An update, yeah baby!

Nod was fuming. After walking in the blinding darkness for a minute or two, he turned around to see (or not see), that the fire was out of sight. Not that he cared since that was the last place he wanted to be. He plopped down, deciding to sit where he was standing. The boy was furious, but he wasn't stupid; he couldn't continue to walk in the pitch dark without running into some trouble.

Trouble. It had the nose of a bloodhound and Nod was its prey. Of course, Ronin thought it was the other way around, but it wasn't. Trouble moved towards him. Granted, sometimes he moved to it, but it's not like he had any choice in the matter. Nod's hand rested on a loose strand of cobweb. Half of him hoped that the maker wasn't around, and the other half wanted to meet it...with his fists.

Okay Nod, just simmer down, he thought to himself. Violent thoughts lead to violent action. He had his space now, and not really knowing why, Nod started to dig his hands into the moist soil. He pulled out fist-sized chunks of earth and began rolling them between his palms. Packing them with his fingers until he made a perfect sphere of dirt. His mind zoned out, and it was only a few minutes later that he looked down and saw whole pile of dirt balls next to him.

Okay, so that was weird but at least he felt a little better. The rosebud was nosing through the pile like a curious cat when it suddenly reared its head and swung it to look behind him. Someone was approaching.

"Nod?" a voice, sounding uncertain. Thryn. Maybe if he kept still, she'd go away. It was dark after all.

"Don't bother. I heard you grumbling from several paces back. I know your here."

Crap, he grumbles when he's angry? "What do you want?"

"Nothing," she replied, taking a few tentative steps towards his voice. "I just wanted to check on you."

He decided not to grace her with a response, though Thryn wasn't the type to mind that. To his surprise, she continued to talk, "You probably don't want anybody around now, and I get it, but I just came to say something and then I'll leave if you still want me to." Thryn paused, like she was waiting for his permission. He would have lifted an eyebrow but didn't, on the grounds that she wouldn't see it.

She sighed, "I told Ronin the truth. The real reason we left Moonhaven and you entered that race."

Nod turned toward her voice, his simmering anger replaced with shock, "You confessed?"

"Yes," he heard her sit down next to him.

He tried to wrap his head around this new development. Thryn didn't come off as the type to come clean with something like that, in fact, she appeared to be more secretive, "Well...why? I'm willing to take the blame."

"I know," she said in a soft tone he never heard her use. "But so am I, and besides, you and Ronin can't have a falling out."

The young Leafman shifted closer to her until he felt his knee brush hers, "Why do you say that?"

Thryn hesitated for a few seconds, but said slowly, "You already lost your first father. You can't afford to lose another."

Her words were so deep it struck him to the core, and he had to remind himself how to breath. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to Nod that she knew about that. His father had been a well-respected and famous Leafman, coming second to Ronin but still rivaling him. His death had been a blow on the Leafmen as a whole, and many knew that he had left behind a son.

"Ronin's not my father," he said curtly, hoping to cut the conversation short.

Thryn of course was not buying it, "He doesn't have to be related to you, he just needs to be there for you."

"He doesn't care about me!"

"Oh really? What about all those times he saved your ass? I can name a number of them."

"Don't start patronizing me," the boy growled, his anger returning quickly. "Ronin is only worried about the kingdom and the Queen. If he had an ounce of interest, don't you think he would have shown it by now?"

"Some people are just not as good at that as you are," Thryn replied, her voice kinder and more gentle this time. "Me for example. I can't admit my feelings easily, so I hide it behind a mask of indifference. Ronin does the same, and look where that got him. The man never got to tell Queen Tara his feelings for her before she died."

Nod was at a loss for words, which didn't happen to him often. This gave Thryn an opening, "He's frustrated Nod, and your the one making him so."

"What...?"

"Think about it. Ronin's followed orders all his life, and because of his skills, he's now the one giving orders. When he's in command, your expected to follow him without question, so when somebody like you comes along and disrupts this balance, he can't help but get furious." She cut him off before he could begin protesting, "I'm not saying that's a bad thing, and I know that it's just the way you are, but I'm only trying to make a point here. Ronin does care about you, so he tries to keep you in line like everybody else. He thinks that's the only way to keep you safe."

Nod struggled to find words to argue, to retort, to snap, but he couldn't. The quiet teenager had completely stripped him of his ability to speak. The irony. "Dammit, Thryn. Why do you have to be so right?"

Even though he couldn't see her, the Leafman practically felt her smirk. She was probably happy that he had admitted defeat, yet her next words were clipped, conveying none of the triumphant he knew she was feeling, "Just think about that for a while, and when your ready, make the first move to apologize."

Nod was too baffled to protest anymore and just nodded meekly. How long had they been sitting there? "Maybe we should head back..."

"Way ahead of ya."

As he stood, Nod pocketed a few of the dirt balls he had made, not really sure why, but he just decided to take a few. Thryn's hand slipped into his and he stiffened, "What are you doing?"

"Holding your hand of course."

"I'm not scared of the dark."

She snorted, "It's so we don't lose each other, idiot." And with that, she pulled him along like an impatient child. Nod's sense of direction in the darkness was useless, but Thryn guided him confidently, as if she were accustomed to this blindness. Considering what he had seen of her so far, he wouldn't be surprised. The longer he held her hand, the more his palm itched and warmed, and he could only hope that it wouldn't start sweating.

Just like the tip of the sun popping over the horizon, the small fire appeared, a glowing beacon. Three dark silhouettes of the Leafmen patrol approached them, and despite the dimness, Nod could see that they were happy and relieved that the young members had returned unharmed. Ronin was sitting by the fire and only briefly made eye contact with him, his expression totally unreadable. Nod internally rolled his eyes. What else is new? Both teenagers quickly separated their hands as they stepped into the light, though Nod was sure that it hadn't gone unnoticed to some. He mentally winced when he saw Thryn wiping her hand on her pants. So he had sweated a little.

Suddenly, a Leafwoman was hurrying towards them, "Sir!" she exclaimed, gaining Ronin's attention. "There's a firefly message in the sky!"

At this, Ronin was on his feet and barking orders, "Gather your things and ready the birds. When that's done, put out the fire." The soldiers jumped to fulfill his commands, scurrying around the campsite like ants.

"What does it mean exactly?" Thryn inquired.

"I told Nim Galuu to contact us by firefly lights if he found anything on the rose."

Nod almost jumped with joy. At last, they were going to get some answers! He'll finally know what exactly is attached to him. He hurried over to Cricket to check up on the saddle straps and prepared to head off.

M.K., to her credit, got over her shock rather quickly, which was a good thing. If anybody had the right to be shocked, it was Jason.

The boy was only frozen for a minute, before he locked his blues to her greens, and a barrage of questions was shot at her, quick and rapid as machine gun fire. She barely got her answer in before the next one was launched.

"Where the hell are we?!"

"The forest, but we're two inches tall."

"Like in "Honey, I Shrunk The Kids?!"

"Basically."

"How did we get shrunk?! How do we get unshrunk?!"

"Well...it's complicated..." M.K. trailed off, looking around her to find the source of the magic that shrunk them. Were they alone?

"Oh God," Jason breathed, taking in the sight of the trees, flowers, and grass being as tall as buildings. "How did this happen?"

M.K. decided to get straight to the point, "Magic," she said simply. "The Queen used her magic to shrink us down to this size, though I think she brought you here by accident."

"...What?" the poor teen looked even more confused.

As quickly as she could, M.K. told him about the secret society of advanced people the size of her pinkie finger living in the woods and how her dad, for years, was obsessed over finding them. This obsession led to her parents' divorce, and her living in the city for the next ten years. When her mom died, she moved back and threatened her father that if he didn't give up his absurd belief, then she'd leave and never come back. She told him about her father running out on her, running after Ozzie who escaped to the woods, and meeting the dying Queen Tara. How Queen Tara entrusted her with a pod, the only thing that could save the forest from rotting death by Boggans.

"When we defeated the Boggans, the pod chose a new monarch, Queen Ariel, and she returned me to human size," M.K. concluded. She hadn't gone into too much detail of her adventure. The teen had refrained from mentioning Ronin, Mub, Grub, Nim Galuu, Mandrake, or even Nod. Especially Nod. Those were too personal, but given time, maybe she'll leak out the whole story.

Jason was having a hard time processing all this. His brows were furrowed as if thinking all this through and then rethinking it again. Finally, he looked up at her, "Yeah, I guess that makes sense."

Now it was her turn to be stumped. "You believe me?!"

He glanced around again, checking that yes, this wasn't a dream and they were two inches tall. "I really don't know what else could explain this, unless we've both been conked on the head and are in a hallucination."

M.K. was so relieved. With Jason believing her story, things would be much easier now. She gave a mirthful giggle, "Conked?"

"What?" he asked in mock hurt. "I'm extending my vocabulary. It makes me sound more sophisticated and professional."

"The word 'conk' is hardly sophisticated," she rolled her eyes playfully. "Except when used by barbarians."

"I make a dashing barbarian," he replied, voice smooth as marble. The blonde wiggled his eyebrows and flashed a cocky smirk, and M.K. cracked up. Seconds later, Jason joined in and their laughter filled the forest around them. A bumblebee passed by, giving them a weird look before buzzing off to whatever work he had to do.

"Woah," Jason said, noticing the bee. "That's a big bug."

"No, that's about average actually," she chuckled. At his confused look, M.K. reigned in her giggles. "Inside joke." The red-head glanced around again, worry now creasing her features. "Where's the Queen? She should be here by now, or at least some of the Jinn."

"Could she not shrink us at a long distance?"

"I don't really know the extent of a Queen's power, but I doubt that even Tara could carry out a long distance shrink spell."

"Do you know your way to this uh...Moonhaven?"

"Not from here. I only spent a day with the Leafmen, and the forest starts looking the same after a while."

"...So what do we do?"

That's what M.K. was trying to figure out. With no Leafmen, or even Jinn around to guide them, they would be hopelessly lost. They could go back to the soccer field, but that was too risky. Either they'll be caught by some person or crushed underfoot. Going back wasn't an option. She silently cursed herself. Why didn't she study her father's maps of the area? M.K. didn't even know which was the best direction!

As these thoughts flitted through her head, the breeze picked up and teased red locks onto her face, and she suddenly got the feeling of a presence. It was like there was someone right beside her, whispering enticingly in her ear. "Follow me, your friends are this way." The wind ran past her and lifted half-wilted leaves, twirling it in the air like flags. Was she finally going nuts or did that wind just talked to her?! Jason's face went pale and she got the feeling that he heard it to. Maybe they were in a hallucination together.

The air moving the leaves became more defined, and M.K. could make out the line of a body. It solidified until both teenagers could see a shape but it still flickered and shimmered, like it was having a hard time maintaining the form. It looked like bird, constantly moving on airy feathers, its wings barely flapping.

It whispered impatiently, "You must come now! We'll miss them if we don't get moving!"

Driven by the urgency in its voice, M.K. took off after it, ignoring Jason's confused questions as he followed her. The wind bird flew ahead, now an indistinct blur that blended back into the air around it, but it continued to twirl leaves so they could see it. It skimmed the forest floor effortlessly, while the teenagers struggled to keep up. A huge tree root suddenly blocked the path, but M.K. didn't slow down. She increased her speed and sprang like a deer, just able to land daintily on the top. The girl might be out of practice with her power jumps, but she at least knew what to expect.

Jason, however, skidded to stop at the base of the root and stared up at her in disbelief. "How did you do that?!"

"It's something you gain when you shrink to this size," M.K. explained. "Come on, just get a running start and jump. It's like your on the moon!"

The blonde boy jogged further back then turned around, took a deep breath, and sprinted for the root. When he was three paces away, his leg muscles gathered and propelled him up. For a moment he hung in the air, awed at his powerful leap, before he realized that he overshot his destination. Jason's arms and legs swung around, trying to change his direction in mid-air, which of course didn't work. He crashed landed into the leaf litter.

M.K. fought not to laugh at his first failed attempt at Leafmen grace, knowing that she had worse wipe-outs when she was among the Jinn. Jason peeled his face from he ground, spitting out dirt but looked unharmed. The red-head came to his side and helped him up, "You okay?"

He grunted, "I've had worse. Just surprised that I didn't break anything."

"Something else my father discovered," M.K. said. "With this size, your lighter and don't have as much mass, so hurting yourself after a fall is less likely."

"You're really a nerd today, aren't you?"

She punched his shoulder, "I can't help myself sometimes."

"You done?" The wind bird asked, both teens jumping at the voice. The living air had stopped, still swirling the leaves in a slow motion tornado. It almost sounded annoyed. Satisfied that it had their attention, it continued dashing across the forest floor, the teens in hot pursuit.

They bounded across bouncy moss, ducked under towering ferns, and hopped over roots and sticks as if they were hurdles. The teens were barely able to keep the wind in sight. M.K. was getting a stitch in her side and she panted heavily. Jason was faring a bit better, being an athlete, but M.K. couldn't keep going at this pace for much longer.

Just when she felt like her legs were going to collapse, the wind bird pulled up and dropped the leaves. It started circling in place, and M.K. got the feeling that it was pacing-if it had feet. "No, this won't work! We'll never reach them time if we keep at this pace. Can't you go any faster?"

"Um...no...not really," the girl responded hesitantly. She may have flown on a bird, fought off Boggans, and discovered a whole new world, but this was a new low for 'unbelievable.'

"Wait...I have an idea!" it shouted excitedly. It swooped up to the branches and started circling a leaf. It gradually sped up, circling faster and faster until there was a miniature hurricane of air enclosing the leaf. The force of the wind was enough to pluck it off of the branch and it floated to the ground. The wind bird repeated the process on another leaf, and the two leaves landed in front of Jason and M.K.

The wind bird flew back down to them, "Grab on the edges." it commanded.

"What's the idea?" Jason asked. "And what are you anyway?"

"No time to explain! We must intercept them!"

"Intercept who?" M.K. asked.

The wind bird was getting increasingly frustrated with their questions, "Please, we must hurry!"

"We aren't going anywhere until you tell me what's going on," M.K. demanded, crossing her arms.

"Queen Tara sent me!"

M.K.'s eyes widened with disbelief, "Queen Tara?...But...she's..."

"Dead," it said simply, like it was a normal thing. "But still protecting her forest. Now please grab the edges. Things are about to happen and both of you have to be there for them."

Hesitating for only a second more, M.K. grabbed an edge of a leaf in each hand, mystified by all this. Jason followed suit. The wind started circling them, "Hold tight!"

The wind bird became a gale, and M.K. gasped as she felt the powerful force fill up her leaf like a balloon, and her feet left the ground. Higher the wind pushed them, sweeping them up like they were nothing more than feathers. They rose up through the branches, the ground getting further away. Jason shouted as the wind bird's 'wind' gave a great push and they were clear. Blue sky surrounded them. When they were a good height away from the treetops, the wind bird propelled them forward like paper airplanes.

They were flying, hanging on leaves being pushed by living air. Both teens couldn't help but let shouts of elation slip past their lips, as they shot over the trees, traveling fast through the sky. M.K.'s legs were getting a break, and now her arms were getting tired; it was like she was hang-gliding and guiding a parachute at the same time. She realized why Nod like to fly so much; the thrill was amazing even if it was kind of scary. M.K. smiled at the thought of seeing his face when she would meet him. You think you're so bad with your trick flips and birds? she thought. Get a load of me; I'm riding air!

Of course, seeing Nod at all made her heart skip a beat and a smile grace her face. Not only that, but it also made her feel self-conscious about her image...which didn't happen often.

The wind bird suddenly dissipated and her blood froze. Screams tore from their throats as they tumbled towards the ground. M.K. couldn't think straight, couldn't believe that the wind had carried them all this way, only to leave them high above the ground and helpless! Jason desperately tried to straighten out his leaf and capture some air, but the wind was so strong that he couldn't hold it in place. M.K. prepared herself to hit the ground, but Jason's leaf suddenly ballooned and lifted him up. Her leaf did the same and she felt the force slowing their fall. A form shaped itself before her eyes: the wind bird had returned.

"Good job, that got their attention."

The red-head was so relieved, but at the same time, so pissed. "What kind of sick joke was that?!" she yelled, absolutely livid. Jason, however, was as white as ghost. So far, the Jinn world was not making a first good impression on him. The wind bird floated them down towards a broad branch of a birch tree, a stream trickling quietly at its base. Landing on it, M.K.'s arms ached from holding up her body weight, and her legs visibly shook from the fear of the fall. But this didn't stop her from glaring at the undefined face of the wind.

"Relax, you were never in any danger. Besides, it's time for us to part ways."

"And good riddance," she growled. She would have launched into a whole speech on how the wind bird was such a terrible tour guide, but before she could, a familiar sound met her ears. The deep thrum of wings moving eighty times per second. Her deep green eyes scanned the verdue, spotting the flash of multi-colored iridescent feathers of a dozen hummingbirds. Her heart fills with joy at the sight of their riders; the Leafmen.

"Are those...?" Jason trailed off.

"Yeah...it's them." M.K. turned to find that the wind bird was gone. Maybe she had been a little to harsh. After all, it had found the Leafmen for them; without it, they'd be wandering foolishly through the woods.

The lead Leafmen waved his hand in greeting, guiding his patrol to the branch. The hummingbirds landed, looking inquisitively at them. The leader was a grizzled old warrior, his face rough and ruddy with the signs of hardship, but there were crinkle lines around his eyes that spoke of smiles and laughter. At the moment, his face was unreadable. M.K. was a little disappointed that it wasn't anybody she knew, like Ronin or even Finn.

The old warrior dismounted and walked up to them, a hand placed casually on the hilt of his sword, "Were you the ones we saw falling out of the sky?" he asked in kind voice.

The girl and boy shared a look, before M.K. answered, "Yes that was us. We-"

An excited screech from the back of the patrol cut her off. It was high-pitched, girly, and reminded M.K. of a fan girl's yelp at a boy band concert. A skinny Leafwoman emerged from the patrol and gave the red-head a hug that could rival a gorilla's. The show of affection was so unexpected, M.K. didn't know whether to hug back or push her away. Two young Leafmen stood where her mysterious hugger had emerged, staring at their friend in confusion.

It was only when the Leafwoman pulled away, that M.K. recognized her. It was girl, with green skin, short emerald hair, and huge eyes that were a blend of green and gold. She was beaming, "M.K.! I can't believe it's you!"

"Lex?"

The End!

No im only joking, in fact we are nowhere near the end. Ive got a lot more plot twists to throw at you guys. At last, the OCs meet the FC(first character) which is MK. Thanks for being patient with me guys, but now that im in the flow of school, I think ill be able to handle juggling the work, the story, and sports a bit better now. Once XC ends, I'll have loads of more time. Dont quote me on that though.

R&R!