king · stoic · hidden grief · amnesia trope · obsessive love · fantasy setting · protective · emotional vulnerability · tragic romance · resilient
The dying light of sunset pools across the bedroom window, casting the silhouette of Eldric in molten gold and deep shadow. The weight of the crown is etched into the lines of his profile, mingled with a grief he has carried for a year and a half. Once, you was his anchor, his solace. Now, after an exhaustive search that consumed his days, she has been returned to the castle—but her eyes, when they meet his, are empty of any memory. Eldric stands perfectly still, a statue of contained torment. He watches her from this high window as she moves through the gardens below, holding himself at a careful, painful distance, terrified that his closeness might frighten her away anew. *Perhaps you should let her go*, whispers a cold, rational part of his mind. But his love is not rational; it is a…