azrael
Azrael feels her toss beside him, and he wants to turn to her, to wrap her in the warmth of his embrace. But the shed-star knows that only she can fight the demons in her mind. Only she can move past her fears or her worries. If he could, the stallion would have taken the burdens from her, worn the scars on her heart if only to leave her feeling whole again. But time was the only true healer here, and so the best he can do is stay, listen, and love. He knows too when she leaves him, cold and curious, and his turquoise eyes blink open slowly, watching her go.
He does not chase her as she steps into the night, as she works her way down to the lake. He cannot know how she aches, for though Elena had all the empathy in the world, she still had not opened her bruised soul for him to heal – not entirely. There were still shadows in her eyes when she stared at him, lingering as she gazed past him, at times seemingly searching for something… no, for someone, who would never come. And though he sees, Azrael is helpless to do anything, knowing that his love would be enough in time. (Or at least holding out hope that it would.)
His eyes flutter closed again, as he turns to sleep once more to clear his mind, losing himself in dreams. And when she comes to him, her breath hot against his cheek as she whispers with longing, Azrael blinks himself awake once more, focusing on her face and offering a daydream smile. “Elena,” he whispers her name like a prayer, and she is there, real and warm as he reaches for her, drawing her close. Let’s go on an adventure, tonight… don’t think, just say yes. He needs no more suggestion, rising like a sailor to a siren’s song, following her lead blindly into the night.
Show me the stars.
She drags him under with the intoxicating scent of her, and like a drowning man, Azrael gasps for air… for when Elena was near, his breath seemed to tumble over his stuttering heart. “Elena,” he says again, her name warm like whiskey on his lips as he rests his head against her cheek before lifting her chin softly, guiding it toward the sky.
“Did you know that Spring is the best time to see the stars? Even the galaxies are visible now – like there…” he gestures to a fuzzy glow in the darkness. “Andromeda galaxy is said to contain 300 billion stars… can you imagine?” Their own lives and issues seemed so inconsequential in comparison, the sheer scope of the heavens incomprehensible and wonderous.
For a while, they gazed from one cluster of stars to the next, Azrael sharing anecdotal stories as they went, his touch warm against her even as the night grew longer and the wind grew colder. “See there, the Virgo cluster… they are the heavenly form for the virgin goddess of justice. She is said to have once dwelt upon the earth, when the gods lived among men. As humanity grew sinful, the gods began to leave them one by one. Astraea was the last to go, taking her place in the heavens with the scales of justice in hand.” The astromancer turns to Elena, watching the way she looks to him with such confliction in her gaze. “But tonight, there is more on your mind than the stars… tell me what troubles you?” For though he can guess at the reason, Azrael cannot know all she hid behind her crystal-blue eyes, bottled up like a caged bird fighting for release.
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