But beyond that, he found all the familiar minds as easily as slipping on a glove. He felt a faint acknowledgement from Mother downstairs, and another, colored with mild annoyance, this time from Psyche. These he left behind, broadening his reach; others began to surface, the less familiar ones buried beneath. He took a deep breath--- in, out. So far, so good. He expanded his horizons a little wider, a little wider still.
Focus... Focus. He ran the list of names through his mind again, filtering through dozens of thoughts, searching for any thread of identity...
"Hey."
"Aah!" Morpheus nearly toppled out of his chair, then doubled over, clutching his head. "Ugh..." The backlash from snapping back into himself too quickly was no joke. "Nemo," he began, "I was
working---"
"Yeah, I could tell." The voice behind him wasn't Nemo's. For that matter, it wasn't Psyche's either. He whirled, too fast--- winced. Another child was standing at his open door.