((Hey~ I'm suffering from major writer's block. So I'm sorry that this chapter is boring and poorly edited. Though I often find that just posting something already is the best way to beat writer's block, So~, here we go! Also, I'm thinking of changing the name of the series because I am just not feeling, "Avalon"… its basically trite... and I think I shall go back through and name all the chapters, just because... ANYWAYS! Thanks for reading and please please please reveiw!!))

The young prince sighed heavily as he stood outside of his family's palace. It was one of the lesser ones, not nearly as large as the royal palace or even close to being as grand. When his parents had been married Arek's father, being a commoner by birth, had felt quite uncomfortable with the idea of living in a palace, so when given a choice, he had subconsciously picked what was easily the smallest one. It's location was good, right in the center of the capital, at the end of a row of wealthy townhouses and and despite what could be said about the place, it certainly looked quite stately with its well maintained garden and attractive architecture.

Though, his friends often told him it was far too cramped and folksy for someone such as himself. Theoretically, he should have agreed, being that he was, of course, a prince after all. But something about the eclectic collections of artifacts displayed on otherwise austere walls, the fact that all the furniture was genuinely comfortable, and the way the old place made him look like such a diamond in the rough was terribly romantic and endearing. It also had a good library, which had been a great place to play as a child, thanks to the many ladders, catwalks and forgotten niches and closets. The library was also good place to relax now that he was grown. Sadly though , Arek only occasionally picked up the books that had surrounded him for as long as he could remember. He found that they were rather disruptive to his social life. No one was overly fond of shut-ins who read all day.

He glanced down at the note he still held in his hand. Dad was probably right, it was probably just some silly prank. Though he didn't have to be so dismissive about it, he had just been pointing out a possible issue. If he had said nothing and this thing turned out to be real, he would have been in huge trouble. He just couldn't win when it came to dad.

Arek slumped through the front gate, he really should be heading back to town square, but no one was home to bug him and he was feeling kind of hungry. There were probably some muffins or something left over from breakfast, he would go back and work after that.

***

"Well I'll be! The sorceress sent 'em to wreak havoc in the city!" The old farmer scratched the back of his head and laughed heartily.

"Oh. Right." Lily wheezed, too tired, dirty and beaten to even try and sound anything but dubious. It was obvious to anyone that the cows had merely escaped from their corral and made their way down to the main square. Too bad the simple explanation of their presence in town square had not translated into an easy catch. And of course mister crazy conspiracy theorist's help consisted mainly of helpful hints such as "A cow can crush a man, be careful missy!", "Oh! Bessy can smell fear, just grab her!" and always the good old, "Yup! You just missed her!". All the while, the old coot had grabbed himself a cigar and a can of beer and settled down on a nearby bench.

Now all three of the deceptively fast dairy cows were tied to a lamppost munching the nearby shrubbery and looking somehow pleased with themselves.

"Well, you've done a mighty-fine job missy! You new-fangled police aren't all show!" The old man got up from his spot and dusted off. Lily might have felt good to know that she had done well, though at that moment she found herself only wondering what on earth he meant by "new-fangled". Was it the new uniforms? The fact she was young? God he was annoying.

Lily was brought out of her own mind by the old man pulling a pocket knife out of nowhere and slicing the ropes that held his livestock. Lily started to shout a warning but it ended up coming out as a cross between a choke and a sob.

"Well, lets get going girls!" he whistled slightly and the despicable creatures followed him as if they had not just been running as if for their lives this past hour. Lily felt tears well up in her eyes as she watched the farmer walk away, taking with him hours of her like that she would not be getting back. Ever.

Anything for my prince! She thought faithfully as she remembered the man that had asked her to take care of this chore. Arek must be doing much more important things right now. Besides that, he also just couldn't be in danger of ruining his appearance. Sure, she wasn't a huge fan of being covered in dust but it was practiclly a sin for someone a beautiful as her prince to be subjected to that. Oh yes and he was beautiful wasn't he... Once again Lily found herself just a few planes off of reality in a fantasy all her own as she contsructed more than a few future scenarios that had nothing to do with the situation at hand and everything to do with the man she believed Arek to be.

"Excuse me," Lily was brought back to her senses by an unfamiliar voice, "I would like to meet with your leader now."

Taken aback by the odd nature of what she had heard Lily brushed her now messy bangs away from her eyes and looked at the speaker. For a moment, the sun blinded her and she just squinted dully.

"Are you okay?" Lily noticed how tall this person seemed to be, and that there was someone else with them.'

"I'm fine!" She said quickly, if shakily, standing at attention, "What can a humble officer such as I do for you today?"

"I believe I said I would like to meet with your leader."

Lily blinked as she finally got a good look at who was speaking, she had to stop herself from gasping and putting a hand over her mouth. She was looking at what appeared to be two elven nobles. The one that was speaking to her seemed to be the higher ranking one based on the general aura of authority.

He wore the tradition robe things (Lily didn't know what they were called) that male noble elves tended to wear. She'd have to ask someone who might know later. The outfit was made of white and silver cloth. It was technically a robe, since it went all the way down to the wearer's ankles, but it was tailored so closely around the shoulders and torso that, on a man, it didn't look like he was wearing a dress or had just gotten out of the shower.

The girl who stood behind him was just wearing a dress. Lily supposed it was technically traditional elven clothing too, but the pale blue gown with an empress waist did not look out of the ordinary. What was most noticeable about the elven girl was just how perfectly formed her every feature was, as she stood quietly and watched she looked serene and impassive as a statue. The man was abnormally attractive too, but he had a few age lines around his eyes which made him just look a bit less disconcerting. Though by elven standards, that could very well have meant that he was centuies old. Of course, they both had long and pointed ears which were the thing that gave them away as elves. Though, they were arguably not as noticeable as one might have expected.

"Oh, Right..." Lily said nodding slowly smiling a bit vacantly as her mind worked underneath. Were they ambassadors? They certainly weren't from around here, not only was the population of Ethuria more than 90% human but the elves that did make their homes in this country didn't retain much of their original culture. They lived and worked right along side their less-magical countrymen and for the most part, fit right in. Unlike this pair, who were already drawing dazzled looks from the people coming and going through town square. Lily glanced to both of her sides to find that she was the only officer in visible proximity. She was on her own once again. "Well," said Lily electing to take the most obvious path, she really should start a file and do a few background checks, but she was much too tired for bureaucracy. "Right this way." She smiled and started in the direction of the palace.

***

"Hello~ Anyone home?" Arek called as he walked through the door. He wasn't too surprised when no one answered in return. Mom and Dad were doing government-ish things and all the servants were on semi-vacation for festival week.

For the most part, Arek was glad for this, since it mean't that there was no one to bug him. But on the other hand, it mean that there wasn't anyone to make him a hot meal. Which, of course, totally sucked. He was basically fine with finishing off the three or so cinnamon muffin-things leftover from breakfast, but there was no way that Arek was going to eat something stupid and not cooked like a sandwich or apple or something. The fact that people considered such foods even foods was something that he had trouble even wrapping his mind around.

Since he really should be back on the job anyway, Arek started to make his way to city square again. He could stop for some food on the way down.