The conversation flowed so well among the three that, when they realized, it was past 5 in the morning and the attendant’s shift was close to its end.

- Do you think I can listen to this last story?

- I’ll try to be brief. - The ancient moved her hand with the intention to roll another smoke, but hesitated for a moment. - Apart from calming my anxiety, this cigarette is also magic and its smoke anesthetizes the senses of whom inhales it. - The man was relieved in knowing that he wasn’t hallucinating when he felt inebriated, previously.. - A long time ago, a shaman presented me the secret of this herb. I wasn’t the only entity from another world that decided to incarnate in the Material World… Many other entities also did that and some, just like me, were betrayed and subdued.  Further than the tapir, I was one of the few to survive… - She regretted.

- By any chance this shaman… - But before being able to finish her sentence, the attendant was interrupted by Yala.

- She was a mortal different from any other I’ve met. A direct descendant of one of the Web’s most powerful figures, she lived more than four hundred years hidden in the depths of an ancient forest, unfortunately, now devastated by you.

- And who are her “parents”? If we can even call it that way… - Questioned the guy.

- Whilst I’m the daughter of Movement, she’s Death’s grandchild, Dream’s daughter with a mortal. - The witch said casually. - It was thanks to her that I was able to find out the whereabouts of the runes, apart from learning some secrets about Death.

- I thought that Dream was a child of Movement, too - muttered the guy. - Maybe because you guide mortals across worlds, I deduced that.

- The Kingdom of Dreams is a place of rebirth and renovation, therefore its link with Death. Nevertheless, the paths that connect the worlds are ruled by Movement and its children, who generally wander through dimensions and, sometimes, remain there, living among mortals.

- Like your case. - Stated the young lady.

- And like Dream’s case. Until this day, nobody knows the reason of his coming here… But he came before me and it was thanks to his daughter that I didn’t die after waking up from my prison deep in the sea.

“ Like I said before, after the energy explosion that set me free, I wondered some time without knowing where to go or what to do, until she found me, nearly dead. I had regained a small part of my powers, but it didn’t mean I was completely healed. This shaman took care of my wounds and helped by body coming back to its human form and, when I recovered, she told her story and who she was.

“ I knew that Dream had visited these lands, but knowing about the existence of a daughter was something unexpected.”

- Can’t you talk to Dream while you’re asleep? Asked the attendant.

- I don’t sleep like you, darlings. And the truth is, while I don’t recover my runes, I won’t return to my world. It was a promise I made to myself. 

- So you have avoided Dream all these centuries? - That didn’t seem right to the guy. Why avoiding someone that could help?

- Coming here was my decision and so is dealing with its consequences. - While speaking, Yala rolled a cigarette. - It’s beyond the matter of accepting his help or not, so much that, when I discovered that the shaman was his daughter and Death’s heir, I had no doubts about accepting her help. - She snapped her fingers and  blue spark jumped to the tip of the cigarette, lighting it up. - There’s a difference between proud and maturity, children.

“The shaman was the owner of a remarkable kindness, the type that only a person that overcame a lot of suffering has. Silent, she communicated only through images. Later, I found out that her silence hadn’t been a choice: as a child, her tribe found out about her unique ability to cure and prolonging life. Scared, they killed her mother and cut off her tongue, once that was against their people’s beliefs. Her life was spared because, once she was very young, the tribe’s shaman believed he could still save her, but she couldn’t take the pressure, the mistreatment and humiliation any longer and, in the dead of night, ran away forever, staying in exile until saving me.”

- But if she lived isolated, how did she find you and how did she know about the runes? - Asked the attendant, with an already tired voice. The sun showed its first signals and, suddenly, sleeping seemed like a more attractive idea than following that conversation, interesting as it was.

- She already observed me since the first day I came to this world. People that are sensible to magic perceive a massive quantity of power like me from kilometers away… - The foreigner from the World of Dreams cleared her throat after inhaling the herbs. - I’m sorry, my body is still mortal and pays the price of aging. Well, well - she turned her tea cup and helped herself with some more - , when I still had my horns, this kind of logic wasn’t necessary but, after spending so much time disconnected from everything… a new “bridge” was needed once the old one, my horns, was destroyed.

“When the Daughter of Dream saw that I was strong enough, she taught me that, without my horns, I couldn’t use magic freely as I was used to: there would be a limit.”

- And does this limit still exist today? The guy wanted to know.

- Yes, but it’s a lot bigger now than at that time. Only when I got this rune - and positioned her hand over her chest -, this kind of travel that we did today became something possible to me. I learned how to induce a state of conscience, something similar to sleeping, but a lot deeper, in which I can, for a certain period of time, visit the Web and recharge my energies.

“As I’d improve myself, I reached similar doings from the time I still had my horns, but on a much smaller scale. If before I was able to interfere on the perception of reality of a crowd without any risk for me, now, there was a price to pay in order to do the same to a small group of people. Happily, this changed. And it was with the shaman’s help that I discovered the whereabouts of my runes, eight lost in other worlds and two, here.”

- You said that one of them was destroyed… How did you find out about it? - Remembered the guy.

- Energy traces. Until today, I have no idea of how it was shattered, but I suspect that it was the same group that failed in saving me.

- And this rune that you carry with you? - The attendant wanted to know. - How did you get them?

- Do you remember the man that betrayed me? - They nodded, affirmatively. - I found it in the ruins of what once was the kingdom built by him, with my power. By the memories kept in the rune, I found out that he elected nine men of his trust, gifting each one with one minor rune, leaving this - she showed the rune -, the biggest, to himself. Apparently, some left the kingdom and allied with the enemies, others exiled themselves and some simply vanished. Alone, he wasn’t able to win over his adversaries and perished. - She inhaled her cigarette deeply. - Magic, if not used with wisdom, can have unpredictable effects and none of these mortals could have been able to control so much power. Both me and the Daughter of Dream believe that, over time, most of those rune carriers went crazy…

“It was time for us to part, after all, I couldn’t take her with me in my journey, she had her own life and had already done so much for me. We became friends and, eventually, we communicated through the Web. In one of these contacts, she said something she had discovered in a dream sent by her father: that, maybe, the runes had ‘awakened a will of their own” and used her carriers to return to the Web, but, when they arrived there, they weren’t ‘pieces of me’ anymore, but a hybrid between mortal and magic.”

  The guy swallowed. The smallest chance of that happening was terrorizing, because it was like “little Yalas without a conscience wandering lost through the Web”. He was uneasy and the witch noticed that.

- But that’s only speculation, stay calm. After all, there’s also a chance, being optimistic and bordering stupidity, that some of these men have in fact learned how to use the magic and have left this world before bigger disasters happen.

  The witch inhaled her cigarette and, shortly after, put it out in the ashtray, The two observed her movements, waiting for her to continue, but all Yala did was search in her bag and revealing a tiny flask, with a blue powder. She lifted it against the light and its glow intensified. 

- This is the rest of the other rune. Unfortunately, I couldn’t restore it, but there’s still a lot of magic in it. - With a brief gesture, she created a fine necklace it, made of a translucent thread. The girl almost doubted about there really being a thread on it. Yala stretched out her hand in the boy’s direction.

- I… I couldn’t accept it. - He denied, agitated. - It’s too valuable, too powerful. What if I get corrupted by it?

- Corrupting oneself is a decision that is up to you only. - The waitress interrupted. - It has to do with what is a priority to you, you know?

- I couldn’t explain it better - Said Yala, proud.. - C’mon, take it. It’s not time for pretending christian humility, if I chose you it’s because I know what you’re capable of. 

  Hesitating, the boy reached the flask and put the little chain over his neck. Unlike he imagined, he didn’t feel anything on his body or around himself.

- In order to use this rune’s power, you have to ingest it. - The guy stared at her, incredulous. - I warned that magic acts unpredictably. A long time ago, the pharaohs would ingest small quantities of poison, daily, to develop resistance. You’ll do the same, but with magic.

- This seems a little absurd. How will I ingest it? Sniffing? - Yala laughed.

- Unless you wanna get lost forever in the Web, young man! - She drummed her fingers on her already empty cup. - Tea. A pinch, everyday, will be enough. And always before sleeping, after all, your conscience is more powerful when you are asleep.

  And before the guy was able to answer, the old witch got up from her chair, stretching her arms up and making her whole column crack. Some customers were already waiting at the counter, in order to be attended, and the morning shift waiter had already arrived, for the attendant’s happiness. 

- What now? - The young lady asked.

- My time has come. - She searched in her bag a little more and delivered a blank notebook to the young lady. - Write your dreams, exercise your mind. You are as capable as anyone else.

- I don’t like this tone of goodbye. - The guy had crossed his arms, still sitting in his chair.  - When someone with answers to my questions come up in my life, they soon have to leave.

- Stop acting like a mediocre human. If I left the Kingdom of Dreams to learn how to feel, you can get out of your bed and your comfort in order to learn too. - Yala organized herself and started her walk towards the exit of the cafeteria.

- Are you leaving by foot? - The guy seemed perplexed.

- Did you want me to leave flying through the window?

- For a powerful creature, came from the Kingdom of Dreams, I was expecting a more dramatic exit, with magic, maybe. - He said in a provoking tone. The attendant laughed with the possibility of magic dust flying through the establishment and the clients, scared, asking themselves where the glow was coming from.

  While the two young ones were distracted, talking about how it would be the best and most theatrical departure from the witch, she was already on the sidewalk. She stopped for an instant, with closed eyes, feeling the light of the morning sun. She liked that sensation and asked herself whether the next world would have a pleasant sun. A fresh breeze started to blow, gently swinging her hair. She followed the wind with her already tired steps, observing those young humans still inside the cafeteria, talking full of enthusiasm.

- It’s always easy to forget the past when the present brings us joy. I did just like you advised me to, Dream, and for the first time in a long time, I forgot about all my pain and lived the now. Her voice sounded choked. - Look at me, with my eyes watering - she smiled at the wind. - You came to take me, right? - And a powerful  breath of air invaded the cafeteria, calling the attention of all people, interrupting the conversation between the attendant and the guy.

  Both ran to the street, but there was no sign of Yala. They stared at the air for a long period of time, while blue sparks twinkled as the sunbeams crossed the atmosphere. The young lady got close to the man and, lading her hand on his shoulder, muttered:

- She’s gone.