There is a rage building up inside me,
And it is quiet.
Not the sort of quiet,
That speaks of silent nights,
But the kind that crashes before a storm,
The calm in the snow leopard's eyes,
Before they shake the mountain,
And pounce on this world,
And change it forever.

There is a scream bottled up inside me,
And it is quiet.
Not the sort of quiet,
That sounds like spent starlight,
But the kind before the world erupts...

We are built on blood,
This nation,
America,
Is built on blood.

The second
People came from overseas,
They started cutting,
And trees fell,
And the world was buried.

And wars came,
And it looked like they were fighting the land,
And the people who were there first,
They were there first,
But we,
America,
Destroyed it all,
And started wars,
And hurt the world.

And they fought,
We fought,
A revolution,
Based on freedom,
Or was it power?
Because...

She's so much better isn't she? 
On her throne of broken hearts.
Perfection is all you see, 
her heavy locks and glossy lips. 
Oh she's beautiful isn't she? 
Tall like a model, yet her eyes emerald and warm.
She's got no flaws, 
carved into perfection. 
A sight to behold, 
her beauty unfathomable. 
She's got a heart to die for, 
amber and gold. 
Selfless and kind, 
she thinks only for others. 
There's nothing you can pick apart, 
she's the one you've...

If the world was a wolf,
Her paw pads would be worn.
Her throat would be strangled,
Her legs grasped in claws traps.

If the world was a tree,
Their trunk would be halfway sawed.
Their branches would be snapped and broken,
Their flowers molding on the branch.

If the world was a city,
He'd be choking on his smog.
He'd be dreaming of the forests he once was,
Of the mountains with fresh, clean rocky slopes.

If the wolf...

I guess I wasn't enough for you,
And never will be.

But you never took the time to guess what I'd gone through,
And trust me, it isn't easy.

When I first met you, I thought we could be friends,
But now I'm left crying.

And I wish this didn't have to end,
But you've been lying.

Lying to my face,
Laughing behind my back.

I know I'm out of place,
And sometimes I lack tact.

But I am who...

It's odd, because all our hearts look the same.

You can cut us open, spill our blood, but we,
Every single one of us,
Bleeds red.

You can tear us apart, make us cry, but we,
Every last one of us,
Has tears of salt and sorrow.

It's odd, because you can label us all you like, but we,
Every single one of us,
If no different if you take out our
Skin,
And eyes,
And hair,
And lips,
And...

You are beautiful, talented, smart, and amazing. I know life is hard and there are so many people that push us down and try to illuminate the bad things in the world. And I know there are people that would rather be hateful then try to be kind. But I love all of you so, so much, you are amazing people, amazing writers and overall wonderful, kind human beings. I wouldn't have made it this far without you. The world is...

and i swear i'm over what he did to me,
but
searching for goodness
that he didn't even pretend
he had
is a sick thing for me to have done to myself.

maybe he's a master manipulator,
(more than i already know he is)
and my empathy
was all part of his twisted plan.

or perhaps he merely saw a victim
and sat back
while i performed my own sacrifice
without his hands
having to control a thing.

I stand tall every moment I can
Shoulders pulled back, so tight my spine aches.
In my head it's an act,
I smile because I'm scared
Because I am small and weak,
And I know no other way to convince myself of my worth
Than to sacrifice myself to others.

When I am asked for help my heart swells
I push myself past my breaking point,
Taking on tasks that I'm not sure I can complete,
In hopes that when...

it seems
that people get too caught up in
who they perceive you to be
who they want you to be
who they think you should be
that they hardly listen
when you say
"this is who i am."

getting a small taste
here and there
of the stupid judgements people have
gives you the tiniest glimpse
into the pain you aren't experiencing
but know exists.
the pain you may one day face.
the pain that seems unbelievable.

because you...

There is a rage building up inside me,
And it is quiet.
Not the sort of quiet,
That speaks of silent nights,
But the kind that crashes before a storm,
The calm in the snow leopard's eyes,
Before they shake the mountain,
And pounce on this world,
And change it forever.

There is a scream bottled up inside me,
And it is quiet.
Not the sort of quiet,
That sounds like spent starlight,
But the kind before the world erupts...

We are built on blood,
This nation,
America,
Is built on blood.

The second
People came from overseas,
They started cutting,
And trees fell,
And the world was buried.

And wars came,
And it looked like they were fighting the land,
And the people who were there first,
They were there first,
But we,
America,
Destroyed it all,
And started wars,
And hurt the world.

And they fought,
We fought,
A revolution,
Based on freedom,
Or was it power?
Because...

She's so much better isn't she? 
On her throne of broken hearts.
Perfection is all you see, 
her heavy locks and glossy lips. 
Oh she's beautiful isn't she? 
Tall like a model, yet her eyes emerald and warm.
She's got no flaws, 
carved into perfection. 
A sight to behold, 
her beauty unfathomable. 
She's got a heart to die for, 
amber and gold. 
Selfless and kind, 
she thinks only for others. 
There's nothing you can pick apart, 
she's the one you've...

If the world was a wolf,
Her paw pads would be worn.
Her throat would be strangled,
Her legs grasped in claws traps.

If the world was a tree,
Their trunk would be halfway sawed.
Their branches would be snapped and broken,
Their flowers molding on the branch.

If the world was a city,
He'd be choking on his smog.
He'd be dreaming of the forests he once was,
Of the mountains with fresh, clean rocky slopes.

If the wolf...

It's odd, because all our hearts look the same.

You can cut us open, spill our blood, but we,
Every single one of us,
Bleeds red.

You can tear us apart, make us cry, but we,
Every last one of us,
Has tears of salt and sorrow.

It's odd, because you can label us all you like, but we,
Every single one of us,
If no different if you take out our
Skin,
And eyes,
And hair,
And lips,
And...

You are beautiful, talented, smart, and amazing. I know life is hard and there are so many people that push us down and try to illuminate the bad things in the world. And I know there are people that would rather be hateful then try to be kind. But I love all of you so, so much, you are amazing people, amazing writers and overall wonderful, kind human beings. I wouldn't have made it this far without you. The world is...

and i swear i'm over what he did to me,
but
searching for goodness
that he didn't even pretend
he had
is a sick thing for me to have done to myself.

maybe he's a master manipulator,
(more than i already know he is)
and my empathy
was all part of his twisted plan.

or perhaps he merely saw a victim
and sat back
while i performed my own sacrifice
without his hands
having to control a thing.

I stand tall every moment I can
Shoulders pulled back, so tight my spine aches.
In my head it's an act,
I smile because I'm scared
Because I am small and weak,
And I know no other way to convince myself of my worth
Than to sacrifice myself to others.

When I am asked for help my heart swells
I push myself past my breaking point,
Taking on tasks that I'm not sure I can complete,
In hopes that when...

it seems
that people get too caught up in
who they perceive you to be
who they want you to be
who they think you should be
that they hardly listen
when you say
"this is who i am."

getting a small taste
here and there
of the stupid judgements people have
gives you the tiniest glimpse
into the pain you aren't experiencing
but know exists.
the pain you may one day face.
the pain that seems unbelievable.

because you...

PART 1: INEJ


    It took years for Inej to even admit the desire to herself. It took another year for her to breach the subject with Kaz. She knew what his answer would be—knew what it should be, considering who they were. But something inside of her refused to give up. 
    She docked often at Ketterdam, staying at least a couple of weeks each time. Whenever she returned, she brought it up quietly. Each time she received the same response:...