You have knowledge of your world... as do many people who live with you there. But did you know that your world is not the only world? There are hundreds, if not thousands of other worlds, each separated by a thin space called The Void.
The Void is like a river that separates land, ever flowing and with a strong undertow, and to fall victim to the void is like being erased from existence. There are bridges in the void that connect the worlds, but they are small and difficult to find, and often when one finds them, they don't even realize until the bridge has been ripped away by the voids undertow.

This is the story of a young woman who crossed the void only three days after birth, and like a salmon to it's place of birth, so too must she return to make her destiny.

~~~

Name: Selena Blackwell

Age: 16
Brief Bio/description:
Selena wasn’t born in the world we all know and live in today, but that’s a part of her past she doesn’t know. What she does know, is that her parents love her, life is what any teenager could hope it to be, and despite viewing her move to a new house as a sad event, she’s simply hoping it will be a new adventure.

Since the time she could hold crayons, she’s had a passion for drawing. Describe anything and she can draw it for you, almost as if she had been able to see into your imagination. Her biggest ‘sellers’ are her fairies, every day she draws a new one, no two looking the same (minus a few sets of identical twins, but they were on the same paper), and each one her mother livingly frames and puts around the house. They joke that they’re moving into a bigger home to help fit all of her artwork on the walls. What she doesn’t show them, are the other creatures she sees in her dreams, the trolls, goblins, the darker fairies with cruel desires, the monsters that lurk in the darkness, she keeps them in her sketchbook, terrified that if she were to ever hang them on a wall, they would escape and wreak havoc on not only her family, but the world.

Those nightmares are fewer now that she has five different dream catchers hanging above her bed. Allowing her time to enjoy everything about life. Which is how she is really, she doesn’t know how to be unhappy, how to be scared, how to be mad, or mean. One time she was mean, but it was to a bully in school, she may not like being mean, but she always knows when to stand up to a monster. Her eyes are a pale grey, like the color of the moon when it’s not full, with hair as black as the night sky that would trail to the floor if her mother had allowed her to let it grow so long, however she’d demanded it be cut, so she donated her hair to charity, leaving it just barely past her shoulders.

When she’s not drawing, which happens very rarely, she’s reading, any book she can get her hands on about fairies or magical places, princes saving princesses, princesses helping save themselves, anything with magic and adventure, she thought she’d grow out of it like the other girls and become more interested in what was in fashion and who was cute, but she just couldn’t pry herself away from her fairy tales. Her father is a marine, giving him very little time to be home, but when he is, he tells her any story he can think of, and while he’s away, she spends time sitting with her mother to keep her company around the house, even spending some nights in her bed so they feel less lonely. The move to the new house is because of his new station, and they’ve been told that with him living closer to base, he’ll be able to be home more often, a dream come true for them.

----------

Selena stared intently at the sketchbook in her lap, her curiosity for the passing landscape had diminished as soon as she’d seen a tree covered in leaves changing for fall, she had instantly pulled out her sketchbook to begin a new drawing, requiring a lot of oranges, browns, greens, and all the shades in between; or at least what shades she had in colored pencils. Her flip flops had been discarded almost as soon as she’d put her seatbelt on, never sure why, she never liked wearing shoes, unless she was playing dress up, or when she knew that it would be foolish to go without them.

“Selen hunny, we’re here.” Her mother called to the back seat, sounding excited about the arrival, though in truth it was her daughters reaction that always had her smiling. Selena had her nose pressed to the glass almost before her mother could finish her sentence, eyes wide at the large old home they were pulling in front of. They didn’t explain to her why they needed this big of a house, but she didn’t care, she saw it as more room to run around in, more places to explore, and most important, more walls to hang her drawings. They even promised she had a bigger room, which mean more floor space for when her drawings weren’t of creatures but of landscapes she pictured in her head, feeling like she knew them almost better than she knew anywhere she’d ever lived.

As her father put the car in park, she quickly, but as neatly as possible, put her drawing devices back into her black back pack; which she’d painted a fearsome red dragon on, saying it would protect her belongings; and threw it on her shoulder as she hoped out of the car, racing ahead of her parents up the old steps and into the new house.

“It’s huge!” She called outside, though there was little need to raise her voice since it echoed off the empty walls. Her father chuckled, placing a calloused hand on her shoulder holding her flip flops out with the other, “Until everything’s cleaned up and unpacked, shoes at all time young lady. Last thing we needs is a trip to the hospital on our first night here. Now let’s go start unpacking so we can look around together.” He said, making it clear that there would be no wandering on her own until her parents were sure there wasn’t anywhere in the house she might go that she could get hurt; like if the attic had a loose floorboard or anything silly like that.

-------------------

It took most of the day, and a few of her fathers marine buddies that were practically her uncles, but they managed to unpack everything, even all of her framed work and have everything put in it’s proper place by the time the sun went down. After dinner, her parents had promised a few drinks to the guys, so Selene excused herself, and after making promising she’d draw each of them something special, they let her venture off on her own.

After a quick shower; in her own bathroom, a new thing for her all together; she changed into white pajama pants and a matching tank top and of course, fuzzy slippers, before plopping herself on her bedroom floor, a few large pieces of poster paper spread out before her with rough outlines of what looked too be a mountain scene on them, a scene she was hoping to finish before she fell asleep tonight.

It was discreet, quiet, and she would not have heard it without the complete silence that fell over the house.

Scritch scirtch scritch.... scritch scratch what on earth was that? It sounded like a mouse. If she cared to look she would find what looked like a hedgehog nibbling on the corner of one of her large poster papers. How cute the fat little thing was as it abandoned the corner and waddled to another corner to nibble on the same thing. It moves the paper and found what it was hunting. A pencil, sharped so many times that there was no yellow painted neck between the point and the metal bit that held the eraser on the end. He nibbled at it, managing to remove the shiny metal piece before he dropped the wood and eraser and began to waddle into the hallway, holding his prize with his little head held high.

At first Selena dismissed the noise as just the house shifting, her parents had warned her that it would make some noises until they got the insides of it checked out and fixed up. However it was hard not to notice the hedgehog nibbling on her papers, and at first she just watched him curiously, "Now where on earth did you come from?" She asked, though didn't expect an answer, he was a hedgehog after all.

When he waddled off with her practically dead pencil, she pushed herself up off the floor, "Wait a minute you can't just wander around out there!" She called to it, though once again, hedgehog, probably wasn't going to be much for holding a conversation. She grabbed her backpack of goodies, because of course she knew the moment she could get him in one spot or even in a cage until she could ask her parents what to do with him, she wanted to draw him first, preferably with the pencil he was trying to steal. So she carefully followed after him, trying to figure out how he'd even gotten in the house let alone up to her room.

When she started making noise he stopped and looked right at her, watching her get off the bed he started to run as fast as his tiny legs could carry him. His spiky haired bum waddled back and forth quickly as he managed to move down the hall with surprising speed. She would actually loose it a few times as it slipped into holes in the walls, but would find it as it walked out other holes, probably chewed through by mice. Eventually, she would find it again in the hallway of the top floor.

Well whaddya know? This was one of those old houses with the pull down stairs to get into the attic! The stairs were already pulled down, and the little guy climbed up the left side edge on the stairs and vanished into the attic above.

There was where she would find the mirror, among all the many boxes and junk around, this was what stood out. Perhaps it was the frame, which looked like it was made of pure gold, such detail carved into it that made vines and leaves of ivy. Perhaps it was that tiny bit of light poking through the window caked with dust that made the glass seem to glow in a strange way... or maybe it was her reflection in the glass that made her look so pale... her blonde hair looked white against ghost pale skin.

For the first few minutes of chasing him, she almost gave up hope that it would ever end, or that he would finally slip into one hole and not come out where she’d be able to see him. As he ran up the stairs to the attic though, Selena hesitated, not afraid of what could be lurking in the dark attic she’d never been in, but worried her parents might find out and chastise her for going up there alone.

As the hedgehog disappeared at the top of the stairs, she gave in and raced up after him, letting her eyes adjust to the dim lighting before walking around to try and find him. With so many boxes and junk, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to find him, but her eyes did land on something that captured her interest more, an old, beautiful mirror.

Like a bug to a bug zapper, she couldn’t help but be pulled closer to it, thankfully though she wasn’t electrocuted when she reached a hand out to graze over the carvings in the frame. Her eyes landed on the reflection, and at first she almost jumped away in shock before realizing the girl in the reflection was her, just...she looked so different for some reason. Then, as if thinking about it had shattered whatever illusion it might have been, the reflection was gone.

Stepping forward, Selena looked at the mirror curiously, it wasn’t everyday a reflection just vanished, or that one would chase a mysterious hedgehog into an attic. She decided she had to be dreaming, which made it more exciting, if she could manage to stay asleep she could do anything here. Reaching out to touch the glass, just to see if it felt any different now than in ‘reality’, she gasped when her hand went right through it.

Pulling it back, worried for a moment she might lose it, she was glad her entire hand came out, no missing digits, or creepy critters attached to it. Biting her lip, she glanced at the stairs leading back down to the main floors, If it’s a dream, well then they won’t be worried because I’m sleeping in my room…what could it hurt? She pondered to herself before taking a deep breath and carefully walking through the glass to the other side.

It was a long tunnel, a dirt floor beneath her feet and walls all around- as though they had been dug out by a large animal. It was dark, but there was a light at the end of the tunnel, and the smell of fresh clean air.

There on the ground scurried the little hedgehog with the metal eraser tip still clutched in his little mouth. He vanished into some long grass at the end of the tunnel. If the girl kept walking, she would find herself out in the middle of a most beautiful garden filled with peach trees and greenery.

But hadn't it been Autumn a few moments ago?

Selena didn’t bother trying to catch the hedgehog this time, she’d learned he ran too fast for her to ever catch him, and would probably prick her hand, plus in a dream you never caught anything you were chasing, it always just got farther and farther away.

When she left the tunnel, her eyes lit up with how beautiful everything was, though she felt like she’d seen this place before, it must be one of the scenes she’d started to sketch but hadn’t been able to finish yet. Smiling, she ran to the nearest peach tree, plucking the closest, juiciest looking one she could before taking a bite. It was the best peach she’d ever tasted, so much that she got a few more and put them in her bag for later.

As she reached for a fourth one, a branch scrapped her hand, causing her to wince and drop the fruit. Odd, you weren’t suppose to feel pain in a dream. Realizing she might not be dreaming anymore, though it didn’t make sense how any of this could be real, she looked around for the tunnel, but couldn’t find it. Nothing made sense, it was Summer now, but it was Autumn this morning, she’d only gone a few feet to this tree from the tunnel, yet it was no were in sight.

Biting her lip, now worried she might have gotten herself into more trouble than she could handle, she looked around the field for the pesky hedgehog who’d led her here. Walking around she pushed grass aside to try and find him. “Little hedgehog where are you? Where did you take me?” She called, knowing that she still wouldn’t get an answer, but maybe there was someone here who would be able to help her. Or eat you. A voice chimed in from the back of her head, which normally only showed up when her dreams were nightmares, when shadows weren’t shadows, but things intending to do harm. Giving a small whine, she closed her backpack and put it securely on her back. “Hello?” She called out, much louder this time in hopes that someone would here. “Is there anyone here?”

Silence...

But then, something came slinking out of the grass. It's sleek black body was quite beautiful, as were it's big green eyes. A cat? It was large, and upon walking out, was obviously a very blessed male of his species. He approached and rubbed his head and body against her leg and purred.

What was a cat doing here?

First a hedgehog, now a cat, she was beginning to wonder if she’d ever find anyone, or at least anything that she could communicate with enough to find her way out of here. Sighing she sat down to pet the cat and give it the attention it wanted. “I don’t suppose you could show me how to get home could you?” She asked, her voice hinting that she wasn’t serious in her request. Though a cat this friendly with people had to have an owner, why else would it be so nice? “Where’s your owner?” She asked, though again it was mostly to herself than to that cat who couldn’t answer her, and she stood up to look around, wondering if maybe she would be able to spot anyone in the distance who just couldn’t hear her from so far away.

He purred, and then did something... unexplainable.

"Oh yes... just there, right there that feels gooood." he growled as she scratched under his chin.

"Dammit Neikan!" a woman's voice snapped. She couldn't have been older than 19, she stepped out from behind a tree in a long black bodice dress with long elegant gloves. On her head was a large rimmed pointed hat that instantly made one think it was an elaborate Halloween costume. There were two feathers stuck into the band around the pointed hood, one dark with blue and green, the other a golden colour with dark brown markings. She seized the cat by the scruff of his neck and pulled him away from the younger girl. "You're now allowed near her type, remember you great useless pervert?"

"Come now darling, a lost little girl with no one else to turn to? How could I possibly resist?" the cat asked in such a sultry voice. She growled and tossed him away, but he landed unharmed on his feet. The woman looked back to Selena.

"You, what is your name?" she demanded.

Like any sane human girl would do when a cat spoke to her, she screamed, not even just a quick little 'oh my' scream, a full blown, 'holy shit what the hell is that?!' scream. She yanked her hand away from the animal, feeling like she would never be able to pet a cat ever again without wondering if it was a sexual thing. Backing away, she tripped over her own feet, practically walking out of her slippers in the process, landing flat on her butt as the girl chastised the cat and tossed it away. Which, even though he could talk, and apparently was a pervert, she felt bad when he was thrown, but it vanished when he landed on his feet and acted like it wasn't that big of a deal.

When the women demanded her name, at first she could only stare at her like she was crazy. This had to be a dream, pain or not there was no way talking cats and...well she looked like a witch, were real. "S-Selena." She stammered, not sure how she was a different type from the girl before her, aside from her wardrobe and talking cat of course. "Where am I?" She found the courage to ask, feeling it better to find that out before she discovered any other oddities about this place.

"That's a stupid name." The woman said as-a-matter-of-factly. She examined her eyes alone, and seemed to wrinkle her nose at her wardrobe. "You've got a lot of nerve tramping around here human, I ought to let the wargs get you come nightfall. You're lucky I'm in a... generous mood."

It was as though she never even heard a word the girl said aside from her name.

"Well stand up, let's go." she ordered, then looked to the cat. "You keep your distance."

"Alright, alright. Sheesh, it's not like I could have done anything anyway." he insisted, strutting about with his tail in the air.

"It's the pleasure in your mind you are being torn from as punishment!" The woman snapped.

Selena frowned when the women said her name was stupid, even looked as if she might cry. Her name wasn't stupid, and it wasn't a very kind thing to say to someone you've just met, especially when it's clear they're lost. Apparently she didn't listen well either, assuming the girl knew where she was when she had just asked for that information.

Slightly irritated with the women, somehow feeling at least the cat would've been kind to her, she pushed herself to her feet. "It is not stupid and I don't even know where I am. Did you listen to anything after my name? A hedgehog lead me here through some tunnel in my attic and now I'm...." She flailed her arms out to gesture to the scene around her, "In some weird place where cats can talk and apparently you can look human but you're not. You're really a witch aren't you?" She rambled before finally stopping, her nerves and frustration with this world getting the best of her. Sighing she rubbed her arms lightly, "I just wanna go home...."

"Oh come now Lee, you're being so cold." The cat said, rubbing against a tree. "You know it's your job to guard the bridges of the void... if she's from the other side, it's your duty to send her back."

"Yeah yeah yeah...." The girl, apparently named 'Lee' replied, rolling her eyes at the cat. "Okay let's go... Selena..." she seemed pained at using the name.

"I'll just call you Lana from now on. It's a less snobby name."

"I agree... Lana is much more fitting." The cat said.

"No matter how much you suck up, you're not allowed near her." Lee warned. The cat stuck his nose in the air and walked off. "Let's go." Lee told 'Lana' as she began to lead the girl in the same direction that the cat had gone.

At being told her name was snobby, she was tempted to ask the cat what the girls full name was, not seeing it being simply Lee, but decided it best to just leave it alone for now. Her brain was too focused that she was, in fact, in another world. Following after them, she found talking always made her feel less....uncomfortable. "So...Lee... I'm came through the void? What's this side called? What so different between the two other than animals talking and witches?" She asked, allowing her eyes to wander around the scenery, it all looked so familiar to her, though she couldn't really remember ever being here, she knew she'd sketched this place at some point.

"Be quiet!" The girl hissed. At first, it seemed like she was just being mean and didn't want to hear Selena talk, but when she grabbed the girl and crouched down among the tall grass, it was clear her demand had a reason for it.

Riding on the backs of horses was a small group of men in heavy armor. For whatever reason, lee did not want to be noticed by them. Once they were far enough away, she grabbed Selena's hand and hurried passed the trees to a small clearing where a green and gold caravan was parked. A massive black ram was already strapped in to pull it.

Lee led Lana inside the caravan, and lifted the mattress on the bed to reveal piles of folded clothing. She pulled out a simple brown and black bodice dress and handed it to Lana.

"Change into this, we'll have to burn the clothes you have now. No one can know that you are not part of this world." Lee told her. "Do not speak unless you and I are alone, if no one notices you have an accent, no one will suspect a thing. I will tel people you are a mute."

Selena almost spoke again even though she'd told her to be quiet, simply thinking she was being mean again, but being dragged into hiding got her to remain quiet. These men she had seen before, she was sure there was a sketch of them in her bag, one she would have to bring up later when they were able to talk.

Following her in the caravan, she wanted to ask why it was important they didn't know she wasn't from this world, but in stories the reason for keeping it a secret was normally a good one. So she changed, being sure the cat wasn't in the small space while she did, folding her old clothes neatly for the time being. Opening her bag, she dug through her papers, before pulling out the sketch of the men she'd seen earlier. "I've seen them before. This place too...I draw it all the time." She said, handing her the sketch before pulling out other examples of landscapes, fairies, and though a bit reluctant, some of the darker creatures. "What are those men? Why are they so scary?" She asked, finding a place to sit down as she nodded her head to show that unless they were alone, she would have to remember not to say anything. She'd also need to find a new bag to keep her drawings in.

The woman seized her drawings and looked them over.

"Just my fucking luck, an oracle." she growled. She grabbed a metal pot, crumpled the drawings and put them inside before lighting a match and dropping it in, closing the lid so they could burn. "No one can know about these, everything you came here with must be burned."

"I have a proposal." the cat said. "Hide the caravan away and walk. You can pretend you were picking mushrooms for a stew, so if they catch you they won't suspect."

"Neikan is right." Lee said, grabbing a basket from the wall as well as a leather shoulder satchel. She led Lena out of the caravan and gave her the basket to hold, but first she went back inside to grab the pot, which she dipped in a stream nearby, then put the pot away. She unhooked the sheep and pat him on the bum, and he strolled off.

The cat watched, almost grinning, as she put her hands on the side of the Caravan, it creaked and groaned as it shrank, until it was no larger than a toy. She pulled a box from her satchel, into which the caravan fit perfectly, then put the box in a small bag with straps and attached it like a messenger bag onto Neikan.

"I'll bring Hades and meet you at the fork in the river." The cat said before taking off.

"Come, we must move quickly and find some mushrooms." Lee said to Lena, taking her hand and dragging her through the tall grass.

Selena practically threw a fit when the women burned the drawings she’d showed her, clutching what was left close to her chest. “What are you doing?! You can’t just burn other peoples things!” She cried out, eyes practically filling with tears as she clutched what drawings she had left to her chest, she could redraw them if she knew what ones were missing, but some of the ones now lost hadn’t even been completed, they were just outlines. Her drawings were everything to her.

So when the cat pointed out that she could simply shrink the caravan, for once Selena had to fight no to be overly angry with the women. “If you could shrink it this whole time there was no reason to burn my things.” She pointed out, wiping at her eyes as she stuffed the drawings in her bag, leaving it in the caravan as she was dragged out, now feeling that even if the cat had been perverted, he just saved everything that was precious to her, and she would have to find a way to repay him for it later.

Still upset about the drawings that had been burned, she found herself with little to say as she was dragged along with the basket to look for mushrooms. She simply hoped that mushrooms at least looked the same and didn’t end up having razor sharp teeth and would try to bite her when she collected them. Looking around to make sure there wasn’t anyone nearby, it took her a few minutes to collect herself before she found the nerve to ask, “Who’s Hades?” Tugging and squirming a bit in the new clothes that she would have to get use to.

"I'm not the only one in this world with that ability. We hide the caravan, someone can still find it. If someone were to find your drawings, they would find that we do not have paper like that here, we do not have a means of putting colour on paper, and if someone cries 'witchcraft' here, it's a sentence for 20 years of torture followed by death." Lee told her. "Understand now, that my protecting you is not an act of charity, if I protect you, I protect myself and all others like me. Now if you want to stay alive and go home, I suggest you stop questioning me."

Again, it just seemed like she was being mean but... if Lena listened she would hear a panic to her voice, a desperation. They gathered some mushrooms and headed towards the dirt road. When the armored men approached, Lee grabbed Lena's hand.

"Halt, who goes there!?" a voice demanded with a slight accent... Russian?

"My name is Anne, daughter of Bran, this is my sister Marie." Lee replied, her own accent changed to one that seemed similar to British. "Our mother sent us out to pick mushrooms for a stew."

"You are on forbidden territory." the man in armor stated.

"Forgive my ignorance sir, our normally picking patch has run empty. I was not aware how far east we have gone. I admit, we are a bit lost. Could you direct us back to town?" she asked. The man was silent for a moment, looking at them. He dismounted his horse and removed his helmet. He had long pointed ears, and a thin pointed face. His long blonde hair was braided back. he approached, and Lena would feel Lee grow tense.

"Where did you say you were from?" he asked.

"The town of Talewok sir." Lee replied.

"Odd... you see, I have an ear for accents, and yours seems more unique to that of our capital, Burbank." he said, narrowing his eyes.

"Yes sir, I was born there. My family and I moved to Talewok shortly after my sister was born. She was birthed with a defect you see, blind in one eye and mute. A wizard named Brom was able to cure her blindness but not-" She began to explain but was cut off when he stuffed his hand down her bodice between her breasts. She cried out and tried to pull away, but he found what he was looking for. Around her neck on a silver chain was a coin sized pendant, a silver five pointed star within a circle. The man seized her by the hair and threw her to the ground, his men dismounted and grabbed her.

"Take the witch to Vervia." The elf man ordered of them. He seized Lena by the wrist and ran a hand around her neck, but finding nothing there he seemed, unimpressed. "This one is human. She will come with me to Sarden."

Without warning, she was lifted up and dumped on the front of the saddle, with this elf man right behind her. She would fall and hurt herself is she struggled.

Lee was taken away by 5 of the other men westward, while this Elf and two of his lackies brought Lena eastward.

She almost screamed when the voice barked out at them, and had to remind herself multiple times that she was a mute, and played the part of broken little sister, shying behind Lee, not only as an act though, seeing the men from her drawings up close was a bit more frightening than just on paper. When he was down Lees bodice though, she almost swung at him, but he was out and barking orders before she could move an inch. The most she was able to do was chuck her useless, empty basket at the one around her neck, and it didn’t get help her out even the smallest bit.

As she was thrown on the horse, she looked at Lee with pleading eyes, not sure what she was suppose to ask of the witch, would keeping quiet help her out? Probably. Even if she could think of something to ask, she didn’t know enough about this world to do anything with an answer. She may have been mean, but Lee was the one person she knew in this world that wasn’t intending to hurt her, she had no idea what these men would do to her, or how long she would be able to play the charade of half blind, mute girl.

Eyes watering a bit, she held back tears of frustration, ‘If they’re not torturing you, you never cry. If you cry, you do it silently. People say crying makes them happy, but really it’s the noise you make that does it. Silence just…pisses them off.’ Her dads voice echoed in her head, a pleasant sound she wished was real, not just a memory. He’d know exactly what to do to get himself home, to avoid being captured, even save Lee in the process.

Sighing, she quit struggling once she was trapped on the horse, and hoped that once they arrived, wherever Sarden was, she’d have a better chance of escaping and finding Lee, and then hopefully, getting home.

They had left early morning, and it was sunset by the time they finally stopped. The poor horses were led to water by one of the lackeys, but the elf man didn't seem to care and dragged Lena with him to the inn where several guards were stationed in the pub.

"Here you are boys, a treat for a job well done." the elf man said, thrusting Lena before the group. "A fine fresh face to look at and pour your rum." This man seemed to be of high rank, his armor was finer than the others here. He was also one of only three elves, the rest seemed human. He and his elf friends left, leaving Lena alone among all the soldiers about.

"Hey sweetheart, top off me glass here and come sit on my lap." one said. But a second man piped in, one of the men who helped bring Lena here.

"Off with ya Walt." he snapped. "You've been sitting around the pub all day, I've been working for those damn elves all day, let a working man have his break. C'mere sweetheart." he grabbed her by the wrist, but not roughly and had her sit on his lap when he sat in one of the chairs about.

"Hey honey, how old are you?" asked another guard.

"She's a mute, no sense in talking to her." the guard whom she was sitting on explained. The men started laughing and taking drinks.

These soldiers were awful, they were nothing like the men who worked with her father. They had no sense of dignity, or manners towards women. She felt as if she were going to vomit every time one asked her to sit on their lap.

When the man grabbed her and dragged her over to his lap, she bit back a scream and a list of insults and despite her desire to pull away, she couldn't start a fight with these men, she was outnumbered, they clearly new this pub better than she did, and she wasn't sure where she could run to. The only person out there who would help her was a cat and she didn't even know where to start looking for that feline. Though she'd rather put up with a frisky feline who only wanted a scratch under the chin rather than these pigs who clearly wanted more than that, it was no wonder none of them were married.

So she bit her tongue, and sat there, shying away if any of them tried to touch her in anyway, and looking away from anyone that tried to talk to her, most getting the hint that talking was pointless, others seemed to enjoy the fact that they could say as the pleased, but she couldn't say anything back.

"If you'll excuse us fellows..." Said the man holding Lena on his lap. "I have some... needs that our little friend will be tending to."

"I'll join you brother John." Said one of the others.

"Oh no, this one is all mine." The man, apparently named 'John' replied. His friends whistled as he stood, dragging Lena up the stairs and into one of the rooms where he shut the door. He waited for a moment, listening through the wood and not even looking at her. After a second, he turned to her.

"Tell me about the witch you were with!" he demanded.