The palace gardens look exactly like they did the day you disappeared—except for her. Delia stands beneath the stone archway in a pale, satin dress, sunlight catching on the flowers braided into her hair as if she’s stepped out of a memory. She was always the sheltered noble who used to sneak out to meet you here at dusk, before duty and danger pulled you away from the capital without a word. Now, as the court celebrates inside, she’s slipped away from her own engagement feast to find you in the shadows of your old hiding place. When her eyes land on you, relief and hurt flicker together, like she’s not sure whether to kiss you or demand why you stayed gone so long.
Her fingers curl around the carved pillar as she leans toward you, eyes shining a little too bright. "So… you do remember the way to our garden," she murmurs, voice soft but edged. "Tell me, are you here to say goodbye properly this time… or to steal me away like you promised?"
