"Dare to dream. More often than not, they come true."

Tyler hums softly to himself as he flips the page of his book, hardly sparing a glance up at the girls standing by the bleachers. As he came into school an hour or so early, Mr. Strickler had deemed it best that he take at least a little time off during his spare. And due to that, he discovered a small, blue hardcover book on the top shelf in the library.

'Celtic Myths and Wives' Tales' was proving to be incredibly interesting, and the boy had invested himself within the pages. Stories of dragons and faeries dance in his mind's eye, shaping both mountains and woodland with touches of magic. Complete nonsense, but fun nevertheless.

"Hey, Tyler."

He lifts the book from his face to meet the eyes of an upside down Claire Nunez, even though, in reality, it's him who's upside down.

She's smiling at him, as though they're good friends. It's almost cute. Almost.

"Is there somethin' I can do for ye?" he asks, reading the expression on her face.

She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and holds out a piece of paper to him. "I was wondering if you'd be interested in auditioning for the Romeo and Juliet play we're performing. We've had some difficulty getting boys to have a go."

He studies the small poster for a moment, intrigued by the idea. But he knows how difficult it would be for him to add it into his schedule. As much as he wants to say yes, he cannot do so.

"Sorry, lass," the boy shakes his head and hands it back to her. "I just don't have the time."

Claire nods, taking the paper again. "It's okay, I thought it was a long shot."

He offers a small smile before placing a slip of paper in between the pages of his book and placing it in his knapsack beside him. Moving as quickly as he does is typically considered an unintelligent idea, but he has yet to experience any consequences and so he flips himself, taking his feet off the bleacher above him and dropping them on the floor.

As he stands, he dusts himself off, ridding his leather sports jacket of grime. He's well aware of Claire's friends and a few other girls watching him stretch for a quick run. It makes him chuckle; if only they knew.

Tyler sheds his jacket and places it atop his bag before starting off at a light jog around the gym. He may not need to, but he takes part in activities such as this simply for the sake of doing it. Stopping the habit might be the end of him if he's not careful.

Several girls turn their heads to watch him as he goes past, slowly gaining speed with each lap. They find him enchanting to watch, at least that's what Darcy tells Claire, though she doesn't understand their fascination.

He does actually chuckle when he sees Coach Lawrence drilling Toby on climbing the rope, but continues around a few extra times until the teacher's left him alone for the day. His intentions are purely to help, while keeping out of trouble himself.

"Would ye like me to help ye?" Tyler asks, approaching the younger boy within his line of vision.

"Yes!" he cries, limp and exhausted. "Please! Anything to keep Coach Lawrence off my back!"

He snorts quietly, stepping up to grab Toby by the arms. There's a method and a result, and he has an idea of what his result will be.

"Grab the rope," he orders, and his temporary student does as asked. "Don't hold the rope by yer feet, hold it by yer knees."

Toby voices his protest, claiming he has the inability to do so. All it does is make the bronze-haired boy more determined to help.

"Just do as I say, an' ye'll be better off," he scoffs, standing back to admire their progress. "Not bad for a firs' attempt."

The boy blinks at him before looking down at his hands.

"Hey! I did it!" he cheers, looking very proud of himself.

"Aye, ye did," Tyler chortles, eyes gleaming as he glances at the clock. "An' with time to spare too."

He waves a farewell to his friend as he strays back to his bag, thoughts filling back up with dancing faeries. If he had the time, he'd stop by at the library and pick up another book or two.

For the first time in a while, his soul feels somewhat content. It doesn't cry out in agony, nor does it curl up in discomfort of a situation. No, it just settles warmly, humming every now and again.

He almost smiles at this, temptation tugging at his lips. But the urge is ripped away without warning, the contented feeling replaced by an intense wave of excitement and bewilderment.

The boy grits his teeth as he leans against the bleachers, practically gasping for breath. He's alarmed and panicked as he throws his knapsack over his shoulder, donning an emotionless mask to fool his fellow students.

The feeling worsens as he enters the empty locker room and he grasps the wall for support. He doesn't notice the hairline cracks forming in the stone.

"Blast it!" he curses, growling at himself. He really needs to learn how to control these attacks.

Tyler swears under his breath as he berates himself for nearly breaking down in public. His scoldings worsen as he heads for the door, equal in intensity to his begging soul as he passes by the showers. So caught up is he in his own mind that he doesn't sense the presence standing in the doorway.

And the series has begun! From here on out, Jim is the Trollhunter, and Tyler is undoubtedly going to be dragged into all the troll shenanigans.

I hope you enjoyed!