Disclaimer: How To Train Your Dragon and Brave belongs to their respective owners.

Author's Note: I want to thank waveringshadow for betaing this chapter. Please guys check out her work. She's amazing and you won't be disappointed.

Prologue

They said that a lot of magical creatures live in the forest surrounding our castle. There are the wisps, the elves and the strongest among them, the ones that everyone are scared of, the faeries.

My father always told me a tale of how horrible and evil those creatures are. He said that once they get their hands on any human they will abduct them, for any reason they might see fit, or worse they will torture them with a curse that kills them slowly.

All of my life, I grew up fearing them. I'm never allowed to leave the castle without any amulets that we believe they are scared of. I literally have been guarded every second of my life. I'm only allowed to be by myself inside the castle's walls.

I'm boxed in because my father feared that once I'm out in the open, once a faery touched me, I would disappear like a bubble, that I am going to disappear like my mom did years ago.

I can never remember much about my mother. She disappeared when I was only five and my brothers were all little babes. No one had a clue as to how she disappeared, but my dad always blamed the faeries. I don't even know why my father hated and put all the blame on them, but all of that changed when I met the fae. It changed my whole world and life.

Spring was about to end. The weather was perfect, it was neither too hot nor too cold, so I planned to spend the day practicing shooting with my bow and arrows. Unlike any other kingdom, where they forbid any women, especially those who are members of the court, to learn how to fight for themselves, my father encouraged me to learn how. He is the one who personally taught me how to handle a sword and a bow.

"Swoosh!" that was the only constant sound that I could here as I rapidly fired arrows one after another. After firing the last arrow with extreme precision and focus, I looked at my work. I hit every target perfectly and I even split a wooden arrow in half with my last one.

Beaming to myself, I walked towards the target and eyed it with admiration. This was the first time that I had done something like this and I couldn't wait to tell my dad. Once he learns of this he will let me practice shooting arrows while riding my horse, something I couldn't wait for.

I hastily plucked the arrows out of my target and I trace my fingers over the little holes that I have left on it. It was battered from years of use and I really needed to replace it. Tucking all of my arrows into my quiver, I looked up towards the sky and noticed that it was still early.

I decided to walk for a while. I knew that as soon as I came back I was going to be pushed to attend my lessons, which I was not in the mood for. Aside from that, the weather was a little too perfect for only a short walk. Slinging my quiver on my hips, I walked towards the castle's garden.

The castle garden was one of my favorite spots in our castle. It had a variety of plants and flowers that were arranged beautifully and it was a quiet place where less people would bother me but, aside from that, this was the place where I had the last memory of my mother.

Sitting on one of the bench stones, I closed my eyes and let it play in my mind. I still remember it vividly after all this time. My mother was sitting on the grass with me; she was braiding my long curly hair with her expert hands, while the young version of me was clumsily making a flower crown. She was humming a song for me, a lullaby to be exact, and then I stuck my little chubby finger with a thorn and I cried out.

I remembered her gathering me in her arms and carrying me to one of the benches in this very garden. She inspected my cut and gently told me to be careful next time. Settling me on her lap, she put the flower crown on my head while wiping my tear streaked face.

"Be careful next time my little faery." She told me as she kissed my forehead, then my hurt little finger.

Opening my eyes, I look at the colorful butterflies lazily flying around. I always found that part of my memory odd. It's a little disturbing that my mother called me her little faery when my father was so mad at them. Sighing, I ran my fingers through my hair and let my mind wander for a minute.

Whenever I'm alone I always think of a theory as to how my mother disappeared. Was she lured in by the faeries or did she come willingly to them? Whenever I think of it, I'm always a little bit convinced that my mother might have come with them willingly. With her stories about the wisps and faeries I can't help but think about it that way, but if that really was the case then my father should be angry with my mother.

I bit my lip, I also doubt that. Maybe my father's love for my mother made it hard for him to accept that she left us, so he blamed the faeries for it, but it's hard to think that my mother is that kind of person. She was so regal and my maids would always tell me a story of how my mother can make all the war freak clan leaders behave like little naughty children scolded by their mother.

Smiling at the memory of how animatedly my maids told me the whole story, I let my mind drift to another matter. Thinking about how my mother disappeared gives me a headache and it's a mystery that I doubt I will ever solve.

Thinking of what I should do to pass the time, I kicked the little pebbles underneath my boots. I was surprised when I heard an angry and shocked meow emitted from the bushes. Standing up, I walked quickly towards the neatly trimmed bush. I crouched down and moved the little branches out of my sight. I was taken aback when I found a black sleek cat with a pair of the greenest eyes I have ever seen.

"Hey there. Did I hurt you? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." I talked to it as I reached a hand to stroke its fur. It moved away from my touch and it accidentally flicked its long tail on my nose. I let out a giggle as I'm ticklish on my nose and chin.

"Hey, don't be mad, I didn't mean to hit you with the stone." I said as I reached down for it again. This time it tried to run away but it didn't get too far because its left leg gave way.

I walked cautiously towards it and I gently kneeled next to it. I carefully reached out for it, thankfully it didn't move away this time, and I gently stroked its black fur.

I felt the cat tense under my hands. I hesitantly moved my hands up to its spine then to its chin and I felt it sag and settle under my touch.

Smiling at its reaction, I tickled it again under its chin. I couldn't stop the giggle that came from my mouth after it gave a soft mewl and licked my finger.

"So, I will carry you inside and then I will feed you." I said to it. It looked at me intently as if it understood everything I said.

Continuing, I picked him up and nestled him deep in the groove of my elbows.

"Oh, you're so light. I'm sure you are starving. Don't worry you're in for a treat." I said to it while I gently patted its head. The cat meowed as if it was agreeing with me and I felt a smile tugged at my lips.

When I was about to get up, I heard a rustling sound behind me and I felt the little hairs on my neck stand up like someone was watching me. Hastily looking back I saw nothing, but a lone reddish brown bird perched up in a tree caught my attention.

Shaking my head at the heavy feeling that I felt, I hugged the black cat tighter and I walked away as fast as I could towards the castle, feeling bothered and out of my element. I couldn't remove the feeling that someone was watching my every move intently from my mind.

I instantly remembered the reddish brown bird and the way it seemed to watch me. Taking a deep shaky breath, I felt a chill run down my spine.

"No, it's not a fae. It cannot be."