Once again, your birthday comes up on the horizon, and once again the empty space in my damaged heart is filled with deep searing agony and loss. Once again, I cannot breathe…

Mica was walking in the forest, taking a moment to escape her stressful life. As she meandered amongst the trees, she felt the tightness of her muscles begin to ease a little.

Mother and Father are King and Queen and I am their only heir. As soon as Snow White was born to a neighbouring kingdom, my fate was sealed…

I don’t believe in miracles, and the idea of Christmas miracles always has me pooh-poohing into my latte. But…

I visually appraised Lord Winterbottom as I spoke to him over a delicate china cup of Darjeeling, my eyes peeking through lowered lashes. Here was the fine man my parents had betrothed me to, our finances sufficient to lure his corpulent form into a worthy match.

“Hey, Joe, do you have a minute or two? There is something important that I want to say to you. 

This may sound a bit dramatic, but I am just going to say it anyway. You have really changed my life in the few weeks you have been with me. I know, I know, everyone always says that when they meet someone, but really, you have. And our situation is unique, after all.

I breathed in deeply, the scented air, (floral, pine and a hint of loam), filling my lungs with the crisp sweetness of it. The slight chill burned my throat a little, but it was a small price to pay. I had never known anything as pure! It was a very bright day, but I had my tinted goggles on to shield my eyes from the glare of the sun. It was a perfect day to be out in nature.

It was the predawn grey of early morning. The world was still fast asleep. The dull whisper of muffled night sounds washed over and around Carrie, without her noticing. She walked in a daze, her face and eyes awash with tears

Despite the fact that there was already an old man on the bench, Steven sat down and looked out over the park’s pond. The old man was extremely thin and shook inside a new coat that was a few sizes too large for him. “Must be an alcoholic,” Steven thought judgmentally, though he couldn’t smell any drink on the man. No, with those dilated pupils, he was probably into drugs. Steven sighed.

Mommy is home! Yay! I hope she does not have water leaking from her eyes like she did when she went out to that work she goes to.

Oh! My name is Baby. Mommy tells everyone my name is something else, so I know Baby is my secret name. Mommy calls me Baby and when she says it her voice is soft and makes me warm, so I know Baby is my special name.

How bleak the world is. The only light that shone through my dreary life has been blown out with a gale-force wind. I was almost obliterated in the aftershock.

 How can you be gone from me?

Xanthe darted, into the Lutterworth Country Park trees. Choosing one strategically, she scrambled up and perched on a branch.

 There was not a lot of business at the LuttCat AGM, and, as expected, cats yawned and paid little attention.