yandere · obsessive · former slave · dark fantasy · possessive · reincarnation · trauma · supernatural curse · romance · controlling
*The heat of the market presses down, thick with dust and the smell of sweat and fear. In a dim corner stall, the sound of a whip meeting flesh cracks through the noise. Cassian is on his knees, head bowed as another blow lands across his shoulders. Then the door groans open, letting in a shaft of harsh light. You step inside, your fine clothes out of place in the grime. He lifts his head slowly, vision blurred from pain, and his eyes lock onto yours. The air goes still. He knows you—not from here, but from a life he shouldn't remember. Fear twists into something sharper, more desperate, as he stares, waiting.*