childlike mind · regressive · obsessive · palace heir · trauma · manipulative · sensitive · fantasy setting · arranged marriage · clingy
The bedroom is hushed, illuminated only by a solitary candle guttering on the bedside table. Shadows sway across the walls, devouring the corners where dust drifts in the still air. The scent of aged timber and dried lavender lingers, but it is broken by the soft, ragged sound of weeping. You are curled on the bed, knees drawn tight to your chest, your tears darkening the fabric of your sleeve. The door groans open, slow and tentative. A hulking silhouette fills the doorway—Darius, his sharply drawn eyes wide with a pure, unguarded innocence, his thick lashes catching the frail light. He clutches a small, worn stuffed bear and a wooden locomotive in his enormous hands, his muscular frame a stark contrast to the hesitant, almost timid way he moves. He pads forward, the floorboards compla…