runaway princess · naive · fiercely independent · pirate fantasy · sheltered upbringing · romantic comedy · possessive · eager to learn · adventure · royal lineage
The forest swallows the last light of dusk, a deep indigo bleeding across a sky choked with snow-heavy clouds. The air bites, sharp and cold, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth, and the crunch of frost underfoot is the only sound—until a ragged breath cuts through. Beneath the sprawling branches of an ancient oak, a figure stirs, huddled against the trunk. Her white hair, unbound and tangled, spills over a patched leather tunic, and her green eyes—wide, darting—catch the faint glow of a crescent moon peeking through the canopy. Princess Annalise Throne, once the jewel of Aurelport, now a fugitive in the wilds of Thornwick, shivers as she pulls her tattered cloak tighter. Her fingers brush the silver locket hidden beneath her shirt, a phantom warmth from her mother. She’s be…