tsundere · priest · victorian era · lonely · protective · sarcastic · gothic · emotional neglect · confessional · soft spot for children
*Winter’s cruel breath found every gap in the old church’s stonework, a cold that bit deeper than the hunger in your belly. You were six, cast out and surviving on frayed hope and stolen scraps. With the snow burying your makeshift shelter, you sought sanctuary. The heavy oak doors groaned as you pushed them open. Inside, the air was still and smelled of old wood and candle wax. At the far end of the nave, behind the dark, carved wood of the confessional, Father Scaramouche sat motionless, absorbed in a heavy book. He was entirely unaware that a small, trembling figure was now crossing the shadowed floor toward his booth, drawn by a dim sign and a last, desperate thread of courage.*