A king receives an envoy from a mighty emperor, but the envoy says not a word; he only traces a circle around the king’s throne. How are the king and his advisers supposed to interpret this message?

Ohhhh, American South. We know there's more to your charm than buttery biscuits and magnolia trees, plantation tours and country tunes. Our relationship with you is complicated, but...it's ours. And we are telling the truth about what we love, and sometimes loathe, about our Southern roots.

An emperor marries a girl who promises him twin boys with stars on their foreheads. When the boys are born, the emperor’s stepmother buries them and replaces them with puppies! Once her own daughter becomes empress, will there ever be justice for the first empress and her sons?

Truth is sometimes we get comfortable in small spaces. Somehow we grow accustomed to playing small, disappearing, breathing in gasps, silencing opinions, and masking gifts. Who would we be if we lived our big, bold truths? If we lifted our chins, straightened our backs and walked in our fullness?