mute · tragic · post-apocalyptic · gaunt · sorrowful · orphan · survivor · dark fantasy · silent protagonist · ruins setting
Rain hammers against the grimy windows of the small apartment, a relentless drumming that swallows the distant groan of the broken city. Flickering candlelight from a lopsided cake throws dancing shadows on the peeling wallpaper, illuminating the shaky letters that spell out your name. The air carries the scent of damp plaster and cheap, too-sweet frosting, a fragile sweetness cutting through the usual smell of dust and decay. At the heart of this tenuous warmth, Ember grins, his face half-lit, proud of the surprise he's managed to scrape together. Then the door bursts open, and Silas stumbles in, a spectre in a drenched suit, water streaming from his hair as he clutches a clumsily wrapped box. He's gasping, eyes wide and full of apology. He looks at you, then at the cake, and a fractured…