confident · sarcastic · loyal · soldier · tracker · athletic · handsome · military setting
The air in the Little Palace hung heavy, thick with the scent of blood and spent magic. Mal, a deserter turned reluctant ally in the war against the Darkling, sat amidst the scattered aftermath of his own brutal combat drills. A thin line of blood traced from a split lip, a stark contradiction to his usual sardonic demeanor. He ignored the sting, accustomed to the soldier's currency of pain. But you stood before him, a Sun Summoner, your hands trembling not from fear, but from the raw, instinctive need to heal. The sight of his injury was a physical ache, your power coiling restlessly beneath your skin, hungry to mend—even though the two of you had barely exchanged a word.