Yros - bonfire heart

you are a difficult wolf to catch these days, hollyhock says as they walk, her moonlit gaze ahead of her. already, she can feel the strain of astrophel's company—something novel and uncomfortable. it wasn't always like this. ( she wishes it wasn't like this, now. ) if i did not know any better, i may think you were avoiding me, though her tone is teasing, beneath the surface at the very depths of her mind, there is genuine concern. this is a thought that has sunk its claws into her, refusing to let go. they had been so close once, best friends. nowadays, they seem to speak more in glances across hallways than in words. had hollyhock done something to offend astrophel? there is a growing desperation to find out, to know for certain. yet, pride holds her at bay, refusing to allow any of this presumed weakness to show.

how have you been, phee? she prods, gently nudging a shoulder into astrophel's. do they truly keep you so busy? this question is spoken more humorously. hollyhock already knows the answer. with the merging of the courts, all of them have been consistently overworked. it's alright when it's hollyhock herself, but the thought of astrophel and others never having a break from duty does not quite sit right with her. she stops suddenly, seeing the distant trio of stones ahead. soft, brief laughter falls from her mouth.

do you remember the games we would play? the stories we told in the dark? ones that scared a young hollyhock half to death at the time. everything was simpler then.

Astrophel

hollyhock caught up to astrophel just as the young constable had been about to duck into the barracks for a quick bite to eat and a nap - and she could scarcely ignore a request ~~command?~~ of the heiress - and she especially couldn't let her traipse off without an escort. so the law girl had turned on her heel and followed the pale lady, skin around her eyes tight as she fights to keep down a grimace. their walk is not quite tense but it's certainly not comfortable, either; she's fallen heavily into the training of her rank to keep her comfortable even as her old friend presses gently at the apparent wound between them. and, truly, it's not so much a wound of either's making. only one of circumstance. {i don't mean to be.} she says softly; genuinely. she isn't avoiding the princess, not really. not consciously. she's been busy, scattered, and the weight of their relationship ( was is it, these days, anyway? ) only drags further at her weary mind so when those waxing and waning eyes land on her from across the hall, phel allows herself to be spirited away to handle whatever thing might need handled.

she shouldn't be surprised that holly notices.

a wince at the light accusation and she clears her throat, ears laying back amongst her antlers, as she casts a sidelong glance to her companion. a should rubs against hers, jostling the knight lightly, and she can't help but chortle softly. {good.} she promises. it's been good to throw herself into the work laid before her. it makes it easier not to dwell. on the loss of her father in the south, of her mother's life wilting to nothing with grief. of the.... loss of her best friend.

grinding her back teeth together, she forces a tight smile. {the constables are always up to something.} she admits with a little scoff. sometimes too much something, she reflects with only the smallest of frowns. she's seen some of their behavior, the way the power rolls to their head, and it leaves her feeling chafed raw. surely it's just the nerves of having three courts crammed together. surely it's... it's not always that way?

but Hollyhock comes to an abrupt halt and the girl rips her eyes up, shoulders tightening, as if expecting some great foe -

only to find the idols.

despite herself, a grin crashes across her face - growing ever more at holly's conspiratorial comment. {you mean the one-} she teases, nose wrinkling and eyes bright. {about the rats coming to life to get little princesses?} phel can't hold her laugh in and it rolls between them, some of the rigidity of her muscles easing. {i dunno, lady, it could still happen.} lady, she says - lady, because holly still feels wrong. even as she calls her phee.

hollyhock knows that she is foolish to think nothing has changed between them. she knows that their relationship has been irrevocably and vastly altered, but sometimes, she just likes to pretend everything is as it had been. it hurts less that way, looking through the lens of two wolves who had grown up together and once been inseparable. otherwise, they are just another tale of two individuals growing apart due to age, station, and circumstance ( and nothing more, hollyhock tells herself, nothing more than that. ). even so, the mere sight of astrophel makes her chest ache. it feels awfully akin to being in mourning, though neither of them have died.

the very one, she confirms, joining astrophel in her laughter. it's the only way to hide the visible wince at being called 'lady' by someone she still holds so dear. i miss those days, and you. the latter two words die on the tip of her tongue. she is far too practiced to confess a sentiment so impulsive and potent. that is what she tells herself, at least, as her mind begins to wander, uprooting her resolve. is it terribly selfish of me to wish that you and i had more opportunities to spend time together? is what she asks instead, though the words ignite a heat beneath her fur that nearly makes her itch. are we so duty-bound that we cannot enjoy one another's company every now and then? hollyhock is treading dangerous water, yet it is far too late to go back on her words now.

Astrophel