The Fight of the Poppies

Just so you know, "Poppies" stands for "Populars", basically <3


Ariel looked around the library. She had been there so many times she could probably walk there in her sleep. Great, she thought unhappily. I’ve read everything already. Unlike the typical most-popular-girl-in-school stereotype, Ariel was an avid reader. By the time she had been ten, she had finished every book in the children’s section. On her fourteenth birthday, she finished every young adult book. And now, finally, on the last day of high school, she had finished the last adult book.

The young seventeen-year-old glanced at the old shelves again, and sighed. The public library was small. Castillo Azure was a large and rich town. 75% of the people there were filthy rich, and owned private libraries. Therefore, there was almost no need for a public library. If it hadn’t been for the 25% population of people who didn’t have private libraries, Libra Azure would have been torn down decades ago. It had no money. The people who used it had so little money to spare that they always returned the books ahead of time, for fear of paying the fine.

Ariel sighed once more, and finally started trudging to the exit. “Bye, Frank,” she said, smiling at the janitor. He smiled back, and continued to wipe the floor. Frank seemed like the only true friend she had made there. Back when she had moved to Castillo Azure, she had learned that conforming was the only way to lead a life without exclusion. She had become a very good actress this way. Frank seemed like the only person she could open up to sometimes.

It’s hard work being the most popular girl in the entire town, she thought ruefully. It was even harder when she was “poor”. She had no money to go to any of the big parties, the movie premiers, or for designer clothes. Everything she wore, she got from a rag shop and put it together herself, adding on sequins and ribbons each time she wore it so it seemed like she wore something new each time.

She thought through all of this as she neared the exit… But for some reason, Ariel no longer wanted to leave. She caught a glance of a strange shadow in the corner. Curious, she glanced at it again, and started walking towards it.

Then she shook herself and stopped. Her mother was going to be working the evening shift at the hospital, so she needed to be home to make dinner. She couldn’t waste time on pointless exploration! Besides, she’d explored the library countless times before, and was quite positive she knew every crook and nanny of it.

But still… Ariel glanced at the strange shadow again. It was so tempting, to try and find something that she hadn’t found before! She was hungry for knowledge, even if it only met finding out what caused such a strange shadow.

Finally, unable to resist the urge, she gave in and ran to the shadow…

~

She woke up lying on the cold ground a moment later—or at least it seemed like a moment. Ariel glanced out the window, and noticed with a shock that it was there was a thunderstorm outside. She looked around the room. It was built with cold, gray stone that looked like it had been there from the Middle Ages. The walls were covered in ancient bookcases made of oak, cherry, and mahogany, carved with strange runes and symbols.

Where am I? Ariel thought as she picked herself up and walked to the nearest bookcase. She chose a book at random, and blew the dust off the cover like in movies. With a slightly trembling hand, she opened it to a section in the middle. And so, heeding the sprite’s warning, Edwin did not approach the dragon using a sword. Rather, he walked up to the dragon and simply began to talk to it.

With a thump, she shut the book, and replaced it with another, more official-looking tome. Once again, she opened it to the center. In Year 10, Arian cast a spell to protect Arda-Ura from outside rivals. This spell became the first Spell of Honor, which then became the second Spell of Honor with just one small consonant change. Ariel closed that book too, although more gently, and returned it. What is this place? she thought. Arda-Ura? Where is that? What happened?

However, instead of panicking, she felt merely curious. It didn’t feel real, somehow. And all those stories and histories on the shelves looked so inviting! It was out of the ordinary. It was—amazing. Unbelievable. Different. Extraordinary.

Ariel smiled to herself, and began to walk to the first bookcase. Only then did she notice that she was wearing different clothes. She was wearing long purple robes layered with blue, and her shoes were strange slippers that, though unfamiliar, were nonetheless very comfortable.

She shrugged and continued to walk towards a very large, purple book with gold edges that had caught her eye.

Suddenly, someone burst through the door. “Princess Ariella!” he gasped, panting heavily.

Ariel goggled at the figure in the doorway. “Frank?!” she exclaimed in shock.

“Why can’t you ever say it right? It’s Franco!” the man snapped. He, too, was wearing the odd robes, although his were sky blue and grass green. “Hurry, Princess, the carriage is at the door. They won’t wait long, and the sorcerers don’t have enough magic to keep the Poppies off for long!”

Ariel’s head was swimming. “Uh…” she managed to utter intelligibly. “Wait, let me take some books.” Save the books, was her one thought. For some reason, the castle—she knew it was a castle now—was under attack. She had to save the books.

With one free hand, she managed to scoop up the history that she’d been reading earlier, the storybook, and the large purple book. “Yes, yes,” Franco said hurriedly. He grabbed a grey book, a thin blue book, and a strange-looking red book that read Castle Secrets. Then, he shoved her through the door. “Now we must go!” he hurried. “Your robes, spell books, and other magic materials are in your trunks. We’ve packed a large selection of books for you. Now you must go! Please, Princess, run! I urge you!”

Still dazed, Ariel ran down the narrow hallway, clutching her robes in one hand. What’s going on? Who are the Poppies? Questions whirled in her head as she hurried to the carriage that Franco had said was waiting for her. The question that kept resurfacing was, Who is Princess Ariella?

Ariel ran and ran through the seemingly endless hallways. Her arms were growing more and more tired with the weight of the books.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she arrived at the doors leading to the outer gardens. A dark, shimmering carriage was waiting for her, harnessed to two brown horses who kept tossing their heads in agitation.

“Princess!” the driver shouted. “Hurry!”

Ariel yanked open the carriage door and jumped in, still holding the precious books with one hand. Just before she slammed the door shut, she yelled, “What about Franco?” The old man reminded her too much of Frank for her to leave him behind without worry.

“He’ll be fine,” the driver replied. “It’s you they want.”

She wanted to ask why, but knew that it would reveal her as the fraud she was. “Where are we going?” she asked instead.

“To the monastery in the Eadha Mountains,” he called back. “You’ll be safe there, Princess. The nuns and monks are very kind people, and your education will be continued. Your books, jewels, and clothes have all been brought. You’ll be taken care of there.” But who am I supposed to be? Ariel felt like shouting.