Alight.

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> Fairies. A myth, a legend? Long forgotten in the modern age, but ever persistent in the medieval times of the empire of Gossamer. Stories of them have long been burned, but what if I told you there were survivors? Books that were kept secret from the royals? Books that peasants hid, books that were so hidden not even the most talented being could find? Not even the Gods themselves could’ve expected it. Long, long ago, there was a family of peasants who hid a book containing the secrets of the beings called fairies. This is their journey trying to ward off any from discovering their secrets. (A short story)
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## **PROLOGUE:** The Grottos

Past the bustling town of Joivine, Gossamer , down a winding worn-down path, lay a cottage deeply hidden in the Amsburg Forest. There, a family of peasants lived, 14 to be exact. Sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, and the parents of Lavinia Grotto and her brother, Sergei Grotto.

It was always full of lively chatter, never a dull moment. The cottage might’ve been a little quaint, and not quite big enough, but the family made due. Happy, right?

Yet in this seemingly ordinary home, lived a secret. A rather big secret that could get them all sent to the guillotine if even one of them slipped up.

Fairies.

They all had the blood of fairies within them. what was so wrong about that? the imperial family wanted their wings. all over Gossamer, bounties had been placed over fairies to kill them and take their wings. in fact, that was the whole purpose of the empire. to kill, murder, deceive, *anything*, to get fairy wings. specifically, gossamer fairy wings — the namesake of the empire. it was a slaughterhouse.

even if they were half-fairy half-human (considered a disgrace), if anyone found out about their lineage, they would be sentenced to the guillotine. even if they didn’t have wings, other fairy-like body parts would be severed from the body and sent to the imperial family’s treasury. morbid, *extremely* morbid, but that is the nature of the human kind. why they wanted the wings? because they were *pretty*. no other reason.

guess what? the entirety of the Grotto family were half and half. every single one of them, down to the wee baby only six months old. it had started way back, but they were all half human half fairy through and through. Frairees, to be short. some of them had wings, pointed ears, and some even possessed magic. whatever the case, they would still be killed on *sight*, not even sentenced to the guillotine for a quick, painless death. Frairees were forbidden, as well as any human fairy interactions that were romantic, or even mildly friendly.

so why did they even live in Gossamer in the first place? what drove them to live like lambs to the slaughter? a book. one single book. one single book that recorded of all fairy history, the hierarchy, the lineage, *everything*, or at least close to everything about the works of fairies. spells, potions, herbs *and* remedies. it was enchanted to show a different page *every* time. the Runedazleah costed the lives of millions of fairies who sacrificed themselves to preserve their knowledge, putting their faith into something that might not even work.

the Grotto family were the trusted keepers of this sacred book for as far as time can tell. a few hiccups here and there — encounters with humans who were sent by the imperial family to retrieve it — but otherwise it was safe. hidden away in a secret location where only the Grottos knew about it. safe and sound, as it had been for thousands of years.

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## **CHAPTER I:** PLACEMENT TITLE

“No! It can’t be!” she screamed, her sweet voice now quavering in the haze— a nervous wreck. “Someone, anyone, back me up!”

he sneered, his face twisting in disgust as he stood in front of her, sword drawn. “Are you too blinded by your petty ways to recognize the destruction that you’ve brought upon us *all,* even in the midst of battle?” his panicked voice—hidden by layers of resentment and hatred—rose above the fog and through the darkness, echoing round and round for everyone on the battlefield to here. “This is all *your* fault!”

“Everything’s fallen because of your damned species, and nothing will save us now!”

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a tiny woman awoke in the middle of the night, in a hospital bed, the memory still fresh in her mind.

she looked around wildly for something, anything, trying to grasp a sense of security. the last thing she could remember… could she even remember anything? it all blurred together in a haze, causing a headache. rubbing her temples, the woman steadied her breathing. at the least she should know where she was situated for time being.

she was stuck in a hospital bed, with mechanisms strapped over her entire body except for her arms. something was pumping air into her lungs, while something else was measuring her heartbeat to make sure it didn’t go out. there was no point in trying to move or break free—she knew she would die if she did. what had happened to her?…

what was the book next to her? her curiosity peaked, and her arms shot out to grab it. maybe it was a fantasy book that could keep her entertained for a while until she was safe to go… *it looks like it’s about a medieval peasant girl. might be a fun read…*

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March 28th, 1502

Dear Diary, my Ma went to town to get me a book and quill. I think she intended for me to not use it for personal use, but I just couldn’t help myself. It’s not very feminine, but what else can a lady like me do these days? Pardon me, but I don’t think any of my brothers would find much interest in using a quill and ink. It’s rather more sensible to give a book to a woman who would enjoy writing in it than a man who would despise every minute, wouldn’t it?

Selvi sighed. she sounded like an arrogant princess. when people from several centuries after found her diary, they’d probably toss it aside with all her bland, tasteless writing. it seemed hopeless. she just wanted to snap her quill in half and be done with it all.

her older sister Lavinia was so much more of a rule breaker than she’d ever be—actually exploring the woods with their brothers, getting *dirt* on her dresses—was something extremely prohibited, but Lavinia did it anyway. *why couldn’t she be like her older sister?* she’d always dreamt of even having a fraction of Lavinia’s personality, but she just couldn’t muster up any bravery within her. why did Lavinia have to get all the courage and smarts? she even managed to hide what she did from their parents so she wouldn’t get scolded. if she had that courage, she would go down in history—forever remembered.

if only she could do something, anything, that would match up to Lavinia… for now, she’d just have to wait. what better things did she have to do, anyway? the chair scrapped the wood floor as Selvi got up, heading for the door. her skirts shifted as she made her way out of the shared bedroom with her sisters. a new day, a new dawn.

the light shifted in through the window of the hallway, flooding the dusty oak floor with warm sunshine. swirls of dust floated around Selvi as she walked, floorboards creaking—the morning rays shining down upon her long, glossy dark brown hair. her light footsteps synchronized with the sweet songs of the birds outside, a melody. *tap, tap, tap, tap, chirp, chirp, chirp…*

she stopped in the middle of the hallway and tilted her head towards the light. the singular window was placed high up above the door she had walked through—large and circular, with intricate patterns woven between the panes, like stained glass. letting the sun shine down upon her, she closed her eyes for a moment and thought, letting the bird song wash over her. the light gave her a pleasant feeling, like the warmth she felt when she was in Ma’s arms as a wee babe. she felt like a child once more.

it was peaceful,—but Selvi caught herself overthinking about how little she had done in her life even though she was only 14 compared to her sisters who had pretty much been the talk of the town once because they had helped take care of almost half of the humans in Joivine who were wounded in the Battle of Hashingtons against another kingdom a couple months back even though it was forbidden for Frairees and humans to interact but they did it anyway out of the good of their hearts without being caught and Ma and Pa were super mad when they found out but they didn’t care because—

slow down. take a deep breath. its fine. you’re only 14. you have your whole life in front of you. but it didn’t help that Lavinia was getting engaged soon and she was only 16 but that was the normal age for women to get married so why wasn’t she engaged already, was it because she was too ugly and bland and stupid and—

“Uhh, Selvi?”

furiously blinking her eyes open, she turned towards the voice, almost tripping over her skirts in her haste to appear normal and ladylike— totally not just staring at the sun with her eyes closed a moment ago. as she caught her bearings, she saw Caspian, one of her brothers, standing a couple feet in front of her with a questioning expression on his face.

“What are you doing?” *Selvi, quick, think of a excuse!* unfortunately, she couldn’t.

“I, uh, um… I-I-I… was just, umm..”

“Whatever the excuse is, it doesn’t matter. Ma wants to see you. She’ll be in the main room.” with a wave of his hand, he turned back and crossed the hallway, exiting the room. *thank God. but what does Ma want? did she find out about the diary?! is she mad?*

a chill went down her spine. if Ma was mad… but Ma rarely got mad… the last time that happened was when Lavinia… she shivered, blocking the memory from her mind. it was no laughing matter when your older sister who was always so brave and outgoing turned into a solemn faced, moody girl after Ma got through with her.

Pa always warned them about angering Ma, and what would happen if they did. he would tell the whole lot of them too. “it wouldn’t be horrible,” he’d say, “we’re family, she’ll go easy on you. but you should have *seen* what she did to that poor bloke at the tavern last month!” and then he’d guffaw, like nothing was wrong. everyone would be terrified senseless, even Auntie, who had grown up with Ma all her life and knew every little thing about her.

still, she had to go even if she was scared. a real lady always goes to wherever she is appointed, no matter the circumstance without complaint. *Isabella of France lead an entire rebellion against her own husband, and you can’t even face your own Ma? you’ll never be a true lady or a rule breaker, and no one will remember you at this point. besides, Ma wouldn’t go* that *far, would she?*

Selvi stood there for a minute or two, debating on what to do until she snapped herself out of the trance. *stop, you’re making it worse. she’s probably getting impatient! but what’s going to happen if—* she briskly walked to the door at the end of the hallway, disobeying her thoughts and forcing herself to get a move on. *just don’t think about it and you’ll be fine.*

she felt her heart rate quicken as she placed her hand on the door, but she pushed it anyway. *you’ll be fine.* floorboards creaked even under her turnshoes’ quiet pitter patters—alerting everyone that she had arrived. “Selvi,” a sweet sounding voice beckoned her.

whenever Selvi entered the main room of their tiny house, she was always met with the loud buzz of chitter chatter from her aunts, uncles, cousins, sisters and everyone as they did their chores—whether it be cooking or cleaning or planting or whatever. it always made Selvi feel so loved for one reason or another. like she was part of a family, and that she didn’t need to be like her sisters.

but not today. if even a single mouse squeaked, it would be deafening. her Auntie watered the plants, her Uncle hauled out a sack of potatoes from their pantry, Lavinia kneaded dough, but they could all pass as ghosts. it scared Selvi more than what her Ma would say to her—everyone seemed to know what was to happen next.

Selvi noticed her sitting at a table in the far right corner of the room—just under a window—sewing up a skirt her cousin had ripped. maybe if she could just mutter an apology quickly there wouldn't be any trouble. perhaps she could escape unscathed, even. "ma, i'm sorry."

her ma raised her head and locked eyes directly with her. she raised an eyebrow, confusion washing over her face. "for what?"

## **DICTIONARY**

> **JOIVINE, GOSSAMER**:
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> **pronunciation: (Joy-vine, Goss-uh-mer) / noun**
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> A trading town located in Gossamer. They trade spices, silk, and the occasional fairy wings to Elsewhere. One of the more laid-back places about fairy killing, but they don’t always protect them.
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>  **AMSBURG FOREST**:
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> **pronunciation: (Ams-burg Four-rest) / noun**
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> A massive, secluded forest that surrounds the entire back of Joivine. Home to many animals: deer, birds, frogs — the norm. A couple magical entities sprinkled here and there, not a big deal mind you, but still enough to ward off human interaction. Lots of small cliffs, caverns, rivers, ponds, waterfalls, small wildflowers, and tall, towering pines.
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> **FRAIREE:**
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> **pronunciation: (Frair-ree) / plural: Frairees / noun**
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> Half human half fairies. Considered a disgrace to mankind — will be killed on sight if their secret gets spilled. It doesn’t matter if they have wings or not, just take all their fairy-like parts and send them to the imperial family at once. Or not, if you’re a risk taker who might try their chance at the black market, just be careful not to alert the imperial family if you value your life. There are only a couple thousand Frairees left ever since Gossamer decided to take over the fairy killing monopoly.
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> **RUNEDAZLEAH:**
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> **pronunciation: (Rune-daaz-lay-uh) / noun**
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> An ancient leather-bound book containing almost all the secrets of the fairy world, guarded by the Grotto family. Every time you open it, a new page appears. The lettering is in Old Fairy, which no one but the priests understand anymore.
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