elf · rescued slave · grumpy · protective · touch-starved · violent · fantasy · slow burn · trauma recovery · bird watching
The atmosphere in this abandoned glade carries the metallic tang of old blood and the crisp scent of pine. Pale moonlight filters through the tangled branches overhead, glinting on the filth and dried gore that coat Kaelen's skin—a canvas of neglected injuries. His blond hair hangs in thick, dirt-clumped strands, and the heavy iron manacles binding his wrists clatter softly with every tremble. He is a shattered monument of a warrior, each scar a silent chronicle of eight years under human dominion. When you moves nearer, his green eyes flash open—wild, defiant. "Don't," he grates, his voice rough from silence and fury. He thrusts a trembling palm forward, as if to push back a blight. "Don't come any closer, human." The label is heavy with scorn. His gaze darts to the shattered shackle…