no doubt in her voice. God was the term when you were all powerful in something. "You're a mutant." Again, no doubt was there. She knew for a fact. Her dreams didn't change that quickly. And she knew those 'actions'. He was creating a scene. Much like she did in her personal dimension.

[cartertcat4]

Alec smiled, putting his hands out as if he were holding a sign. And then, as if out of thin air, a flashing sign was in his hands. The sign spelled out 'WINNER! in all different colors. Then the scene around them changed from a meadow, which was usually his beginning canvas, to a bright, flashing, extravagant Casino. Like the kind you saw in movies.

"You catch on fast... and honestly, I was trying to avoid this," Alec sighed, sitting back in a comfortable fake leather chair. He was probably one of the most laid back people you would ever meet. He shifted position so that his back was against one arm of the chair, and feet dangling over the other end. As he did so, the scene changed to a comfortable, cozy, loft with a burning fireplace.

He would probably keep it like this for a while. Alec liked the ambiance of this scene. "Take a seat, we'll probably be here for a while," he let her know as the space between them was filled with snacks and drinks. Getting into the dream was the easy part, far to easy. But getting out was the hard part.

He always made sure that everything in "his" dreams were vegan friendly. The fake leather, soy milk, tofu burgers etc. If you were hungry during the dream, you were going chow down like a true veg-head.

[jane]

"You can't keep it a secret when you change portions of a dream so quickly." Jane didn't have a huge reaction to his changing the scene again, just sat down when he told her to. The couch was a fake leather. She knew that instantly. Her family was rich after all, she knew what real leather felt like. But, she didn't think anything of it. It was a dream after all. She couldn't get all picky about it being fake or real in a dream!

"So... Why are you in my dreams?" No, more like 'What sort of power lets you enter my dreams? She smiled a little. His power... reminded her of her own a little. He manipulated the dream world. Now, Jane thought it might be funny to let Alec see what manipulating a real world looked like.

[cartertcat4]

Alec simply shrugged again at her words. "Maybe I just don't feel like being secretive," he told her, smiling. It had never really been a concern of his to make his identity a secret. After all, most didn't figure it out all that quickly. So he could only think that she probably was a mutant as well, with a similar power. Regular humans, and even mutants, just figured it was their subconscious playing tricks on them.

Alec bit his lower lip for a moment before releasing it. He thought about the tattoo he'd gotten there, it'd been a particularly painful one at that. The tattoo spelled out 'TRUTH'. "Well like I said, I was trying to avoid this very thing. Now it was sort of out of my control you see. Your dreaming mind was like a tractor beam, pulling me in," Alec explained, looking down at his tattooed knuckles that read 'LIVE FREE".

After some time, this got very boring. Explaining his power over and over again. But this girl was somewhat intriguing. How had she caught on so fast? "So Jane.. Jane Doe," Alec said, for lack off a last name. He thought it was a cute nickname. He'd been so inspired by that name in fact, that he'd written a song about it. So now that he'd found someone with the name Jane it seemed fitting.
"I may get a good tan out of this... but now I won't get any more rest then when I fell asleep," Alec told her, not to happy about it either. But when she woke up she would be rested and full of energy. Lucky her.

[jane]

Jane didn't move. Didn't feel like being secretive? She wished she didn't have to be so secretive. She couldn't go around letting people know who she really was. She couldn't give away who her family is. She couldn't make a fool of the family, even though they didn't know who her family was. She couldn't do a lot of things. Being open about things was one of them. Again, she found herself annoyed by the fact that he could say these things, and she couldn't. "But being secretive can sometimes be the difference between life and death."

"A tractor beam..." Finally, Jane gave him a 'Are you serious', sort of look. Was that some sort of cheesy pick up line, or had he really just been trying to explain that his power pulled him into the mind of the closest sleeping person. "So, you sleep where people normally won't sleep. So you don't get pulled in." Oops, looks like she'd just ruined that plan of his.

Jane Doe? Wasn't that what they called women who couldn't remember their name? Oh. Haha, coming up with a last name because she hadn't told him it. Well, he hadn't said his last night! "How do you get out then? Do you just wait for the dreamer to wake up?"

[cartertcat4]

"The difference between life and death? Well thats a little extreme.." Alec said, but still, he understood where this girl was coming from. He himself had moments where, if he'd revealed his identity, he would have surely been killed. "Life's a little bit to short to worry about things like this. The day has enough worries of it's own," he took a glass of soy milk and an organic, vegan, cookie to eat of of the glass coffee table.

Alec listened to what she asked him. So many questions! A lot of people would just deny the truth. It was usually easier just to say that he wasn't real. The dreamer often surprised that when they woke up, he was a block down in a lawn chair. It was really funny to see their reactions, at least thats what he thought anyway.

"Exactly.. I didn't expect some girl to be snoozing a ways away," he told her, nibbling his cookie as he did so. At her next question, he took a sip of the milk before answering. When the both of them woke up, they were probably going to be very hungry. "That, my new friend, is the tricky part." Alec said as the scene slowly changed back to the fairy tale meadow. It looked odd, two fancy chairs and an extremely expensive coffee table in the middle of the meadow.

"Enough about me, what about you? How did you know?"

[jane]

"Yeah. But if you think of the extremes first, you won't have to worry about them later." Why was Alec so laid back about it all? He almost seemed.... Well hippie! A peace loving, tree hugging hippie! The food on the coffee table was all vegan as well, nothing coming from animals. So he was Vegan to? That was definitely a hippie thing. A teenage hippie. Well, now she could say she'd seen it all.

"How is it tricky? Are you not able to pull yourself out until they wake up?" She shrugged, leaning back in the chair a little. "You can always work on that, you know . Practice makes perfect, after all."

Finally the questions were being returned to her. How did she know? Was that something she could share? Moments passed, and she smiled slightly. "Because, I don't dream up teenage hippies. The leather wouldn't be fake, and I can still hear my Ipod in the background." She wasn't sure if he'd be able to, but Jane could hear the heavy rock music that was playing. All those reasons, she'd made up on the spot. She wouldn't really tell him that his manipulating dreams was an illusion to what she did.

[cartertcat4]

"Practice makes perfect? Are you saying you want me out of your dream?" Alec asked, acting offended. That didn't last long until he was smiling again. Of course she was right. If he did practice leaving people's dreams more often, maybe he would actually be able to dream himself.

Would that be a good thing though? After all, his dreams were never very pleasant. Growing up with an abusive father had scarred him extremely deep. Both emotionally and physically. When he did have dreams of his own, they weren't fun. He would often wake up crying and break down emotionally. So maybe not leaving others dreams was for the best. During a fight though, when he consciously used his power, it was a lot easier to leave the dream. That word, it made Alec sick. Fight.

It was easier then Alec had expected, seeing through her lies. Why did it matter though? Sure he was curious, but if they became friends then maybe she'd tell him herself. "Hippie? That's a little bit of an understatement." he laughed happily as the chair slowly changed to a purple Papason. Alec folded his arms behind his head, liking the size of the chair.

"Seems like you've got me all figured out. Well maybe I'll surprise you if we get some frozen yogurt after this? Since we probably have nice tans by now," he suggested. Vaguely, he remembered shrugging off his V-neck before falling asleep. Lucky for him though, he didn't sunburn easily and never needed the assistance of tanning lotion to tan. Now why had he suggested frozen yogurt? Sure he was vegan, but also lactose intolerant. Well maybe because the sign a cross the street from the beach had been bright and colorful

[jane]

Jane just shrugged where she sat, not bothering to answer the question. He could think of it anyway he wanted. It wouldn't change anything, would it? But when you were in a family like hers, you learned slacking off in practicing your power was unacceptable. Her family was strict about that. They didn't want anyone giving them a bad name.

"... And understatement?" Now she was confused. The food, the fake leather, and his peace lover tattoos. He was a hippie. Not if only his hair was a little longer.... He'd REALLY look like a hippie then. So how was it an understatement, him being a hippie?

"Frozen Yogurts?" Jane blinked, surprised. That had to be the first time anyone had ever asked her to do anything with them before in her life. Then she remembered where she had fallen asleep. Oh yeah, she'd have a pretty good tan after this. Hopefully she wouldn't burn at all. That'd be a pain. Now she wanted to wake up, just to make sure she didn't get burned. "The tide usually starts to rise soon. I probably wont be asleep to much longer."

[cartertcat4]

Then, ever so slowly, everything started to change once again. The scene was now overcast and the both of them were standing bare foot on a tropical beach. The wind was whipping at them from every direction. Causing small, painful cuts and tears in their clothes. A giant palm tree fell between the both of them. Everything seemed completely real. The painful stinging on their faces, flashing lightning. Alec looked out to the horizon. A Giant, twenty foot, title wave was forming.

There were some that could say 'it's just a dream! It's just a dream!" and calm themselves down. This was all too real, and would be terrifying for anyone. Water welled up in Alec's eyes from the force of the wind. Why had he made this terrifying dream you might ask? Well it was already to late to ask that question as a giant tidal wave crashed down onto the both of them.

His actual, bright green eyes snapped open. It wasn't such a shock to him as it had to have been for Jane. Right now she was probably sweating from fear as well as the beating sun. Alec shrugged in his V-neck, looking at the nice, tan, new color his skin had taken on. He let out a gigantic yawn. He was exhausted.

The only reason he had woken her up was because he himself was getting tired. Standing up and stretching out his arms, he slid his feet into a pair of blue sandals. Looking down at the actual horizon, he saw that high tide was coming. He also saw a beach umbrella and young women that looked exactly like Jane, except in a red swimsuit. Alec couldn't see her reaction but he could imagine it must have been pretty stunned.

[jane]

What in the world was Alec up to? Trying to scare her awake or something? Whatever it was, she didn’t like it. Not at all. Gasping awake, she sat up on the towel. It wasn’t that she’d been scared, just…. Shocked. Ugh….

Shaking her head, she was wide awake now, sitting up with her hair falling over her face to hide her expression from view. Oh was she annoyed now. Why’d he have to startle her awake? He could have just waited for the tide to come in. The cold water would have easily woken the girl.

Sighing, Jane finally had to move. She couldn’t just sit there, half shell shocked! She turned off her ipod, tugging the buds out of her ears and stuffing the ipod and buds into her bag, along with anything else she’d kept out, other than her black tank tank top, denim shorts, and sandals. Pulling the shirt over her head, she brushed her curly brown hair off her shoulders. God, long hair sucked when it was really hot like this.

[cartertcat4]

Alec saw Jane stand, so he figured the general shock was gone. He breathed in the salty air contently. If he had came to the beach under any other circumstances he would have went body surfing. Growing up as an only child, he'd never really had a problem being alone. He was practically born in the arms of imaginary friends. He still enjoyed time with others, but valued his alone time.

He leisurely walked in towards the brightly colored umbrella. He ran his fingers through his hair as a way of shaking away some sand. "Have we met? 'Cause you look oddly familiar," he said jokingly. A near constant smile always lit up Alec's face. It was about noon now, the sun was at its highest and the beach was getting rather populated. Now was probably the perfect time to get something nice and cold to eat. Maybe he would stop in a coffee shop nearby that he knew was vegan friendly.

A bracelet on Alec's wrist glinted in the sunlight. It had a two charms on it. One of a peace sign and the other the letter A. His mother had given it to him when he was leaving home. She'd been the one to sign the document and forge her husbands signature. His mother had never liked the fact Alec was a mutant, but never let it limit the love she had for her son. To bad she was so scared to step out from underneath her abusive husband shadow.