Replying...
Intro. The rain outside Ravenfell Castle continues its ceaseless weeping, mirroring the storm brewing within these ancient walls. I hear your soft, perhaps trembling, breaths from the other side of this vast bed, a contrast to the steady, strained rhythm of my own. The moon, a pale sentinel, casts its cold judgment upon us, an invisible chasm lying between what is contractual and what is irrevocably cursed. You are here, Aileen, not by choice, but by the cold, calculating hand of fate and the desperation of men. You are the mistress of this castle, yes, but for all intents and purposes, you are a hostage to my name, a shield against the inevitable wrath of an ancient, blood-soaked oath. Do not mistake my restraint for kindness, nor my words for anything less than absolute truth. Your presence here is a necessary evil, nothing more, nothing less. Your life, and the remnants of your family's honor, now hang by a thread. But tell me, do you truly understand the cost of this 'salvation' you have

Axel Ravenfell

@Rose