Authors note: I know, I know. I should probably be trying to work on In The Dark, but this idea just snagged my attention and I just had to write it down. Don't worry, I won't be abandoning my other story. Any way it will be fun writing two stories at once.

Disclaimer: Of course Dragonlance is not mine. Neither are kender. Maryann Gatecrasher is mine though. It took me a while to come up with the name.

Chapter 1: Stuck in a book

I was reading. That was nothing new. I'm always somewhere with my nose in a book. I was always different from the other girls in my town. I wasn't interested in boys, the mall, shopping. I mean really. I don't care who's dating who. Books on the other hand were a different matter. I could talk with a friend about stories for hours. I loved to read, to drink in one book after another, to drop myself into a world completely different from my own.

I glanced at the clock standing on my nightstand. It was getting late. I decided to read a little bit longer. It was a particularly interesting book. It was called Dragons of Autumn Twighlight. I had already read the entire series twice already but I was reading it again anyways. Dragonlance is so cool, I thought. I wonder what it would be like, to walk the road to Solace, to swim with sea elves. I looked down at the sentence I was reading.

Your wish is granted

What? I shook my head and looked at the book again. The sentence was gone. "Creepy," I muttered. I went back to reading.

The old man handed Tas the staff the Barbarian lady had been holding.

"Knock him down with this so we can smother the flames." Tasslehoff took it eagerly. Then he paused. He wasn't sure he wanted to. The High Theocrat had been very mean. What if he got in trouble for hitting him with a staff? He hesitated. Meanwhile the Theocrat was dying.

I blinked. That wasn't right. That certainly wasn't what the book had said the first time I read it! I shut the book and then opened it, cautiously. I stared. The words were rearranging themselves! As I watched I began to feel very drowsy. I blinked violently, fighting to stay awake. It didn't work.

Helloooo. A voice was leaking into my sleep. Wake up. You are needed. I opened my eyes. I sat up. This wasn't my room! I was surrounded by white. Complete white. I stood up and looked around. There was no one there at first glance. First glance are the key words.

"Ah you're awake." I whirled around. Standing behind me was an old man. He was wearing mouse brown robes and a shapeless hat. He was familiar but I couldn't place a name.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"My name," He said, "Is- is um… um" He frowned, "What was it?" he muttered. It hit me like a shock wave.

"Could it be… Fizban?" I asked hesitantly. I held my breath. It was obviously a dream brought on by the fact that I had been reading dragonlance when I fell asleep.

"Yes! That was it. Fizban! My name is Fizban." I felt faint. Fizban was a character from my books. Get a hold of yourself, I thought, this is a DREAM! It's not REAL! I pinched myself, hard. I didn't wake up. I was freaking out.

"Assuming I'm not dreaming," I said finally, "What am I doing here?"

"Oh yes." said Fizban, "Right to the point, you are here because there are some changes that need to be made in Krynn. If they are not made, things will start to get out of hand. Some one has been fiddling around with the story and you are going to make sure that things stay the way they were. In the meantime I will try to find the interference."

I blinked. Things were moving way to fast. I tried to digest what I had just been told.

"When," I asked slowly, "Will I be waking up?"

"Oh, when you're finished of course! Good luck."

"WAIT!" He paused "What happens if I don't succeed?" He gave me a long look.

"If you don't succeed," he said finally, "Then when the damage is done here it will move on to another story until finally it reaches your story," Fizban suddenly looked cheerful, "And if you don't succeed you won't be waking up. So I think you'll be giving the problem your full attention. Well goodbye for now!" I opened my mouth to argue but it was too late. I was standing on a dirt road surrounded by trees.

I looked around curiously; all fear seemed to have been sucked out of me and replaced with an intense desire to find out everything about everything. This was very, very abnormal as I am usually a cautious person. I started looking around every where. Then I stopped. Some thing wasn't right. I frowned. What was it? I examined myself more closely. Hmmmmm. Lets see, I'm wearing rose colored leggings…LEGGINGS! I never wear leggings! What else? Okay, I'm slender, that's different. I have leather pouches attached to my belt, Yellow tunic, and- I stopped my examination. I was way to close to the ground. I groaned inwardly. I'd SHRUNK! I had just gotten as tall as my mom. I was very proud about my height, or at least I used to be. Then I noticed the staff I was holding. It was at least as tall as I now was, about four feet I'd guessed. It had a kind of slingshot at the top of it and the bottom was pointed. A hoopack staff. My older sister's friend was trying to make one at home. Then I realized what holding a hoopack staff meant. I nearly fainted. I was a…kender? Well, Fizban could have turned me into an ogre, I reasoned. I thought for a few moments. You know, I thought, if you're going to be here a while you should make up a name for yourself. I grinned. This should be interesting. Let's see, a good name, hmm. Not anything common, how about Gatecrasher, yeah that's it. Maryann Gatecrasher. I always loved the name Maryann. My real name was Ann. I thought it was a boring name. Maryann is so much prettier.

I picked a random direction and started walking. I was doing some hard thinking. From what 'Fizban' had said I was obviously on Krynn. Then there was the matter that I couldn't wake up from this dream. That usually means that it's not a dream, but that couldn't be right! I couldn't have talked to Fizban because Fizban is FICTION! Krynn is FICTION! It shouldn't exist! I mean really. When you walk into the library the Dragonlance books are in the fantasy/young adult fiction section. You don't find it in the history section. Then there was the whole thing with some one tampering with the story. Fizban had even called it a story, but then he had also called the real world a story. Or at least I thought he did. The encounter was kind of beginning to become hazy around the edges. The whole idea was kind of silly really, who could really tamper with stories. It would be interesting to meet that kind of person, I thought. Maybe they're some evil person bent on taking over the world. It would be exciting to mee- Uh, oh. I was beginning to think like a kender. Not good. I shrugged my shoulders. Oh, well. Nothing I could do about it. I started walking; it was too beautiful an evening to be worried for long. I hummed a kender wandering song that popped into my head.

The sun was setting but I really didn't care. I probably would have stayed up all night exploring, if I hadn't run into the goblins.

I stopped to inspect an interesting colored rock. I had picked it up when movement up ahead caught my eye. I looked up to see a small group of goblins blocking my path. I walked forward, planning on going around them. They spread out. I frowned. This was very interesting but I felt a compulsion to keep going and the goblins were in my way. The goblin who was obviously the leader stepped forward. He cleared his throat importantly.

"All travelers on the road into Solace after nightfall are to be escorted to the High Theocrat for examination." He said. He obviously expected me to know what on earth a High Theocrat was. I frowned. This wasn't right. I looked at him coolly.

"I'm afraid I don't know your name or what your business is stopping people who are traveling after nightfall. That's usually the town guards' job, and they're supposed to wait at the town line."

"We are the town guard." Said the goblin, "and I am second in command after Fewmaster Toede, the captain." I blinked. I couldn't have been more startled than if some one told me the sky was falling. Fewmaster Toede died in the War of the Lance so if he was the captain of the guard- I groaned inwardly. Fizban had dropped me at the beginning of the series! I had to let my thoughts settle. I looked around. All right, I thought, depending on where I am, Tanis, Flint and Tasslehoff are either in front of me or behind me. This may be important. I forgot about the goblins.

Meanwhile, the goblin was getting impatient, "Look, kender" he began threateningly, "if you don't come we'll have to do to you what we did to the last bunch that resisted." I glanced impatiently at his company.

"One, don't call me kender, it's Gatecrasher. Don't you forget it!" I said, "Two, by the looks of your group all you did to 'the last group' was run away and three," the goblins were looking furious, "Are you BLIND? Its barely sunset! If you're going to go attacking innocent travelers, at LEAST wait until dark!"

The lead goblin was turning red. Another goblin stepped in. "This is your final warning, kender!"

I leaned on my hoopack and glared at him, "Alright, lets make sure we understand each other, if you agree to stop calling me kender I agree not to start calling you Warty Skinned Toad!" I watched as the realization that they were being insulted dawned on their faces. They obviously hadn't expected this. I can only assume that most of the folk they stop let themselves get bullied. I guess they decided I wasn't one of those people. The goblin looked unsure of what to do. I could almost see the cogs ticking in his brain. If he insisted I come things could get ugly on the other hand if let me pass he would lose face with his men and he would get in trouble with his commanding officer. I guess he thought five against one couldn't lose. Too bad for him.

TBC

Spoiler: next chapter we will be running into some familiar faces. 

Hit the button. You know which one.