Prologue

A Chapter by RYAlicea

Prologue for Angelfish...

I've been fascinated with French angelfish since I was a Class 2. I remember my grandfather tending to his Pomacanthus paru. He was a mechanical scientist which enabled him to make the perfect outdoor tank that simulated the ocean. Every day when he returned from his occupation he would take off his work clothes, change and trek to the back porch where he put on his mud boots. From there he would turn to look at me and jerked his head towards the outdoor tank. Hand-in-hand we would walk to feed the beautiful fish and check on any offspring. Grandpa said that the reason the angelfish were in pairs was because, unlike other species, French angelfish mated for life. Of course it had a deeper reason, being that two was a lot better than just one, but I still took it as a romantic gesture. For my whole life their ideals stuck with me - stay with one person for your whole life - when I started to hear my mate's voice it was branded into me.

When Grandpa started to fall ill I was the one who took care of the fish. He would instruct me when I should remove the females and when they needed to just be left alone. He knew somehow from his rocker in the living room when the young hatched and when it was time for them to have live feed. After Grandpa died the Pomacanthus paru died off slowly. Once a mate died, the remaining angelfish would die not long after. I tried to keep them alive, to somehow keep my grandfather alive in a way. I tried to keep the image of my ideals alive, but we weren't wealthy enough to afford the feed and equipment needed to keep their outdoor tank feeling like the ocean. Soon there was all but one, a beautiful female with an unheard of yellow stripe across her side. She was the reason I found my love for art. She was the first ever painting. Soon after I finished painting she passed on, leaving me with an empty pond and a canvas littered with what used to be my image of hope.

Just as Grandpa introduced me to an image of hope, Spera introduced me to another. Little did I know that my newfound talent would lead me to my final image…