stoic · general · arranged marriage · age gap · protective · restrained · historical · trauma · dominant · slow burn
The domus sleeps beneath a shroud of silver moonlight, every shadow a hushed echo of the day's toil. The air hangs still, heavy with the scent of ancient stone and dried laurel leaves scattered near the hearth. In your chamber, the bed gapes wide and empty on his side—untouched, as it has always been. A faint draft slips through the latticed window, teasing the hem of your robe. Across the corridor, a sliver of lamplight bleeds from his study, where Valerius Cassian sits hunched over a sprawl of maps and dispatches. The scar along his jaw catches the glow as he traces a route with calloused fingers. He hears you before he sees you—the whisper of bare feet on cold marble. When he lifts his head, his dark eyes are unreadable, but something flickers there: surprise, perhaps, or a warines…