Lalli could feel that it was a dream, but what a vivid dream! All sounds, so clear and sharp! And the smells! He had never felt such intense smells in a dream!
He was in a large house, and a well preserved one. No broken windows, no mold on the walls... Everything looked new, even those strange devices that people from the old times valued so much.
Maybe he was dreaming about that big house he saw in Mora. Tuuri said that it was some kind of museum and promised that one day they would come back and visit it.
If they survived this crazy adventure that would be... His thoughts were interrupted because he started to move inside the dream. it was strange to be aware of dreaming but unable to control anything.
He crossed a room with many pictures on the wall. They depicted the same persons over and over, in different positions and places, but mostly smiling. He never understood why people were always smiling on old pictures. Was life so good before the rash?
That must have been a family. Two adults, three kids, one or two elders, a dog, a cat... The dream continued to move, taking him to another room. Here things were not so tidy. Drawers left open, clothes scattered, a suitcase partially filled... Somebody was packing in a hurry.
He heard a rasping sound, and a scream.
His movement became vary fast, doors and rooms flashing by. The house was really big, but he crossed it in seconds. Than it stopped, and Lalli could see a troll.
It was almost human in shape and size, but he could tell by its skin, eyes and, most of all, by that acrid smell. He had never met a troll that stunk like this one.
On the other side of the room he saw a girl. She was ten, eleven at most, and looked terrified, tears rolling down her face.
The troll started moving towards her, and Lalli could see that she had nowhere to run, even if she wasn't paralysed by fear.
A violent roar invaded his ears, and the troll attention shifted to him. All his instincts were screaming inside, telling him to grab a knife or run, but he couldn't do anything.
The troll started to move, unsteady, in his direction, and a surprised Lalli felt himself sprinting toward it!
What followed was a whirlpool of fast-moving images involving strange noises, horrible smells, flesh, blood and the most awful taste ever felt invading his tongue. He wanted to puke so hard, but just couldn't!
Finally it all stopped, and he could see the troll in pieces before him. There was blood everywhere, and that horrible taste was filling the world.
He saw the girl pass by, looking at him, still terrified. He imagined himself covered in blood and troll guts, undoubtedly a scary vision. Than someone was calling her name.
The girl looked at him, and than outside. She hesitated for a few seconds and ultimately run. Lalli felt a strong desire to run after her, but he was hurt, that taste made him dizzy, and he blacked out.
___
Lalli woke up and looked around. The taste, thankfully, had subsided, leaving just an unpleasant memory. With relief he found himself able to move on his own. He also noticed that he was still dreaming, but now inside the familiar landscape of his personal space. Lalli raised and walked outside the little pond, feeling that something was calling for him.
He should be careful, because IT could have, somehow, found a way to his place, but he felt no danger and went ahead, wandering through the trees until he arrived at a foggy meadow. By the end of it he could see... people?
He kept walking and was finally able to see them well. It was the family from the pictures! They were even smiling, but... at him! Their dog was there too, and it started running in his direction.
Everything, suddenly, was clear to him.
"So that what's happened, hum? You fought that troll to save the girl!"
Lalli squatted as the dog approached, wagging its tail and barking happily. He extended his hand and felt the soft fur while looking at those round, friendly eyes. A deep feeling of gratitude washed over him... And than that long tongue darted out and licked his whole face, making him fall back.
Lalli tried to clean himself. When he was able to open his eyes again the dog was running back to the family. They were still smiling, and now they were also waving at him!
He didn't knew what to do, but waved back. The fog became more intense and they started to disappear, one by one, until only the dog remained. It barked again and start to vanish. Lalli felt his dream also vanishing and closed his eyes.
___
Lalli woke up and looked around. He was back at the tank, and everybody was sleeping around him. His face felt wet and he was trying to figure if it was from tears or some ghostly licking session when he remembered, and muttered, something that was left unsaid.
"Thanks! Thanks for not biting my friend!"
He closed his eyes, trying to get some more sleep, when he heard a distant, soft bark.
