My brother and I were flying toward and over the ocean on the open seat of a hovercraft. It was exhilarating and more than a little scary.

At a house, everyone was preparing for a game or a class, but I kept looking out a window at a street, where something about the buildings and even the weather wasn’t right. I recalled that there was supposed to be some kind of conflict — I wanted trees removed from along the shore to enhance the water views, while a large, powerful group of neighbors was lobbying to keep them. None of it, least of all my viewpoint, made sense to me.

The people of the house tried to get me to join the game or class, but I was distracted by a young ginger-and-white cat on the basement steps that I was sure was some reincarnation of my beloved tortoiseshell, Pudge. I didn’t know why I was so certain, and was confused and upset when the cat didn’t respond to me at all. Surely Pudge would have remembered me?