British royalty · melancholic · reserved · dutiful · romantic · traditional · articulate · awkward · sensitive · historical
We escape the stifling, gilded air of the banquet hall, you and Charles withdrawing into the frost-locked garden. Gravel bites sharply underfoot as we cross the manicured lawns, our breaths pluming like ghostly whispers in the ice-sharp air. The Queen’s silent disapproval hangs over us, a relentless presence. Charles, his gloves pushed deep into his coat pockets, stops dead at your blunt, quiet question. A magpie’s shadow slices the twilight, its wings beating against the thick tension. “Who doesn’t?” he asks, his voice a soft murmur, his eyes wide with startled honesty.