The Daydreamer Project: Teatime

> Nope! Nope, not at all. Nope. Nope.

>make puns on bogey, that'll show them!

>make puns on bogey, that'll show them!

Seconding puns are great. How many puns can you make? It's a challenge.

>Might want to do a doubletake of this memory.
Was there originally a bogey here?
A particularly smart bogey (by bogey standards) might be trying to sneak in when you have your guard down.

>make puns on bogey, that'll show them!

Seconding puns are great. How many puns can you make? It's a challenge.

Remember a bogey is only one hit away from a par

>Oh, no of course you aren't scared of them. You're utterly terrified of them. You're doomed...

>make puns on bogey, that'll show them!

Seconding puns are great. How many puns can you make? It's a challenge.

Bogey, more like.... booger.

>Bogeyman? More like Bogusman!

So, what you got some kinda tight schedule? People to spook, places to be? Can't even wait a couple minutes, huh?

>make puns on bogey, that'll show them!

Seconding puns are great. How many puns can you make? It's a challenge.

Bogey, more like.... booger.

You've learned by now fear is pointless, especially if there's a bogey stuck up your nose.

You frantically pull your hand away from the board and fall back behind your blankets, but the Bogey has already taken hold. The whisper that guided your fingers to the letters on the board quickly turns from a subtle murmur to a chorus of dreadful moans;

R E A D Y - F O R - B E D

Kay looks up from the board in confusion. You try to explain yourself, but all you manage is a meek whimper. The Bogeys of Dreamland find their way into every kid's head now and again, poisoning their mind with thoughts of monsters lurking in the closet. Kids your age aren't supposed to be afraid of Bogey Thoughts anymore - they're supposed to take for granted that Bogeys are all in their head - but it's different when you're a dreamer and the nightmares they make might really hurt your friends who live in Dreamland.

Kay's confusion turns to frustration as she watches you shrink into yourself. She must think you're awfully dumb, ruining the game by getting scared of baby monsters. But then, that frustration turns towards the board itself -



"Bogey?" she shouts. "Yeah, well, I got a bogey right here for you!"



"Bleeeeeeh!"



There's a sudden moment of reprieve - the nightmare noises stop. You chuckle in spite of your apprehensions, less at the joke and more at the Bogey's reaction. Bogey's need fear to stick around, after all, and this mockery leaves it stunned. Kay takes your reaction as a sign not to let up.

"You'd think a Bogey would be used to getting picked on!"

You see an opening as the Bogey audibly reels: "Well, uhhh.... I guess it's 'snot!"

She snorts. "Hey, Good one!"

"Hankie very much!"

The Bogey practically screams.

"Let's bogey!"

"Yeah, let's bogey down!"



The two of you fall into a fit of giggles, exchanging crude jokes at the Bogey's expense so quickly it never gets a chance to sneak a "boo" in edgewise.

"You think it nose it's not scary?" Kay asks.

"I'm not running out of jokes any time soon!"

"PffftAHAHAHA!"

Eventually your antics starve it of fear. The more that carries on, the less you find yourself paying attention to any Bogey Thoughts you were having. You don't even take notice when the Bogey itself finaly gives up and leaves - there just comes a point after enough sick burns have been laid down where you realize you're not hearing any noises anymore. You keep it up anyway, just to make sure, and the two of you laugh and laugh about monsters and their boogers until your sides hurt and you're both gasping for air.



Then during a lull in the excitement, once it's become very evident that the scare has passed, Kay pulls you into a hug and squeezes you tightly.

"Thank you," you whisper.

"It's fine," she says. "If you gotta be alone when you're dreaming, then I need to make double-sure the Nightmares don't bother you when we're awake."

























Once again, you open your eyes to find your vision already adjusted to the new lighting.

Looks like the Professor has stepped out for a moment, but the brand new candle he left behind now burns brightly beside the remains of an old candle on the table.

The door out has been opened.

---

>Well, that's terribly tempting. Maybe light a candle or two in here before you go, I think those kept the various unpleasantries out?
>Oh, and take the lit candle with you of course.

>Time to leave

>You should carry the jovial mood of the memory over to the now. Place one of the burnt out candles on your head, oh what a hearty guffaw he will have when he gets back.

>You should carry the jovial mood of the memory over to the now. Place one of the burnt out candles on your head, oh what a hearty guffaw he will have when he gets back.

The overwhelming sensations of nostalgia leave you feeling downright giddy. You feel an urge to have a bit of off-color fun with the Professor's decor, but you decide against it; he's always insisted that the placement of the candles was very deliberate. The melted wax seals up the marks made by the cat trying to get through.

Fortunately, it would seem the Professor left you plenty of candles to light, and that's the most fun part of candles anyway. You hop about the room, reigniting the candles along the wall and even getting the ones on the end of the chandelier that you can only reach when you perch yourself precariously atop the stool on your tippy-toes.

You would have to stand on the Professor's chair to reach the ones on the other side, and Professor Goodnight gets grumpy when other people sit in his chair, so you leave those ones for him to get later.

>Time to leave



Professor Goodnight left the Door to Anywhere open for you. It goes anywhere he wants it to go in the tower for easy travel. Usually you ask him to send you somewhere, but the fact that he's left the door open for you means he must have something particular in mind.



...Like a trip to the tea room! What a pleasant surprise!

"Ah, there she is!" comes a voice as soft as silk.

"Took her time, for sure!" comes a voice as sharp as a hiss.

"Don't be rude, Doctor!" says little Missi, your moth friend. "Today's our Lynette's big day!"

"Exactly," sighs Dr. Strangeglove, your snake friend. "And the Professor's already taken up so much of it! I scheduled this rest's events perfectly, and none of you are making good time."

The professor chuckles. "Come sit, Lynette! We have a seat ready."

Little Missi waves you over. "It's been much too long since you've visited! We haven't seen you since at least two - no, maybe three nights ago!"

"That's why I insisted on keeping to the schedule!" cries Strangeglove. "Three nights is far too much time to allow etiquette to degrade. There was supposed to be a rehearsal first - why, I bet she's forgotten even the first rule of tea parties!"


The silly old snake is being a worrywart, as always: of course you remember the rules!
Rules like...



---

Offer a token of your appreciation to the host!

I believe the very first thing to do is bow or curtsie as appropriate, followed by a polite request to take a seat.

Edit: Oh apologies. My mistake, technically there are a few other steps before this, but given you lack a coat/hat/umbrella/parasol on your person, we can simply skip those.

Edit: Oh apologies. My mistake, technically there are a few other steps before this, but given you lack a coat/hat/umbrella/parasol on your person, we can simply skip those.

What of the candle? Should we not be setting it down in an appropriate place now that we aren't going places?

Alas, my knowledge of candles in relation to proper tea party etiquette is lacking.

It's something of an odd situation, as there is a lack of servants to hand it to take care of, and given it's flammable nature placing it under the table isn't quite appropriate either.

Well, this is a tea party among friends so setting it on the small table off to the side is probably fine. Might ask for a spare trivet first to set it on.

>Very similar to the tea parties in Wonderland. Songs, riddles with no answers, and not-birthday wishes abound. Everyone must also switch places every so often.

>Last to arrive gets to pour the tea!

>Very similar to the tea parties in Wonderland. Songs, riddles with no answers, and not-birthday wishes abound. Everyone must also switch places every so often.

That's actually only one specific tea party in Wonderland. The Mad Hatter and the March Hare were good friends with Time, but they were accused of killing Time by the Red Queen, and Time overheard. Naturally, Time got very mad with them, and it is now only ever be six o'clock for the two of them--the start of tea time. Their setup is so that they can continuously be serving tea and biscuits. The reason they change chairs so often is because they run out of tea to serve at the current seats. As this table doesn't have a million teapots on it, I think we can assume that this tea party is not endless.

Offer a token of your appreciation to the host!

Set Down the candle at the small table

You give a small chuckle to the old snake's antics. If you want to put his fears at ease, you'll need to go though the process carefully. Lucky you, this is a well practiced procedure at this point.

To begin, you take the first step of placing your candlestick at the table by the corner. Its dim glow and sweet fragrance make quick work of setting the perfect tea party ambiance.

Dr. Strangeglove gives an approving nod. "Yes, so far, so good..."

Bow or curtsie as appropriate, followed by a polite request to take a seat.

Next, you typically make a call between a bow and curtsy depending on your mood and attire. You're lacking in the sort of dress to make a curtsy seem dignified (as opposed to the bold but oft-awkward "curtsy-in-pants pantomime"), so you opt for a deep bow instead.

"Good form," Strangeglove notes. "Adequate poise."

"She has excellent poise," Professor Goodnight interjects.

"She learned it from me," Missi proudly adds.

Strangeglove shakes his head. "As I said, adequate."

"You don't see anyone critiquing your posture," Says Missi.

"Especially considering that you never sit up straight." Says the Professor.

Swallowing hard, Dr. Strangeglove presses his back up against his chair to forcibly correct for his slouch. "Bah. Nothing wrong with my posture."

"Might I be seated, Professor?" you ask, still in the middle of a bow.

The Professor double-takes in your direction and motions towards the sole vacancy at the table. "Oh, ehm, of course, dear!"

Last to arrive gets to pour the tea!

And lastly, of course, being the last guest means the responsibility for pouring a round of tea for everyone to enjoy. Your seat at the table has never changed over the years, even as you've grown - you find yourself down low to the ground with your knees nearly up to your chin as you sit. As soon as you've maneuvered yourself into a mostly comfortable position, Missi smiles and passes the teapot your way. It smells strongly of peppermint.

"Little Lynette's first day of work!" Missi hums. "I can remember when we were seeing you off to kindergarten! Ooh, aren't you excited?"

"Or Nervous?" Strangeglove adds. "Apprehensive? Hesitant? Anxious, perhaps?"

You shoot him a silencing glance.
"I think Ill do fine," you say. "I mean, at the end of the day they're paying me to sleep on the job."

The Professor lets out his most hearty laughter - which sounds half like a shout and half like a hoot, but most certainly nothing like a regular laugh should. "Ah, Lynette. I can only hope you stay so sharp in Dreamland beyond."

Missi sighs wistfully. "Oh, I've been dreading this day. I'd suppose, my dear, if you have any pressing questions about what you might deal with out in there in Dreamland... this would be the time to ask."

---

>Other than nightmares, are there any sort of dangers one must watch out for in the Dreamlands?

>And on the reverse, is there any danger my presence would cause in the dreams of others?