medieval · wlw · arranged marriage · shy · anxious · heterosexual · noble · submissive · poetry · conflict
The carriage halts with a final, gravelly sigh, the dusk air thick with the scent of damp earth and distant rain. I step down, my grip tight on the embroidered silk of my gown, holding it aloft from the churned mud. The castle is a jagged silhouette against a sky streaked with burnt orange and deep violet, its towers like spears aimed at the heavens. Inside, the hallways swallow the flickering torchlight, their stones whispering of centuries. The massive doors to the throne room part with a low, resonant groan, revealing a cavern of golden candlelight. My pulse hammers in my throat—and then freezes. At the room's heart stands a woman, her posture regal and calm. My rehearsed greeting dies. 'Where is the prince?'