Once upon a time long ago, on the edge of a forest infested with unspeakable creatures named Grimms by the fate they bring, was a village. It fought to survive and stayed through stubbornness, determined to thrive in the harsh conditions that their lifestyle brought.

In this village, there was a girl named Amelia. The star on her dress was no where near as bright as her personality. Not all the other children appreciated her sunshine attitude. The biggest kid, Baxton, thought Ameila was too small and weak.

"One day I'll be a great warrior who fends off the Grimms!" he told her, " But you'll be doing nothing better than farming and sewing. I'll have to save you all the time!"

Now, Amelia had never thought of Baxton's words before. He'd been teasing her for a long time, but it'd never bothered her. But the thought of being helpless in the face of danger threatening her and everyone she loved, was terrifying.

So, Amelia did what she always did when she was scared or frightened and needed help. Amelia went to her grandmother.

"Let me tell you a story," Her Grandmother told her, "Of the Seven League Boots." Amelia listened intently, her Grandmother's glorious and grand stories were always the best.

"Long ago, there lived a woman. Her head was full of stars, and her feet were as light as feathers. She traveled here and there and everywhere, and could walk across entire worlds in hours and not even have sore feet. Now she was a drifter, which means something that moves aimlessly, but also means someone who travels without a purpose or destination. But she was lonely.

"Eventually she went to the ancient Red Fox, who heralds luck and wisdom, for help. So, the woman as fast as wind talked to the Red Fox, a creature as slow and patient as the movement of the stars.

"The Red Fox offered her an impossible solution, to poor the wonder of her heart into something that would allow someone to travel with her, but at the cost of her longevity and no way to change her heart afterwards. Making her decision, she took the boots off her feet and taught them how to sing with the winds.

"The woman gave the boots that could travel seven leagues in single steps to a young girl. They traveled long and far together. However, soon the woman's time came to start on a journey that the young girl and her Seven League Boots could not follow on, and she passed away."

Grandmother paused and looked at Amelia. "I am not a young girl anymore, and I think that it's time that the boots are worn by someone with an an adventurous spirit to match them."

With that, Grandmother reached over and handed a pair of red boots to Amelia. Amelia stared at them. There was no way that the story was real, but she recognized that her grandmother was giving a purpose. Like how Baxton's duty was to fight when he was old enough. She sighed, she'd probably never need to use them.

CLANG CLANG CLANG. Seconds after Amelia had the thought, an alarm started sounding thought the village.

A howl was heard from the woods, and it immediately became clear that the Grimms were attacking. The children and elderly were immediately rushed to the village prison, it's thick walls providing protection when they were usually used to keep the people outside safe.

Amelia hunkered down next to her grandmother, still gripping the boots tightly in her arms.

Time passed, and the battle outside raged on and it soon became sickeningly clear that they were losing the fight.

The Grimms were savages, providing a much bigger crisis than the Black Death plague that had swept through the world, and their village years ago.

Amelia closed her eyes as the sounds of combat roared outside, not wanting to think about what was happening outside of the safe- for now -walls of the prison.

Eventually, she glanced down at the boots cradled in her arms. They seemed to shimmer a bit, and the seed of an idea began to take route in Amelia's mind.