Ever since her birthday, anytime Sam fell asleep she was transported to the edge of a beautiful lake. This time, however, she found herself flailing, falling through the air. She fell for a few feet before she jolted awake in her chair at the hospital.

Her eyes flitted multiple times then closed again then found herself falling through the air again, this time closer to the ground. She brushed past a few treetops before jolting awake once more.

It took one more sleep spell and a near fall with the ground, for Sam to finally pick herself out of her chair and wipe her eyes. The hospital was silent and Isaac and Mrs. Wilde showed no signs of waking.

Sam tiptoed out of the room to look for a water fountain. A splash to the face sounded exactly like what she needed. When she found it and splashed herself, she felt rejuvenated. So much so, that she realized that the hospital was quiet; eerily quiet. No doctors and nurses ran wildly; no machines beeped or buzzed.

She was walking back to her brother’s room when a familiar voice stopped her.

“There you are.” The voice called. “I’ve been looking for you.”

Sam turned and found the Author standing there in his frock coat, sticking out like a sore thumb.

“M-Mr. Author. What are you doing here?”

“You haven’t been to the castle in a while, so I took it into my own hands and decided to look for you. I was dreading that you went missing like the other children.”

“You know what’s going on with the other children then?”

“More or less. Unfortunately, my knowledge has its bounds. Do you remember the creature you saw the last time you were in the castle?”

“Yes, that gross thing. You called it a Nightmare, right?”

“Yes, they have become more of a nuisance than I had originally foreseen. I fear-” He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “They are the ones behind the disappearance.”

“So - so, my brother...and Bella, are they stuck sleeping because of them? Can you stop them?”

The Author hung his head.

“Not by myself, unfortunately. It is a touch of luck that I found you.”

“Me? What could I do?”

“I’m going to ask you to do something that you’re not going to like. I’m going to ask you to fall asleep.”

The disdain on her face was apparent. She’d been working so hard on staying awake. His eyes flashed with a knowing look. What if she fell asleep and made it to the castle and couldn’t find the Author? She shivered at the thought.

“I know it’s scary, but you have already proved yourself capable and a strong dreamer at that. I have no doubt that you’ll be able to help.”

Before she could respond he said, “I’ll see you soon.” He smiled then his form began to blur and he disappeared.

Momentarily shocked she wiped her eyes with her sleeve then headed back to her brother’s room. She stood in the doorway, watching her mother and brother sleeping. She really didn’t want to give her mother another reason to worry, but she knew that she had to do something; sitting around forcing herself to stay awake wasn’t helping anyone. As well, the thought of some rest sounded pleasant.

She made her decision, sat in her chair, squirmed to get comfortable, and then will minimal effort she gave herself over to slumber.

Soon, she was falling through the air again, but this time she was falling above the castle. Above and too far away to land at all, so she fell past it. Concentrating as hard as she could, she thought about the one thing that could save her. With a pop, a familiar furry creature appeared in front of her and dived down below to catch her. She landed with a soft thud and Taali flew them to the gateway of the castle.

Before she entered she noticed the sound of Taali scratching at the colorful stones at their feet and her own breath were the only sounds she could hear; the rest of the world muted. She was at a loss for the words, everything seemed less magical.

It was true even as she walked through the entryway. The lights and colors were all washed. The doors, as she checked, were inactive. The sound of her footsteps echoed off the stone in the room, replacing the sound of laughter that usually hung in the air.

Remembering the Author’s request, she made for the center of the room to the staircase that led to his door. She tried to climb the first step then was immediately thrown back by a magical force. She rubbed the soreness from her behind as confusion crept in like an unwanted visitor.

She believed she was supposed to be there. Had something happened to the Author? Pacing back and forth a few times, thinking of what to do next, an even stronger magic enveloped her thinking. A familiar feeling from days past calling to her with an invisible whisper.

“Onward!” It called.

She followed the feeling in a trance-like daze making for the darkened part of the hall, past the last dream door. Her skin rippled with goosebumps. The further she went, the more tired she became. She felt like she could taste the exhaustion that blanketed her. Soon, she was standing in complete darkness, a part of the castle that no one must tread very often.

Shivers danced across her spine as a hand grabbed her.

“Ah, I’m glad to see you’ve made it.” A familiar voice said smoothly.

A pinprick of light shot out from a nearby wall, lighting up the Author's features.

"You scared me!" She half-shouted, half-cried.

“Oh! I am very sorry, young one. Please forgive me.”

“It’s okay.” She said with a slight giggle in her voice.

The pinprick of light widened as it formed the symbol of an hourglass. The lights twinkled to resemble sand passing through the glass.

“What door is this?”

“This door, like mine, belongs not to a what, but to a who; my brother, Sandie.”

Her eyes widened. “You have a brother?!”

He laughed affirmatively.

“I do. I would bet that you believe I built this castle; possibly this whole world?”

She nodded.

“I’ve been here so long, some of the Dreamcasters believe that I created all this, but alas I did not. Sandie and I came here when we were your age. We would let our imaginations run wild through all kinds of dream doors. It was a wonderful time.

“Then came a monster called Insomnia. It brought destruction to the dream world. My brother and I helped a small bit through the fight, but it was the Author at the time that gave most of his power to stop the foul creature.

“After the battle, I was chosen to inherit the title: Author of Dreams. I was granted a long life and lordship over this castle. To Sandie, they gave a new title: Sandman.

“When Insomnia was defeated, its foulness left behind a curse in the form of the Nightmares. With Sandie’s powers, we were able to travel in the realm between awake and dreams, to help ward off the Nightmare’s and help people sleep correctly.”

“I looked for him where I could, but he was nowhere to be found. When I tried to open his door, my power felt drained and I knew that I couldn’t do it alone. That’s when I came to find you. And when you were able to walk in the realm in between, I knew you could help.”

“Wait! I was in between awake and asleep?”

“Yes. Although I wasn't sure if it was going to work.” He said sheepishly. “Without powers like mine and Sandie’s it's all but impossible to be pulled there, but since you've done a wonderful job at amazing me lately, I thought I'd try and pull you there. I'm glad my suspicions were true.” He smiled.

Her head spun and thoughts crashed wildly like waves in a storm. Sam scratched her head, the last few weeks were a lot to take in and she felt like she was a leaf being blown about in the wind.

“I don’t know what I can do, but if it means helping Isaac and Bella, then I’m in.”

The Author smiled.

“I was hoping you’d say that. Press your hands to the door and think about all dreams you’ve created here; I should be able to do the rest.”

The pair reached out their hands and pushed on the door. The Author whispered words Sam couldn't understand. She felt a tingling sensation pass down her arms and through her hands onto the door. There was some resistance, but a moment later it stopped and the door opened.