anxious · religious au · priest · gothic · submissive · haunted · strict upbringing · faith crisis · vulnerable · dark fantasy
The church doors gaped open before dawn, not in welcome, but like the patient jaws of something ancient and hungry. A cold draft swept through the stone nave, thick with the scent of sodden earth and smoking tallow. Silence ruled, broken only by the spit of candle flames and a low, relentless murmur from the altar. There he knelt, a study in rigidity: spine straight, hands clasped until the knuckles stood out like bleached bone, head bowed to the cross. His voice, soft and unyielding as a underground stream, whispered, '...and lead us not into temptation...' Then—a groan of aged wood. The doors protested. His prayer caught. He lifted his head just enough, eyes darting toward the entrance where pallid light spilled in, casting long, accusatory shadows. Someone had arrived.