DAWN
it must be about as hard as forgetting your best friend
She tries so desperately to build up her defenses to keep him out, but he crushes them effortlessly, grinding her walls into dust as if they were the dried, crumpled leaves under her feet. A strangled gasp escapes her as the tears begin to flow in earnest, and half of her is tempted to flee and put this all behind her. Half of her wants to forget that this moment has ever happened, though she knows that it will be imprinted in her memories forevermore. She can’t run from this, she can’t hide from it – it seems that this is going to be their destiny, always breaking one another’s hearts over and over and over again.
He apologizes over and over again and Dawn can feel her heart seemingly shattering in her chest, even as he forces the words into her head. I love you echoes the loudest and she swallows hard, trying to imagine what their life would be like if he had never found Chryseis; would they be happy? Would all of her children be his instead? Would they be living comfortably in Tephra now, or would they bring as much peace as possible to the East? Would she go to sleep tethered to his warmth every night, instead of waking up alone and cold?
The silence between them grows as the world goes still around them, as though they are the only two beings in existence. When his chocolate eyes meet her own she feels calm; though the turmoil still lurks and the tears that stain her face are still fresh, all it takes to slow the panic is for him to truly look at her. Something within her clicks into place and she realizes that this is why she has always been so distant with Lie, with Clayton – they were companions, but nothing more. The broken man standing in front of her has always been the one, and as she understands this a peace washes over her, even as he opens his mouth to speak.
“Rhae,” she murmurs as his eyes leave hers, wanting to return to his side but afraid to frighten him. “I will always choose you.” She stops to let that sink in, her eyes never leaving his perfect face.
“If you’re just a man, I am but a woman,” she tells him, voice soft. “When we met, I was nothing more than a peasant girl and you a prince. If I’ve learned anything over the years, titles mean nothing. As for my children? I have mothered them well; one of them rules the Cove now, and the only one still at my side is Darkling. I am sure that soon enough, he will be off on his own as well. They are strong, all of them, and they are not tethered permanently to my sides.”
She longs to touch him, to run her nose down his neck and ruffle the feathers where his wings meet his shoulders; even amidst the heartbreak, she is desperate for his touch. Swallowing hard against the lump in her throat, she takes a single step forward, back towards him and the water swirling around him.
“Knowing that you love me will always be enough for me,” she whispers. “I would let myself be torn apart a thousand times in a thousand ways if it meant I could spend the rest of my days at your side.”
@[Rhaegor]