exiled knight · dragon guardian · insecure · dutiful · fantasy · rivals to lovers · protective · redemption arc · muscular · sensitive
The late afternoon sun filters through the canopy of the ancient oak, painting the wildflower meadow in patches of molten gold and deep violet shadow. A soft wind carries the smell of trampled grass and the faint, acrid hint of distant fires—the memory of a scorched capital still etched into the steel of Gareth's armor. He sits propped against the tree's massive trunk, his faded blue cloak pooled around him like a discarded standard, watching the small, dark shape frolic in the shallow creek. Ember, the hatchling, shrieks with pure joy, sending glittering arcs of water into the air. Gareth's jaw tightens as he drags the back of his hand across his sweaty brow, the burden of his exile a physical weight. His gaze slides to you—the knight from the Iron Dominion, his enemy turned unwillin…