Chapter 1
Ami rubbed her head, trying to dull the pain from her fall while Kuri stood by her and glared at the strange girl standing in front of them.

"And who might you be?” Kuri asked her voice on the edge of anger.

The weird looking girl crossed her arms and replied in the same tone. "Why should I tell a stranger?" Kuri placed her hands on her hips and bit her lip, biting back a very unladylike insult.

Ami got up and rubbed her back, wondering why she had to be the one that didn’t fall on something soft "It doesn't matter Kuri, let it go. Sorry for falling from your tree and into your meadow." She smoothed down her clothes and wiped away dirt and grass. She felt a sharp sting in her lower left hip but ignored it even though she really wanted to sit down and wish it away. It didn’t work but it was comforting to think it might.

Kuri sighed and glared at the other girl who was staring at her with a smirk on her face. “And what are you smirking about?” The other girl just shook her head, smirk still on her face while she walked over to a little tree stump and sat down. Kuri clenched her fists ground her heels into the grassy earth, trying to keep her temper.

Ami tugged at Kuri’s right sleeve. “Come on we have to go before that monster finds us.”
Kuri covered Ami’s mouth. “Stop talking about that while that girl is around! We don’t want her to know any of this,” she said, giving that girl a wary glance.

She saw her stand up and, laugh?“Good job kid, you’re cautious, that’s very good. If you’re to survive in this world you need to be careful, very wise of you to be so. I like you, you’ve got good instincts. My name is Rayne, pleasure to meet you two.” The girl laughed again, and Ami noticed a strange glint in her eyes. Kuri started walking away, and Ami followed. She gasped at the sudden flare of pain in her hip. She stumbled and grabbed a tree branch to keep her balance. Ami looked up to see Kuri by her side concern in her eyes. She also saw Rayne with a curious look on her face that Ami couldn’t quite understand.

Rayne walked over, pulling a little vial with golden liquid inside it out of her pocket. “Take this, it will help with the pain.” Ami reached for the vial but Kuri grabbed her hand. “Like we would trust you,” she said glaring. I wouldn’t mind trusting her for a few moments if it stops the pain.. Ami thought wishing Kuri would just let her take the vial. Rayne smiled again and was about to reply when a roar sounded in the distance. Ami and Kuri paled, unable to believe that it had caught up to them so quickly.
Ami reached out and took the vial from Rayne’s hand while Kuri was distracted and drank its contents.
She frowned. “This is very salty.”

Rayne laughed nodding in agreement. “Yeah but it was either that or the one that tasted like old cheese. I thought you’d prefer that one. Anyway you guys should get going, you should be able to get quite a head start. My master put many wards around this meadow, what chases you only follows the smell of its targets. It won’t bypass this place, it’ll be delayed here. Long enough for you two to be far away when it finally breaks through the wards. Now shoo,” Rayne waved them off and Kuri eyed her warily before picking Ami up bridal style and climbing a tree. She darted off, leaping from branch to branch.

They weren’t gone very long when a large roar sounded on the other side of the meadow. Rayne turned towards it smiling, and reached up over her shoulder and grasped at a seemingly invisible hilt. She unsheathed a long glittering dark red sword. “Hello there beasty, come out to play?”