The Sandman

Come on, darling, come to bed.

Uh, I'll be, I'll be right there, love.

Just putting the kitten in her basket.

Leave the door open so she can get to the litter.

Good night, fluff-ball.

It's tonight. Are you coming?

Should be amusin', if nothing else.

I can't get out. All the wall openings are closed.

No, not all of them.

Up there. A clear hole is partly open. You can get out through there.

Shake your tail, little one. We mustn't miss this.

Good jump. You just have to work on the landing.

Come on. The night won't wait.

What will she be like?

Who knows? Not this cat.

Well met, fellow night-threaders.

Hello. We're going to see her.

Me too.

Although, I can't see much point to it.

Then why are you here?

Hmm.

Curiosity, perhaps.

I want to hear what she has to say.

So do we all, child. So do we all.

Where is she?

Sisters, brothers, good hunting.

Some of you have traveled far to hear my message today.

Left your warm, comfortable places, and I hope when I have finished,

you will all share my dream.

I was not always as you see me today.

Once, like many of you, I lived in their world.

And, like you, I fooled myself.

Oh, they fed me and gave me comfort. They served me.

All they asked in return was my affection.

No price at all, really.

He was strong, and fast.

His claws and teeth were sharp as winter.

He was my choice of lover.

I never saw him again, but I did not forget him.

I didn't remember my own mother, but I vowed I would be different.

I would teach them how to wash, how to stalk silently, how to hunt.

You knew she was in heat.

Why didn't you keep her inside?

I think they're kind of cute.

Cute? She's a pure-bred registered blue point.

These are half-breeds. They're not worth anything.

- What are you gonna do with them? - Don't worry.

I'll take care of it.

Paul!

I felt them,

from afar, in the dark, as the cold water took them.

Felt them thrash and claw sightlessly.

Felt them call to me in their fear.

And then... they were gone.

For God's sake, it's not as if she understands.

I mean, look at her. She's probably relieved.

Who'd want four screaming brats around?

You're probably right.

I just feel guilty.

I knew then that I had lied to myself.

That we were subordinate.

While we lived with humanity, we could not call ourselves free.

And so, I prayed.

I prayed to the darkness, to the night.

I prayed to the King of Cats,

he who walks amongst us, and we do not know him.

And... I dreamed.

Why have you come here, little cat? To the heart of The Dreaming?

There is nothing here for you.

I have come for justice.

For revelation. For wisdom.

Justice is a delusion.

And wisdom has no place here either.

But revelation... that is the province of Dream,

if your heart is strong and you are not afraid.

I am afraid of nothing.

In the mountain there is a cave. You'll find him there.

But the way is hard.

A little cat could come to much harm, if she strays from the path.

Cats walk their own paths.

I walked through the Wood of Ghosts, where the dead and lost whispered to me.

I heard my children calling me.

But I walked forward.

I walked through the Cold Places,

where every step was pain, every movement torment.

I walked through the Wetness that numbed my paws, drenched my fur.

But still, I walked forward.

I walked through the Darkness, through the void,

where everything was sucked from me.

Everything that makes me what I am.

And even when I no longer knew why, I walked forward.

After a time, myself returned to me, and I found myself at the mountain.

I have come to see the Cat of Dreams.

Hmm.

Why should we let you in?

Why should he be disturbed for one such as you?

A small mouthful of fur and bone. Barely a cat.

I've come too far to be turned away.

I will state my business to the one I came to see and only to him.

I am a cat. I keep my own counsel.

Enter then, proud cat.

But be warned.

Dreams have a price.

And I walked on.

I am here.

And who are you?

A cat. A walker in the night places.

A dead crow sent me here for revelation.

I want to know why could they take my children from me?

Why do we live as we do?

I don't understand.

The cat may look at a king. Or so they say.

Look into my eyes then, little sister. Look into my eyes.

And in his eyes, I saw everything.

I saw the truth. Our truth.

And it transcended anything I had imagined.

Many, many seasons ago, cats truly ruled this world.

We were larger then. Everything made for us.

Humans were tiny creatures. No larger than we are now.

They would groom us, feed us.

When the moon shone full, we would hunt them.

For they were more delightful to catch than even birds.

The joy of those days I saw in his eyes,

the game of cat and man.

And then...

...one of the humans rose amongst them,

inspired by a dream he told them.

Dreams shape the world.

Dreams create the world anew every night.

Do not dream the world the way it is now.

Dream of a new world.

A world where we are no longer hunted, no longer prey.

A world we rule.

If enough of us dream it, it will happen. Dreams shape the world.

Word spread amongst the humans, but for a while nothing happened.

But then one night, enough of them dreamed.

It wasn't many, a thousand perhaps, no more.

They dreamed.

And the next day, things changed.

We were prey to them, to dogs, their metal machines.

We were tiny, and they were huge.

So, they changed the world? Made it like it is now?

Not exactly.

They dreamed the world, so it was always the way it is now.

There was never a world where cats reigned.

They changed it from beginning of all things to the end of time.

It was ever thus.

Do you understand now?

Yes. Yes, I do.

Then you know what your task must be.

The burden you must bear.

Are you strong enough?

Yes, I...

I hope so.

Then wake, child. With my blessing.

You see,

I had seen the soft underbelly of what he had shown me.

I left that night to spread the good news.

And now I travel from place to place.

I have preached to feral cats in empty places,

shouting my message to the stars.

I have whispered it to cats in alleyways.

And wherever I have gone, my message is the same.

Dream it.

If enough of us dream, a bare thousand, we can dream a world where no cat suffers,

where no kittens die, cold and alone.

Where all cats are queens and kings of creation.

That is my message.

And I shall keep moving, repeating it until I die

or until a thousand cats hear my words and believe them and dream.

And we come again... to paradise.

Mistress?

I believe.

Then there is hope, child.

Well, she was amusing at least. I'll say that for her.

Do you think it will happen like she said?

I'd like to see anyone, prophet, God or king,

persuade a thousand cats to do anything at the same time.

The sun will rise soon.

Let's get you home, little one.

Oh, look, she's still asleep.

I think she's dreaming.

I wonder what cats dream about.

The way she's twitching, she's probably hunting something.

Oh, look at her. Isn't that cute?

It is. It's really cute.

You can't force a character to do something

just because it's easier for you as a writer.

The character has to come first.

Everything else follows.

Every plot twist, every line of dialogue.

Every... fraught, meaningful silence.

Any questions?

Yeah.

Could you tell us a bit about your process?

Uh, do you have any advice for those of us who are just starting out

and finding it difficult to not hate every single thing I write?

Uh...

I am sad to report that I've been doing this for a very long time, and...

it doesn't get any easier.