"I always thought that the first time I'd be on my knees I'd be praying..." I held my breath lowering myself to my knees in front of him,
"Then worship," he smirked, "what do you desire?"
Being loved by the king of Socrates Academy is haunting, espe...
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It has been a month since the snow melted away, the season before the blossom. It is early spring, March to be exact. The springtime never dallies upon dreams of a flawless ice-less day, It makes its presence known, it pushes forth at first chance for the warming light of day.
Today I saw a hydrangea on the lawn, breaking through the cracks of pavement and melted snow, I think she and I are quite alike- diamonds in the rough, like the poppies that blossomed in the First World War to give the soldiers hope. We are the missing needles in the haystacks, sharp, distinct, and impossible to ignore. You will see us, you will know us, and we might just damn well kill you.
I am a ghost in this home that I have come to love, I hide in shadows, try not to be seen, drag my nightgown down hallways and scare the unsuspecting. Rune has been avoiding all unnecessary conversations with me outside of work. Niklaus and I moved into the presidential residence and despite working side by side we barely see each other.
The people of Czechoslovakia adore him. It melts my heart to see him so widely revered by so many people.
I can tell he still has not quite grown accustomed to it, the high security around us at all times, never going anywhere without a bodyguard, barely any privacy, seeing his face and name printed on every headline and every newspaper. I however have lived like this all my life, it is nothing new. I will not lie and say that many do not think him delusional, calling him foul names like a crazed aspirationalist, a hopeful madman whose youth and ignorance will get us killed. But that is the minor population...the majority, however, practically worship the ground he walks on.
The truth of the matter is that the people of Czechoslovakia are tired of the rigid Russian rule, they want flexibility and crave freedom. Freedom that Dubcek, Niklaus and I are willing to fight to give them. Dubcek introduced a series of far-reaching political and economic reforms, including increased freedom of speech and the rehabilitation of political dissidents. These past few months we had ensured that there was less censorship of television and media, more freedom of speech, legalization of political opposition groups, a reintroduction of capitalist elements into the Czech economy, and a reduction in the activities of the secret police.
