Northstar Vale veer—zaara

making some assumptions, let me know if this is not okay!! perhaps a thread for someone who wants medic trade?

he led @Dawn away from the place that he'd found her; the two of them headed up into the mountains they'd once traveled before, though under vastly different circumstances. he did not stop for anything, not until he felt reasonably sure that they were far away from whatever demon had poisoned her. he kept his steps slow, but steady.

they had to keep going. keep going. keep going.

they ended up in the shadowy edge of a valley that they'd gazed upon with wonder. his emotions were much different now. there were fresh scent markings along the edge, and he was cognizant enough, at least, to respect them, stopping well shy. adi turned his gaze to dawn, silently pleading that whatever ailed her was fading, at least.

tell me you're okay, aditya whispered, closing the distance between them. without thinking, he took her into his embrace if she'd allow, drawing her tight against him, rocking slightly. tell me you'll be okay.

oh, she was tired. sleep followed always a step behind, and occasionally it stuck its claws in her pelt and she slowed, blinking. but aditya was there to urge her along, and after a moment or two she'd pull towards and its great would loosen, and for a while at least it would remain at their rear. somewhere along the way, her twitching fore had stilled, and when they found themselves at the edge of that great valley, she stopped at was completely motionless. 

her gaze blinked toward him as he spoke, every bone in her body feeling heavy, listless, as if they were being pulled down that great ridge. she was motionless as he took her into his embrace, and while she was very much not fine, quite suddenly she could bear her state. "okay - I'll be okay, Adi."  she was, in this moment, and returned the embrace sluggishly. "I'm tired. I've never been this tired." she wanted to let her bones sink down, into the earth and the valley below.

her words soothed him, if only slightly, and he let her lean on him as much as she needed, confident that he could hold her weight even if she passed out. his eyes flickered 'round the space near them and landed on a small copse of shrubbery just a little ways up the mountains again, away from the borders. a perfect place to rest, at least for a short while.

come, follow me a little bit farther, adi murmured, stepping back gingerly. i see somewhere close where you can rest. come on, yaar.

he would walk off only with her by his side—again, to lean on him if need be. it would be slow going to the copse, but he was happy to take as much time as she needed. once there, it would be all right. he thought so, anyway. her symptoms were fading; she might just need to sleep it off.

grayday pulled back, yet she leaned on him still as her limbs edged closer and closer to being as useful as mere twigs holding up her body. she felt bad for it - he was old, after all, and she should be the one helping him, with his eyes and all. the thought had her emit an odd sound somewhere between a huff and a snort, and she dipped her head as he encouraged her onward. his next words had her doubting, and she offered a tiredly teasing  "you're sure? your eyes haven't exac-" 

and then she was silent as the bout of half-sleep faded with a flash of alarm when the brown of Aditya's pelt became apparent. she pulled away a fraction, grief and shame pooling all at once, and was silent then as he led her further.

he gave her an incredibly puzzled look as she began to speak, his confusion only growing as she fell silent and looked sheepish. chalking it up to exhaustion, he shrugged and kept guiding her toward the copse. once they arrived, he sat down, tiredness tugging at his own eyelids.

we should be fine here, for now, adi murmured, blinking slowly at her. get some sleep. i'll keep watch until you're more rested.

a fine watchman he would be, with how sleepy he was. but at least he was in better shape than dawn, and he'd weathered worse before. they would be fine.

she wanted nothing more than to fall into sleep, away from the half-dreams that tore holes in her heart and the poison that sucked dry the strength from her bones. somehow, she makes it to the copse, and it is the closest she's come to happiness in a long while when she finally lets herself collapse. her forelimb is twitching again, sporadically, but it is exhaustion and not poison which drives it now. "thank you." she offers, the words blurred, and curled in on herself. sleep came quickly and suddenly, and within a moment she was dead to the world.

he watched her fall asleep, even though he knew it was slightly mad to do so. he felt something, a twitch in the stomach, maybe, looking at her face. something he'd not felt in a while, at least for dawn. perhaps it was nothing, and just came from being so near where they first had met, but. . .

maybe not. maybe it wasn't nothing.

adi sighed and turned when her breathing grew deep and slow, and turned toward the vale, a silent, ponderous sentinel.