Once upon a time, there was a princess who lived in a tower, guarded by a dragon. She was fair and kind, the prettiest in the land and awaited for her prince to save her—at least, that’s what the king told his son. “There’s a girl. She’s fair and kind. She lives in a […]
You’re driving. The car is a black Honda Civic and you’re going seventy down route 22. It’s a warm summer night, but you leave the windows rolled all the way up. It’s stuffy and hot. Sweat trickles down your face, your back is damp and your palms are slippery against the wheel. You press harder […]
Royal Academy 為生学園 Episode 3 – Waltz 10 Years Earlier – Grade 2. Yukiji got out of the car, but wasn’t quick enough to avoid saying goodbye to his mother. She walked around the car, high heels making a soft clacking noise on the pavement. In her hands was a lunch box, wrapped up […]
She peeked into the darkness of her room and saw the silver reflection of her cat’s eyes. But when she turned on the light, she found her child sitting there instead.
Royal Academy 為生学園 Episode 2 – A New Transfer Yukiji Obata liked to walk to school. He woke up at six and was out the door by seven, dressed in his white blazer, tie and black pants. “Ittekimasu,” he said as he left his house, a traditional Japanese styled manor. His route was […]
Fire sweeps the land and darkness finds a way in. Can Riki stop it?
The sun set in a valley of waste. The skeletons of buildings that once stood tall stuck out of the dry dirt, like crooked fingers, reaching for the sky. The house on Ninth Street still stood. It didn’t have a roof anymore. The stairs led to empty space where bedrooms once were. The tiles of […]
Takke went down to the shore, where the docks creaked above slow churning waters, as cold and grey as coming storms. He knew the path well, every bush and tree. When the breeze blew and salt touched his tongue, he knew to leave the path, and cut through the line of trees, whose bodies […]
I had sex and I faked it. You know—that big moment. I should have known it wasn’t meant to be the first time I did it. I don’t know why I stayed and why I faked it every time. I could have said no, “this isn’t going to work out” or something along those […]
Zo Grimmwood 