A/N: Chapter one...I didn't mention any names or ages, because I don't have much of an idea for what the names/ages should be.

Chapter One: Lost and Found

I was currently standing in the middle of a narrow alleyway, pressed flat against the wall, hardly daring to breathe. Four big, burly looking men with rifles ran into view, and to my horror stopped right in front of the alley I was in. "Where'd the human go?!" The apparent leader barked at the few, frightened bystanders. Nobody spoke, but many nervous shakes of heads answered him. The leader kicked one of the bystanders in anger and then stormed off, followed by his men.

The peasant boy, who had been kicked, remained on the ground unmoving until the men's shouts and curses faded away. Then the boy pushed himself up on shaking arms; no one moved to help him. Not even the woman who I was almost sure was his mother. When he had managed to stand and steady himself, it seemed the spell was broken. They spoke in whispers still, but they rushed over to the boy and pulled him into the nearest house, their hushed voices anxious and worried.

I took a deep breath and relaxed slightly, allowing myself some time to rest after my game of hide and seek with those men...I closed my eyes and replayed the last hour or so.

I had been exploring the area outside of my new house--we had just moved in with mom's latest boyfriend, and he had a pretty neat house in the woods. I had quickly gotten lost in the dark trees, and when I had finally stumbled out of them I was tired and lonely. But I was awake enough to be shocked at what I saw: a huge meadow, full of dead flowers. On the other side was a huge village, like that from one of those movies set in medieval times, and towering above it was magnificent, yet sinister castle. With a long, black dragon flying to one of the towers. At that moment I knew that this wasn't a place for me.

I knew I shouldn't have gone farther--I should have just turned back and tried to find my way home. This was probably the set of a movie or something; did they actually create things like this for their films? I didn't know. But I felt a tugging inside me, something telling there was something there that was meant to be found...And if it did turn out to be just a movie set, I could just say sorry and ask for a ride home.

So I began walking, my feet crunching on the dead flowers beneath my shoes. I explored, quickly getting lost in the twists and turns of the alleys and streets. I saw no sign of life; windows were dark, shops were closed...there wasn't even a breath of wind. But there was a sense of being watched, and whenever I came into view of that black castle the feeling quadrupled. So far I had only seen it from small side streets; gaps between buildings. But I finally found my way into a large, empty square that was directly in front of it.

I was suddenly overwhelmed with a feeling of dread; it felt as though I was being sucked into a void of despair...And I knew that I'd never see my home again if I stayed here much longer.

I had just turned to run back the way I came when I noticed where the sun was at--it was just sinking below the horizon, and the feeling of dread grew even more. A light flickered on from inside a shop, and then more lights began to turn on. Figures emerged from the houses--peasants, strange looking travelers, shop keepers. I could tell who and what they were from my knowledge of 'fairy tales'. There were even Elves and Dwarves!

That was when the trouble started.

A villager looked up and saw me, and froze in his tracks. Soon other people began noticing me, and I knew that nothing good could come of this. "Human!" Someone screamed. Four burly looking men that had been standing at each corner of the square began to march forward, rifles in hand and cruel eyes glinting. I did the first thing I thought of:

I ran as though the devil himself were after me.

Screams of "A human!" "Go back inside!" "Get the children to safety!" reached my ears, and soon the streets were nearly deserted. The men were catching up; they weren't human. No one here was human...Except me. What the heck was up with this place I had found? What would happen to me for intruding upon it? I had a feeling that it probably wasn't a good idea to find out the answer to either question.

And that's basically where I was now--running from those men and desperate for a safe place to go.

I stood, hoping I could find my way back to that field of dead flowers so I could get away from here. Come on, I thought to myself, taking a deep breath. It's just a game of Hide and Seek tag. You're a master at it...shift from place to place, and don't let anyone see you.

I peered out of the alley and saw no sign of anyone. Perfect...

I began fast-walking down the street, staying close to the center of it: I'd have more chance to get away if someone attacked, although I was more out in the open.

I had just walked around another corner, thinking that this was familiar, when I heard footsteps behind me. I spun around to see the black dragon from earlier. Its eyes were blood red, and its scales were darker than night. It had no wings; it looked a bit like Haku from Spirited Away...except much bigger, and definitely evil. Eep.

I took a step back, ready to run for my life. It chuckled, and flames licked its teeth. "Come on, human," it said in a surprisingly cold voice for words coming out of a flaming mouth. "You have no use running. My Mistress wishes to see you."

"Why? Why can't I just go home?!" I asked frantically as he stepped forward, his black furred tail flicking behind him. "My Mistress will explain all if you just come along with me," it said, and took another step forward. I knew that he was lying--if I went with him nothing good could come out of it.

As he took another step toward me I turned and ran, hurtling myself into narrow alleys, hoping they were to small for him to fit. No such luck--he was long and lithe, and easily followed me.

He was quickly catching up on me, and I was quickly becoming lost and exhausted again. One of my hands held a stitch in my side, while the other toppled over crates and anything I passed, trying to maybe slow the dragon down. Suddenly I found myself bursting out of the alley and into the Square again. I tripped over the cobblestones, landing hard on my side. As I groaned and tried to push myself up I heard the dragon laughing. Before I even had time to catch my breath its black talons dug into my shoulders and my feet left the ground.

I screamed, struggling against its grip, but it merely tightened its claws and flew higher, toward the tower I had seen it go into earlier.

Well, there goes my hope of escaping, I thought miserably as the ground grew farther and farther away.

So...that's the beginning! Tell me what you think; ConCrit is welcomed.