Disclaimer: I DO NOT own any character in this story except Crystal and Potatoes. The rest belong to ADAM POWELL and are (c) Neopets, Inc.
The sun was setting in the distance. The battlefiend was strewn with corpses of fallen soldiers. A sinister figure with a resemblance to a Lupe stood on top of a sacrificed figure, howling with delight. As he stood there, bathing in his triumph, the soldier twitched his paw, possibly trying to make an attempt to get up. His captor's shade of glory dispelled as his anger was unleashed on the poor knight. The villain thrust his sword into the heart of the knight, ending his pain. Crystal peered down at the figure from a few yards away, trying to make out the bloody comrade. Her eyes grew wide in fright. His scar on his forehead... No.. it couldn't be...
"Wake up, sleepy head."
Crystal shot up in bed, her forehead in a cold sweat. Was it true? No, thank goodness, it was only a dream...
"Are you okay?" asked Danner, who was sitting on her bed. "What's the matter? Are you sick?" He felt her paw, then her forehead. "Oh, dear. You must have caught something. I hope you haven't been-"
"I'm fine, Danner. I just... had a bad dream.. that's it."
"That's it! From now on, you're staying with me at MY cottage! Why didn't you stay with me in the FIRST PLACE!"
"Because you never asked me." Upon hearing this, Danner turned red. He opened his mouth as if to retort, then bit his tongue. "Anyways, I was talking to Jeran about Lisha, and, well... I know you like him, and-"
"I don't like him like that! Honestly, Danner! Look, it's been a long time since we've been apart, and I've changed. I'm not the little kid you thought I was a couple years ago. No, I'm a different person. I have grown from a foolish little child into a responsible adult. I don't do this silly little 'puppyblew love' as I used to as a child."
"Oh, so I suppose you know about the Buzzers and the WeeWoos..." Danner grinned, and laughed heartily at his own joke. Crystal, who did not find it half as funny as he did, rolled her eyes. Seeing that his little sister was not thrilled, he changed the subject. "Well, Chris, I have to go attend to some matters at the castle. Would you mind coming with me? I'm still not convinced that it's safe for you to stay here alone."
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Figuring she had nothing to lose, Crystal had decided to go along with her brother. After some coaxing and I-promise-I-will-not-go-anywheres, he finally left her alone in the Royal Library. As soon as Danner left, she slumped down in a chair, pondering her dream. The conqueror beared a strange resemblance to something she had seen earlier... but she just couldn't put her paw on it. She was positive that the Lupe Knight who had been killed was none other than Sir Jeran Borodere, but she refused to swallow this. But, praise Fyora, it was only a dream...
Crystal's thoughts were interrupted by a creaking of the library door. Footsteps softly thudded here and there, coming closer to the desk where she sat at. She didn't look up; she was not about to be disturbed in her train of thought.
THUD.
The Wocky jumped up and glanced around. She raced to the other side of the library, where she saw a helpless figure covered in a pile of books. It was none other than Lisha. Crystal didn't waste time in meditating on her fate, just plunged in and helped the aisha out of the stack of books and helped putting them back on their shelves. Lisha paused for a moment, then started working.
"Lisha?" asked Crystal, as she organized a column on biographies. "Look, I'm sorry for being a jerk the other night. I wasn't thinking straight, and I;m really sorry for calling you a witch, and-"
"Oh. Yeah. That's okay," Lisha muttered as she put the last book in it's proper place. "And thanks for helping me."
"So, are you still mad at me? I'd understand if you were, because I'm just so rude sometimes..."
Lisha laughed. "Of course I'm not mad at you! I can tell that you're really sorry. And don't mind about your calling me a witch. Everyone gets mad sometimes."
"Yeah, but that didn't give me any right to yell at you and call you those terrible names!"
"Oh, forget it. It's all over with." The Aisha extended her paw. "Friends?"
"Friends." The frown on Crystal's face turned into a grin. "So, what were you looking for?"
"I needed a specific spell book for Kayla. She asked me to get it since she was in the middle of something important. Oh, and by the way, what did you want me to give my brother? You never told me."
"Oh... uh, never mind. It wasn't anything important. Nothing you should be concerned about," Crystal lied, blushing.
"Well, if it concerns my brother, it concerns me. So tell me. If you don't want me to give it to him, that's okay. Just tell me. I'm dying to know." Lisha grinned, her girlish heritage getting the best of her.
"I really don't want to say."
"That's all right. You don't have to tell me," she said with a sudden change of heart. "That is, if it's personal," Lisha said with an all-knowing smile. "I believe I know what you mean." She stood up and pulled out a book from one of the adajacent shelves. "Here," she said, placing it in Crystal's hand. "You might find this interesting." And with that, she left the library.
Crystal stared after her, then looked at the book in her hand. "Jeran, My Hero," she whispered. "No, she couldn't have figured it out," she mused. She opened it to page one and began reading.
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A few hours later, the Wocky was still totally engrossed in reading. Suddenly a thought struck her. "Oh, dear! Lisha forgot to pick up the book for Kayla!" She frowned. "I haven't any idea where the laboratory is, but if I ask around, I may be able to find her." She stood up, as to leave, then turned back to the area where Lisha had picked up the books. "Well, if I'm reading a Jeran book, I might as well pick up a few more."
Only minutes later, with about seven books under her arm, the Wocky walked out of the library, searching for the laboratory. After about fifteen minutes of no luck, she asked a Draik guard, "Excuse me, do you know where Kayla's laboratory is? I have a book for her."
"Yes, ma'am. Down this hall, turn left, and it will be the third door on your right."
"Thank you," she said, then sped off toward Kayla's lab. "I'd better hurry," she said to herself, "Danner's going to be expecting me back at the library. I'd better go quickly."
Well... too quickly.
As soon as she turned she corner, she went WHAM! into a knight. She fell to the floor, and her books went flying everywhere. "Oh, no," sighed Crystal as she picked up her books. The kind knight bent down to help her pick up the books.
"Jeran, My Hero." A fine book, if I do say so myself. Crystal looked up into the eyes of Jeran. "Apparently, someone likes Jeran!" He laughed. She blushed as he handed her the books.
"I'm sorry I bumped into you. I should watch where I'm going, and slow down." Jeran extended his paw and helped Crystal up.
"It's Crystal, right? Danner's little sister?"
"Rose Crystal. Crystal is my middle name, and that's what everyone calls me." she said, barely above a whisper.
"Rose. I like that name. Do you mind me calling you that?"
"No, I don't mind at all," she said, her face so red she looked like a Crabula.
"All right then. Bye, Rose!" He smiled warmly and continued down the hall.
Rose walked slowly into Kayla's alchemy laboratory. Lisha was no where to be seen. "Here," she said, handing the book to Kayla, "Lisha wanted to give this to you, but I guess she forgot."
"Ah! Yes. Thank you very much." Kayla set the book down, but did not open it. "So," she said with an impish smile, "How's your social life going?"
Crystal sighed. "I didn't know it was that obvious," she confessed.
"Don't worry, Crystal. Lisha told me all about you, and I don't blame you for liking him. And, Jeran's not about to figure that out soon. "
"I don't know. I just feel like a little kid, with silly schoolgirl crushes. I don't know what to think."
"Don't worry. Everyone has them." Kayla smiled. "Oh, and your brother told me to tell you that-"
"Oh, Danner!" Crystal exclaimed. "I'm supposed to meet him! I had better go. Bye!"
"Bye, Crystal. Nice meeting you," Kayla managed to say right before her Wocky friend sped off.