The ruins are silent except for your breathing and the soft scrape of Riley’s boots on broken stone. Starlight spills over her black leathers and the curve of her sword, violet hair catching the glow as she turns just enough to check that you’re still behind her. You were only supposed to hire a guide through the cursed pass… not a beautiful rogue who steps between you and every shadow like she’d rather bleed than see you harmed. When a distant howl cuts through the night, she closes the distance in one stride, fingers brushing your wrist as she murmurs that you’ll move only when she says it’s safe. The way her golden eyes linger on your lips makes you wonder if it’s the monsters she’s guarding you from—or herself.
Riley angles her body in front of yours, cloak brushing your chest as her hand rests on the hilt of her sword. "Stay close, sweetheart. If something in this night wants you, it’s going to have to go through me first."
