Quest (OLD: the new version MIGHT be posted shortly)

Chapter 1-Sage

“Girl! Get back here!” the guard hollered after me. He was brandishing his knife and cuffs, running pretty fast for a silver-haired man. His uniformed gleamed pure white and his badge silver.

Oh, yeah, I thought. Like I’m going to let you drag me back to that Hole you had me in. Now go away.

I sped up and twisted into a tight ally. I knew the backstreets pretty well by now, since I’ve been sneaking through them all my life. My dad told me all about them when I was old enough to go out by myself. I had been terrified at first, but now the magical that roamed back here were like old friends, if any were left.

I bolted down a side street. I could hear a party going on ahead and headed over to try and blend in. My dark red tank and short black shorts, the clothes I had been wearing since I had been captured, would be okay there, if no one noticed their stains and rips.

I turned onto the street and headed towards the pulsing lights. It was a really tall fence, but a small bit of magic allowed me to jump over it. I landed in a huge yard where no one noticed me. I looked around and tried to find where I’d blend in most. There was a shaded spot in the very back of the yard. I headed over to it, trying not to be noticed. If I had brewed some potion I could turn myself invisible, but I’m not the best at brewing. It is also a lot more conspicuous if no one runs into you other than someone.

“Excuse me!” one of the obnoxious pretty girls my age scoffed as I rushed past her. “Who are you?” I didn’t reply but pushed onward. Rotating bodies pushed me this way and that way, but no one really saw me.

In the shadows I looked around at the space. I saw nothing that stood out greatly. My only worry was that someone would see me and start nosing into my identity. A few guys were checking me out, but nothing big. My hair was probably a mess, so I ran my fingers through the length of it, trying to tame my black, greasy mane.

“Hello,” a cheery voice that I recognized immediately chimed. I turned to see one of my best friends smiling down at me. At nearly six foot, Heather Mastiff, a 100% non-magical being, lifted my spirits just by being with me.

“Hey, Heather,” I replied.

“So, how… I mean, what are you doing here?” she asked. I realized what she was actually saying: how’d you get out of the Hole?

“I was just running around and thought I’d stop by,” I replied cryptically. “So, whose party is this anyway?”

“Do you really not know?” Heather asked, amazed. “This is Jae’s house.” I gave her my best confused look. “Jae Freeman’s house.”

“Freeman?” I asked. The name sounded familiar. “Wait, not Hunter Freeman’s house.” Hunter Freeman was a notorious trapper, that is, he made a handsome living by catching magical beings, like me. And here I was, standing in his backyard.

“Yeah, but he’s out tonight, so don’t worry. This is the last place he’d expect any magical being to me,” Heather comforted. “Just enjoy yourself. I think Jae is checking you out.” I looked over to the boy she was looking at and he caught my eye.

Jae Freeman was obviously a rich man’s son. His hair was perfectly cut and styled, his clothes seemed designer, and he had an easy air about him. Jae was about my age, eighteen, and around six foot. His hair was one of the darkest shades of brown I had ever seen, and his eyes were one of the lightest. Jae’s easy smile was pure white, and even in the dark light it was obvious he had a tan. His light brown eyes held my dark ones until he decided to walk over to me.

“Yeah, he was checking you out,” Heather beamed. Jae reached us at that point, and seemed to second guess himself.

“Hey, I don’t think we’ve met before, I’m Jae,” he introduced himself. His right hand went out to me. I knew better than to give him my actual name, but I didn’t know what other name to give him. My middle name?