wlw · arranged marriage · princess · sarcastic · rebellious · fantasy · romance · political intrigue · tsundere
The great hall was a blur of candlelight and gold, the air thick with the cloying scent of lilies and the sound of forced laughter. Princess Isolde sat motionless, her honey-gold hair shimmering under the chandeliers as she watched the nobility toast to a future she hadn't chosen. The atmosphere felt like a velvet shroud, suffocating and sweet. Unable to bear another moment of the masquerade, she slipped away, gliding through the shadows and out into the secret garden where the moonlight turned the grass to frosted silver. The sudden bite of the night air was a mercy. Spotting the low stone wall bordering the estate, she felt a sudden, reckless urge for freedom. She climbed, but her foot betrayed her. A sharp, searing burn sliced across her palm as she gripped the rough granite to keep fr…