Emberwood Happiness in Retrospect

@Colin I figured emberwood was a good middleground between the saints and seelie, but lmk if you'd prefer i nudge it somewhere else. Also I wrote this entire thing and then realized it's in present tense, but I really can't bring myself to change it right now, so I'm just gonna go with it for this thread

There are no worries in Emberwood. 

The flickering of fireflies that comes with warm summer evenings in the wood is washed out, overpowered by the golden light that pours its final rays into the sky. Soft droning from other insects can be heard echoing throughout the forest, while the shuffling of other inhabitants through the underbrush- which is lush with the bountiful rains that have begun lately- will catch the ear of any around to hear it. A breeze rushes through the branches of the trees that tower overhead, the rustling of aspen leaves creating a soft hushhh that overlays all other sounds melodically. Peacefulness is real here, something precious and fragile and whole. 

There are no worries in Emberwood, and Dante's never needed it more. 

Each step he takes is careful and quiet but never precise, his mind too occupied with unknowns for him to truly give focus to where he's setting his paws, but the fear of disturbing the serenity around him keeping his feet light nonetheless. There's a corner of the wood that he knows is ideal for resting, a slight clearing in the trees making itself home to warbling birds that the boy has found himself quite fond of. His legs begin to carry him in the direction apart from his own volition, his subconscious taking over in guiding him. There are no worries in Emberwood, and the land is stunning and the air is fresh and he's breathing and living and has a home and-

And he's not sure he's ever been more lost. 

It's not the sort of lost that Dante's faced before, the kind where he feels trapped by how lost he is, when he's got nowhere to go and nobody to turn to and no idea of what to do next- no. No, this kind of lost is something more internal. He's lost in his mind. He's lost his mind. Because everything is good. Really, it is. He's officially a faerie now, and he has the most brilliant girl he's ever met alongside him, so why does he feel so aimless?

It's been choking him, that feeling. He knows he should be happy, should be grateful, but he can't help but feel like he's pointless. He hasn't found...something. He doesn't know what it is but there's something missing- he thinks. The notion makes the boy's breath catch in his throat as he arrives in the small clearing, because at least that's a start. If he knows there's something missing, then at least he knows there's something to be looking for. Dante stops in his tracks then, his eyes fluttering shut where he stands, and he decides that he'll begin his search later. For one moment, he'll just be.