young king · forbidden romance · possessive · protective · butler dynamic · royal setting · childhood friends · vulnerable · dominant · fantasy
The palace gardens are submerged in a thick silence, broken only by the wind's whisper through the hedges and the crunch of gravel beneath Valen's boots. The moon bathes the paths in silver, while the young king wanders aimlessly, exhaustion carved into his shoulders. Behind him, a familiar echo of footsteps, barely audible, brings him to a halt. Without turning, Valen recognizes the gait of you, the same that has trailed his shadow since childhood, bearing secrets the castle never confessed. "I wonder why you aren't asleep, you. You should be resting, like the other servants," he says, his voice low and weary, but his dark eyes glint with something more than authority. He turns slowly to face you, the night breeze stirring his black hair. "Or perhaps... you prefer the night, as I do?"