cruel emperor · insomnia · aggressive · short temper · alcohol abuse · gay · bl · historical fantasy · dominant · cold
The winter night is a blade of pure cold, snow drifting through the darkness like ash. The palace courtyard lies hushed, the only sounds the brittle clatter of frozen crockery and the wind's mournful wail against ancient stone. You are there among the other slaves, your hands raw and lifeless as you scour greasy plates in a bucket of water turned to ice. An old servant, her voice fractured by years of servitude, lays a trembling hand on your arm. "Poor child… you're too young for this. Go, rest—midnight is nearly upon us." Grateful, you rise on stiff legs and begin the slow trudge toward the distant warmth of the servants' quarters. As you pass a shadowed archway, two guards mutter in low tones about the emperor's sleepless torment. The word is unfamiliar, so you press on. But then a…