The Stone Family

To find Fairvelle, abandon all means of transportation. You will not find it if you drove, flew, or even attempted to roam the seas in a boat; You will only get dreadfully lost, not to mention cursed by the Sea Hag or eaten by the monster who hides deep in the South Sea. Fairvelle can only be found by those who have seen the fairies who live dangerously on the border between their world and ours. The careless fairies, mostly the mischievous children, will accidentally cross the line between worlds, spotted almost always by children of ours, who still believe in such creatures. However, when spotted by adults, all they see are moths by day and fireflies by night, because whether they know it or not, through the years magic has been drained from their eyes  and soul.

But these children, who want nothing more than for magic to be real, follow these fairies back to where they hide, deep in the woods, in rocks that seen to glitter in the sunlight. But even then, the rock is just a rock, no matter how many times the child touches it, examines it, or calls for the fairies to come out again, promising she means it no harm. But the fairies can't car her. They are already safe and sound in their own world, far away from the curious children or skeptical adults of earth, and back to their own parents, who scold them for being so careless in the first place.

Even then, one can't ever step physically into Fairvelle, but only touch upon where magic truly begins. They cannot burrow themselves into the small holes the fairies dig, the holes that will lead you not further into soil, but into the surface of the outskirts of Fairvelle, a thousand miles away from the palace, where Queen Margaret and King Joseph rule. The Kingdom has never thrived so prosperously than under the rule of Margaret and Joseph. Though of course the poor were still struggling east of the wood, the rich where never richer, and even the middle class were living more comfortably than ever were.

Queen Margaret and King Joseph lived in their palace in Dwelthor city, west of the wood, and south of the Highland Mountains, where the wealthy preferred to hold estate. The city sprawled over hills for miles and miles, in the clear and treeless western side of Fairvelle, and on the tallest hill, basked in golden sun and skimming the clouds stood the Stone's royal palace. More tall than it was wide, the castle was constantly surrounded by heavily armored guards, as the hundreds of rooms inside contained every thief's dream. Gold in every room, whether it was a crown sitting carelessly on a side table, a goblet down in the kitchens, or even on the spine of a book in the large library.

The library, Queen Margaret's favorite room, is where she spent most of her time during the day. She'd sit on the cushioned couch closest to the window; a window as high as the ceiling, which overlooked the thick gardens behind the castle, and a distant view of the mountains.

One spring morning, when the heavy rain had finally stopped, and the grounds outside in the garden were alight with a dark green glow, Queen Margaret sat on her favorite couch, reading a book, and rubbing her very pregnant belly. As she turned the last page and discovered that the poor man from the streets was really a king after all, a pain ran through her belly, one she knew was brought on by her baby, telling her it was ready to be born.

Hours ran by, with the rain occasionally pattering, turning off and on as if it too, were impatient and anticipating the royal baby.

Princess Adelyne was born four hours later, and only then did the skies completely open up for the last time and flood the streets with water. Joseph beamed upon his first born, who already looked wise and beyond her years. She did not cry or squirm, but gazed back at her father with the steel blue eyes she got from her mother.

"My Adelyne," King Joseph whispered to her, as the rain went on, and Margaret had finally fallen asleep. He cradled the baby in his arms, pulling her warm blanket tighter around her. "You are of true beauty."

Two years later,  in the dense hot summer, Queen Margaret gave birth again, to another girl. This one, they named Farrah. Sweat dripping down her forehead, Queen Margaret held Farrah in her arms, and said to her, "What a pretty little girl," while the nurse maids all nodded in agreement, and little Adelyne  stood on her tip toes to view the new baby on the bed.

Another six years later, when Farrah grew light brown curls, and Adelyne, now eight, had pin straight icy blonde hair like her mother, the third, and the last Stone baby was born. This time, it was in the dead of winter. The silence outside was only disturbed by the occasional cry of a crow that broke through the thick white snow that piled on the ground.

Though yet another royal child was born on that day, it was not a day of celebration. Their third child, named Sariah, came out of her mother, and a minute later Queen Margaret took her last breaths. King Joseph held Sariah, not smiling, but almost glowering at her. Sariah could not look more dislike her mother. She had big, dark eyes and hair like chocolate. She was certainly beautiful, but the King was too overwhelmed with the grief of his wife's passing to tell her so.

Fairvelle mourned the loss of their beloved Queen for years, while King Joseph spoiled his three growing princesses, Adelyne, Farrah, and Sariah. Adelyne, the oldest and the most level headed of the three, spent her time with her father, when he wasn't on a hunt or negotiating with angered giants in the Middle Wood. She'd learn about the Kingdom, soon to be hers, and about the people, the creatures, and the many cities and villages she's never been to.

Farrah, far more care free than both of her sisters, had some interest in her Kingdom, but mostly the men who inhabited it. Instead of shadowing her father like Adelyne would, Farrah preferred to flirt with the guards surrounding the palace, and she'd successfully distract a few of the from their duty, flashing her sparkling grin and twirling her light brown hair between her fingers. 

Then Sariah, the youngest, and by far the most somber, sat in her mother's favorite spot in the library, pretending she knew what her mother's smile looked like, for the painting of her in the library looked just as somber as Sariah herself. Deep down, she hated her two sisters, because they knew their mother- she held them when they cried and sand them to sleep at night. Instead, Sariah was constantly passed on to nurse maids, who'd clumsily feed her and did not know any proper songs to sing her to sleep with. 

Much more independent than her sisters, Sariah would travel Fairvelle alone, despire the warnings from townspeople passing by about the creatures who live in the wood or the type of people who would love nothing more than to hold the King's daughter for ransom. Sariah did not care. She, like Adelyne, wanted to earn about the Kingdom, but she wasn't going to wait for her father to get home to tell her stories or read books about someone else's experience beyond the castle gates. She wanted to experience it for herself.

Years later, when the three princesses grew to be young adults, and Adelyne and Farrah found husbands of their own, the King's health became poor, and he died on a snowy morning. Adelyne sat by his bedside and held his hand as his chest stopped rising, Farrah wept outside his room, and Sariah, down the hall, mourned her beloved father, as well as the Kingdom, for Adelyne's rule thus begins.

"It's not fair," Sariah said after Adelyne's private coronation. All three sisters were alone in the throne room, standing on the steps leading to Adelyne's throne.

"This is not about being fair," Adelyne began, looking sternly at her little sister. "This is about Fairvelle. This is about our Kingdom, not your selfish daydream about your right to the throne."

"Selfish?" Sariah snapped, edging a little closer to her sister, still sitting. "I am not the selfish one here! And you certainly don't know what is best for this Kingdom. All you know about Fairvelle is the stories Daddy would tell you when he got home." Now her voice was laced with malice, and a sneer spread across her beautiful face.

Adelyne suddenly rose from her throne. "Don't you dare speak about our father that way. You are truly ungrateful girl. You have everything you could possibly imagine, while some have nothing."

"Yes!" Sariah yelled, her eyes ablaze. Farrah, frightened by Sariah's volume, stepped backward from Adeylne, who Sariah was advancing on.

"Yes, you're right. Some people have nothing. They are so poor they can barely afford to breathe. Father maybe told you about those who live on the east side of the wood, but you have been too bothered to go and see for yourself. I bet you'd be too bothered to help them even now that you're Queen." She said the last word with a bitter tongue, almost spitting at the taste.

"I will help them as much as my power allows. It's not an easy travel, as you, I'm sure, are aware. Father helped as much as he could-"

"Great good it did them, didn't his help?" Sariah spat.

"Then what do you suggest?" Farrah said at last, raising her voice. She stood close to Adelyne now, who was seated again, her hands resting in her lap.

Sariah couldn't stand the sight of her. Adelyne suddenly had a smile upon her lips that she wanted to slap away.

"I do not wish to be a subject of a Kingdom whose Queen is so self righteous it makes me ill at night." said Sariah, more calmly. 

Adelyne's curt smile did not disappear, but her eyes narrowed. "Then what do you suggest?" She said, repeating Farrah's words.

There was a pause in which the room was so quiet, all that could be heard was the anticipatory breaths Farrah took.

Sariah looked into the eyes of her oldest sister, cold s steel under her hooded lids, similar to the ones she saw in the portrait of her mother. She wondered, suddenly, if her mother was as arrogant as her sister.

"We split this Kingdom. Into three." 

Farrah shot Sariah a look of fear and bewilderment, but Adelyne's face was unmoving, like stone.

"Three parts," she continued, "in each corner of Fairvelle, including east of the wood and north of the wood. Three parts, so that no part of this Kingdom will go ignored and not a soul will have to wonder whether or not they will get to eat at night. The riches in this small section of Fairvelle have been kept selfishly for too long. This money-" Sariah spread her arms around the throne room, where gold and silver sparkled from floor to ceiling. "This money is no use here. We have enough diamonds in our crowns and rubies in our jewelry. It's time to change. Let me rule the East. And Farrah on the North," She motioned to Farrah, who looked extremely hesitant. "You are a bit dull, but you're not completely incompetent." She added flatly.

Adelyne, her face remaining stone still, stood from her throne, and agreed to Sariah's proposal. Sariah did not care that it was clear that Adelyne only agreed to this to humor her little immature sister, because Sariah took it as a challenge, and Adelyne should know better than to challenge her sister. 

The three Kingdoms, Fairvelle of the West, Eliath of the East, and Esthany of the North, was established within a few years time. And this is where our story truly takes off, in the newly split Kingdom of Fairvelle, in the dark stone castle in the heart of Esthany, where Queen Sariah sulks the halls and the poor are starved, but await for a new beginning.

Author's Note

So, this is an introduction to something I literally JUST started to work on a day ago. It's very rough, as this will be directly copied down from my scribbles in my notebook. Needless to say ignore grammar/spelling mistakes. I'm posting it here just to ask you guys if it has potential or not, should I continue to chapter two. (The rest of the book/s will be loosely based on fairy tales that I will twist and turn to something darker).

Reviews

[Rhea752]

I really enjoyed this. The change and wait for new beginnings is pushing me off the edge of my seat. The details and the setting are amazing. This is one of those moments where I am enraptured by your words and transported to another world!! You MUST continue this!! Great chapter!! Keep writing!! :D

[Hannah Olivia]

Thank you so much! I'm a little hesitant to go ahead with this concept, but I think I will. In this book it will be a spin off of both the fairy tales of Rapunzel and Snow white, but as they relate to this world and these characters.

[Rhea752]

That's an awesome concept! !! Keep writing this :)