Everyone dreams. Bird dreams she's a musician. She plays to the trees in her dreamworld, Fae. At 15, she's become a brilliant violinist with a promising career ahead. When she practises in front of the mirror in her bedroom, the trees appear, dancing behind her. It seems unnervingly real. One night she dreams of a red-headed boy with golden eyes, waiting in the forest, drawn by her music.

Next day, exploring a quarry in the remote Lake District valley where she lives, the skin of Bird's world peels open when the red-headed boy walks into the quarry. As she stares, his golden eyes turn hazel, he seems unable to recognise her, and she loses sight of him until he arrives at the cottage next door, with his mother. They've just moved in. He's Tom, he's 17, and for Bird it's love at first sight. Although he won't hold her hand, Tom plainly feels the same. He's as human as she is. Then his mother deliberately touches Bird's hand, leaving an agonising, invisible burn.

Bird's adversary is the Queen of Fae. She claims Tom is her son, she will defeat Bird and take him back. Bird's musical powers will not save him, unless she finds another human child to take his place. There's always the new baby in Bird's family. He's just been adopted by Bird's aunt – another dream come true ...