The green grass of the meadow seemed to spread out for an eternity. Horses cantered in the nearby field and the young boy sitting on the wooden fence stared at them, completely captivated. He stared longingly at the beautiful roan mare; his green eyes following her every move.

"It's a pretty horse, isn't it?"

He turned, almost falling off the fence. The voice surprised him. Even more surprising was the sight of the small blonde girl wearing a pale pink dress. "Beautiful."

"It belongs to my Great-grandpa. He won't let me ride it. Even with him." She pouted for a brief moment then turned a brilliant smile his direction. "We're having a tea party, would you like to come?"

He nodded, jumping down off the fence and landing next to her. "I like tea."

"I could let you pet the horse. They like it when you pet them on the nose."

"I had a horse. But I had to get rid of it when I moved away from home." He looked at her curiously. "You're not from here."

"No. I'm from 'merica."

"America?" He nodded sagely. "I might go there someday." They started walking; both still watching the horse as it made its way through the pasture. "You here to see your relatives?"

She sighed. "It's no fun at all. There's a bunch of grown ups here and they're talking about all this important stuff, but to me it's just boring. And there aren't any other kids my age. But my Mom promised there'd be some at the tea party."

"How long are you here?"

"Until Friday." She gathered the bottom of her dress in her hands and started running. "Come on! I'll race you to the house!"

He watched her for a long moment, unsure of what to make of the sudden turn of events. Shrugging his shoulders, he took off after her, pumping his arms and legs hard to make up for her head start. Rounding the pasture, he stopped, stunned at the sight before him.

It was a huge castle, hidden in a dense forest of trees. Beautiful, tall, amazing trees shrouded the building from prying eyes. The girl was standing at the gate, her eyes expectant and a little proud. "Its amazing. It's even bigger than the Watcher's retreat."

"The what?"

"Nothing." He colored as he realized he'd spoken out loud. "This is your family's?"

"Well, we're not really related. Mom calls us the poor 'merican relations. She says they only let us come because they feel guilty that we're poor. We're really poor." Sadness filled her blue eyes for a moment, but was quickly replaced with determination. "But I'll show them! I'm gonna be important, you know."

"You are?"

She nodded. Then, with lightning quickness, she changed the subject. "Tea?"

"Tea." He followed her through the wrought iron gate and up to the house. It was made of rough-hewn stone and the gray, imposing façade seemed overwhelming to his young mind. "I can't imagine living here. It would be like living in the past."

Reaching back, the young girl took his hand and pulled him toward the back patio. He barely had time to register all the treasures they passed on their rapid journey through the house. When they stepped out onto the patio, he caught his breath, only to have the sight steal it from him once again.

"It's like a fairy tale."

The flowers were all brilliant, bold colors that seemed to give off a light of their own. To the left was a small pond covered with lily pads and a profusion of bugs dancing across the surface. Standing next to the rippling water were two other children roughly the younger girl's age. She grabbed his hand and led her over to them.

"Did you see?" The other boy asked, pointing out onto the pond. The girl, a pretty redhead, closed her eyes.

"I don't want to see!" She shook her head, her braids flying out in semi-circles around her head as she determinedly kept her eyes closed.

"Sheila doesn't like frogs." The blonde said quietly.

"You don't either Joyce. Don't pretend you're not scared of their big sliminess! You're just pretending because you want to impress LaVelle."

"I told you to call me Vel!" The dark haired boy turned on the redhead, his chocolate brown eyes blazing with anger. He shoved Sheila lightly and she fell onto her bottom.

"Let me help."

She looked at him warily. "Who are you?"

"Me? I'm…I'm…Rupert. I was invited by…Joyce."

The blonde nodded. "My Mommy said I could invite people our age if I found them. And I found him so I brought him."

Sheila accepted his hand and let him help her to her feet. She stuck her tongue out at the other boy. "Thank you. It's nice to know some people can be gentlemen."

Rupert blushed and tried not to notice the jealous look the other boy flashed him as Sheila looped her arm through his and Joyce did the same. "Will you escort us?" Joyce asked quietly.

Looking from the blonde to the redhead, Rupert nodded. "Certainly."

Sheila looked over her shoulder. "You see, Vel. He's polite and he knows big words. You could know big words too if you would pay attention to me at all."

Her remarks fell on deaf ears as Vel's eyes followed Joyce. Rupert glanced at Sheila, noticing the hurt look on her face. It was obvious to him that she had a thing for the other boy and equally obvious that he had no idea or simply chose to ignore her.

They sat silently through tea, listening to the adults all get to know each other and debate the issues of the day with each other. LaVelle wolfed down the majority of the food at the table, amusing both girls as he did so. Rupert felt a slight twinge of jealousy as he watched him flirt. Wondering exactly how he managed to do it so effortlessly, he watched him closely.

Apparently impressing women simply involved stuffing two scones into your mouth at once and letting the jam ooze over your lips.

The adults shooed them away afterwards; all involved in whatever it was that had brought them together for the weekend. Joyce and Sheila grabbed his hands again, although this time LaVelle grabbed Joyce's other hand and kept apace with them. "Where are we going?" Rupert asked.

"You'll see." Sheila laughed as they ran down a dirt path to a tall green hedge. They stepped through another wrought iron gate and into the most remarkable playground Rupert had ever seen.

It was almost like a carnival. There was a small Ferris wheel, a merry go round, a set of swings and a huge sandbox with a sandcastle already built. He stared in amazement, trying to figure out which of the sights he had seen would remain with him the longest.

"Push me?" Sheila had moved over to the swings and was pumping her legs, trying to gain momentum. Rupert stepped behind her and started pushing her, sending her flying high into the air. Her delighted giggles caught Joyce and LaVelle's attention and they ran over to the swings as well. There were only two other swings available. LaVelle stared at the newest member of their group and gestured toward the swing.

"You want?"

"No, thank you." Rupert shook his head and smiled. "I'd rather watch."

Night fell far too quickly as they all played together, building dream worlds and dream castles, weaving fabulous tales as they made memories they knew they'd remember forever.

Rupert sensed the creatures before he saw them and grabbed Sheila. "We need to go inside."

She sensed the tenseness in his voice and nodded. Gathering up the other two, the foursome made their way rapidly back to the house. Rupert guided them inside and grasped the cross he kept in his pocket. He stared through the glass doors as two figures materialized on the edge of the wood, their yellow eyes glowing in the dim moonlight.

A few minutes later, he heard the agonized shriek of the roan horse as it fell to the hunger of the two vampires denied the meal of four young children. And as Rupert made his way home later, he realized that horrible, dying sound was all he could remember from what should have been a wonderful day in the playground.