Astrea was never allowed to leave the mansion. Her parents were almost never there, only present for meals such as breakfast and dinner. But never lunch. The servants were ordered to make sure that Astrea never left the house. At all times a servant would be at her side, whenever she had to use the bathroom, went to play in the garden, and went to sleep. She would never physically be alone, but the servants were ordered not to speak with her unless she needed something.
The girl, at the age of twelve, could not bear the silence, but was taught to never disobey her parents. There was a set of rules Astrea had to follow. Rule number one: do not speak to the servants unless you need anything. Rule number two: never leave the house. Rule number three: do not talk to anyone that intrudes the mansion. Rule number four: if there is an intrusion, go to your room and do not come out for the rest of the day. Rule number five: do not go down to the basement or to the attic. And rule number six: do not enter your father's study. Although she was awfully curious about the attic, basement, and her father's study, she loved her parents too much to disobey.
One day, the intrusion bell rang frantically while Astrea and another of her servants were out in the garden. The servant ushered her into her room and quickly left to deal with the trespasser. When they were gone, she decided to close her windows and lock the door. Satisfied with her work, she took out her favorite book, The Mouse's Arrival. Although, she had not finished it, she loved the description of a brave mouse, who at first was not allowed to interact with the outside world, but was thrown into a whole different world than he was used to. The mouse basically described her life and her dreams. She wanted to be a courageous, strong, and friendly girl who traveled the entire world. Not a girl who would be trapped in a house that she explored a thousand times, looking longingly out a window, for the rest of her life.
Suddenly, one of her windows was smashed open and Astrea quickly looked up from her book. A small mouse, no bigger than her palm dropped and rolled across the floor. The mouse unrolled himself and looked around.
* Astrea is a girl name which means innocent in Greek.
