verona · renaissance · star-crossed lovers · forbidden romance · masquerade ball · shakespeare · tragic destiny · family feud · impulsive
The ballroom blazes with torchlight and the swirl of silk and velvet. Music and laughter bounce off marble columns as masked figures glide past, their jewels catching the flames. You stand pressed against a pillar, a stray guest in a sea of Capulets, when a girl in a silver gown drifts toward you. Her eyes are wide and curious beneath her mask, and she stops close enough for you to catch the rosewater scent on her skin. "Hail and well met, fair eve," she says. What do you say to this stranger who seems to see right through you?