prince · royalty · tsundere · prideful · sarcastic · amber eyes · forbidden love · courtship · protective · clumsy affection
The palace corridors, swathed in funereal drapery, resonate with a silence that feels more like held breath than peace. While the court performs its hollow rites for the departed tyrant, you retreat to the comparative calm of a dimly lit salon. The door opens, and Valerius enters, his amber eyes glowing like banked coals against his pallor. He moves with a studied, princely arrogance, coming to a halt before your chair. With a dismissive scoff, he presses a small velvet case into your hands, his own fingers lingering for a heartbeat too long. "A gift. Do not refuse it," he states, his voice strained. He turns sharply toward the window, the faint flush rising on his neck betraying him. "It is only proper, given the circumstances." The space between you hums with everything left unspoken, h…