A figure stood silently in the middle of a circle of tall oak trees, a dim light shining on top of her head. Her silk dress that ended at her ankles blew silently in the wind. Her pointy ears peered out from her never-ending hair that sat soundlessly on her back. Her pale blue eyes looked like the moon’s sisters yawning in the evening air.

Her name was Amur Lilac, a citizen of the great elf kingdom or Maria, or used to be. She was banished from her land, by sneaking out of the kingdom one night, and that was why she stood out here today. She remember the incident vividly, lying in the silky, green grass looking up into the sky filled with white stars, and a cool breeze dancing above her.

“What is an elf doing in these woods?”

Amur twirled around on her toes to face the voice. A man stood away in the trees, he looked fearless, the exact opposite of Amur.

“That’s none of your concern,” she stuttered. He stepped closer to Amur, trying to intimidate her, and she was intimidated. “My name is Amur Lilac, I am from Maria, and I…am an adventurer.”

The man let out a cold-hearted laugh; he didn’t believe her for a second. “Maria folk are nothing but cowards! You are not an adventurer!” He said.

At the statement Amur burned with anger, her fists clenched, and her knuckles turned white. “I am not a coward!” She yelled at the top of her lungs, her face becoming blood red. Birds jumped out of the trees and took flight in the sky at the sound.

“I am Gast.”

She relaxed, her skin turned back to its original pale color. Amur was still uneasy though, rangers could not be trusted, he was banished like her. Then, Gast looked to his left and watched the frightened birds, revealing a necklace with a shimmering jewel, that he could not have smithed.

“What’s that?”
Gast turned to face Amur again, the jewel swinging back into his robes.

“The jewel, it looks familiar.”
Gast calmly slipped his necklace off and held it in his dark hand. “This?”

“Yes,” she said curiously, and walked over to Gast and the jewel. Then, right as Amur lifted her hand to grab it, he closed his fist, the jewel tightly enclosed in his hand. Amur took a step back, and tucked her hair behind her pointy ears. She wanted the jewel and thought he shouldn’t have it. After a few moments of silence Gast began to turn away, back into the woods, away from Amur, she was wasting his time.

“Can you tell me where I am?” Amur asked.

“You are in the forest of Brenton, I thought you were an adventurer, shouldn’t you know?”

“I am not an adventurer.”
Gast let out a huff and kept walking deeper in the trees. Amur grabbed a seam from her dress in her hand and ran over to Gast and tried to keep up.

“I need to find my way home.”

“Do you now?” He said, not stopping.

“Can you help me find a way?” Amur pleaded.

“What’s in it for me?”
After a few moments of silence she answered. “I know where there is gold in the kingdom!”

“How much?” Gast asked flatly.

“Lots!” she responded.
Then he stopped, letting the poor, lost elf bump into him, and Amur stumbled onto the ground, her dress now streaked with green and brown at her knees. He turned around to face Amur that was lying on the ground. He reached out his dark-skinned hand and offered it to her, and she grabbed onto him and he raised her to her feet.

“Truly?”

“Yes!”

“Come on, this way.”
A smile formed across her face and her eyes lit up, “Thank you Gast!”

“Don’t talk.”
They both headed toward Maria in silence. Amur was thinking about the jewel Gast snuck and tried to come up with a plan. She could use her sister’s name to get in, and since all the elves in her kingdom wore a special jewel that represented their background, she would have to ask for Gast’s necklace to get in because her’s was taken when she was banished. She would figure out the ranger part later. The sky began to turn dark, and the sun started to go down to take a long, appreciated nap.

“Where are we sleeping?”

“We aren’t, the night is the most dangerous part of the day. Trolls come out of their nasty caves to feed, and we could become an easy target if we were sleeping.”
Amur wiped her drowsy eyes with the back of her hands and sighed, “When do we sleep then?”

“When the sun is high.”
They kept treading thought the forest all through the night, without running into any trouble. The sun rose, the darkness fled, and Amur smiled, not because of the sun, because Maria stood proudly in front of the two; she was home. Then, Amur remembered her plan and asked for the jewel from Gast. He handed to her suspiciously, and she slipped it over her neck, “Follow me.”

Amur lead Gast into the kingdom using her sister’s name, and claimed the ranger had been stealing. The guard standing in front of the palace agreed, let them in and took them to the king.

The three of them walked through the kingdom, and Amur couldn’t stop smiling. Birds chirped, butterflies flew around her hair, and multicolored flowers acted as a path through town. Tall trees were everywhere, with little homes hidden inside, including her family’s home. Maria citizens were left and right, laughing and talking, and Amur wanted so badly to join them again. Since she was lost in her head, Amur bumped into the wooden staircase that led into the throne room. So, the guard helped her up the stairs, and Gast followed behind and regretted coming in.

“My king,” the two elves said, and bowed in the presence of the king.

“Amur Lilac!”
She stood to face him, and clearly saw that he wasn’t pleased, “My king, my father’s jewel was stolen and I wish to return it.”

“Whom has stolen it?”
Turning her head to the left in guilt, she stared at Gast. After a few moments of conversing with the guards beside him, the king made a decision, and motioned toward Gast.

“What will you do with him?” Amur asked shakily.

“I do not take kindly to men who steal.”

“Wait!”
The guards stopped in their tracks, and the king stood, making himself seem bigger, and stared at Amur. She didn’t want Gast to die; he was good to her, “Don’t kill him!”
A puzzled look stretched across the king’s face, but silently concluded to let him go.

“Release him.”

“Thank you!” Amur cried.

“Let Amur into the kingdom as well, she has shown great courage.”