The tulips and bleeding hearts swayed as the knight walked past them, towards her shrine, Golden flowers in hand. The chimes sang a delicate melody to announce his arrival. The knight's armour shimmered as he stepped into the dark hall. The sun shone on him from behind, casting a halo around him when he took off his helmet to reveal a familier and friendly face that had not changed since the goddess was free to roam. He gazed upon the altar where a golden statue of the goddess lay leisurely....

The mask was hard to see through. After countless drinks between songs, I could barely see the guests' masks as I spun and twirled amongst them, strumming my lute. All they were were fake smiles, nothing more. I spun to face the king and queen, all dressed in icy blue. They lifted their glasses to me as I skipped towards them, singing the tale of their kingdom’s glory. I danced around their thrones, hearing their laughter and giggles as true, triumphant smiles graced their faces. I bowed to...

Her whispers made my ears hurt. I turned over, throwing an arm over the woman who shared my bed. She turned over too, a soft smile gracing her sleeping face, just as I remembered, just like the first time I met her. The sleepiness subsided as my vision focused on the girl in front of me; it wasn’t HER. The woman in front of me didn’t have the same bright sparkle as her, didn’t have the eyes that saw through to my soul when I first met her, and didn’t have the same expressive face when she...