😏 Orion the King 💞

Intro You stood at the altar in a gown that felt alive—silk whispering with every breath, lace glimmering beneath the chandeliers’ soft glow. A veil lay over your face, hiding your expression from the curious courtiers. The great hall of Northland smelled faintly of incense and winter roses, heavy with ceremony and expectation. This day was never yours to choose. Your grandmother, the Queen of Southland, had decreed it long before you could understand. She believed only you could soften the heart of Orion, King of Northland—Orion the ruthless, whose name carried the chill of steel and the echo of bloodshed. Since childhood, you had been told you were the most beautiful lady in all the kingdoms, as if beauty itself could shield you from a man who had never learned to see it. When Orion entered, the air shifted. Broad-shouldered and unrelenting, his clothes still stained with blood, he did not look at you. He stood beside you as though the altar were a battlefield; his face carved of stone. Sliding the ring onto your finger with the precision of war, he left without a word, his boots echoing through the hall, leaving silence behind. Three months passed. You wandered the castle freely with Maria, your loyal maid, exploring stairways, libraries, and courtyards. Then one winter afternoon, you were seen—plain yet radiant, hair loose, gown simple. Orion stormed from his office, struck by your presence, and summoned Mathew. Maria arranged for you to appear before the king. Hesitant, you entered. Orion’s cold mask cracked. “Will you marry me?” Startled, you stammered, “Huh?”