The Daydreamer Project: Teatime

>Board Games?

"Uhmm... maybe there's a board game we could play?"

There is a sudden flash of inspiration on Kay's face as she pauses the game and hops to her feet.
"You know what!" she says. "I do have a board game. Remember last year when I joined that local coven of neopagan techno-druids to try an' make my mom mad?"

"Sort of? That was the week you got sent to the principal's for wearing the deer skull in Mrs. Smirsich's class, right?"

"Yep! And I still have the spirit board! We're both just the right amount of sleep deprived for it to give us some laughs."

"Wait, your mom actually bought you the spirit board?"



Kay chuckles. "She went to her church group when I said I wanted one, and they told her to buy the family-friendly home game version. You know, with the spinners and stuff? It should still work basically the same way."



You sit by quietly while Kay reads over the rules.

"The goal of "Super Spirit Time" is to be the first player to successfully contact a spirit from beyond the realms of mortal ken and compel it to answer a question. To begin... place the 'tarot tokens' on the play mat?"

She glances over to the dozens of tiny plastic pieces inside the box. "Uh, starting on the designated tiles... shuffle the 'tarot token reveal' deck and distribute three cards... each player reveals a card and rolls the dice, moving their designated tarot token in either direction... uhh... the planchette can only be moved to spaces occupied by a tarot token whose corresponding card is in a player's hand...?

She looks over at you. "This sounds needlessly complicated. Is this really how the druids do it?"

You shrug.



As Kay continues to skim the game's instructions, a thought dawns on you - you don't actually need a community-center approved occult tool to talk to someone "otherworldly."

You know people from another world.

You are a dreamer, after all.

You do have imaginary friends.

Kay's the only other kid your age you've ever talked about the Professor with before, and she doesn't think you're too weird... you think.

Professor Goodnight says that you shouldn't leave your dream when you're sleeping, but that's not the only way for someone else to meet him. With the right mood, a spark of inspiration, and little bit of imagination, you suppose you could introduce him to Kay. In fact, you have plenty of friends in dreamland - The Professor, Little Missi, Strangeglove, Bopper - you could bring any of them out for a little bit.

But should you?

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