• Silence. A silence to strike the soul, to console thoughts, to raise fears. The sound of the water gently trickled to her senses, her bright blue eyes slowly opening to the darkness of the world around her. Night time, a night she'd feared her whole life, ever sense she'd been old enough to know the death steals away loved ones. 'He's gone. Long gone. Those from the heavens have flown to the bedside and stolen away the soul of the man I loved so dearly. He's gone.' She thought calmly, staring down into the smooth flowing waters. The crystal clear surface reflected the blue-white light of the risen moon, rippling it's face with small waves. The shadow of a large sakura tree hung heavily abover her, it's branches seeming to reach down, to hold her in her hearts agony. She looked up to the moon, watched the stars twinkle in the thick velvet called the night sky. A smile crossed the womans lips and she carefully lit a candle. 'Father. This candle is your soul. It will not burn forever, but until it flickers for the last time, it shall bring me happiness, just as you did. Thoughts of you will hold me, but only fond memories are what I shall think of. The time for mourning is over. The time for being who I am is now. I am royalty. I am a queen, and I will act in such a way that my people do not fall prey to the same mourning as I have in these last few days. We will mourn, but we shall also celebrate the chance for things to come.' She smiled and stepped from the river, using the large, sturdy tree for balance. "Thank you." She said towards the moon, then turned back towards the castles entry from the gardens and returned herself to her rightful place.