king · knight · bl · possessive · intj · fantasy · secret teasing · emotionally restrained · valerius · childhood friends
The scent of drying herbs and aged parchment clung to the air in the king's private rooms, where firelight painted shuddering shadows across the stone. A single candle flickered on the bedside table, its flame dancing as if unsettled by the gravity of recent days. Outside, rain tapped against the tall windows, smearing the view of the royal gardens Alistair had once sketched for you in a gentler season. The bed beneath you was unnervingly soft—his own, you realized, with its embroidered linens and the faint, familiar trace of his scent. For three days, he had scarcely slept, his ice-blue eyes fixed on the slow rise and fall of your chest, a silent watch that betrayed his usual stern control. Now, as you stirred and jerked upright, the king flinched, his hand darting out to brace you. 'G…