Chapter One

Deep breathing, comfortable. Almost asleep. . . . Oh, I was so comfy. . . . Things started to get blurred, and I started to spin headlong into sleep. . . .

My bed jumped, once, twice, and a voice yelled, "Oh, my Gods, wake up! We're in trouble!"

I shot up, blinking, eyes blurred, mind fuzzy. "W-what!?"

Two grinning faces caught my attention. Silverstar was bouncing excitedly on my bed. "Hey, hey, hey, it's time to get up! Time to get up and go!"

I blinked. "I just got to sleep. . . ."

"Yea, well, c'mon! We gotta go."

"Where are we going?"

"Papa wants to take us on a walk. C'mon!"

I groaned. "Tell Papa I was just starting to get to sleep. . . ."

She bounced on my bed more, harder. "Wake up, wake up, wake up!"

Another groan. "Ahhh, I don't wanna. . . ."

"Mama says we got important visitors coming, too." Silverstar giggled. "She says we got to go to the ball tonight."

"Ugh," Sunny groans. "Yup, so if we want to have any fun at all today, we have to get up now and find a hiding place."

"If I help you find a hiding place, can I sleep?"

"Well, maybe. I dunno."

The doors opened. I groaned, but looked toward the door. Mama stood in the doorway. "Get up and get ready. Your father wants to take you on a walk through the village, and when you get back, you will have to get ready for the ball tonight."

"Mama," I complained, "I just got to sleep."

"No matter, Starlight. It's time to get up."

"Teach you to be up all night, won't it?" another voice sneered at me. Glancing over, I saw Kartwer standing beside Mama now. Where she'd come from, I didn't know. I probably missed her the first time. "Get up, lazy."

I wanted to sob. "Fine! Just . . . give me three more hours."

Sunny laughed, and I felt someone pulling my arm to get me out of bed. "C'mon, silly! We have so many things to do!"

"If I push you off my bed, will you go away?"

"Not a chance!" both Silverstar and Sunset chimed.

I groaned one more time and threw the blankets aside. "Fine, but if I end up with dark circles, you all suck." I padded toward my armoire.

"Starlight, no. Your gown was laid out in your bathroom. All of your gowns. Go get dressed, and meet us downstairs."

I groaned again as my doors shut. Casting a glimpse around my Starstone imbedded, black-painted room, I sighed.

Sunset echoed my groan. "Gowns!? But we're just going on a walk through the village. How are we going to wear a gown if we're walking through the village?!"

"Oh, I hope they're pretty!" Silverstar jumped off my bed and ran to my east wall, reaching forward to press the special Starstone. The wall folded into the ground and Sunny and Silv disappeared into it.

I opened the double doors that led to my bathroom and went inside. Hanging on the wall hiding the shower from view was a pure white gown. I could already see it had everything with it, everything but a corset. Having already showered the night before, I used the bathroom, and got dressed quickly.

When I came outside, four maids were waiting for me. "Good morn, Princess. Did you sleep well?"

I shrugged. "No, not really. Why are you here?"

"To do your hair, Princess."

I walked toward my "beauty desk," as Mama called it, and sat in front of the mirror. The maids immediately went to work on me, pulling my hair every which way, yanking, grabbing, "styling." I watched my hair be put up in a tight, intricate bun, and watched myself wince and groan. Once they'd finished, I opened my drawer and pulled out four pieces of jewelry, giving one piece to each of them. Though Mama would yell at me, I always gave them trinkets for helping me. Even if I didn't want helped.

They smiled, thanked me, and we left my room. Silverstar and Sunset were waiting outside. Sunny had her arms crossed, and Silv was bouncing noticeably. "If you start going on and on about how this is awesome," Sunny said to Silv, "I'm strangling you."

"You can't strangle me," Silv said sweetly.

"Why not?"

"Because," she batted her eyelashes, "you love me."

I shook my head. "Let's just get going before Mama comes to fetch us."

"Oh, don't my little girls look lovely today!" The sound of daddy's voice made me smile before I even turned to see him. He jogged toward us, lifting all three of us in a giant hug. "You look beautiful, little ladies, but don't you think that's too much? It's just a walk through the village."

"Mama made us wear it, daddy," I snitched.

"You are old enough to call him 'Papa,' not 'daddy,' Starlight." Mama walked into view, carrying three hats. She was wearing a floor-length pink gown with a pink hat on her head. She waited for Papa to put us down before handing us each a hat. "Put the hats on. They will protect you from the sun."

I pulled the hat on, scowling from beneath it. "Mama, this is too much."

"Don't get those gowns dirty, ladies," she said, ignoring my words. "Silverstar and Sunset, you will be going with Papa and Kartwer after the ride. Starlight will be staying here with me."

"W-wait, what? Mama, you said we were going to the ball tonight." Silverstar stared up at her, pale blue eyes wide. "Mama, I don't wanna miss it."

"You won't, because you and Sunset are going to another ball. You will be going with Bolestrole, and Sunset will be going with your father."

"Why are they leaving? Why do I have to say?"

She gave me a look. "Starlight, is it so awful to be left home with your mother?"

"W-well, no, but . . . Sunny, Silv and I have never been separated before."

"Well, you are five years old. Don't you think it's time you spent some time apart? Sunset is going to Iwagakure, and Silverstar is going to Amegakure. You are staying here, because your guests are coming here."

"My guests?"

"I have invited two villages here. One is for you, and the other is for Kartwer."

"For me?"

"It's time that you meet your betrothed. At least, I believe it's time. Don't you?"

"M-my betrothed? What's that mean?"

"Silverstar, Sunset, and you have been contracted to be married. The contracts were signed when you girls were born. Starlight was contracted to a boy in Konohagakure. Silverstar to a boy in Amegakure. And Sunset to a boy in Iwagakure."

"M-married? B-but we're too young!"

"You're just betrothed right now, Starlight. Not married. You probably won't be married until sixteen."

"Your mother and I have a disagreement on this one. I want to wait until you're twenty-one. She wants you to be wed at sixteen."

"But I don't wanna marry anyone."

"Well, Starlight, you don't get to make that decision. You're just a child." Kartwer gave me a dirty look. "Now, are we going on that walk, Mama?"

"Yes, Kartwer. Let's go, dear."

I glanced at Kartwer, knowing not to stare too long at her. She was wearing a floor-length, low-cut golden gown. I followed Papa toward the double doors on the other end of the hallway. The door led to the small alcove on the balcony above the grand entrance. Papa moved the curtains so we could go through it, and I found myself leading the way down the left staircase. I tripped over the end of my gown and, with a growl, picked up the edge to finish the walk downward.

Sunny glanced at me, and I recognized that look. The shared, "I hate this" look. She let out a small sound, and whispered, "This is horrible."

Silv came up between us when we reached the ground, linking arms with both of us. "I don't wanna leave you. Maybe we can stow away in a cave or something. Then we don't have to go away."

"I'm sure the Dragon Cave is somewhere we can hide. What do you think?"

"Mama, we are going in the carriage, right?"

"Right, dear. It's already pulled around, so we don't have to wait." Mama stepped around us to the door, Papa following her.

He opened the door, stepping through quickly. He didn't wait for us to follow through before he started jogging down the stairs toward the carriage.

As always, I counted the stairs going down. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty. Papa, Mama, Big Brother, then Kartwer went into the carriage. Sunny went first, as the oldest triplet, then Silverstar, and, lastly, I climbed in.

The carriage started moving. "What's the plan, Father?" Bolestrole asked, looking over at him.

"We're going through a short ride through the village before the ball, just to be sure everyone knows it's tonight."

I stared out the window, with Silverstar still clasping my arm. "I don't want them to go, Papa," I said finally, turning toward Mama and Papa. "How long will they be gone?"

"A couple weeks, at least," Mama answered. "And you don't get a choice in this, Starlight."

"Khris, it's okay. It's their first time being more than twenty feet from each other." He glanced at her, then met my eyes. "It'll be okay, Starlight. You'll have company here, so don't worry. It's not like you will be alone."

"Who? Mama doesn't let me go outside to make friends, so I'll be alone."

"Starlight," Mama gave me a stern look, "I told you, you will be meeting with your betrothed tonight."

"Being with a stranger is no compensation for being without my sisters."

"Starlight!"

I looked down, then out the window. "I don't want to be with some strange person while my sisters are hundreds of miles away."

"You've met him before, Starlight. He's not a stranger."

"How come I don't remember him, then?" I countered, still looking out the window.

"He was here when you were born, and he was here when he was a year old, and he was here once again when you were both three. That was the last time he was here. It's been a few years because we've been busy, and you were too young to really understand it. Now, it's time for you to really meet him in a way you will remember."

"I don't want to meet him," I muttered.

"Nonsense! You two were so very close. Remember when they shared her room, and she woke up crying, and he rolled over and hugged her back to sleep? Really, Starlight. When you meet him again, it will be like meeting an old friend. Every time he was brought here, you instantly were friends again." I knew Big Brother was trying to make me feel better, but it just wasn't working.

I shook my head. "If it was like that, I don't remember it."

"Well, you don't get a choice. You'll have to learn to get along with him." Kartwer was sitting on the other end of our side, next to Sunny, across from Father. "We all are betrothed for the betterment of our village, to create long-lasting ties. You will have to learn to live with it."

"Speaking of that, Bolestrole will be stopping by that village to check on the house we have been having built there. According to the last message I received about it, it was nearly finished."

"Oh, that's great. I can't wait to see it." Bolestrole clapped his hands together, glancing across to me. "I haven't seen it since we began the construction."

"We're building a small area for us in the outskirts of their village, so you have a place to go when you meet with your betrothed. He can't come here much, what with your father. . . . Well, you'll figure it out."

"W-what?"

"Starlight," Papa said softly. "We have taken down all the pictures of me around. I need you to make sure they stay down, okay? They of that village can never know I am your father. Please be sure to keep it that way."

"B-but why?"

"It's a long story, but just remember to keep them from seeing a picture of him. It is why your betrothed doesn't visit."

The carriage was pulling to a stop already, right in front of the stairs. I stared up at the white, pristine palace that was my home. Made out of special material, it glowed at night, to give people peace. The door opened, and the doorman stood there. "Milord, Milady, the first guests have already begun to arrive."

"Oh! Already? It's too early as of yet! I see you pulled around the other carriage. Good man. Girls, out, out. Quick! Sunset, you stay. Your gown is in the undercarriage, with the rest of the supplies. Bolestrole, take Silverstar to the second carriage, and you must be off."

Silverstar, Kartwer, Mama, and I climbed out of the carriage. I stared forlornly at Sunset as she sat in the doorway, reaching out to us. Silverstar and I clasped hands with her. "I don't want you to go," I told her.

"I still think we should make a run for it," Silv whispered. "We can do it, right? Just run?"

"In gowns?" Sunny countered.

"Girl, draw away. Come on." Mama grabbed Silverstar's arm. "Go with your brother. Go, now. We don't have time for foolishness."

Silverstar grabbed me in a hug, squeezing tight, and I squeezed back. "You be safe," she whispered, letting me go. Staring back at me the entire time, she made the journey to her carriage, Big Brother following behind.

I stood there, watching the carriages, until Mama yelled at me to go inside, to my room.

It wasn't long before I was in the middle of the ballroom, with people swarming around me, and I'd never felt so alone.

"Starlight, come." Mama gestured to me. She was standing next to a tall man, with reddish-brown hair. "We have something to talk to you about."

Picking up the edge of my gown, I made my way slowly over to them. "Yes, Mama?"

"He has something to warn you about. Listen closely."

I looked up at him. "Yes, sir?"

"My son is wandering around here somewhere. My youngest. He is about your age. Stay clear of him. He can be very volatile. You'll know him when you see him."

"Your betrothed hasn't arrived quite yet, so go on, mingle. I'm sure you can find some friends." She waved me off.

I turned, walked away. "I want my sisters," I muttered. I found myself on the edge of the ballroom, where the couches and chairs were, and there was only one person sitting. He had his head down, and seemed to be sitting on his hands, kicking his feet. He was sitting on one of the white couches, on the very end. His crimson hair stood out against the white. He looked bored, and lonely, so I started to walk toward him to sit in the middle, about six inches from him.

He glanced up at me, eyes wide. It was a quick glance, and I was barely able to make out pale teal eyes lined in thick, black circles. He said nothing, but his entire body stiffened, and he stopped kicking.

"Hi."

He twitched. "Y-you're talking to me?" Now he turned to look at me, eyes still wide.

I nodded. "Why wouldn't I? You look bored."

"N-nobody talks to me," he said softly.

A shrug. "Well, I am. So, why are you sitting way over here? You don't wanna dance, either, do you?"

He shrugged. "I don't have anyone to dance with, and I don't know how to dance."

"Oh." I took another look at him, then glanced toward the man who warned me about his son. "Are you that man's son?"

A nod. "Yes."

I looked him over. "Why would he warn me about you? You don't look so scary."

"Because everyone thinks I'm dangerous."

"Well, I don't!" I thought about something, glancing toward the small alcove. It was empty, and dark. "Actually, wanna see something cool?"

He glanced at me. "S-sure."

I stood, walked away a bit, glancing back to see him. "Come on."

"Y-you want me to follow you?"

I nodded. "Yea. Come!"

He stood slowly, and followed me to the alcove.

I threw the curtain down so we would have privacy, and so it would be darker. Holding my hands up, I closed my eyes and focused on my power. I could feel it, deep within, in the center of my body. Warmth. It spread outward, filling me with incredible warmth, leaking out of my palms. Eyes opening, I saw a bright, white, glowing, spinning ball. It had little fragments of dust floating around it. I grinned at the awed look on his face.

"W-what is that?"

"It's a star! It's one of my abilities. Isn't it cool?"

He nodded, staring at it, mouth slightly open. "It-it's beautiful!"

I reached up around it, closing my hands around the ball, and crushed it to powder. The powder filled my hands. "Hold still, this might burn a bit. Okay?" A small nod, and I tossed some of the dust over him, over his hair, his face, his body. Lastly, I held my dust-filled hands across from each other, palms facing the other. Using my energy to control it, I made the dust float between my hands. "Put your hands through it, one at a time."

A nodded, reaching through first with his left hand, then his right, letting them become coated in the sparkling, still glowing dust. "It's so thin, and beautiful! And light! Not like sand at all."

I nodded, holding my palms upward. "Put your hands over mine. You don't have to touch me, just lay them over mine."

He nodded, reaching out, and lay his hands an inch or so over mine. "What are you going to do?"

"You're going to feel me pulling on your energy, but, trust me," I grinned at him, "it's worth it." I threw my Chakra around his hands, pulling on it, pulling it out, and merged it with mine as I created another star. It floated above his hands a couple inches.

His eyes were wide. His star was crimson. "O-oh, wow!" He started to move his hands away, and stopped when he saw the star following his hands. "I-it's following me!"

I nodded. "Yup. You made it! Well, I made it, but I used your energy to make it. It's your star! You can do whatever you want with it."

He stared at me. "Y-you're giving me a real star?"

I nodded. "Yup! But I gotta tell you. The reason I crushed the star before was because you can't touch the star without Star Powder on you. It will burn you, really badly. So I put Star Powder over you, so it wouldn't burn you. I can help you do two things, but it's up to you. Do you want me to turn it into a necklace for you, or do you want it in powder form?"

"Necklace! I don't want it destroyed. I want to keep it forever."

Another nod. "'Kay! I'm going to use the excess Star Powder from my star to turn it into a necklace, but I'm going to have to save a bit of dust off of it to make it smaller, and to change it, and use your star's powder to make it more suited to you. It'll change, but it'll still be the same. You'll see." I closed my eyes, manipulated the dust, shaving off the excess of his star. In my mind's eye, I could see it grow smaller, smaller, dulling the glow, and I could see the star powder forming an intricate, silver and crimson cage around it.

I heard him breathe, "Wow," but mostly, he was silent as he watched.

I formed a chain with the leftover powder and opened my eyes, smiling. Before me sat a still dully glowing crimson star held inside an intricate cage. The star stayed in the middle. "It'll probably always glow," I took the chain into my hands, lifting it over his head, "so if it bothers you, just put it under your shirt." I dropped it onto his chest. "Do you like it?"

He cupped it in his palm, staring at it with wide eyes. "I-I love it!"

I smiled. "It's yours. You can take it anywhere! What was your name again?"

"Gaara."

"I'm Starlight. Nice to meet you!" I held my hand out to him.

He smiled, reached forward and grasped my hand. For a moment, sand seemed to kick up around our hands, but it stopped. "Nice to meet you."

The curtain was thrown aside. Kartwer stood there. "Mama warned you not to play with him."

I glanced at him, then looked up at her, taking my hand away from him. "I like him. He's cool."

"Yea, well, Mama isn't going to like it." She shook her head, scoffed. "Fine. Get yourself killed. See if I care." She closed the curtain.

I looked over toward the redhead. "You wanna get something to drink? The food bar has juice on it."

A small nod. "Sure."

I stood, smiling down at him. "Too bad Papa's not here. He'd probably let us ditch to get ice cream. Hey, do you know what guest room you're staying in?"

He shook his head. "I know I get my own room, but I don't know which one."

"Well, I can ask Mama if she'd be okay with us bunking together, but I doubt Mama would like that. But if you figure out what room you have, I can come get you tonight and show you the Dragon Cave."

"Dragon Cave?"

I nodded. "It's a legendary cave here. It's really big, but really dark." I smiled. "You're not scared of the dark, are you?"

He smiled. "No way! There's nothing that scares me!"

"Good. I guess we'll see about that." I pushed the curtain aside, walking out of the small alcove, toward the food bar. "So, what kinds of foods do you like?"

"I like liver, and salted tongue."

I made a face. "I don't know if we have anything like that here. . . ." Glancing at each end, I took a seat, waving him to sit next to me. "Just ask the server for what you want, and he'll let you know if we got it."

He sat next to me, shifting his weight slightly when the server came. He repeated what he told me, and the server nodded, moving to me. I told him what I wanted, and he asked for drinks. We told him what drinks to get and he was off. He glanced at me, and I saw a small smile. "Thank you."

"For what?" I looked over to see him fiddling with the softly glowing star.

"I don't feel so alone anymore."

I smiled at him. "Me too. When my twins left, I really felt all alone, but I feel better now. I'm glad you came here. I really am." I grinned. "But I'm sorry you had to come for the ball. It's really boring here."

He looked away, shifting. "I don't know about that. I've had a lot of fun."

"Good!"

The server came back, placing our food down for us. He walked away without saying anything.

"Wait until later. Then you'll really be glad you came here." We ate mostly in silence, exchanging a few soft words every now and then. And I saw our escape. "Unless you want to go see the Dragon Cave now?"

He glanced at me. "Well, yea, sure."

I stood, gesturing him to stand, too. "Great. C'mon. We're gonna go to the bathroom. There are windows that lead out. We'll sneak out the windows, and I'll show you the Dragon Cave."

He stiffened, smiling. "Will that work?"

I nodded. "Just gotta make sure nobody's in there beforehand, so this is what you gotta do. You gotta go in there and tell the man standing in their that Queen Khris requires his assistance. I'm gonna do the same thing. Then we sneak out the windows. Got it?"

He nodded. "Yup!"

I snuck toward the female bathroom. The ballroom had two, one-person bathrooms, one for males, and one for females. There was a window in each bathroom. The bathrooms were a bit smaller than our personal bathrooms, but just like our own personal bathrooms, there was a wall keeping the toilet out of view. The window was on the far wall of each bathroom. I went toward the handmaiden. In the boys' bathroom, the maid was male. In the girls', it was female. I said, "Queen Khris needs your assistance."

She nodded, curtseyed and hurried out. Knowing she had the key to the bathroom, I locked it, went to the window and climbed out.

Gaara was waiting for me there. He smiled. "That was easier than I expected."

"Did you lock the bathroom?"

"No. I didn't want anyone being locked out of the bathroom."

"Just curious, making sure. The maid has a key, so I was just gonna let you know not to be worried."

"Oh. Good, then. Should I have locked it?"

I shrugged. "Doesn't really make any difference, but we have to run now. Quickly!" I took off toward the pasture, where we kept the horses. He kept up with me. "Have you ever ridden a horse?"

His eyes widened and he shook his head. "No."

"Well, you're about to! We can't get to the Dragon Cave walking. It would take too long." I could see the pasture gate coming up. "My horse just finished her training, so I'm not allowed to ride her, but we've got plenty of other horses." I jumped onto the gate, then over it. "Scared?"

He stood in front of the gate, staring into it, at the horses within. He shifted. "I've never been near a horse before."

I smiled, still standing on the opposite side of the fence. I reached over, holding my hand down. "Come on. I wouldn't let you in here if I thought you'd get hurt."

He looked up at me. "I know I'm not gonna get hurt." He hesitated, but reached up slowly to take my hand. His hand tightened around mine, and he climbed up the fence. I had the feeling he didn't need the help, because he was over it and back on the ground in seconds. He slowly let down at my hand as I jumped down.

Glancing around, I started leading him toward the barn, running as quickly as I could. The barn doors flew open before we got there, and I didn't put too much thought into it. Probably a handmaid behind the doors or something. When I was in the barn, though, I saw no handmaid. "Weird," I muttered, looking around.

The barn was huge. I always felt like I would get lost in it. Two floors, and huge. Since we had about thirty horses, I knew we'd be able to find the best fit for us both. I took a moment to think, and finally decided I was going to ride my horse. "You'll ride Papa's horse. His horse is very well trained." A moment passed, and I changed my mind about riding my horse. "I'll ride Big Brother's horse." Grabbing a saddle from the tack room, I handed one to him, and picked up a saddle blanket, and a bridle. Piling that on top of his saddle, I grabbed bridle, a saddle blanket, and a second saddle, and turned to lead the way toward the first horse in the row.

The first horse was Papa's. His horse was a light cream color with blue eyes. He had a light blue sheen to his color, too. "This one is yours, 'kay?"

He looked up at the horse over the pile of equipment in his arms. A small, uncertain smile. "Is it a girl or boy?"

"Boy. He's really old. My dad has had him since he was little, so he's really good." I set my stuff next to my Big Brother's horse. His horse was a dark brown horse with green eyes. I walked back over to Papa's horse, opening the gate. "Bring that in here. I'll show you how to do it."

He followed me in, and set the stuff in the corner where I told him to, bringing me the bridle.

I took it from him, and stuck my thumbs into Ceri's mouth, making him open it, then stuck the bridle into his mouth. "You stick your thumbs way back here," I showed him, "because they've got no teeth there. It makes them open their mouth, then you put the bridle in." I had him follow me back to watch me put the saddle on, showing him slowly how the strap went.

He watched, following my every movement. "Can I try?"

I nodded, unstrapped the saddle, and stepped back to let him do it.

Other than having to tell him to make sure it was tight, he managed to do it on his first try. He grinned. "I got it."

"Great! I'm gonna get my horse ready after you get on. Or you can wait to get on until after I get my horse ready. It's up to you."

He was petting Ceri's neck softly. "I'll wait, until you get yours. So you can give me tips."

"Do you want to come with me?"

He shook his head. "No. I'm good. I want to get to know this horse. What's his name?" He gave me a quizzical look.

"Ceri."

"Ceri. I like."

I smiled, going off to get Big Brother's horse, Lief, ready. "My brother's horse's name is Lief. I'll be right back, 'kay?"

He nodded, smiling at me. "'Kay! I'll be fine, no worries!"

I ran toward Lief's paddock, hurriedly getting him ready. Knowing that they'd likely have people out looking for us soon, I led Lief out toward Ceri's paddock, stopped him there, and went back into Ceri's paddock. "Do you want to lead him out yourself?"

He gave me a look. "Can I?"

I nodded, smiling. "Yup! Why not? C'mon!"

He grabbed the reigns as I turned, and I heard him leading the horse out of the stall. "So I just put my foot here," I glanced back to see him tap the stirrup, "and climb up?"

Another nod. "Yup. But you gotta make sure to hold onto the saddle horn and the reigns, no matter what! 'Kay?"

"'Kay!"

Jogging around to the left side of my horse, I grabbed the step stool. "Just watch me, then you can use my step stool." I put my foot on the step stool, reaching up to grab the saddle horn, reigns in hand already, and put my foot into the stirrup. Climbing up, I glanced over to see him already on the horse. "H-how?"

He smiled. "I just jumped."

Feeling silly for not thinking of that, I said, "That's not fair. I didn't think of that. Anyway, to get him to go, you swish the reigns, like a wave. To turn left, you pull on the left reign. To turn right, you pull on the right. To run, you just have to yet 'Hyah!' To stop, pull the reigns back. Got it?"

A nod. "Yup!"

I swished the reigns, and Lief began walking forward. "Follow me." The steady sound of clamoring hooves filled the air. When my horse started to run, his ran after mine. "Let me know if it gets to be too fast for you!"

He laughed. "No way! This is awesome!"

Him laughing made me laugh. "I know this is your first time on a horse, but are you ready to make your first jump?"

"My first jump?" He pulled up alongside my horse, giving me a look. "What do you mean?"

"The horses are trained to jump, too. I'm going to have them jump the fence, instead of stopping to open the gate."

He nodded. "Okay, sure. I-I think I got it."

"Great! Just hold on real tight, and sit more like this." I demonstrated, holding position, since I knew it would be needed.

Glancing at me, he copied my stance, holding on so tightly I saw his knuckles blemish. "Ready," he said softly.

"Great!" The fence was in view. "I hope you don't scare easy!"

"No way!"

I pushed Lief ahead faster, and Lief cleared the jump easily. The soft thumping behind me told me that Ceri cleared just as well. A quick glance backward let me know Gaara was still in the saddle. "Hey, you're doing good, for a newby!"

"Thanks! Um, I think?"

"You're welcome!" Again, the sound of hooves took over, but it wasn't uncomfortable. I could feel his mounting excitement. I continued onward, pushing Lief faster, knowing the Dragon Cave was within reach. I could hear the rushing water in it, and I knew the horses could, too. Lief whinnied, shaking his head. Even he was excited to get there. I checked to make sure the saddle bag was still attached to the saddle. It was, and I smiled. "How do you feel about a campout?"

"Like, staying out all night?"

I nodded. "Yup!"

"Yea, I'm in!"

"Awesome, because the Dragon Cave is right up there! It's still a mile or two, but it's really close! I can smell the water!"

"Why's it called the Dragon Cave?"

"Legend has it a Dragon once lived there, and laid eggs there. Legend says the Dragon's eggs are still inside, waiting for the right rider to hatch for!"

"Oh, wow! Can we look?"

I nodded. "Yup! I can bring another star out to use as a light. We can look all night!" Silence. Again. The Dragon Cave came into sight. The entrance had two long "fangs" that descended from the top, to the ground. They ended in points, barely touching the ground. I rode into the cave, jumped off, and he followed suit. Over toward the left wall, Papa had put a horse post. I tied Lief to it, patting him down, and took the saddle, saddle blanket, and bridle off.

Watching me closely, Gaara did the same. He walked over to me, rubbing his hands together. "So, what now?"

I grabbed the saddle bags, tossing one to him. "We explore." Holding one palm up, I focused on my core, bringing the warmth up, up, up to my palm. A white, glowing star found its way there. I glanced at him. "Ready?"