'Hey mom, dad, I'm home!' Shouted a girl with long, blue hair. 'Say, where's Alexis, Lilian?' She asked her maid.
'She's in her room, ' Lilian replied. 'But I don't think it's wise to go to her now, Lady Ashley. '
'Why not?' Ashley asked, surprised.
Before Lilian could answer, Ashley's father came in.
'No need to answer Lilian, you may go now.' He motioned to Ashley to come with him to the garden. Lilian sighed and left, while Ashley followed her dad outside. They went to her mom's favourite spot and her father sat down while Ashley stood. Mr. Mays said nothing.
'Dad, what's wrong? Why is everyone acting strange? But most importantly, where's mom? She said she'd be waiting for me at the door?' The little girl fired all these questions at her dad, expecting him to answer. There was a brief silence. 'D-dad?'
'I'm sorry, ' Mr. Mays said. 'I'm so sorry we never told you. Your mother, Aurora, didn't want you to know.'
'W-what are you talking about dad?' She asked him. His eyes were brimming up with tears and she was getting worried about what he was going to say next.
'3 years ago, Aurora used a dangerous spell to protect the land of Fiore. A spell that would drain her of her magic, her strength, her life.'
It dawned on Ashley of what he was about to say. 'No...' Ashley stepped back with tears in her eyes.
'Today was her final day with us. She died, just before you came home.'
'NO! It's not true!' Ashley screamed at him. 'You're lying!' Any moment now, she expected her mom to pop out from behind a tree and give her a surprise hug. But it didn't come. Ashley was thrown into the cold, hard truth. Her mother was dead. 'I didn't even get time to say goodbye!'
She ran back to the mansion and locked herself in her room. Ashley's world was crumbling before her eyes and she was dragged into another world that she was unfamiliar with. That night, she and her sister cried themselves to sleep.
Mr. Mays didn't sleep. He couldn't believe that his wife was gone. She was the brightest light in his life, and now with the light gone, he was overtaken by darkness.