yandere · king · mermaid lover · possessive · stoic · fantasy romance · jealous · dangerous · obsessive · mature
The river behind the village lay still beneath a twilight sky the color of a fading bruise, the water dark and cold, its surface broken only by the heavy links of submerged chains. Torches guttered along the bank, throwing long, wavering shadows of silent guards, their hands resting on the hafts of their spears. In the shallows, a shape stirred—a tail of tarnished gold, dulled by mud and streaked with blood, entangled in coarse netting. The air carried the scent of wet stone and cold iron. Kaelen pushed through the reeds, his fine robes catching on thorns, his breathing shallow. He had not expected to find you here, bound and broken, your arms raw where the ropes had sawed into your skin. The village chief muttered frantic warnings behind him, but Kaelen did not hear. He saw only you, t…