History of Fictitious: Volume One

Chapter 1

Peter was a short and underrated boy. He lived amongst others around his age, but they were all bigger and taller than him. The only thing he had in common with them was that he never knew his parents. Otherwise, he was different on so many levels. Yes, he was short, but he was also half-elf and half-fairy. And for whatever reason, none of the other boys liked him very much because of it, so Peter kept to himself and dreamed of something bigger.

However, dreaming wasn't always good for him. Like at that moment, as he slept, Nibs painted over Peter's face. The other boys watched and giggled as Nibs wrote the words Lost Boy on Peter's forehead. It was topped off with the glasses and rosy cheeks Nibs had already given him.

Suddenly, Sir Don, a tall, dark, and burly man, came into the room and saw what the boys were doing. "Back away from him!" he bellowed, waking Peter from his sleep.

Peter looked around at everyone, who had backed away from his bed. They held in their laughter as they stared at Peter's baffled face as some of his blonde bangs stuck to the wet paint.

Sir Don came towards Peter and sighed. It was the third time this had happened just this week. How was he ever going to present these boys to King Atmos when they acted that way toward poor Peter?

"Come with me, Peter," Sir Don said to the boy.

Sleepily, Peter got up from his mattress and followed Sir Don out of the room lined with beds. Once the door was closed behind them, they heard the boys choke from held in laughter. They continued to walk away from the rowdy room.

"Do you know what they wrote on you?" Sir Don asked Peter.

"No, sir," he responded honestly.

"Lost Boy."

"Excuse me sir, but what's wrong with that? It sounds pretty neat."

"No, no, no. I didn't raise you to be clueless. Calling you a Lost Boy is like saying you're an outcast and that you're completely shunned. That's not a neat thing," Sir Don explained to Peter as they entered the garden room.

From there they went to the center fountain adorned with a statue of a fairy. Sir Don had Peter sit down on a wooden box used for storing garden tools, and then he took some water from the fountain and splashed it on Peter's face. After that, he rubbed the paint off with his giant dark hands.

"Now, you do realize that today is the day you twelve-year-olds are released from my care and into King Atmos'? If you do not show him you can fight well enough against the others, he will likely place you in the stables to muck up pegasus' dung. It's that or train to become a knight."

Peter got off the box and said, "Well, aren't there other options? Like cooking? Those aren't the only two choices."

Sir Don studied Peter for a long time, thinking of how he could put it nicely. He gave up and said, "For you son, it is your only two. We leave in the afternoon. Don't forget."

After that, Sir Don left Peter to his own devices. Peter sat back down on the box, wondering if Sir Don's words were truly the case. Peter could either impress the king or fail at it horribly. It seemed like those were always the odds for him. There was no in-between.

Peter played with the fountain water, staring at his misshaped reflection. His blue eyes with his pointy ears sticking out of his blonde hair reflected back at him. Nothing identified him as a fairy, but he was still teased about it. What was so wrong that his mother had been a fairy and his father an elf? It was the only information he had of them from Sir Don, otherwise, it was a blank page. That and a green hat that belonged to his father.

Finally, Peter took courage, the one thing he was always good at. He got off the box and went to the dorm room to get his father's hat. It was the only possession he was going to take with him to the castle.