✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* The Hollow Heir • Itafushi *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* Prologue *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

"Do you know where we are?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell me?"

"No."

"Can you tell me why we're here?"

"Also no."

"What can you tell me?"

"Not much."

"You're no fun."

"I try not to be. This isn't supposed to be fun."

"So this is a punishment."

"Of sorts, yes."

"Why are you here then? Did you do something bad?"

"No, I'm here to make sure you stay here."

"Did I do something bad?"

"Yes. Something terrible."

"What was it?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Bummer."

"Would you like to hear a story?"

"A story?"

"Yes, a story."

"I didn't peg you as a storyteller."

"I've never been anything but a storyteller."

"Is that so?"

"I was a poet."

"Ah, a poet. That makes sense."

"Would you like to hear it?"

"Hear what?"

"My story."

"I guess so. Tell away, my friend."

"I'm not your friend."

"Yes you are."

"Whatever. Just listen. This is the story of Helia's heart and Sedenia's power."

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In the beginning, there had been more humans than faeries. Because of their majority, humans had the upper hand. However, in the beginning, humans and faeries got along well. They were friends.

It was a very shaky friendship. There were thousands of years of history of faeries tricking humans. Humans regarded it as their own stupidity that caused them to fall for faerie tricks.

The friendship shattered when a faerie tricked a human king's son and stole him away. The human king retaliated and tried to war with the faeries.

It resulted in the massacre of millions of humans, dwindling the numbers. Soon, faeries outnumbered the humans, and humans started to fear the faeries.

They built tight-nit communities and hid themselves away from faeries. Still, the faeries were a persistent threat as more and more humans went missing.

So the humans banded together to figure out a way to keep faeries away from them. A few humans volunteered to find a faerie and learn all they could, even if it resulted in death.

What they learned was that faeries could not touch iron. They couldn't be anywhere near it or they would become extremely ill.

So humans built their buildings and tools out of iron to ward away faeries. And it worked.

The world become so full of iron that faeries could only be safe from it behind the circles of flowers that served as entrances to their world.

From inside these circles, they were still able to use their usual trickery, but only if the human was stupid enough to give them their name, make a deal with them, or step inside the circle.

Children were taught many things about faeries, but one was drilled into their heads.

Never give a faerie your name, never make a deal with the fae, and under no circumstances, ever step inside a faerie circle.