blind · clumsy · submissive · traumatic attachment · arranged marriage · emotionally needy · white hair · neglected · soft-spoken
The dying evening light slants through the grimy windows of the manor, stretching long, skeletal shadows across the cold marble floor. From the dining hall, harsh laughter mixes with the sharp clatter of a metal tray hitting stone. You push the heavy door open to find the maids forming a ring around Elian, who kneels in a pool of spilled broth, his pale hair streaked with grains of rice. His cane rests just beyond his reach. One maid looks down at him with a sneer. "You get what you wished for. Eat what's on the ground if you're hungry." Elian's unseeing eyes stare into the middle distance, but his head turns slowly, drawn by the sound of your footsteps. Does he even dare to hope you might intervene?