Hello! I'm starting this fic at 5:30 in the morning. I was lying in bed and couldn't sleep. The idea for this fic popped into my head, and I decided I'd get up and give it a try. I've never actually written a fan fic before. I'd really appreciate any comments and constructive criticism you could give me. Also, it's been a while since I played the game, so I may get a few details wrong. It would be great if you could let me know. That way I can fix it, and look a little less dumb. Thankies! ^_^

Oh, and for some reason, when I upload it to FF.net, all of the italics disappear. It's annoying, since I had Lethia's unspoken thoughts in italics. So, it might be a bit confusing since her thoughts are mixed in with the narration. Heh, sorry. ^_^;

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Lethia let out a sigh as she set down the book she had been reading. It wasn't that the book didn't interest her. She just couldn't concentrate. It had been ages since anything interesting had happened to her. Hmmm... she thought to herself. Maybe I'll walk down to Domina and see what's going on with everyone.

Lethia sighed and took a deep breath of fresh outside air. "It's nice to be out!"

She began the walk to town. It had been a while since she had gone into Domina. She usually only went about once a month so she could pick what she needed for the house. The thought of visiting her friends Duelle and Teapo was comforting. There were little odd, but there was never a dull moment with those two. There was also Rachelle and her parents, who owned the weapon shop. Lately Rachelle had been acting strange. She was usually sweet and talkative, but recently she had become rather quiet. Her dad had tried getting her a job to try and put her in a better mood, but it hadn't worked.

The walk to town was forgotten as she thought about all of this. It seemed like no time at all before she was entering Domina. Everything seemed the same as always as Lethia walked towards the weapon shop. As she got closer she could hear Duelle's voice. As he came into view, she could see him talking to a dark haired young man with a scowl on his face.

"Well you could at least tell me your name!" Duelle shouted at the young man.

"It's Elazule" He answered.

Duelle opened his mouth as though he was going to say something else, but he closed it when Elazule turned his back to him and entered the pub across the street.

Duelle sighed and tuned toward the weapon shop. He almost walked right past Lethia without noticing her. Actually, he would have if she hadn't poked her face right in front of his.

"Hi Duelle!"

He must have jumped three feet into the air. "Lethia, you surprised me!"

"Hee Hee, sorry. I didn't mean to..."She patted him on the head apologetically. "But if I hadn't gotten your attention, you would have walked right past me."

"Heh, sorry about that. I was just thinking about somethin'."

"What about?"

"That guy just now."

Lethia grinned." What, do you have a crush on him or something?"

"Ha ha." He socked her in the leg "That guy said he's lookin' for his girlfriend or somethin'. I was just wondering where she might have gone off to."

"O~h."

We stepped into the shop through the back door. Aside from being a weapon shop, it was also where Rachelle and her family lived. Rachelle's father was slumped in his favorite chair, while Teapo was just behind him tidying up.

"Hey, Teapo," Duelle said as they stepped into the living room. "Look who's here."

Teapo let out a squeal when she saw them. "Oy, Lethia! I'm so glad to see you!

She rushed across the room and clasped Lethia's hands in her, um... hands?

"Did Duelle tell you about wot 'appened to me?!"

"Um, no...What happened, Teapo?"

"This strange bloke came up an' started yellin' at me about is girlfriend. He kept askin' me 'ave you seen her?' an' I kept sayin' no, I 'aven't gov! But he didn't believe me. Maybe he's a stalker or somethin'. I wish the best of luck to that poor girl. I bet she tried to run away from that maniac!"

"Now, now," Lethia said to Teapo as she patted her hand. "Don't say that. I'm sure he's just worried about her. Just imagine. What would you do if someone important to you had gone missing?"

As she tried to comfort Teapo, Duelle moved a little closer to the door. He suddenly motioned for everyone to be quiet.

"Wot's this all about, Duelle!?" Teapo demanded. "Can't you see Lethia and I are trying to 'ave a conversation?"

"Quiet! I hear him coming. Everybody get down, I'll lock the door!"

She and Teapo shared a confused glance before hesitantly obeying. Perhaps the 'he' Duelle was referring to was that mysterious young man, Elazule. He must have been acting pretty badly for them to be acting like this.

Shortly after we had been warned to drop to the ground, there was a knock on the door. Well, at least he knocks. After getting no response, a second series of knocks rang out.

"I know you're in there!" An unfamiliar voice called from outside the door. "Oh come now, I only want to sell you happiness!"

A look of surprise followed immediately by anger shot across Teapo's face. "Oy, Onion!" She shouted at Duelle. "What do you mean by lockin' out Niccolo!?" She turned towards the door. "'Old on there Niccolo!"

She waddled over to the door.

"No! Don't let him in!" Duelle warned. "He's just a swindler trying to take all your money!"

"Oh don't be silly, he's got good stuff!"

Lethia got up and brushed herself off as Teapo let what looked like a very large brown rabbit into the house.

"Oy, Niccolo. Wot 'ave you got for me today?" Teapo asked the rabbit.

"Well, today I have a lovely wheel I picked up on the highway. I'll sell it you for a mere 50,000 lucre."

"Niccolo, you're a wee too proud for your own good," Teapo said uncertainly. "Nothin' costs that much, s'truth!"

"Anyway, if you ask me it looks like it's just a crappy ol' wheel," Duelle spat from across the room.

"You're right. This is nothing but an ordinary wheel. I can see when my wares aren't needed. I suppose I'll just go sell some happiness to someone else..."

"And good riddance!" Duelle shouted.

"Quiet, onion!" Niccolo hissed at him then turned to leave.

"Now wait just a minute, gov!" Teapo called. "Can't you just shave the price just a little?"

"You have to spend money to make money," He said.

"Oh come on, mister," Lethia pleaded. "Just lower the price. I'm sure it can't be that big of a deal."

Niccolo turned to Lethia. It was the first time she had spoken since he had come in. He hadn't even noticed her.

"And who are you?" He asked politely.

"My name's Lethia," She responded.

"Well, Lethia, lately there have been bandits on the highway. It's become very difficult for me to travel from town to town gathering goods. If I were to make this any cheaper, I'd go out of business!"

"Oh, go cry me a river!" Duelle shouted.

"Onion, I'm warning you...!"

"Well, what if I take care of those bandits for you?" Lethia suggested. "Would you lower the price of the wheel?"

Niccolo examined her carefully. "If you can take care of the bandits, I'll let you have the wheel for free!"

"Cool! Then it's a deal. I'll be back in a while." She began walking toward the door.

"Wait, Lethia!" Niccolo grabbed her by the wrist. "Can you really take them on, the bandits and their boss?"

"I don't see why not. They can't be that tough."

Niccolo looked as though he was contemplating something for a moment. "I'll go with you." He said decisively. "It would ruin my reputation if you got hurt."

"Uh, sure." Lethia agreed. I don't see why my getting hurt would affect his reputation, though.

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^_^ Yay, It is now 7:30, and I'm done with the first chapter! I know it's a little short, but I hope you liked it regardless. Like I said, this is the firs fan fic I've ever written, so forgive me if it's a bit funky. Actually, this is the first story I've written in about a year or so. Anyway, I'd love it if you reviewed. I won't write anymore if I don't get any reviews. I mean what's the point of continuing if no one is reading it? You can also email me if you want at moogle_76@yahoo.com K, see ya! Review!