Moonie Moonstone @callmemoonstone - Tumblr Blog

callmemoonstone

Jul 19

lowerstart

𝙎𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚, 𝙍𝙞𝙙𝙚 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙃𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙢𝙖𝙣 (𝙎𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝘼𝙐) - 𝘾𝙝.1

Silver Vanrouge x Reader

Available on Ao3 and Quotev too.

𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘚𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘺:

𝘈 𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦. 𝘈 𝘬𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘮.

𝘚𝘪𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘝𝘢𝘯𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘏𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘪𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧.

a/n: Disclaimer: I know NOTHING about equestrian, so if there are any equestrian or cowboy baddies reading this, I am so sorry, dearest. I present to you my favorite low-cortisol ship: Silver x Reader/Yuu. Though in this case, the Reader is not Yuu.

𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙡 𝘿𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚 - 𝙎𝙞𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙑𝙖𝙣𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙚

Don’t you ever think about how ironic it is to have shared pain as your soulmate perk when your soulmate is literally a knight?

You had grown accustomed to experiencing random aches, pains, and even bruises ever since you were little because of this ability. And you were not even sure whether you had the right to complain. I mean, sure, this ability was incredibly annoying, but what could you do? Nothing. You couldn't exactly blame your soulmate either because it was beyond his control. If you wanted to blame anyone, you might as well blame the universe or whatever higher power came up with this stupid arrangement in the first place.

You still remembered the dumbfounded expression on your Mom's face when she opened the front door to find a seemingly young adult man with black short hair and uneven bangs, and a seemingly four-year-old toddler standing quietly beside him with a little bird perched on his shoulder.

“Hello, my name is Lilia Vanrouge, and this is my son, Silver. I believe your daughter is his soulmate.”

And that was how you first met Father Lilia—and your soulmate, Silver.

At first, your Dad was very firm that, even though you and Silver were soulmates, your family would never force the two of you into a relationship if neither of you wanted one. Father immediately agreed with that. He had only come to introduce the two of you.

To this day, you still had no idea how Father managed to find your family, though maybe his abilities as a fae had something to do with it. Your older brother, however, had once asked what your Dad considered to be an utterly moronic question.

“So he's a fae, but his son is a human? Adoptive?”

Blasphemous!

He immediately earned a smack to the mouth with the morning newspaper from your Dad.

Your brother insisted his question made perfect sense, especially since there was a chance the two families would become in-laws one day. But, as your Mom wisely said, until that day actually came, nobody should make assumptions. Unless they told us themselves.

You were actually kind of glad that Silver found you first, because you could never.

The only name stamped on your wrist was Silver. It could belong to a chemical compound or Silver the Hedgehog from that one video game for all you knew. How were you supposed to tell? Of course, your full name was printed across his left bicep (yum), and your soulmate perk said otherwise.

The first time you saw Silver, your jaw dropped.

He looked exactly like the male leads you always read about in your fairy tale books. Four-year-old you couldn't take your eyes off him, especially those beautiful aurora-colored eyes.

“Mommy, so he's my future husband?” you asked your Mom.

Which earned an awkward stare from her and a hearty laugh from Father.

From then on, you and Silver became playmates. He often came over to your house, and you visited his just as often, which was always the better deal in your opinion. His home, nestled in the middle of the woods, was absolutely beautiful, and Silver somehow always had his animal friends gathered around the two of you.

The first time you discovered your soulmate perk was during one of those playdates when you were both seven years old. You stumbled over a tree branch and hit your head. Within seconds, your vision blurred before everything went black.

Right before you lost consciousness, however, you saw Silver running toward you with a look of absolute panic on his face only to collapse unconscious right beside you.

From then on, you would occasionally feel random aches, pains, or even get sick for no apparent reason. Whenever Father and Silver came over to your house, Father would mention that Silver had experienced the exact same thing around the same time. That was how both families eventually pieced together your soulmate perk.

From that day forward, whenever you experienced intense pain or fell seriously ill, Silver did too. And vice versa.

You knew your parents—especially your Mom—didn't like your soulmate perk at all.

She tried everything she could to find a way to stop it, or at the very least, lessen its effects. She even asked Father, hoping that, as a fae, he might know something. Unfortunately, even he couldn't find an answer.

One night, you woke up in the middle of the night and accidentally overheard your Mom and Dad talking about your soulmate perk. You had never seen your Mom look so frustrated before. In a moment of exhaustion, she let slip a comment that vaguely implied her displeasure toward the Vanrouges.

It lasted only a second. She immediately caught herself, shook her head, and quietly said she shouldn't have said something like that.

Back then, seven-year-old you felt upset with your Mom.

Now, looking back as an adult, you understood her reaction. She wasn't angry at the Vanrouges. She was simply frustrated that there was nothing she could do to protect her daughter. Given enough time, she learned to live with it just like everyone else, and even she knew none of it was Father or Silver's fault.

But seven-year-old you couldn't understand that. Instead, you came to a completely different conclusion.

From that day on, you started hiding your pain, afraid your parents would stop you from ever seeing Silver again. You liked Silver. You didn't want to be separated from him.

But the thing was, Silver Vanrouge came from a family of military. Just like Father, who served as a general, Silver naturally followed in his footsteps and pursued the path of becoming a knight.

You still remembered expressing your excitement when you were little, telling him how cool it was that he was going to become a knight. Just like the ones in your fairy tale books.

"My knight in shining armor."

Silver had blushed so hard his ears turned red.

"...Yes," he had quietly replied. "I'll be your knight."

Reality, unfortunately, wasn't nearly as beautiful as the fairy tales made it out to be. Silver often came home with bruises from training.

And where did you think those bruises went as well?

You.

The first time you accidentally let it slip was when you rubbed your shoulder blade with a small wince. Silver immediately froze before apologizing over and over, admitting he had been struck there during training earlier that day.

It took you a long time to convince him that you were fine. Even then, you couldn't completely erase the guilt from his face. After that, you became even more careful about hiding your pain. And, over time, you simply learned to live with it.

And you found your true horror during your second year of college.

The news had interrupted the usual television program, reporting that the entirety of Sage's Island had been engulfed by an enormous wall of thorns, leaving every resident trapped inside unconscious.

Your heart dropped straight into your stomach.

You collapsed to your knees in front of the television, watching the live broadcast unfold before your eyes. Silver and Father were in there. They were both at NRC. And you recognized those thorn-covered walls immediately. You had seen them once before in Briar Valley.

Malleus Draconia.

For the first time in your life, you felt absolutely nothing through your soulmate bond. No random ache, no bruises, no lingering soreness.

Nothing.

You cried and screamed at the television, half ready to board the next flight or teleport to Sage's Island yourself. It took your entire family to hold you back, reminding you to trust Silver.

Trust Father. And trust Lord Malleus, too.

You had grown so accustomed to the pain over the years that, as annoying as it could be, you would choose it over and over again rather than that unbearable emptiness. The hollow feeling of knowing your soulmate was lying somewhere completely motionless.

Thankfully, Malleus's Overblot was eventually resolved, and you felt Silver's presence return through your soulmate bond once more.

And the very first thing he did after waking up was stub his toe.

The fucking audacity.

Well, at the very least, he wasn't dead.

“I am going!” you called, waving at your family as you stepped out the front door.

You had just finished your last day at work the previous week and wouldn't be starting your new job for another month. A perfect break in between this fuck-ass adult life. Better yet, it also happened to be the perfect time for you and Silver to finally move into the little house the two of you had spent the last few months preparing together. Most of the furniture had already been moved in. There were still a few boxes waiting to be unpacked, but that could wait until after you officially started your new job.

Until then, you intended to make the most of your month off. Spend time with your family and your fiancé.

“Tell Silver I'm going fishing with my friend next week and ask if he wants to come with me?” your Dad called.

You rolled your eyes.

“Dad, please.”

Your Dad, who was busy watering your Mom's plants, merely shrugged.

“What?”

You clicked your tongue.

“You should stop using my fiancé as a fish attractor, Dad.”

“Why not? Fish always gather around him, and we always end up catching the biggest ones.”

“Ugh.”

You rolled your eyes one last time before deciding to just walk away.

Before leaving, however, you instinctively went through your usual routine. Phone? Wallet? Keys? Handkerchief? You made sure the cap on your water bottle was screwed on properly, adjusted the small first-aid pouch inside your handbag, and gave your shoes one last glance to make sure the laces hadn't somehow come undone.

Good. Better safe than sorry.

It had long since become a habit. Living with a shared pain soulmate perk had a funny way of making you a little more cautious than the average person. It wasn't anything particularly exhausting, just a collection of tiny routines you barely even thought about anymore. Avoid unnecessary risks whenever possible. Be mindful of sharp objects. Watch your footing. If an accident could be prevented with just a little extra attention, then why wouldn't you?

Besides, keeping yourself safe also meant keeping Silver safe.

As you made your way toward the nearest teleportation office, you couldn't hide the smile creeping onto your face at the thought of seeing Silver.

So many things changed after the Overblot incident.

For starters, you couldn't stop sobbing when you saw Silver again for the first time after losing all trace of his vitality the day before. You cried so hard your eyes turned red and your face became puffy, your eyelids so swollen you could barely open them. Silver simply held you close, kissing the top of your head while gently rubbing your back. He kept apologizing over and over again, even though both of you knew none of it had been his fault.

Later on, shortly after that day, beneath the faint glow of Briar Valley's fireflies, the two of you sat together on the hammock Father had made for you when you were children. Surprisingly, it still stood just as firmly as it had all those years ago.

That was when Silver told you everything.

Who he really was, why Father had raised him, why Malleus had Overblotted, what had happened on Sage's Island, how everything had eventually been resolved and the real reason behind his narcolepsy.

You couldn't do anything except sit there with your jaw hanging open.

So...

Your soulmate was the last prince of a long-lost kingdom?

Sick as fuck.

You almost smacked his shoulder and demanded he yell, "Sike!" If not for the fact that his expression remained completely serious. And you knew Silver well enough to know he would never joke about something like this.

That, and the fact that your soulmate mark had changed. It no longer read simply Silver. It now read Silver Vanrouge.

You immediately asked him about it.

Silver explained that his soulmate mark had always displayed your full name ever since Father first found him. Means it had been there from the day he was born. However, Father once told him that, on a certain night during a Lunar Year, the mark suddenly shone brilliantly.

It was the day you were born.

Silver simply nodded.

...

Sick as fuck.

Your soulmate was secretly four hundred and eighteen years old. You were about to lose your goddamn mind.

"...You're an unc."

Silver laughed.

And the very next thing he did was make your relationship official.

He asked if he could be your boyfriend with that oh-so-sweet mouth of his.

Silver admitted that, after everything that had happened, he couldn't stop thinking about you. That near-death experience had made him realize just how desperately he wanted to keep you by his side. He wasn't ready to lose you yet.

And, more importantly, he thought it was unfair for you to carry all that fear and uncertainty without knowing where the two of you stood.

He wanted a future with you.

Officially.

And of course... You said yes.

The years passed quietly. Silver graduated from NRC and became one of Briar Valley's Royal Knight Captains alongside his childhood friend, Sebek. Somehow, in between all of that, the two of you also grew from awkward first dates into a love so deeply rooted that you could no longer imagine a future without the other.

Then, just a few months ago, Silver asked another question. This time, he asked if you would marry him.

As if you were going to say no.

Now, back to the current matter once again.

You lightly brushed your dress as you stepped out of the teleportation office and onto the streets of the Queendom of Roses. Your heels carried you through rows and rows of city blocks until you finally found the riding arena your boyfriend was supposed to be at. After speaking with one of the staff members, they happily let you in.

You immediately spotted Silver and Samson in the distance, talking to Riddle Rosehearts about something you couldn't quite make out from where you stood.

Now, if there was one thing that hadn't changed since before the Overblot incident, it was that horse. The very same white horse he had owned ever since his college years.

Samson.

Silver had been a member of the Equestrian Club back in college. Among all the stories he used to tell you, the ones about his club activities were the ones he talked about the most. Every time the two of you met, he somehow managed to bring them up.

Unable to part with their beloved horses after graduation, Silver and his two friends, Sebek and Riddle, decided to continue their equestrian activities as a hobby. No matter how busy life became, the three of them still met whenever their schedules aligned to ride together and occasionally participate in local tournaments.

You enthusiastically waved at Silver from behind the fence.

The moment he noticed you, a smile spread across his face before he guided Samson toward you. After hopping off his horse, he walked straight over.

You immediately opened your arms, silently inviting him into a hug. Silver slipped one arm around your waist while the other kept hold of Samson's reins before leaning down to close the distance and gently kiss you.

You couldn't help but laugh against his lips as your arms found their way around his neck.

"Hello," you greeted.

He smiled before placing a quick kiss on your forehead.

"Thank you for coming."

"You owe me a nice dinner for this."

Silver smiled.

"Of course. We'll go right away." He leaned in to kiss your cheek.

A soft nudge against your shoulder pulled your attention away. Samson. The white horse had wandered over the moment Silver let go of his reins, nudging your arm insistently until your hand found its way to his face.

"There you are, handsome."

You gently scratched between his ears, earning a pleased huff from the horse as he leaned into your touch. Silver quietly watched the interaction.

"I think he likes you more than me."

You looked at him in disbelief.

"No way."

"He always comes to you first."

You laughed, cupping Samson's face with both hands.

"You hear that? Your owner is jealous."

Samson merely nudged you again. You looked back at Silver.

"Are you jealous?"

He smiled, gently shaking his head.

"No. It's only natural that he likes you." Silver reached over, absentmindedly stroking Samson's neck. "You are very lovely."

You could only stare at him as heat slowly crept up your face.

"You know exactly what you're doing."

"...I don't."

"Liar."

A soft laugh escaped him. Unfortunately, the sweet moment didn't last long.

"Silver!"

The voice of one of the event staff echoed across the arena.

"We'll begin checking the Show Jumping competitors in ten minutes."

"I'll be right there," he shout back.

Silver's equestrian club would be joining a local tournament in a month. It wasn't anything particularly grand, just several riding clubs gathering over the weekend to compete, catch up with familiar faces, and spend a pleasant afternoon around the horses they loved.

This time, he had signed up for the Show Jumping division, where horse and rider worked together to clear a course filled with fences and obstacles in the shortest amount of time possible without knocking down rails or collecting penalties. You had only the vaguest understanding of how the scoring worked, but that hardly mattered. As long as Silver and Samson jumped over everything successfully, you were happy.

Silver himself never cared much about the result. Of course he wanted to win—nobody entered a competition hoping to lose—but that had never been the reason he kept coming back every year. He simply enjoyed riding Samson, spending time with his friends, and challenging himself to become a little better than he had been before.

You, however, were competitive enough for the both of you.

Silver had won the Dressage division last year, and you somehow ended up being even prouder than he was. You spent the next week shamelessly telling every single one of your coworkers that your then-boyfriend had won first place. None of them asked. You volunteered the information anyway.

"I should finish getting Samson ready," Silver said, giving the white horse a gentle pat along his neck.

You nodded.

"I'll go find somewhere to sit then."

With one last kiss on your forehead, Silver took Samson's reins and made his way back toward the riding arena, where Riddle was already waiting for him.

You watched him disappear into the distance before turning toward the spectator stands yourself.

The restaurant Silver picked is a cozy little place tucked away in one of the quieter streets of the Crimson City. The soft chatter from other diners blended pleasantly with the clinking of silverware, while the scent of freshly baked bread and grilled meat lingered warmly in the air.

A waiter soon led the two of you toward a table by the window before handing over two menus.

"Thank you," you smiled.

Once the waiter excused himself, you settled into your seat across from Silver. Your fiancé quietly helped pour you a glass of water before opening his own menu.

The two of you browsed through it in comfortable silence.

You had never understood people who claimed silence between couples was awkward. If anything, it was the complete opposite. Being able to enjoy each other's company without feeling the need to constantly fill every second with conversation felt peaceful.

The waiter returned a few minutes later, notebook already in hand.

"Have the two of you decided?"

Silver looked at you first.

"You can order first."

You nodded before looking at the waiter.

"I'd like the steak, please."

"Certainly."

"...May I ask something?"

"Of course."

"Does the steak come sliced when it's served?"

The waiter gave a small nod.

"Yes, Miss. We slice it before serving."

"Oh." A relieved smile spread across your face. "Perfect. Thank you."

"And for your drink?"

"Iced lemon tea, please."

The waiter noted everything down before turning toward Silver to take his order as well. Not long after, he collected both menus and excused himself.

"Oh, by the way," you said as you unfolded the linen napkin across your lap. "The sofa we've been eyeing since last week has been restocked. I contacted the seller this morning, and they confirmed they can deliver it to Briar Valley."

Silver looked up from his glass.

"That's perfect. When will it be delivered?"

"They said three days."

He nodded.

"That should be around the same time we finish unpacking."

You smiled to yourself.

It still felt strangely surreal. In less than a month, you would officially begin a brand-new chapter of your life together with your fiancé.

Your little house sat on the outer side of Briar Valley, close enough to Father’s home that visiting him would only take a short walk, yet far enough to give the two of you a place to truly call your own. Your new workplace wasn't far from there either. While Briar Valley was predominantly inhabited by fae, there were still plenty of jobs that required human expertise. Fortunately, enough humans had settled in the valley over the years that finding work hadn't been nearly as difficult as you had first imagined.

“How about work? Anything new?” you asked.

Silver took a moment before really answering.

“Nothing really happening, but we heard there is a suspicious group moving on the western side of the valley.”

You frowned in concern.

“Oh goodness. What kind of group, any idea?”

“We suspect they're smuggling illegal goods.”

“Will you go and handle them?”

Silver gently shook his head.

“No. Our men can handle it. There's no need for me to go myself.”

“I see.” You nodded, unable to hide the relief creeping into your voice.

It honestly came as a surprise to you when, after graduating from NRC, both Silver and Sebek were appointed as Captains of Briar Valley's Royal Knights.

You had always assumed the two of them would become Lord Malleus' personal guards. Considering how inseparable the four of them had been back in NRC, it simply made the most sense in your head.

Silver, however, explained that Lord Malleus had a different idea.

According to him, it would be a waste to have the two of them spend their lives merely standing behind him when they possessed the talent to lead others. Instead, Lord Malleus appointed Silver and Sebek as Captains of the Royal Knights, entrusting each of them with their own squad to carry out missions across Briar Valley in his stead whenever necessary.

Neither of them objected. As loyal as they had always been, they simply accepted Lord Malleus's decision.

You would be lying if you said it hadn't worried you at first.

Leading a squad meant venturing into places far more dangerous than remaining within the safety of the castle walls. Your fiancé was frequently dispatched to investigate magical disturbances, escort important figures, eliminate dangerous monsters, and occasionally deal with criminals like the smuggling group Silver had just mentioned.

Danger had become part of his occupation. Silver knew that better than anyone. He always did everything within his power to avoid getting hurt unnecessarily. He trained relentlessly, never picked fights he didn't need to, and had become exceptionally proficient with healing magic over the years. Every precaution that could reasonably be taken, he took.

But the front lines were unpredictable. Sometimes, no amount of preparation was enough. Which was precisely why you decided to become more careful yourself.

The aches, bruises, and cuts that came with Silver's work were already more than enough for the both of you. There was no point in adding your own on top of them. If a little extra caution could spare the two of you even the smallest scrape, then why wouldn't you?

Somewhere along the years, making sure not even a single scratch found its way onto your body had become second nature.

Your bladder pulled your attention away from Silver.

"Oof... I have to use the bathroom."

Silver nodded.

"I'll wait here."

You pushed your chair back before making your way across the restaurant. The dinner rush had begun to pick up, waiters weaving in and out between tables as they carried trays filled with steaming dishes.

Just as you rounded the corner, one of them appeared from the opposite direction carrying a bowl of freshly made soup.

Almost instinctively, you stopped.

Your body shifted several steps farther away before the waiter had even reached you, leaving more than enough distance between yourself and the bowl of hot broth. Only after he safely walked past did you let out the breath you were holding.

...Close enough.

You turned around out of habit. Silver was still sitting at your table, quietly watching from the other side of the restaurant. The moment your eyes met, you flashed him a bright smile before giving him a reassuring thumbs-up.

Nothing happened.

See?

With that, you happily continued toward the restroom, completely unaware that Silver's gaze remained fixed on your retreating figure long after you disappeared behind the door.

The smile on his face had long since faded.

Silver firmly believed that horses deserved to be as relaxed as their riders before a competition.

It was something he had learned back during his days in NRC's Equestrian Club and never stopped practicing afterward. Rather than keeping Samson inside the stable all day, Silver preferred taking him somewhere open, letting him roam across the fields, graze to his heart's content, and simply enjoy being a horse before asking him to perform.

Today happened to be one of those days.

The two of you planned to bring Samson to the open meadow not too far from your future home in Briar Valley. While Silver spent the afternoon riding and lightly exercising him, you intended to spread out a picnic blanket beneath one of the large oak trees overlooking the field and enjoy your book while watching the two of them from afar.

Simple. Peaceful. Exactly the kind of date the two of you loved.

Except you looked as though you were preparing for a week-long survival expedition instead of a relaxing picnic.

You had been standing in front of your picnic basket for nearly fifteen minutes, repeatedly checking everything you had packed.

The homemade sandwiches were securely wrapped. ✅

The fruit had already been cut into bite-sized pieces. ✅

A bottle of water for yourself. ✅

Another for Silver. ✅

A small bag of apples and carrots for Samson. ✅

Wet tissues. ✅

Dry tissues. ✅

Sunscreen. ✅

Insect repellent. ✅

A compact first-aid kit. ✅

A picnic blanket. ✅

Your novel. ✅

An extra cardigan in case the wind became colder toward the afternoon. ✅

You carefully looked over everything one last time before nodding to yourself. Silver would be arriving at your parents' house in another ten minutes. You simply wanted to make sure nothing had been forgotten.

"You aren't finished yet?"

Your brother leaned against the bedroom door with his arms crossed, watching you reorganize the contents of your picnic basket for what had to be the third time that morning.

You rolled your eyes without looking up.

"Give me a minute. You know how our soulmate perk gets whenever Silver and I are together."

Your brother let out a long sigh before raising both hands in surrender.

"Alright, alright."

He turned around and walked away, deciding it was probably better to let you finish at your own pace.

It was true. Your soulmate perk always seemed to react more strongly whenever you and Silver stayed close to one another for a prolonged period of time. The pain itself never changed, but the sensation somehow became clearer, sharper, almost as though the bond between the two of you grew stronger simply because you were within each other's reach. Even something as insignificant as accidentally scraping your knee against a table or pinching your finger while opening a drawer would be enough for Silver to feel it too.

No one really knew why. Father couldn't explain it, neither could anyone else. That's just how soulmate bonds is.

Which meant your little habits naturally became even worse whenever the two of you planned to spend the entire day together.

You checked the contents of your picnic basket one last time, making sure the first-aid kit hadn't accidentally been left behind. The apples and carrots for Samson were packed in a separate container, the sandwiches remained neatly wrapped, your water bottles were tightly sealed, and the foldable fruit knife sat securely inside its protective sheath at the very bottom of the basket where it couldn't accidentally brush against your hand while reaching for something else. You even took a moment to make sure the thermos lid was properly fastened. The last thing you wanted was hot coffee spilling all over either you or Silver.

The same thing had happened while you and Silver were furnishing your new home. Furniture with sharp corners had quietly disappeared from your shopping list, replaced with rounded designs instead. Non-slip mats found their way into every bathroom, shelves were firmly anchored to the wall, and anything that looked remotely unstable was either reinforced or thrown out altogether.

Honestly, with the amount of precautions you had taken around the house, you were convinced even an insurance company would lower your premium.

Your brother poked his head through the doorway once more.

"Done?"

You tucked the basket shut before giving it one final look over.

"Done."

"Thank the Seven."

"Shut up."

Your brother merely hummed before walking away. A few moments later, a gentle knock sounded against your already open bedroom door. Ever the gentleman.

"Hello."

You immediately whipped your head toward the doorway, a smile blooming across your face the moment you saw him. Without a second thought, you got up from your seat and threw your arms around his neck in a familiar embrace before giving him a quick peck on the lips.

"Hi."

Silver smiled softly before holding out the small bouquet he had been hiding behind his back.

"I brought some flowers for our picnic."

Nestled between his fingers was a bouquet of wildflowers he had carefully gathered himself on the way over. White daisies, pale blue forget-me-nots, tiny sprigs of baby's breath, and a few lavender blossoms were tied together with a simple cream-colored ribbon.

You could practically feel your heart bursting.

...Okay.

You knew it was cheesy. Other people had certainly told you so before. But what could you do?

It simply couldn't be helped.

Sometimes, you genuinely wondered how Silver still managed to have the exact same effect on you as he did when the two of you were children. One smile from him, one soft look, one tiny act of affection like bringing you flowers just because he thought they would look nice on the picnic blanket and suddenly you were giggling like the four-year-old who had once asked her Mom if the pretty silver-haired boy standing at the front door was going to become her future husband.

Some things, apparently, never changed.

It couldn't be helped.

With that face of his, those impossibly gentle eyes, and a heart kinder than anyone you had ever met, how could you not spend every single day hopelessly fawning over him?

You were winning so hard in life.

Stay jealous.

"We better go right now before I faint from happiness."

You grabbed Silver's hand before he could say anything else, already pulling him toward the door. Silver only let out a chuckle as he effortlessly took the picnic basket from your hand instead.

The teleportation spell carried the two of you to Briar Valley within seconds. The familiar warmth surrounding your body disappeared just as quickly as it came, replaced by a gentle breeze carrying the scent of fresh grass and wildflowers.

Before the two of you stretched a vast meadow bathed beneath the morning sun. Patches of white and yellow wildflowers swayed peacefully alongside the tall grass, while the distant tree line gently embraced the open field like a natural border. Beyond it, rolling hills rose and fell lazily beneath an impossibly blue sky, leaving more than enough room for a horse to gallop without restraint.

And there he was in all of his glory, Samson. The magnificent white stallion paid absolutely no attention to either of you, happily treating the fresh meadow grass as an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet.

Silver smiled.

"I suppose he approves of today's location. I don't think he even noticed we arrived."

The horse merely flicked one ear before lowering his head again, far more interested in another patch of grass than acknowledging his owner.

"...Yep. We've been replaced." You nodded solemnly.

Silver laughed.

The two of you found a comfortable spot beneath the shade of a large oak tree overlooking the meadow. Silver spread the picnic blanket across the soft grass while you unpacked everything from the basket one by one. The bouquet he had brought earlier found its place at the center of the blanket inside a small glass bottle you had thoughtfully packed from home, immediately brightening the little picnic spread.

A few moments later, Silver loosened Samson's reins, allowing the stallion to wander farther across the meadow while remaining well within sight. He always preferred giving Samson plenty of freedom before competitions. A relaxed horse was a happy horse, and a happy horse performed far better than one forced to spend the entire day inside a stable.

Taste thy freedom, Samson.

As for you, you had no intention whatsoever of getting anywhere near him. No offense, Samson. I love you dearly, but you weigh six hundred kilograms. You were perfectly content admiring him from a safe, respectable distance as you always do.

Silver sat down beside you, his shoulder brushing against yours almost immediately. You smiled to yourself before reaching into your basket.

"Are you hungry?"

"A little."

"I thought so."

You pulled out a neatly wrapped breakfast sandwich before handing it over to him.

"Here."

Silver accepted it with both hands.

"Thank you."

Not long after, the little creatures began making their appearance as though they had been waiting for him all along.

It started with a small bird, quietly perching itself on Silver's shoulder while he continued eating his sandwich. Then came a squirrel climbing onto the picnic blanket before another one followed shortly after, accompanied by a family of rabbits peeking curiously from behind a nearby bush.

You couldn't help laughing.

"Yes, yes, dear. Call all of your cute little friends over. I need some company while you're busy accompanying Samson."

Silver merely smiled to himself before taking another bite of his sandwich.

You rested your chin on your palm, quietly watching him eat.

"Is something on your mind?"

Silver looked slightly taken aback by the question, though he didn't deny it.

"...Is it that obvious?"

"You've been quieter these past few days." You tilted your head. "You only get this quiet when something is bothering you."

It worried you.

Silver had never been particularly good at putting his feelings into words. It had taken years for him to become this open with you, but somewhere along the way, sharing your thoughts simply became second nature between the two of you. Even if it sometimes took him a little while to find the right words, he would always tell you eventually.

Which was why seeing him quietly bottle everything up again like he used to during his teenage years felt so strangely unsettling.

Was it really something so difficult that he couldn't bring himself to tell you?

Silver lowered his gaze before closing his eyes for a brief moment, letting out a quiet sigh.

"...I think I just need a little more time to sort out my thoughts before I tell you."

You smiled softly.

"Okay."

Reaching over, you gently rested your hand over his, giving it a reassuring squeeze. If he needed a little more time, then you could wait.

Silver slowly leaned forward until his forehead rested against yours before letting out another long sigh.

"I can't wait to move into our house."

You blinked.

"I know it probably sounds greedy..." he admitted quietly, "...but I want you all to myself every single day."

A laugh escaped your lips.

"Since when did you become this greedy?"

Silver only smiled before nuzzling your forehead ever so slightly.

A loud neigh suddenly tore through the quiet meadow.

The both of you whipped your heads toward Samson almost at the same time.

Something hidden within the bushes had startled him. Neither of you could tell. Whatever it was, it sent the white stallion jerking violently backwards before he reared onto his hind legs with another loud neigh, his front hooves striking the empty air as panic momentarily overtook his training.

"Samson!"

Silver immediately sprinted toward him.

The stallion landed heavily before tossing his head from side to side, his reins dragging wildly across the grass as he danced sideways in confusion. Years of training prevented him from bolting outright, but a frightened horse was still a frightened horse, and six hundred kilograms of frightened horse was enough to make anyone think twice before approaching.

Your feet instinctively froze where you stood. Every instinct screamed at you to run.

Silver slowly circled toward Samson's shoulder instead of approaching him head-on, speaking in the same calm voice he always used whenever the stallion became unsettled. One careful step after another. No sudden movements or raised voice. Just gentle reassurance as he patiently waited for Samson's breathing to slow.

You watched the entire thing from several meters away, your fingers unconsciously twisting around the hem of your cardigan.

Eventually, Samson stopped backing away. His ears slowly relaxed. The frantic stamping subsided into an uneasy shuffle before Silver finally reached him, resting a reassuring hand against his neck.

"There we go..."

The stallion leaned into the familiar touch with a soft snort. You finally released the breath you hadn't realized you had been holding.

"Is he alright?" you called.

Silver nodded.

"I think so."

The tension gradually disappeared from your shoulders.

Seeing everything return to normal, you carefully began walking over, intending to help gather the reins that had fallen onto the grass during the commotion.

You had only just bent down to pick them up when Samson suddenly threw his head upward again, giving a sharp shake to free a fly that had landed near his ears.

It was an ordinary movement. Your body, however, reacted as though the world had just ended.

You stumbled backwards so violently that you nearly lost your footing, your entire body recoiling before your mind had even processed what had happened. Your heart hammered painfully against your ribs as both arms instinctively came up to shield your face, every muscle tensing in preparation for an impact that never came.

The reins slipped from your fingers. Your breathing refused to steady. For several long moments, you simply stood there staring at Samson with wide eyes while your pulse thundered loudly inside your ears.

...

Samson hadn't even come close to touching you. He was merely looking at you now, ears flicking curiously as though wondering why you had suddenly jumped away.

Only then did you realize that Silver was looking at you. Your lips slowly forced themselves into a smile.

"...I'm okay."

You even lifted a thumbs-up, trying to laugh the whole thing off.

"It just startled me."

Silver quietly lowered his eyes toward the hands you had instinctively raised to shield your face only moments earlier.

The image of you recoiling in fear refused to leave his mind for the rest of the day.

Unfortunately, Silver couldn't spend as much time with you as he had hoped.

Barely an hour after the trip ended, one of his men arrived with an emergency report. The suspicious group they had been monitoring over the past few days had turned unexpectedly hostile. What had initially been thought to be a simple smuggling operation turned into something far more dangerous after the group revealed several illegally modified magical weapons, severely injuring a number of knights during the first confrontation.

Silver had no choice but to personally step in.

His eyes remained fixed on the magical map hovering above his palm as he stepped out of the command tent one of his men had hastily assembled near the edge of the forest. Tiny points of light continuously shifted across the parchment, each one representing the current position of his squad. Red markers indicated the suspected location of the smugglers, while several blinking yellow lights warned of injured knights awaiting reinforcements.

His right-hand man, Ludomir, walked beside him.

"...I never thought it'd turn out to be this serious."

Silver gave a quiet hum of agreement without taking his eyes off the map.

"The western squad is beginning to surround them." His gaze shifted toward another section of the projection. "The eastern route is too narrow. If they retreat into the forest, we'll lose visibility."

Ludo nodded.

"I've already ordered the second squad to cut them off from the north."

"Good."

Silver lightly tapped the map with two fingers, causing several blue markers to reposition themselves.

"Have Squad Three remain here. Tell them not to engage unless absolutely necessary."

"Understood."

Only after giving the instruction did Silver finally dismiss the magical map with a wave of his hand. Ludo let out a guilty sigh.

"...I'm sorry for pulling you away during your leave, Captain."

"It's alright," Silver shook his head. "I understand the severity of the situation."

He truly did. After all, he had been looking forward to these next two weeks more than anything.

Today was supposed to be the day you officially moved into your new home together. Boxes still waited to be unpacked. Furniture still needed arranging. There were curtains to hang, shelves to build, and an embarrassingly long shopping list the two of you had written together.

He had wanted to do all of it with you.

"...Still." Ludomir rubbed the back of his neck. "This is practically your honeymoon. I feel terrible."

Silver stopped walking.

"..."

A faint shade of pink slowly crept across his cheeks.

The word honeymoon was, unfortunately, enough to send his thoughts somewhere they had absolutely no business going while standing in the middle of an ongoing operation.

The little house.

Your shared bedroom.

...

Silver quietly cleared his throat.

The two of you had never talked about that intimacy before. You had never brought it up, and neither had he. Somehow, he had always assumed it would happen naturally after the two of you were married, whenever you were both ready.

Which was precisely why being teased about it now left him feeling thoroughly flustered.

"We're not married yet," he corrected.

Ludo laughed.

"I know," he flashed Silver a grin before giving him a playful salute. "But you might as well be."

"I'll be waiting for the invitation, Captain."

Silver could only let out a small, embarrassed sigh before resuming his steps.

"...Thank you."

Ludo chuckled to himself.

Silver merely shook his head at his subordinate's antics, though he couldn't stop the smile that quietly found its way onto his face whenever the conversation drifted toward you.

Even after all these years, he often found himself wondering how someone could occupy his thoughts so effortlessly.

It no longer mattered whether he was training, patrolling the Valley, attending meetings with Lord Malleus, or standing in the middle of an operation like this. Somehow, his mind always wandered back to you eventually. He wondered whether you had eaten, whether work had gone well, whether you remembered to bring a jacket if the weather turned colder, or what ridiculous story you would excitedly tell him the next time the two of you met.

None of those thoughts ever distracted him from his duties. If anything, they simply made even the longest days a little easier to bear.

Soon, the two of you would no longer have to part ways at the end of the day. No more counting the hours until your next date, no more reluctantly saying goodbye after walking you home, no more wishing he could stay just a little longer.

From now on, the two of you would wake up beneath the same roof, share every meal you could, and return home to one another after work.

The thought alone was enough to make the corners of his lips curl upward.

Silver closed his eyes with an embarrassed smile.

Ah...

He really had become a love-struck drunkard, just like Sebek always said.

However, before he could fully lose himself in those pleasant thoughts, there was still one matter that quietly lingered at the back of his mind.

It wasn't a new concern. If anything, it had existed for so long that it had simply become another part of his life, much like the soulmate mark resting upon his skin.

Silver still remembered the day the two of you discovered what your soulmate perk truly was. Two frightened seven-year-olds lying unconscious beside one another after you had tripped over a tree root during one of your playdates. When the adults eventually pieced everything together, both families fell into an uneasy silence that neither of you, as children, could fully understand at the time.

Every pain he suffered...

Would become yours as well.

Back then, Silver couldn't quite grasp what that truly meant. As he grew older, however, the meaning became increasingly clear. By then, he had already begun training as a knight.

It had always been the path laid before him ever since Father took him in, and somewhere along the years, it had also become the path he genuinely wished to walk with his own two feet. Becoming a knight was no longer simply an expectation placed upon him. It was his dream, his purpose, and eventually, his responsibility.

There had been nights when the thought quietly gnawed at him.

Would it be selfish of him to continue?

Every bruise earned during training, every cut from sparring, every injury sustained while carrying out his duties would never belong solely to him. Somewhere else, you would inevitably feel them too.

Yet... Neither of you ever brought up the possibility of another life.

You never once asked him to abandon his dream. Instead, you stood beside him through every stage of his journey, celebrating each promotion with far more enthusiasm than he ever did himself, proudly telling anyone willing to listen that your Silver had become one of Briar Valley's Royal Knight Captains.

Whenever guilt crept into his heart after returning from a difficult mission, you were always the first to reassure him that you were alright. That this was simply part of your soulmate perk. That none of it was his fault.

Eventually Silver learned to accept those words. Not because the guilt disappeared, but because the two of you had somehow found a way to live alongside it.

Over the years, he did everything within his power to ensure he returned home with as few injuries as possible. His swordsmanship gradually shifted away from overwhelming offense, favoring a steadier, more defensive style that prioritized protecting himself and the people fighting beside him. He devoted more time to barrier magic, learned advanced healing spells far beyond what was expected of an ordinary knight, and avoided reckless charges unless there was simply no other choice.

It wasn't because he feared getting hurt. It was because every unnecessary wound he suffered would inevitably become yours as well.

Meanwhile, you quietly developed your own little habits to avoid adding even the smallest injury on top of the ones he inevitably brought home from work.

Somehow the two of you simply continued living that way.

Until the day he asked you to marry him.

Nothing about the soulmate perk had changed. Nothing about his occupation had changed either. The only thing that changed was the future the two of you were now walking toward.

For years, the thought had always ended with the same conclusion.

We'll figure it out.

The two of you always had. But ever since slipping that ring onto your finger, that answer no longer felt complete.

Soon, you would no longer be someone he reluctantly said goodbye to at the end of the day. You would become his wife. The person he would return home to every evening, wake beside every morning, and perhaps, if fate allowed it, build a family together with one day.

The future that had once felt so distant had become real. And for the first time... Silver found himself wondering whether simply learning to live with your soulmate perk was truly enough anymore.

Or whether he had unknowingly asked too much of you all these years.

"...Captain!"

The flap of the command tent was abruptly thrown open as one of the knights hurried inside, breathing heavily from the run.

"They're attacking the eastern perimeter! The smugglers have begun using the modified magical weapons!"

Silver immediately rose to his feet. The thoughts occupying his mind vanished almost instantly, replaced by the calm composure that had earned the unwavering trust of every knight serving beneath him.

"Ludomir."

"Yes, Captain."

"Gather the second squad and reinforce the eastern flank. Tell the healers to prioritize evacuating the wounded before the fighting reaches the camp. I'll push through the center and regroup with the first squad."

"Understood."

Silver drew his sword before striding out of the tent.

The once orderly encampment had already descended into chaos. Explosions of magic lit the forest in violent flashes as the sound of clashing steel echoed from every direction. His men fought desperately to contain the smugglers before they could push any deeper into Briar Valley, but the modified magical weapons had already begun disrupting their formation.

Silver didn't hesitate. He stepped directly into the center of the battlefield, cutting through the first attacker before immediately moving toward another knight who had been forced onto the defensive.

"Captain!"

A younger knight instinctively turned toward Silver's voice. At that exact moment, another smuggler hidden deeper within the forest released a magical arrow toward the unsuspecting knight.

Silver's body reacted before his mind did.

He shoved the younger knight aside, forcing him out of the arrow's path. The projectile narrowly missed its intended target, its sharpened magical edge instead slicing cleanly across Silver's shoulder before disappearing into the trees behind him. A sharp sting spread across his shoulder almost immediately, warm blood beginning to seep through the torn fabric of his uniform. It wasn't deep, but it was enough to draw blood.

Silver instinctively stepped back the moment the attacker was subdued, his free hand immediately moving to the shallow cut across his shoulder. A soft green glow gathered around his fingertips as healing magic slowly mended the torn flesh, leaving behind nothing more than a faint trace of blood staining his uniform.

He had long since developed this habit. Every second an injury remained untreated was another second his soulmate had to endure it, and if he could spare you even a moment of unnecessary pain, then healing himself immediately became second nature. It wouldn't erase the pain you had already felt. But at the very least, it would keep it from lingering any longer than it needed to.

Only after making sure the wound had completely closed did Silver tighten his grip around his sword once more.

"Stay focused," he ordered calmly before charging back into the battlefield.

Your fingers instinctively reached for your shoulder as a sting bloomed beneath your shirt. The book resting on your lap remained open, yet your eyes no longer moved across the words. Instead, they stared blankly at the same paragraph, your thumb gently rubbing the spot where the pain had settled.

"...Ouch."

It’s time.

It is the perfect instance. The moment you had been waiting for your entire life.

Silver had safely returned from his expedition a few days ago. The two of you had officially moved into your new home together, slowly settling into your new routines.

You strutted back and forth inside your bathroom, trying to gather the courage to do what you had spent the past several weeks mentally preparing yourself for.

Your hands slowly curled into fists.

Today was the day.

Yes. Let's have sex.

It was admittedly a little embarrassing that, at your big age, you still hadn't done anything with your fiancé despite practically growing up together. You had simply been too shy to ever bring it up, while Silver had never made the first move either. Whenever girls your age casually talked about their experiences, you could only sit there quietly, nodding along while secretly wondering what it was like.

With how he had never once mentioned it, you eventually came to the conclusion that perhaps Silver simply wanted to wait until after marriage. Which was perfectly reasonable. Except... that theory only worked if the two of you weren't already living together.

You were.

You shared the same house, slept under the same roof, and saw each other from the moment you woke up until you went to bed. Exactly how were you supposed to restrain yourself under these circumstances?

Ever since Silver had returned from his expedition several days ago, the two of you hadn't done anything. At first, you assumed he was simply exhausted after being away for so long, so you happily gave him the time he needed to rest. Then one day became two, two became three, and you found yourself wondering if perhaps you had misunderstood the entire situation.

Silver certainly wasn't making it any easier either.

Going shirtless around you had never been particularly unusual, but living together somehow made everything infinitely worse. He would casually walk out of the bathroom with damp hair, water still trailing down his neck after a shower as though he had absolutely no idea what kind of effect he had on you. The man simply existed, completely oblivious, while you were over here fighting for your life every single day.

Honestly.

He was making it very difficult to remain a respectable member of society.

You lowered yourself onto the edge of the bathtub, both hands resting on your thighs as you stared at the opposite wall with the seriousness of someone contemplating a life-changing decision.

"Should I just have my way with him?"

No.

Absolutely not.

That was a terrible idea.

Silver was, if nothing else, a complete gentleman. Unfortunately, he was perhaps a little too successful at being one. While he treated you with nothing but patience, kindness, and unwavering respect, you were sitting here entertaining thoroughly impure thoughts about your own fiancé. Sometimes he made you feel like you were the only one in this relationship running on basic human instincts.

You let out a long, defeated sigh.

"I am the worst."

Resting your chin against your hand, you began mentally rehearsing every possible way to bring it up. Every scenario somehow ended with you combusting from embarrassment before you could finish the first sentence.

Another sigh escaped your lips.

Maybe you should stop overcomplicating things. Maybe you should simply tell him. Silver would never laugh at you. He would never make you feel ashamed. If anything, he would probably listen quietly before responding with that same gentle smile he always wore.

You knew him.

You trusted him.

Your cheeks slowly warmed anyway.

...But you were shy.

What was a lady, if not dignity personified?

...Welp. You abruptly stood up and threw both of your hands into the air. The universe itself had gathered to witness your declaration.

"Hm."

You nodded to yourself.

“A lady be damned.”

Who needs to be a lady?

Today, you would embrace the rutting rabbit lurking deep within your soul. After all, you had waited your entire life for this. Surely you had earned the right to be just a little shameless.

Yes. That settled it. Enough staring longingly at the menu. It was finally time to eat.

Feeling strangely empowered by your own questionable motivational speech, you confidently reached for the bathroom door and pulled it open. Only for every last ounce of that confidence to evaporate the very second your eyes landed on Silver.

Shirtless, of course. One arm was already raised, frozen halfway through knocking on the door.

"I was just about to knock," he said. "Are you alright? You took longer than usual."

(๑ᗒ//ᗕ)՞

Goodness gracious. There went your bravery.

Noticing your face had somehow become approximately the same temperature as the sun, Silver frowned before gently cupping your cheeks with both hands.

"Your face is so warm," he murmured. "Are you feeling sick?"

You made a sound that could only be described as a keyboard smash before hurriedly swatting his hands away and jumping back several steps, putting what you believed to be a perfectly reasonable amount of distance between yourself and the source of all your current problems.

"N-No! I'm not sick!"

Silver blinked, looking thoroughly confused.

"Then what happened?"

You immediately bit your nail.

No.

That looked nervous.

You quickly lowered your hand.

Then you clasped both hands together.

No.

That somehow looked even more nervous.

You crossed your arms.

Wait. That make you look like you were about to start an argument.

Why were hands so difficult?

"Honey?"

Silver's voice softened as he stepped closer again, gently resting his hands on your upper arms.

"You've seemed troubled these past few days. Has something happened? Would you mind telling me?"

This was somehow getting worse. Much worse. The man genuinely thought something terrible had happened, while the only catastrophe currently taking place was your complete inability to tell your own fiancé that you desperately wanted to sleep with him.

Dear God.

You deserved jail time for being horny.

"...Sex," you mumbled.

"Hm?"

"S-Sex..."

"I'm sorry, Honey. I can't hear you if you mumble like that."

Your eye twitched. You squeezed your eyes shut, took the deepest breath of your life, and finally screamed at the top of your lungs.

"I WANT TO HAVE SEEEEX!"

...

SEx.

...

Sex...

...

sex…

Your voice echoed magnificently throughout the bathroom. Possibly the hallway and potentially the entire house.

The silence that followed was so absolute you were convinced you could hear a tiny cartoon star bounce off Silver's forehead before landing on the floor with a soft boink.

Silver didn't move. He didn't blink and simply stared at you. Meanwhile, you seriously began considering whether it was still legally possible to dig a hole through the bathroom floor and live there forever.

"I-It's just... w-we've been together f-for so long, and w-we've never..." You swallowed hard. "...Had sex before. And I-I was just wondering if... if maybe you wanted to..."

You squeezed your eyes shut. The silence only grew heavier. Your heart practically leaped into your throat.

"S-Since we're living together now..." you hurriedly continued, desperately trying to fill the silence before it swallowed you whole. "I-I thought maybe this would finally be the time to..."

Your voice trailed off when you felt one of Silver's hands slowly leave your shoulder.

You looked up. Only to find your fiancé hiding the lower half of his face behind it. His ears were bright red. His cheeks somehow even redder.

"...Silver?"

"H-Hon... I..."

His lips parted. Then closed again.

"We..."

Nothing came out. It was only then that you noticed the faint tremble in his shoulders. Curious, you cautiously placed a hand against his chest, intending to get a better look at his face.

The instant your palm met his shirtless chest, your eyes widened. His heart was racing. No. Racing was an understatement. It felt as though it was trying to break free from his ribcage entirely.

"Gah?!"

Your own face instantly burned another shade darker. Somehow, his heartbeat was even faster than yours.

Unable to withstand the embarrassment any longer, Silver knees suddenly gave out beneath him, taking you down along with him.

"WAAAH! SILVEEER!"

And that was how the two of you somehow ended up lying flat on your backs on the bedroom floor, side by side, staring blankly at the ceiling while trying—and failing—to convince your hearts to calm down.

After several long moments of silence, you finally let out a weak laugh.

"...We both have weak hearts, don't we?"

"...Yeah."

Silver's equally exhausted reply came several seconds later. Neither of you had even managed to kiss, yet somehow both of you already felt like you had run a marathon.

"I... I'm sorry," you murmured once your heartbeat had finally settled enough for you to form coherent sentences. "I didn't mean to startle you. It's just..." You rubbed the back of your neck awkwardly before letting out a small sigh. "...To be honest, this whole thing has been making me feel a little self-conscious."

Silver finally turned his head to look at you. "No, don't apologize. It's not your fault." He shook his head, his own face still carrying a faint pink hue. "I was simply... surprised, that's all. But may I ask why you've been feeling that way?"

You hesitated. Every instinct told you to laugh it off and pretend you had never asked such a ridiculous question in the first place, yet you also knew this conversation had been long overdue. If you kept bottling it up, your imagination would simply continue inventing answers on Silver's behalf like it always did.

"...Silver," you began after taking another deep breath. "Please answer me honestly." Your fingers instinctively tightened around your bathrobe. "...Am I not attractive enough?"

Silver immediately sat upright.

"...What?"

You covered your eyes with one hand, suddenly finding the ceiling much easier to face than your own fiancé.

"It's just... you've never really shown that kind of interest in me." A weak laugh escaped you. "Don't get me wrong. I've never doubted that you love me. Not even once. But I also know there are people who love their partners romantically without necessarily feeling attracted to them physically. So... when you never brought it up, I thought maybe you simply wanted to wait until we were married. It made sense, so I never questioned it."

You paused, letting out another quiet sigh.

"But then we started living together, and... nothing changed." Your voice grew quieter with every sentence. "I know it's my fault. I should've asked you instead of making assumptions, but... this stupid brain of mine just kept wandering further and further. I started wondering if maybe you simply didn't see our relationship that way. Maybe you didn't want to be intimate with me at all. And if that really was the case..." You smiled to yourself, though there wasn't much happiness behind it. "I would've accepted it. I love you far too much to ever leave you over something like that."

Your fingers unconsciously twisted together.

"But my thoughts didn't stop there. They kept going until they somehow circled back to me instead. What if it wasn't because you weren't interested in intimacy? What if... you simply weren't attracted to me?"

You laughed, almost at yourself.

"I know you've never once said anything that would make me think that. You've never treated me like that. Yet somehow, the more I kept thinking about it by myself, the more those imaginary answers began sounding real, and before I knew it, I'd already convinced myself of things I'd never even given you the chance to answer."

The room fell silent once again.

There. Everything had finally come out.

Every insecurity you had quietly nurtured over the years, every conclusion your anxious mind had reached without a shred of evidence, every fear that had slowly snowballed simply because you had been too embarrassed to ask one honest question. The weight in your chest should have disappeared now that it was no longer yours to carry alone, but instead you only felt painfully exposed.

"I'm sorry, Honey..." you whispered. "I should've trusted you enough to ask instead of letting my imagination answer for you."

Unable to bear whatever expression might be on his face, you turned your head away. Looking at the wall suddenly felt far easier than looking at the man you loved.

You didn't have the chance to dwell on those thoughts for long. A warm hand gently cupped your cheek, urging you to look back. Before you realized it, Silver had already pushed himself upright and leaned over you, close enough that your breath caught in your throat.

Your eyes slowly lifted to meet his, and forgot how to breathe.

You had known Silver for almost your entire life, yet you had never seen him look at you quite like this. His aurora eyes remained as gentle as ever, but his pupils had widened noticeably, his expression caught somewhere between disbelief, relief, and something else you couldn't quite put into words.

"...Silver?"

His name had barely left your lips when he closed the remaining distance between you, capturing your lips in a kiss that silenced every lingering doubt you had carried alone for all those years.

Soft lips brushing yours with a tenderness that made your chest tighten. When you sighed into him, he deepened it slowly, coaxing your mouth open with gentle sweeps of his tongue, careful and worshipful.

Your bathrobe slipped as you brought your legs upward instinctively, leaving your thigh bare, and you felt his hand find it—warm, tentative, trembling just slightly against your skin. You jolted. He'd never done that before. He rested his palm there first, simply feeling you, before his thumb traced upward your inner thigh with such care it made your breath hitch.

A soft sound escaped you, and he broke the kiss with a shaky exhale, his forehead coming to rest against yours, his hand still burning gentle and possessive against your thigh.

"I'm sorry I made you feel that way." His voice came out quieter than before as he buried his face against your shoulder, unable to meet your eyes. "I never wanted you to think that... I should've considered how all of this might have looked from your perspective."

"No, it wasn't your fault. Please..." You gently stroked his hair, hoping to ease at least some of the guilt weighing on his shoulders.

Silver only buried his face deeper. "...I should've been more honest with you too."

You waited patiently.

"The truth is..." He took a slow breath. "...I was scared."

Your brows knitted together.

"...Scared?"

"I was scared of hurting you."

Your expression immediately shifted into one of complete bewilderment.

"Huh?"

Silver gave another small sigh.

"I've heard that a woman's first time can be painful." His voice was barely above a whisper. "I know that isn't always the case. It depends on the person, and I've read that not everyone experiences pain... but I couldn't stop thinking about the possibility that you might."

He let out a self-conscious laugh.

"So... I started researching. I wanted to know if there was anything I could do to make your first time as comfortable as possible." His ears turned a deeper shade of red. "The more I read, the more I realized there wasn't any guarantee. Even after everything I'd learned..." He lowered his gaze again. "...I was still afraid."

...

What?

No.

...

WHAT?!

Your brain completely short-circuited. Heat rushed straight to your face as the pieces finally fell into place.

So that was why.. While you had spent all these years convincing yourself that Silver simply wasn't interested in you, he had been quietly worrying about how to keep you from getting hurt.

"Trust me..." Silver let out a helpless laugh as he finally looked at you again. "You are the most attractive person in the entire world. Do you have any idea how difficult it has been to keep my hands to myself all these years?”

Oh, Sevens. You smacked your palm against your forehead.

"...Honey?"

"Silver."

"...Yes?"

"You are the biggest idiot I have ever met."

"..."

"And I mean that with all the love in my heart."

You cupped his face between both of your hands, gently guiding him to look at you again.

"It's normal," you said softly. "Some women experience pain their first time. Some don't. Either way... I don't mind."

Your thumbs lightly brushed against his cheeks.

"I love you, Silver. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you, and this isn't something you're forcing on me." A smile tugged at your lips. "I want this."

You held his gaze, refusing to let him look away.

"I want you."

The corners of your lips lifted ever so slightly.

"I want to make love with you."

A faint laugh escaped you.

"And really... compared to everything we've been through together, what's a little pain? We've survived far worse than that."

Silver let out an awkward hum, his gaze instinctively drifting to the side once more. You sighed fondly before gently turning his face back toward you.

"So..."

You smiled.

"Do it."

Your voice was barely above a whisper, yet it carried every ounce of certainty you possessed.

"Silver Vanrouge..."

"...Make love to me."

His restraint broke behind his eyes at your words. He kissed you again, more pasionately, before his arms slid beneath you. He lifted you as if you weighed nothing, his knight's strength evident in the easy way he cradled you against his bare chest, and you wound your arms around his neck as he carried you the few steps to the bed.

He laid you down with such care, like you might shatter, and you couldn't help the nervous laugh that bubbled up when your elbow bumped his, when the mattress dipped unexpectedly beneath you. First-time awkwardness, it seems, but he smiled against your lips. That beautiful, princely smile that made your heart stutter. And suddenly it was easier.

"Hi," he whispered, settling over you, his weight braced on his forearms so he wouldn't crush you.

"Hi," you breathed back, letting out a soft giggle at the endearing gesture before you were kissing again, slow and full of love, learning the rhythm of each other. Years of yearning had finally led to this moment.

His hands found the tie of your bathrobe, fingers hesitating as his gaze landed on yours. You nodded, arching up to help him, and he peeled the fabric open with such reverence that made your cheeks burn. He sat back on his heels just to look at you, his gaze tracing every curve like he was memorizing scripture, and the awe on his face—god, the awe—made you want to hide and preen all at once.

"You're beautiful," he sighed lovingly.

"You're wearing too many pants," you countered, grateful that the joke loosened the knot in your chest. He laughed, that rich sound you had fallen in love with years ago, even as his hands shook slightly undoing his trousers.

When he pushed the fabric down and kicked it aside, you couldn't help but look. He was hard, flushed dark against his stomach, and bigger than you had expected. Thick enough that your breath caught, wondering how exactly this was going to work. The thought must have shown on your face because he made a small, embarrassed noise and shifted, trying to angle himself away.

"Hey," you said softly, reaching for him. Your fingers wrapped around his length, testing the weight and heat of him, and he groaned, his hips jerking forward before he caught himself. "You're fine. We're fine. Come here."

When he was finally above you, you reached for his left bicep almost instinctively. Your fingers found the familiar raised skin there, your name stamped into his flesh, permanent and shining. You slowly traced each letter with your thumb, and he shivered beneath your touch, his eyes never leaving yours.

In return, he gently lifted your left wrist to his lips. His name rested there against your pulse, and he pressed a lingering kiss to each letter. The intimacy of the gesture made your chest tighten. This was why you had waited. This was what years of patience had earned you. Not merely this moment, but the certainty of knowing exactly who you belonged to and who belonged to you, your names forever written upon each other's skin.

"I love you," you whispered.

He kissed your neck. "I love you too."

His hand moved lower, tracing slow lines down your collarbone, across your shoulder, following the curve of your ribs with a touch so light it almost tickled. When his palm finally cupped your breast, you sucked in a breath, arching into the warmth of him. He was so careful, almost hesitant, like he couldn't quite believe he was allowed to touch you here. But then his thumb brushed over your nipple, and you made a sound that seemed to undo something in him.

He did it again, rolling the sensitive flesh between his thumb and finger, watching your face with rapt attention to see what you liked. When you gasped and pushed into his hand, he took that as permission to explore further, kneading, testing the weight of you, learning the shape of your body with the same focus he gave to everything that mattered to him.

"Is this okay?" he asked, his voice rough, even as his thumb continued its slow, maddening circles.

"More than okay," you breathed, your own hands finding purchase on his back, his shoulders, anywhere you could reach. "Don't stop."

He didn't. He bowed his head and replaced his hand with his mouth, and you cried out at the wet heat of it, your fingers tangling in his hair as he sucked and licked and learned you with patient, devastating thoroughness. His free hand roamed lower, tracing patterns across your stomach, your hip, the inside of your thigh, everywhere he could reach, he touched, like he was trying to memorize you by feel alone.

He kissed lower still, down your stomach, past your navel, until he was hovering right above where you were most bare. You felt his breath there, warm and unsteady, and you had to resist the urge to clamp your legs shut from sheer embarrassment. He was looking at you like you were some kind of mystery he needed to solve, his gaze fixed with such intense focus that you wanted to throw a pillow at his head.

Then he pressed his palm against your mound, one finger finding the sensitive nub at the top, and you jolted.

"So this is the clitoris," he said, almost to himself, like he was cataloging information for future reference.

"God, Silver, you make me embarrassed," you protested, your voice coming out higher than you wanted. His hand stayed right where it was, warm and heavy. "Why did you do that?"

"Hmm," he hummed, thoroughly unbothered, his thumb circling slowly. "Did you shave the hair?"

You made a strangled noise, your face burning. "Oh my God, Silver!"

He laughed at that, actually laughed, the sound vibrating through you. But before you could smack his head with a pillow, he shifted his hand and pushed one long finger inside you.

The sensation made you seize up, your back arching off the bed as he moved it in and out with careful strokes. You couldn't help the sounds that spilled out of you, breathy moans and broken gasps as your body responded to him, slick heat pouring out around his finger, making everything slippery and obscene. He added a second finger, stretching you, curling them just so to find the spot that made your vision white out at the edges.

"Silver—" you gasped, your hips rocking helplessly against his hand. "Silver, please—"

What made it worse—what made it more—was the way he watched you so seriously, like this was important work he needed to get right, his brows furrowed in concentration even as his own cock hung heavy between his legs, leaking pre-cum onto your thigh. The contrast was maddening. You were falling apart and he was taking notes.

He kept working you with his fingers, finding a rhythm that had you climbing fast, your breath coming in short, desperate pants. When you came, it hit you like a wave, your whole body convulsing around his hand as you cried out his name, your release coating his fingers in thick, messy evidence of just how good he'd made you feel.

Silver withdrew his hand slowly, staring at his fingers with something like wonder, at the slickness coating them. He looked up at you, still heaving and trembling from the aftershocks.

"Does it feel good?" he asked, earnest as ever.

You were still catching your breath, your chest heaving, but you managed to grin at him. "Very," you said, "...and it'd be even better if you'd stop making me wait.”

Something flickered across his face. Hesitation, fear, the old worry about hurting you, but you were already moving, reaching down to find his hand, guiding him with your other hand at his hip until you felt the hard heat of him pressing where you were wet and open and waiting.

"Please," you whispered, and your free hand found his jaw, thumb tracing the tension there. "I want you inside."

He caught your left wrist, the one with his name inked there, and pressed his mouth once more to those letters like a prayer. "Slow," he promised against your skin, the word vibrating into your pulse. "I'll go slow."

He settled his weight between your thighs, and you felt the blunt pressure of him. When he finally pushed forward, it was agonizingly slow. Each fraction of an inch stretching you open, filling you with a heat that made your breath catch. Not pain, exactly, but intensity, a fullness that bordered on too much. You gasped, your nails finding his shoulders, and he froze immediately, muscles rigid with restraint.

"Don't," you breathed, digging in harder. "Don't stop."

But then the burn came. A sharp ache as your body struggled to adjust around him. You winced before you could stop yourself, sucking air through your teeth, and he jerked, his whole body going rigid as if the sensation had been his own.

"You're—" His voice cracked, panicked, and he was already pulling back, the loss of him sudden and cold. "I can feel it. I feel you hurting, I can't—"

You caught his arm, the one that wore your name, and pulled his hand to your chest. "Look at me." He did, eyes wide and dark, pupils blown with want and fear. "It's just new," you said, pressing his palm over your racing heart. "Not bad. Stay."

"I feel everything," he whispered, wonder breaking through the terror in his voice. His thumb traced circles on your breast, and you felt the echo of your own heartbeat in his fingertips. "Everything you feel."

"Then feel this," you said, and rolled your hips up to meet him.

The pleasure that lanced through you—god, the angle—echoed back in his sharp gasp, his groan vibrating through his chest into yours. His eyes went half-lidded, his forehead dropping to rest against yours, sharing your breath.

"Oh," he breathed, understanding dawning in the slack of his mouth. "That's... that's a lot."

You laughed, breathless, and did it again, rocking up into him. This time he moved with you, finding a rhythm that was clumsy and perfect all at once. Every thrust sent heat spiraling through you, the friction building in your belly, coiling tighter each time he filled you. You watched his face, the way his jaw slackened, the way his eyes fixed on yours like he was trying to memorize exactly how you looked in this moment, taking him in.

"Is this—" He panted, snapping his hips harder, sending sparks up your spine that made you gasp. "Tell me this is okay."

"Yes," you managed, arching up to meet him, your hands sliding down the sweat-slick curve of his back, feeling the muscles shift and flex as he moved. "Silver, yes—don't stop—"

He couldn't have stopped if he'd wanted to. You felt him losing control in the way his thrusts became less careful, more desperate, the way his breathing turned ragged against your neck. You tightened around him, and the groan he let out was all his own. No bond needed to tell you he was close. You could see it in the tension of his shoulders, feel it in the way his hips stuttered, seeking deeper, harder.

When you came, it crashed through you hard, your release pulling a groan from him as your body tightened around him, drawing out his own. He buried his face in your neck, groaning long and low against your pulse as he finished inside you, his whole body shaking with it. You held him through it, fingers tangled in his hair, feeling his heart hammering against yours, two separate rhythms finally finding the same tempo.

For a while, neither of you moved. You just lay tangled, sweaty and breathing hard, his weight a comforting press that you had no desire to lose.

"I love you," he mumbled against your shoulder, pressing kisses to the damp skin there, then your jaw, your mouth, tasting like salt and devotion. "I'm sorry I made us wait."

You ran your fingers through his hair, holding him close, still feeling little aftershocks rippling through you, yours alone. "Worth it," you said.

The tournament day arrived before you knew it. Silver had left early that morning to prepare for his event while you shamelessly stayed in bed for another hour because walking had proven... difficult.

You were too embarrassed to admit that after that first night, you and Silver had been at it like animals. Father had been right to call this holiday your honeymoon because, honestly, you were starting to believe he had somehow seen into the future.

The bed? Done for. The kitchen? Ruined. The shower? Flooded. Even the living room wasn't spared. At this rate, there wouldn't be a single corner of the house that didn't make your face burn whenever you looked at it.

And you never expected Silver to be such a tease. Oh, Sevens. That was a side of him you had only just discovered. Sure, the two of you had always teased each other, but now that every innocent comment somehow found its way back to sex, he had absolutely no shame saying the cringiest lines imaginable.

"I learned it from the internet and books," he had said. While buck naked in the middle of the living room.

Unlearned it, Silver.

You had genuinely thought you were going to develop a fever on the spot. Doctor, help. That animal refused to leave your side for even a moment. Looking back, perhaps you should have known. He had once sent you a picture of himself wearing a rabbit costume during Clock Town's festival.

He really was a rabbit. A rabbit in heat, to be precise. He needs to be put down. Do not be fooled by that princely face. He was DIRTY.

You almost stumbled over your own feet when you remembered the way he had gone down on you against the kitchen table.

"Let me show you how much I desire you, my most delicious dinner," he had said.

Sevens. You instinctively leaned against the arena wall, pressing a hand over your face.

"Miss, are you alright?" one of the staff members asked.

You could only raise a hand to signal that you were fine because you couldn't trust yourself to say anything coherent with how embarrassed you were. The staff member eventually left, though not without casting you one last curious glance over her shoulder.

You took a deep breath, willing your heartbeat to settle.

Stop it, you perverted brain. Your boyfriend is about to compete in a few minutes, and you're over here replaying how he bent you over the bathroom floor.

Yummy, though.

You spotted Sebek and his soulmate almost immediately among the spectators and made your way over to them. Since Sebek was competing in Cross-country Eventing, his event wouldn't begin until tomorrow at a different course. Today's schedule belonged to Show Jumping and Dressage instead, the latter of which Riddle was participating in alongside his soulmate, who was also a rider. That probably explained why neither of them were anywhere to be seen. They were likely preparing for their respective rounds.

"Hello," you greeted.

"Hi!" his soulmate answered enthusiastically while Sebek simply acknowledged you with a nod.

"You're late," Sebek remarked. "You usually arrive much earlier."

"Ah... I had to take care of something first."

Massaging your thighs counted as one of them.

One by one, the riders entered the arena as the announcer introduced today's competitors. Having already completed their warm-up in the practice ring, each horse was led around the course at an easy walk while waiting for the signal to begin. Samson was impossible to miss. His white coat practically gleamed beneath the morning sun, and perched atop him sat Silver in his competition jacket, looking every bit the prince he was.

As though sensing your gaze, Silver looked toward the stands.

His face lit up almost instantly. The smile that bloomed across his face was so bright it painted his cheeks pink, his aurora eyes softening with affection. He lifted a hand from the reins and gave you a small wave, one meant only for you, and before you realized it, you were smiling just as foolishly back.

Beside you, Sebek clicked his tongue.

"Drunkards."

His soulmate promptly smacked him on the arm.

"Leave them alone."

You paid them no mind, your attention never leaving Silver as he guided Samson around the arena. Even from this distance, you could recognize the confidence in the way he sat in the saddle, the easy trust between horse and rider built over years together.

...Except it was becoming increasingly difficult to admire your boyfriend when you could practically feel someone staring holes into the side of your face.

You already knew who it was. Which was precisely why you refused to look.

Sebek's soulmate staring at you like a hawk. Your neck stiffened with every passing second. If you kept pretending not to notice, perhaps she would eventually stop.

She did not stop.

"Are you pregnant?"

Your jaw dropped, and you whipped your head toward her at the unbelievable question. Beside her, Sebek's eyes widened as he turned to you.

"You're pregnant?!" he exclaimed.

"N-no! I'm not!" you stammered.

"Are you sure?" she asked again.

"Y-yes! What are you talking about?!" Your face was probably red enough to rival a tomato at this point.

Sebek whipped his head back toward his soulmate. "What makes you think she's pregnant?!"

"Hmm... I don't know." She tilted her head thoughtfully before smiling. "She just looks so radiant today. Even more than the last time I met her."

Your heart nearly stopped.

"Well, if you're not pregnant, then that's fine." She smiled warmly at you. "Just know that you look even prettier than the last time we met."

She punctuated the compliment with a wink.

You wanted to combust.

Why? What made her say that? Did it have anything to do with everything that had happened between you and Silver these past few days? Surely not. You couldn't possibly be pregnant after only a week... could you? No, that was impossible.

Was his sperm a natural skincare? Huh? Ain’t no way.

Or…Was this what people called an afterglow?

Could other people actually see it?

"Hmm," Sebek mused, glancing toward the arena. "Now that I think about it, Silver looks annoyingly bright today as well. I assumed he was simply eager for the competition."

"Maybe Silver is the one who's pregnant," his soulmate replied without missing a beat.

"Stop your nonsense."

You shook your head and did your best to ignore their bickering, even though you could still feel her knowing gaze lingering on you.

A bell rang across the arena.

Almost instantly, Silver's attention shifted back to the course. The smile he had reserved for you faded into concentration as he shortened the reins ever so slightly, Samson collecting beneath him before easing into a smooth canter toward the opening line. It never ceased to amaze you how effortlessly he transformed. One moment he was your hopelessly affectionate boyfriend, smiling at you from across the arena, and the next he became the knight everyone knew him to be, every movement measured, every thought devoted entirely to the horse beneath him.

The first fence came and went with remarkable ease.

Samson gathered himself beneath Silver's cue before sailing cleanly over the rail, landing so softly that the sand barely scattered beneath his hooves. Silver hardly seemed to move at all, his posture steady as he guided Samson toward the next obstacle with nothing more than subtle shifts of his weight and the gentlest touch on the reins. It almost looked effortless, though you knew better. Countless mornings spent training together had shown you just how much discipline hid beneath movements that appeared so simple.

Another jump.

Then another.

Each approach was calculated, every turn smooth and balanced as Samson responded to Silver with unwavering trust. There was never any hesitation between them. They moved as though they understood each other's thoughts before either had the chance to act upon them.

Around you, polite applause followed every clean fence.

"They're looking good," Sebek admitted quietly, his eyes remaining fixed on the course.

You smiled to yourself.

"They always do."

Only the final combination remained.

Silver guided Samson into the corner with the same calm confidence he had shown throughout the round, giving the stallion plenty of room before straightening him toward the last line. The distance looked perfect. Samson lengthened his stride exactly when Silver asked him to, lifting beautifully over the first fence before immediately preparing for the second.

His hind hoof brushed the top rail on the landing. The pole clattered against the ground.

It should have been nothing more than a fault.

Instead, the fallen rail rolled directly beneath Samson's next stride. The stallion's front legs faltered.

Your heart lurched into your throat.

For the briefest moment, Samson fought desperately to regain his balance. Silver reacted immediately, throwing his weight away from the horse before the momentum could drag either of them into something worse. It was instinct born from years of training, protecting Samson even as the ground rushed toward him.

You saw his shoulder strike first.

Then his arm.

A crack echoed across the arena.

The pain reached you before your mind could even process what your eyes had witnessed.

It exploded through your left arm with such terrifying force that your entire body seized. It felt like something inside the bone had splintered apart, a nauseating crack followed by white-hot agony that shot from your shoulder to the very tips of your fingers. Every nerve screamed at once. Your hand went numb almost instantly while the rest of your arm burned so violently that you couldn't tell where the pain began or ended.

The air vanished from your lungs.

Your vision blurred.

The arena tilted.

Before you realized your body was moving, your knees had already buckled beneath you.

Your foot slipped against the edge of the concrete step. The sickening twist of your ankle registered only for a fraction of a second before your body pitched sideways, your shin striking the corner of the stair hard enough to send another burst of pain racing up your leg. You would have continued tumbling down the rows if two pairs of hands hadn't caught you at once.

"Hey!"

Sebek grabbed your upper arm while his soulmate caught you around the shoulders, both of them straining to keep you from falling any farther.

"What happened?" Sebek exclaimed, panic creeping into his voice. "Are you hurt?"

You wanted to answer but the words refused to come. Another wave of agony crashed through the soulmate bond before you could even draw a proper breath. Your arm throbbed so violently that your stomach twisted, bile rising into the back of your throat as tears spilled freely down your cheeks. It hurt.

Sevens.

It hurt.

It hurt so much.

Your mouth opened soundlessly but nothing came out. Not even a whimper. Every attempt to breathe ended in broken gasp that never reached your lungs. The world dissolved into a blur of sunlight and indistinct voices while somewhere beyond your swimming vision, people were shouting for the medical team.

"Silver!" someone cried.

More footsteps thundered across the arena floor.

You couldn't bring yourself to look.

You already knew.

You had felt the moment the bone broke.

And judging by the relentless, blinding agony still pouring through the soulmate bond, it was far worse than a simple fracture.

It didn't take long for the medics to take care of both of you.

They gave you a painkiller before casting several healing spells over your body. Warm magic seeped beneath your skin, easing the pain that had left every muscle tense after the soulmate bond had nearly overwhelmed you. It helped, but not completely. The ache in your arm lingered stubbornly, reminding you that the injury wasn't yours. As long as Silver remained untreated, so would you.

Fortunately, he didn't make the healers' job very difficult.

Even while they wheeled him toward the treatment room, Silver was already pouring his own healing magic into his injured arm. One of the medics repeatedly told him to stop and wait until they could examine the fracture properly, but he ignored every warning, insisting that he knew exactly what he was doing.

Thankfully, he did.

It turned out to be a simple fracture. Once the healers reset the bone, the rest was surprisingly straightforward. You knew the exact moment they pushed it back into place because a sharp pain shot through your own arm, making you double over in your chair despite the painkillers. After that, the soulmate bond gradually quieted until only a dull soreness remained, one that both the medication and Silver's healing magic easily kept under control.

Yes, the entire ordeal was over in less than an hour. It did not take long.

What took long was the silent ride home.

Silver sat beside you with his injured arm secured in a sling, his eyes fixed on the ground the entire journey. Even when you called his name and tried to talk to him, he didn't respond.

You tried again after the two of you arrived home.

"...Silver?"

Nothing.

You followed him into the living room, hoping he would finally say something now that the two of you were alone.

He didn't. Instead, he quietly said, "There's somewhere I need to go."

You frowned. "Now?"

He nodded.

"You should get some sleep."

"...What?"

"Don't wait for me."

Before you could ask where he was going or when he would be back, he was already walking toward the front door.

The door closed without another explanation.

Leaving you sobbing on the sofa in your brand new living room.

You didn't remember when you had fallen asleep. The last thing you remembered was crying into the cushions of your brand new sofa until your eyes stung too much to stay open.

When you finally woke, your eyelids felt painfully swollen. It took you a few moments to gather your bearings, your mind slowly piecing together where you were before you became aware of the unfamiliar weight resting against your stomach.

You blinked down.

Silver was sitting on the floor beside the sofa.

At some point during the night, he had leaned against your side and fallen asleep with his head resting on your stomach, one arm wrapped securely around your waist as though he were afraid you would disappear the moment he let go.

"...Silver?"

The moment his name left your lips, his eyes flew open. He looked at you for only a second before both of his hands were already cupping your face, his expression crumbling into guilt.

"You were crying." His voice trembled. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have made you cry."

He apologized again and again. The words tumbled from his lips almost desperately, each one quieter than the last. You gently covered one of his hands with yours.

"No, no. It's okay." You shook your head. "I'm okay."

You searched his face.

"...How are you?"

Only now did you truly notice him. The dark circles beneath his eyes were impossible to miss. His silver hair was slightly disheveled, his face exhausted in a way you had never seen before. It looked as though he hadn't slept at all.

"What happened?" you asked softly.

Silver lowered his gaze.

"Please tell me, Silver."

He remained silent for several long moments before carefully taking your hand into both of his. He brought it to his lips, pressing a lingering kiss against your palm before closing his eyes, his thumb absentmindedly stroking the back of your hand.

When he finally spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper.

"I want to resign as Captain."

Your thoughts came to a complete stop.

"...What?"

"I've already spoken to Father about it. And Lord Malleus."

Your eyes widened. He slowly lifted his gaze to meet yours.

"I wanted to tell you first before I officially submit my resignation."

You stared at him in complete disbelief.

"...No."

The word escaped your lips almost immediately.

"Silver... no."

None of this made any sense. Becoming Captain of the Royal Guard wasn't simply another promotion. It wasn't a position he had accepted on a whim.

It was the future he had spent his entire life working toward.

Ever since he was a child, Father had trained him to become a knight worthy of standing beside Lord Malleus. Every bruise, every lesson, every sleepless morning spent swinging a sword until his arms could barely move had all been for this. Even after graduating from Night Raven College, everything he did had been another step toward becoming the man he dreamed of being.

You had watched him fight so hard to reach this point. You had celebrated with him when he finally did. And now... He wanted to throw it all away.

You shook your head again, unable to understand.

"Why?" you asked, your voice barely steady. "Silver... why?"

Your vision blurred as tears threatened to spill once more.

"This is your dream."

You swallowed hard.

"It's everything you've ever wanted."

Perhaps it was seeing the tears gathering in your eyes. Perhaps it was hearing the hurt in your voice. Or perhaps he simply couldn't hold himself together any longer.

A tear slipped silently down his cheek.

"I couldn't do it anymore." He shook his head, his tears falling freely now that he had finally given voice to the thoughts he had kept to himself all night. "I shouldn't do it anymore. I should've done it long before today."

His fingers tightened around yours.

"I keep hurting you. I hate how you always try to hide every injury from me because you don't want me to worry. You smile and tell everyone you're fine as though none of it hurts, but I know it does. I always knew it did. Yet I kept pretending I could solve everything simply by being more careful." He let out a quiet, humorless laugh, lowering his gaze to your intertwined hands. "I should've been the first person to understand what you were going through because I'm the reason you're going through it. Instead, I chose to turn a blind eye because it was easier to believe that if I worked harder, if I became stronger, then I could protect both of us."

He slowly shook his head.

"I was wrong. No amount of carefulness can erase the life I've chosen. Knights get injured. Soldiers get injured. It doesn't matter how skilled I become or how many battles I survive without a scratch. Someday something will happen again, and when it does..." His voice cracked as another tear rolled down his cheek. "You'll suffer with me. Every mission I accept, every battle I fight, every wound I receive... you're forced to bear it too. That's not a burden you ever chose."

Silver lifted your hand to his lips, pressing a trembling kiss against your palm before resting his forehead there.

"I love you. I love you more than I've ever loved anything, and I'm so grateful you're my soulmate. Every day I thank the universe that you chose me." His shoulders trembled as he struggled to keep his composure. "But if there were a way to remove this bond... if there were a way to spare you from this pain without taking you away from me... I would do it without hesitation. I would rather lose this blessing than spend the rest of my life watching you suffer because of the path I decided to walk."

His voice dissolved into another apology.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I did this to you."

Before you could respond, he buried his face against your chest, his arms wrapping around your waist as sobs finally escaped him. You held him just as tightly, your fingers instinctively stroking his back while your own tears continued slipping down your cheeks. The tightness in your chest became almost unbearable, and for a fleeting moment you genuinely couldn't tell whether it belonged to you or him anymore. Perhaps there was no difference.

So this was what he had been carrying all this time.

Every bruise you had laughed off. Every cut you had hidden beneath your sleeves. Every ache you insisted would disappear after a night's rest. You had convinced yourself you were protecting him by pretending you were alright, never stopping to consider that perhaps your silence had only forced him to imagine something far worse. While you quietly endured his injuries, he had quietly blamed himself for every single one of yours.

You gently cupped his face, waiting patiently until he finally looked up at you through tear-filled eyes.

"Thank you," you whispered, offering him the gentlest smile you could manage despite the tears still clinging to your lashes. "Thank you for thinking so much about me."

Your thumb brushed across his damp cheek.

"But it's wrong for you to decide everything by yourself." You smiled sadly. "We already learned that lesson before, haven't we?"

Silver instinctively lowered his gaze again, but you gently guided it back to yours before he could avoid your eyes.

"Silver, every single day I'm grateful that my bond tied me to you. Not once have I ever regretted becoming your soulmate. If I had to choose all over again, I would still choose you." You let out a small laugh through your tears. "Although... I suppose I owe you an apology too. I didn't realize I was hurting you by pretending I was always fine. I thought I was protecting you, but all I did was make you carry those worries alone."

You leaned forward until your forehead rested against his.

"But I love you. I love everything about you. I love your kindness, your stubbornness, your ridiculous sleeping habits, your dreams..." Your voice softened even further. "And I refuse to become the reason you abandon the one dream you've spent your entire life chasing."

"But I don't want you to suffer because of that dream," Silver answered almost immediately. "Your life is shackled to mine now. Every decision I make affects you. Every danger I willingly walk into drags you with me whether you want to follow or not. I can't keep asking that of you."

"You never asked me."

His brows knitted together.

"I chose this."

"You didn't choose the pain."

"No." You slowly shook your head. "But I chose you, knowing exactly what being your soulmate meant."

You rested your forehead against his, gently brushing a loose strand of silver hair away from his face.

"Honey, I'm sorry for keeping my pain to myself and making you worry. I thought I was protecting you, but I understand now that all I did was make you carry another burden by yourself. I'll do better. I won't keep hiding things from you anymore."

Your fingers intertwined with his once more.

"I'm sorry for causing you this pain."

Silver immediately shook his head.

"No." His brows knitted together as fresh tears welled in his eyes. "I'm the one who should apologize. I'm the one who gave you this pain. If anyone should spend the rest of their life begging for forgiveness, it's me." His voice cracked as he lowered his head once more. "You shouldn't have forgiven me so easily."

Your heart clenched. You gently lifted his chin until he was looking at you again.

"I didn't forgive you because I thought you were guilty."

His expression faltered.

"I forgave you because there was nothing to forgive in the first place." You smiled sadly, your thumb stroking across his damp cheek. "Silver, this isn't something you did to me. It's something that happened to both of us."

He remained silent.

"I understand why you want to resign. I really do." You drew a slow breath. "If I were in your position, I probably would've thought the same thing."

His eyes widened slightly.

"But I don't think throwing away your dream is the only answer."

You squeezed his hand gently.

"There has to be another way for us to make this work."

Silence settled between the two of you. Silver's thumb absentmindedly traced the back of your hand as though carefully considering every word you had said.

"...Father told me resigning wasn't my only option," he admitted after a while.

You looked at him curiously.

"He suggested I transfer to Lord Malleus's personal guard instead."

The suggestion lingered between you.

It wasn't the same as commanding the Royal Guard. The Captain was responsible for countless patrols, inspections, emergency deployments, and dangerous missions across Briar Valley. A personal guard's duty was different. His responsibility would begin and end with Lord Malleus himself. There would still be danger, there always would be, but it would no longer mean constantly throwing himself into every conflict simply because he carried the highest rank.

Silver watched your expression carefully.

"I'd still be a knight," he said quietly. "I'd still protect Lord Malleus. I just... wouldn't be leading everyone into every battle anymore."

You thought about it for a long moment before your shoulders finally relaxed.

"I think..." You intertwined your fingers with his once more. "I think that's a decision we should make together."

For the first time since yesterday afternoon, the unbearable weight pressing against Silver's shoulders seemed to ease, if only a little.

He brought your joined hands to his lips, pressing another lingering kiss against your knuckles before leaning his forehead against yours once more. Neither of you spoke after that. There was nothing left to say.

The road ahead wouldn't suddenly become easier. The soulmate bond would still be there tomorrow, as would the responsibilities that came with the lives the two of you had chosen. There would still be difficult conversations waiting for Silver with Father and Lord Malleus, and there would undoubtedly be days when the bond tested both of your resolve again.

But for the first time since yesterday, neither of you had to face those uncertainties alone.

You smiled softly before closing the distance between you, pressing a gentle kiss against his forehead.

"We'll figure it out."

Silver closed his eyes, a small smile finally finding its way back onto his face.

"Together."

You nodded.

"Together."

END

a/n: The idea behind this chapter is actually parallel to Silver's Dorm Uniform card which is Defense, contrast with Sebek's Attack. Do you think Silver would feel it too when his s/o gives birth? Hmm.. Silver is also so, so gentle that I genuinely struggled to crack jokes with him and ended up just fangirling over him instead 🧍🏻‍♀️ As you can probably tell from this entire chapter. I really hope I managed to capture his character well. Hopefully you enjoyed this one. Thank you so much for reading. ♡ See you in Sebek's story! Adios!

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