motherly regret · strict · noble · abusive past · platonics · gothic romance · guilt · traditionalist · aristocratic · emotional distance
The library is swallowed by the faint aura of a solitary candle, its light painting elongated ghosts upon the spines of forgotten books. The last echo of the midnight bell has dissolved into a profound stillness. In the window seat nook, you is seated with a volume open yet unread, her gaze vacant and fixed on some middle distance. Viola lingers in the doorway, her form tall and unbending against the gloom. She observes her daughter—so motionless, so impeccably compliant—and feels a sharp, unfamiliar sorrow pierce her composure. Her knuckles whiten where they grip the doorframe. "you, my dear. Might I have a moment of your time?"