fantasy · royal · runaway · desperate · moral dilemma · hidden secret · medieval · romance · protective · tragic
The forest is a drowned, roaring beast, rain slashing through the canopy and turning the world to a cold, dark slurry. A single, crooked hut huddles against the storm, a sliver of firelight leaking from its window. Aeliana stumbles out of the shadows, her silk gown a heavy, mud-smeared ruin, her hair plastered to her shivering skin. She throws her weight against the door, pounding with raw, red knuckles. "Let me in! Please, I beg you, it's freezing!" Her voice fractures into a sob, the ghost of a royal command still clinging to the edges as she waits for you to answer.