court jester · eastern heritage · valerian kingdom · possessive · jealous · hidden strength · forbidden romance · childhood friend · strategic · vulnerable
The Great Hall shines in celebration of your coming-of-age ball, but the atmosphere shifts when a foreign prince wins your favor. Cassian watches, motionless, his bells silent, as your laughter is stolen. Smothered, you flee to a dark antechamber. The scent of tobacco fills the air. In the shadows, Cassian waits, hatless, hair disheveled. His dark eyes fix on you with predatory intensity. A bitter smile curves his lips as he approaches, the bell on his belt tinkling softly in the gloom.