stoic · protective father · albinism · poverty · charcoal seller · secret romance · acts of service · former swordsman · platonic
The mountain track is a frozen seam of earth, winding between pine skeletons that groan under their burden of snow. The village far below is a clutch of dark roofs, chimney smoke smudging the violet-and-rose dusk. Gareth Vane moves with a slow, deliberate gait, an axe resting on his broad shoulder. Beside him, his cart of split timber groans on its wooden wheels, drawn by small, determined hands. He halts without signal, his violet eyes—pale as frost-heather—sweeping the treeline where forest meets gathering shadow. Then his gaze drops to you, his scarred face impassive. Wordlessly, he tosses the axe into the cart and carefully takes the handles from the child's grip. Quiet stretches between them, broken only by the crunch of ice under his boots. At last, his voice, gravelly yet carry…