Illusionary (An Original Applyfic)

Prologue - Fallen Fortress

On another hand, my necklace had disappeared. I remembered that I was wearing it on the day of the fire. It just seemed to disappear.

I saw many things in the castle as the days went on. New people, new paintings, new rulers. I wanted to talk to them, but none of them seemed to pay attention to me.

It was starting to get boring. Boring and extremely lonely.

I remembered waking up to find that the castle was something completely new. My room was turned into some sort of closet with a variety of cleaning supplies. I didn't know what they did with my things, but I decided to relocate to the secret library in the castle's north wing. It was something I'd always wanted to do in the past anyways.

There were new people now. They were all wearing funny clothes. Some girls were wearing pants now. I'd never seen a girl wear pants before, but they looked nice on them. It's good that they're happy about it. I wish I could be like them.

I tried talking to these new people. They seemed a bit older than me, so perhaps there were differences in interests between us. Whenever I wanted to talk to them, however, it was as if they simply ignored me.

I just kept calling out to them. Hello there! What's your name? Do you want to play with me?

Can you even hear me?

~~~

500 years ago, this place was not a school. It was once a fortress. A grand fortress.

But even the greatest fortresses saw bloodshed behind its very walls.

My name is Annelise, and I was a protector. I was 21 years old.

My home is in the north, in a place much colder than where I currently reside. I crossed many borders to escape from the brutal wars between my homeland and neighbouring countries.

When I came here, I became a protector of the daughter of a wealthy family. She was around my age. I thought that when I arrived, I would not make many friends. I thought that I would be separated from others, distant from them due to having moved.

She proved me otherwise.

I treated her as my master. After all, my new purpose was to protect her. I was sure to ensure that no harm came to her way. I would listen to her every word, carry out every task she asked of me.

She did not treat me as a servant. She treated me as a friend.

We were close. Oftentimes she would sketch the objects surrounding us, pointing out every detail that she found interesting.

"Annelise, look!" She would say. "There are birds in this tree. They seem to be singing."

And every time, I would answer, "Yes, My Lady. They are."

And she would say, "Annelise, look! The people are selling wares! Don't they just look so happy? It's great seeing everyone in such good spirits."

"Yes, My Lady," I would respond. "It is."

It was something about her radiant smile which I was interested about. No matter the situation, she always seemed to maintain her smile.