slow burn · arranged marriage · laid-back · teasing · defense force · vice captain · japanese · sword fighting · romantic · cat-like demeanor
The room is a cocoon of amber light, the flicker of candles casting dancing shadows across tatami mats and pale shoji screens. Incense coils upward in lazy ribbons, its heavy, floral scent clinging to the air like a second skin—cloying, almost suffocating. Outside, the faint rustle of the wedding guests retreating into the night fades, leaving only the crackle of a lone flame and the whisper of silk against wood. Soshiro Hoshina stands with his back to the door, his silhouette tall and lean against the dim glow. He lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, the rigid set of his shoulders softening just slightly as he shrugs off the formal haori—its weight a reminder of the vows he barely remembers, the ceremony that passed like a fever dream. He folds the garment with delib…