Beyond the sight of the eye is a world that not many people know about. It’s a world where imagination takes over and magical beings from fairytales and storybooks come to life. This world has been kept a secret for many reasons still to be uncovered. In this kingdom lived five young men looking to pursue their future, while fighting for their place on the throne. But sadly their father enforced a rule that was nearly impossible to keep. He made it so only the son who won the heart of the king's closest allies daughter. Only that child would win the throne. He made it this way so his children would learn the importance of opening their heart. The impossible part is the king’s most trusted ally was human, and lived in the human realm. Attempting to enter the human realm could be life threatening. No human was to ever find out about this magical realm or its creatures. If any human was to try to touch the glowing symbol on the wrist of each creature, they would disappear instantaneously, never to be seen or heard from anyone ever again. Hi, I’m Anna and this is my story.

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It was a dark and cold night. The cold feeling of the wind drove shivers down my back. I used to shut myself away from the real world and tried to create my own. I rarely left the dark shadows of my cold box room which I believed to be my sanctuary. Not many people payed close attention to me, I was considered more of an outcast.

My mother passed away when I was young and my father is always on some mysterious journey. He could be gone a couple days or even a couple months at a time. The curiosity is grew inside of me. My father refuses to speak about where he goes and what he does. Before she died, my mother intrusted me with a silver pendent. She said that as long as I wore the pendant I would always be protected. Ever since I was young, I’d always felt left behind. Whether it be at school or at home, there was a feeling down inside of me. A feeling that couldn’t be described by words. I wanted to find a world where I belonged. A world like the ones my mother used to read to me. Sadly those worlds are only found within the pages of story books, so I thought.

“Anna! Anna, sweetie do me a favor and fetch the small jewelry box from the attic.” That was the housemaid, Ella. She’s been with their family for decades. When my mother passed Ella was there to take care of me.  

yelling back I simply said, “No problem.”

The attic was a place that I never dared go, not unless I had to. There were too many memories of my mother and I, memories I tried to hide. But saying no to Ella is something I couldn’t bring myself to do.

The stairway was dark and chilly. With each step the stairs creaked, I was petrified of falling. Reaching out to turn the doorknob, and pushing the door open dust fell from the ceiling. Inside there were piles of old clothes and furniture, all that belonged to Mother. But in the distance I saw a mirror, the glass was still shining. The carved design swirled around the edge perfectly. The way the light from the small window hit the glass, it was on a perfect spotlight. Walking towards the mirror, I wanted to look at it up close. I ran my fingers down the edge and worked my way down the side. I felt a slight pull. In the glass where my hand touched ripples europed, an unknown force began to pull me in.

The feeling of being pulled into the mirror and into another realm is a feeling that is unable to be described in words. The world around me was spinning and before I realized what exactly was happening everything stopped. Dizzy and confused I attempted to stand, unable to see correctly, lifting my head up I saw a bright light shinning. The light dimmed down, beautiful colors surrounded me. This was different from the old black and white town I lived in. This place was full of life and beauty, the flowers were perfectly detailed, the sky a magnificent shade of blue, small creatures flying around converstating with their neighbors. I looked down to see even my clothes had changed! The dull gray shirt changed to a fluorescent pink, my black pants changed into a dark navy. Looking around I felt as though I had seen this place before, the feeling of familiarity was strong.

“Welcome” A small squeak of a voice echoed. Looking around there was no one to whom the voice would’ve came from. “Look down here!” Looking down I saw a miniature human with glowing wings. her dress was made of purple juniper and had slippers made of soft yellow cloth. Her hair was as orange as a summer flame, eyes perfectly round, nose symmetrically centered, she was beautiful. “Hi! I’m Lee Soon Kyu, or Sunny for short. Who are you?”

Taken by surprise I could barely speak, “I-I’m A-Anna” a smile broke across her face.

“Well It’s nice to meet you Anna, welcome to Invany. What brings you here?” throughout the entire time she was talking the bright smile from her glowing face never left.

“I have no idea. The last thing I remember was touching this magnificent mirror and then I was pulled in.”

The smile on her face dimmined, “Y-you're an outsider? How can that be, only people with permission from the king can have portals from the outside land…” She stopped eyes filled with terror she looked up at me “D-does that many y-your h-human?”

   Quite confused I asked, “Why yes, of course I’m human. What’s the matter?” The terror on her face grew. Before she disappeared she stated,

   “I don’t know how or why you are here but whatever you do DO NOT touch any of the creatures that are here. If you lay a hand or even a finger on their crest their death will be your responsibility.” With that she left. I stayed there alone for a while, thinking about what she said. Laying a hand on their crest? What does that mean?

   The sun was beginning to set, wondering what I should do for sleeping arrangements I decided to go for a walk. Walking around I could see the illuminating lights coming from the lakes and ponds. Creatures with wings and tails scurried around. This place was truly something out of a fairy tale. Just then a dark gray fog began to arouse, all the smiling creatures became frightened and ran away. A shadowy figure appeared in front of me. The fog was stronger than I was, it blurred my vision. I wasn’t able to make out the what seemed to be a women standing in front of me. All I could make out was her extreme black makeup and elegant dress that was the color similar to the one in my veins.

   “dearest child what brings such a lovely human into the lands of Invany. And more importantly...what brings you to my side of the forest?”

   My entire body was shaking, frightened and alone in this dark forest. “Who are you?” Trying my best to stay confident I straightened my back and painted a serious look on my face.

“Why child I am the all powerful Lee Chaelin. But you sweetheart can call me CL.” Reaching out her hand she the top of my head, as if she was trying to sooth me. “I rule over the darkness that surrounds every living thing.” A devious smile stretched.

Everything about her scared me. Her golden straight hair moving in the cold nights wind. The silver within her beige wings shone brightly behind the light of the moon. There was a golden necklace around her neck. The chains swooped down her waist to wrap around her hips. Her eyes pierced my insides. Everything about her drove shivers down my spine.

“I-I apologize M-miss. Chaelin, u-um I mean CL.” I kept stumbling over my words. I approached every word with caution. Scared for my life, I thad never encountered a women like her. "I-I don't mean to be rude but do you mind t-telling me h-how to get home?" The day kept gettuing weirder and weirder. First there were faires and now some scary women infront of me who looks like she could kill me with the snap of her fingers. Her response was as cold as the ice in the Arctic.

"Oh you poor girl. There's no leaving now."