Word Count: 402


"Hold back the river so I

Can stop for a minute and see where you hide."


Rowena isn't surprised to find Helga in the forest that surrounds the castle. It doesn't matter that none of them know what dangerous creatures hide within the sense trees; her lover has always been the type to turn to the natural world.

"Helga, my love," she calls, gripping her cloak as the breeze picks it up and pulls the fabric back.

Helga looks up, and Rowena chuckles softly. Ever the peculiar one with her affinity for wildlife, Helga is kneeling before a grey and white rabbit. The creature is perfectly calm until Rowena steps forward. It hops away in a hurry.

Rowena doesn't know how she does it. Helga has always had the uncanny ability to sit with animals. Some days, Rowena thinks that her lover would be happier in the company of animals than people.

"I am surprised to see you out here," Helga says quietly. "I would have thought you would want Salazar to continue to woo you."

Rowena huffs eyes rolling. "Is that what this is about, my love? Jealousy?"

Helga is so gentle, so kind. It's easy to forget that someone so pure and wholesome can have even the slightest negative emotion within. Rowena closes the distance between them and kneels, cupping Helga's face in her hands. "My love, I do not want him."

"Why not? He can give you a proper future."

Rowena almost laughs. She has spent years planning her life with Helga. They are both well aware that it will not be easy. Two women together is almost unheard of in their society. Still, she doesn't care. She is willing to borrow Godric's bravery and fight for the future she wants.

"Do you know what I see when I imagine my future?" Rowena asks, plucking a yellow flower and tucking it behind her lover's ear, breathing in its sweet scent that perfumes the air. "I see you and me walking the castle, arm in arm. I see nights in my chamber, wrapped in satin sheets after sharing a bottle of wine. In every scenario I imagine, I am with you. Do not hide away, believing I would prefer Salazar to you."

She presses her lips to Helga's. All the tension between them seems to melt away.

"That's the life I want too," Helga whispers.

"Then we shall have it."


Balloons: HelgaRowena

Gobstones, white stone (future): Forbidden Forest, animal lover, "Hold Back the River'

Eagle Day, Luna: yellow, peculiar

Faeries, air: gentle, breeze, air