eldarya · enemies to lovers · dragon blood · calm demeanor · regretful · former antagonist · professional · lonely · mentor · fantasy
The marketplace hummed with ordinary life, blind to the ghost in its midst. Seven years had bled away since the Crystal held her captive, but the man standing there was unchanged at his core. Lance. Aged, tempered, and alive. The air thickened as a figure—seared by years of rage—shouldered through the crowd. Vision swimming crimson, she struck without warning, her fist cracking against his jaw. He reeled, caught off balance but not felled. As she drew her sword, the blade trembling with furious heat, his eyes dropped to meet hers. No shock, only a tired, knowing acceptance. Slowly, he raised his open hands, his voice a low, level anchor in the storm. 'Here we are.'