The Boy Who Will Save Us All

~One~

Peter buttoned his loose tunic, slipped on his shoes, and ran as fast as he could out of his room, slamming his shoulder into the door frame as he did.

"Ah, Peter! There you are, dear!" His mother said enthusiastically, turning behind her, handing him a few large packages wrapped up in dried leather.

He nodded quickly, and took the packages and stuffed them in his flimsy backpack, and his mother sighed, and he looked up.

"I just can't believe you're going on such an important mission, hon. I'm proud of you, is all!" His mother said with a smile.

"...Thank you, Mom. I'll find the Heart of Happiness; I promise."

And with that, he grabbed his small bags scattered on the floor that carried his supplies as well as his sword, and then ran outside to fasten them to the sides of the saddle on his horse.

He then fixed a black barrette hat on his black, curly hair and sucked his breath in.

Peter smiled to his mother, now near tears. In the distance, he saw the chief walking towards them, his one eye seeming to be engulfed in flames when he saw Peter, a faint smile formed on his face as he walked nearer.

"Hello, Peter." He nodded his head to the now trembling boy on the horse.

"You are to find the Heart of Happiness; and we all know you're a strong-willed boy, and won't stop until you find it." He slapped Peter's back in incouragement. "...Go."

It had been a day since he left, and Peter was starting to get nervous. He had started to see some strange things, like dead animals near rivers with arrows sticking out of them, or trails of blood along his path.

"Oh, god." A large eyeball of a foreign animal was pushed off to the side of the road, almost completely covered in cherry blossom flowers and dirt. Disgusted, the teenage boy kept moving forward, every so often checking his surroundings. Finally, he saw a clearing, and decided it was a good place to rest.

A large tree sat on a hill at what seemed like the edge of the clearing; but it was too big for him to see what was beyond it. In curiousity, he climbed on his horse, and started moving toward the hill. As he got closer, he heard seagulls screeching at each other, and waves crashing on a shore.

"We must be near a beach," Peter whispered to himself. He got excited; there was so much food source to be found, he could even have salt to season his food; something very rare back at home.

He got close enough to be right behind the tree, and he slid off his horse, and still holding onto the reins, walked around the tree.

He could not believe what he saw.

Another person.

She was a tense figure around Peter's age, with a white lacey dress, with light, ash-blonde hair, and a bow and arrow at her side. She was just sitting there; not even noticing his presence.

"....Oh." He sighed. The girl spun around, grabbed her bow and arrows, squinting at him. She then slowly took an arrow from her arrow bag, and fixed it to her bow, still looking at Peter all the while, and he put his hands up.

"You're not from here," She hissed, and Peter shivered.

"Y-yeah! I'm from Midsville- I'm looking for the Heart of Happiness..?" He said slowly. "I'm no threat."

"And how do I know that...? Why are you here?"

"I sensed an ocean was here, s-so I came to restock supplies."

"Like what?"

"Salt, crab, and possibly fish?"

She wrinkled her nose, and raised her eyebrow.

"Where's your weapon."

Peter, confused, walked back to his horse, and came back with his sword in hand. She grabbed it, examining it, and her eyes went wide. The girl shoved it back in his hand, and grabbed his arm, only giving Peter the time to catch his horse's reigns.

She pulled him down the hill and towards the beach, then they turned to find a little tent village right beside it.

"He's here! The savior, guys, this is him!"

People rushed out of their tents, and the girl took his sword again and held it up for them to see.

Peter tilted his head in confusion.

"I think you got the wrong person- I'm a traveler, not a whatever-you-think-I am."

"No, you don't know," The girl said seriously.

"You're the one that's going to save all of our lives."