"Mommy! Come on!" a 6-year-old Jolie Ruewen said impatiently. Her small hands fidgeted with the pearls on the bodice of her sky blue dress. "MOM!" 

"Coming, honey," Edaline's light voice drifted from her bedroom. Jolie shrugged. With a bit of difficulty caused by her short legs, Jolie plopped herself down on the staircase banister. Then she slid. Down, down, down, down. She was flying—and she landed in her father's arms.  She noticed that she had wrinkled the slim gray dress shirt and embroidered emerald vest he wore. So, she decided to mess up his yellow-blond hair as well, to match.

"Dad!" she giggled. "Did you see me?" 

Grady laughed, his smile creasing his entire face. "I definitely did." 

"Ooh!" Jolie perked up. "You should try, too!" 

"Uh-oh," he said in a teasing way, but Jolie thought she saw a flash of—fear?—in his eyes. 

"Are you scared, Daddy?" she asked, concerned. 

"Oh, what? I'm fine," he said quickly. "Anyway," he set her down gently on the ground, "Where are we headed today?" 

Edaline's voice replied, "We're going to Atlantis to do some shopping." She descended down the stairs, her wispy mint-blue maxi dress making her look like a floating queen. A smooth, gold-rimmed prehnite stone hung from a golden chain, accenting her dress and her auburn hair. 

"Come on, come on, come on!" Jolie grabbed her parents' hands. 

Soon, they reached the whirlpool cliff. Grady deposited a whirlpool from one of the many small glass bottles tucked into a crevice in the cliff. Of course, Jolie insisted on going first. She squealed as she fell, with an 'oof' onto a giant sponge. 

In a second, there it was. 

Atlantis. 

She ran to the top of her favorite hill, marveling at the sight before her. Tall, twisted, crystal skyscrapers shone in the artificial morning light. Crystal buildings of all shapes and sizes stood beside the shimmering paths. Intricate canals lined the road and disappeared into the distance; huge Eurypterids weaving their way through. 

Presently, her mom and dad arrived. "Are we going?" she asked, hopping excitedly from one foot to the other. 

"Where to first?" Grady asked. 

"Um..." Jolie paused. There were too many places to choose from! "Claws, Wings, Horns and Things!" she exclaimed. "I want to get a pet." 

Edaline smiled, amused. "Why not?" she said, calling a Eurypterid carriage. Jolie waved to the driver and held her hand out in front of the giant scorpion. She reached out to pet it, getting a content hiss in response. Jolie felt like a princess inside the velvet carriage. The texture of the heavy fabric wasn't her favorite, though. She watched the city fly by through the window. 

In a few minutes, they arrived at the pet store, Claws, Wings, Horns and Things. The door swung open with a the tinkle of a small bell. The inside was bright and filled with creatures of all kinds. 

Little black gremlins roved around a spacious enclosure. Bits of their soft black fur poked out from where they hid among piles of dinosaur feathers. 

A purple-and-blue spotted murcat walked up to the Ruewens. It nudged Jolie's hand with its head, demanding pats. More murcats lounged around the room; resting on stone shelves and bags of feed. 

Brightly colored insects fluttered around, streaking through the air in neon colors. 

Another area was filled with tomples, or hedgehog-kitten-cockroach mixes. Their furry brown legs took them in all different directions. 

It took Jolie a long time and a lot of staring, to figure out what she wanted. Grabbing Grady's and Edaline's hands, she took them over to the gremlin exhibit. Her heart melted at the sight of the animals' furry white face and black body. 

One of the store helpers walked over, offering a friendly smile. "Which one do you want?" she questioned. 

Jolie paused to examine the many gremlins. One of them began to crawl over to her. 

"I want that one," she said at the exact same time as someone else. Her head whipped to the side. A boy with jet-black hair was pointing at the same gremlin as her. He looked about her age. 

Immediately he said, "Oh, you can have it." He was a little taller than her, and wore a fitted navy-blue vest and black pants. He seemed to notice her staring. "Is something wrong?" 

Jolie blushed. 

"We could share it," she suggested, peeking out behind her blond hair. His gray-blue eyes lit up. 

"Yeah, we could!" 

"It could be at my house for a week—"

"And yours for the next!" 

"And we could bring him out to play together!" Jolie grinned as they finished each other's sentences. 

"Please excuse Brant. He gets quite excited at times," interrupted a tall, dark-brown haired woman in camo-green. Her expression was apologetic, but her eyes twinkled with amusement. 

"No, no, I'm sure he meant no harm at all," Edaline replied, glancing at Brant. 

"What's your lovely little girl's name?" the woman asked, sparking a conversation with Edaline and Grady. Jolie stopped paying attention after that. 

"Should we pet her?" she asked Brant. 

"Actually," said the helper, "He's a boy. But you're welcome to pet him!" 

"Come on," Jolie motioned for Brant to follow her. The gremlin jumped onto Brant's lap, then onto hers. 

As they played with the creature, Brant whispered, "I have a feeling we're going to be good friends aren't we?" 

"Yeah," Jolie said. 

"Yeah, I think we are."

——————————————————————————————————

A/N Hi everyone! It's the author here! I hope that you've enjoyed the first chapter of The Way We Fall. 

Anyway, this is my first "big" fanfic, so I'm really excited and nervous to start. Tell me how you thought I did.

So for now, I'm not going to have a regular posting schedule until August. I still want to get a few chapters done.

This chapter is dedicated to @ChasingDragon1004 who got me into Wattpad. You're amazing!

Also, huge thanks to the people the voted:

@mysteriousmissg @LunaRaven26 @Lady_Hunkyhair @@lupa_the_bestia @Hazeloverfangirl @AriaAshtri113 @Thesocialbookworm @realDellaVacker @_Will-Solace_ @Bublinka_Elinka

Published: Thursday, July 23, 2020

PLEASE DO NOT STEAL. THIS STORY IDEA IS COPYRIGHT TO ME @a-jar-of-stars. 

KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES BELONGS TO SHANNON MESSENGER, NOT ME.

I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS EXCEPT THE PERSONALITIES OF BRANT'S PARENTS. OTHER OC'S WILL BE LISTED.

Graphics: by me. I know the hand is a heart, but whatever.

So, stay safe and healthy. Have a good day!