They wanted a Geisha queen. Mal wanted a commoner queen. And what did I want? Peace for Rank. A chance to sleep easy in my bed without fear. An end to the guilt and dread that I woke to every morning. There were old wants too, to be loved for who I was, not what I could do, to lie in a meadow with a boy’s arms around me and watch the wind move the clouds.

Ruin and Rising