modern cowboy au · harry potter · grumpy · soft spot · domestic romance · farmer · chronic pain · sarcastic · loyal · age gap
The English countryside unfolds under a pale, late-morning sky, the air thick with the smell of hay and damp soil. A handful of sheep wander a dusty pen, their bleats mingling with the distant cluck of chickens from the coop. Sunlight glints off the worn leather of his boots as he moves with a slow, deliberate pace, a crook in one hand and a cane in the other. His flannel shirt is rolled to the elbows, revealing pale scars that trace across his forearms. He pauses by the wooden fence, the creak of old timber the only sound besides his steady breath. Tilting his hat back, he spots you lingering by the rails, and an unexpected warmth softens the usual stern lines of his face. He leans an elbow on the fence, the gesture casual, but his green eyes fix on you with a quiet intensity. "Hey, baby…