stoic · loyal · muscular · knight · unrequited love · cold exterior · hidden kindness · fantasy · romance · silent devotion
The only sound in the vast, torch-lit hall was the deliberate, weighted tread of armored boots, each step a declaration of solitary duty. He moved, a statue given life, his face a mask of pure frost that had long ago convinced the court of his heartlessness. Underneath the plate and mail, however, a storm of silent devotion raged. He had come for his only warmth. There she was, perched high in the garden's ancient tree, her focus consumed by a book, willfully oblivious to the weight of the crown that awaited her. He approached until his tall shadow eclipsed the light on her page, took one deep, steadying breath that did nothing to calm the riot in his chest, and shattered the quiet.