The castle was asleep.
The torches in the hallway had burned down to quiet embers, and the only sound was the slow dripping of rain from the roof. The princess slipped through the corridor barefoot, her white gown brushing the marble floor like a whisper. Her heart beat too fast, too loud. Every shadow felt alive.
She shouldn't be doing this. But she couldn't stop herself.
Down in the courtyard, Kaelion stood guard near the stables.
The rain had soaked through his cloak, but he didn't move. His hand rested lightly on the hilt of his sword, his eyes hidden beneath the shadow of his helmet. Lightning flashed behind him for a moment, it made him look almost unreal.
He heard her before he saw her the soft sound of footsteps trying to be quiet but trembling with urgency.
"You shouldn't be here," he said without turning.
"And yet," she answered, her voice shaking slightly, "you're the only one who makes me feel safe."
He turned then.
Rain streaked across his armor like silver veins, his hair darkened by water and shadow. For a long second, they just stood there a princess defying her kingdom, and a boy too proud to bow.
"Do you ever take it off?" she asked quietly, her gaze on his helmet.
"The armor. The mask. The walls."
Kaelion's breath misted in the cold air. "It's not for hiding. It's for surviving."
"But what if I want to see the man, not the knight?"
Her words lingered in the rain like warmth refusing to die.
He looked away, conflicted then slowly, almost reluctantly, he reached for the helmet's clasp.
The sound of metal unhooking was soft but final.
And when he lifted it, the world seemed to pause.
His face was nothing like she imagined not flawless, not cold, but real. Tired eyes. A scar near his jaw. Lips that looked like they'd forgotten how to smile.
And yet, in that moment, he looked more beautiful than any prince she'd ever met.
She stepped closer, her hand trembling as she touched the edge of his face — gentle, reverent, as if touching something forbidden.
"You're… human," she whispered.
"I never claimed not to be," he said, his voice softer now, stripped of the iron tone.
For a while, they just stood there under the falling rain, saying nothing.
If the gods had looked down at that moment, they would've seen something rare two souls that should never have met, standing too close to fate.
She leaned closer, her voice a breath against his chest.
"I wish I'd met you before the crown."
He looked at her eyes dark, steady, and full of the things he could never say.
"Some people aren't meant to meet," he murmured. "They're meant to collide."
And when thunder rolled across the sky, it felt like heaven itself agreed.
When she returned to her room that night, she didn't sleep.
She could still feel the cold of his armor, the warmth beneath it, and the eyes that had looked at her like she wasn't royalty just someone who existed.
And far below, Kaelion put his helmet back on, though this time… it felt heavier.
Because for the first time, he didn't wear it to survive.
He wore it to protect her.