20XX

The air hangs heavy, thick with the scent of honeysuckle and the promise of a storm. It's a smell that used to feel like freedom, the kind that came with running barefoot through fields of wildflowers, the sun warming my skin and the wind whispering secrets in my hair. Now, it just reminds me of what I've lost.

I used to believe in fairy tales, in the magic of the world. I saw dragons in the clouds and mermaids in the waves. I believed in the power of wishes and the strength of dreams. That was before the world started showing me its teeth, before the innocence of childhood faded into the bitter truths of adulthood.

The memories of the ancient, the whispers of forgotten gods, they've seeped into my soul, leaving behind a residue of disillusionment. The world isn't a place of wonder anymore, it's a battlefield where dreams are trampled and innocence is sacrificed. I've seen the darkness, felt its cold grip on my heart, and it's left me scarred.

I'm not the girl who used to chase fireflies and sing to the moon. I'm not the girl who believed in forever. Somewhere along the way, I got lost. I traded my dreams for reality, my laughter for cynicism, my faith for doubt.

But even in the face of this disillusionment, a flicker of hope remains. A tiny ember, refusing to be extinguished by the encroaching darkness. Maybe, just maybe, there's still a way to find myself again. Maybe, just maybe, I can reclaim the lost magic, the forgotten wonder.

Maybe, just maybe, I can learn to see the beauty in the world again, even if it's veiled in shadows.

Maybe.