The Heartwood see myself as a ghost

aw <3

Under the mighty winter sun lay the argent motionless as the canopy around her. She slept for a long while, awoken by the cold breeze. Ever wandering, her body craved something—something she couldn't quite name. Somehow, she had found herself here again, in a place she had visited many years ago. And she had dreams—dreams of another life. A beautiful life, but one that wasn’t hers to claim.

When Agana left this place back then, she returned to her ancestral lands, only to find they no longer existed. Everyone was gone; a sea of smoke now shrouded what remained of her home. Splintered trees, abandoned houses, poisoned water—nothing was recognizable. For a time, she stayed, alone, haunted by memories. But one day, she left. And for years, she didn’t return, though there was nowhere else for her to go. She had nothing left—no family, no child. Sometimes she dreamed of the life she could have had if she hadn’t been a coward.

And now, after months of searching for the courage to return, the argent was still too afraid to ask the question burning in her chest. She had tried before, and it hadn’t gone well. When she finally reunited with her dearest companion, Agana had run—weak, a coward, unable to face the consequences of her actions. The argent had hurt her, so deeply, though she never intended to. In the end, they chose to remain just that—friends. It stung to call her that, but that’s all they were. Nothing more. What she felt was wrong, unacceptable. She couldn’t allow such feelings to take root in her heart.

But none of it mattered, because she was alone still. And now, in the chill of morning beneath a familiar sun, she couldn’t shake the foreign thought gnawing at her mind—a thought she should have shared long ago.