Disclaimer – I don't own anything but the storyline and my original characters. You get the picture.

I woke up and found Poppy asleep on my pillow. When I sat up, she jumped two feet in the air then gave me a look that clearly said, "Feed me."

Jackalopes. Do they ever get stomachaches?

"Okay, Poppy," I said. "Let me change first."

Looking through my clothes, I saw a black leather zippered tank top I hadn't worn in a while, a pair of black leather capris, and a black leather skirt with the back being much lower than the front (it's Tifa's outfit from Final Fantasy VII Advent Children – don't own). I put it on, noticing how pale my skin looked when I wore black. I put on black sneakers and headed down to get Poppy some food.

I saw Zoe munching on Cheerios when I came down.

"Hi," she said, very glumly. Clearly, she was still grieving over her mother.

"Hi, Zoe. How are you?"

"Good," she said monotonously. She took another bite of Cheerios.

"Good. They're going to do the annual festival tonight. Do you wanna go?"

"Sure." Again, the monotone.

"Oh come on. It'll be fun."

"Whatever," came the reply.

"I know this might sound like I don't care, but I really do. Try to remember the good times you had with your mother. Wouldn't she want you to be happy?"

"The more I think about her, the more I miss her." Her eyes started to tear up again.

Poppy, who had followed me down the stairs, sensed Zoe's immeasurable sadness and rubbed her head against her leg, much like a cat would. Zoe reached down to pet her, and then Poppy hopped in her lap. Whatever it was about animals, they sure had the ability to cheer people up. She seemed to forget about her terrible loss, even if it was just for a split second.

I poured myself some Cheerios and sat next to Zoe.

We ate breakfast in silence.

Meg came in with eggs and bacon, but by that time, I already had finished my breakfast and wasn't hungry anymore.

"You need to eat more than Cheerios if you want to get meat on your bones," she had said as I walked out.

I wandered around town, looking at all the decorations being set up for the festival. People were sweeping the streets. I grabbed a broom and joined in the efforts. Many people came to our small, quiet village for the storytelling festival. Most of its excitement came with the festivals.

I saw travelers in worn clothing riding on various creatures. Some came on horses, mules, donkeys, and camels. Those were the main animals that would fill our stables. However, there were many other methods of transportation. One carriage was pulled by goats. Someone came riding a chimera. The most shocking visitors had come on a Blizzard Dragon wearing clothing suited for winter.

That one won't last too long in the heat of the day.

I tried to look perfectly nonchalant as the man landed near me.

"Do you know where a lake is so Farore can cool off?" he asked me.

"Is that your dragon?" I asked.

"Yes. He's a Blizzard Dragon, so this warm weather isn't too good for him. Not to mention, this long journey has made him hungry, so he'll need to hunt."

I couldn't help but notice the dragon hungrily eyeing a passing donkey.

"If he heads south for about a mile and a half, there are a bunch of small lakes. There will be plenty of fish for him to eat."

"Oh, he loves fish. Well, you heard the nice young woman, Farore. Go south for a mile and a half. Pick any one of the lakes."

The dragon grunted in reply and took off.

"So where is a cheap tavern? I don't have much coin on me," he asked.

"The one I would suggest is the Black Phoenix. They're really reasonable there. If that one's too much, a good one is the Merry Meadow."

Thank you," he said, grabbing my hand.

"Hey, what are you-"

He smiled and placed a gold coin in my hand and closing my fist before walking away.

"Thank you," I said.

"No, thank you."

I turned back to my work before feeling a tap on my shoulder.

"I'm surprised you didn't panic with that dragon so close to you," Rebecca said.

"Me, too, Rebecca. Me, too."

"Let's get lunch. I'm starving."

"What do you want?"

"Chicken sounds good to me. What about you?"

"I just ate Cheerios, so I'm good."

"Cheerios? You can do better than that, Kisara."

"It was out, and I was hungry. What do you expect?"

"I expect you to do better. Let's get some chicken."

"Fine," I said.

"Kisara, look at you, you're a toothpick."

"I'm aware."

"We need something more fattening than chicken."

"What are you thinking? Besides, I'm not anorexic."

"SO FATTEN YOURSELF UP!"

"Well, what are you thinking?"

"Fries. With lots of salt. You're getting a large and you are eating all of it."

"If you're paying. Remember, I come from a poor fishing family that was migrated away from the lake where we made our living. We won't have money for long."

"Then I'll pay. Gramps has plenty of money. Stop trying to talk me out of making you eat."

"Okay, sheesh."

"Ooh, fried chicken. I'm getting that," Rebecca said, stopping at a booth.

"I'm moving on," I said.

"No, you're not. You will eat this drumstick and you will like it."

"Whatever."

Anything else I would have said was cut short when Rebecca stuffed the chicken in my mouth.

"Mmmmmm. Thish ith goothe."

"Glad you like it. We're getting you your large fries now."

"Whatever you say, Rebecca."

She grabbed my hand and pulled me to another food stand.

"Large fries and about twenty pounds of chocolate," Rebecca said, placing coins on the counter.

"Here you go," the man said.

"Thank you," Rebecca said. "Now eat your fries, Kiki."

"Kiki?"

"That's your newest nickname."

"I like my real name. Why does everyone give me nicknames?"

"Because it's fun watching your facial expressions whenever we do. Eat your darn fries!"

"Okay, okay," I said, wolfing down the fatty, greasy, salty goodness known as fries.

"Hey, Kisara!"

"Tea!"

"I'm going to dance tonight!"

"Huh?"

"Surely you didn't forget about the festival tonight?"

"I remember."

"And the big party they throw before they tell stories?"

"I'll be serving food tonight."

"Don't try to get out of it, Kisara. You're the only one besides Rebecca here that doesn't have a boyfriend."

"Hey! You're the one stealing my Yugi-muffin!"

"He asked me out, not the other way around, short stuff!"

"What did you call me?"

Sensing an incoming catfight, I tried to change the subject.

"So, assuming I get a break from my kitchen duties, who should I dance with?"

"Try some cute city boy," Rebecca said. "There should be a nice selection tonight."

"Or maybe Ryou," Tea suggested.

"Bakura?" I asked.

"You're on last name basis now?"

"No, but why him?"

"Kisara, how dumb are you?"

"What?"

"Have you seen the way he looks at you? Or that blush he gets whenever he talks to you?"

"But he's always like that around girls."

"Not around me. Unless you're nearby."

"What do you think of him?" Rebecca asked.

"I'm happy just being friends."

"But would you be happier being more than just friends?" Tea inquired.

"I don't know."

Desperately looking for a change in topic, I scanned the crowd. My eyes landed on Marik, so I ran to him.

He looked at me. "My manly charm, 5000 and 1. Ladies, 0."

"What manly charm? You look rather effeminate, ma'am."

"That stung, Kisara."

"I need your help, Marik."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. How do you make female friends stop hounding you for information about your boyfriend, whether he actually exists or not?"

"Become a lesbian." (AUTHOR'S NOTE: I am not against gay people. It's not my decision who others are in relationships with. DO NOT FLAME ME.)

I gaped at him.

"That's one way," he continued. "Another is to avoid them altogether."

"Did you just tell me to become a lesbian?"

"Maybe."

"You, the temple cleric?"

"Maybe," he repeated.

"You're telling me to become a lesbian?"

"MARIK ISHTAR! YOU COME RIGHT HERE THIS INSTANT!"

He paled.

"Is your mom calling you? What did you do this time?"

"She's not my mom, but she's someone every bit as bad."

"Who?"

"You just set Ishizu on me! Why did you have to set her on me?"

"Haha."

"MARIK! NOW!"

"I gotta run. No, seriously. I have to avoid her next beating. Catch ya later!"

He started running through the crowd, Ishizu in hot pursuit.

"Kisara, did he say where he was going?" she panted.

"He headed that way. Said something about avoiding a beating from you," I replied.

"Marik," she sighed, shaking her head.

"Boys will be boys."

"No kidding."

"Rebecca, why did you follow me?"

"I want to hear your answer," she said.

"You already heard it. I honestly don't know."

"You're hopeless."

"Hopeless and proud of it," I said.

"I have to catch Marik. If you'll excuse me, I'll be on my way," Ishizu said.

"Bye Ishizu!"

"Farewell."

I watched her beautiful dress flow as she walked away.

As much as I hate dresses, I want that one.

"Kiki, you have to get to work. The feast's about to start."

"Roger that. I'll be off now."

"Bye, Kiki," Rebecca said.

"Bye, short stuff."

"SHORT STUFF?"

I chose to ignore her and get to work.

It wasn't long before I was serving all kinds of food to everyone in the village. Rebecca hadn't been kidding. There was a very nice selection of cute city boys. Two in particular stuck out to me. One was a fair-skinned blonde with sparkling blue eyes and a smile that could charm a cobra. The other was very tall and had rich chocolate brown hair and cerulean eyes that seemed like they were trying to hide a lot of pain. Neither one said anything to me, but the blonde winked at me before walking away. It was only after I had served loads of people for an hour that I was able to take a break and eat my own food. The cheese wontons I snagged were delicious, and I was in line for seconds when someone bumped into me from behind.

"Oh, sorry, that was entirely my fault."

It was the cute blonde. He had a deep voice that made me want to squeal with delight. I wasn't sure why, but I started to like him almost immediately.

"No, that's fine."

"Well, since we'll be in line for a while, why don't we start a friendly conversation? I'll start with asking you your name."

"That wasn't a question. That was a statement. And it's Kisara."

"That's an unusual name. Mine's Alukan."

"That has a nice ring to it."

"Thank you. I like your style, and I haven't even known you for five minutes," he said, laughing. "So, do you have any hobbies?"

"What sane person doesn't?"

That glorious laugh again. "I'll admit that you would have to be pretty pathetic not to have any hobbies. So, what are your hobbies?"

"Well, mine are reading, drawing, gardening, and playing the piano. I'm awful at sports."

"As for me, I love doing sports. My favorites are martial arts and fencing," he said.

"So you're a warrior."

"I'm training to be one."

"How hard is it?"

"Kind of hard if you don't like physical activity," he winked.

"And if you do?"

"Still kind of hard."

"So, where are you from?"

"I'm from Beirta. It's a small village way out west. What about you?"

"I've been all over. I've lived in Niltor, Sarden, Mishi, and here in Gonaga."

"You live here?"

"Yep."

He cleared his throat. "So, what's your family like?"

"Well, we kind of adopted a little girl named Zoe after her mother died. Then there's Meg. She's a Monster, but she's practically a second mom. And Papa. He fished for a living."

"I noticed your use of the past tense."

"Bandits kept attacking the surrounding area of Gonaga, so we were evacuated here."

"What about your mother?"

"Dead."

"What happened?"

"A Magna Drago ignited our house when I was nine. She got burned really badly, and Meg wasn't able to heal her in time."

"I'm so sorry to hear that," he said sympathetically. "I'm an orphan, so I decided to make a name for myself. That's why I became a warrior."

"Do you have any siblings?"

"I have a little sister, but we were separated while we were living on the streets. I haven't heard from her since."

"That's awful."

"That's life," he replied matter-of-factly. "It's never fair."

"No, it isn't."

"Well that was somewhat depressing. Let's try a happier topic. What's your favorite food?"

"Do you have multiple personalities or something?"

Once again, Alukan's glorious laughter filled the air, sending shivers down my spine. Forget the attractive brunette, this guy was a keeper.

"So what is it?"

"Answer my question before I answer yours," I demanded.

"Being a chivalrous knight, I say ladies first."

"Exactly. Go ahead and answer my question."

"Jerk. No, I don't. I just try to avoid depression."

"Mmhmm. I like fried stuff."

"I could live off of pasta myself."

"Pasta is good, too."

We had finally reached the table with the cheese wontons. After piling my plate, I headed back to my table, Alukan following closely behind.

"So, would wontons be your favorite fried food?" he asked.

"That, and just plain fries."

"Good answer."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mai smile at me and mouth the words "good choice." I stuck my tongue out at her in retaliation.

"What was that for?" Alukan asked.

"Oh, she's just trying to pair me up with any random stranger I meet."

"Me?"

"Possibly. I don't really know. She and all my other friends complain about my lack of a boyfriend."

"Meaning me?"

"Aren't you the bold one?"

"You said that she was trying to pair me up with you."

"Mai was implying it."

"What's her last name? She seems familiar somehow," he said.

"Mai Valentine."

"I didn't know you-"

"It's not like that. She had weird parents. Her name is Mai Valentine."

"She looks awfully like someone from Beirta."

"Her family's from around Beirta. You've probably met one of her cousins."

We continued our nice chat for a while. Before long, they started setting up for the traditional dances that they would do until late into the evening (dinner was served early for the festival).

"Would you care to be my partner for the first dance?" Alukan asked.

Are you kidding? Why wouldn't I?

"Sure, I guess. As long as you don't have two left feet like me," I replied.

"I'm… fair… at dancing."

He took my hand in his as we walked to the village square as the soft music played. He had made the understatement of the year. He was a phenomenal dancer. It ended up being that we danced the first several songs before Tea pulled me away.

"So, Kiki, what do you think of him?"

"I think he's a human."

"A human, or a MAN?" Mai waltzed up to us.

"Don't you have a crazy boyfriend to intimidate?" I asked.

"Joey?"

"No, Tristan. YES, the young Wheeler male you kissed."

"He went off for some food."

"Typical guy."

"Didn't dinner end an hour ago?" Tea asked.

"No. Thirty minutes ago."

I hadn't realized how long I had been dancing with Alukan until then.

"So, back to our original conversation topic. You discovered a very fine specimen of man, hon," Mai said coyly.

"Eh."

"Eh? Don't eh me. I saw the way you two were looking at each other. You would make the cutest couple ever."

"Eh."

"You must be really proud of being hopeless."

"You finally got it," I said.

"So, what's his name?" Tea asked.

"Alukan."

"Ooh, that has a nice ring to it."

"Nice manly charm," Mai added.

"Have you seen Serenity?"

"Not for a while. She was with Tristan for a while. Then I don't know where she went."

"Oh well," I said. "Oh, hi, Ryou."

"Hello, Kisara. I…" he trailed off.

"You want a dance?"

"Um… yes, I guess," he blushed.

He shyly took my hand. The song was a short one, and neither one of us said very much. We parted somewhat awkwardly, but still very much on good terms. After dancing with Bakura, I saw the brunette who caught my eye earlier walking into the woods. I didn't think much of it, and it soon left my mind because I danced with Alukan again. I was starting to get tired after all the dancing, but he still seemed full of vitality. After a few dances, I had to take a break.

"I'll go with you," he had said.

"No, you enjoy yourself."

"Are you sure?"

"I'll be fine."

"If you say so."

I waited a while before I saw Serenity.

"Where have you been?"

"At home. I think Dad threatened Mom. She was crying her eyes out."

"Oh." I knew exactly what she meant.

"The next song is the last dance. You need to do that."

"Fine. I'll find Alukan."

"That heartthrob you were with earlier? He's gorgeous."

"Yeah, yeah."

"Looking for me?" he appeared behind me.

"Yes. Last dance?"

"Why, that's what I was going to ask you."

He took my hand. The last dance was a slow dance, which was probably all my body could take. The faster-paced dances wore me out. The sunset was beautiful, but I had missed most of it.

Finally, the storytelling would begin. There were all kinds of tales. Many were comedies, others were tragedies, and some folk tales. The folk tales were told last. It had been late into the night when Rebecca's dad began the tale of how our village was formed. It was an epic tale of a boy who slayed a Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon that had been terrorizing the lands.

"Artix, he who had a scar over its left eye and a missing talon on his right wing, was finally dead. And the boy, Palin, buried him in the woods north of this village. To this day, the evil that consumed the dragon has caused the area north of here to be barren and no good for farming."

Mr. Hawkins was applauded loudly. I saw a man wearing a hood head north to the wasteland north of our village. I figured that he was probably heading to see if the wasteland was real.

Alukan greeted me again. "I really like you as a person," he said. "Would you show me around the village tomorrow?"

"Like a date?"

"If you want it to be one."

"Tomorrow at ten?"

"That sounds good to me."

"Bye, Alukan," I said.

"Bye, Kisara."

I headed home and drifted to sleep.


I woke up to an eerie chill in the air. I looked out my window, but it was still dark outside. Clouds were covering the moon. It took a while to notice, but I eventually made out dark blue clouds rolling on the ground.

That's not ordinary fog. So what is it?

As if to answer my question, I saw two glowing red lights. I wiped my eyes. The red lights and strange fog were still there. Then it hit me. Those lights were eyes. And it meant that I probably saw a dragon.

It swooped on silent wings, and I saw a scar over its eye. It all came crashing down on me. The scar was over its left eye, and it was missing a talon in its right wing. I looked more closely and realized that it was a Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon.

I looked more closely when the moon peeked out from the clouds.

The dragon silently flew above the town square, and I saw a sinister red light in its mouth.

A Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon. But something seems different. It somehow looks… creepier than normal.

I squinted.

It seems to be decaying. Oh no! It's a zombie! Wait! It has a missing talon on its right wing and a scar over it's left eye.

The Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon, once the great Artix of legend, had been resurrected and was going to destroy our village…

Yes, another cliffhanger. I actually had to split this chapter into two parts. You'll find out why I called this story Slip Up in the next chapter.

You may be wondering what the deal with Alukan is. Don't worry. This is a Seto x Kisara fic, not a Kisara x Alukan fic. ;)

I haven't updated in so long because of stupid exams. But I am still alive. Review, please.