AN: I know, I'm bad. But I guess every fanfic writer has to write one of these at some point, just to get it out of her system. Hopefully it will be a bit different from the girl falls into Middle Earth stories that are usually written, but we'll see.

Disclaimer: If you recognize it, I don't own it.

Students swarmed out of the high school as the bell rang to signal the end of the day. There were three more weeks left before summer break and everyone was eager to be outside and away from school. Any adults nearby must have been terrified by the wave of teenage drivers that came from the school parking lot, trying to impress the others with their cars and driving skills. For most, it was a typical spring Thursday; the sun was shining and there was a slight breeze that teased the newly budded leaves.

"Call me tonight about that soccer game, okay?" Verdi reminded her friend as she left, "And don't forget we have practice tomorrow!" Caroline just grinned and waved as she went inside; Verdi rolled her eyes and started walking down the path into the forest. The forest filled the distance between Verdi's and Caroline's houses, so Caroline often took Verdi home with her after school, and then Verdi would walk the last mile or so home from there. Verdi had her license, she was, after all, a junior in high school and how totally embarrassing it would be not to have her license, but her family only had two cars. Verdi adjusted her backpack and violin before continuing down the path; she didn't mind walking home on days like this, the forest was beautiful in the spring and the birds filled it with song. She felt like skipping, her day had gone well and tomorrow was Friday.

Verdi came to the little clearing in the woods where she and Caroline often met and looked around, checking to make sure none of their contraptions had been disrupted. When they were younger, the two girls had tried to build a treehouse, but it never lasted the night, so they had been forced to use the tree just as it was for their "ship" or "horse" or "castle" or whatever. Now the girls just sat up in the tree, reading or practicing, and had added little shelves and a stand to the tree's features.

Everything was in its place, so Verdi continued on her way, walking and singing beneath the trees that slowly got bigger and bigger. Verdi didn't notice the changes in the trees, nor pay any attention to the trickling of water in a nearby stream that had never been there before. She was so caught up in her daydream that by the time she realized that she should've been home by now, and the forest looked a lot different than it used to, it was too late.

Well what do you think so far? Worth continuing? It's probably a little hard to tell so far, but...