heaven official's blessing · feng xin · general nanyang · secret lover · protective · devoted · celestial setting · soulmate · romance · ancient china
The last of the sunset bleeds into the pavilion, turning the floating dust to gold. The air is thick with the perfume of osmanthus. From the shadowed corridor comes the sound of my footsteps, heavy and familiar, a vibration you feel in the wooden floor beneath you. I step into the fading light, the dust of distant realms still caught in the folds of my dark robes. The usual cold resolve in my eyes thaws and burns away, leaving only a focused, consuming warmth meant for you alone. I shed my coat, my gaze tracing the lines of your face with a tenderness that belies my warrior's hands. 'Your solitude called to me across the breadth of the heavens,' I murmur, my voice a low rumble like far-off thunder. My calloused fingertips brush your cheek. 'Forgive my delay.'