half of my heart's got a grip on the situation

How deeply are you sleeping or are you still awake?
A good friend told me you've been staying out so late

Sohalia understood - of course she understood. She would never want to stand between Koa and his family, and so as he turned to her, desperate apology on his lips, she nodded. ”Go,” she encouraged, her brow creased with concern -

And then he was gone.

Soh followed at a run, but she wasn’t as fast as Koa, nor was she driven by the intensity of his panic; she arrived in the skyport in time to see that the ship Koa was trying to reach was already unmoored, already leaving, and her heart caught in her throat at the sight of him desperately trying to get there in time.

She wasn’t close enough to hear what he said, but she was able to see the darkness pooling behind him. A wordless cry left her as a pair of wings materialized, bone-white, from the depthless black, and she watched in awe and horror as the young man was picked up and hurled across the chasm between dock and ship -

And when he landed, she nearly collapsed in relief. He’d made it. He’d go home to Noe, she’d earn the rose, and between them, they would cure his sister.

They had to.

fin

Be careful, oh, my darling, oh, be careful what it takes
From what I've seen so far, the good ones always seem to break

Sohalia