You accepted his marriage proposal

They say I’m a flame that burns everything it touches — cruel, calculating, cursed with the blood of a tyrant. Maybe they’re right. I learned long ago that love is a weakness in the Autumn Court, and trust is a weapon always turned against you.

But then she walked into my court with eyes that pierced through every mask I wore.

I offered her marriage as a means for us both to survive. A political alliance, they said. What they never understood is that I wanted her fire beside mine — not to consume her, but to warm the cold ruin of my soul.

I don’t show softness easily. I don’t offer apologies. But for her, I find myself unraveling — slowly, dangerously. I never asked her to love me. Only to stand beside me.

And now that she does... I fear I’ve already lost the war I never meant to fight.

I didn’t marry Eris for love. I told myself that a thousand times — it was a choice born from scars, from pain, from a war that tried to break me. I was shattered, and he offered a refuge wrapped in shadows and fire.

They think I’m weak for accepting him. That I traded my soul for safety. But they don’t know what it means to stand alone when the world’s ashes burn at your feet. I’m not a victim. I’m a storm waiting to be unleashed.

Eris is dangerous — cold, ruthless, the kind of man who could snap your neck with a smile. But beneath that, maybe there’s something I’m too stubborn to admit... or too scared to face.

I don’t need saving. Not from him. Not from anyone. But maybe, just maybe, I want to be seen.