"Are you excited?" Mama asks. "I dunno..." I reply uncertainly. A play date has been arranged for me and other children my age. All of us are meeting in a local park. This playdate had been Mama's idea. She was concerned about my lack of friends,  and decided I should meet every one of my neighborhood peers. Mama isn't one to do things halfway, she's an all-or-nothing sort of person.  

"There's no need to be nervous." Mama smiled encouragingly. "I bet you'll make lots of great friends! All of you will get to play together and enjoy a picnic lunch! And I packed your favorite fruit!" Mama swung her basket, laden with konja berries. These berries were about the size of a grape, and tasted like a cross between a melon and a kiwi. I forced myself to return her smile. "Thanks, Mama. I bet it will be really great." Mama beamed and continued chatting happily. 

I couldn't match her enthusiasm. In my nearly two-and-a-half years here, I hadn't felt the need to connect with other toddlers. I played with other children from time-to-time, but hadn't grown close to any of them. My family was all the company I needed, so why bother with friends? I didn't have any friends as Annabelle, and I was better off for it! My classmates at Grace Academy were quick to throw me aside when they learned of my place in the Barton family. But so what? I never needed any of them! Besides, now I had the mind of a 20 year old. There's no way I could befriend an actual little kid. This playdate wouldn't accomplish much. But, I had decided to fake interest for Mama's sake. I would feign interest in a couple of children to keep from disappointing her. 

At the park I spent the first 20 minutes running around, chasing a ball and playing tag. After that I sat under a tree, with the excuse of being tired. I didn't plan to play much more. I grabbed a stick and started drawing in the dirt. After some time passed, a child with turquoise hair and dark brown skin came and sat under the tree. She turned her gray eyes towards me, but said nothing. She leaned back and shut her eyes. Assuming she was going to nap, I went back to my drawing. But I was interrupted just moments later. "What are you drawing?" My tree companion asked. I jumped, startled by the unexpected question.

"Uh.. nothing really. I'm just making squiggles." In truth, my drawing had started out as one of my family, but when my artistic skills failed me, I switched to scribbling. 

"Hmmm..." The girl tilts her head, contemplating my art, then turns to me with a grin. "I like it!" She declares. "I'm Xana, and I'm three! My favorite color is yellow! What's your name? How old are you? What's your favorite color?" 

I blink, caught off guard at the bombardment of questions. "Uh... I'm Pyra. I'm two-and-a-half. My favorite color is...uh... green." I hadn't thought about my favorite color in quite some time. 

"Wow! Just like your hair! That's lucky. I wish my hair was yellow." Xana responds, tugging on a turquoise coil with a pout.

"Oh! I think your hair is really pretty." I answer honestly.

"Thanks! Your hair is pretty too, even though I don't really like green." She answers with equal honesty. "Will you play with me? My friends and I are going to play knights, but we live under the ocean and we can fly and talk to animals and sing really well." She says all in one breath, eyes sparkling. 

I blink, taken back once again. "Oh...um...that sounds like fun?" I manage to respond, though I have no idea how fun such an elaborate game will be. 

"Great!" Xana exclaims, jumping to her feet. "Let's go!" She grabs my arm and drags me to a small group of children. 

"I'm back!" Xana cheers. "This is Pyra, she's two-and-a-half and her favorite color is green, just like her hair!" 

I say hello, and the four other children introduce themselves. There's three year old Jules who likes purple, three year old Nerro likes blue, three and a half year old Gallah likes red, and four year old Mellie likes green. Each child also explains what sort of character they are playing as. Gallah then prompts me to create a character. 

"Your turn! What kind of knight are you?" He asks. 

"Uh... I'll be a knight with water magic, and uh... My armor is magic and nothing can break it." I stammer. "Also... my sword glows when bad guys are around." I add, taking inspiration from my second favorite fantasy series. 

The other children accept this, and a game begins. To my surprise, the kids weave an impressive story, and I find myself pulled in. Soon, I'm running around, swinging a stick at imaginary monsters. No one scolds me for getting dirty. No one tells me to sit down and act like a proper lady. No one makes fun of me when I fall and bump my knee. Xana helps me to my feet, and brushes off my pants. Neuro even chants a pretend magic spell to make the pain go away. My bruise is quickly forgotten, and the game continues. Xana leads us on a quest to save a lost prince and defeat a giant monster. 

"We did!" Jules cheers once we have accomplished our goal. 

"Since we are heroes now, we get prizes!" Xana decides. She scrambles around, gathering up some rocks. "Here!" She exclaims, handing us each a small rock. "These are magic rocks! They grant wishes and they can heal wounds." 

I look down at the rock in my hand. It's nothing extraordinary, just a small greenish-gray stone. And yet, it has instantly become a precious treasure.  "Thank you." I smile at Xana, and she smiles back. Soon, an adult calls us over for lunch, and we head over to the picnic blankets.