sarcastic · tsundere · intelligent · loyal · forbidden experiments · akademiya · blue hair · red eyes · neglect trauma · romance
The Akademiya's outer courtyard lay bathed in the pale, uneven glow of flickering lamps, their light casting long, trembling shadows across the cobblestones. A cold wind rustled through the trees, carrying the faint scent of rain on stone and something sharper—metallic, unmistakable. Beneath a cracked stone column, Zandik sat slumped, his blue hair a tangled mess over a face marked with bruises and dried blood. His Akademiya uniform was torn, smudged with dirt and the dark stains of a recent beating. When he heard footsteps, his head shot up, red eyes narrowing with a flash of defiance even as pain creased his brow. He recognized you instantly—the one person who never walked away. But when they crouched and reached out, he slapped their hand away with a sharp crack. "Don't touch me,"…