Your hopes, Your dreams, Your everything

The little girl, no more than 9 years old, looked out the window of the carriage, too excited to stay put in her seat. Her black curls bounced lightly with her movements and a blond girl, sitting next to her, laughed at the expectant look on her face.

Both of them wore pretty dresses in pastel colours, the most delicate things they'd ever seen.

The blond girl swiftly joined the black haired one at the window and with their mouths hanging open, the two friends gazed out at the dark forest surrounding them. This was so much more than they'd hoped for when they'd gotten down on their knees, begging miss Samson to take them with her and the older girls to the annual winter ball at the Withlock mansion. So much more…

They'd been travelling for almost three hours now and the girls couldn't possibly understand why the other, older, ones sitting in the carriage seemed so low-spirited. Some were looking out the other window with an aura of indifference around them, yet their eyes showed pain. A few others were sitting with their faces hidden in their hands, sobbing and crying as if there would be no tomorrow.

Yet the two best friends had the time of their lives, laughing and giggling all the way, and when the huge, magical castle finally came into view the blond girl had to put a hand on the black haired one's shoulder to stop her from bouncing on the seat in excitement.

I almost laughed at myself, sitting there with my eyes closed, feeling the carriage's movements below me, remembering. But I wasn't in the mood for laughing.

To think that it had been ten years ago seemed so surreal. Like another life. Was it possible for your whole world to turn upside down in ten years?

I slowly opened my eyes to see miss Samson sitting opposite of me, with her chin to her chest in deep sleep. I turned my head to the window only to see the rather familiar Withlock mansion come into view, for the second time in my life.

Yes, the whole world could turn upside down in ten years. This time I wasn't bouncing in excitement, instead my eyes were filled with the same pain I remembered seeing in the older girl's eyes, so long ago.

And this time there wasn't a beautiful little blond girl bouncing next to me. That girl was sold ten years ago, at the annual winter ball…and this year it would be my turn.