Signless(hearts)Disciple: Aware (Japanese) the bittersweet feeling of a brief and fading moment of beauty
The sun was blistering hot, but inside the cave it was blissfully cool. They'd been holed up in here for a perigree now, venturing out at night to speak the words to the low-blooded settlements situated around a nearby oasis. Psionic and Dolorosa were ready to move on, but Signless wasn't, he kept saying that there were still more who could be reached.
She didn't care one way or the other though, as long as he was safe and happy she didn't care if they stayed in the same hellish desert cave for the rest of their lives. With Dolorosa taking care of the walking dead that stalked the hot sands when the sun was high, and Psi keeping them guarded with his powers while they ventured into the settlements at night, she wondered if they'd go on like this forever.
Another perigree later, they prepared to pack up and move on. There were troubling rumors of high-blood patrols making their way towards their position, and with the topic of Signless' teachings they would be lucky to escape execution. The little niceties she'd placed around the cave, the pelts and little desert flowers, had to be left behind, and devoid of the bedrolls and other such supplies that they'd be taking with them, her little decorations looked mighty lonely.
She sighed heavily, and told them all goodbye silently. They'd be moving out at moonrise, despite the certain measure of safety that sun-brightened noon gave them. With nothing but hours of waning sunlight in front of them, she and Psi and Signless curled up together as best they could to sleep out the day-terrors.
Signless shook her awake gently, and she opened her eyes to the dark of a cave at dusk. Psi had lit up his own corner of the cave with his powers, helping Rosa don her own load. They couldn't afford to leave anything important.
Once on the trail, she gasped to see the silver reflected light of the moons turning the red sands an ethereal pink. It washed out the harsh colors of the rock formations and smoothed out their edges, leaving the desert she'd previously only known as dry, hot, and deadly as tranquil as that little pond she'd grown up by.
She jogged ahead to catch up to Signless, and nudged him to look. They stood still, just barely touching elbows, and watched in awe as the rising moons and shifting winds made the desert into a dancing wonderland. And for a moment, she remembered their cave with the flowers and this last sight of the desert they'd lived in for near a sweep.
And she cried, olive tinged tears streaming down her face, because they were leaving. They were leaving and there had finally been peace for all four of them. Signless reached for her hand, kissed away a tear or two, and led her on. His red eyes caught the moonlight, and flashed strangely. "Nothing gold can stay, love." He murmured, one last glance at the sight, "Nothing gold can stay."