But the past cannot be changed, and we carry our choices with us, forward, into the unknown. We can only move on.

I am no longer content to be the scared, obedient schoolgirl. Who are you, a stranger, to tell me what I can and cannot do?

But if we are to remain a great empire, we must have a greater understanding of the hearts and minds of others.

That's what living in their world is-a big lie. An illusion where everyone looks the other way and pretends that nothing unpleasant exists at all, no goblins of the dark, no ghosts of the soul.

There is an ancient tribal proverb I once heard in India. It says that before we can see properly we must first shed our tears to clear the way.

Judge not, lest ye be judged.

But the past cannot be changed, and we carry our choices with us, forward, into the unknown. We can only move on.