An: I hope this is long enough. Is everyone enjoying this? I'm not getting that many reviews. Anyways, Enjoy!

I heard mumbling and felt heat.

There was a heavy weight on my body, I could barely move.

I could smell smoke and thought, fire! But then as I slowly shifted my legs, I realized that the weight was only blankets. And that the fire had been made for heat.

It was a big fire. A bunch of logs were piled high. It looked like a tower with the fire as a roof.

I tried to stand up, but a hand was placed on my shoulder.

"You can hold off you adventures for a little bit. Right now you need rest." The voice was thin and sweet. Almost enchanting. I would do whatever the voice asked me to do.

The hand pressed me down. I didn't resist.

"Who are you?" It was hard to talk.

"Someone."

"Someone named-"

"Ariana. And you are?"

"I'm Ella. How did I get here?"

"I found you in the river. Almost drowned. You wrecked your dress, so I let you borrow one of mine."

"To big for you though. So you're just wearing a shirt." A voice called from the clearing.

"Jon!" Ariana called out and jumped up to greet him. I closed my eyes halfway as they began to kiss. It reminded me too much of how I missed Char. I wished I could kiss him right now.

"What are you doing her Jon? I thought that you weren't supposed to be back until next month. I was-"

The man named Jon cut her off. I inched forward to get a better view. Jon was frowning. Shouldn't he be happy? I thought. He pushed back one of Ariana's blond curls.

"The stone of Ersnia is working again."

I inched closer. That one sentence gave me hope. Maybe they can help me destroy it, I thought. I could see there faces clearly now. Ariana looked shocked. Her eyes were wide.

"Its impossible. Jon, I refuse to believe a rumor."

"It's not a rumor. You of all people know that I wouldn't lie about this. You need to leave here, now. It's not safe-"

Ariana's shocked expression turned angry. "I can protect myself! Don't you dare tell me what's safe and what's not!" She raised her hand as if to smack him, but then decided the better of it and her hand fell back to her side.

She quickly tried to change the subject. "Today I found a young girl in the river. She had the dagger of Ersnia with her."

I stopped listening to them talk. The dagger. The one I had found in the river, it had something to do with all of my problems. I pulled up all of my courage and stood up from where I was hiding.

Jon made a little sound that sounded like a laugh. "You must be Ella. I'm Jon. Has my wife been treating you well? She's not very good with people." Ariana elbowed him in the ribs. "That's only because I learned it from you." A laugh escaped from her lips.

"I need your help." I began, not sure of how to say it. Both their eyebrows raised. Before they could say anything I started talking again. "But first I need you to explain something. What's the whole thing with the stone of Ersnia? And the dagger I found in the river. What does that have to do with the stone? I really don't understand anything. Could you please tell me?"

It was silent. For a few minutes all of us just stared.

Ariana broke the silence with her laughter. She grabbed my hand and pulled me over to a large log. Jon followed behind us. After all of us had sat down, Ariana smiled. I could see the fire that was burning behind me reflect in her eyes.

"It's a long story." She began.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Many years ago there was a small village on the edge of Frell. The village was isolated from almost everyone because of its mountains and sharp cliffs. It was hard to grow anything, and water was scarce, but people still lived and survived there. The village had no name. There was no reason for a name, it was to small to be put on any map, and almost everyone who lived there would only say 'this village' or 'home'. No one really cared, the people who lived in the village never really traveled far. And so the village worked unaware of the world around it. And it stayed that way for many years, until anything about the outside world became rumor, and no one knew that a whole other world grew and thrived around them."

Ariana paused, taking a deep breath.

"Darec Jenason was an adventurer. He traveled around the world climbing mountains, killing ogres. During one of his adventures he heard a rumor about a small village that was hidden by mountains and impossible to get to. He was intrigued and questioned everyone he could find about this village hidden in the mountains. No one knew much, so he only got a point in the direction of where the village was supposed to be."

"But that was enough for him. He rounded up a band of men and started a journey towards the village. It took him almost a whole year to make it to the village, but when he did he was welcomed gratefully. He was questioned nonstop about the out side world, and he was rewarded for making it by on his first night a dinner fit for a king. The entire village rejoiced. That night, since there were never visitors, he spent the night at the richest mans house."

"The rich man had a beautiful daughter named Rosemary. She had always longed to travel the world and see something beyond her village. So when Darec came she secretly rejoiced. Over the days he stayed, she flirted with him. After a month she had won him over. Rosemary convinced Darec to take her with him."

"All she had to do was convince her father to let her go. Her father refused. But that didn't stop her. She ran away and left with Darec. Her father was outraged when he found out his daughter had left him. Long ago, an oracle had told him that his daughter would leave the safety of the village, that an evil fate would come upon her. He rounded up some of the young men in the village to stop her."

"But they were too late. The young men came back empty-handed. They came with the news that his daughter had fallen from one of the cliffs. Rosemary was dead."

Please Review!