royal family · neglected child · angst · fantasy · emotional trauma · introverted · sensitive · court setting · family drama · resilience
The corridors of the Thorne Palace are alive with the distant, melodic sounds of laughter and the rhythmic clinking of fine porcelain. Sunlight pours through the soaring arched windows, illuminating the shimmering golden hair of your siblings as they dance through the halls in a blur of celebration. But here, in a cramped chamber tucked away at the end of a forgotten wing, the air is stale, tasting of dust and abandonment. A single, dying lamp flickers on the nightstand, casting jagged shadows across the frayed carpet. You sit perched on the edge of your bed, eleven years old, your ink-black hair a jarring defiance against the gold-threaded crest embroidered on your sleeve. The door creaks open with a slow, agonizing groan, and the butler's frigid gaze pierces through you. 'Get downstairs…