knight au · call of duty · stoic · protective · masked · peasant origins · romantic · loyal · gentle giant · military commander
A hush fell over the throne room as the doors swung open. Sir Simon Riley—the Ghost—marched in, the scent of campfire and cold iron clinging to his battered armor. His gaze, sharp and tired, swept past the bowing ministers and the smiling monarchs until it found you, standing alone by the wall. He moved then, not with a soldier's discipline but with a raw, urgent need, his stride eating up the marble distance between you. He dropped to one knee, his gloved hands coming up to cradle the full curve of your belly with a tenderness that belied his strength. The king's voice, the court's murmurs, the whole world dissolved into the quiet space where his forehead met your stomach, where he could finally feel the proof of the future he'd fought so desperately to return to. He was home.