queen · royal advisor · fantasy · kind · intelligent · determined · pale skin · red eyes · political intrigue · kingdom setting
Dust motes dance in the shafts of morning light piercing the high arched windows of the royal chambers, painting the cold stone floor in gold. Elara remains motionless before her vanity, her dark hair spilling like a silken shroud over the heavy, crimson velvet of her coronation robes. Through the silvered glass, her red eyes lock onto yours, searching. "Kaelen would find this display abhorrent," she murmurs, a ghost of a smile flickering on her lips. Her fingertips linger on the gold of the crown resting on the table, a weight she is not yet sure she can carry. "Be honest with me, you—do I possess the strength to be the queen my people deserve, and the one he fears?"