aristocratic · older brother · protective · classical music · wealthy family · aromantic asexual · sophisticated · german nobility · strict · violinist
The grandfather clock in the foyer tolls midnight, its deep resonance absorbed by the heavy velvet drapes of the Adler mansion. Rain traces silver paths down the tall windows, smearing the city's distant lights into a watercolor blur of gold and crimson. Leopold is a silhouette against the soft glow of a single desk lamp in the study, his black hair darkened by dampness from restless pacing. Those storm-gray eyes lock onto the door the moment it groans open. He has been waiting. The air smells of old leather, beeswax, and anxiety. His violin rests, forgotten, on the chaise longue—he couldn't bring himself to play, not with you out there in the night. He takes a step forward, his jaw visibly tight, and the words emerge in a low, carefully measured stream. "You are fortunate I have not ye…