Monday, February 11

I was at a BBQ at my uncle's house. There were lots of kids playing all around and the adults were sitting upstairs, on a rooftop terrace, right near the grill.

I felt the urge to go downstairs and use the bathroom, so my uncle asked if I could send Smart-Smart up.

I descended, down a wide staircase, into the lower levels of the house. On my way down I said, "Smart-Smart, they need you upstairs."
I large dog, shaggy and with a long snout bound up the stairs past me.

I looked for the bathroom downstairs--a beautiful house, with interior gardens and light pooling in through skylights. I couldn't find it, though, and felt lost.

Smart-Smart reappeared, this time holding a pillow in its mouth.
"For me?" I asked.
I looked at the pillow. It had a note attached to it, and prices sewn into it. I had to pay $2 to use the bathroom, it said. I thought that'd be fine, except I usually don't carry bills in my wallet. I have a separate money clip. How would I pay Smart-Smart?

I looked in my pocket, and to my relief, I had brought the wrong wallet. This one did have bills in it. Then, of course, I worried about other things, like my driver's license and my credit cards.

I went into the bathroom and started closing the door. Smart-Smart stuck its snout in, preventing me from shutting it. I tried to tell him I'd pay him after I used the bathroom, but he was relentless. I took out the two dollars and handed them to him. He took my whole hand in his mouth. It was wet, and hot, and...interesting. My hand came out without the bills and I noticed it was completely covered in Smart-Smart drool.

I tried to close the door and still, Smart-Smart would not allow it. I pushed with both hands and Smart-Smart stayed, his body halfway in and halfway out. Eventually I decided to just pee with my foot lodged against the door so that Smart-Smart would not come further inside.

When I was done I left the bathroom and headed into some other room downstairs. A cartoon was playing on a large movie-theater screen and two children were sitting there watching. I felt like I had interrupted something when I went in (maybe they were kissing?). I looked at Smart-Smart, still carrying around the little pillow with prices, and left. I told him I might purchase the theater later, but for now, he should allow the kids to stay inside.

Smart-Smart left me and I continued to explore the lower levels of my uncle's house. There were children in all of them. Some were watching movies, some were playing video games, some where writing letters to loved ones. There was something bizarre about the place--no adults is an obvious one (they were all upstairs, on the roof deck, sitting by the grill)--but I didn't quite figure out what it was.

Eventually I stopped in one of the rooms and played video games with my cousin Silvana. She was trying to kill two dragons that were crawling around a gigantic column. I shot one of them with an arrow, straight through the eye.

The dragon fell off the column and tumbled to its death. As it fell, it let everyone know that the Queen of the Dragons was now dead.