A Night Beneath the Stars
I got to borrow Rowan from @tallbluelady for my FFXIVSwap partner, and so I made her a lil' drabble and some gpose to go along!
“Pray tell, where dost thou intend to go?”
Rowan merely flashed Urianger a grin, gently grasping his hand and tugging him towards Revenant’s Toll’s aetheryte.
“You shall see soon enough.” Raising her palm, she channeled her aether, feeling for her destination, a place beyond mortal means, yet familiar all the same. In a flash, the two were gone, their feet hitting solid ground once more upon the white-carved platform of Zenith.
“The abode of the great wyrm Hraesvelgr…”
Of course, she hadn’t been surprised that Urianger knew where they were - well, not terribly surprised, for the gods themselves knew the man was nothing short of a mystery, even to her.
Yet, she loved him all the same.
She turned to see him staring at the great, white spire in awe, shining in the light of the moon above. But it wasn’t the architecture - nor the great wyrm - for which she’d brought him there that eve.
“This way.” His hand still safely tucked away in hers, she gently tugged him down the aged, broken steps, away from the aetheryte and through the ruins dotting the landscape, until she reached her destination - the very edge of the land, nothing but clouds beneath and stars above.
“Look at them,” she murmured in wonder, plopping herself down on the ground - for there was nowhere else in all of Eorzea that rivaled the view of the heavens, each star twinkling so bright, she felt she could almost lift her hand and caress them.
“A brilliant sight to behold,” Urianger agreed, settling himself down beside her. “Recognize thou the constellations?”
Slowly, she nodded, her eyes flickering across the sky - admittedly, she was quite inexperienced in the ways of astrology, thus far, yet there were a few clusters which stood out in her memory.
“That one,” she pointed above, “that is Nymeia, is it not?”
“Indeed. The goddess of fate, ever watching. And see you Althyk beside?” Urianger motioned above, Rowan’s eyes moving to trace the familiar sigil in the sky. “Her dearest brother, guardian of space and time. Yet thou knowest full well the wisdom of astrology relieth not upon the guidance of the Twelve, but the gifts they have given to the star. To wit, recalleth the Bole - planted by Nophica, raised by Althyk in all their wisdom, to which giveth life to the star.”
This, she knew, of course - the earliest of her astrology lessons, the foundation upon which it was built - yet she was content to let him speak regardless, tilting her head as he continued on, studying his handsome features, illuminated only by the moon above… So lost had she been in his beauty that she’d scarce noticed he’d concluded his tale; only when he cleared his throat did she shake herself from her stupor, meeting his golden-eyed gaze to find him grinning softly at her.
“Yet, for all their beauty and wisdom,” he murmured, reaching up to gently wrap his hand around the back of her neck, pulling her close, “their brilliance pales in comparison to that of thine, my fabled Warrior of Light. For even in the darkest of nights, thine light shines in my heart without equal, and so shall it always, for the rest of my waking days.”
