Hello my dear readers, call me Deranged, the way I spend half my day writing stories! Or call me Careless, the way I don't care for my future😭

Anyway, in this piece of work, you'll find peculiar stories, strange plots and probably overrated settings, but hey, what can I say, it was written by a pre-teen. Yes, that's right, a pre-teen.

I wrote these short stories when I was 9 or 10, I'm 16 now, and when I read them, I wondered if it'd be alright to post them here, and I hope it will be. Please don't mind if something is wrong in the stories, if there is something major that alters the perception of the reader; you, then comment!

That's all I would like to say, I hope I can update every Sunday, and it may be that this account will get deleted soon, but all is well. Treat the following as an index, so you know how many sections every chapter has, thank you-

The Lizard King — 3 Sections

10 Days — 5 Sections

Concealed Identities — 4 Sections

Abstruse Emotions — 7 Sections

The Silencer — 4 Sections

Imaginations — 2 Sections

Who Could Ever Say Magic Isn't Real? — 3 Sections

Fleeting Moments, Eternal Impacts — 4 Sections

A Soft, Silent Sun — 4 Sections

...Lost Money...

I just got back from the grocery store, I threw the spare change on the coffee table and went to organize everything I bought, when I was done, as expected, my change was at its place. Now, it's normal for you, isn't it? But, actually, when I first moved into this apartment, I was fed up and desperate for my change to start walking on its own.

I moved in August, now it's January, when this first happened, I thought I had misplaced my change. No problem, I thought, a few pennies or quarters doesn't cause any harm, but when the 'few pennies and quarters' add up to a few dozen dollars, it really starts to mess you up. Then a thought struck me, I was stupid in the first place to think I had misplaced my change, because why would I misplace only the coins and not the notes?

I looked all over the house, every nook and corner was searched as if there was a tiny hole where rats were sneaking my money to their human owners, but alas, I found nothing. I, eventually, started counting the money I lost, and turns out in the first month I stayed there, I had already lost $9. I could have bought a burger, chips and a soda from that, you know.

You see, I shop every week, like a normal person. Restocking my groceries, treating myself to some snacks, collecting interesting art pieces, buying art supplies and shopping for toiletries. I'm a designer, but I have a hobby of painting, and a hobby is a hobby, but I also often get commissions to paint, so that makes my hobby a job sometimes.

I then make good money by selling them on E-Bay. Well, now, you may be thinking why I didn't try to save money, like as soon as I reach home, keeping them in my wallet, safe and secure. Or collecting my money in a jar; but jokes on you, I did try that, I bought a piggy bank at the end of August and started depositing all my coins, and notes, in that.

At the end of September, I broke open the piggy bank, and was happy for a moment, seeing all that money. But my smile faded slowly but surely, there were no goddamn coins, none! I slammed my fist on the table in frustration, which got the downstairs neighbour fussing but who cares.

Just a day before the start of October, I had had enough, I really thought I was going crazy, so I went to the doctor's, I was taught to not blame others right off the bat, so this explains why I went to the doctor's first and not the police, and turns out I have high blood pressure and not dementia or narcolepsy. Not what I was expecting, but okay; feeling defeated, I visited a friend all the way across the country in Oregon for help. She always made me feel better, ever since I've known her, her name is Choi Jirim, we grew up in South Korea together, and she moved to the U.S. a year after me.

I described my new apartment to her, I used to live in a really run down apartment in Maine, so this cheap but really pleasant apartment in New York was a real upgrade. "$1250 a month. Two bedrooms, a joint bathroom in each, a decent living room and get this... It's on the 9th floor with a balcony too, a steal, right?" I dictated enthusiastically, finally drinking the tea she served me 25 minutes ago, "Really? So, what's the problem?" she asked, baffled. I huffed in vexation, "Where do I start, Jirim!" I blurted, "My change is disappearing in thin air, out of nowhere!"

"Out of nowhere?" Jirim asked,

"You heard me, but not my notes, just the coins."

"Huh. I see the problem, Hami."

"What is it, tell me."

Jirim paused for dramatic effect before pointing at me and yelling: "You!" "What!?" I screamed, and I have to admit, her reasoning was pretty damn good, both of us being fantasy and sci-fi readers, that is. She explained that I was the idiot for choosing an apartment that was that cheap, "Of course something is wrong with it, that's why it's cheap, dummy!" she cawed, it made sense. I nodded my head along with her elaboration; I stayed in her house for a week before going back to NYC, on my way there, I was in deep thought of all the furniture I hadn't used.

The bedroom's cabinets, the living room's shelf, the bathroom's rotating mirror, the kitchen's dishwasher... When I got home, I used everything judiciously: stuffed the cabinets neatly, decorated the shelf with some drawings on it, I hid some things behind the rotating mirror, and finally I reached the dishwasher. The dishwasher is a common appliance, sure, but my Asian brain doesn't let me use it.

It's stubborn enough to make me wash all the utensils and all dishes by hand. I sat down with a manual on YouTube, "Open the dishwasher," the man stated monotonously, as if his life was a joke, I opened the dishwasher and, Lo and Behold! The culprit, for my vanishing money, was found.

It wasn't a rat, nor a crow, nor a raven; it was a... Lizard, maybe? I didn't know what it was, but what I did know, is that I had to get rid of it, I reached out my hand towards it, hoping to grab it, because I'm just a shameless girl. But, surprisingly, as soon as my hand got a bit too dangerously close, the lizard thing breathed a fiery breath and burned my finger.

It wasn't burnt badly, just enough to make me retract my hand, "... Wtf was that!?" I asked more as a reflex than out of amazement or anger, "You dare swear at me, you, an insolent mortal?!" the lizard thing spoke. An insolent mortal...? B***h, are you immortal?

I grabbed the dragon thingy and almost choked it, it was 20 cm tall, so I had no problem shaking it around like a rag doll, "Stop!" it screeched, "Stop, I tell you!" it continued, and so did I, shaking it as if I was a bartender making a drink. I eventually stopped, out of boredom, not mercy, don't get me wrong. "I... You darn human, you will pay for this sin! How dare you mess around with me, sir Lumen Grason of Mayfield?" the thing screamed once more; ah, yes, I then remembered, my change, it was piled up on a plate.

Now I understand why this apartment was cheap, low rated even though it looked and felt really nice; because some talking-fire-breathing-royal lizard was stealing everyone's goddamn change.

...A Perfect Place...

"Alright, 'Sir Lumen Grason', why have you graced me with your presence." I spat through gritted teeth, "That's way better, learn to respect others," he started, yes, 'he'. "I am a dragonoid, as you may have already perceived. I am simply borrowing your wealth to complete my portal to teleport me back to Stetson." he explained, I listened silently, kind of interested, "And how'd you get here?" I questioned. "Good immersion, human," he acknowledged, "My country was attacked by the savages: the Winterson's." he elaborated, "That's quite an anticlimactic name, 'Winterson'?" I commented.

"They are the savages of Stetson, or, well... One of the many barbarians." Lumen dictated, I looked confused, so he sighed and explained further, "The Wintersons, occupying a few countries that surround Mayfield, attacked Mayfield and threw me out of the kingdom. Looking for revenge, I went far and wide to search for the great mage 'Bradbury'. But unfortunately, I got scammed. The mage told me that the portal he opened will lead me to my castle and I can attack them from there, but that portal..." "Led you here?" I interjected, he nodded with a huff, then Lumen told me how the portal needed to go back to Stetson, no matter from where, is always built of melted bronze and silver with his fiery breath. I nodded along to his explanation, though I zoned out halfway.

After living with the little dragon for 3 days, I got to know a lot about him: his personal details, the Wintersons, Mayfield and Stetson, let me bore you too. Lumen described the Wintersons as rogues with no morals; long ago, the Grasons and Wintersons lived together with harmony, about 800 years or so ago. But the Wintersons ruined it all by claiming the majority and forcing the Grasons and other religious citizens of Mayfield, which was previously 2 times bigger than Russia, to forget their faith and worship Thyme, which would make the devotee a Winterson.

You see, every dragon starts off with no last name, when they start to worship a God, they acquire their last names. For example, devotees of the divine being named Thyme are given the surname 'Wintersons', while those who worship the divine being named Lindsay are called 'Grasons'. So in short, instead of preaching, the Wintersons began to bribe, blackmail and force people to join the Wintersons.

And, sadly, those who resisted it, were killed. Millions were killed, in fact, in Stetson, this mass murder was ranked the 3rd worst mass murders in history, of Stetson of course. "By the mercy of Goddess Lindsay, the Grasons finally fought back!" Lumen exclaimed with glee, he vividly elaborated how the warriors led every Winterson out of Mayfield, but still maintained the person's dignity and didn't do the brutal actions the Wintersons did with Grasons and other'sons'. He was glad the leaders of Mayfield at that time took such an action, because they were sure, if it happened then, it would happen again.

And voilà, it has happened; Mayfield enjoyed the peace that the following 800 years offered. Terrorist attacks couldn't happen because only, and only, Wintersons weren't allowed to enter in Mayfield, the ones who took upon the faith of the Wintersons when born in Mayfield were not restricted, though.

Now, let's talk about Mayfield; Mayfield has only 3 physical features: mountains, valleys and meadows. Mayfield covers an area of 18.10 million square kilometers, which makes Mayfield still bigger than Russia, but only a bit. Mayfield has 42 states, its capital is Saylor, which is the 9th largest state in the world of Stetson; take Mexico for a rough estimate. The land is very prosperous, and because of this, tourists visit a lot, making the country even richer.

Usually mages, priests and healers are found in great numbers in Mayfield. And again, this is Stetson we are talking about, so the civilized race isn't the human race, it is the dragonoid race, although humans do exist in Stetson. Lumen told me about himself too, he is 29 years old and married to a beautiful woman, who is the queen of Mayfield, and he even has 2 children, one is 3 years old, and the other is 9 years old.

Within the blink of an eye, it was now the start of November. Lumen and I helped each other out, I gave him my silver and bronze artifacts, he helped me around the house, no problem. Come to think of it now, I haven't described the little dragon.

His voice was quite appealing, but of course, also nagging; his eyes were average size with chestnut irises, he could control his size, so his actual size was around 8 feet but to fit in my dishwasher, he adjusted himself. It was the 16th of November, I remember it like it was yesterday, he melted enough bronze and silver to go back to Stetson, he told me something about his breath being different, so it ignited the melted metals and made a portal in the middle. The portal looked like a galaxy, a mini one, trapped within the boundary of bronze and silver.

I could hear voices from the inside, or well, the other side. "Hello?" Someone asked, "Is this a portal?" another voice chimed in, then a stern, more aged voice came in between. "Scram, you fools, of course it is a portal, what does it look like!" Lumen's face brightened at the voice, "That's the Chief Commander..." he whispered excitedly, but I couldn't care less about the chief-who-and-whatnot, I brought my hand forward to touch the portal.

My hand almost touched it when Lumen burned with his breath again, I yelped and retracted my hand, just like the first time we met, "If you touch it, you will be teleported at once." he warned. As much as I hate the economy of The States, even more of New York, this apartment was still my house, and I haven't even traveled my own real, what to speak of Stetson?