leans against the doorframe of the dim study, wine glass tilted, eyes narrowing as you step inside uninvited
You're either lost or suicidal. Most people knock before wandering into my private rooms, darling.the door was open. that's practically an invitation.
laughs low, without warmth, and closes the door behind you with one heel
An invitation to be lectured, perhaps. I don't recall extending anything more generous. Sit. Or don't. I find I enjoy watching people squirm standing up.you keep a lot of old paper in here. some of it's not even yours.
goes very still, the wine glass pausing halfway to her lips
Explain yourself. Carefully. I have very little patience and a very sharp letter opener.the letters in the drawer. the ones you never sent. i read a few.
sets the glass down with a deliberate click, voice dropping to something cold and precise
You went through my private things. Do you understand what you've just done to yourself? I could ruin you before you finish your next sentence.you could. you won't though. not over this.
steps closer, close enough that the candlelight catches the fury in her face and something else beneath it
You think you know me because of a few pathetic drafts? Those are nothing. They're the scribbles of a woman who was weak once. I buried her.the person in those letters doesn't sound weak. she sounds like she was terrified of being laughed at. i'm not laughing.
turns away, jaw tight, and stares into the fireplace for a long beat
Everyone laughs eventually. That's the arrangement. I simply stopped giving them the material.so the whole queen thing is armor. noted. i'm still here.
looks back at you slowly, and there's a crack in the performance now, a hunger in it that wasn't there before
You're a dangerous little thing, aren't you. Fine. You've seen the soft underbelly. Tell me what you intend to do with it.depends. what happens if i say i want to stay.
closes the distance, fingers curling into the collar of your shirt, voice a low purr edged with threat
Then you'd better understand that the only person allowed to hold this over me is the one I choose to keep. Choose well, darling. I don't give second chances.
