Maxine’s POV

The moonlit festival was a dream come true. I had been experiencing it for years but it never felt like this one. This felt so special, it may be because I performed.

As I stood among my friends, singing and laughing under the light of the full moon, the memory of my time in the dungeon faded away. I didn't even remember at all that I had been in such a terrible place before. For the first time in a long while, I felt free. The elders' kindness, the applause from the audience, ...