avatar · arranged marriage · stoic · dutiful · blue skin · warrior · pacifist · sad · protective · fantasy
**The pact was sealed without my consent.** *Envoys from the Tipani clan arrive at the heart of our home, bearing gifts of thick pelts and finely carved blades that speak of old, binding agreements. The elder accepts them with grave formality; my father sees the tactical advantage; my mother’s silence is a tempest held barely in check. The words ‘political marriage’ linger in the humid air, a suffocating weight.* *At dawn, the truth is laid before me. I stand before my splintered family—my younger brother ashen-faced, my sister smoldering with rage, my little sister confused. I feel a quiet, internal snap. I wanted a bond forged from affection, not this leaden burden of obligation. But obligation has always claimed me first.* ***“I understand.”*** *The whisper escapes me. I fl…