Malcolm gently shook his buddy to wake him up and his eyelids were soon fluttering, but he seemed reluctant to wake up.

"Sam? Sam, Polonium is on the phone. She wants to talk to you."

"That bitch just talked to me."

"What?" Malcolm was visibly confused when Sam said that.

"I'll explain everything later. What line is she on?"

"She's in the office on the monitor."

Sam stormed over to Steele's office to see the entire team gathered around the monitor where Polonium was now greeting him with a satisfied smile.

"Hello Sam, nice to see you again so quickly."

"I can't say that. What do you want?"

"Oh I thought our conversation just was a bit too one-sided where only I could see you. I thought you might want to see how it all works?!" She waved briefly and the camera, safely guided by her assistant, followed her to the metal table that Sam had already seen in his dream. Everyone was shocked when they saw Penny lying there tied up with an electrode strap tied around her head. Everyone except Sam."Don't worry, your colleague is doing well so far. As you can see here, she is sleeping soundly thanks to an infusion. Thanks to the electrodes, everything she dreams is transmitted to my computer, which evaluates this and turns it into images "That's how I watched you make your heroic rescue attempt, Sam." The camera briefly panned to a screen where you could see Penny sitting on the metal table in the barren room, obviously bored, just as Sam had just left her behind.

"I'll just tell you once Polonium, release her!"

"What else, PC Williams? You can't find us. Your two fire brigade colleagues have become unplanned victims of my new invention and if that terrible brat hadn't destroyed it, I wouldn't have needed your friend. But I need to know how successful my machine was until I fix it and can reverse it or the effect wears off on its own. Don't worry, I won't leave her in this state forever. I just want to see what effects, what possibilities and what side effects it brings before I use it as medical science can need it."

"Side effects?" Sam asked in shock and swallowed hard.

"Oh, didn't I mention that? Of course, all experiments can have side effects and I want to find out what those are in this case. Maybe you should also seek medical care? Just to be on the safe side," she objected with a shrug and laughed briefly."In the meantime, I'll look after your friend and you'll get her back in a few days or weeks. I hope you can do without her for that long?! But your Sami here knows how to visit her if necessary. Ciao."

The screen went black and everyone now turned to him questioningly.

"What does that mean, Sam?" Malcolm asked skeptically.

"Where is Penny and why don't you tell us if you know?" Ellie put her fists on her hips and looked at him sternly.

"I don't know where she is. I was with her in the dream," Sam defended himself.

"Is this the lack of sleep or the first side effects?" Ellie asked the others while waving her hand in front of her face.

"I'm not crazy, Ellie. You heard what Polonium said yourself. She could see me on the screen like we could just see Penny. She watches Penny's dreams and I can meet her in her dreams. I was right there with her." Sam took a deep breath before collapsing into a chair. It was all so unbelievable that he couldn't believe it himself and now he had to explain it to his friends in a plausible way. "I actually thought for a moment that I had actually found her. It all felt so real. She was on that table strapped like we just saw in Polonium's call and I had freed her. We were chatting briefly when we heard Polonium's voice. She was talking to Penny, the real Penny and that's why we could hear her in her...our dream. She said that we were hit by her dream ray and that's why our dreams are connected."

"Does that mean that when you sleep, you will always meet in your dreams?" Elvis asked and Sam shrugged his shoulders before nodding.

"If that's true, we should really call my sister." Everyone looked at Malcolm questioningly. "On the one hand, because of the mentioned side effects, it would actually be better if Sam was under observation and on the other hand, she can give Sam something to help him sleep. The more often he is with Penny, the greater the likelihood of that he hears something there that could put us on their trail if Polonium or that Crompton blurts out in Penny's real presence."

"Does that mean Sam is allowed to sleep on duty?"

"For once, yes, Cridlington. I'm even afraid that he has to. If only to ensure Penny's safety. Are you ready for that, Sam?" Steele asked him now.

"I would do anything if I could just be with her...well, to help her, of course."

"Of course, Sam!" Ellie said with a grin and patted him on the shoulder. "And I have a feeling that Penny will be happy about your company too."

----------------------------------------------------------

"Okay Sam, relax. You'll be asleep in about a minute. As discussed, I'll reduce your intake after 2 hours, so you should wake up after about three hours. If something happens before that and you get restless, I'll get you back sooner ."

"All right, Helen. I'm ready."

"Then sleep well Sam and say hello to Penny for me."

He gave a weak nod before his eyes began to close and he was no longer able to stay awake, even if he had wanted to.

"Penny? Are you there?" he asked into the once again dark room and discovered her sitting on the table a moment later when everything brightened up again. Her feet dangled relaxed and she welcomed him with a cheerful smile.

"I wasn't expecting you back yet, Sam. Has that much time passed in reality?"

"Actually just under 2 hours. Malcolm woke me up because Polonium was on Steele's monitor via video call. She put you into permanent sleep thanks to an IV and Helen has now done the same to me. But to be on the safe side, she'll wake me up every three hours." He sat down on the table next to her and let his legs dangle as well.

"I thought you wanted to look for me?" Her question wasn't accusatory and yet Sam's guilty conscience stirred.

"Malcolm and Rose are looking for you. The whole of Pontypandy is also looking for you and of course our team too."

"And you let yourself be put to sleep so that I'm not alone?"

"Not quite. So yes, but that's not just it. Polonium said that she wants to watch you in case the experiment shows any side effects. Since Norman destroyed her emitter, we are the only two people who are forced to come in for testing purposes. I want to make sure you're okay." He leaned over and whispered in her ear: "We're also hoping that they'll spill the beans and we'll get details about where they are hold you prisoner."

Penny turned her face towards him in surprise and the tips of their noses touched, making both of them freeze. But neither of them backed away, but immediately sank into each other's eyes.

"Welcome back, Sam." Polonium's voice made them both immediately break apart and look down in embarrassment.

"I could wish for more pleasant observers than you two."

"Be patient and you will soon run out of observers."

"Forget it Polonium. We'll find you and get Penny out of here!"

"Oh yes, always these heroes. Hope always dies last. I hope you continue to have fun. I'm hungry. I hope your little darling doesn't fall off my meat. Anyone who sleeps can't eat."

"Polonium, you are a monster..."

"Leave it, Sam. The more upset you get, the more she'll probably enjoy it."

"How can you be so calm?" he asked Penny surprised and she shrugged her shoulders.

"What shall I do? She's very sure of herself and she won't let me go until she gets what she wants...or until you find me."

"We will." He took her hand and looked reassuringly into her eyes, but before he could lose himself in them again, he remembered that Polonium or Crompton could be watching everything at any time and cleared his throat briefly. "So, what can we do to help you out of here? You haven't been sitting in this dreary room all this time?"

"Yes, unfortunately I had. It's as if I had no chance at all of having any influence."

"And if we try it together? Where would you like to be now?"

"I don't know. At the station?"

"Let's try," he replied encouragingly and a moment later they found themselves on the sofa in the station's common room.

"Wow, it worked and it's much more comfortable than that metal table."

"I guess so," Sam replied with a smile and turned to her. "Seems like we both have to think the same thing to make a difference."

"If our dream worlds are truly intertwined, then it's only fair that no one can decide alone."

"Where's the surprise factor in that?"

"What would you like to surprise me with?" Penny replied with a smile.

"Aren't we in a dream? Everything you want is possible here."

"And what would you wish for?"

"Wasn't it just about surprising you?!" he replied skeptically.

"Why should it be so one-sided? It's your dream too. So what do you wish for?"

"It would probably be too much to ask," he replied absently and Penny was surprised to see a slight blush covering his cheeks before he cleared his throat in embarrassment."We'll come to an agreement. Now tell me what happened after Crompton knocked me down."Penny suddenly became serious and looked down in embarrassment. Sam placed a comforting hand on hers and smiled as she looked up into his bright blue eyes.

"It happened so quickly. I couldn't even realize what was happening. You fell like a stone to the ground before I even realized what had happened and a moment later Polonium had pulled an old sack over my head and pulled me away. I never thought this hunger hook had such power."

"We usually underestimate people. Have they said anything that can help us?"

"She said that she needed one of us to evaluate the results of her ray. I was so afraid that they would take you away. But she said that nothing would happen to you and a moment later they drugged me with ether. "

"She's a monster," Sam growled angrily. "Ever since I came to, I've been wishing every minute that they had taken me and that you were safe," he then added with a sigh, not thinking as he pulled her into a hug.

Penny was stunned for just a moment before she wrapped her arms around him too and relaxed.

"And I just wanted you to be safe. So at least for once my wish was granted."

"I would fulfill any of your wishes if I could, but definitely not this one," he murmured into her hair and Penny looked up at him questioningly, but immediately lost herself in his deep blue eyes, as he also lost himself in hers. She thought she could smell his scent again and felt his breath gently pass over her lips and shudder. What would it be like to feel his lips on hers? Would it be as wonderful here as in all her previous dreams or would it be different? Better? More real? The way everything seemed real here. She noticed Sam tilting his head a little and coming closer, her heart fluttering with excitement and feeling hot with anticipation. She closed her eyes the same moment Sam did, knowing that the long-awaited moment was finally coming true at any moment...but instead she fell forward and landed face-first into a sofa cushion. Confused, she pushed herself up, but Sam was gone. Her time seemed to be up and now she had no choice but to wait for him and hope that they would find a moment like this again soon. Frustrated, she crumpled a pillow to the end of the couch and lay down on it before pulling another one out from under her back and simply throwing it behind the couch in frustration. She stared at the ceiling and hoped that Sam would be with her again soon.

To be continued...