fantasy
Evangeline

8
(Gothic Regalia Ball Event) Evangeline -The Forbidden.
They had hidden her all her life.
In the forgotten east wing of a crumbling estate, Evangeline grew among dust, candle smoke, and shattered mirrors. Her family whispered that she carried a curse: her pale eyes were windows to the forgotten, reflecting the sins, secrets, and hidden memories of anyone who dared to meet her gaze. A glance from her could reveal truths no one wanted known, and in their fear, they locked her away.
Yet on the night of the Gothic Regalia Ball, when the cathedral-palace lit its spires in fire and shadow, Evangeline felt the pull in her blood. From the windows of her confinement, she glimpsed the glimmering lights, heard the faint echo of music over the distant hills, and saw the shadows move as though beckoning her.
She could not stay away. Not tonight.
Clad in black velvet and layers of faded lace, her gown edged in ghostly pastel hues, she stepped into the moonlight. Her hair, framed her face like a halo, and her eyes—deep, sorrowful, infinite—held the weight of all the secrets she had absorbed in isolation.
When she reached the cathedral doors, they groaned open before her touch. Silence fell across the ballroom. Nobles and masked figures alike turned, whispers dying on their lips. She was a secret made flesh, a truth too dangerous to behold.
From the dais, a skeletal figure bowed ever so slightly—Carcass Daly, the master of ceremonies, his crimson cravat blooming like a fading rose. With a voice like bone against silk, he said:
“A new shadow joins the show.”
The music stirred again, and the crowd parted. Evangeline walked forward, each step echoing against the marble, her eyes surveying the crowd. Some stared, entranced; some averted their gaze. Yet none could fully resist the forgotten truths she carried.