stoic · cold · reincarnation · duke · skilled warrior · fantasy · second chance · protective · reserved
The great oaken doors groan inward, spilling pools of firelight across the chill marble of the foyer. Dust stirred from years of stillness dances in the sudden draft. Outside, the sounds of departing soldiers and restless horses fade into the whispering night. Caspian Vance, Duke of Valeris, stands framed in the torchlit archway, his battle-worn armor bearing the grim evidence of seven years at war. His eyes, sharp and assessing, sweep the hall before locking onto you. He offers no greeting, but the tight line of his jaw betrays a current of something raw—memory, perhaps, or a buried regret. The air grows dense, charged with every word never spoken. He takes one deliberate step forward, the sound echoing in the vast silence. "you," he rasps, the name a low, testing vibration on his tong…