• sanctuary

@❥ ⌜ aurum. ⌟ luna was in a different world the moment he settled down, eventually dragging his feet through the dirt as he pulled his knees up to his chest, burying his face against his arms and letting out a deep sigh. something felt wrong and off and he wanted to sink into the ground beneath him, feeling like he was slipping into insanity. he hadn't had a real break from his 'gifts' in two weeks, his bones aching and his capability to deal with people was becoming smaller and smaller. he loved the people around him with his entire being and maybe too much but he was at a breaking point. part of him wanted to shift into his other form and sleep on the dirt floor of the sanctuary, his skin tingling a little at the butterflies curiously landing by and on him - he was used to the feeling.

he was oblivious to the world around him before he finally managed to move and get up where he sat, replacing his frame on the bend and glancing around out of sudden curiosity. he could run - he could get up and run and never look back, couldn't he? he wouldn't have to worry about helping people, he wouldn't have to worry about drianing himself and he could finally just... be. staring at the shaded opening, he chewed on his bottom lip, squirming with the need to not be there anymore. but no, he couldn't.

@❥ ⌜ luna. ⌟ Ever since his appointment to the royal guard, it was rare that Aurum was ever granted leave to return to his homeland outside of diplomatic ventures. He held every opportunity near and dear to his heart, often showing up with fancy gifts from the capital for his friends and family. Perhaps it was a poor way to express how much he'd missed them. It didn't make up for his absence over the years or the perceived abandonment and he knew, deep down, that showering them with trinkets soothed his own guilt rather than the rift between them. There was one person he always felt particularly conflicted about buying things for, though... and that was Luna.

Aurum had known the naga all his life and had watched his diligent near-worshippers shower Luna with gifts on a daily basis. There was nothing material he could want for... but that didn't stop the sentimental hellhound from wanting to get him something nonetheless. Something with meaning. It had taken him months to slowly collect the pieces while he traveled - little flowers from different corners of the districts that he'd pressed in between the pages of a poetry book he'd become quite fond of. Scribbled in the margins in his messy script was where they were from. Places he knew Luna had never gone... would likely never go... but he hoped he could see with him one day.

Yet when he arrived at Luna's domicile, the book tucked beneath his arm, he was shocked to hear that he wasn't allowed inside. By Luna's order. No... No, that couldn't be right. Aurum was immediately swept up in a tempest of worry and denial. Would his friend have really shut him out? He found it hard to believe. It was far more likely from one of the mouth-pieces that often tried to speak for him. It had to be... Regardless, there was no way he was leaving until he knew Luna was alright and, if he truly wanted him to leave, he could say it to his face.

Summoning forth one of his hounds, it slipped in unnoticed. Nothing more than a shadow creeping beneath the door. It only took him a moment to notice Luna wasn't there and Aurum was off, calling forth his second hound to make a quick sweep of the treetops. Images flooded his mind's eye, fed back to him from the shadowy beasts, and it didn't take long before he picked up on the naga's scent... The hounds took off running in search of their quarry, clinging to the darkness cast by the thick boughs above, as Aurum made his way down into the marshy underbrush beneath the settlement and tried to ignore the ache that had settled in the center of his chest. If it really had been Luna's order to shut him out... Before he could dwell on it too much, images of the naga flashed in Aurum's mind as his hounds approached but he hesitated to teleport to them... What if Luna didn't really want to see him, after all?

exhaustion.

exhaustion was all luna could feel as he dragged his feet past the gate and into the sanctuary, humming as a few butterflies swept past and tickled exposed skin. each step was accompanied by the soft chimes from the jewels hanging from his waist, a few strands deciding over the red fabric of his, lack of a better term, skirt. his steps were seemingly musical as always but his usual bright, welcoming features had fallen, eyes almost closed as he settled on the ground in front of one of the benches, letting out a deep sigh. he was grateful for the chance he was given to help his people but his gifts came with their consequences, usually following multiple days of slumber, but despite the exhaustion he couldn't sleep. it had to be close to sunrise when he pulled himself out of his house to roam along the forest, kind of enjoying the slick, soft feeling of the wetlands beneath his feet, connecting him closer to the world that had provided him with such gifts. were the gifts? 'more like curses,' he muttered, head tipping back onto the bench as he looked up at the sky, framed by curved branches and fluttering wings of the disturbed.