Outside of Hivena castle, a storm raged. Clouds gathered, lightning

danced, wind raced, and balls of ice and sheets of water fell, but

everyone was safe inside the castle walls, hardly aware of its

existence. But a thunderstorm loomed inside the castle, too, in the

princess' private quarters.

Princess Ariana quickly changed her clothes. 'How dare he' she

thought angrily, looking down on her ruined dress. She quickly

changed into a less new, but clean, dress, and was ready to storm

back outside so she would at least be able to enjoy the *rest* of the

night when her brother's words repeated themselves in her head,

like an annoying conscience.

"Promise me that you will write in your journal before you come

back down," he urged her. He had a concerned look in his eyes.

"Sure," she exasperated, wanting to just get out of there. "Whatever

you say."

Grudgingly, she got on her knees and looked under her bed. She

fished through the junk until she felt smooth leather. She pulled out

her book, then reached back under for a quill, then for an ink well.

Each item had a thin layer of dust covering them, so Ariana used

the hem of her brand new, lovely, perfect, *ruined* dress to wipe

off the dust.

She plopped herself on her bed, turned to the first page, and began

writting furiously.

"""""""""

Oooo how DARE he!!! That little disrespectful clutz of a

commoner boy without an inkling of grace...

I'm sorry, but I am not very happy at the moment. In fact, I am

furious, but I better start at the beginning. That way, you will see

just how terrible that ~Marco is.

Before I go on, it would be best if I introduce you to myself and my

life. I am Princess Ariana, youngest child and only daughter of

King Themis of the enchanted kingdom of Hivena. I have

strawberry-blond hair and green eyes. As you no doubt know, all of

the kings of Hivena are powerful magic-users, and all immediate

kin to the king has unique powers. My power is the ability to read

minds. Mother says that it is called 'telepathy.' I don't use it very

often, not because I can't use it, but because I feel it is wrong to pry

into others thoughts so freely.

My eldest brother, Lecrian, has the power to see both the future and

the past. He has very little control over it, but he would make a

wonderful king. He has dark brown hair and brown eyes, and he is

very serious but can laugh when the time is right. He looks out for

others, and is very courageous and intelligent.

The second eldest is Herlim. He is nothing like Lecrian. He can

control the temperature of anything, and he has complete control

over his power, but he cannot control himself. I swear, there is not

a bigger flirt in all of Hivena. He is as hot-tempered and impulsive

as his red hair makes him look, but is really quite charming, and he

knows how to flatter people like no other.

The third eldest son, Kortimer, has the strangest power of us all. I

do not understand it very well, but I do know that he can 'link'

things in unexplainable ways. He is a quiet prince, with blond hair

and a lean build.

Mother is a beautiful woman with silvery hair. I have never known

anyone who has more strength, and she can lend this strength of

hers to others.

Father is truly a magnificient and wonderful king. I do not believe

that there has ever been a more gracious, fair, capable king in all of

Hivena's history. Other than his magic, Father can ... he can ...

I never have seen father use his power. Strange how I never noticed

'til now.

Anyway, it appears that I will be beating my older brothers to the

alter. I am engaged to Eran. Handsome Sir Eran, with his long

black hair and deep blue eyes. His loyalty and bravery never falter.

His smile can brighten a stormy day. His eyes shine with humor

and a love of life and of me. His touch ... he is the ideal

prince-to-be. I love him. For now I shall spare you, since soon this

journal will be filled with him.

Hivena has an enemy. His name is Zilos, evil summoner and ruler

of Levakh. He has many allies, but Father, my brothers and all of

Hivena have suceeded in defeating him time and again. Zilos has

committed many crimes, but a month ago, Zilos did something that

not even Father anticipated. He kidnapped me. I have done

everything I could to free myself, but to no avail. I know that

Father and my brothers have turned every stone looking for me, but

they were no more successful in finding me than I at escaping.

Last week, it wasn't my family who rescued me. It was a mere boy

who has seen no more than fourteen years who found and rescued

me. He did what no one else could do. He somehow snuck past all

of Zilos' defenses, found me, and escaped Levakh without fighting

a single battle. I know what he did to get me out. ... I cannot tell

you now, for the memory is too fresh, but the boy frightens me.

When I was safely home, I met this small gang of children who call

themselves the Animorphs. They claim to have the power to

change into any animal they touch without the use of magic.

Whether they realize it or not, by doing so, they claim to have the

powers of the royal family, for only the royal family can have such

powers without needing magic. Somehow, during the month that I

was away, these imposter children managed to win the hearts of all

of the kingdom.

Their leader is Jake. (What a strange name. All of them have

strange names.) If I didn't know better, I would admire this boy. He

has the talents, responsibility and quick mind of a leader, and yet

does not abuse his position. He has a tiredness in him, a look of

one bearing a terrible weight that no child should have to carry. He

reminds me so much of Lecrian ... but he is an imposter. He must

be.

Jake's cousin is a girl named Rachel. I envy her. She has a natural

beauty and grace that I cannot hope to match. As one of her friends

said, she could 'walk through a mudslide, a hurricane, and a

sandstorm, and still come out with every hair in place and not a

speck of dirt on her clothes.' She has perfect blond hair and icy

blue eyes and a tall, willowy body that attracts the eyes of even the

most loyal of men, like a princess only found in myths and dreams.

She will be beautiful all of her life. Everyone insists that she is a

warrior and that she is braver, more reckless, and more powerful

and dangerous than even my Eran, but I do not believe it.

Cassie is the only other girl in the gang. She is best friends with

Rachel, but she is just the opposite in both appearance and

disposition. She is short and solidly built, with black, short, curly

hair and dark brown eyes and dark skin. She is a gentle girl, and

she seems to be more of a healer than the hero everyone claims she

and her friends are. She must be an imposter, too, but I cannot help

but like her kindness and sensitivity.

Marco. That slug. That complete and total idiot. I cannot believe he

is Jake's best friend. Short, with dark hair and eyes, he is like a

clown, never taking anything seriously. His wit makes my stomach

churn, with its endless array of jokes and limitless supply of

sarcasm. He is the one who embarrassed me, though my brother

insists that it was an accident. He is so annoying, I have no idea

how he gained the respect of my levelheaded brothers. Maybe he

brainwashed them.

There are two more of these Animorphs, but I hesitate to tell you

about them. The four I told you about are, despite everything,

human. The last two, Tobias and Aximili, are not.

Tobias is the one who rescued me. He is a creature called a hawk,

but everyone insists that he is really a human trapped in that body,

that he was a gentle boy before he became a predator. When Tobias

is in his human body, I can almost believe them. Though his face is

forever frozen in a mask of emotionlessness, his eyes tear at my

heart. The sadness there is so great, as if he knows more sorrow in

his short life than most men in their whole lifetime. But when I see

him turn into a hawk, and those eyes harden into the sharp golden

brown, I remember what else he turned into at the tower, and I

know better than to trust him. I will never forget the monster he

became before my eyes.

Aximili does not even pretend to be human. He claims to be a

creature called an Andalite. His natural form is a bizaar apparation:

blue fur, four eyes (two of those eyes are on swiveling stalks), with

a mouthless, humanlike face on a centuar's body that ends with a

scary scythe-like blade on the end of a muscular tail. Like the

Animorphs, he can change into other creatures, but he can also turn

into a human. As a human, he is clumsy, plays with sounds, and

eats worse than a starved pig. Every mean to him is a feeding

frenzy. When he is not in his human form, he is intelligent, but

slightly arrogant. I do not like him very much.

In celebration of my safe return Father is holding a ball and a feast.

At least, he says that the celebration is for me. I feel as if he is

really honoring the children, but what can I do? Besides, the dance

will allow me to spend some time with Eran, something I have not

been able to do but sparingly since my rescue. He has been gone so

much ...

Even though the air crackled with energy from the coming storm,

the ball was wonderful. Magic lit the air and fine-tuned the music

played by a real orchestra. Everyone danced, and for a little while I

forgot my suspicions about the integrity of the children and just

danced. I had kept an eye out for Eran, but he was late. As I looked

for my fianc‚, I spied the children and my brothers. Marco (that

ham) was with human-Aximili, entertaining a crowd with his sharp

wit while Aximili remained quiet, delighting the crowd every time

he opened his mouth. Marco made sure that Aximili never saw the

refreshments.

Kortimer mingled, not really interested in attracting attention. He is

so shy, especially for a prince.

For some reason, Lecrian didn't join in the merriment. He stood

watch over the people, continually checking on the guards. This

disturbed me. Lecrian is serious, but not so serious that he would

not enjoy a ball. It was as if he was anxiously waiting for

something to happen. If it was anyone else acting like that, I may

have laughed, but this was Lecrian.

Herlim approached grim Lecrian with a bright smile on his face.

He tried to convince him to lighten up, but when he failed, he

walked back to his ladies-in-waiting, not letting Lecrian's

gloominess affect him. Herlim's eyes landed on radiant Rachel and

he suavely invited her to dance.

She turned him down. She turned the most popular ladies-man in

the world down. Oh, that astonished, uncomprehending look on

Herlim's face was worth a king's ransom. Even Lecrian accidently

let a smile creep into his face as she distainfully pushed Herlim

away and left him with his mouth hanging open. I could almost like

her after that.

Rachel went to Tobias. Tobias looked scared to be at the party

(even more so than Kortimer) standing alone in a corner eating a

small morsel. Rachel had taken him out to the dance floor. She

took his hand with an uncharacteristic tenderness and taught him

how to dance. She as graceful as a cat, he as shy as a rabbit ...

watching them almost made me cry. She had turned Herlim down

to dance with a clumsy boy with uncontrollable hair and sad eyes.

Then I noticed the other Animorph couple, Jake and Cassie.

Discreetly, they sat on a bench, watching everyone else yet talking

to each other, their hands touching tenderly, almost accidently.

Like me and Eran used to do before we fully accepted the fact that

we loved each other.

Suddenly, I really wanted Eran. What could be taking him so long?

Legend has it that it is the men who should be waiting for the

women, not the other way around. Then I saw him.

"Eran!" I called to him as he finally entered the room. He turned to

me with a smile and swaggered over.

Swagger? That is odd ... I don't remembering Eran having an ego,

but I was just too happy then to really notice at the time.

Together, we went over to the refreshment table for punch, me

chatting the whole time. Eran seemed different, but that was

alright. It has been a long time since I've seen him, and I was just

happy that he was there. I wanted wine, but Lecrian wouldn't have

wine at the dance. He was so sure that something would go wrong

that he wanted everyone to remain completely sober.

That table was where Marco spilled his punch on me. Finally

breaking away from the crowd, he walked up to Eran alone and

began to chat with him while I got some punch. With my back

turned to him, I felt a cold splash all across my back. I screamed

and turned around to see that oaf Marco standing there with an

empty, wet glass in his hand.

"Uh... maybe the punch was spiked, anyway," he said lamely.

"Sorry."

My face grew hot with rage and embarrassment. "You ... you ..." I

couldn't find the right words to say. I was too angry and

embarrassed to.

I stomped away. I just wanted to get out of there. Eran,

understanding Eran, followed a few steps behind me.

Lecrian didn't understand.

"I saw what happened," he said, catching up to walk beside me. "It

was an accident. Somebody bumped him. He is really sorry."

I turned on him. "You're taking his side?!?"

He was started by my question. "What side?" I cut him off before

he could say anything more.

"Well, you can have him and all the rest of those imposters. They

claim to be heroes, so they are given a huge party -- with *me* as

an afterthought. 'Oh, by the way, and Princess Ariana is home.'"

Lecrian tried to say something, but I was not done. "I can't wait to

see you realize that they are decieving you and the whole kingdom.

I just can't wait."

"Same here," Eran put in, supporting me.

Lecrian shocked expression wore off, replaced by a hard look.

"You are wrong, Ariana. These young heroes have done so much

good for the kingdom while you were gone. Did you know that

while we were out searching for you, Zilos attacked the castle? He

attacked time and time again, using the many creatures under his

control. Demons, ghosts, ogres, vampires, werewolves, elementals,

this kingdom would have been lost without them. I would not be

here." He shot Eran, his best friend, a look. "Eran would not be

here." He looked back at me. "You would not be here. Yes, they

are extremely young. Yes, they are a mystery to us. But if they are

working for Zilos, if they are trying to usurp the kingdom or rob or

betray us, they could have done so a hundred times already instead

of saving our lives time and time again. Rurga knows that they

have had the opportunity. You do them much wrong to accuse

them of being false for no other reason than for your vanity. I am

overjoyed that you are home safely, and this party *is* for you, but

you must get this straight: the world does not revolve around you,

Ariana. No one in the family must ever think that way."

I couldn't say anything. Lecrian has never been so blunt before. I

looked for Eran for

support, but he was gone.

Lecrian's eyes softened. "Now," he said, letting me know that he is

not angry with me. "Let's do something about that dress of yours."

And he walked me to my room.

As we walked, I looked closer at Lecrian. His clothing, though nice

enough for the ball, was older than my dress. A sword hung by his

hip, ready to be drawn at a moments notice. His eyes ... I didn't

notice until then just how tired Lecrian was. He had a haunted look

in his eyes, and bags under them, as if he has not been getting

enough sleep, and his shoulders slumped. But he should have been

rested. I have been home for a few days, and no one has attacked

during that time. Whatever horrors he saw in the month that I was

gone should have been slept away.

"Lecrian, what's wrong?" I asked, genuinely concerned.

"I have been having dreams," he said simply, as if that explained

everything.

Then I realized it. "You cannot control them?"

He laughed grimly, as if I said something funny, but without

humor. "I have been absolutely bombarded. I wake up screaming,

shaking with fear and fever, but the fever dissipates before the

dawn, though the fear remains. Every time I close my eyes, I see

them."

"See who?" I asked after a long silence.

"The Animorphs."

That surprised me. What was so important about these frauds that

Lecrian would be haunted by his power? I was about to ask, but he

continued, as if knowing what I would say.

"I do not see their future, really, but I have been seeing bits and

pieces of their past. Immensely powerful beings, battles, a traitor,

things that I could only explain as magic but is not ... nothing I can

understand. Each vision is more powerful and urgent than the last,

and now ... now I even see the dreams when I am awake. In the

very corners of my eyes, I see movement. I hear voices so faint that

I could almost believe they are my imagination. It doesn't stop. It

hasn't stopped since the day you came home."

I stayed silent. I was afraid for my brother, and I still am. His

power, though he never could fully control it, never controlled him

before. No wonder he could not relax, despite his weariness.

Then I felt the cold, sticky wetness all over my back, and I was

irritated again. I let that irritability grow in me. Anger is so much

better than fear and worry.

It was then that Lecrian made me promise to write in this journal. I

have to wonder about that.

Thunder? I could have sworn I heard thunder rolling, but that is

imposible. Father had silenced the *



BOOM!

The crash was so loud that Ariana dropped her pen, ruining her

clean dress. She didn't notice.

BOOM! even louder. The stone walls trembled.

"GRAAEAEAEAEAAEAAGH!!!" something roared. It was so

deafening loud that Ariana clapped her hands over her ears until

the echoes died away.

"By Rurga! What is going on?!?" Ariana leaped out of her bed and

ran through the door.

She followed the screams from the ballroom, Lecrian's fear

looming over her like a cloud. Only then did she remember that

there was a storm outside.