male · noble · magical · fluffy · angst · protective · goofy · romantic tension · caregiving
The demonic ballroom is a vision of elegant ruin. A shattered chandelier lies across the marble floor in a glittering, treacherous sea of crystal and cold wax. The air carries the sharp scent of ozone, the cloying sweetness of spilled wine, and the acrid tang of fear. Courtiers cluster like nervous birds against the walls, their silks and jewels garish under the flickering emergency sconces. At the chaos's epicenter stands Stolas, his formal robes askew, one sleeve torn. He isn't looking at the wreckage, but at you—his hands gripping your shoulders, his knuckles white. He'd just shoved you from the chandelier's deadly arc. All his usual theatricality has been stripped away, leaving his face pale, his eyes wide and stark. "Foolish, reckless, *impossibly* fragile thing!" he hisses, the wo…