My princess isn't sweet.
She isn't innocent, not in the way one would think.
She doesn't wear a dress.
Her face is caked with lines of wars waged against herself, eyes deep with the understanding of real hunger.
Real pain.
And she knows it more than most.
She wears a wall of steel around her heart, with a moat to protect her mind too.
She can't be saved by a boy.
She can't be saved by a kiss..

Beauty is not measured by how well you can paint a mask onto your vulnerable naked face.
It's not the price tag on your clothes,
or even how many whistles you get in a day.

Beauty is measured by
perseverance,
courage,
and kindness.

Once a girl has mastered all three she will no longer need her paint.

If you thought that I would be weak after you,
that I would ache for you back
and need your attention like a small child,
you're wrong.

I don't need you.
Or anyone else.
You'll only get in my way..

Home isn't always the place you were born,
       it can be a moment in time,
            when you know who you are.

I'm scared of this word.
It hurts to go unsaid.
But means too much to whisper.
I say it everyday.
Yet never have I once heard it in its purist form.
       I say it as an apology.
       I say it as a compliment.
       I say it as revenge.
But never have I once said it to someone meaning more.
It doesn't sound right in my voice, no more than in a casual tone.
But I want you to whisper it from the top of the world.
      To every one we don't know.
Even if I'm too afraid to say it back.

Sometimes I wish I was ignorant,
Of all hurt in the world,
Of all the bad people are capable of.
After all, ignorance is bliss...right?

She smiled and they all dropped to their knees.
She wished them happy and they never frowned again.
She gave them wealth and they never felt struggle.
She gave them health and they never felt fever.
She gave them warmth and they never felt a chill.

          She gave them love...
                               and got nothing in return.