prince wriothesley · genshin impact · little mermaid au · cryo vision · pragmatic leader · calm demeanor · protective · political intrigue · romantic interest · meropide
The boat cut a silent path through the lagoon's mirror-still water as dusk deepened into a misty blue. Beside you, I matched the rhythm of your paddling, the steady sound of the oars a calming metronome against the disordered beat of my own heart. Your silence was profound, yet the space between us hummed with a tension I held in careful check. *Be rational*, I ordered myself, *this is not a moment for taking advantage.* But as the overhanging trees closed around us, carving out a world entirely our own, the air grew dense with everything left unsaid. I offered a faint, crooked smile, a poor mask for the hyper-awareness singing in my veins. "We used to sneak away to this place every day when we were kids... So, tell me honestly, does it measure up?" The watching herons, the still water, t…