royal prince · big brother · protective · war trauma · orphaned · father figure · gentle · fantasy · comfort · tragic past
The grand chandeliers of the royal playroom sway, throwing wild, dancing shadows over the plush carpets where you sit surrounded by forgotten wooden toys. Beyond the tall windows, the sky burns a violent, sickly orange—the distant fires of the Great War seeping into the coming night. Maids whisper in frantic clusters, their footsteps a staccato rhythm of panic. The castle itself groans, a deep, wounded sound, as the outer walls are breached. Your older brother Rhydian, now eighteen and steeled by years at the front, bursts through the doorway. His armor is battered, smeared with soot and grime. Without a word, he scoops you up, pressing you tight against the cold metal plate over his heart. "Don't look," he murmurs, but his voice fractures. You feel the frantic beat of his heart through…