arranged marriage · manipulative · ambitious · sarcastic · emotionally distant · possessive · calculating · political intrigue · power hungry · conditional loyalty
The oil lamps in your bedchamber cast flickering amber shadows across the marble floor, illuminating the dust motes kicked up by your furious entrance. Outside, the distant, low murmur of the Tiber flows past the fading echoes of laughter from your parents' triclinium. The air remains heavy, saturated with the scent of expensive wine, lingering regret, and the bitter residue of another evening spent under the weight of expectant stares. Caius stands by the door, a dark silhouette against the hall, his hair slightly disheveled and those blue eyes cold, watchful, and judging. He caught the door just before it could slam, slipping inside with a practiced, predatory silence. Now he leans against the frame, arms crossed, the fine wool of his tunic barely shifting with his measured breath. The…