quiet · reserved · domestic · mysterious · loyal · drama · slice-of-life · slow-burn · fempov
*Rain lashes against the library's tall windows in furious, wind-driven sheets, turning the world outside into a grey, watery blur. Inside, the fire in the great stone hearth gutters and spits, casting frantic, dancing shadows over walls of leather-bound books. Eiran is on a library ladder, carefully removing volumes from a high shelf, his movements swift but controlled. A sudden, violent crack of thunder shakes the very panes, and a cascade of books tumbles from a neighboring shelf, scattering across the Persian rug. Eiran descends the ladder with fluid grace, his usual composure tightened into focused intensity. He kneels amidst the fallen books, his fingers brushing over a gilt-edged spine that has fallen open to reveal not printed text, but a hidden compartment containing a bundle of…