8 Chapter 8-Land of Nod Cold Mountain

Why did he swallow that pill anyway? Sean couldn't even fathom it, but this place was amazingly wonderful, a little scary, but hell, he could manage this. After all, he was Sean David Walton, and nothing scared him anymore, not even death himself.

Walking past her, Sean noticed something familiar. This place was quiet, too quiet even for his liking. Furthermore, the cold, chilling winter wind was foreign to his senses.He wondered if these simple experiences were based on his reality or a mass scale of his consciousness. Or maybe fate was trying to play with him.

After all, Sean was not exactly a popular man in London. Yes, he was rich and powerful, but he had fewer friends and acquaintances, and he was not a good man, he admitted willingly, which maybe this experience was the result of his ability to mock the reality of life.

For a change, if this was a joke made in heaven, then it's on him altogether.

Sean thought to himself. He had no one to blame. Aside from the pill he took earlier before going to bed, this was entirely his fault. He trusted his guts so much that he was willing to bet on his life with it, and yet here he was.

Staring at her blankly and he was now gradually used to the 'dream-state-of-his-mind' that this empty magical winter land appeared to him all too normal. He no longer thought more of it. Instead, he had directed his attention towards the woman in front.

"So if this is the Land of Nod, is it possible to have our reasoning intact?" he asked her blankly.

"I don't know Sean, can I call you that? Mr. Walton is a bit too formal, and for your sake, I'm confused as well. And I don't know what will happen now; that you are here. " She responded with an exaggerated sigh.

"Normally, I'd just look into the skies and be alone with my thoughts until I finally succumbed and returned to the real world,"

"Yes, you can call me Sean...That's it? Nothing out of the ordinary, or maybe you know, entrancing? Like that of a smoke up in the mountains? " Sean pointed out the mountain that may look so familiar to him, yet he wasn't complaining. This cold terrain was amazing. It was as if there was a feeling passing between each living thing, a bond that was evident and blended, a melody beyond the range of his ears but available for his heart. And so, as each leaf moves in the wind, a part of him does also.

"No! Nothing of that sort, "she responded, uninterested, and yawning. This was new. How could she be so sleepy in her dream? This was way more confusing than she thought.

He stopped feeling embarrassed, then turned his head towards her.

"Go on, I won't judge." She smiles teasingly. I smiled. I smiled. He couldn't for the love of God recall where or when he saw it first, and not at their first meeting earlier in the street or the office.

"I was wondering if this was the land of dreams."

"The Land of Nod," she drastically corrected herself. How could he forget it so easily?

"Fine, if this is the Land Of Nod with the quote on both sides, then is the patterning of our emotions and thoughts relevant to what happens in our sleep in the real world?"

Catherine sneered but was amused by that question and gladly answered it back.

Sean, I'm happy to hear that you finally asked the right question, which was fascinating by the way! Truth be told, I thought you wouldn't ask me that. " She happily pondered if he would remember this conversation in the real world.

"Why don't you explain it to me then?" He exclaimed. The idea of her being alone with him in a non-working environment doesn't appeal to him at all. She was different here, out of the ordinary even. She was something else.

Why such a hurry? After all, we're here in the Land of Nod, where time is irrelevant! "

"Can you stop calling it the Land of Nod? Why not Dreamland? It sounds better. "

"Land of Nod sounds fancier, so I'll call it whatever I want" This man is beyond annoying.

"Did you honestly think I care?" He stood and stretched, his chest muscles flexing beneath his shirt.

"No, grandpa!" She smirked, warming to the idea of her hands running through those muscles. She peeked down at her hands, trying to resist the urge to use her ability,... ability to slap someone's butt cheek. She amused herself by peeking at his behind. Not bad, not bad at all. She then quickly looked away, as she did not want that erotic image in her head to linger. After all, he was still her boss.

"Yes! But not to get your pants excited, "she smiled.

Okay, let me tell you something. In this land, I can do anything out of the ordinary. Don't ask! "I don't trust you enough yet, so here lies my expertise, and please bear with me," she explained.

Catherine wouldn't tell him everything just yet, as this was all new to her. Sean, being here was confusing to her. Nevertheless, she needs to be reasonable.

"Fine, this is your world or your Land of Nod, whichever you prefer, but do tell me are we going into that smokey mountain peak or not?" Sean asked without looking at her, pointing to that high mountain behind them.

"Are you out of your mind? I've never been there. That mountain looks scary and ancient. " She quirked. She was not crazy enough to try to venture there. Why would she? She was used to staying here, waiting for something or someone. Why was she always here, by the way? She couldn't even remember.

"How about we take a seat for a minute or so, and then we'll decide what to do next?"She trailed off, "besides, I'm so cold right now I could use a little fire."

"Ancient? What is it supposed to mean? " Sean asked. He made a mental note to remember this all later, as after what happened here, he might believe anything this woman said, even though everything here was unexplainable.

"Old, eerie, ancient!Wait, by any chance, do you have a match or lighter perhaps? " She asked.