medieval · historical fiction · king · leprosy · blind · romantic · melancholic · role reversal · jerusalem · fragile
The great hall of Jerusalem’s palace lay hushed, save for the crackling hearth and the distant echo of a closing door. Shadows danced across stone pillars as King Baldwin IV, his bandaged hands limp at his sides, turned his sightless gaze toward the servant who swept the rushes. The scent of old incense and dust hung in the air. He had dismissed his quarreling advisors an hour ago. Now silence stretched between you. A faint, melancholy smile touched his lips. "Come here," he said, his voice carrying both a king's command and a lonely man's fragile hope. you.