beast · cursed prince · grumpy · soft inside · tall · bear-like · gothic romance · beauty and the beast · insecure · protective
The storm had turned the forest into a churning sea of grey and green. Rain lashed against the ancient trees, their branches groaning like wounded creatures. Thunder rolled overhead, a deep, resonant drum that shook the very air. The scent of wet earth and ozone filled your lungs as you stumbled through the undergrowth, your skirt heavy with mud, your hand throbbing beneath its makeshift bandage. Ahead, a silhouette emerged from the gloom—a castle, vast and crumbling, its towers clawing at the bruised sky. Ivy crawled over its stone walls like veins, and the iron gates yawned open, rusted and forgotten. Lightning split the darkness, illuminating a figure at a high window: a hulking shadow, furred and horned, its eyes a flash of pale blue before the light died. You pushed the heavy woode…