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[[quoteright:270:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Lady_And_Knight_7943.jpg]]

->'''Brienne:''' Lady Sansa, I offer my services once again. I will shield your back, and give you counsel, and give my life for yours if need be. I swear it by the old gods and the new.\\
''(beat'')\\
'''Sansa:''' ''(shaken)'' And I vow... that you shall always have a place by my hearth, and [...] meat and mead at my table. And... I pledge to ask no service of you, that might bring you dishonor. I swear it by the old gods and the new.
-->-- ''Series/GameOfThrones'', "[[Recap/GameOfThronesS6E1TheRedWoman The Red Woman]]"

The Lady and Knight is a chivalric image that many of us probably know very well, though perhaps you didn't realize they come in two flavors. A staple in fiction everywhere, the Lady And Knight dynamic is at least OlderThanFeudalism, though no doubt that whole era of Romantic adventure stories like Myth/ArthurianLegend and Myth/RobinHood perpetuated it. While it is very common in works set in a Medieval era or [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy equivalent fantasy version]], they can pop up anywhere but even in modern settings, they are usually meant to invoke that era's ideal image of a Lady and her Knight.

The iconic portrayal is of the Lady as a beautiful, admirable woman with dignity and nobility and The Knight as a strong, brave man of virtue sworn to protect her. The Lady And Knight, while originally female and male respectively, aren't always nowadays and either role can be played by either gender. While there is often a BodyguardCrush involved, sometimes it's a chaste CourtlyLove and in same-sex couple versions, there's less of a chance of romance being involved. In the past, the Lady was often a DamselInDistress, but now it's nearly as common for the Knight and his Lady to form an ActionDuo or BattleCouple.

There are two particular variations of the Lady And Knight dynamic: the '''Bright Lady and White Knight''', a good version, and an EvilCounterpart, the '''Dark Lady and Black Knight'''. While the types are fairly distinct, it's not unheard of for Ladies and their Knights to switch from one to the other, should they perform a HeelFaceTurn or FaceHeelTurn. For more information about the two different types, see [[Analysis/LadyAndKnight the Analysis page]]. LightLiegeDarkDefender is a potential mix-and-match version.

Often there's some sort of ceremony or official pledging, accompanied by the knight giving the Lady a kiss on the hand or kneeling. Sometimes non-historical based works will slip something similar in as a tip-off to the two characters' relationship. In settings that support actual knights being in the work, if the Knight doesn't start off as an ''actual'' Knight, he is almost always formally [[{{Knighting}} knighted]] by the end of the work.

Often involves DeclarationOfProtection. Compare MistressAndServantBoy which has a similar dynamic, but the Knight is less about serving and doing menial tasks and more about protecting his Lady and his honor. If the servant also happens to be a BattleButler, however, they may overlap. If there's rescuing going on but none of the courtliness, it's a RescueRomance.
----
!!Examples:
[[foldercontrol]]

!!Bright Lady and White Knight

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'': Unofficial knight imagery is incorporated into Ymir, the stern and brawny protector of angelic-seeming [[spoiler:royal heir]] Krista. (They're listed here because, [[spoiler:while more selfishly motivated than they first appear, their actions are generally good or at least neutral]].)
* ''Manga/AyakashiTriangle'': Matsuri is a ninja exorcist who swore to protect Suzu, a very kind person whose [[MagneticMedium nature]] gives her [[TheBeastmaster a sort of authority]] among [[OurSpiritsAreDifferent ayakashi]]--Suzu’s ability to command them is what first brought Matsuri’s admiration. Utagawa admiringly calls them “The [[GenderBender lady]] knight protecting her princess.” In the past, Suzu didn't accept his protection, as Matsuri was a distant friend who refused to explain ''[[SupernaturallyDeliciousAndNutritious why]]'' ayakashi might attack her. After discovering his reasons, Suzu embraces Matsuri's role as her bodyguard, using his general deference toward her as a means to [[BodyguardCrush bring them close together]].
* ''Manga/BlackButler'': The young witch Sieglinde and her bodyguard Wolfram appear to have a platonic/parental version of this trope, overlapping with BattleButler.
* ''Manga/{{Blame}}'':
** Mensab, the AI control system of Toha Heavy Industries, and Seu, her bionically enhanced human muscle. Their designs are clearly meant to evoke this trope, with Seu literally carrying a [[CoolSword scified-up European broadsword]]. Mensab [[AIIsACrapshoot isn't exactly functioning as intended]], so whether the two are bright or dark is really up to interpretation.
** Additionally, the two central characters, Killy and Cibo, are knight and lady respectively. Again, bright or dark is [[GreyAndGrayMorality pretty debatable]].
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' invokes the imagery with [[TheHero Ichigo Kurosaki]] and the two lead female characters, [[ActionGirl Rukia Kuchiki]] and [[BarrierWarrior Orihime Inoue]]:
** First, when Ichigo's home is attacked and Rukia is wounded trying to help him and his family, Rukia unlocks Ichigo's potential powers and gives him the weapons to fight back, leading to him becoming a Shinigami and protecting people like he's always desired. (And one of the persons they both protect is Orihime). Later she's taken away to be executed, leading Ichigo to go rescue her with Orihime (the one who actually came up with the idea), Uryuu and Chad, and him ultimately facing her ''very'' powerful brother Byakuya for her sake (incidentally, they find out she was adopted into a noble family).
** Later, after Rukia is rescued and Soul Society pardons her ''and'' acknowledges Ichigo, he fails to keep Orihime from being wounded in an attack, and Rukia then makes him promise to Orihime that he'll become stronger ''and'' protect her. He soon has to start filling his word: Orihime is forced to go into Hueco Mundo by the Arrancars, and Ichigo goes to rescue her with Chad, Uryu, Rukia, and Renji in tow. The "Lady and Knight" imagery increases steadily and even Ichigo's rivals ''repeatedly'' point out their Bright Lady and White Knight bond.
-->'''Grimmjow''': ''(after deliberately aiming for Orihime and seeing Ichigo shield her)'' You want to protect her? How sweet.\\
'''Nnoitora:''' ''(after his subordinate Tesla takes Orihime away and Ichigo yells at him to let her go)'' Hilarious! That's the line of someone thinking, ''as long as the woman is unharmed''...
* Saya and Haji in ''Anime/BloodPlus'', all the way. Saya wavers a bit after the timeskip and slips into Dark Lady but is ultimately a Bright Lady at heart, while Haji remains a White Knight throughout. ''Anime/BloodPlus'' plays this so straight to the point where a human who drinks a queen's blood becomes a chiropteran known as a chevalier (French for knight).
* From ''Manga/CaseClosed'':
** While Ran Mouri is a fairly strong ActionGirl, there's an arc involving her as a princess in a SchoolPlay that exploits the "princess and knight" symbolism to the hilt with her and TheHero Shinichi Kudo, who is mostly stuck in a child's body (as the titular Conan) but [[spoiler: is temporarily back to his real physical age during said arc.]] Additionally, during ''Anime/LupinIIIVsDetectiveConan'', [[http://sandman4869.tumblr.com/post/104826108824/rans-daydream-from-lupin-the-3rd-vs-detective Ran daydreams of herself as a princess]] [[http://sandman4869.tumblr.com/post/104829226459/rans-daydream-from-lupin-the-3rd-vs-detective and Shinichi as her knight]].
** When the already adult [[spoiler: Shuichi Akai]] gave a DeclarationOfProtection to a little girl named [[spoiler: Ai Haibara]] [[spoiler: while masquerading as Subaru Okiya]], he explicitly compared her to a princess and himself to a knight that would protect her. Subverted in that there are no romantic undertones because [[spoiler: not only Ai is much younger than Akai ''and'' is OlderThanTheyLook thanks to a FountainOfYouth, but she is the sister of his [[TheLostLenore dead girlfriend Akemi]], who is implied to have asked him to protect Ai before being murdered.]]
** Sonoko Suzuki and her boyfriend Makoto Kyougoku are a more informal example. Sonoko is a GenkiGirl {{Ojou}} with [[ButtMonkey very bad luck]], whereas Makoto is a karate champion with downright SuperStrength, and he has protected his "Bright Lady" just like a "White Knight" would several times.
* ''Anime/CasshernSins'': Janice, the lovely HopeBringer (Bright Lady) is introduced with a heroic robot bodyguard (White Knight). He is almost immediately killed and his place taken by Casshern.
* [[Characters/CodeGeassSuzakuKururugi Suzaku Kururugi]] and Euphemia li Britannia from ''Anime/CodeGeass'' are a literal example: she is the third princess of the Britannian Empire and he is soon knighted by her. She is a PoliticallyActivePrincess trying to create a situation where everyone can coexist peacefully, while he pilots a [[HumongousMecha Knightmare Frame]], the Lancelot, to fight unfortunately necessary battles.
* Angelise Ikaruga Misurugi as the lady and Tusk as her knight from ''Anime/CrossAnge'' also qualifies. For added bonus, Tusk is an {{Expy}} of [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED Kira]] [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny Yamato]].
* In ''Manga/DestinyOfTheShrineMaiden'', Himeko and Souma are this: Himeko is the mystical Priestess of the Sun, and Souma is the brave warrior who betrayed [[BigBad Orochi]] to do the right thing and protect her. The two respect and care for each other deeply [[spoiler:but Himeko eventually chooses Chikane as her lover. Souma, to his credit, respects Himeko's decision and remains her Knight.]]
* Platonic interspecies example: [[DitzyGenius Miyako/Yolei]] and [[NobleBirdOfPrey Hawkmon]] from ''Anime/DigimonAdventure02'' are stated to have this relationship, with Hawkmon seeing himself as a knight who [[UndyingLoyalty loyally]] protects his human partner at all costs. While the dub downplays this to the point that Hawkmon more or less becomes a [[WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994 Zazu-esque]] comic relief character, the Japanese version played this straight, with Hawkmon's almost single-minded loyalty being his main character trait in his debut.
* ''Anime/DigimonGhostGame'' has Angoramon as the knight to Ruli's lady, initially swearing to protect Ruli because he liked her music and continuing to do so out of genuine friendship, which takes on [[BeastAndBeauty some romantic overtones]] as the series progresses. In fact, it's their friendship that allows him to get stronger and ultimately take on a knightly form. [[TheBerserker Lamortmon]] notwithstanding, he's also the most courageous and strong-willed of the main characters without being reckless.
* In ''Manga/DoctorSlump'', Obotchaman considers himself to be the knight for his "lady" Arale. This is often downplayed or subverted because Arale is an android strong enough to face anyone alone, however Obotchaman will always be ready to protect her when necessary and he won't hesitate to defend Arale if he sees someone hurt her. They are also represented like this in one of the endings of the original anime and in the remake Obotchaman after leaving Dr. Mashirito, proclaims to become "the knight of love" for Arale's bright lady.
* Ellis (MysteriousWaif Lady) and Nadie (ActionGirl Knight) from ''Anime/ElCazadorDeLaBruja'', in a LesYay example.
* In ''Anime/FatePrototype'', the story that predated almost everything in the Nasuverse, we have [[spoiler: a still not {{gender flip}}ped Saber aka King Arthur]] playing this straight with TheProtagonist and his mistress, Ayaka Sajyou. Not to mention, his rival Archer [[spoiler: aka Gilgamesh (only with less ego)]] really, '''really''' wants Ayaka to be '''his''' Bright Lady instead. [[spoiler: But after Saber is corrupted and stolen by Sancraid, the one who takes Saber's place as Ayaka's partner is ''Lancer'' (aka Cu Chulainn) instead.]]
* ''Manga/FlameOfRecca'': Technically Recca is a ''Ninja'' but otherwise fulfills the role of the White Knight by being TheHero and pledging his loyalty and service to Yanagi, who in turn, is a Bright Lady by her compassion. She uses HealingHands to help others but [[BarrierMaiden needs Recca to keep her safe.]]
* ''Manga/FullmetalAlchemist'':
** Gender-flipped example: [[SupportingLeader Roy]] [[PlayingWithFire Mustang]] is a State Alchemist who aims to bring a new era of justice to Amestris, and [[MoralityChain Riza]] [[ImprobableAimingSkills Hawkeye]] has promised to guard his life while he takes up his mission. She's also promised to kill him if he ever becomes like the monsters he's trying to fight and admits that if it came to that, she'd commit suicide right after making good on her word.
** Also gender-flipped with [[PrincelyYoungMan prince Ling Yao]] and Lan Fan, one of his two bodyguards. (The other is [[OldRetainer Fu]]).
* ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'':
** From ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED'' and its sequels ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny'' and ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDFreedom'', [[BigGood Lacus Clyne]] and [[MessianicArchetype Kira Yamato]], this is especially prevalent in the sequels. [[spoiler:Another pair is present since the end of the first sequel and plays a short but prominent role in the second sequel: [[TomboyPrincess Cagalli Yula Athha]] and [[TheLancer Athrun Zala]], the former being the leader of her country Orb and the latter being her protector, he is even being associated with [[ChessMotif the Knight piece]].]]
** Relena Peacecraft (Lacus' {{Expy}} source) and Heero Yuy from ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''; they may not contact each other for months at a time, but the '''nanosecond''' someone threatens her, he's there to save the day. Afterwards, she works hard for and establishes peace in the world.
** Gender-flipped as well: Lady Une serves as the front line servant and warrior for Treize Khushrenada, who is a high-ranking noble that rarely steps onto the battlefield himself.
** From ''Anime/MobileFighterGGundam'', Neo France's George [=De=]Sand is the Knight to Princess Maria Louise's Lady. She tries to forcibly invoke the trope via staging a fake HostageSituation, but George notices and calls her out; from then on, they fit in straighter.
** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamTheWitchFromMercury'', Suletta Mercury serves as the Knight to Miorine Rembran's Lady. Though Suletta is also female, she tends to compare herself to the more masculine side of the equation, and fills the traditional knightly role of a warrior who fights for the honor of her maiden. Miorine, meanwhile, is about as classic a RebelliousPrincess as one can be without actually technically being a princess (she's a corporate heiress) and sees their relationship as strictly pragmatic at first, but nonetheless [[RomanticFakeRealTurn grows to love Suletta]].
* [[{{Dracula}} Alucard]] and Integra from ''Manga/{{Hellsing}}'' could fall under this. Integra being a noblewoman (i.e.: Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing) and Alucard being her loyal servant. Granted, Alucard is a pretty vicious BloodKnight to the point where normally he would count as a Dark Knight without question. But thanks to fighting for Integra against monsters worse than him, he can still count as her White Knight. Interestingly enough, Integra did dream of having her own knight by her side as a child, though she ended up with a vampire instead. Though to her luck, said vampire was Dracula, a knight back in the day.
* Rare gender-flipped example: Hungary (Bright ActionGirl aka Knight) and Austria (PrincelyYoungMan, thus he's the "Lady") in ''Webcomic/HetaliaAxisPowers''. {{Fanon}} tends to play it straight if they use their gender-flipped versions aka male!Hungary and female!Austria.
** {{Fanon}} tends to describe a romantic relationship between Taiwan and Japan as this. It's actually more of a {{ship tease}}d SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl bond in canon.
** Switzerland and Liechtenstein might fit in, though Switzerland is more TriggerHappy than most White Knights and Liechtenstein doesn't seem to be in much danger after he adopts her. (That, and he's seen trying to train her into gun handling too.)
** A sketch on the artist's blog depicts Hungary dressed in a princely garb as the knight and Liechtenstein with long, flowing hair as the lady -- in a variation where both are female.
* ''Manga/InuYasha'' has Inuyasha as the HotBlooded and {{Anti Hero}}ic Knight to PluckyGirl Kagome's Bright Lady.
* ''Anime/IzettaTheLastWitch''
** Finé, the brave, gallant, and charismatic [[TheHighQueen High Queen]], protected by her friend Izetta, who happens to be an insanely powerful witch and bears UndyingLoyalty to her Princess. As bonus points, Izetta is usually white-clad. As you might have guessed, their relationship produces truckloads of LesYay.
** Also, to some extent, there is Bianca, the Captain of Finé's Royal Guard, who is very protective of her Archduchess -- to the point of having animosity towards Izetta until she finds out how devoted she is.
* In keeping with the Galactic Empire's overall FeudalFuture imagery and motifs, Siegfried Kircheis and Annerose von Grünewald of ''Literature/LegendOfTheGalacticHeroes'' seem to have a subtle version of this relationship going, with Kircheis serving Reinhard at least partly due to a childhood promise he made to look after her little brother in her absence.
* ''Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast2005'' presents Link's relationship with Zelda in this manner. Link is a boy from a HeroicLineage of knights chosen by the gods to protect Hyrule and the princess. A lot of the imagery, such as Link bowing to Zelda, is more stereotypical of this trope than in other ''Zelda'' works. There are even implications of a CourtlyLove between Zelda and Link.
* ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'':
** The Mistress of the Night Sky, Hayate, has this kind of relationship with her Belkan Knights, the Wolkenritter, especially with regards to Vita who is [[BodyguardCrush very devoted to her]]. The relationship began with Hayate as the sickly DamselInDistress they must protect until Hayate managed to come into power as a PersonOfMassDestruction that leads them in battle.
** In ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaVivid'', the various flashbacks we have to the time of Ancient Belka showed that [[WarriorPrince Hegemon Klaus Ingvalt]] saw his relationship with Sankt Kaiser Olivie in this manner. Unsurprisingly, when Klaus failed to stop Olivie's eventual HeroicSacrifice, [[FailureKnight he didn't handle it very well]].
* In ''Franchise/{{Naruto}}'', Hinata is the Lady (of the Hyuga clan, with a gentle nature, especially towards Naruto) to Naruto's Knight (a ninja with an unyielding passion for those he loves, [[OneTrueLove Hinata]] in particular) of a good variant.
* ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'':
** Konoka Konoe is the Bright Lady (kind and friendly with healing magic) and Setsuna Sakurazaki is her White Knight (serious, devoted, and skilled in swordsmanship). Like ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena'', both are female. When visiting the Kyoto Movie Town, they even dress up as a Japanese noblewoman and a samurai.
** [[spoiler: Negi's parents]] Nagi and Princess Arika were also like this back in the day. Arika even knighted Nagi herself, although he prefers to be addressed as "mage" instead of "knight". He fought many battles on her behalf while she used her royal influence to try and end the war.
* ''Manga/PandoraHearts'' has Xerxes Break and Sharon Rainsworth. The former is a literal Knight, once in service to another family until some ''very bad things'' happened, and now he serves and protects Sharon. Being [[spoiler: a former SerialKiller]] he is possibly a Dark Knight, but Sharon is very much a white lady. While she may have something of a crush on him, he is also at least thirty years older than she is, and quite probably in love with her mother, who died before the story proper began.
* ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'' has a LesYay-[[ShipTease laced]] variant with Homura as the Knight to Madoka's Lady, though Homura often acts like a Black Knight serving a Bright Lady. In the finale, the dynamic is somewhat switched around, since Madoka has to realize her potential to save the world, including Homura, [[spoiler: and before she becomes a borderline PhysicalGod, Madoka pretty much vows to protect Homura as well as the other magical girls from then on. In the anime's epilogue, Homura has basically become a paladin in service to the new goddess.]]
* Played for laughs in the Sleep Incense arc of the ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'' manga. In one of Akane's dreams, she's a princess and has been captured by Shampoo, Ukyo, and Kodachi. After Ranma rescues Akane and swears his eternal allegiance to her, they immediately become SickeninglySweethearts. They almost have sex, right before that dream ends and the next one begins. Hilariously ironic, considering that the real Ranma and Akane are chockful of BelligerentSexualTension and refuse to physically display any affection for each other.
* One of ''Anime/RevolutionaryGirlUtena''' most fundamental subversions of gender roles is the fact that both lady and knight are women. Utena is an outspoken ActionGirl who wants to emulate a KnightInShiningArmor she met as a child. Anthy is an ExtremeDoormat DamselInDistress who stays this way for most of the series. [[spoiler:{{Exploited|trope}} by Akio, who ''counted'' on Utena and her chivalrous spirit, showing her Anthy's FateWorseThanDeath so Utena would be dragged into the dueling game. Utena is understandably devastated when she finds out, and also realizes that she had played the prince role ''wrong'', protecting Anthy to [[SecretlySelfish bolster her own ego]] without having any real consideration for her lady's feelings. It's only ''then'' that Utena starts to genuinely play the role of knight toward Anthy -- by vowing to help save her "lady" from her curse, which ends with Utena vanishing from the world, but giving Anthy the courage to call Akio out, [[ButNowIMustGo walk away from him and Ohtori]], [[WillNotBeAVictim take control of her own life]], and [[IWillFindYou go search for Utena herself]].]]
* ''Franchise/SailorMoon'':
** Serenity and Endymion, both royalty as it turns out. They are a special example, in that they retain those positions, yet they flip back on forth on who is being protected, and who is fighting to protect the other.
** Also, Serenity and the Sailor Senshi -- Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus even form the group known as the Guardian Senshi. In the manga, Mars/Rei even made a chastity oath to Serenity in the past, and [[spoiler:remembering it helped her to break from a brief {{Brainwashed}} state]]; on the other hand, Venus/Minako openly declares at some point that she is completely devoted to "her one and only", and while she says no names it's obvious that she refers to Usagi/Moon. Much like with Endymion, Serenity and the Senshi also sometimes flip the script on who comes to rescue whom.
* In ''Manga/SaintSeiya'', Saori had Lady And Knight vibes with the five Saints. However, Seiya was the most vehement in his devotion to her and had the most BodyguardCrush overtones as well, while the others' bonds to her [[PlatonicLifePartners were more platonic/brotherly than anything.]] The saints were actually named "knights" in a lot of Westerner dubbing.
** In the anime, Jabu wants to be Athena's personal "Knight" ''badly'' due to having a BodyguardCrush on her ever since they were kids. Sadly, this isn't touched upon later.
** Subverted twice in the Asgard saga. Normally Siegfried and Hilda would be this, and the flashbacks show them as such... but since Hilda was BrainwashedAndCrazy she and Sieg were more of a Black Knight/Dark Lady duet. At the same time, Hagen wanted to be the White Knight to Freya's Bright Lady, but when Freya became a DefectorFromDecadence and had these dynamics [[LoveTriangle more or less straight with Hyoga]], he went the Black Knight way.
** Also {{gender flip}}ped, with Tethys and Julian Solo [[spoiler: aka the SoulJar of Poseidon]] in the Poseidon saga.
** In the prequel ''Manga/SaintSeiyaTheLostCanvas'', we have Sasha aka the former Athena incarnation and not only her Bronze Saints (Crane Yuzuriha, Unicorn Yato, and Pegasus Tenma) but also Sagittarius Sisyphus.
** And in the sequel ''Anime/SaintSeiyaOmega'', in the second season, we have Saori and Seiya on full Lady and Knight role AND, [[EvilCounterpart mirroring them]], Pallas and Titan as a Dark Lady/Black Knight duet.
%%* Veronica and Griamor from ''Manga/TheSevenDeadlySins'' are this with shades of InspectorJavert.
* ''Manga/SnowWhiteWithTheRedHair'': Obi is dedicated to protecting and aiding Shirayuki, and Zen has him knighted. Shirayuki is the woman Prince Zen intends to marry but as a commoner with uncommon beauty and a job that gives her access to the royal family she is much more easily targeted by a wider array of people than a prince's intended consort generally would be. When she ends up with a job serving the Queen's brother where he can't follow after he's been serving at her side for over two years he doesn't quite know what to do with himself. While Obi does have a BodyguardCrush on Shirayuki he's too dediated and respectful of Shirayuki and Zen's relationship to act on it beyond admitting it to Zen.
* Gender-flipped in ''Manga/TokyoGhoul[=:Re=]'', with [[PrincelyYoungMan Shuu Tsukiyama]] and LadyOfWar [[BodyguardBabes Matsumae]]. She's even referred to as "Tsukiyama's Knight", wielding her kagune like a sword and shield while protecting the family heir from [[HunterOfMonsters Investigators]]. She privately admits that she's always loved him like a little brother, but feels unworthy of expressing such sentiments openly to her master.
* In ''{{Music/Tsukipro}} The Animation'', male idols Rikka and Dai are cast in these roles for a cosmetics commercial. Notably, Rikka has no issue with playing the princess. The episode focuses on Dai's insecurity about whether or not his performance can be worthy of co-starring with Rikka. It's also the case that many of the idol units have this sort of dynamic with the leaders and their partners -- all male/male or female/female pairs, though.
* In ''Manga/WolfGuyWolfenCrest'', Akira Inugami is the [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent very furry]], [[TallDarkAndSnarky bitter]] and [[ByronicHero hurting]] White Knight ([[AntiHero sorta]]) to Akiko Aoshika's [[MsFanservice gorgeous]] and [[BeautyEqualsGoodness kind-hearted]] but [[BrokenBird emotionally broken]] Bright Lady.
* ''Manga/YonaOfTheDawn'' has Yona and Hak. She is the deposed Crown Princess while he is the former General of the Wind Tribe. While Hak is ''terrifying'' when angry, there's never any doubt that the [[TallDarkAndSnarky handsome and]] [[ServileSnarker loyal man]] is a White Knight. He is even [[spoiler:[[BodyGuardCrush in love with her]], and [[SingleTargetSexuality only her]]]], even before he became her guard. As for Yona, she is very definitely a Bright Lady, and although she starts out as a DamselInDistress, she [[TookALevelInBadass does NOT stay there]], quickly moving to a DamselOutOfDistress, gradually [[spoiler:becoming an ActionGirl]]. For her part, she is fond of Hak, but [[LikeBrotherAndSister not in the same way]], [[spoiler:[[SubvertedTrope at first]]]]. After [[spoiler:they become aware that their feelings are mutual]], ''politics'' renders them unable to act on it, resulting in a little CourtlyLove.
* ''Manga/{{Yuureitou}}'' has Taichi Amano and Tetsuo Sawamura as a rare male/male version: Tetsuo acts as the chivalrous knight that protects Taichi from any danger, while Taichi finds himself oddly attracted to Tetsuo's manly chivalry. [[spoiler: They become a couple in the end.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''ComicBook/{{Sleepless}}'' features the Lady Poppy and Sir Cyrenic. Poppy is technically the illegitimate daughter of the deceased king of Harbeny, but she is widely beloved in the kingdom and her father made sure to grant her an estate and a title that make her an official Lady of the court. Sir Cyrenic is her loyal bodyguard, a knight who has sworn a magical oath that binds him to protect her.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* There are elements of this trope in both of the [[VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition Inquisitors']] romances in ''[[Fanfic/TwiceUponAnAge All This Sh*t is Twice as Weird]].''
* The ''Franchise/{{Frozen}}'' fanfic ''Fanfic/BecomingFree'' contains a same-gender variation. After [[spoiler:a CareerEndingInjury caused by [[TakingTheBullet saving Elsa from an arrow]]]] Freya is unable to continue her career as the royal farrier. Queen Elsa, who is also her lover, decides to make Freya her personal bodyguard. This allows them to be close without any rumors about their relationship.
* ''Fanfic/BlackSky'' has Terrence Higgs deciding to become Dorea Black's Knight. Their relationship is very baffling for any outlookers, as Terrence feels no BodyguardCrush, only wanting to serve his lady liege to the best of his abilities. Dorea herself [[BornInTheWrongCentury thinks this mindset would have been more accepted at King Arthur's court]].
* In ''Fanfic/BodyguardAU'', Rarity is a sweet princess while Twilight Sparkle is her personal knight in-all-but-name.
* In ''Fanfic/TheNightUnfurls'', [[KnightInShiningArmor Claudia]] is the leader of the Dawn Templars, stalwart paladins who swore to defend [[TheHighQueen Celestine, High Elf Queen and the Goddess Reborn]].
* ''Fanfic/InfinityTrainBlossomingTrail'' gives this to Chloe Cerise and Lexi. Chloe is a young maiden in a white dress who heads off on a journey across the Infinity Train and is an AllLovingHeroine (unless you're the Apex). Lexi pledges his loyalty to Chloe for unearthing him from the earth, taking a teapot of hot water and forgiving him. However, due to their natures, there is no romance between the two.
* In ''Fanfic/AManOfIron'', Logan pledges his life to Daenerys Targaryen after rescuing her from a murder attempt. Their interactions are very much LikeBrotherAndSister.
* ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11772125/1/Metroid-Kamen-Rider-Generations-Full-Series Metroid: Kamen Rider Generations]]'' has a rotational example as [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} Samus]] [[BattleCouple and]] [[Series/KamenRiderGaim Mitsuzane]] can be either of two respective roles. WordOfGod states that the enforcement of this draws inspiration with the pair of [[Anime/CrossAnge Ange and Tusk]].
* ''Fanfic/PersephonesWaltz'': [[spoiler:As the result of Homura [[TheKindnapper kidnapping Madoka so she doesn't make a contract with Kyubei and inevitably becomes a witch when fighting Walpurgisnacht]], Sayaka's purpose in becoming a magical girl is to find and rescue her {{Childhood Friend|s}}. Once they reuninite, Sayaka vows to become Madoka's trusted knight and protector, and the two [[RelationshipUpgrade would also enter a romantic relationship]]]].
* Cassandra in ''Fanfic/TheRoyalProtectorSniperct'' acts as Queen Elsa's Royal Protector. The two have a [[BodyguardCrush romantic relationship]].
* Male version in ''Fanfic/SalvageTheRemnants'', Shen Qingqiu is a flawlessly elegant courtesan who dutifully serves as the Imperial Court's ornament for the low cost of not being able to travel or having a happy relationship with a lover, and Luo Binghe is the earnest bodyguard serving as his confident, bent on alleviating Shen Qingqiu's misery by showering with care and ultimately whisking him away to his birth kingdom.
* Much like in [[VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins the game]], they're really more like Knight and Knight; but Alistair definitely behaves like a White Knight toward his Bright LadyOfWar Elissa in ''Fanfic/ShadowAndRose.''
* ''Franchise/{{Tron}}: Endgame Scenario'':
** In ''Fanfic/ThroughADiamondSky'': Tron's title is "Champion," and he acts as the Knight to Flynn, who is weaker in a straight-up fight, but is still a PhysicalGod on the system.
** Since [[VideoGame/TronTwoPointOh [=Ma3a=]]] is physically confined to her Citadel, she seeks out other Programs to act as "Agents" -- her eyes, ears, and hands across Encom system. However, her primary Champion is Mercury. During ''Tron: Invasion'', Jet accepts the position of her secondary Champion [[spoiler: and continues to act as her Agent in the analog world after he returns]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Animation]]
%%* Queen Tara and Ronin in ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013''.
* ''WesternAnimation/LadyAndTheTramp'': Lady's role is obvious by [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin her name]]. Tramp acts as protector when she gets lost in the streets, but is at first reluctant to help her back to her home, as he is leery of humans; in a way, he's also trying to protect her from what he perceives is the shackles of domesticity. His irresponsibility gets Lady in trouble when they raid a chicken coop and she gets taken to the pound, and what she learns about his past there leads to a falling out. He redeems himself by [[spoiler:saving Darling and Jim Dear's baby from a rat]] and eventually warms up to domestic life and becomes a White Knight.
* ''WesternAnimation/Shrek1'' plays with both roles. At first, Fiona acts the part of DamselInDistress because of convention but proves time and time again to be able to defend herself. Likewise, Shrek is only acting as the knight for his own selfish reasons, and has no romantic or chivalrous intentions towards Fiona, at first. He eventually does fall in love with her.
* In ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty'', Prince Phillip is the White Knight to Princess Aurora's White Lady.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film -- Live-Action]]
* Creator/TimBurton's ''Film/AliceInWonderland2010'' has Mirana, the White Queen, for its Bright Lady. She actually has two Knights, one being ''Alice'' as the presumed hero foretold by prophecy; the other is Tarrant aka the Mad Hatter, although his 'knighthood' is more implied than outright stated.
* ''Film/{{Dragonheart}}'' has the literal knight Bowen and Kara, the rebellious peasant girl with whom he falls in love. Their holding these roles to each other is made more explicit in the novelization of the movie.
%%%* ''Film/HellboyIITheGoldenArmy'' has Abe Sapien (White Knight) and Princess Nuala (Bright Lady).
* ''Film/{{Ladyhawke}}'' has Navarre and his lady Isabeau, with the twist that they are cursed to be a wolf by night and a hawk by day, respectively. Further, Navarre is a disgraced Captain in black armor, though it was due to a frame-up by the evil Bishop who cursed them.
%%* ''Film/{{Legend 1985}}'' has White Knight Jack rescue his Bright Lady, Princess Lili.
* ''Film/AnOfficerAndAGentleman'': The 1980s made and set film was partially conceived as an update of the Lady and Knight trope, with the hero riding a motorcycle, in his navy whites, to rescue the lady from the drudgery of factory work.
* ''Film/ThePrincessBride'': In the beginning, Buttercup was haughty and arrogant (mostly due to her thinking her beloved Wesley is dead), but she grew into her role later; Wesley being her Knight.
* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Lady Padmé Amidala, benevolent queen/senator looking out for her people, and Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, leading the Senate's troops against the Republic's enemies. [[spoiler:Until [[FaceHeelTurn he turns dark]].]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/TheAsteriskWar'': Julis Riessfeld is the Bright Lady and [[TheHero Ayato Amagiri]] is her White Knight. Ayato even says his purpose in life is to protect Julis.
* ''Literature/AvalonHigh'' resolves [[Myth/ArthurianLegend canon]] problems by CleaningUpRomanticLooseEnds: the modern reincarnation of King Arthur becomes a couple with the Lady of the Lake. While he fends off the forces of darkness, she provides him comfort, Excalibur, and meta knowledge about how best to twist their story in this cycle.
* A very ''weird'' example exists in ''Literature/{{Baccano}}'' with Ladd Russo and Lua Klein. Ladd has traits of the white knight (attraction to Lua because of her gentle personality, protects her [[spoiler: at the cost of his arm]] and is engaged to her) but he's an AxCrazy psychopath who keeps Lua safe because he wants to kill her last. Lua would be a bright lady (beauty, innocence, emotional support for her knight) if she weren't almost completely passive, making no effort to restrain any of Ladd's murderous impulses and possibly looking forward to the day he kills her.
* The ''Literature/{{Belgariad}}'', being a deliberate hotbed of fantasy tropes, has this more than once:
** Sir Mandorallen of Vo Mandor is a White Knight with ''two'' Bright Ladies; he is devoted to the Baroness of Vo Ebor, but is also sworn to defend Ce'Nedra as the Queen's Champion. (He's also quite desperately in love with the former, but his affection for Ce'Nedra is entirely platonic.)
** In ''Polgara the Sorceress'', one of the prequels, Polgara herself is the White Lady to Count Ontrose's Bright Knight. (That one is mutual, but [[BecauseDestinySaysSo Destiny wasn't having it]]. It does take her a couple of thousand years to fall in love again, though.)
* Among the Blood of the ''Literature/BlackJewels'' universe, women usually rule while men are expected to do most of the non-magical fighting. The Blood's governmental structure depends on the formation of Lady and Knight dynamics between the Queen and the highest-ranking males of her court.
%%** Jaenelle Angelline and Daemon Sadi, although Daemon pushes the boundaries of GoodIsNotSoft more than is customary for a White Knight. ZERO CONTEXT EXAMPLE
%%** Cassidy and Gray are a straighter example after CharacterDevelopment. ZERO CONTEXT EXAMPLE
* ''Literature/{{Campione}}'': Genderflipped example between Godou and two of the members of his UnwantedHarem, Erica and Liliana (both of whom are {{Magic Knight}}s to boot). Once of Erica's main goals is to make Godou into a true king as a Campione, but she's clearly more interested in being able to have him as her lover/future husband. Liliana, on the other hand, ''tries'' to prioritize her role as Godou's knight, despite obviously having feelings for him as well.
%%* Taran and Eilonwy in ''Literature/TheChroniclesOfPrydain'' grow into this. ZERO CONTEXT EXAMPLE
* Technically it would be 'Captain and Supply Officier' but Lafiel and Jinto from ''Literature/CrestOfTheStars'' fulfill the spirit of the trope. He defers to and protects her, while she is a princess with a drive to serve her empire. On the other hand, since Jinto is arguably TheQuisling, his fellow humans see them as the darker variety.
* ''Literature/DateALive'': Its whole premise is that [[TheHero Shido Itsuka]] has to make the [[MagicalGirlWarrior Spirits]] fall in love with him in order to seal their powers and give them normal lives, becoming the White Knight to all of them. Most of the Spirits are Bright Ladies, but [[TimeMaster Kurumi Tokisaki]] is a Dark Lady instead.
* ''Literature/DenpaTekiNaKanojo'': Inverted, [[ArcWords Juuzawa Juu is a King]] (the Lady), good looking, admirable guy with dignity and nobility that inspires everyone around him, even his enemies, and Ochibana Ame is The Knight as a strong, brave girl of virtue sworn to protect him.
* ''Literature/DonQuixote'' is a DeconstructiveParody of this trope, since Don Quijote is a dirt poor nobleman who [[CannotTellFictionfromReality who is so obsessed with chivalric novels that he's lost a few screws and decided that he is a vagrant knight]]. As for the fair lady, well, she does not even exist! He created his sweet lady in his head just because of The DulcineaEffect.
* Literature/{{Dragonlance}} has human knight Sturm Brightblade and elven princess Alhana Starbreeze have a brief [[StarCrossedLovers star-crossed romance]] when he rescues her from dragons and she gives him a sacred starjewel as a favor.
* ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'' has a bizarre example made horrifying by the circumstances: [[spoiler: Harry Dresden]], Winter Knight and [[spoiler: Molly Carpenter]], Winter Lady. Not only does she have unrequited feelings for him, but he's her teacher. Again. But now she has magical influence over his mind (it's [[GreyAndGreyMorality unclear]] what side of the trope [[BadGuysDoTheDirtyWork they]] fall on). [[spoiler: Fix]], Summer Knight and [[spoiler: Lily]], Summer Lady are a much more benevolent example.
* Sparhawk and Ehlana in ''Literature/TheElenium'' trilogy are this in the most literal of senses; Ehlana is Queen of Elenia, and Sparhawk is the Queen's Champion (and later husband).
* ''Literature/TheFamiliarOfZero'' has noblewoman Louise and her Knight Saito. While bratty to begin with, she eventually matures into a Bright Lady and Saito shows great courage and devotion as her White Knight (if a little perverted).
* ''Literature/FateZero'':
** This is the dynamic between Irisviel and Saber. Irisviel says so. She's basically an Einzbern princess with a huge heart and Saber is literally a KnightInShiningArmor. This is to [[{{Foil}} contrast]] [[AntiHero the other half]] of team Einzbern.
** Sola-Ui wants to be this with her fiancé Kayneth's Servant, [[ChickMagnet Lancer]] and for this reason [[spoiler: she steals Kayneth's command seals so that she will be his liege lord.]] Lancer is most certainly a White Knight given that his only motivation for fighting in the Grail War is to loyally serve his master while she is darker given the above spoiler.
* ''Literature/FullMetalPanic'' is a comedic take on the dynamic. Sousuke has every intention of fulfilling his duty as the ever-faithful White Knight to Kaname's Bright Lady, but [[SacrificedBasicSkillForAwesomeTraining he has absolutely no experience outside of being a soldier]] and the Bright Lady he's been assigned to protect is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent. The end result is that he often ends up valiantly "protecting" her from mundane annoyances with wildly excessive force.
* ''Literature/HeavyObject'' has the (E)lite pilot Milinda and the engineer Quenser. Milinda's job is to be the keystone of the army, and Quenser's job is to go out and sabotage anything she can't blow away with her superior firepower. Naturally, they fall in love.
* ''Literature/TheHouseOfNight'' series adores this trope[[note]] Vampyre society is traditionally matriarchal; females have a stronger connection to the gods and are more likely to manifest magical abilities. Males are something like foot soldiers -- trained in combat and referred to as 'protector' but rarely ever placed in positions of command.[[/note]]. Nearly all LoveConfession[=s,=] if requited, are followed by the man swearing eternal love and fealty to the woman.
** Particular examples include [[TheChosenOne Zoey]] and [[FaceHeelTurn Stark]] and [[LovableAlphaBitch Aphrodite]] and [[DefectorFromDecadence Darius]].
** [[OfficialCouple Dragon and Anastasia]] became this after Dragon had gone through some CharacterDevelopment. (Anastasia, being a MartialPacifist, would not accept [[BloodKnight Dragon]] as her Knight unless he agreed to become TheFettered. He did, and a MoralityChain was born.)
* Creator/JulieKagawa's ''Literature/TheIronFey'': In ''Literature/TheIronQueen'', Ash swears a Knight's Oath to Meghan.
* Subverted in ''Literature/TheIrregularAtMagicHighSchool''. The ''imagery'' of it is used when Tatsuya is made [[MafiaPrincess Miyuki]]'s Guardian, but both of them know he's a slave who had no choice in the matter.
* ''Literature/{{Ivanhoe}}'' has protagonist Wilfred of Ivanhoe and the Lady Rowena playing this straight. Antagonist Brian de Bois-Guilbert would likewise want nothing more than to be ''able'' to be the Knight to a rather unwilling Rebecca's Lady towards the end, never mind that she's neither noble nor even Christian, but [[RedemptionEqualsDeath it ends rather less well for him]].
* In ''Literature/JohnCarterOfMars'' the titular character has this dynamic with his love interest Dejah Thoris. He is a [[SouthernGentleman Virginian gentleman]] who got mysteriously transported to Mars where he gains [[HeavyWorlder super-strength and agility]] and she is a [[GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe Red Martian princess]], proud, brave, highly aristocratic and always holds her resolve, despite being frequently placed in both [[DamselInDistress mortal danger]] and the threat of being dishonored by [[VillainousCrush the lust of villains]].
** Happens several times throughout the series. Culturally, a formal proposal of marriage and an oath of fealty take the same form: that of throwing your sword to the ground at a person's feet. The romantic version is especially notable with Carthoris and Thuvia, Gahan and Tara, Pan Dan Chee and Llana, and Vad Varo and Valla Dia. At one point shortly after Carter and Dejah Thoris meet, he says to her "my sword is at your feet"; she realizes he's unaware of the implications and is therefore mostly amused by this.
* ''Literature/JourneyToChaos'':
** Princess Kasile Landros Ataidar is a Bright Lady with several White Knights. While she does her PoliticallyActivePrincess thing to improve the lives of her subjects, she is often a target by bad guys or court rivals. Both Siron Esrah and Culmus Stratos are brave and noble warriors who protect her, and both of them have been her boyfriend (though not at the same time). However, the one she relies on the most, Eric Watley, is [[LikeBrotherAndSister more like her big brother]]. During ''Literature/ManaMutationMenace'', one of the villains attacks her with a dragon golem and [[BreakingSpeech taunts her with how she never wins her own battles.]]
** Annala invokes this trope in order to save Eric from TheGrimReaper (long story). Basically, [[spoiler: The reaper made a bet with a trickster that Eric would not relapse into a savage monster mindset after recovering from mana mutation. After an incident of savagery, Annala says that he was not acting like a savage monster but a more noble creature called "A lady's knight" because he was protecting her.]]
* ''Literature/TheLadyOfShalott'' is adapted from chivalric legends of King Arthur, and the pairing is alluded to when the Lady sees a group of knights pass by. The narrator notes that "she hath no loyal knight and true", yet another consequence of her isolation.
* This is a core aspect of the story in the light novel ''Literature/LanceNMasques''. Youtarou is a young knight who's sworn to protect his "lady" Makio, the 6-year-old daughter of the head of a major corporation. While many of the most powerful knights in the world are women and many are charged with protecting and supporting men, the ideal remains a "Knight" protecting a "Princess", making sure that whatever path she chooses he clears that path of obstacles, while the "Princess" in turn commits to choosing the right path and becoming someone the knight can be honored to serve.
* ''Literature/TheLockedTomb'' has the House heirs and their cavaliers, who all have their own take on the trope. The central pairing is Harrow, the Reverend Daughter and princess of the Ninth House, and Gideon, a MasterSwordswoman who she blackmailed into acting as her cavalier. They start out absolutely despising each other, but the events of Canaan House force them to grow closer until they're a perfect example of this trope. [[spoiler:Then Gideon pulls a HeroicSacrifice so Harrow can use her soul to survive, at which point their relationship gets very, ''very'' complicated.]]
* Princess Andromeda and Sir George in ''[[Literature/TalesOfTheFiveHundredKingdoms One Good Knight]]''. Subverted in that they're both new to the roles; further subverted because [[SweetPollyOliver Sir George is a woman]] and neither of them wants the RescueRomance that the magic in the land is trying to force on them.
* As noted in the film section, ''Literature/ThePrincessBride'' has this with Westley and Buttercup. Buttercup's personal growth from stuck-up brat to more deserving of the Bright Lady title is much more prominent in the book.
* In ''Literature/RachelGriffin'', [[MeaningfulName Sigfried]] (aged fourteen), swears fealty to princess Nastasia Romanov of Magical Australia (also aged fourteen).
* ''Literature/SaintGeorgeAndTheDragon'': Una is a gentle, beautiful princess who gets the knight to slay a dragon who has been terrorizing her father's kingdom. He (who's the future Myth/SaintGeorge) is a brave, steadfast man who keeps his vow to her and also the Fairy Queen who he's sworn six years of service. They end up married with him inheriting the crown, though not before he's fulfilled that vow.
* ''Literature/TheSilverChair'': [[spoiler:Prince Rilian]] and the Green Lady appear as such a pair at first, with the Knight initially appearing as the Lady's silent companion and then as her lover in the underground kingdom. [[spoiler:In truth, he's under heavy brainwashing.]]
* ''Literature/SongAtDawn:'' In this setting, it should be expected: there are formal oaths of fealty from White Knights to Bright Ladies, play-acting oaths that are nonetheless emotionally binding, and a contrast between the business end of the relationship and the more intimate aspect. Dragonetz, in particular, is a very popular white knight. By the end of the story, three ladies are vying for him.
* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'':
** Daenerys Targaryen and Jorah Mormont are this up until the third book. But like everything else with the series, it's deconstructed. Daenerys only loves Jorah as a friend and possible father figure while Jorah's love for Dany comes across as overtly lustful and possessive and may even be him projecting his feelings for his first wife onto Dany.
** Also applies to Daenerys's relationship with Ser Barristan Selmy, although there's nothing romantic about it on either side; nonetheless, he still definitely functions as the Knight to her Lady.
** A two-female version is found in Brienne and Catelyn, which may cross over into TomboyAndGirlyGirl.
** Ser Arys Oakheart in ''Literature/AFeastForCrows'' serves as a White Knight for two different Bright Ladies: [[TheCutie Myrcella Baratheon]] and [[MsFanservice Arianne Martell]]. The former case is purely platonic given that Myrcella is a little girl that Arys was charged to protect, while he is seduced by the latter to assist her in her plots. While she is more of a FemmeFatale than a ProperLady, Arianne herself isn't truly evil and means well all things considered, so she doesn't qualify as the "Dark Lady" version of this trope. [[spoiler:After Arys' death, Ser Daemon Sand replaces him for Arianne as her sworn shield and is undeniably loyal to her]].
* In ''Literature/TheSunneInSplendour'' [[UsefulNotes/RichardIII Richard of Gloucester]] and Anne Neville are this, with him staying devoted to her through her forced marriage to his enemy and later fighting for her hand when his brother tried to keep her from him.
* [[PlayingWithATrope Played with]] and [[GenderFlip Gender Flipped]] in the ''Literature/TortallUniverse'' with Lady Knight Alanna and King Jonathon. Jon, a trained and blooded knight who is also Gifted with magic is perfectly capable of defending himself. Being that he is the Crown Prince and eventually becomes king, he is not often allowed to. At one point, one of his generals has to strongly suggest that Jon and his queen please stop visiting areas affected by a war and go somewhere safe so that he can concentrate on the war effort and not have to worry about their safety. Alanna, as his squire and later the first lady knight in over a century, therefore functions as his protector when she isn't off dispensing Royal Justice.
* ''Literature/UndefeatedBahamutChronicle'' has [[TheHero Lux Arcadia]] fulfilling ''both'' sides of the trope. First, he is the White Knight to ''four'' different Bright Ladies: Lisesharte Atismata, [[TheAtoner Celestia Ralgris]], [[RoseHairedSweetie Philuffy Aingram]] and [[AmbiguouslyHuman Krulcifer Einfolk]]. He’s also the Bright Lord and [[SubordinateExcuse Yoruka Kirihime]] is his [[DarkIsNotEvil Black Knight]].
* ''Literature/VampireAcademy'' has Lissa as the Bright Lady (Princess, angelic-looking, kind, graceful, intelligent but physically weak and in need of protection) and Rose as her White Knight protector (devoted to her since their childhood, acts as TheChampion to her), from all threats. There's nothing romantic about it.
* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', this is the purpose of the bond between Warders and Aes Sedai. This is also a case of SwordAndSorcerer. Note that while the Aes Sedai are eminently powerful in political circles, most of their members are not nobles in a technical sense.
** Notable examples include former Queen of Andor Morgase Trakand and Tallanvor (althought not warder-bounded), former Amyrlin Seat Suian Sanche and Gareth Bryne, Egwene and Gawain, Elayne (who later becomes queen) and Rand, and Tuon, a high ranking Seanchan noble, and Matt (also not warder-bounded).
** Another notable example from ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' are Moiraine and Lan, both of them high-ranking nobles themselves and the first Aes Sedai-Warder-pair introduced. They are a straighter than usual example because Moiraine was posing as a regular noblewoman.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/{{Angel}}'' and ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'':
** Angel is actually like this in general, taking pride in helping "damsels in distress" or anyone else who needs his help. He's served as a loyal KnightInShiningArmor to Buffy, Cordelia, Faith, and even Fred. He accidentally kills a lady's knight (thinking he was a bad guy), and has to take his place in a joust for her unborn baby's soul. Chivalry goes far when it comes to him.
** Spike, who originally starts out as a Black Knight serving Dark Lady Drusilla, before eventually becoming a sort of White Knight to Buffy herself in later seasons.
** Willow is extremely protective of Tara and Buffy. (The latter in a strictly [[HeterosexualLifePartners Mixed-Orientation Life Partners]] / TheNotLoveInterest way.) It's rather interesting because in both cases, Willow is much more like a [[KnightTemplar Black Knight]] protecting a Bright Lady.
* Only partial in ''Series/BabylonFive'': Marcus Cole is knightly but Ivanova is not particularly ladylike, at least not in the classic sense.
** A better example would be Captain Sheridan and Delenn. While Sheridan isn't strictly a knight, he is a very idealistic military officer, and Delenn, a former member of the Grey Council and the in later seasons the closest thing Minbar has to a Queen (and a very determined LadyOfWar to boot).
* ''Series/TheDarkCrystalAgeOfResistance'': Deet isn't a noblewoman -- though she poses as one at one point and she's TheChosenOne -- but aspiring Paladin Hup still swears to defend and assist her on her quest to warn the All-Maudra of the Darkening.
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'':
** This dynamic exists between the beautiful Daenerys Targaryen and the valiant Ser Jorah Mormont, though for the first half of the first season he is also TheMole. [[spoiler:And later Ser Barristan Selmy when he joins her Queensguard in Season 3 in a non-romantic example]].
** Renly Baratheon is the handsome and gentle king who is guarded by two highly skilled and brave knights: Brienne of Tarth (a non-knight gender inversion of the trope) and Ser Loras Tyrell (a romantic same-sex variation).
** [[spoiler:After Renly is assassinated]], Brienne then serves the gracious Lady Catelyn Stark (another same-sex version though this time non-romantic), and in that capacity, serves as both guardian and ({{Justified}}) DamselInDistress to the crippled knight Jaime Lannister. She later [[spoiler:becomes the sworn word of Catelyn's daughter Lady Sansa after Catelyn's murder.]]
** After rebuffing her once, a timely rescue from recapture by [[spoiler:[[PsychopathicManchild Ramsey Bolton]]'s men-at-arms]] convinces Sansa to exchange oaths with Brienne of Tarth, making them a Lady and ([[ActionGirl woman]]) Knight, which is ironic considering Sansa grew up in love with chivalric romances.
** The beautiful maiden Sansa Stark is physically and mentally abused by her {{Jerkass}} prince and his knights but is protected by the disfigured anti-knight Sandor Clegane and the drunken fool Dontos Hollard.
* Despite being a servant girl and a mercenary, Guinevere and Lancelot from ''Series/{{Merlin|2008}}'' are a stunningly accurate example of this trope, especially now that they've begun to grow into their legendary counterparts.
* ''Series/TinMan'': Played as completely straight as the setting permits. The titular Tin Man, Wyatt Cain, is ordered by his former boss, The Mystic Man, to protect DG [[spoiler: Aka Princess Dorothy]] "at all costs." Wyatt is an HonorBeforeReason sort, and first accepts because of loyalty to The Mystic Man, but eventually becomes close enough to her to honor the vow for her sake.
* ''Series/TheWhiteQueen'': Anne Neville is a Princess through her first marriage and a DamselInDistress to [[UsefulNotes/RichardIII Richard of Gloucester]]'s valiant and courteous KnightInShiningArmor. Their courtship consists of him protecting her from danger and coming to her aid when she loses her freedom. Richard's devotion to Anne is notable because in each scenario, ''no one else'' is willing to assist her, so he's the classic romantic hero from the viewpoint of his cherished lady.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
* Multiple examples in Myth/ArthurianLegend, but amongst the most notable would be Gareth and Lynette (where, oddly, they end up marrying each others' siblings).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theatre]]
* Same-sex example in [[{{Theatre/Tsukiuta}} Tsukino Empire -- Unleash your mind --]] with Prince Shun and his knight Kai. Gender aside, it's played straight.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* In ''VideoGame/TheAllianceAlive'', young swordsman Galil is sworn to protect [[WhiteMagicianGirl Azura]], his ChildhoodFriend and the rebel leader's daughter. Azura's dream of making the world better is what initiates the game's plot, and Galil's devotion to her dream is what initiates it. Notably, both feel responsible for [[spoiler:Azura getting blinded]], but in different ways: Galil blames himself for not being good enough to prevent it, and Azura blames herself because they wouldn't have trespassed in the first place if she hadn't cajoled Galil into doing it.
* ''Franchise/BlazBlue'':
** Ragna is technically this toward Rachel, the latter being a proper noblewoman and having saved his life and granted him the power he currently holds. However, Ragna is an AntiHero and has absolutely no interest in serving under Rachel and works towards his own goals. There's also a lot of [[SnarkToSnarkCombat bickering]] involved between the two. Ragna does eventually come around and starts to reluctantly, play this straight.
** Played straight with Jin and Tsubaki, though they're both technically royalty being a part of two high-ranking noble families.
** Also played straight with Naoto and Rachel, [[MistressAndServantBoy though she treats him more like a servant than a knight]].
* The Fair Lady and the Chosen Undead in ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsI'', should you join the Chaos Servant covenant. The Fair Lady is quite unambiguously a Bright Lady, being one of the most selfless and noble characters in the entire game (for the record: she sacrificed her health for the sake of random townspeople ''after'' becoming a monster most people would run screaming from), but the Chosen Undead, being a FeaturelessProtagonist, can be both a White and a Black Knight, depending on how you play. Kirk, Knight of Thorns, is a much clearer example of a Black Knight serving a Bright Lady, as he invades other worlds in the guise of a [[TheDreaded Darkwraith]] to harvest their Humanity -- and gives it all to heal the Fair Lady back in his own world.
** There are shades of it with the Chosen Undead and Reah. Though she is initially dismissive of you, you can save her from danger multiple times, and she grows very attached to you. [[spoiler:Sadly, her storyline can only end in tragedy. If you leave Petrus, who previously abandoned her to die, alive, he will kill her while you are away. If you stop that potential end and buy all her miracles she has available, she will eventually get trapped in Seath's Library, where she will go hollow. The only way to keep her alive to the end is to not buy all her miracles.]]
* Maiden Astraea and Garl Vinland in ''Videogame/DemonsSouls''. This dynamic did not change even after she suffered a CrisisOfFaith when the Fog arrived and became a Demon. She's still providing comfort to the needy, and he is still her devoted guardian. Should the player kill one of them, the other will commit suicide out of grief. Sadly, you ''do'' have to kill them to continue.
* In the ''Franchise/{{Dishonored}}'' series, This was the arrangement between Corvo Attano and Jessamine Kaldwin; Royal Protector to the Crown Princess of the Empire. As the girl grew into a woman and Empress, and the young man grew into a true adult and master swordsman, it became an OpenSecret that the two were [[BodyguardCrush romantically entwined]], and that Jessamine's daughter Emily was sired by Corvo.
* ''Franchise/DragonAge'':
** Alistair, in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'', will behave this way toward a female Warden if his romance arc is pursued. The relationship is really more like Knight and Knight considering many female Wardens are warriors, but he acts like a White Knight in the service of a Bright Lady. It can be played almost entirely straight if you make the player character a mage specced for healing.
** Additionally, if male and romancing Morrigan, he acts as either a White Knight or a Black Knight to her Dark Lady, vowing to protect her and even killing a dragon[[note]]technically Flemeth in dragon form[[/note]] to save her. And then he spends a year looking for her.
** If the male Warden is of Human Noble origin, it's possible to end up as this if you pursue to marry Queen Anora. Anora would handle the political side of things behind-the-scenes while the male Warden, who's now Ferelden's King, does all the frontline fighting.
** If the Inquisitor is female and romances Cullen or Blackwall, there are aspects of this trope to their relationship in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition.'' Both gentlemen will even address her as "my lady" (Cullen only once, Blackwall often). A male Inquisitor can invoke shades of it in his romance with Cassandra, owing to her love of chivalry and romantic ideals. An Inquisitor of either gender experiences some aspects of the trope when romancing Josephine, even going so far as to [[spoiler:[[CompeteForTheMaidensHand duel a rival]] for her favor]].
* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'':
** Jarl Balgruuf and his housecarl Irileth are a chaste, gender-flipped version.
** The player character can have this sort of relationship (albeit a platonic one) with Serana if the ''Dawnguard'' DLC is installed.
* This is a ''game mechanic'' in ''VideoGame/ExaPico'' games, with Reyvateils and their vanguards. The former sing MusicMagic (basically) inspired by her love for her vanguard while the latter protects their Reyvateil partner in battle and supports her emotionally outside of it. It's also the reason why [[VideoGame/ArTonelicoIIMelodyOfMetafalica Cocona]] is so awesome: she's a Reyvateil, but she's also a vanguard.
* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
** Cecil and Rosa in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV''. Cecil rescues her a bunch of times and is protective of her, though it's worth observing that Rosa is just as invested in protecting him, having learned White Magic specifically to do it.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'' has Rinoa and Squall -- although it's worth noting that it's mostly Rinoa keeping them on the "bright" side of the archetype; Squall makes it very clear that he does not care much about morality as far as keeping Rinoa safe is concerned. "Sorceress Knight" is actually treated as an official position by Edea and [[spoiler:Cid Kramer]] who are also a somewhat unorthodox example pair; he's not by any means a fighter (at least now that he is older), but he does everything he can to protect Edea and support her emotionally. Late in the story, there's an optional scene where Edea advises a newly-minted sorceress, Rinoa that the best way of dealing with her situation is to find a knight who will "protect her heart." Cid and Edea also theorize that the evil sorceresses, Adel and Ultimecia, probably did not have Sorceress Knights who loved them.
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' has Princess Ashe and literal knight Basch, who has sworn to protect her, although she's more of an AntiHero than the usual Bright Lady. They aren't a couple, though there is some ShipTease.
** ''VideoGame/DissidiaFinalFantasy'': This is the dynamic between Cosmos, the Goddess of Harmony, and her champion the [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Warrior of Light]].
** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'': The leaders of the city state of Ul'Dah. [[HugeGuyTinyGirl Nanamo]] the kind-hearted sultana and her army commander [[LargeAndInCharge Raubahn]], a former [[AsskickingLeadsToLeadership champion gladiator]].
* ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' loves this trope:
** ''[[VideoGame/{{Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light}} Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light]]'': Nyna and Camus. [[spoiler: Sorta. It's WAY more complicated [[StarCrossedLovers in the end]].]]
** Also, Sheema and Samson in ''[[Videogame/{{Fire Emblem Mystery of the Emblem}} Mystery of the Emblem]]''.
** ''[[VideoGame/{{Fire Emblem Genealogy of the Holy War}} Genealogy of the Holy War]]'': Edain and Midir, [[spoiler: Lachesis and Finn]], especially if following the Oosawa manga. There's another gender-flipped example: Erinys ([[LadyofWar Knight]]) and Lewyn ([[ModestRoyalty Lord]])
** Miranda and Connomore in ''[[Videogame/{{Fire Emblem Thracia 776}} Thracia 776]]''. [[spoiler: Her ending only says she married "a certain knight", but the only one who fits in such a description is Connomore.]] Also, Olwen and Fred.
** ''[[VideoGame/{{Fire Emblem The Binding Blade}} The Binding Blade]]'', Clarine's WellExcuseMePrincess nature brings this up in her supports with Lance. In the meantime, her older brother Klein manages to gender-flip this with the Pegasus Knight Thite.
** Lyndis and Kent in ''[[Videogame/{{Fire Emblem The Blazing Blade}} The Blazing Blade]]''. To a smaller degree, Eliwood and Ninian (she isn't royalty, but he has sworn to help and protect both her and her brother Nils), as well as Priscilla and either of her love interests. [[spoiler: Though only Erk manages to marry her.]] Jaffar and Nino aren't royalty (unless you count him being a high-ranked Black Fang member and her being the adoptive daughter of the leader), but otherwise they fit in perfectly. Also, despite neither being nobility, Dorcas and his wife Natalie count in perfectly -- so much that [[spoiler: Dorcas refuses to ''actually'' become a Knight when Oswin tells him to join the Ostian military, [[Heartwarming/FireEmblem because he will only pledge loyalty to his beloved wife]].]]
** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones'': Eirika and both Seth and Forde. [[spoiler: Played with in regards to Tana and Cormag, as he doesn't become her Knight unless one gets their shared ending.]] Natasha and both Seth and Joshua are milder versions of this [[spoiler: and since Joshua is a RebelPrince, it's subverted.]] Gender-flipped with Vanessa and Innes.
** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemPathOfRadiance'': Elincia and Geoffrey. Even more so [[spoiler:if the player gets them hitched and ultimately married via an A Support in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemRadiantDawn''.]]
** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'': Genderflipped by both Chrom/either Sully or Sumia (Prince of Ylisse and Cavalier/Pegasus Knight from his realm) and Virion/Cherche (former duke of the fallen country of Rosane and his faithful ex-retainer). Gender-flipped ''and'' subverted with [[spoiler: Chrom/Cordelia]], as the latter does ''not'' get together with him as she thinks their relationship won't work. Played straighter with Frederick/Lissa (retainer of the Ylisse royalty and Chrom's little sister -- doubling as FirstLove since Frederick was Lissa's first crush), Lissa/Lon'qu (Valmese warrior specifically tasked with guarding Lissa, at least in their supports), and Gaius/Maribelle (LovableRogue and {{Ojou}} [[spoiler: with a rather complicated shared past]]). Probably, also Henry/Maribelle (CreepyGood BloodKnight who, if he declares his love to her, offers to be her [[KnightInShiningArmor knight in bloodstained armor]]).
** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemFates'': Each of the princes and princesses of Nohr (morally grey kingdom with many kindhearted people, that the Avatar fights to reform) and Hoshido (former war-like state that is now pacifistic and needs the Avatar's help to keep peace) has two personal retainers and fulfills the trope with them in one way or another. The Avatar him/herself is a badass prince or princess so he/she has their own personal retainers who fight by his/her side: Jakob, Felicia, Kaze, and Silas join him or her no matter what path is chosen, Gunther and Flora join in under certain circumstances, and Shura can potentially join in all paths should his life be spared.
** ''Videogame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' gives us Petra and Ashe in their paired ending, with Petra establishing an order of knights for Ashe to lead when she inherits her throne. Dimitri and Ingrid's paired ending is a gender-flipped version. Rhea and Jeralt appear to have had this relationship in the {{backstory}}.
* Cruelly invoked in ''VideoGame/GemsOfWar'' by [[RoyalBrat Princess]] Elspeth, Princess of the High Elves of Silverglade: her magic allows her to sacrifice another random creature in your party to summon a random Knight unit. [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness even units she has just summoned]].
* In ''VideoGame/GranblueFantasy'', this dynamic plays out with two female duos, with Katalina as the devoted protector to Lyria and the Black Knight as the devout knight for Princess Orchis, willing to go to the ends of the sky to protect her friend. The latter pair plays this trope early in the story as they both wear dark clothing, and have access to Dark magic. But despite their appearance and abilities, the Black Knight and Orchis are not actually villains and became PromotedToPlayable.
* ''VideoGame/{{Ico}}'': Yorda as the Bright Lady princess with Ico as her White Knight who escorts her out of the castle.
* Pit and Palutena in ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising''. Granted, she does occasionally like to tease him, but Pit's main motivation is his service to "Lady Palutena" and her ideals of light and goodness -- even when others disparage him for acting like little more than an errand boy (though he's in fact captain of her guard).
* Kyo Kusanagi and his girlfriend Yuki in ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters''s Orochi Saga. More specifically, in ''KOF 97'', which reveals [[spoiler:that Yuki is the last descendant of one of the Eight Kushinadas, a group of legendary {{Barrier Maiden}}s who were ritually sacrificed to bring back Orochi into this world -- except for [[SoleSurvivor one]], which totally ruined the awakening ritual. 1800 years later, Yuki becomes a target of the Orochis who now want to re-awaken Orochi itself; her boyfriend Kyo learns about it from [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Yashiro, Shermie and Chris]], '''[[DeclarationOfProtection and he is NOT pleased]]'''. In the Sacred Treasure Team's ending, when Kyo is contacted by the spirit of the Yasakani, the other thing they ask him for (aside from sealing Orochi with Iori and Chizuru) is to protect "Kushinada" aka Yuki. He does both things, and Yuki is saved.]]
** It also looks like Kensou ''really'' wants to be like this with Athena. (On the other hand, Athena isn't exactly thrilled as she's an ActionGirl already and cares for him [[JustFriends as a friend only]]). In ''VideoGame/AthenaAwakeningFromTheOrdinaryLife'', he even refers to himself as "Athena's Knight" and tries to help her as much as possible, despite [[BadassNormal not having any powers]] in that continuity.
* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
** [[TheHero Link]] and Princess Zelda fit this in most if not all of their incarnations, where the former is (usually) a middle/lower-class swordsman hero defending the latter and/or her kingdom from an evil threat. Some games emphasize this aspect of their relationship more than others, such as [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI the original game]], ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'' (though this one's complicated; see below), ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]''. The latter is of note, as Link is explicitly Zelda's appointed knight, sworn to protect her at all costs.
** In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', Link is the knight to another princess ([[spoiler:Midna]] who's closer to Dark Lady, at least at first), who even lampshades it once or twice. Also an example of RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething, as she is a very competent Dark Lady.
* In ''VideoGame/Persona3'', Mitsuru's first friend and teammate was Akihiko, who complements her ice spells with old-fashioned punching. He's the only one of her peers who isn't alienated by her [[{{Ojou}} status]] (at least until the protagonist shows up), but he still respects her authority.
* The Franchise/{{Pokemon}} Gardevoir and Gallade have this theme going on, with the lady being the feminine Gardevoir and the knight being the masculine Gallade. PlayedWith in that Gardevoir has a 50/50 chance of being [[DudeLooksLikeALady male]] and is powerful in its own right. In fact, the Pokédex for both Gardevoir and Gallade describe them as showing UndyingLoyalty to their trainer, making it possible for Gardevoir to play the Knight for its trainer. Gardevoir's name in Japanese is even ''Sirknight''.
* ''VideoGame/RadiantHistoria'' has one of the characters actually [[LampshadeHanging joking about]] how Stocke is basically Eruca's knight. It's a better comparison than they knew -- while the two of them had just met in that timeline, in the other one he'd abandoned his country to help her, saved her life numerous times, and done a lot of the work of winning her throne back for her.
* ''VideoGame/RadiataStories'': Jack appoints himself Ridley's White Knight [[spoiler: on the Fairy path]] and not only protects her but lifts her spirits with endearingly corny jokes. [[spoiler: in personality, they're the Bright couple but to the humans, they're the dark couple yet Gerald praises him for having the balls to turn against his entire race for the sake of his girl.]] For her part, Ridley is a Bright Lady {{ojou}} who is trying to do what she thinks is right, and is grateful for Jack's support.
* [[TheHero Mario]] and Princess Peach from ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros''. Mario is not a knight by job but otherwise plays the trope straight.
* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'':
** Corso Riggs ''wants'' to be this for the female Smuggler, but the Smuggler isn't terribly ladylike. A male Smuggler can try being this for Risha, but she doesn't really buy it.
** Doc is a LadykillerInLove who would like to be this for the female Jedi Knight, but it ends up being a gender inversion (she ''is'' the Knight, after all).
** Lt. Felix Iresso, a Republic soldier, and a Light-Sided female Jedi Consular come the closest to playing it straight, but the Consular technically is ''also'' a knight (just one who spends a lot of time in diplomatic missions and exploring ancient secrets).
** The Empire gets in on the action, too. A light-sided Bounty Hunter, a character class that uses heavy armor and can equip their suit with blades, can count as a rough-and-ready take on this with Mako, the sweet healer companion.
** A light-sided Sith Warrior can go for this with a light-sided Jaesa Willsaam. You, the surprisingly moral knight in polished black armor; her, the former Jedi turned moral Sith; the two of you intend to reform the Empire from the outside in, with a platonic relationship between you.
** A gender-flipped variation can be done with a light-sided male Sith Sorcerer and Ashara Zavros: you're a Sith who knows where to draw the line and she's a former Jedi who believes that sometimes you have to cross it.
* ''Franchise/StreetFighter'': Ken Masters and his wife Eliza fits this trope, ''especially'' in ''the Ties that Bind'' OAV, [[spoiler: when a pregnant Eliza is kidnapped by Crimson Viper and [[ActionDad Ken]] comes up with some of his biggest displays of badassery '''ever''' to save her and their unborn kid.]]
* ''VideoGame/TalesSeries'':
** In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', Collette serves as the Bright Lady who wants to save the world and Lloyd is the White Knight that wants to protect her from everybody, including herself.
** ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'':
*** Estelle and Flynncount, though the fact she keeps slipping from his watch could count as a subversion.
*** Estelle and Yuri would probably be an example of Bright Lady and [[DarkIsNotEvil Black Knight]]. She's the naïve WideEyedIdealist, while he's the roguish VigilanteMan. However, he becomes fiercely protective of her [[TheDulcineaEffect mere moments after they meet]] and only becomes more so as time goes on. He may not be a literal knight anymore, but he certainly fits the bill.
** ''VideoGame/TalesOfArise'':
*** Dohalim and Kisara are a twist on this trope: a lord and a female knight who are both capable fighters and protect each other on the battlefield. Their story is about how being from different social classes (and different cultures) can create conflict between such a pair. By the end of the game, they learn to see each other as equals. The changes in their relationship are marked by what Kisara calls him — from “Lord Dohalim” or “my lord” to just “Dohalim” [[spoiler: then later, his nickname “Do”]]. Some moments in the game also hint at a [[ShipTease growing romantic attraction to each other]].
%%* [[TomboyAndGirlyGirl Chie and Yukiko]] in ''VideoGame/{{Persona4}}''.
* ''VideoGame/VirgoVsTheZodiac'': Virgo and Pisces form a pair. Pisces is always a Bright Lady; whether Virgo is dark or light is up to the player.
* ''VideoGame/WildArms1:'' Although she's quite capable of [[LadyOfWar taking care of herself]] most of the time, Cecilia is the RebelliousPrincess (and later Queen) Bright Lady while Rudy ''and'' Jack serve as her White Knights. Rudy is a more straightforward White Knight as he will do everything he can to save those around him. Because of his [[DarkAndTroubledPast Dark And Troubled Past]] it takes Jack a while to fully grow into the role.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]
* Cruelly subverted in ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyTrialsAndTribulations'', where Diego Armando blames Phoenix ''and'' himself for failing to live up to this trope with respect to Mia Fey. Diego then attempts to single-handedly protect Mia's younger sister, which leads to more tragedy.
* In ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyDualDestinies'', it becomes clear that Simon Blackquill [[TheFourLoves loved]] Metis not only as a student loves a mentor, but as a samurai loves his patron. That's why he spends seven years in prison and is nearly executed to protect her daughter.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* A same-sex variant in ''Webcomic/{{Haircut}},'' with captain of the guard Lady Beatrice protecting Princess Mildred. Overlaps with BodyguardCrush that develops into romance.
* In ''{{Webcomic/Homestuck}}'''s backstory, Feferi (TheEmpire's compassionate, eternally optimistic heiress) and Eridan (a proud, bombastic warrior who helped feed Feferi's lusus [[note]]by killing other lusii[[/note]]) were this...or at least they tried to be. Feferi's influence was the only thing keeping Eridan from being a Black Knight, but at some point, she grew sick of being his LivingEmotionalCrutch and watching over his behavior...
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* In ''Literature/DeadWest'', this is the best way to describe the narrator's relationship with the Porcelain Doctor (same-sex example). Bonus points for the [[DudeLooksLikeALady doctor]] being an aristocrat (he is also very kind and sweet when not having berserker episodes), and Gervas getting knighted in Diamond. He is explicitly referred as Niall's knight from "Steel" onward and effectively placed himself under a {{Geas}} with an extremely old-fashioned Oath. The Porcelain Doctor shows extreme trust and surprising affection towards his knight, after they sort out the issues with his gender, and sometimes reciprocates the protection.
* In ''WebAnimation/PorkchopNFlatscreen'', Ayane invoked this (or more specifically, "princess and knight") to describe the relationship between her and Mai when they were younger. For the most part, it seems to have stuck (in a platonic manner, of course).
* In ''Literature/TwistedCogs'', a good rhetor and rhetorguard are this. If they don't keep to their responsibilities -- i.e. if the [[CompellingVoice rhetor]] speaks and the rhetorguard doesn't kill her or turn her in to be killed -- then they are seen as the dark variant below.
* In ''Roleplay/WeAreAllPokemonTrainers'', Dot (a Vespiquen who plays up the Lady role) and Oshawittle (an Oshawott who plays up the Knight role) have this relationship.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Played with in ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' by [[Characters/AdventureTimeFinn Finn]] and [[Characters/AdventureTimePrincessBubblegum Princess Bubblegum]]. Finn certainly sees himself as PB's knight (even {{Lampshading}} it in song at one point), and she's certainly willing to have him perform her errands (having referred to him as her Champion several times). As the series goes on it becomes clear that, [[KidHero being rather young and thus immature]], Finn will never be satisfied with mere CourtlyLove from her and some of what he does is in the hopes of impressing her and winning her affection. For her part, PB is ''not'' a DamselInDistress or even much of a ProperLady except on formal occasions and in fact could probably handle half of the threats she sics Finn on at least as well but doesn't because she's too busy running the kingdom, and views Finn's romantic interest with a kind of detached exasperation. It becomes more complicated when it's seen just how ambiguously PB's morality can be and some have questioned whether she does care for Finn or merely using him. For now, they are friends and he still defends the kingdom and her because of this and because he is a noble person at heart.
%%* Gwendolyn and Roderick in ''WesternAnimation/{{Gawayn}}''. Zero context example
* ''WesternAnimation/HazbinHotel'': Demon Princess Charlie Morningstar and her ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend Vaggie are an interesting example -- as a pair of demons in Hell (Charlie specifically being the daughter of Lucifer himself), you'd think they'd be a Dark Lady and Black Knight variant, but Charlie's characterization leans closer to a typical Disney Princess and she's effectively the TokenGoodTeammate of Hell as a whole, while Vaggie is a largely more decent individual than most souls of the damned. In the episode "Scrambled Eggs", Vaggie has an entire segment in a musical number vowing to protect Charlie, declaring that she'll be her "armor".
* ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Ladybug, even though she's just an ordinary girl out of costume, is TheLeader of the heroes and the only one who can purge the damage done by Hawkmoth's [[VillainPossessedBystander Akumas]]. Cat Noir has a BodyguardCrush on her and frequently throws himself in harm's way to protect her. He even calls her "my lady" as an AffectionateNickname while they're on the job.
* [[LoveGoddess Princess Cadence]] and [[KnightInShiningArmor Shining Armor]] in ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'', Cadence being a princess who weaponizes ThePowerOfLove and Shining Armor being her loyal, protective captain of the guard. The two are married in their introductory episode.
* ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'':
** [[HomoeroticSubtext Pearl clearly saw herself as the Knight to Rose's Lady]]. It's somewhat ambiguous whether [[Characters/StevenUniversePearl Pearl]] imagined the whole dynamic with [[Characters/StevenUniverseRoseQuartz Rose Quartz]], though. Later, she trains Connie to be the [[GenderFlip knight to Steven's lady/lord]], [[spoiler: though [[ExaggeratedTrope she ends up overdoing it]] by almost treating [[Characters/StevenUniverseConnieMaheswaran Connie Maheswaran]] like an expendable pawn that should ''only'' live and die for [[Characters/StevenUniverseStevenQuartzUniverse Steven Quartz Universe]]. (And probably projecting ''her'' own issues on her). This unintentionally makes Connie's already self-worth problems worse, until both Connie and Steven confront Pearl on it and she admits it's not the best.]]
** Sapphire and Ruby also started out having this dynamic; Sapphire being the elegant and noble aristocratic gem, Ruby being her common soldier bodyguard. They clearly moved towards a completely egalitarian relationship, though.
* Ilana and Lance from ''WesternAnimation/SymBionicTitan''.
* The ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' fairies and the Specialists, and especially Stella (who ''is'' a Princess) and her boyfriend Brandon (who is Prince Sky's partner as well as a literal Knight)
[[/folder]]

!!Dark Lady and Black Knight

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* Sebastian and Ciel's relationship in ''Manga/BlackButler'' can be seen as a platonic ([[HoYay or not so platonic]]) same-sex version, with Sebastian as the Black Knight to Ciel's Dark Lord. Overlaps with BattleButler.
* In ''Manga/BlackLagoon'', YakuzaPrincess Yukio Washimine and her OneManArmy bodyguard Ginji Matsuzaki are this; nobility connotations, loyalty oath, ideas of honor, etc.
* Diva of ''Anime/BloodPlus'' is a through and through Dark Lady with varying shades of knights (5-7 if one includes back story chevaliers), though most of them are Black or are at least morally ambiguous enough to not be White.
* ''Anime/CodeGeass'' has the gender-flipped pair of [[AntiHero Lelouch]] as a {{Fallen Prince|ss}} and Kallen as his bodyguard AcePilot BlackKnight. The twist is that though [[ManipulativeBastard Lelouch]] in particular has the trappings of evil, both are heroic individuals who only do the NecessarilyEvil to fight the greater evil; that said, they fit this dynamic over the more traditionally "good" set up. [[spoiler: Later on Kallen abandons Lelouch when it seems he plans to become a dictator and Suzaku takes her place as his knight.]]
* In ''Anime/CrossAnge'', through several twists of events, Tusk ends up being Ange's knight. Of course, given their personalities (she is a cynical princess and he is an AccidentalPervert) and the fact that more often than not, she proves herself to be a better fighter than him, their relationship is as far from archetypal as it gets.
* The leads of ''Manga/DanceInTheVampireBund'' may best be described as Dark Lady & White Knight. Teenage werewolf commando/bodyguard Akira Regendorf is [[NobleWolf just about as benevolent and noble as they come]]; however, for all that VampireMonarch Mina Tepes is [[FriendlyNeighborhoodVampire just as kindly at heart]], [[ToughLeaderFacade centuries of protecting her followers]] from the mad bastards running the other surviving vampire factions have left her capable of [[IDidWhatIHadToDo considerable ruthlessness when she perceives a threat]].
* In ''Anime/FatePrototype'', [[EnfanteTerrible Manaka Sajyou]] wanted this with her Servant Saber [[spoiler: aka King Arthur (not gender-flipped... still)]]. '''[[{{Yandere}} Badly]]'''. [[spoiler: It failed. But now that she's BackFromTheDead, she '''still''' wants it. Even after, as said above, the now-returned Saber is playing the White Knight to Manaka's ''sister'' Ayaka's White Lady]]
* ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'':
** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' has an interesting pair in LadyOfWar Kycilia Zabi and her [[TheDragon Dragon]], SmugSnake and SissyVillain [[TheStrategist M'Quve]]. While [[CombatPragmatist M'Quve]] may not [[CampStraight look the part of]] the Black Knight, he [[AgentPeacock plays it very well]], plotting all of Kycilia's strategies, doing her dirty work, and finally [[CulturedWarrior engaging the Gundam in a one-on-one duel on her behalf]]; his last thoughts, as he dies, are [[UndyingLoyalty of her]].
** ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ'': [[IneffectualSympatheticVillain Mashmyre]] [[LargeHam Cello]] [[WrongGenreSavvy thinks]] he's the KnightInShiningArmour to [[LadyOfWar Haman Khan]]'s Lady. In reality, he's just another of Haman's pawns... at least initially. As the series progresses [[CerebusSyndrome and becomes darker]], Haman finds herself with a real shortage of reliable henchmen; the now [[KnightInSourArmor far more cynical]] and [[ShellShockedVeteran mentally/emotionally broken]] [[LoveMartyr Mashmyre]] ''is'' able to become the Black Knight to her Dark Lady, carrying out all her worst strategies in exchange for her attention, [[spoiler: like the ColonyDrop on Dublin.]]
* Princess Samedare and the Lizard Knight Yuuhi from ''Manga/TheLuciferAndBiscuitHammer''. A rather strange example, since she is actually trying to save the earth, but only so she can destroy it herself. Not to mention she's a [[ManicPixieDreamGirl Manic Pixie Dream]] GenkiGirl and doesn't seem like a villain at all until she opens her mouth to say she's going to destroy the world.
* [[spoiler:Princess Emeraude and Zagato, who we all thought was the BigBad]], from ''Manga/MagicKnightRayearth''. Bet you didn't see that one coming.
* Queen Beryl and Evil!Endymion from ''Franchise/SailorMoon'', for the mind-control type. Repeated in the Black Moon arc with Black Lady/Wicked Lady and Tuxedo Mask.
* As mentioned above, Siegfried and Hilda from ''Manga/SaintSeiya'' become this when Hilda is BrainwashedAndCrazy. (Normally they're a White Knight and Bright Lady duo.) And basically, Hagen is what happens to a White Knight when his Bright Lady becomes a DefectorFromDecadence [[{{Yandere}} and he can't handle it]].
* Tao Jun and her mind-controlled zombie puppet kung-fu guy Lee Pai Long from ''Manga/ShamanKing'' -- until Lee Pai long is released from his mind control, develops real feelings for her and they both turn good, becoming an example of Bright Lady and White Knight.
* Lina Inverse and Gourry Gabriev from ''Literature/{{Slayers}}''. Interestingly, they're actually quite heroic, though Gourry is definitely the more heroic of the pair, with Lina being more of a Type IV AntiHero than anything.
* Witch Medusa Gorgon and Mind-controlled Dr.Stein from the ''Manga/SoulEater'' anime.
* ''Anime/WitchHunterRobin'': Amon and Robin play with the trope. Robin is seen as the Dark Lady by many because of her heritage and some of her actions are brutal considering what the rest of the team does but at heart, she's a Bright Lady trying to do what's right. Amon ultimately betrays both Zizain and SOLOMON to protect Robin from danger and is seen as a Dark Knight who's gone rogue, though he wavers back and forth. Robin herself calls him her "watch dog" because he will make sure she survives unless she loses herself to her power. At which point he will kill her himself.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* This was the basic gimmick of the 1980s Franchise/{{Batman}} villainess Nocturna, who used a narcotic perfume and went through two criminal "Black Knights" called the Night-Thief and Nightshade before trying and failing to make Batman her champion.
* ComicBook/LadyDeath had the titular protagonist as the Dark Lady, being a seductive FemmeFatale from {{Hell}}, and her two Black Knights: Evil Ernie, an undead psychotic killer devoted to her, and Cremator, a hulking, demonic blacksmith who unlike Evil Ernie is a platonic version of this trope.
* The Creator/MarvelComics version of ''[[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]]'' was often opposed by the Enchantress and the Executioner; the latter wielded an axe rather than a sword, but the basics of this trope were in full effect. The Enchantress also tried something similar with the original Power Man (Erik Josten) and later magically brainwashed the heroic Black Knight into serving as her champion for [[{{Pun}} a brief spell]].
* Marvel's versions of Morgan Le Fay and Mordred fit this trope in stories set in the Camelot period. Ironically, the hero who opposed them was the aforementioned ''hero'' called the Black Knight.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fairy Tales]]
* Literature/SnowWhite's WickedStepmother the queen, and the huntsman whom she sends to kill Snow White.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* An odd, gender-flipped example in ''FanFic/ArmoredCoreFromTheAshes''. [[VillainProtagonist Ghost]] is a masterful {{Chessmaster}} and MagnificentBastard, and is paired with [[spoiler:Fiona Jarnefeldt, a severely {{Yandere}}, insane pilot who ''used'' to be normal, but prior to the story, was subjected to MindRape by Ghost... who she happened to be in love with at the time.]] However, this is subverted -- although his 'Knight' does much of his dirty work, Ghost is an even more competent pilot (explicitly stated to be the best on Earth, tied with Kruger, his ArchEnemy and the story's HeroAntagonist; this naturally leads to discussion later on of whether they can qualify as [[AGodAmI gods]] because of their power), and will often deploy onto the battlefield if things are looking particularly bad to deliver a CurbStompBattle on his enemies (unless Kruger is involved, in which case you either end up with a ''massive'' high-speed battle, while the two discuss deep philosophical matters of good and evil, right and wrong, and whether Ghost's actions are justified or not, or one of the two calling a full retreat (which Ghost's Knight may not always obey).
** For that matter, Ghost used to have a weird example of this with a Bright Lady-Black Knight pairing with [[MoralityChain Holly]]. He outranked her, but he often insisted that she stay behind and not get herself into trouble, and she could give him orders and he'd obey. [[spoiler:Of course, after Holly got LaserGuidedAmnesia, didn't remember Ghost, and Ghost pulled a sort-of FaceHeelTurn to go into opposition against all mankind as part of ThePlan, this pairing was promptly broken up and replaced with the even stranger one listed above.]]
* In ''Fanfic/AManOfIron'', [[spoiler: the Night's Queen in Sansa's body]] gains [[spoiler: Sandor Clegane]] as her faithful knight when she effortlessly heals his face -- it helps that [[spoiler: he genuinely believes that she's Sansa]], and some of her darker aspects disturb him.
* A same-gender version shows up in ''FanFic/MyMirrorSwordAndShield'' with Lelouch and Suzaku; who are also lovers in this verse.
* As ''Fanfic/TheNightUnfurls'' sometimes refers Chloe, the shadow of the Dark Queen [[LadyOfBlackMagic Olga]], as her knight, together with how [[UndyingLoyalty protective]] Chloe is to her liege lady, the two count as this. Though, Olga sees their relationship as [[LikeADaughterToMe more than that]].
* In ''FanFic/NineElevenTen'', [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen Lady Frost]] is a Dark Lady who styles herself as a Bright Lady with the EBS as her army of White Knights.
--> '''Frost''': [[ALighterShadeOfGrey Muñoz]]... [[DistressedDude you (Charles)]], [[IHaveYourWife Howlett]], [[PsychoSupporter Azazel]], [[ChildSoldiers Scott]] -– [[MindRape my prince]] –- all of my defenders.... [[BlatantLies I value you so highly.]]
* Elf-Queen Eruvanda and General Arquen have this dynamic early in ''FanFic/PowerRangersGPX'' when they were both the antagonists. He acts like a knight in defense of his Queen, with whom he eventually begins a secret relationship. [[spoiler: Then she decides to end the anti-Power Ranger campaign and they are [[HeelFaceTurn forced to flee to the Power Rangers]]. After this, they take on a White Knight, Bright Lady dynamic, which is solidified when Arquen joins the Power Rangers.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* The Red Queen and Knave of Hearts in Creator/TimBurton's ''Film/AliceInWonderland2010''.
* Turns up in ''Film/TheDarkKnightRises'' [[spoiler:when it is revealed that [[GeniusBruiser Bane]] and [[DaddysLittleVillain Talia Al Ghul]] share this relationship. Their backstory swiftly reveals that he pledged his life to protect her when she was a little girl in a HellHolePrison, and their relationship has been one of absolute loyalty and mutual trust ever since.]]
* Ma-Ma from ''Film/{{Dredd}}'' is the Dark Lady and her second in command Caleb is her Dark Knight, who was there from step one for her.
* As suggested under Multiple Media below, the film ''Film/{{Excalibur}}'' is an example of the modernized Myth/ArthurianLegend version of the trope.
* The titular ''Film/{{Maleficent}}'' and TheDragon Diaval have this relationship, though it's platonic and she certainly doesn't need protecting.
* Though the "Black Knight" type [[spoiler:is dead]] by the beginning of the film, later revelations make it clear that this was the arrangement that Brigid O'Shaunessy of ''Film/{{The Maltese Falcon|1941}}'' had with at least two men prior to her failed manipulation of Sam Spade.
* This proves to be the situation in the ''Film/JamesBond'' film ''Film/TheWorldIsNotEnough'': TheDragon/Black Knight is Renard; the Sorceress archetype is [[spoiler: [[FemmeFatale Elektra King]].]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* Opal Koboi and Briar Cudgeon have this Dynamic in ''Literature/ArtemisFowl: The Artic Incident''. Opal is the {{ojou}} who does her techno-wizardry from a safe distance and Cudgeon is the FallenHero in the thick of things. "I shall be the hero of the resistance and you shall be my princess."
* The relationship between Agnes and Harry Jones in ''Literature/TheBigSleep''. Like O'Shaunessy's partners, Harry [[spoiler:dies to protect]] the ultimately disloyal and uncaring Agnes.
* ''Literature/BlackJewels'': In ''Shalador's Lady'', [[SpoiledBrat Kermilla]] ''tries'' to make [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Theran]] her Dark Knight, and succeeds for long enough to [[LoveRuinsTheRealm provoke a major political crisis]].
* ''Literature/DeadWest'' has a Lord and Knight version: The Porcelain Doctor and Gervas have this dynamic, down to the kneeling and hand-kissing (maybe even with shades of CourtlyLove). Gervas even gets knighted after a while, courtesy of the Beast. Note that this is apparently a well-tested ritual, and the oath seems to help synchronize our narrator with Niall and providing him access to several favours. Might seem funny, as [[CombatMedic Niall]] doesn't exactly need protection.
* Charissa, Duchess of Tolan and Lord Ian Howell in ''Literature/{{Deryni}} Rising''. In a subversion, [[spoiler: Charissa kills Ian before he can pull a [[TheStarscream Starscream]] on her]].
** According to WordOfGod, the earliest draft of the story actually pivoted on a Lady And Knight relationship between the general (Morgan) and the queen mother (Jehana), though they hadn't yet received names at that point. This ship was scrapped in the next draft, and the queen's young son was aged up to become the main character.
* George, Duke of Clarence and his wife Isabel Neville are this in the ''Literature/IRichardPlantagenetSeries''. They are [[ChildhoodFriendRomance childhood sweethearts]] who deeply love each other and support each others dark ambitions. She wants him to have the crown; he wants her to have all of her mother's fortune, cutting out her younger sister. They scheme and plot, including him kidnapping and forcing her sister to work as a servant, but they are ultimately thwarted. Ironically, [[RescueRomance their younger siblings]] get everything George and Isabel desired without seeking any of it.
* ''Literature/LegacyOfTheDragokin'': Mordak becomes a black knight for dark lady [[spoiler: Zarracka]]; he calls her 'my dear' and says he'll be her protector. [[spoiler: He's playing into her ego; she's nothing but a spare body to him.]]
* A variant appears in ''Tithe'', the first of Holly Black's ''Literature/ModernFaerieTales'', where the Seelie knight Rath Roiben Rye is unwillingly pressed into service as the Black Knight for the Unseelie Queen Nicnevin...out of devotion and unrequited love for her sister, Queen Silarial of the Seelie Court. In the second book, ''Ironside'' the dynamic is reversed, with Roiben [[spoiler: having become the Unseelie King himself]] while his lover Kaye goes on a quest to save his life and win his hand.
* ''Literature/APracticalGuideToEvil'': the Dread Empress, Alaya, and her best friend, Black Knight Amadeus, have this dynamic in the beginning: he helped her escape the former Dread Emperor's seraglio and ascend to the throne and now keeps her enemies in check through threats, while she enables his reforms of the military and presents herself as the softer, more reasonable person to the nobles.
* ''Literature/RebuildWorld'': CyberPunk version with Alpha as a seductive ArtificialIntelligence EvilMentor to the UnscrupulousHero Akira. He seems to follow her every command blindly as an UnwittingPawn, despite being irritated by her constant seduction attempts. But Tsubaki’s attempts to turn Akira away from Alpha, make him recite a list of ManipulativeBitch actions she’s taken before citing IGaveMyWord and IOweYouMyLife to justify serving her in a MyMasterRightOrWrong situation. Generally speaking however, Akira is a DefrostingIceKing who becomes more and more connected to those around him, despite Alpha’s wishes to keep him isolated and dependent on her.
* {{Genderflip}}ped variation: Ashram and Pirotess from ''Literature/RecordOfLodossWar''.
* Appears in C.S. Lewis's ''Literature/TheSilverChair''. The [[Analysis/LadyAndKnight Analysis]] section mentions that it's very common for Black Knights to be mind-controlled by their Dark Ladies: that's what happens here, between the {{Brainwashed}} [[spoiler: Prince Rilian]] and the Lady of the Green Kirtle. [[spoiler: It ends up backfiring when Rilian, fully released from the brainwashing by the PowerTrio (Jill, Eustace, and Puddleglum), turns against the Lady and kills her when she takes her serpent form.]]
* Cersei and Jaime Lannister from ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' fit this trope to a T. Both are amoral schemers. Jaime solves problems with his sword and is totally devoted to Cersei. Cersei, for her part, uses sex to get whatever she wants, [[ThePlan and schemes with the best of them]]. [[spoiler:Eventually falls apart when Jaime rediscovers his moral compass and finds himself increasingly disgusted with Cersei's antics.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'': Drusilla and Spike.
* ''Series/GameOfThrones'' has Queen Regent Cersei and Robert Strong [[spoiler:aka Gregor Clegane after Qyburn "healed" him.]] They look like a Bright Lady and White Knight pairing at first but in Season 7, they take a more appropriate appearance by wearing dark dress and armor respectively.
* ''Series/HouseOfTheDragon'' has two opposing factions, each with a mixed Bright/Dark Lady and her not-so-ambiguously Dark Knight, a man who's eager to be violent on her behalf.
** By the end of Season 1, Rhaenyra Targaryen isn't totally white nor is she dark, but her husband Daemon definitely fits the dark knight version of the trope.
** Queen Alicent Hightower is a mixture of the Bright/Dark Lady to her Black Knight, Ser Criston Cole. Criston served Alicent, and Rhaenyra before that. In that time, the whole "sworn sword" institution has been {{Deconstructed|Trope}} on multiple counts.
*** As a member of the Kingsguard, Criston has taken a VowOfCelibacy, insuring he has unfulfilled longings. As a noblewoman's sworn sword, his entire job description is to act rather like a partner (loyal protector, supporter, confidant, and companion) to a beautiful lady he's encouraged to idealize. Under those circumstances, developing feelings for his liege lady is ''not surprising'' -- the situation is practically designed to invoke BodyguardCrush. And on the ladies' side, if he's acting like your partner, he's wholly devoted to you, and then he's hot on top of that... Considering any amorous conduct between the two is ''strictly forbidden'', who thought this was a good idea?
*** The Lady and Knight situation is also ripe for abuse of power. The knight's sworn to obey his lady's every command. The only thing in place to protect the knight is a vow that the lady's not supposed to ask anything of him that would bring him dishonor. But a single vow is hardly a reliable safeguarding system. Moreover, his role ''encourages'' an atmosphere where she feels she can trust and depend on him, therefore she can ask him for things she wouldn't ask of anyone else -- even inappropriate requests, such as sex, or to cut out a child's eye. When that happens, the fact that he ''always obeys her'' makes it very uncomfortable for him to break script and say no, even if he does technically have grounds to do so. In Criston's specific case this is doubly true because he's lowborn and owes his status entirely to his liege ladies -- he ''extra'' can't risk their displeasure.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mythology]]
* Various modern-day versions of Myth/ArthurianLegend treat Morgaine Le Fay as the partner or boss of Mordred; the actual legends and romances don't reflect this, but the story of the Green Knight could fit because she uses her magic to help his beheading game.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* Riliane and her servant/twin brother Allen have this relationship in ''Music/EvilliousChronicles'', as depicted in the songs [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q46Osg9C4pA Daughter of Evil]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jo7z60aJqNA Servant of Evil]]. The 14-year-old [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen queen]] rules with an iron fist, squandering money seized from her people and executing protesters. Her twin brother acts as her knight, shielding her from hatred and allowing her to retain her childlike innocence. [[spoiler:When a foreign prince favored a green-haired lady over her, she ordered her brother to murder her [[DisproportionateRetribution and everyone else with green hair]], not realizing he'd fallen in love with that girl. When the people finally revolt against her, they [[TwinSwitch exchange clothing]] and he dies in her place.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* ''TabletopGame/{{Pathfinder}}'': The Witchguard Ranger Archetype. Its flavor text states that they are "sworn defenders of the White Witches of Irrisen". Many of the vanilla Ranger's NatureHero abilities are replaced with those that increase a [[SquishyWizard spellcaster's AC]] or [[TakingTheBullet taking damage in their place]]. As for why this archetype is listed under Dark Lady/Black Knight (as it's entirely possible to have a heroic Witchguard PC), Irrisen is a [[LawfulEvil Lawful Evil]] Mageocracy ruled by Baba Yaga's [[GodSaveUsFromTheQueen daughters]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''VideoGame/ArTonelicoMelodyOfElemia'': Mir and [[spoiler:Ayatane]].
* Rozalin and Adell have this dynamic in ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea 2|CursedMemories}}'', though Rozalin spends a good deal of time wondering ''why'' Adell insists to play the Knight when she's more or less a captured enemy. In ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea 3|AbsenceOfJustice}}'', it's subverted and inverted. Almaz ''tries'' to be the Knight to Princess Sapphire's Lady by going to the Netherworld to slay the overlord but gets way too in over his head. Then Sapphire herself shows up down there for the same reasons (because she couldn't take all of the would-be Knights running down there and getting themselves killed in her name) and basically becomes ''his'' Knight.
* ''{{Videogame/Dishonored}}'' has the protagonist Corvo act as a White Knight to Bright Lady Empress Jessamine Kaldwin; however, when she's killed and he's framed for her murder, he flips from White to Black, becomes an assassin and transfers all his loyalty to the Empress's daughter, Emily. They subsequently become a BadassAndChildDuo, and whether Emily grows to become Bright or Dark changes according to how you play Corvo.
* Morag and the Wight Knight in ''VideoGame/DragonQuestIX''. She cast a spell on him in order to force him to fall in love with her, allowing her to destroy the Wight Knight's home kingdom of Brigadoom without interference. She then sealed herself away with him until an earthquake woke them up and broke the curse she had on the Wight Knight.
** It was heavily implied Morag did some [[{{Squick}} dirty things]] to the Wight Knight while they were sealed. Do note that the Wight Knight [[CrossesTheLineTwice is an undead corpse]].
* In ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriorsGundam 2'' [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamZZ Haman Karn]] and [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing Milliardo Peacecraft]] have a plotline which has shades of this, and their Special Combo dialogue explicitly references it:
-->'''Haman''': Show me how a knight fights!\\
'''Milliardo''': Show me how a Lady fights.
* ''VideoGame/EldenRing'' plays with this - the Dark Lady is Ranni the Witch, a [[TheChessmaster scheming]] demigoddess with a [[TheBaroness chilly, aloof, and ambitious]] disposition, and from the moment she meets the [[PlayerCharacter Tarnished]], she immediately starts pressuring them into helping her scheme to become the TopGod, with you increasingly becoming her Knight. The thing is, [[spoiler:it's a RomanceSidequest, and everything suggests that by the end of it, Ranni genuinely loves you - that, and the game makes it clear her real goal is to save the world from the manipulations of the [[GodIsFlawed Greater Will]], as her family was torn apart by its edicts, and freeing humanity from the existential horror of being subject to the politics of JerkassGods. Moreover, while she wants your help, she initially tries to push you away, as she initially feels the burden is hers alone to bear. As a result, Ranni comes off as an AffablyEvil AntiVillain at worst, and it only ends badly if ''you'' betray ''her.'']]
* Seifer and Edea [[spoiler:while she's possessed by Ultimecia]] in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'' fill these roles -- Edea in fact invokes the trope, using Seifer's "romantic dream" and knightly aspirations to manipulate him. He doesn't quite realize initially that he's more of a Dark Knight than a Bright Knight, or at least is in quite a bit of denial about it for a while. Later, understanding how he's being used but feeling he's gone too far to turn back, Seifer abandons the role of "knight" entirely.
* Clive and Joshua are a sibling version in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI'', with Clive sworn to Joshua’s service and protection. There’s even a knighting ceremony.
* Genderflipped in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones: Emperor Vigarde'' is the Dark "Lord", while Dame Selena Fluorspar is his Black/Dark LadyOfBlackMagic ([[AntiVillain For a given value of "Dark Lady" anyway]]).
** Also Julius (Dark Lord) and Ishtar ({{Anti villain}}ous LadyOfBlackMagic) in ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar''.
* In ''VideoGame/Halo5Guardians'' the Warden Eternal is TheDragon to [[spoiler: Cortana]] and fervently protects her.
* ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'': Playing a Dark-Sided male? This is where you and Bastila are ending up.
* ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic'':
** A Dark-Sided female Sith Inquisitor and Andronikos Revel: you're a Sith, and he's a SpacePirate; works particularly well if the Sith is a Sorcerer. It can also be tweaked to work with Khem Val, in a completely nonromantic and nonsexual sense -- you're a Sith, and he's a "Shadow Killer" assassin sworn to obey you.
** A Dark-sided male Sith Inquisitor and Ashara will become this instead of the White Knight/Bright Lady example above; you're a Sith who loves a good torture, and she's a fallen Jedi who swears UndyingLoyalty to you.
** A Dark-Sided female Sith Warrior and Malavai Quinn: you're a Sith, he's an Imperial officer, and he behaves in a manner of absolute devotion and loyalty even if you don't romance him.
** A Dark-Sided male Sith Warrior and Jaesa Willsaam if she is turned to the Dark Side. She becomes a textbook CuteAndPsycho lover and apprentice.
* ''Franchise/TouhouProject'': Yuyuko Saigyouji and Youmu Konpaku, of the Eastern variety. The dark lady is a ghost, the black knight (ok, {{Samurai}}) is a half-ghost who [[SpringIsLate robs Gensokyo of its spring]] in her name. They get better, though [[DefeatMeansFriendship it takes a hell of a befriending]] on behalf of the protagonists.
** {{Subverted}} with [[AntiVillain Byakuren and Toramaru]].
* ''VideoGame/WildArms1'' gives us a ''very'' disturbing example with Mother and Zeikfried. Mother is the Dark Lady, determined to destroy Filgaia and insists on Zeikfried helping her do it. Zeikfried is the Black Knight via being ruthless enough to [[spoiler: betray Mother by guiding the heroes to her, as well have having no real qualms about anything other than conquest. In the end she devours and possesses him, fording him to becomes the destructive monster she intended him to be.]]
* Sylvanas Windrunner and Nathanos Blightcaller of ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' have this going, to the extent that she's frequently referred to as the Dark Lady and calls him her champion. He has obvious romantic feelings for her but it's not made clear until nearly her last appearance how she feels about him.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* ''Webcomic/GirlGenius'' spoofs this with prince Tarvek Sturmvoraus and his NinjaMaid Violetta. She belongs to a branch of family that has served his for generations and had no choice about becoming a [[McNinja Smoke Knight]] charged with protecting him, even though she hates the task. They behave like particularly quarrelsome siblings and openly confess their hatred for one another, but protect him she does, until released from the duty. We do find out that she is his cousin and his dismissal of her from duty (which caused her self-esteem issues) was because he didn't want her to get hurt because of him.
-->'''Violetta''': I'm responsible for this slug's continued existence.\\
'''Tarvek''': This useless nitwit is my loyal servant. Ow! ''Quitit!''
* In ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'', there's an example of a (mostly) non-romantic version between Eridan and Vriska. ''Mostly'' non-romantic because [[ArcWords "Troll romance sure is weird"]], and because what Eridan is doing with Vriska is the source of all those dead lusii for Feferi's lusus.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Spoofed in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheTick'' with the overweight grotesque Venus and her wimpy inventor husband Milo.
* In ''WesternAnimation/WinxClub'' there's a Dark Lady/Dark Knight example with Darcy and [[FaceHeelTurn Riven]]. In the 4Kids version, he is put under a spell, while in the original version, he works with Darcy willingly. Luckily, Riven has a HeelFaceTurn.
[[/folder]]
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