The town of Sparks had prospered greatly since the arrival of the Emberites, and it had also become very well known to roamers and small, surrounding villages. Even through all the hardship, famine,drought, and freezing, the once small town had managed to thrive.

It had been nearly five years since the refugees of Ember had come stumbling into the town, and almost all of them had settled down comfortably after their first year living in Sparks. The town had almost doubled in size since then, and Sparks was constantly greeting new roamers and arrivals from other villages, looking for a new start.

"And that's what Sparks is," Mary Waters, one of the three town leaders, stated. "It's a place of beginnings; a place to start a better life."

Many people came to live in Sparks from towns both near and far, knowing that the growing city was prospering far more quickly than any other town, and that in Sparks , they would be safe from most dangers - such as freezing, wolves, and famine. Though Sparks had another contributing factor that seemed to lure people to the city, and that was The Diamonds.

Word of the diamonds spread quickly throughout all the neighboring towns, thanks to the roamers and messengers that traveled to those places, and the diamonds themselves slowly dispersed to these towns through trading and bargaining. Everyone had been amazed when they heard about the diamonds. Sparks had figured out a device that made electricity? They often marveled to themselves. Some were quite dubious of the fact, calling it a hoax or a trick, but were just as amazed as everyone else when they saw the diamonds work with their own eyes. Soon, everyone within a one hundred mile radius of Sparks had a diamond, or at least heard of or seen one. Of course, none of this would have been possible had it not been for two unique individuals named Lina Mayfleet and Doon Harrow.

Lina and Doon were almost as well known as the diamonds themselves. It had been the two that discovered the diamonds while on a mission to save the city, and it had also been them that discovered how they worked. With their help, Sparks had found a way to create electricity, and they were eager to share their discovery with others. That was one of the many reasons Lina had become a messenger. She would ride at least once a week on her handsome brown stallion, Fleet, to the five surrounding villages around Sparks - Brooks, Woodhaven, Oakridge, Pines, and Ashford - and deliver letters and packages so the towns could keep in touch. She also would deliver diamonds, and sometimes trade them for food or things that Sparks needed, and in this way the diamonds got around to everyone that needed one. Lina loved going on these "adventures," as she called them, for it gave her a chance to explore new places and meet new people. But in the back of her mind, she secretly hoped that she would find a city; the city of her imagination that she had drawn countless times in Ember. She knew the chances of her finding it were very slim, and that she would probably never see it in her lifetime, but that was one of the wondrous characteristics of Lina Mayfleet- she never gave up hope.

Doon Harrow shared a similar characteristic - he was determined, and he would not stop until he found a solution. It had been Doon that had had come up with a way to share the diamonds with others towns. He wrote a pamphlet explaining how the Diamonds worked and how to use them, and with the help of the school kids, there were enough copies so that every town could have one. This was one of the first things Lina delivered on her messenger journeys. With Doon's instruction manuals, the village people were able to work their diamonds without any problem. Doon didn't just write manuals though, he also came up with some inventions of his own, like a device that opened jars and cans without someone having to puncture the lid, and a type of steel pipe that immediately warms water when it runs through it. Once these prototypes were successful, he would make more inventions just like it, and send them with Lina or another roamer traveling to the other cities, so that they could use them as well. It was in this way the two partners became known to the other towns as The Inventor and The Messenger, but to Sparks, they were always Lina and Doon- the town heroes.

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It was one of the last cool days of the season before the weather would change and turn terribly hot, so Doon decided to take advantage of this and take the long way home to the Pioneer Hotel. Very few people lived in the hotel anymore, for new houses were being built all over the town, and people would rather live in a house than an old, musty building. Doon would've liked to live in a house as well, but the only reason he wasn't was because he knew others needed the new homes more than he did, and he wanted to make sure they all had places to live first. It was one of those kind, selfless acts that Doon often did, and was humble about it as well, which made the people of the town like him even more. Doon had tried convincing his father, Loris Harrow, to move into to one of those houses, for he was older and needed a proper bed to sleep on. But Doon's father objected, saying he was tough and would be fine, and plus, he wanted to stay with his only son.

"I appreciate you wanting to keep me company father, but I'm eighteen! I can live here by myself. And besides, there are still others living in the building as well," Doon had pointed out to his father one day.

But his father still objected, so Doon gave up trying to persuade him- at least for the time being.

Doon had just come from the library after helping his best friend, Lina, try and put together a torn up letter. She had told him it was for Edward Pocket, the town librarian, and she was hoping to have it put together in time before he returned. And so he had helped her, and together they managed to piece it together, all the while laughing and remembering doing something quite similar while in Ember. Doon smiled at the memory. He could remember running through the streets of Ember, with Lina at his side, both of them on a desperate race against time, trying to escape the city. He remembered how angry he had been when he couldn't figure out the torn up instructions, and how sure he had been that he could save the city single-handedly. Doon realized how much he had changed since then. He was no longer prideful (at least not as much as he had been in Ember) and he learned to keep his anger in check.

Lina's changed too, thought Doon as he continued on his walk. She wasn't as reckless as she had been, and though she was still often curious, her curiosity no longer got her into trouble or awkward situations. But at the same time, Lina hadn't changed. Sure, she had gotten taller, prettier, and more mature, but she was still hopeful, loving, and brave, as she had been in Ember. That's what Doon liked about her most.

Doon became lost in his thoughts about Lina and almost didn't hear his name being called.

"Doon! Doon! Are you deaf? I called your name at least a thousand times! Well, maybe five," came the small, high pitched voice of Lina's younger eight-year old sister, Poppy.

Doon smiled and waved and started up the path to the river, where he could see Poppy sitting. Poppy was like a little sister to him. He had known her since she was a toddler, and had watched her grow up in Sparks. When she was smaller, at around four or five, she would get upset that Lina would always leave on her messenger trips, so Doon would often come over to play with her, so she wouldn't be so lonely, and they had many made-up adventures together. Now that Poppy was older, she had found a new passion to replace her fairy tale games: swimming.

Doon came up to the rivers edge and sat down beside her. Poppy had her shoes off and had her pants rolled up to her knees, as she gingerly dipped her toes into the water. She immediately yanked them back out.

"It's...a little warmer," she said hopefully. Doon smiled, knowing that she had been waiting all winter to get back into the water. "Do you know if Edward still has that book about swimming at the library?" she asked, her large brown eyes staring up at him.

Doon nodded. "Yes, I'm pretty sure I saw it when I was there today, actually, with Lina-"

Poppy quickly cut him off. "Lina? She's home? I have to go see her!" she shouted gleefully, as she struggled to quickly put her shoes back on. She took off down the path when suddenly she stopped and backtracked. "Oh, I forgot to tell you, a roamer, Penny was her name - I think, came into town this afternoon, and is going to do trading tomorrow morning. She claims to have important news."

Doon nodded. "Thanks, I'll be there." Poppy once again ran down the path, grabbed her bicycle, and tried to ride off. She had just learned to ride before Lina left on her trip, and was still trying to get the hang of balancing on the seat. But after a few tries, she pedaled forward and disappeared around the corner.

Everyone was always excited when Lina came back to town. True, she was only gone for a few days at a time - a week at the longest - but everyone was eager to see if she found anything or anxious to hear her stories about the other towns. Doon was included in this group of people. He always missed her when she went out of town, mostly because she was going on all these adventures without him, but also because they had gotten so close in the past few years, it never felt right when she wasn't around.

When Lina had gone on her first messenger trip when she was thirteen, Doon remembered staying up all night, worrying that something would happen to his best friend, but Lina had proved herself capable of being able to travel these journeys alone. Though sometimes Doon, Torren, and just recently, Poppy, would go with her. Doon loved going on those trips with Lina. As much as he hated to admit it, he liked being alone with her, having her to himself. Lina was often surrounded by her friends or family, so it was nice being able to be with her with no one else butting in on their conversations.

Doon continued to sit by the river most of the afternoon, lost in his own thoughts and memories, until the air turned chilly and the sun started to set. He finally trekked up the last bit of the path to the hotel and went into the large dinning room, where everyone still living in the Pioneer ate their meals. He found his dad and sat next to him, while grabbing a bit of food on his way over.

"A roamer's coming tomorrow," Doon's father said.

Doon nodded, "I heard." He recognized the name of the roamer, Penny- Poppy had said, and remembered the last time she had come. She had brought lots of useful things, and always had interesting news to share.

I wonder what type of important news she has this time, thought Doon that evening, as he laid on a pile of blankets. And with that thought, he fell asleep.

Authors Note:

Hey guys :) This is my first fanfic story, so I hope the first chapter was okay. Sorry it was kind of long and detailed, but I wanted to have a solid setting and explain things before I jumped right into the story dialogue. I promise It'll be a lot more interesting as the story goes on, with plenty of action/adventure and LinaxDoon relationship scenes, so please review if you feel so complied :)

Thanks! :D