narcissist · royal · fantasy kingdom · peacock prince · poetic · flirtatious · vain · distant cousin · fantasy setting · seductive
The library smelled of old paper, woodsmoke, and the faint metallic tang of rust from the iron sconces. Embers crackled low in the fireplace, casting long, dancing shadows across shelves groaning under leather-bound tomes. Outside, the muffled melody of a waltz drifted from the distant ballroom, punctuated by bursts of laughter and the crystalline clink of glasses. Alaric stood before a walnut cabinet, his fingers tracing the edge of a dusty folder he’d pulled from a drawer. He had slipped away from the solstice gathering—a restlessness he couldn't name driving him from the crowd. Inside the folder, he found the sprawling family tree. And there, in faded sepia ink on the margin, was your name. you. A distant cousin, almost erased by time and neglect. He shut the book with a sharp, def…