Lucy sleeps and dreams

Though sleep seemed distant for Lucy, the drone of the airship engines, the gentle breathing of Annie and her warmth close beside Lucy in the cot soothed her into a drowse and before long, Lucy joined her daughter in sleep.

Lucy dreamed.

She stood upon the eighth rank of a chessboard, dressed in shimmering royal robes, holding a scepter of command. From pawn to Queen, so unexpectedly. And Edmund was there, but not the King, rather a bishop, with a tall hat shockingly suggestive of the tip of his male member. She and Edmund were white pieces, and Sabrina and Clarissa were red pieces, Sabrina a knight riding to and fro and Clarissa a rather sulky Red Queen. And Annie was there, a white piece, but Lucy knew not which, and Lucy worried that Annie would be trampled by the knight. And off in the corner a white Castle, Downs Edge, and another one, crumbling and grey, Old Netherwood. Then Jeremy was there, he was the White King, he had cornered Lucy's mum Maggie Longbottom, and he was rogering her from behind at the castle window, and Edmund caught Lucy from behind and lifted her queenly robes, and took her, but this time it felt like love, and Clarissa was cross at Edmund, then Lady Catherine, she was the other White Queen, told Lucy she needed Lucy to frig her because her wrists hurt and her hands were stiff, and Lady Catherine wouldn't accept Lucy's excuses that her son Edmund was fucking her, Lady Catherine needed Lucy now, so Lady Catherine turned about and lifted her skirts to display her gape-lipped sex and Lucy awkwardly reached out and gave Lady Catherine manual ease with a hand wavering from Edmund's thrusts. But where was Annie? Lucy lifted her voice to call for Annie. And then there was shouting and confusion and the world tilted sideways and there was a high wind and many of the pieces toppled onto the squares of the chessboard. And the game still went on, though Lucy could spy no Kings on the board any longer.