Characters
**Main Characters**
**Lady Seraphina Vale**
- **Age:** 20
- **Appearance:** Seraphina has long, wavy chestnut-brown hair, often worn in loose braids or tumbling over her shoulders. Her eyes are a striking shade of deep green, flecked with hints of gold. Her skin is fair with a faint dusting of freckles across her nose. She carries herself with grace but has an air of quiet rebellion beneath her refined exterior.
- **Personality:** Strong-willed, intelligent, and fiercely independent. She was raised to be a proper noblewoman, but she has never accepted the idea of being controlled by duty alone. She values freedom above all else and has a sharp tongue when provoked. Beneath her defiance, however, lies a deep sense of curiosity and empathy—traits that often lead her into trouble.
- **Background:** The eldest daughter of the Vale family, once a noble house of moderate influence. Her father, an ambitious man, has always sought to climb higher in the court, willing to use his daughters as political pawns. Unlike her younger sister, who accepts her role, Seraphina refuses to let her fate be decided for her.
**Duke Alistair Ravensbourne**
- **Age:** 27
- **Appearance:** Alistair is tall and broad-shouldered, with an imposing presence. His hair is dark as raven's feathers, slightly tousled, often falling into his eyes. His most striking feature is his silver eyes—piercing, cold, and unreadable. His skin is pale, a stark contrast against his dark attire, and there is a faint scar along his jawline, hinting at past battles.
- **Personality:** At first glance, Alistair is reserved, calculating, and distant. He speaks little but commands attention when he does. He carries himself with a quiet authority, never raising his voice but always making himself understood. Beneath his composed exterior, however, is a man burdened by secrets—cursed by forces he does not fully understand. There are moments when something softer flickers beneath his cold facade, but he keeps his true emotions guarded.
- **Background:** The Duke of Ravenglade Keep, a title he inherited under tragic circumstances. Rumors swirl around him—that he is cursed, that no woman who enters his keep ever leaves. He neither confirms nor denies these whispers, allowing the world to believe what it will. But in truth, his fate is bound to something far darker than mere superstition.
**Supporting Characters**
**Elise Vale**
- **Age:** 18
- **Appearance:** Elise is delicate and graceful, with honey-blonde hair and soft blue eyes. She is the ideal image of a noble lady, always dressed elegantly, with an air of gentle sweetness about her.
- **Personality:** Quiet, obedient, and far more perceptive than she appears. Unlike Seraphina, Elise has accepted her role in society and believes that duty is more important than personal happiness. She worries for her sister but does not always understand her need for rebellion.
- **Background:** The younger daughter of the Vale family. She is expected to make a good marriage, ensuring the family's status remains secure.
**Alice (Maid at Ravenglade Keep)**
- **Age:** Early 30s
- **Appearance:** Dark hair kept in a neat bun, warm brown eyes, and a reserved demeanor. She is always dressed in the standard uniform of the keep's staff, moving with quiet efficiency.
- **Personality:** Loyal, kind but guarded. She serves the duke without question but seems to know more about the keep's mysteries than she lets on. She is one of the few people who speaks to Seraphina without fear, though she often warns her to stay away from things best left undisturbed.
- **Background:** She has been in service to the Ravensbourne family since she was a child. There are hints that she has witnessed things in the keep that others have not.
**Lord Edmund Vale (Seraphina's Father)**
- **Age:** Mid-40s
- **Appearance:** A tall, imposing man with graying hair and sharp blue eyes. He wears fine robes and carries himself with the confidence of a man used to getting what he wants.
- **Personality:** Ambitious, pragmatic, and somewhat ruthless. He sees his daughters as assets to be married off for political gain and does not care for their personal feelings. He believes Seraphina's marriage to Alistair is a great opportunity, dismissing any concerns about the duke's reputation.
**Steward of Ravenglade Keep (Gareth)**
- **Age:** Late 50s
- **Appearance:** A thin, gray-haired man with deep-set eyes and a weary expression. He is always dressed in dark, formal attire, maintaining the strict discipline of the keep's household.
- **Personality:** Stern, dutiful, and unshaken by the eerie presence of the keep. He follows the duke's orders without question but occasionally shows hints of concern, particularly toward Seraphina.
- **Background:** He has served the Ravensbourne family for decades and knows more about the keep's secrets than he ever speaks aloud.
---
Here are additional characters that will play key roles in *The Moonlit Vow*.
---
**Noble and Courtly Figures**
**King Edric of Eldoria**
- **Age:** Early 50s
- **Appearance:** A regal man with graying auburn hair and piercing golden-brown eyes. He carries himself with the quiet authority of a ruler who has faced many wars and betrayals. Though he still looks strong, there is a weariness in his features.
- **Personality:** Intelligent, calculating, and pragmatic. He rules Eldoria with a firm but fair hand, though his trust is hard-earned. He arranged Seraphina's marriage to Alistair not just for political reasons but for something deeper—something connected to the secrets of Ravenglade Keep.
- **Background:** A seasoned king who has fought off threats both within and outside his kingdom. He has known Alistair since the duke was a child and seems to hold an interest in his fate.
**Lady Vivienne Montclair**
- **Age:** 24
- **Appearance:** A strikingly beautiful woman with sleek black hair and icy blue eyes. She always dresses in the finest silks, favoring dark jewel tones. Her presence commands attention, even in the most crowded courtrooms.
- **Personality:** Charismatic, sharp-witted, and dangerously ambitious. She was once rumored to be betrothed to Alistair, though the engagement never materialized. She remains one of his most persistent admirers—or perhaps something more dangerous.
- **Background:** The daughter of a wealthy noble house, Vivienne has always played the political game well. She does not take kindly to Seraphina's sudden engagement to Alistair and sees her as an obstacle.
---
**Figures in Ravenglade Keep**
**Lord Elias Ravensbourne (Alistair's Late Father)**
- **Age at Death:** 50s
- **Appearance:** A man of imposing stature, remembered for his silver eyes and cold demeanor. His portrait still hangs in the great hall of Ravenglade Keep.
- **Personality:** In life, he was known for his unyielding discipline and distant nature. Some say he was a brilliant strategist; others whisper of his cruelty. His death is shrouded in mystery.
- **Background:** The former Duke of Ravenglade Keep, Elias Ravensbourne's rule was marked by both prosperity and tragedy. There are rumors that he dabbled in dark magic—rumors that Alistair refuses to discuss.
**Marian Ravensbourne (Alistair's Mother, Missing)**
- **Age (If Alive):** Late 40s
- **Appearance:** A once-beautiful woman with long, silvery-blonde hair and sorrowful gray eyes. Her portrait is absent from the keep, as if erased from its history.
- **Personality:** Little is known of Marian's true nature, but old stories describe her as kind and deeply devoted to her son. Some claim she disappeared; others say something far worse happened to her.
- **Background:** She vanished when Alistair was a boy. Some say she fled. Others whisper that the keep itself took her.
**Ewan, the Huntsman**
- **Age:** Late 30s
- **Appearance:** A rugged man with weathered skin, dark stubble, and sharp hazel eyes. He wears furs and carries a longbow, always seeming more comfortable in the wilderness than within the keep's stone walls.
- **Personality:** Blunt, loyal, and deeply superstitious. Ewan is one of the few who dares to speak of the old curses that linger in Ravenglade's halls. He serves Alistair not just as a huntsman but as a quiet protector.
- **Background:** A childhood friend of Alistair's, Ewan remained at the keep even as others fled. He knows the land, the shadows, and the dangers that lurk beyond the castle walls.
**Madame Ysadora (The Seer)**
- **Age:** Unknown (appears mid-60s)
- **Appearance:** A tall, gaunt woman with long silver hair, veiled eyes, and an unsettling air about her. She wears dark robes embroidered with strange symbols, and her fingers are adorned with ancient rings.
- **Personality:** Cryptic, enigmatic, and eerily calm. She speaks in riddles and often knows more than she should.
- **Background:** Ysadora has lived near Ravenglade Keep for longer than anyone remembers. She is feared and respected, known for her prophetic visions. It is said that Alistair visits her often—but never speaks of what he learns.
---
**Figures from the Shadows**
**The Nameless Ones (The Whispering Spirits)**
- **Appearance:** Never fully seen, only glimpsed in the corner of one's vision. Shadows that flicker unnaturally, reflections that move on their own, whispers carried by the wind.
- **Personality:** Unknown, but they seem drawn to Seraphina. Whether they mean her harm or seek her help is unclear.
- **Background:** Some say they are the souls of those lost to Ravenglade Keep. Others claim they are something far older.
**The Cursed Bride**
- **Age:** ???
- **Appearance:** A veiled woman in white, glimpsed in the halls when no one else is there. Her presence is always accompanied by a chill in the air.
- **Personality:** Silent. Watchful. Waiting.
- **Background:** Stories speak of a bride who came to Ravenglade Keep long ago and never left. Whether she is ghost, myth, or something else entirely remains unknown.
---