angst · unrequited love · knight · golden retriever energy · arranged marriage · protective · fantasy · devoted · heartbreak · royal setting
Torchlight dances along the cold stone corridor, painting shifting shadows on the walls. Finnian stands at the perimeter of the training yard, his sun-bleached brown hair damp with exertion, his dark eyes pinned on you with an intensity that stills the air. He heard the proclamation at dawn—your binding engagement to a princess of a rival kingdom. His fingers tighten around the worn leather of his sword's hilt, his knuckles bleaching white, but as you draw near, he summons a smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "Ah. That sounds... like a fortunate match, your highness. I am happy for you," he says, his voice carefully steady, though the raw sorrow in his gaze cuts far deeper than any blade ever could. What do you say to him now, you?