This was requested by someone. I swear! I'm not a good writer, though.

Concept and written by: Strawberry
Proofread by: My good friend, Patrick

Clouds quickly filled the seemingly lifeless black sky, forming together like globs of grey and white paint. Tiny white polka-dots materialized from the clouds above, slowly falling towards the ground below, coating the top of the deep snow blanket enveloping the small village of Evertear. Every crystallized snowflake was as uniquely created as the beings that inhabited the planet Xale. A young girl stood knee-deep in the snow, her delicate, thin legs soaking wet. She joyously looked up towards the sky, her rosy tongue sticking out from her soft, pink lips, attempting to catch the tiny cream-white orbs that descended from above.

The still night air was abruptly disturbed by the once quiet murmurs of the surrounding villagers becoming louder. Coming to her senses, the girl hurried over to the crowd swarming in the middle of the village. She leaped several times, desperate to find the heart of the commotion. Flapping her gray wings, she floated above the villagers and looked ahead.

A large stage had been built in the center of Evertear. On top of the contraction stood seven shadowy-like figures, fanned out with a single silhouette in the front, two more behind it, and four others positioned in the back. Suddenly, two eye piercing lights blasted on, and music began to play. Two slender girls started dancing to the beat of the rhythm, while the other five entertainers were performing the music on their instruments. The villagers began to clap and move along with the flow of the melody.

Gently dropping to the ground, the girl cautiously moved through the chaotic, yet joyous crowd toward the troupe. She held her pale-as-snow hands together and closed her violet eyes, as the warm sound seeped through her long pointed ears, her heart, and into her soul. Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a playful shove from the back. She turned around quickly, her fluffy blonde hair soaring around her small, delicate face.

Gylwen Faowind stood there, her purple eyes shining like jewels that have just been polished.

“There you are, Aelina!” she grinned. “Want to dance?” She threw her tanned hands out for Aelina, who grabbed onto them tightly. “I knew you wouldn’t say no! Heh!”

The girls moved their bodies to the music, twirling each other around in circles. Gylwen took lead, although Aelina felt that her friend had no sense of rhythm. Regardless, she smiled, having a good time. However, Gylwen occasionally saw her best friend stare over at the stage in intervals. Frustrated, she pulled Aelina to the side.

She placed her hands on her hips. “Is something bothering you? You seem preoccupied, “ she said, curiously.

Aelina nodded, lowering her head. “I suppose I am, I’m sorry. It’s just that… It looks so much fun up there.”

“More fun than being with your best friend?” Gylwen asked, playfully.

“They look like they’re having a good time,” Aelina noted to Gylwen. “I just wish, for a little while, I could try the theater life.”

Gylwen looked away. “Maybe so, Aelina, but… what can you do? I don’t recall you playing any instruments or dancing well.”

Aelina looked back up at Gylwen, sighing. “I’m not sure, but…” Suddenly a faint smile formed on her face. “I could sing!”

“Are you sure? Do you have what it takes?” Gylwen asked her.

Aelina glanced at the stage, and the performers. “I’ll let them tell me. For now, it will be just you and me, Gylwen!”

Gylwen laughed as Aelina grabbed her by the hand, dancing with her until the stroke of midnight.

The clouds floated away from each other as the falling snow gradually faded away. It was silent once more, as the troupe was packing up for a night’s rest. Warily, Aelina approached the band, with hope in her bright eyes. One of the boys looked up quickly from his instrumental case as he heard her movement through the wet snow. Covered in Aelina’s small shadow, he stood up, staring at her with his dark brown, lifeless eyes.

Annoyed, he mused, “what do you want?”

Aelina played with her thumbs; a war between her hands began, as she stared at the snow nervously, “… Could I possibly, join up with you?”

He laughed callously at her, his spiky blonde hair jiggling with each movement his body made. “No,” he said after calming down.

One of the dancers, a dark skinned girl walked towards them, tapping her foot with impatience. She closed her lush purple eyes, shaking her head and her long dark violet hair with it.

“Esmond, be nice,” she told him. “I’m sorry –“

“Aelina,” Aelina interrupted her.”

“Gotcha, Aelina… We don’t just let anyone in. You must have… some sort of musical talent.”

The dancer looked at another young man sitting cross-legged on the stage, polishing his flute. He lifted his head, stood up and walked over to Aelina, leisurely examining her.

“Is there a problem? Tsuki?” he asked.

“This girl would like to join our group,” Tsuki replied.

“Hello,” the boy said, smiling with his emerald green eyes as well as his mouth. He pulled his shoulder-length sea blue hair away from his face with his fingers. “What can I do for you?”

“I would like to sing for your band,” Aelina told him.

“Do you have any experience?” the boy asked her.

Aelina shook her head, “Well, I…”

Cutting her off, the boy patted Aelina on the shoulder. “Why don’t you sing for us right now?”

Aelina nodded, clearing her throat, opened her mouth, and the soothing element of sound was created, flowing through their bodies; a strong, yet gentle sound resonating into their ears. The boy noted Aelina’s potential, clasping his hands together. When she finished, her cheeks became rosy red with embarrassment, as she looked away –not knowing what to say or do.

After a long silence, the boy finally said, “You certainly have talent…” He casted his hand out at Aelina, introducing himself. “I’m Aidan Callaghan.”

“Aelina Rowan. Pleased to meet you,” Aelina took his hand, and felt a pleasant sensation travel throughout her body.

“My only concern is your age,” Aidan said. “How old are you? Fifteen? Sixteen?”

“Sixteen,” Aelina told him.

“I suppose you still live with your parents, I assume?” Aidan sighed.

“I assure you, it will be no problem,” Aelina smiled. “I’m sure they won’t mind at all! They’re very… lenient. How long will you be in town?”

Aidan quickly glanced over at the other band members, then shot back at Aelina. “We’re leaving the island tomorrow, in the morning. We couldn’t afford the long trip here from the northern continent...”

Aelina smiled. “Alright, I’ll see you then!” She waved, then cheerfully dashed off through the snow away from the stage, disappearing in the distance.

You're doing a good job so far. You've introduced the setting and characters. It's a very cute story, too~ One thing when you talk about the character. You don't have to describe the character's appearance right off. You can wait and as the story goes along, you can add such as you go along. That way, it gives the reader room to build an image of the character for them self~ I learned that tip when writing my own story.
Keep writing and posting your work. It's great to get feedback on what you work hard on~

Yeah, the reason I described them, is kind of because they have specific appearances. I mean it's based after the same characters from my game, and I think it would be odd if they imagined Aelina with curly pink hair and green eyes, then they see/play the game and realize she has blonde hair and violet eyes. o.o I might get rid of the minor character's descriptions though, since I don't really care how people think of them. XD

I thought that might be the case and it would have to work that way if you want them to have them visualized from the beginning. Lol! No, you should keep the other guys. It will bring them to life to along with the main character.

Hey! More writing! It's been awhile!

CHAPTER ONE

Clunk.

The large, heavy harness fell to the floor at Nelly Ashtear-Finn’s small feet. The girl glanced down, smiling nervously as she tucked her long auburn hair behind one of her ears. She wore nothing but a light yellow tunic on her tiny, yet nimble body. She blanked her bright azure eyes several times before finally gazing upon the woman besides her – one of the house maids. The woman, her face worn from old age, was shaking her head at Nelly, her hand on her forehead.

“You are simply too small, child,” she told the girl.

Sudden movement near the doorway caused heads to turn quickly, and standing there was Lady Yunae. She looked like a much older version of Nelly, and wore a long violet gown decorated with fine detail, lace, and bows. She stepped closer, but did so very slowly.

“Eleanor… Are you sure you wish to do this…?” Lady Yunae bowed her head as she said this to her daughter. “I do not know what I would do if…”

Hearing the sniffling words of her mother, Nelly leaped over the harness and towards Lady Yunae, wrapping her arms around her. She hugged her mother tightly, trying to comfort her. Her mother continued speaking, this time through tears.

“I already sent one daughter away,” she told Nelly. “I do not wish to lose another…”

Nelly simply grinned widely. “You never lost Illenia, she’s simply in the University studying. I’ll be right here in the capital the whole time at the Royal Knight’s Academy!”

“Do not baby the girl, Yunae!” came a boisterous voice.

Standing behind the startled Lady of the Manor, was a large man holding a cigar in his right hand. He was smiling, but it was not full of joy. Nelly’s eyes widened, as she was afraid of Lord Darien and could sense his true intent in that grin of his. She stepped away cautiously.

“What’s wrong, Eleanor?” Lady Yunae asked, unaware of Lord Darien’s presence behind her.

“N-nothing is wrong, m-mother…” The girl replied, stuttering, as flashbacks of her childhood shot through her brain.

“Bwa ha ha ha!” Lord Darien laughed. “The girl simply fears me is all!”

Lady Yunae smiled cheerfully. “Eleanor, there’s nothing to be scared of.”

“Mother…” Nelly began, then deciding to give up. “It’s nothing. May I be excused to my room, Lord Darien?”

Lord Darien glared at Nelly. “What’s the matter, afraid to call me father? Bwa ha ha ha! Sure, leave! You can never escape, though…”

Still dressed in just a tunic, Nelly ran out and towards her bedroom. Lord Darien was right, she thought. There is no escape from him. She continued to hurry, afraid to stop, and afraid to turn around. He was not following her, yet she knew he could instantly appear and make her miserable. Again, memories flooded into her head. She stopped instantly and held her head, trying to make them disappear. She fell to her knees as she remembered everything he did to her. Tears formed into her eyes as she sat there, unable to control herself.

Although Illenia was the first to verbally tell anyone that something was very wrong with Lord Darien, Nelly experienced it all physically. She kept quiet, though, as fear had sealed her mouth shut. Right now, she missed Illenia more than anything, as she was perhaps the only sane person in the Ashtear Manor. Everyone else, including their mother seemed to notice nothing was wrong – like they were under some sort of magic spell.

Nelly stood up slowly, and began moving again – but this time at a snail’s pace. She had worn herself out from sobbing, her legs now feeling weak and pathetic. She would have to become stronger – not only physically but emotionally if she wished to become a Knight. Lord Darien had expressed to her several times that he wished she was a man to carry on the family name of “Finn” and to become a fine warrior. Nelly wanted to prove to him that a woman was not some toy and could do anything they wanted to – just the same as some man.

She finally reached her bedroom, a neat and tidy place. Several stuffed animals – mostly rabbits – sat against the headboard of the bed. Light yellows and deep oranges mainly filled the room as Nelly’s colors of choice. Nelly head over to her armoire, opened a drawer, and pulled out short light brown leggings. She pulled them up to her waist, then grabbed her leather ankle boots and pulled them over her feet. Within moments, she was outside of the Manor.

A soft grey stone wall surrounded the entire capital of Aleris, with a large castle overlooking the entire city. The Royal Knight’s Academy was connected to the castle itself and the Knight’s barracks. Nelly felt like an insect compared to the mass amount of people that would soon swarm around her as she entered the business district. She wanted to visit her sister, but the University was too far for her to travel alone, and not just anyone could walk right in. Saddened, Nelly continued to wander around aimlessly until she saw a small crowd gathered together in the city square.

She could hear music emanating from the middle of the horde. Nelly’s face lit up with joy as she suddenly skipped over to the performance. A short young girl, Nelly was forced to jump up and down to see what was going on. When that did not work, she pushed her way through the crowd towards the front.

A band of Werebeasts were playing instruments and singing songs for money – as Nelly noted by people throwing gold at their feet. Her eyes widened in amazement, as most people feared them due to their ability to transform into a certain creature; or monster. Nelly stepped forward cautiously and before she knew it, she had fallen to the ground, flat on her face. The music stopped and the crowd became quiet. This time, she was in the spotlight; the center of attention. She slowly brought herself back up to stand. She glanced around her, at the horde of people staring at her and she ran.

Nelly didn’t have the faintest idea of where to go, yet she continued to hurry through the capital. She looked behind her for a brief second and when she saw that no one was following her, she came to a complete stop to catch her breath. She suddenly felt a soft touch on her shoulder. Nelly jumped into the air and twirled around to see one of the Werebeasts standing there.

From her guess, he was some sort of feline, as she saw his pointed furry ears and cat-like tail. His hair was a deep orange-red, and his eyes were an emerald green. He carried a lute on his back and a simple, rusted sword around his waist. He looked at her curiously, his head leaning towards her for a moment, before he stood up-right and grinned widely. Nelly tilted her head.

“Um… May I help you…?” Nelly asked him, her voice quiet.

“I just wanted to see if you were alright,” the Werebeast replied. His voice had a distinct accent, but Nelly could not place it.
“I am fine, thank you,” Nelly told him.

“You don’t remember me, do you?” the Werebeast laughed joyfully.

“Remember… you…?” Nelly spoke slowly, unable to comprehend what he was talking about.

“Yes! It’s me, Cailou!” he said, still smiling.

Nelly turned to walk away, thinking it was a trap. “I’m sorry, but that name doesn’t ring a bell.”

“Illenia, don’t turn away,” Cailou said softly.

Nelly whirled around to look at him, her eyes widened with shock. “Did you just say… Illenia?”

“Yes I did,” Cailou said. “Are you – “

Nelly cut him off with a wave of her hand. “No. But, I am her little sister. Well, half-sister. That’s not the point, though. What do you want? You sure didn’t follow me to check up on me!”

Cailou took a step backwards, noticing Nelly’s sudden anger. “You’re right, I saw that you looked like her and I followed you.”

Nelly crossed her arms across her chest firmly. “There. You still didn’t tell me what you wanted.”

Cailou bowed his head. “S-sorry. When I thought you were her… I just wanted to catch up.” He looked back up at Nelly, smiling again. “You… You would know where she is!”

Nelly shook her head. “How do I know you’re not some perverted fool?”

Cailou hunched over. “I’m not… I knew her when she was a child… Please, tell me where she is.”

Nelly’s face suddenly lit up as he formed a plan in her mind as she glanced upon his sword. “I’ll tell you, but you have to help me.”

Raising an eyebrow, now it was Cailou’s turn to cross his arms. “Help you, how?”

“Help me see Illenia.”