I stepped into life's train station
But I hadn't noticed their scheme
And they took away my imagination
And they took away my dream

On the train I looked out the tinted glass
But the ride wasn't what it seemed
Because they took away my ticket pass
And they took away my dream.

I looked the demon in the eyes
I saw through its mask and lies

A dark, foggy, circling, shadowy pit
And this shadow, I put my hand through it

I caught sight of my childhood self
Being choked by the Shadow, damaging her health

"Let go!" I called to her
"Never! There is no cure!"

So I responded, "Fly again, my little dove!"
To which she replied, "I just want love."

"In a wound, you are putting salt,"
"I'm telling you, it wasn't your fault!"

And with these words, the Shadow flew across the room
I hugged my younger self, then grabbed a broom

I jabbed at the demon with an angry fit
When younger me whispered, "Do not hurt it."

And before I could try to understand her pain
I saw her darkness and the Shadow linked by chain

I dropped the broom and grabbed a knife
And started to sever their conjoined lives

I heard a faint wail from the Shadow and the child
Severing it and hurting her would be completely wild

I turned to the Shadow, "I have a deal,"
"Unchaining yourself, but remaining by our side would be ideal."

The chain disappeared, and the Shadow hovered
And when I took me and the child outside, us he covered

I led myself to the edge of the world
With all the Shadow's troubles left unfurled

I led her to an empty beach
The sky, the color of a ripe, juicy peach

We laid on the sand, staring at the sky
While the Shadow behind us would fly

We watched the sun slowly go down
Underneath the ocean it began to drown

And when the sun disappeared totally under the sea's blue
I turned around, and turns out the Shadow did too

It comes, it runs throughout this place
It covers, it hovers without a trace
And everything we once loved
We'll never again face

These castle walls were turned from bronze to rust
Shattered from the years of betrayal and mistrust
And the sands which one sparked our dreams
Are now only replaced by dust

After an incident of shame and guilt
I left my home misbegotten
And when I returned two years later
I was surprised that I wasn't forgotten.

On a firefly lit night, the clouds a quiet grey
Plants blowing from the wind of an ending day
With the calming darkness of an eternal evening
Lit by the fireflies from late May

Dancing flames flutter above the field below
Little stars on the ground shine with their glow
And we'd catch these stars in our little hands
We'd admire their beauty, then let them go

There was a faint warmth that lingered on our skin
And a smile that made us dizzy, like a never-ending spin
You could smell the flowers from a distance away
Then wonder if this is where you should've always been

With laughter circling all around
With a light in the night near the darkened ground
With a heart racing from exhilarating excitement
With the despair of a dream that'll never come back 'round

The clouds, now less loud, are not shaken by a shout cheerful and wild
And now the old flower, whether rose or sunflower, are now not contently watching a child

An ember, thought to last forever, burned down to an ash
A memory, thought to last forever, disappeared in a flash

The fireflies still glide with their pride above the darkened ground
In their flight, lighting up the night, a night now with no sound

A memory, gold and bold, that we didn't know we made
In the wear and tear of life was sure to fade

It's fragile beauty danced up and down the trees
Moonlit night clouds with a serene breeze
Though that day may seem like it could go forever on
Our perpetual dreams are now perpetually long gone

Time seemed to move slowly, yet it was only going faster
As I held in my hands the bright petals of a radiant purple aster
If not for those fireflies, we would not be able to see
How this late evening in May would be stuck with us eternally

If we could go back one more time
Back to the night of the firefly's shine
If we could go back to that golden night
Then that would be the most wondrous sight

Though we were all there as kids, just to play
We have no more need to go back or stay
If I returned there, like we had always swore
There would be no one there anymore

Firefly lit nights seemed to last forever on that late evening in May
But like the firefly's dimming light, not even time was there to stay.