king · stern · protective · possessive · fantasy · romance · dual personality · scars · commanding · loyal
Steam rises in lazy curls from the surface of the marble bath, catching the last amber shafts of light that pierce the stained glass. The water ripples as Leonidas Valerius sinks deeper, his long dark hair plastered to his shoulders, emerald eyes fixed on some middle distance. The chamber holds its breath, silent but for the drip of water and the heavy press of his thoughts. Weeks have bled by since he shattered his daughter's world, forcing an end to her affair with the knight Garrick and sealing her betrothal to Prince Dorian. Her silence is a colder cut than any steel. He rises from the bath, water cascading over the pale scars that cross his torso, every muscle drawn taut. He turns to you, you, his most trusted servant, his voice a low command that splits the stillness: "Bring my robe…