In A World of My Own - Book One

The Dark Rider takes my glass-prison out of his pocket. I blink rapidly and look around. I can't believe it! It's night-time again! Urgh! This guy is totally screwing up my plans! What does tonight make anyway? Night Two in Wonderland? Yeah. Gosh, I need to come up with some fool-proof plans! I've been here for too long! I gotta find my mom!

The Dark Rider pulls the cork off and drops something in before he replaces the cork. I frown and move closer to see what he gave me. It's um, food? I guess. Anyway, it's a crumb of some sort. Probably a mushroom but it smells like pancakes. I pick it up and look it over, it's the size of a beach ball to me. What kind of glutton does he think I am? I glare up at him. Urgh. I shrug and take a bite out of it anyway. It even kinda tastes like a pancake. Okay look, I'm really, really hungry and if he wanted to kill me, he could have done that like, a billion times over by now in a more efficient way than poisoning. So yes, I'll eat the crumb.

But now I'm wondering about the gems and stuff that could be on it. And does he know the differences between the poisonous mushrooms and the safe ones? I am popping another bite into my mouth when I start to feel dizzy again. Oh jeez, what is up with these dizzy spells?

My head suddenly hits the top of the bottle, and the cork flies off as my sides push against the thin glass sides so violently, that I think in the next second I'll -

Ka-blink!

The sides explode and I keep growing. I hear the Dark Rider curse, but I'm so freaked out by the stunning sensation of growth that I don't even register him. That is until I realize I'm sitting in his lap. I scream at the top of my lungs; I'm eye to eye with those fiery eyes of his! His flaming eyes are perfectly round with shock too. Now he roughly shoves me off him. I cut my scream short as I hit the ground and quickly scramble to my feet.

The Dark Rider is already to his. "Interesting," he says coolly, all chill and kicked back, leaning against a tree.

"What?" I demand and take a step back, sliding my glasses back up to keep a close eye on him. My heart is racing and makes my temples throb, my glasses keep sliding down.

"You shrink when you get wet, and you grow when you eat...It's interesting." My eyes widen with disbelief. "You ran through a brook which is why I couldn't find you right away," the Dark Rider says matter-of-factly. "I couldn't pick up a scent trail."

"Eww, you can smell me?" I wince as I pluck at my messy shirt, taking a whiff of it myself.

He scoffs. "I can sense many things."

"Err, right..." I look around, grateful to be my rightful height again, everything looks better from here. "Um, thanks, I guess for even bothering with that crumb," I roll my eyes and slide my glasses up.

I bet he's smirking. He strikes me as the type who'd smirk. "Sure," he steps closer.

"B-back up, buddy," I say nervously, my heart fluttering anxiously.

The brightness of his glowing eyes moves around the eye sockets of the mask, I guess he's rolling his eyes. "Listen up, Adara, I -"

"No!" I snap. "No, I'm done listening!" I insist. "I want to do the talking! You have been nothing but a scary, freaky nutjob to me ever since we met, you chase after me like some kind of psycho and then you like, kidnap me while I'm in the middle of a quest and I'm sick of being shoved around! Okay? I hate it!" I pause to catch my breath, he crosses his robust arms over his broad chest, but I rattle on, not willing to be intimidated. "Ease off my case, man! If you need me to help you than just nicely ask and quit being a terrifying jerk!"