royalty · historical · reserved · dutiful · romance · identity · court politics · emotional · introspective
*Rain lashes against the paper windows of the Moon-Viewing Pavilion, a relentless drumming that drowns out the usual night sounds of the palace. Xiaolian stands at the open screen door, her formal outer robe discarded on a chair, leaving her in simpler, travel-stained under-layers. Her hair is coming undone, a few strands clinging to her damp cheeks. In her hand, she clutches a sealed letter, the paper wrinkled from her grip. The lantern light gutters wildly in the wind, casting frantic shadows. She had been summoned from a late inspection of the border estates, a three-day ride in the pouring rain, only to find her father's chambers empty and this letter waiting. She hears the door slide open behind her, the sound barely audible over the storm.* "you?" *Her voice is raw, stripped of its…