Seven-year-old Sakura lied awake in bed, grinning up at the ceiling. She knew exactly what day it was. It was the day she waited for every single year, every single day and every single month.

It was the day everyone all over the world got presents from their parents and celebrated with their family with delicious food and desserts. It was Nobility Fest, the celebration of nobility and beasts. It was a day to celebrate the fruits of their hard-earned nobility.

As soon as the morning sun filled her small room, she jumped from her bed, running through it and throwing open her bedroom door. She took off running into the living room, skidding to a stop.

Her heart fell though at the sight before her. There were no presents under their tree, no food set out on their small table. Her dad, the man she barely saw beyond this day, was nowhere to be seen. Her mom sat at the kitchen table, her head in her hands.

Sakura hesitantly approached her mom, sitting across from her at the table. "Mommy... Where's Daddy? Is he still sleeping? Should I go wake him? And where are all the presents?"

Her mother sighed, raking her hand through her hair as she looked up at her. "Daddy went to work. And we don't have the money to celebrate Nobility Fest this year. It'll just have to wait until next year."

Sakura frowned, her heart sinking even further, accompanied with a weird ache. Now she'd have to wait yet another year to see her dad. "Why can't we celebrate Nobility Fest? Why is Dad always working? Why doesn't he ever have enough money?! Why is it never enough?!" Sakura rose, slamming her hands down on the table, her voice raising to a shout as tears came rushing from her eyes, "why isn't he ever home?!!!"

Her mother sat, staring at her, for a long moment, an empty look in her eyes. Slowly she shook her head. "That's just the way things are, Sakura. I'm sorry. Life isn't fair, sometimes. Not for people like us."

Sakura bit her lip, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Fine. Then I'll just go do my chores. But once I'm done... I'm sitting on the porch. And I'm not leaving that porch until my dad gets home. Hopefully he'll give me a better excuse than you did."

She stormed away, quickly finishing all her chores. They were a poor family in the rough kingdom that was Grumor, that much Sakura knew. What she didn't understand was why they were so poor. It wasn't like her dad wasn't a good worker, not like they weren't morally good people. So why was it that people just like them... doing just as much as them... got treated so much more fairly?

Once she finished her chores, she did exactly as she said she would. She went on the porch. And she sat. And she waited. She didn't move except to use the bathroom. Even her meals were eaten on the porch. She was used to waiting; usually on Nobility Fest days, once they celebrated, her dad would take her out hunting. When they went hunting, they would sit in their hunting posts sometimes for hours, just waiting for the perfect buck to pass.

Hours passed and finally, once the sky had gone dark and most of Grumor had gone to bed, she saw her dad trudging up to their house. His posture was wary and worn down. It looked like the weight of his world was on his shoulders. He came to a stop at the sight of Sakura waiting for him. She peered up at him, her heart constricting at the sight of him. The tears came again, and she sobbed. She took a deep breath, trying to control her emotions enough to speak legible words.

"Daddy... Why aren't you ever home?! Why is it like this?!"

His eyes dimmed and his jaw clenched as he looked down at the ground. "Because some force beyond our comprehension decides how noble we are... How great our beasts should be... And our royalty decides that people who don't have great beasts, who don't have great nobility for whatever reason, are lesser than. That's why, Sakura. And it's just the way it is. It's the way it always has been."

Fire filled Sakura at the defeat in her father's tone. How could they let people walk all over them like this? If there was something deciding what beasts go to who, who had the right to claim they knew why they were chosen for a person? What right did they have to believe they had any more wisdom than anyone else? Who were they to decide what we deserve? Why had no one fought back?

"And we all just let them mistreat us like that? We just let ourselves get walked all over? All because of something they can't even begin to understand?! I thought you were braver than that. Smarter than that. I guess you must really not care."

Sakura stood, storming inside, ignoring her dad screaming at her "to come back" and that what she said "wasn't fair". She ignored it all. She had sat there for hours, only to hear the disappointing truth. Her dad was too much of a wimp and her kingdom was corrupt and cruel.

***

Six Years Later

Thirteen-year-old Jaxyn waited impatiently in front of his parents' inn; his eyes glued to the brick path that led to it. His heart leapt when he finally saw his best friend and crush, Sakura, walking up the path. She looked just as beautiful as she always did to him, her orangish red hair resembling flames in the sunlight, her tall, lanky frame walking towards him. He frowned though at the expression and countenance she walked with. She didn't seem like herself.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

Normally she walked with her shoulders back and her chin high as she exuded the confidence and sass that was her personality. Today though, she looked more like a scared little girl.

"Sakura, what's going on with you? Chin up," he ordered teasingly, nudging her chin up once she had reached him.

She looked him in the eyes, and he saw the dull, dark blue where her usually bright blue eyes were. "I'm not in the mood today, Jaxyn."

He crossed his arms, letting his teasing grin fall. "What happened? Another argument with your dad?" They had been having more and more of them.

She shook her head. "Not exactly. They just told me they couldn't afford to send me to school..."

Jaxyn's heart fell, and he opened up his arms and pulled her close. She shrugged him away though. He expected that much. She wasn't one for comfort in the form of physical affection when she was upset. Nevertheless, it stung.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. That really sucks to hear."

She looked up at him, a pout on her lips. That was new. Never had he seen her pout. Not unless she was manipulating someone into getting her something. "Are you going to be able to go to school, Jaxyn?" she asked quietly.

He sighed, nodding slowly. "We'll be just barely able to skim by for it."

She hmphed, studying the ground as her foot made circles in the snow between them. "I wish... I wish that I lived somewhere like Querencia. I bet in Querencia, that they let any kid go to school."

Yet again, Jaxyn sighed, shaking his head. Querencia was a kingdom they learned about a lot throughout Grumor, as it was their kingdom's biggest rival. Querencia was often painted as the perfect kingdom though by fellow peasants, peasants who were desperate to get out from Grumor's tighter control. But they weren't perfect.

"No, Sakura. I'm afraid not. There, it's the same. If parents can't afford to send their kids to school, they don't go. And jobs and salaries are still heavily decided by someone's beast. Unfortunately, things like that are pretty universal between kingdoms."

She was quiet a long moment, seeming to process his words. He jumped when she suddenly stomped her foot, looking up at him. Her eyes were bright again, but in a different way... in a scary way.

"That's so stupid! You mean to tell me they're all the same?! And we don't do anything about it?! We have freaking rights!!! I'm so tired of monarchies controlling lives!" Jaxyn started to reach out his hand, only to have her slap it away. She looked down, shaking her head. "Sorry, Jaxyn. I don't feel like hanging out with you today... I just need some time to cool off. I'll see you tomorrow."

***

A year later, Sakura was walking through Grumor. She had snuck out, like she often did. Her parents never paid much attention anyways, it was easy.

She walked through one of the larger villages in Grumor, her eyes wandering around, taking in everything around her. There were people laughing and talking as they walked, their beasts following behind them. In these larger villages was the higher class with their more impressive beasts. She grinned widely at the variety of intimidating beasts. Tigers, panthers, bears, even one rare saber-toothed lion.

She came to a skidding halt at the sound of beasts roaring in pain. It was faint, but her young ears easily caught it. She turned the corner, following the sound. A couple blocks away, several knights stood, whipping a giant Komodo dragon. Sakura's eyes watered at the sight, angry fire filling her as she screamed for them to stop. She started to run at them, not considering what she would do once she got to them. Her efforts were stopped though when someone grabbed her, pulling her.

She kicked and flailed at the person who had captured her, yelling to let her go. Finally, the person did, but Sakura was quickly pinned to the wall as soon as her feet were on the ground. She looked up to see a young woman smiling down at her, her blue eyes kind and understanding. A soft smile was on her face as she shook her head, causing wisps of her brown hair to brush her face.

"If you had gone after those knights, they only would've forced you back to your home with them. And something tells me your parents wouldn't be very happy if you showed up at their door with Grumor knights by your side, telling them you snuck away," the woman said, her voice holding amusement.

Sakura's eyes widened but they quickly hardened into a glare. "Don't you dare tell my parents I snuck out!" she warned, her voice firm.

The woman only laughed again. "Or what? You'll attack me like you would have those knights? You do realize how small you are, right?"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "I'm not that small. I'm fourteen, not four. And I'm tall for my age, too. I can hold my own."

The woman's grin didn't waver as she nodded slowly. "I'm sure you can... It bothers me too, little miss. The way they treat those beasts."

Sakura's eyes widened yet again at the woman's admission. She sighed, lowering her head. "You can let me go now, you know. I won't run after the knights. At least not this time." The woman laughed and let her go. "I... I didn't know they did that to the beasts. That's so... Wrong." The tears fell as she began to think about it more. She looked up at the woman, shaking her head. "All of it is so wrong. They just assume they know everything there is to know about beasts, completely stripping the beasts of their rights as animals. They're... tools instead of companions. And... if for whatever reason you don't get a great beast, they decide you're not worthy of... Well, anything really. It's ridiculous. They based complete monarchies and governments off of theories and assumptions. And no one... Not one person... Is doing anything about it..." She let her head fall into her hands, letting the tears fall freely now. She heard the woman sigh, but she didn't look up at her.

"You're right, little miss. Everything you just said was completely right..." then the woman tilted her chin up. Sakura saw that there was tears in her eyes too as she smiled at her. "So, if no one will do anything about it, be the one who does. Who knows? I'm sure there's plenty of other little kids and even adults who have been just as heartbroken about this, simply waiting and praying for someone to make a stand. Be that person. And more will follow."

Sakura frowned. "But how do you know they will?" she asked.

The woman's smile widened into a grin. "Easy. Because I can already tell you one person who would follow. And her name is Maeriana."

That night, Sakura formulated a plan. A plan, that if it worked, would change the world. And she decided, she would do anything she had to, to make sure it worked. Anything.