you're a fraud and you know it
but it's too good to throw it all away
Gravity made every attempt to protest the change in altitude as Roland pulled himself upright, still trying to find his way about in the fog of sleep. He gladly stepped into Lena's waiting embrace, breathing in her scent as it mixed with the cool morning air, felt the heat of her against his skin. As much as he would have liked to, he did not have time to dwell upon it. With the circlet in its rightful place atop his crown, the Phantom listened eagerly to her explanation of its whereabouts and subsequent discovery. Contrary to his beliefs, it had not vanished, swallowed up by knotted forest roots and a cloak of leaves; it rested around his horn once more, and he would ensure it never found its way from him again.
He did not miss the silent question in her gaze as she spoke, no doubt curious as to how he might have lost it in the first place, or if it had not been lost at all, and he had cast it away into fen or forest, eager to be rid of it at last. It was no surprise she might wonder if he had chosen to leave it behind, vanishing from sight without a word. No matter what might have transpired that night, he could never have intentionally left the trinket behind, abandoned it to lie adrift amongst the leaves and ferns. If only he had noticed, had paid mind to more than just a distant horizon, he might have caught it before it hit the ground. Cloaked in the cover of a moonless night as he had left Helovia behind, the circlet must have decided it would go no further.
"
I believe it fell from my horn when I was... leaving," he murmured, gaze falling to the floor of his cave. Roland examined his hooves, the scattered dried leaves and pebbles that had gathered in his absence, and the slightest of frowns creased his brow. He was powerless to the guilt that crept back into his mind just at the memory of it, but was determined to leave it in the past. It would do no good to dwell on it, berate himself for the choices he had already come to regret. He had learned from them, and would not repeat the same mistakes again. "
By the time I noticed it was missing, it was too late. I thought I would never have a hope of seeing it again." His gaze sought the Songbird once more, unable to hide the confusion of sorrow and happiness that tangled together in his head.
"
If our paths ever cross, I will be sure to thank Raeden," he said with a soft smile, reaching out to brush his muzzle against the curve of Lena's cheek. It was not often he thought of the Gods, as of late, but he could regard the moment as nothing less than a sign that he was meant to be there. Against all odds, this gift, this symbol of their affection and all they had traversed together, had fallen to rest at the edge of a stream only to be found, treasured, and ultimately placed into the hands of the one who had first held it. A sense of gratitude warmed Roland's chest, an appreciation he was unable to put words to. Divine intervention or not, he owed it all to Lena. "
Thank you," he breathed, and brushed a kiss along the edge of her jaw.
@Lena
sometimes you even fool yourself a bit
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[P] Yet greater still and more profound
