Ash paused his slow and steady gait away from the main lair, one paw raised in the air. He didn’t need to look or even sniff the air to recognize which dragon had stumbled upon what he had intended to be a quiet exit. “...yes,” he said, eventually, schooling his expression into something like his normal smile before turning around to look at his lover’s face.
Serenia’s crest dipped and she tilted her head. “Something is different this time.”
It wasn’t a question. Ash let the smile slip off his face. “I’m...not coming back,” he admitted quietly, and looked down at his paws, unable to face her eyes anymore.
He didn’t have to be looking up at Serenia’s face to see in his mind’s eye the way her fins would droop even further down and her eyes would widen in shock. He heard her little wings fluttering and expected her to fly closer to him, possibly to grab onto his mane and try to stop him, but she didn’t. Maybe part of him was even disappointed.
“So this is it, then? The last time...” her voice trailed off. She sounded a lot closer, and Ash risked looking up. The little Fae was hovering right in front of him, though she made no move to close the last distance between them. “The last time I’ll ever see you.”
Ash didn’t answer, though he lowered his face to nuzzle at her. She lifted her arms and cupped his muzzle in her hands, looking into his eyes. Her own were--not as sad as he’d worried they’d be. They looked...resolved. Which only made this harder. But Ash was determined and he wasn’t about to be swayed.
“Will you be okay?” he finally asked, and his voice wavered. He didn’t know what he’d do if she said no.
Serenia studied him in that special way she had, critical and curious. “I’ll be okay,” she said, with a firm nod. “I knew this would happen some day.” Though I hoped it wouldn’t, Ash could hear in the set of her headfins, the very slight change in her voice, though she didn’t voice it. Wasn’t the type to cry and try to convince him to stay. Maybe once she would have, but years as a clan leader had taught Serenia how to be strong when she had to be.
“I’ll always remember you,” Ash said, and he meant it as a promise. He was sure he’d never forget the smell of her, flowery and sweet with undertones of honey and pepper.
Serenia smiled, and Ash was struck by how much the little Fae had matured since he’d first met her and came to live with her clan. It was a leader’s smile, a complicated mix of subtle emotion most would have found hard to read off a Fae’s features. He knew it meant she was giving him her blessing. She leaned in to press a small peck on his nose. “Fare thee well, wanderer. May the sun be ever on your wings and the wind at your back.”
“Thank you,” Ash said as Serenia let go. “I wish you and your clan all the best.” He inclined his head, and the Fae did the same.
As he turned away to walk off into the growing light, he pretended not to see the unshed tears in Serenia’s eyes, just as she pretended not to see the way he hesitated slightly before he was out of sight among the thick trees.
