For thirty generations his family had ruled these lands. In the view of the Council of Vicars, the esteemed priests of the Church of the Edd, he’d eclipsed all predecessors in seventy years as Sovereign. But who would follow him?

‘There’s magic on this island,’ said Gran as I stepped off the boat.

Mother and Daughter had repeated this routine every school day since Jessie was five years old but today was the day Jessie started “Big School” as her mother embarrassingly insisted on telling everyone they had met for the past three months.

He felt it, this time. This would be different. On the screen was the registration form for Raijin Karate.

Doris knew exactly why she'd survived. Like her physicist mother and other members of the scientific, military and political elites, she'd been in an immersion tank when the bombs started falling.

For seven weeks, three days and some number of hours we’ve come here; nocturnal pilgrims looking for answers — holding vigil while she drifts further from our grasp.

There was always something magical about the last day of school before the summer holidays. I am sure you remember the sensation yourself.

On April 3rd, 2019, I embarked on the longest walk known to the human race. This walk wasn’t measured by miles or steps, but by psychological trauma.

Why was he still Pilt the Scrummie and not Pilt the Bosun? Most days, he would have settled for just being Pilt the Sailor.

We made sure we both got Ms. Meyer’s homeroom class in fourth grade, because according to my older brother, she was the best teacher of the few you could choose.

Oscar watched his housemate Philippa’s fingers move in staccato beats over the keys, each note prodded from the piano like a confession. All the same, he sang along.

Albert peered out across the way. Snow stretched for miles. The earth remained silent. Albert was alone. As he had been for the past decade.

I need air... I need to breathe, or I'll die... Helena coughed uncontrollably, her chest felt like it was on fire, and she kept throwing up salty water.

Growing old is cruel. I don't recommend it to anyone. It's like snow in summer. Unseemly and ridiculous.

When he lost his eye, half of Eric Jessop's field of vision became a black sadness that seeped into everything from football to faces. Only skating was strong enough to resist the stain.