Lucy had awoke that morning with such a headache. She was a little ill with some random cold she had caught that night. A slight fever, she looked about lazily over her room... what day was it? She could not quite remember as she swung her legs over the bed, slowly standing and stretching her hands over head with a loud and deep yawn.
A blink, rubbing her eyes she turned to Nana who also too had awoken from her slumber. Moving, Lucy crouched down to pet the top of her cat's head.
"Morning, Nana," She said merrily, moving down now to look under her bed and drag out. A plate of food she had 'borrowed' from the kitchens. That in itself was a very stealthy task, thanks to her 'special hands' though she was able to grab four apples, a banana, bread, and some cooked chicken for Nana.
Throwing a leg of chicken to the side of Nana's pillow she then moved to grip an apple, taking a nice big bite out of it, moving to stare out of the window.

It was still light and she had hoped no one was around. Lucy wanted to fit in some further training with her legs to develop them further, to make them stronger. Nana, would help in that...

A glance to Nana as she ate the apple, standing near the window now, hand placed onto the window pane as the other held the apple to her lips. Watching the Moor Cat eat away at the cooked flesh of the chicken. It made her a little sick in watching, she was fast realising that the thing Nana was eating was once alive... And had to be killed to be eaten, and a form of sadness flashed in those tired eyes.

Half an hour it took her to sneak out with Nana at her side, padding with her claws against the wood silently. She herself moved with each creaky step down the halls, out into the common room... And finally, out of the door.
Yikes! Outside was COLD! She shuddered as her arms wrapped around her. Drawing her velvet purple jacket closer to her form, fingertips clenching the Nun-like headress furr cloak closer to her body.
"Its... Cold today, hm? Nana?" She leant down to pick up the cat which even she struggled to do now. "...Nana, your getting big... Already!" She put the cat back down instead and sighed, "Sorry, looks like your walking."
And Nana offered, a rather strange cross between a somewhat big-cat rawr and baby kitten mew. That alone made Lucy giggle.
Turning she made her way towards the pond which was in view of her window, where usually the boys and girls would play football, soccer and dodgeball. And thank god no one was out this morning, now she could get some training in...

Turning sharply she stared down the grass a little way off, many meters away a small banking dipping into bushes... She'd stop before then, she really did not want a face full of brambles and forna.
"Okay, Nana! Let's do it! First one there," She points to the bushes way off, "Get's to not steal breakfast tomorrow. Okay... Ready?" A determined look passed her face.

...

"Go!" Lucy broke into a sprint, she wobbled, and a single invisible vector came out to compensate for her loss of balance. Sill she ran on, forcing her body to the limit and far beyond, that bush looking oh so closer now... And where was Nana...
Waiting, by the bushing laying down on her side and waiting for Lucy to arrive.
A blink, a frown still she ran and then, "That's so not faaaaair!" She slipped and landed right on her ass. The morning dew caused her to slip a little in some light mud. The entire back end of her thighs thick in mud, so too her panties. This, did not feel good. Lucky for her the skirt flared away to not get too mudy... Her headress was resting a little bit behind her.
Sighing, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Pffft! Stupid legs..." A lick, caught her attention and she looked to Nana attempting to clean her bare knees of the mud... And she giggled to the Moor Cat. "Stop that! Hehehe! Nana! Stop!"
Nana, in her reply, jumped up, placing her muddy paws onto her jacket. "Aw! Nana! I washed this!"

Now, Lucy was confused. How the HELL did she get waaaaay out back at the Red Dragon Inn? Or somewhat close by it...? A glance about as she then looked to Nana in her lap who was... Sleeping? A look to the sky and the sun was higher too! A hand moved to her head, and her Nun-like headress was there no longer on the grass behind her...

Behind her? She looked behind her atsome grass and a building. It was not the Abbey... It was some other building.
A confused and perplexed look about her face as she tilted her gaze up to... the boy.
A blush washed over her face and all those questions on how she got into the City was gone. A stuttering of something, her eyes just now shocked at the sight before her.
A young boy... How old was he? Wait... It's, the boy she saw playing in the Abbey a few days ago! The same one who helped her up off the ground! But back there he was less than this kind... Perhaps it was a facade infront of his friends?

It didn't matter now... Here he was, before her small childish frame... Looking for something to clean her ungrazed knee. Shaking her head, she then decided finally to reply instead of just stareing at him for as long as she did, in a gawked expression.

"...My name is Lucy..." She said almost in some trance, completely ignoreing his question.
"I mean I am okay!" She stood slowly brushing her skirt of dust, trying to hide her blush, she slapped her hands over her cheeks and turned her back to him.

How obvious could you be...?

His name! His name she screeched in her head. Oh god, why was her hearting like as if it were trying to escape from her chest? Then, turning back she coughed some forceably, adjusting the velvet choker around her neck a little to be somewhat loose.

"Oh... Hi, Drake." She said nervously, seeing now that he too had a somewhat shy expression about him.

Well this was certainly a great conversation between children. She went to fiddling with her choker, wishing that this silence would go away, it was making her a little uneasy - and for some reason she had this overwhelming urge to want to go to the toilet... Nervousness did real strange things to your body!

"Um... So, what... Are you doing out here?" A good question, but that too could be countered back at her! What were the children doing out of the Abbey! They should be class!

Well, that had yet to be known if he was apart of the Abbey at all.

Lucy was asked the same question! Damn! She looke about nervously and then itched her forehead idly, divering her eyes untill she could come up witha good reason... A solid reason that could shut up this conversation, and permanently end this silly silence.

"Oh! um..." Good start Lucy, finish it! Finish it! "... S-same reason." A slight giggle at that.

Did I just say that?

What's wrong with me?!

Quickly, she had to think of something. "Well... D-do you want to go back to the Abbey...? It's a long walk and well... I need to go back... Pick up a few things...?" Of course the trek back to the Abbey was out of the City and into the forests. It wasn't far by coach, but having tiny legs, and a bad sense of direction you could say that they were certainly going to get lost.

Nana was all the while now beside Lucy, looking mightily confused at the two. A shake of her head, as she patted off from her a little.

"Sure... I'd... Love too." She simply commented before then walking off... Slowly, waiting for him to follow close by her.

Of course they headed out of the Gate of the City, Lucy looking up at the high walls which surrounded the place. Heck, she would like to see an army attempt to take this place - one could say it would be near impossible, but then anything was possible around this place. The dead walked, the dragons talked... A Giant Crab walked like a man...

When would the wierdness that was Rhy'Din would end?

Hopefully never.

She blinked several times, for now Nana hung her head in bordem, and she side glanced Drake as they walked along a rather battered old dirt path. They were indeed going the right way, but what they was not doing was talking...
A glance over her shoulder to see the City behind them, over the horizon of a slight slope before... It was gone.

A side glance to Drake again, a blush to her cheeks... Such silly childish romance, if these were adults they'd be hitting the hay and rolling in it right about now with their clothes casted to the side of their hot... heaving flesh.

Lucy, had no such images. She was too pure, but not pure enough to feel something for the boy that was well hidden in her sad, and almost... allureing eyes.

If only she knew how to read thoughts. The dirty path winded to fade into grass, a soft imprint of carriage wheels only left on the surface of the land. It was becoming difficult for her to walk now, for the uneven surface caused more of a work at her legs and so, caused them to tense, and for her begin to show signs of pain.

She hid it though as she sighed gently, hands moving from her side trying to balance herself over the various bumps the path now led.
"You play the ball really well..." She said almost in awe, jumping up onto a rather large boulder which jutted out of the ground, covered in moss and mud. "I wish I could play like you... My legs ain't good at too much exercise."

That was her feeble attempt to talk. But it may start something, hopefully, a long conversation as they entered the outskirts of the forest, the path now leading under the canopy of the tall trees either side of it.

"R-really?" She exclaimed with the most widest smile she could fathom. Eyes wide and alert she was stareing to him and had stopped her steps to gaze upon the back of his head as he continued walking; this was too good to be true!

"You... You'd really do that... For me? Drake?" Hands coming to clench before her lap she too tilted her head, smiling with her eyes closed to him, "Well... Teach me well! So then we can both play together..." A blush herself as she turned her head to the ground.

Hands clenched before her chest, she was daydreaming off into the distance as he turned. Oh wow, the thoughts of her being able to move around unhindered playing ball with other children... Owning their asses and totally showing them up...

A giggle as she shook her head side to side, the gleam in her eyes being forced away Lucy quickly walked besides of Drake once more, a hand moving to snake her fingers between his, she swung up their hands childish to sway at their sides between them, face red she smiled sweetly to him. "Then it's settled, you teach me how to play ball and in return I'll get you a present."

Leaving go of his hand now she moved to walk backwards infront of him, a wide smirk on her lips as she poked her tongue out at him. Now full of glee, a childish crush evident in her soft gaze.
"I bet you can't catch me!" Lucy quickly turned off the path and ran into the bushes, down a rather long downhilled banking, she skidded down it, mud curling up to find itself in her flat heeled shoes, giggling as she ran away.

Lucy made her way down the banking easily, she heard him approaching and turned to see if he caught up when... He was tumbling down the hill. Hands moving to her lips she could do nothing but watch...

Was he hurt? Is he going to be okay? All those thoughts as now their child game which had barely started ended quite abruptly, she moved upp the banking a little kneeling down to her knees - getting them all muddy once more before she then moved her hands out to stop his tumble, getting knocked over in the process, falling back and taikng him with her.

"Ahhhhh Oof!" A pause. She was laying on the ground, eyes blurring for the moment as she stared up...

Lucy winced as she leant up finally, covered from mud from head to toe and well... Luckily her headress was still attached to her head, she didn't roll as much as Drake did...?

Hand moving behind her head, still dazed she moved her palm infront of her face. A small sploch of blood... A blink then, as she looked to the apparently out-cold boy...

Eyes wide she forgot her own pain and crawled next to him. "Drake?" She asked carefully, a hand moving out to touch his cheek, "Drake?" She called out gain, immense worry in her brown eyes.

No! Don't be dead! Don't be dead! She cried in her head, how did she know he was joking? A glance now to what she had hit... A tree trunk. Damn, that's why it was so hard as she landed. Tilting up her head, the tree was dead enough, but was much short than the rest surrounding then.

Leaves, mud, god knows what else in her short mane of hair that came from under the headress was tossed behind her ear, as something of a growl animated from behind Drake, and infront of Lucy.
Brown eyes tilted up and then... She stared into the eyes of one resting wolf, it's ears erected and it's eyes stareing... Teeth bared... Two others came from behind it too stareing as intently as the one laying down did.

Her entire body froze... And she stared not to Drake, but dead in the eyes of the predators.
"D-D...Drake..." She whispered, "Get... Up.... Quickly..." She shook him more urgently this time.

Lucy was still frozen in place, and the blood from her wound on the back of her head was tricking around her neck now in small streams, the skin not only bashed, but broken too. The pain was there, but the fear was pushing to the side.

Nana?!

She lookd about her friend, they left her up the banking as they fell and she was probably on her way down... If the wolves got her... She's still not big enough to fight them off yet... And what about Drake? He couldn't do this by himself.

Turning though, doing as she was told Lucy ran to the tree and, hands moving out, up she went quickly, slipping on the first branch, but catching herself on the main part of the trunk, a pause, she continued up far enough for the wolves not to get her. And now her worry was on the two people still down the tree...

"Drake!" She held out her hand down as her legs wrapped around a the branch she stood, lucky for her it was a thick tree, the dead one she had hit her head on. "Come on, please!" She cried out to him, fear still in her eyes, hand trembling... Why did she leave without her sword?! If she had brought her sword with her that her Father gave her maybe she could have protected Drake?

The wolves backed off quickly from the boy with the stick, teeth bared as they snarled and snatched their snouts at the air to him... Three on one, and it was only a stick, they advanced slowly, heads lowered and drool seeping out from their clenched sharp teeth.

The wolves pounced at him, two of them gnawing out towards his ankles, while the one went for his throat. To bring him down...

Lucy's eyes widened as it transpired before her.

Her scream was yelled out to echo throughout the forests. And... As the scream died down. The trees swayed away from the focal point of where Lucy sat in the tree.

A power, was released.

A darkness layered the ground for miles... And interwined with in the abyss-like void was veins of light... Glowing, menacingly a blue of pure mana.