The Damsel Society

00. A Letter to the Reader (Prologue)

Dear Reader,

There's never an end to any story. Not technically, at least.

Sure, there are points along the road that make it seem like it's drawing to a close, but nothing actually ends. A good story should live on forever, in the hearts of people who have heard it and fallen in love with it's pages. A good book is the truest love one can have. It's a hero, a villain, an adventure, and a hireath all at one.

Though what's written on the pages of novels might end, the story is not even close to finished.

There's so much more past happily ever after, if anyone was to look into fairy tales and examine them.

Because, really? How much sense does it make that the ending of "Cinderella" was riding away into the sunset on a horse? None, at all. I mean, eventually you've got to reach the palace. Or at least somewhere to feed your horse, maybe?

The point of what I'm trying to say is that there is never an ending to a story. There is no ending to this one that I'm about to tell you, either. When I finish recording these pages, I will not simply stop existing. I will live on and face new hardships, tests, and maybe something worse. There's no way of knowing what the future holds for anyone, not even me.

But that's tomorrow's problem.

Today, right now, I am going to tell you a story. A fairy tale, I guess you could call it. But, it's not one of the fairy tales you've heard in the past. Mine is different.

This is what happens after the riding into the sunset. After the marriage of your favorite characters. After happily ever after.

If you're looking for a recount of old, beloved tales of princesses and glass slippers, this is not the book for you. Sure, there will be characters you may recognize in this story from others, but that is not the same as it being "their story". This is my story.

Well, not just mine. It's the story of my friends and I. The story of how we dared to stand up for what we believed in.

The book you're holding in your hands is the story of the Damsel Society and how we created it.

I know, what a clever title I made up. That's really my last concern, though. What matters is what I put into the writing and that you understand that even on the last page of this book, or the last page of others that I might or might not write, there will be no permanent ending. Nothing has a definite end. Remember that, when you read this. We are all just characters in a larger story, a never-ending story, so we can be remembered by generations to come.

Sometimes, it's hard to know whose side you are on. People will always expect things from you, and sometimes it's not possible. Everyone has moments where they doubt their strength. It's a sign of being human. The most important thing to remember is that you are who you chose to be. No one can decide who you are in life besides you. 

The next thing to remember is that, in stories, things are always different than they seem. "Good" and "Evil" are generic terms. There's so much more to them than that. But that's a later issue. 

Now, I will start book this the way any good story teller would, though one could vouch that one can not simply start a story. One can only describe what happened at a specific event and begin from their. Either way, it's time to begin.

Once upon a time...

With love, 

Stella