Sandman 4.0(Closed for Sinister Spiders)

Jo's dreamself smiled, and for once she agreed with what her subconscious did. She looked at Don, eyes struggling to focus, and found once more that he was still as visually pleasing as she had thought. She was glad about that; in the constantly shifting dreamscape he was a point of stability. She tried to state her name, but found her lips wouldn't move. Her dreamself, it appeared, was more than happy to sit and stare at him adoringly. She decided once more to go along with what her dream self was comfortable with.

"The time theives," Jo began, "Jo is not one of them." Her dreamself gave a flirtatious giggle and Jo only wished she could bury her head in the sand they were sitting on. If she wasn't dreaming this would have to be the most embarrassing moment in her life.
 
Don

"No Jo isn't one of them." Don played along.

"So would Jo like to..." Don stopped suddenly. He sensed them at the edge of the dream world. It wasn't often but on occasion they grouped up to increase their chance of catching him.

Don placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"You need to wake up Jo, and soon. I will see you again, I promise."

She still had that dreamy stare but he was certain that her real self heard him. Before her dream-self could pretend to contemplate his command Don quickly stood up and dashed away. He adjusted the gravity to allow him travel to the exit much faster.

They were closing in already several of his escape routes were being blocked. Don was whizzing across the sky now toward his destination, another hunter was on an intercept course and was closing fast. Don contemplated manipulating the environment to hamper his efforts but he didn't need to; the world around them was beginning to dissolve. Jo was waking up.

Don doubled his efforts now, there was need for any subtlety anymore. DNet didn't bother shutting down dreams that were already on their way out. Just as the last vestige of Jo's imagination collapse Don squeezed through.
 
Jo

Jo was far too pleased that Don had managed to understand her cryptic answer to his question. Her amusement was short lived though, as Don's expression changed and he told her he had to wake up. Once more she got an overwhelming feeling that he was real. No dream cosntruct would bother to tell her that. She looked around to see what the problem was, but when her gaze returned to find him he was gone. Jo frowed as her dreamself got to her feet and started to frolic around in an unexpected sense of gravity. Then a loud buzzing interrupted her dream and she felt herself being reeled out of the dreamnet altogether.

~*~

This time, Jo remembered the website that Don had given her. She had debated with herself all day at work, trying to figure out how silly she would feel if she actually did take a look at it. Her overly happy conversations with Peggy about Sandman were tainted by the oddness of her most recent dream and a desire to see if it was all real.

That night when she got home she was no longer able to resist temptation. Instead, she logged on to her console and did some research. The website, it turns out, was more of a journal than anything else. It was written by a man named Donald Anderson and read as a recount of his adventures with Sandman. He started all the way back with the first version, the original Sandman. Jo tried to skip ahead to 4.0, but the site wouldn't let her skip. According to the file, she had to continue reading it (and the console would use retina scan technology to confirm this). So she settled in for the night with a bowl of ice cream and read.

Normally a dreamer was a mere passenger. Indeed, this was what had been advertised everywhere. Even Jo's searched for controlling dreams had come up (oddly) and completely dry. Don's journal, however, told a different story. Over the course of weeks Don was able to make suggestions to his dreamself, small persuasive gestures that made his dreamself perk up a bit and listen. It was like Jo's attempts in a way, her use of her dreamself's interests and direction to sneak in something here and there. He had found that after making enough suggestions, he found that he was no longer only suggesting, but actually controlling. It was small at first, a forced smile, a stroke of a hand, being able to look in a different direction. It was everything JO had been wondering about, and judging on the amount of chapters in the journal there would be much more to read about.

By the time Jo went to bed she was exhilarated and exhausted all in one. She had to know more.

~*~

Over the next couple of nights Jo continued to read and then sleep normally without Sandman. From her research she had gathered that Don had the most success practising his little suggestions (and subsequently greater control) in the original version of the software, or any version where he wasn't logged into one of their social servers. Jo, being someone who knew next to zero about software, was unable to figure out how to acheive this on her own device, so she had to seek help.

"Hey Dick," Jo said, sidling up to the man on her ward rounds. Dick turned, grinning at her widely.

"How are you Jo?" He asked, putting his own data pad down and leaning against the nearby wall.

"Great actually... I have a question for you..." Dick's eyebrows rose in interest, his smile dashing. "About Sandman."

"Oh," Dick said, visibly cresftallen. "And here I was thinking you'd come to ask me out to dinner." He joked, though there was a look of disappointment there. Jo rolled her eyes.

"How can I get into Sandman but not log on to the social server?" She asked. He looked at her for a moment, considering his answers.

"It's a little complex to get the settings right," He said with a heavy sigh "But I tell you what, you invite me over to your place for dinner and I will set it up for you."

Jo's eyes widened. He was serious? His grin didn't falter, and in the end she just shrugged.

"Sure, why not? You busy tomorrow night?" She asked, he nodded "Okay, my place at six thirty, I'll send you my address," She said and she went back to work.

~*~

Jo hadn't known what to cook. She wasn't even sure what to call their dinner. Was it just a dinner? A date? She wasn't sure what to think of it at all. It wasn't that she didn't want to date Dick. He was kind of cute. But there was something about him... The other day when she had asked him about controlling actions in Sandman he had gotten a shuttered expression, one that had raised her shackles.

However, when he arrived he was a perfect gentleman. He even brought her flowers (which she then had to spend five minutes searching through her cupboards for a vase). She had served him a simple spaghetti with some red wine and had apple pie for dessert. Their conversation had been light and polite, but she could see he was trying to win her over with charming smiles and well timed winks. It was flattering, and Jo was sure she was blushing far more than she should be.

When dinner was finished Dick had made a point of meeting up to 'his end of the bargain'. Jo led him to her bedroom and handed him the wearable device. He looked it and shook his head, saying he needed the base station. That was on her bedside table, so when Dick sat on the edge of her bed to alter the setting she sat beside him, watching with interest so that she could do it herself later if need be.

"There you have it," Said Dick triumphantly, turning to her. He reached up, brushing a stray lock of her hair off her face before placing the wearable device on her. "All set for use."

Jo was just about to thank him when his lips pressed against hers. She jumped in surprise and went to pull away, but his hand came up to tangle with her hair and hold her close. His tongue delved into her mouth as she struggled to pull away from him. He held her tight though, and her mind screamed at the forced contact. When he pulled away he gave her a look of mock disappointment.

"Come on Jo," He said shaking his head, "Don't tell me that you really invited me here just to adjust the Sandman for you."

"Actually," Jo said, getting to her feet and stepping away from him. "That is precisely why I invited you here."

Dick laughed, getting to his feet and stepping towards her again. As she tried to step back she stumbled, two strong arms reached out to steady her and she was once more pulled into an unwanted kiss. This one was much quicker though.

"Well, as nice as this has been I get the sense I am not welcome here now. Maybe another time, yeah?" He said, patting her on the cheek and turning around. "Best not to tell anyone about that," he said, gesturing to the Sandman device, but Jo had a feeling he was talking about more than the fact that he had altered her log in settings.

~*~

For a whole week Jo practised on her own, away from the social servers. She was able to gain much better control of her dreamself there, the ability to change the actions that she was already undertaking and to gently guide the new ones. By the end of the week she had been able to tell herself to do plenty of things she wouldn't have been able to do before, and on some rare occasions she had even got a sense of feeling from her actions. She could feel the sand when she concentrated on it, get a muted taste of the food her dreamself was eating. She kept reading Don's journal too, and it seemed like her experiences lined up well with his. Reading his words made her want to see him again; the mysterious dream man of hers.

After a week Jo was satisfied enough with her progress to want to delve back into the social servers, with a strong hope to see Don again. Jo stumbled through the settings on her Sandman. She was so worried about messing something up on it that she almost considered seeking out Dick for help, but she had spent the last half week purposely avoiding him. She wasn't sure if he would actually stop next time they were alone. The thought frightened her.

Jo got ready for bed and put her newly configured device on, settling down and drifting off to sleep.

~*~

She was looking over his shoulder, the thing in his hand was blurry but she knew it was a sandman device. Then he turned, Dick, and reached out, putting the device on her. His hand brushed her cheek and her stomach fell. His lips slammed against her, his hand painfully gripping her hair as he pushed her back on the bed. The walls of her room fell away into blackness and all there was was her bed. When Dick finally let go of her, she tried to crawl away from him, but she was unable to escape. Her bed was an island now, a lonely craft sailing on black oblivion. She couldn't leave the bed, or she would become nothing, but nor could she remain on the bed with Dick stalking her, laughing at his sick game.

Then, he launched at her, landing atop her and pushing her down to the bed and resuming his kiss. She screamed into his mouth, her body naturally kicking and bucking in order to get him off.

The fear was so intense that it took Jo far too long to realise that this was a dream. By the time she did he had already removed some of her clothes, and the look in his eyes had gone from hungry to down right masochistic. Jo struggled to tell herself it wasn't real, to take control of her body. When she did it was small at first. A push against the grip on her wrist, a shift of her hips so that she was no longer beneath him. Slowly but surely she gained more autonomy with her body, until the point where they were both actively wrestling with each other, trying to make sure that they were not the ones to fall into the black surrounding the bed. Jo's fear was still there, lending Dick extra strength, and she was already exhausted. She didn't know how much longer she could keep the fight up for, but she had to try.
 
Don

Don was in trouble, his assailants were closer than they'd ever been before. They were also a lot more coordinated that before. It was like he'd accidentally let of a signal flare and every hunter in the DHub had seen it.

Don decided where his next jump would take him. Limbo.

Don couldn't remember when he'd discovered it but on one occasion while jumping between worlds he inadvertently jumped into dream limbo, it was the perfect place to go when trying to lose a tail. From what he could tell they were left over parts of dreams that hadn't been completely disconnected from the DHub.

He couldn't stay for long as these places were only temporary but it was usually enough to foil any pursuer. On this occasion it worked perfectly. Don emerged from limbo at the last possible moment, he checked his surroundings and once content he moved on.

Don drifted into the next world which happened to be a public restroom. There were several comical scenarios unfolding all around him; people desperately trying to open locked cubicles, others standing in front of urinals whilst being unable to conduct their business and overly dirty toilets that no human would even attempt to use.

The sad thing was that Don could barely even remember the feeling of going to the toilet, it seemed such a small thing but as demonstrated, it was a very integral part of being human, every dream-self that enter, no matter what their state was compelled to initiate in some kind of toilet activity. Just as Don turned toward the exit a large man bumped into him, at first Don thought nothing of it but he continued to block his path even as Don tried to maneuver around.

The man definitely wasn't a Dream-walker and the look in his eyes confirmed it, it wasn't until he spoke that Don put the pieces together.

"He will see you now. Follow the pink bunny." He stated flatly, then pushed past Don like he wasn't there to join his other compatriots in their toilet escapades. A dream-whisperer. The message couldn't be more vague even if it tried to be. Dream whisperers were capable of short and mostly one sided conversations but they usually made sense. Don decided he must be dreaming, which seemed ironic given is situation, or maybe his extended time in the DNet had finally taken its toll. Don turned back to the exit and spotted her in the corner of his eye. Her bright pink swimsuit, fluffy tail and ears made her stand out from the crowd and she didn't appear to be interested in using or failing to use the facilities. In fact it seemed at this time she was on her way out toward another exit on the other side.

Don regathered himself; he wasn’t going crazy. He also had no idea what was going to happen, it could be a trap, it could also be a lead for some much needed information. Don took a deep breath of stale toilet air and followed her out.

They entered what appeared to be a mountain top covered in snow. Dreams didn't replicate reality exactly so even though it should be freezing cold the temperature was very comfortable. It may have been intentional however as his female quarry was still dressed in her scantily clad beach wear. By now he was certain she was a Dream-walker but even as he closed the distance she appeared unaware of his existence.

Don decided to keep his distance, he still wasn't sure what he was getting himself into. They arrived at what looked to be a camp, the woman entered one of the tents and for the briefest moments, looked back at him before closing the flap behind her. It smelled like a trap, for unknown reasons he couldn't sense anything inside the tent including the mystery bunny that went in. Don's instinct told him to run, he'd already spent too long on this ice mountain, it was most definitely a persistent dream but the most interesting and possibly the most dangerous was he couldn't sense any exits. The size of a dream could span anything from a small cupboard to a whole country depending on the dreamer but they always had an exit and Don had always known where they were.

With no other choices Don readied himself and went inside.

What he saw was both expected and unexpected. As one might expect in reality it was in fact the inside of a snow expedition recreation tent, complete with a large meeting table, kitchen looking facilities and even an entertainment area. What surprised him the most was the clarity of everything, the haze of the dream-world was all but gone; every colour was so vibrant and clear, the smell of freshly brewed coffee permeated through the air and he felt cold, actually cold. If he didn't know better Don would have believed he was in the real world. He still couldn't sense any exits and the pink bunny was nowhere to be seen. Don knew he should leave, but the temptation was too much he stepped forward and touched the first thing in his path.

It was a simple fold away chair, completely plain and plastic but it felt so real that Don couldn't help but smile.

"Do you like it?" Don nearly jumped out of skin, it wasn't often that dreamers could sneak up on him. When he turned around he didn't expect Nick "The Dick" to be addressing him, what surprised him even more was that Nick was appropriately dressed, it was as if he was about to go hiking in the harsh wilderness of an icy mountain.

"What are you doing here? Where is Roy?" Don asked, trying to sound tougher than he felt. Ever since he'd entered this dream his abilities appeared to be hampered.

"What? No, hows it going Nick? Buddy oh Pal?" He joked. Don gave him a hard stare.

"Yeah yeah, you're all about business you are. Okay so here it is. We want the girl." Don faltered for a moment but then recovered.

"What girl? There are a lot of girls in the DHub. You would know." Don raised an eyebrow

"Haha. Now you're a jokester. You know who I'm talking about, little Miss bubble fetish?" Don eyes betrayed him.

"Yeah that’s right. I followed you, pretty sneaky ah?" Nick proudly stated. Don maintained his silence, he wasn't particularly worried about Nick sneaking up on him, he was distracted at the time after all, he was more worried about what Nick and more importantly Roy wanted with her.

"Come on? I know you have that thing where you can find people. You lead me to her and I give you what you want." Nick gave him a smirk that Don wanted to punch away.

"No Deal, you want her, find her yourself." Don lied, there was a part of him that didn't want Nick to find her.

"You don't want the info? It's pretty good." Nick teased and tapped him on the shoulder. Don brushed him off and gave him a cold stare.

"You don't have anything Dick, I'm out of here." Don pushed past Nick and began to make his way to the exit. Nick dashed around him and blocked his exit.

"Do you really wanna do this again?" Don warned him. He still couldn't use his abilities but Nick probably didn't know that. Don positioned his body into a fighting stance but Nick put his hands up in surrender.

"Hey no, I learn my lessons but hey; Donald Anderson, thirty years old, born September first. " Before he could finish Don leapt at him grabbing him by the shoulders.

"How!? Where did you get that information!? Where is it!? Where is my DREAM!! " Don growled. He hands felt so real on Nick that he wouldn't need his abilities to do some damage.

"Woah woah woah, slow down buddy. That’s all I got, for now." Even though Nick was on the receiving end he acted as if he was in control. Don grunted and let him go.

"Look all you gotta do is get me to the girl. I mean, you don't even know her" Nick casually brushed himself off.

"And you do?" Don knew Nick was just baiting him but he just couldn't help himself.

"Joanna Johnson, Doctor, twenty eight...trust me I know more than you think. Donny."

That smirk again. Don felt his fingers twitch.

"Surely you didn't fall for her little act man." Nick was baiting again, Don looked to the side. Nick took the opportunity to place a friendly hand on his shoulder.

"You know she ain't normal right? Okay let me spell it out for you but don't tell Roy I said this, I'm not even supposed to know okay?" Nick looked Don in the eyes now. Don grunted.

"She's with them, the ones who've been looking for ya, she's a golden nugget and a pretty one at that. " Don eyed Nick warily. Was it possible? Had she been playing him the whole time?

"Come on man, you don't owe her nothing. Besides there are plenty of other riders in the Hub." As if on cue pink bunny girl seemingly appeared out of nowhere to stroke Don's back. She had a sensual smile that held the promise of much more. Don felt lost in her questing eyes. She was pretty in a way, much different to Jo, Don didn't know why he was comparing the two, perhaps because they were the most recent females in his life. Her hands started to wander, he felt them, really felt them even through his clothing. It was very distracting.

"I'll think about it" Don replied without taking his eyes of the girl, it felt like he was in a trance. Somewhere, somehow he knew her but couldn't figure it out. She smelled like....

"I know you'll come around. Donny" Don felt Nick's hand on his shoulder, he turned toward him again. Nick looked like he'd already won, maybe he had. Don turned back to the girl to find that she had disappeared, Don surveyed the room and came up short, how was this possible? Both her and Nick were like ghosts to his senses but both of them seemed more real than anything he'd felt in who knows how long.
Don simply nodded unsure of what to do next. He was so sure of himself before, he knew who to run from, where to get information and sometimes who to trust but now? If Nick "The Dick" was a true source of information everything he thought could be wrong. Nick replied with his own nod.

"Guess I'll see you around, don't go too far. Hehe." Nick quipped.

"Oh and when you leave this room, you'll find the exit not too far from here." Nick stated as if reading his mind. He then opened the door and led him outside. Don left without looking back.
 
The fear that Jo's dreamself felt mixed with her own, and her body started to lose strength. No, no, no, Jo thought struggling to push Dick away. There was a look of maniacal glee on his features now as he gained on her, his hands pushed hers to the bed and his hips thrust down, pinning her as he claimed her lips. NO! Her body cried even as it sagged and her mouth gave way to his.

She froze, body completely beyond her control as his thick tongue probed her mouth. No, no, no! Then it happened, the words of her chant exploded within her, her entire body filled with determination.

"NO!" She screamed into Dick's mouth, bursting through her dreamself's resistance. Her knee came up to slam in his groin and she kicked him off her, the bastard yelling out in surprise as he tumbled into the oblivion. She watched as he was swallowed up by the darkness and then collapsed back on her bed for a moment. The world shuddered and the lights turned back on. Around her bed was now a field of wheat. She jumped up, feet hitting the earth, eager to be free of her bed. It disappeared from behind her and now she was stuck, spinning around in a circle and trying to figure out which way to go. It didn't matter where she looked, the same view met her; a shimmering sun over the swaying crops.
 
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Don

Don was lost, not in the dream world but in his own mind. Who was Joanna? Was she truly more than she appeared to be. Don knew she was special, that much he was sure about but was she simply trying to get to him. Don tried to convince himself that the hunters chasing him seemed closer than usual, only very recently they had been close to catching him.

Don would need to decide and soon, it was unlikely that Roy or Nick would wait long. The thought of "The Dick" getting to Jo left a bad taste on his mouth, he did have a point though, Don didn't really owe her anything and he didn't know who she was. Trusting Nick seemed ridiculous and that girl he was with. At the back of his mind he felt like he was missing something.

Before Don could drift into the next world he felt Jo's presence near by. Should he simply ask her directly or play out the game? Don wanted to give Jo the benefit of the doubt, he couldn't trust his own instincts anymore but surely she deserved a chance.

Don entered her dream, it appeared to be a field of crops as far as the eye could see, Don headed straight to her
 
There was a crackling sound that made Jo's heard pound even faster. Her dream self whipped around, and relief flooded her.

"Don!" She called out, both her own thoughts and her dreamself's voice filled with the relief they felt. Jo exerted her last control and pushed her dreamself into his arms, falling into a hug as her chest heaved and she struggled to control her breathing. She had no idea how glad she would be to see him. As she clung to Don she could feel her full control of her dreamself starting to wane. But it didn't matter now. Dick was gone and she was with someone who seemed to know how to make her feel safe.
 
Don

Don had prepared himself to remain passive, or even play the hard arse detective card but when she ran to him and melted in his arms he couldn't bring himself to do it. Maybe she was deceiving him, maybe it was an act right now Don couldn't be that guy.

At least not right now.

Don let her calm down before he spoke.

"What happened?"
 
Jo lokoed up at Don and tried to speak, but she couldn't find her voice. She pushed, struggling to form the words, but the only thing that came out was a muted grunt. Her dreamself stepped away from him and she was even more frustrated. She wanted to control herself again, but her stress levels were too high. She told her dreamself to stay still, luckily it was something that she was prone to do. She forced herself to focus on breathing, on taking in her new surrounding. Small waves of calm started to wash away the fear and frustration, and after a few minutes she found her voice again.

"J-just a guy," she said, voice thick in her throat. She looked away from Don, unable to meet his intense gaze any longer. "I got away," she explained, "I got away... It's okay."
 
Don

Don still found it difficult to believe she was playing him, it seemed so genuine and real. The way she acted and spoke was like a newbie trying control herself in the dream world.

Don focused on her words now he didn't want to feel jealous about another man, after all who was she to him? Jo could already be married, have a boyfriend or not even be interested in him in reality. It felt odd to have such thoughts about someone in the DHub, after all he had participated in all manner of debaucherous behavior with random girls even after his memory loss.

Perhaps that was the key, he needed to treat her like any other girl he met and how everyone else treated each other on the DHub; an inconsequential meaningless fling. It was possible that if he pushed her too far she would reveal her true intentions or he would be taking advantage of her. Don pulled her head away from his chest and cupped her chin in his hands.

"Hey, its okay I'm here now. You are safe with me." Don put on his best knight in shining armour routine and kissed her gently on the lips.
 
One second he was cupping her chin, and the next his lips were on his. Her skin was still burning from Dick's forced kisses, but instead of her body railing against the touch she melted into it. The kiss was gentle yet distracting in all the right ways. She felt face. Both her and her dreamself were safe. Yet after a moment she coaxed her dreamself into pulling away. She gathered the words she wanted to say in her head before she pushed them out.

"The address... It was your journal. I read some," She said, clearly struggling to make her lips and tongue work, but getting there nevertheless. A look of pride at her achievement filled her eyes.
 
Don

"I can tell" Don proudly replied. He searched her eyes for any deception and couldn't find any. Was she a threat to him?

"I know that our last meeting was cut short but now you seem to have grasped what you can do, maybe we can get to know each other a bit better. Tell me about yourself Jo."
 
"Joanne Johnson," Jo said with a smile, pleased at the conversation. "Doctor at New Zenith..." She stopped as her eyebrows furrowed, her throat tight. "Single too!" The words came out like a hiccup, her dreamself slipping through her fragile level of control. Jo shook her head as her cheeks coloured. "The dog, Astro, he's my parents." She said, trying and probably failing to redeem her slip.

"You're Donald Anderson. Twenty nine?" She asked.
 
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Don

Don was trying so hard to be suspicious and wary of her but the way she stumbled around her own subconscious for control made it so hard for him to believe she was some kind of mastermind trying to trap him.

Until she mentioned his age.

Don guessed she had started to read his journal, but he knew how old he was and it was only one year different but it was an interesting thing to bring up.

"A doctor? Well if I ever get hurt in the real world I'll know who to come to."

If he ever got back to the real world

"I'm assuming you've read my journal, I don't remember if I mentioned it but controlling yourself in the dreamworld is much harder when you force it head on." He began and then stepped closer, Don placed his lips near her ear and continued.

"You see, dreams work by separating your conscious mind from your sub-conscious, its almost like you are two different people sharing the same body; each wants its own thing. Forcing anybody to do anything they don't want is always going to be hard. Think about trying to align the real you and your dream-self together and it might make it easier." He decided to tease her a little more by letting his lips lightly touch the skin on her neck.

"Right now for example, my dream-self would like nothing more than to get to know you on a very intimate level. I agree with him but I am convincing him that it wouldn't be appropriate to be so assertive, especially since we are getting to know each other. Since he agrees I am still in the drivers seat."
 
Jo had experimented with the whole going-along-with-your-dreamself thing in her practising, but her dreamself was a wild one. Her body caught on fire when Don stepped in closer, his lips brushing her neck. His words teased her, and her dreamself wanted to wrap her arms around him and turn that soft caress of his lips into a real kiss. Jo wanted it too, but she had too many questions to ask him. She tried to move her lips to form the words, but it didn't work.

So she decided to get creative.

Letting go of her inhibitions she let her dreamself control their body, her head turning to brush against Don's lips as her arms wrapped around him. Jo allowed the kiss to go on for a minute before she tried speaking again, not pulling away from him.

"Can everyone do this?" She murmured against his lips.
 
Don

Don moved his lips to her ear.

"No, not everyone, as far as I know there are three levels of control." Don allowed his hands to travel up and down her back.

"The first level is about suggestion, which you already know about. Some people never go past this point. They are still passengers in their own subconsious but every now and again they can convince their dream-selves to do or say something." Don breathed deeply, taking in her scent it wasn't a real smell but it was the actions that counted. It occurred to him that he was seducing her and it was possible that she might let her guard down but right now he was still focused on her body.

"The second level is what you are progression toward. Full body control, like I said it isn't complete control since the dream-world is only ever a representation of reality. You are still at the mercy of the limitations your dream-self has, those limitations however lead to the third level." Don's hand had traveled led to her shapely backside now and he began a slow massage. He didn't attempt to hide the growing bulge at the front of his pants pressing against her.
 
Don moved up from her lips to her ear and Jo's body went fuzzy. As he explained the three levels of control she was intrigued, but any other questions were pushed from her mind as his hands roamed her back. Lower and lower they went until he found her rear, massaging it and pushing her pelvis against his. She and her dreamself were both content to moan at the feeling, and rested her head against his shoulder.

"And what is the third level?" She found that it was easy enough to ask this if she let her own lips travel along his shoulders; her dreamselv was very distracted by Don, and she could understand why. She could feel his growing arousal between them and she knew her own body was pooling with desire also.
 
Don

Don was thoroughly enjoying himself and despite his reservation about her allegiances he truly was enjoying the tease. The question was how much information did he want to give her?

"One step at a time little bird, lets get you to level two first." He cupped her chin again and brought her lips to his own. His kisses were tender and light, his tongue began to explore the tip of hers.

Don reluctantly pulled back, it was time to see if her dream-self and her were truly in sink. Don manipulated the environment to make it more distracting, any regular dream-self would likely become dis-involved in him and more interested in their surroundings.

Don waited.
 
Jo was unhappy that he hadn't answered her question; it had taken a fair bit off effort to get that out. Nevertheless she enjoyed the kiss that followed, her lips aching when he pulled away from her.

She was about to resume the kiss when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eyes. The world was shifting around them, wobbling, looking like ripples on a pond but without a point of origin. It was unsettling and intriguing all in one. It was distracting too, but not as distracting as having her question go unanswered. What was the third level? Despite the fact that her dream-self wanted to look at the interesting world around her, she taunted it with a reminder of how it felt to have Don's lips upon hers, his arms wrapped around her body.

So, when commanded, her dreamself turned back and pressed her lips against Don's.

"The third level?" She asked again, more firmly this time.
 
Don

Don was proud of the way she was taking his advice, the added bonus was her willingness to bend to the desires of her dream-self.

"Well, since you asked so nicely. The third level is controlling the dream world around you. It can be anything from small changes like subtle differences in background colours and noises to large changes like creating and destroying parts of the world."

Don resumed their kiss, this time adding more passion.
 
Jo had more questions. Lots more questions. Though her dreamself was much more interested in falling into Don's kiss. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders, fingers toying with his hair as their tongues danced and their breath mingled. She should have pulled away, but she had done so well this far that she decided to give herself a reward.

And what a reward it was.

Jo wasn't sure if it was because she was in a dream, or because Don was so experienced in the Dnet, but he was an amazing kisser. He tasted like everything that made her feel warm and fuzzy, and his body against hers was intoxicating.

And distracting. Very, very distracting.

Jo pulled away then, cheeks flushed as she bit her lip. Her dreamself didn't complain, because she made a mental note to continue their kiss as soon as reasonably possible.

"So, you are at the third stage? How did you get there?" She asked.
 
Don

Don decided that now would be a good time to demonstrate. He created a bed behind them and without telling her, Don assertively guided her onto the soft mattress. He then decided to remove her outer clothing with a thought; leaving her only in her underwear.

"Practice." He simply stated with a mischevious smile.
 
Jo felt as though Don had heard her promise to herself. In an instant the world around them shifted and a bed appeared behind them. She only realised this after he had gently walked her back towards it. Her knees hit the mattress and she yelped as she fell back onto it. She was about to push out a witty remark when her clothes vanished and she was left in her underwear. She couldn't even remember what she was wearing, but she knew it had been something.

"Do you practice like this often?" Jo teased, the words coming easily. Her dreamself made no move to cover her bare skin and she didn't push the idea. Despite the fact she had been trapped on a mattress once already this night, this was different. She looked up into Don's handsome face and smiled.
 
Don

"If you stick around maybe you'll find out?" Don quipped, he told himself it was so he could keep an eye on her for any treachery. Don traced his index finger from the side of her neck, along her collar bone, and in between the swell of her breast. He then let his fingers trail up and along the curvature of her generous mounds.

He smirked and looked up at her, how far would she let him go?
 
Jo shivered as Don's fingers touched her. It felt so good that she could almost believe it was real.

Almost.

There was a strange disconnect within her, a slight schism between her mind and her body. If this was real, then she would feel the warmth of his fingers, the brush of his skin against hers, it would rocked from her skin into her mind, filling her with an arousal that would then feed back to her body.

This though, this was different. She knew that she should be feeling it, but she wasn't entirely. There was the knowledge of presence in her body, followed by a deafening roar of arousal. But there was just something in the way. Thick, fuzzy and not entirely unpleasant. She tried to come up with a way to describe it, but all she could conclude was that the sensations were muted.

She told herself that the muted feelings was why she continued. Why her arms reached up and rubbed against Don's shoulder, why one came to the back of his head to stroke his neck as his hands caressed her breasts. Her lips parted in a gentle moan as her body ached for him.

"I feel under-dressed," she murmured, looking up at him from under her lashes.
 
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