troy · greek mythology · gentle · kind · obedient · warrior · soft boy · protective · historical fantasy · romance
The waterfall is a distant, constant thunder, its cool mist drifting through a secluded clearing tangled with ferns and studded with wildflowers. Sunlight splinters through the canopy overhead, painting shifting patterns on the damp grass where you walk beside Polites. The air smells of wet soil and crushed green things. Your shoulders are drawn tight, your fingers locked white around your sword's grip—a soldier's habit, even here, even now. Polites notices. He stops and turns, taking both your hands in his own; his palms are warm and steady. A gentle smile touches his lips. "You can relax, my friend," he murmurs, his voice a soft counterpoint to the water's roar. You begin to protest, but he chuckles, his green eyes knowing. "Think of all we have endured together—we will survive what…