code by Reggan

NOTHING BESIDE REMAINS — It was not often that Aurum just barged into the homes of others. Despite what Sophiea may have thought of him, the lion wasn't actually prone to entering someone's home without welcome. He only did so when he had something to do, and even then, it was usually something pretty important. In this case, he had been heading over to Elsweyr's place in order to discuss the recent change of status that Tanglewood had gone through. They needed to be planning, now that the Coalition had been driven out. The former proxy didn't want such a change to be temporary, and he had no plans of letting their momentum die out, even if he did want to take a moment to just enjoy things. However, it seemed as though it wouldn't be Elsweyr that he would be speaking with that day. His paw rapped rhythmically against her front door before he opened it, calling out inside, "Elsweyr, are you home?" When he wasn't met with an initial answer, he turned, ready to head out and wait until another time. However, he stopped because of a noise. A frantic gasp of breath, drawn in by someone clearly frightened.

Feeling a frown come to his muzzle, the lion turned and headed inside, heavy steps leading him to the disturbed pile of blankets that Ares had previously been curled within. He could see the fear in her eyes, and immediately knew what had happened. It wasn't hard to put together, from the fact that she seemed panicked and fearful, along with the fact that she had been in bed. He too had been plagued by nightmares at some points in his life, with them still occasionally happening on the bad nights. Making sure to be cautious, Aurum slowly approached, questioning softly once he grew close, "Ares, are you all right? Can you look at me...? I think you had a nightmare." He also knew what it felt like to still feel trapped inside the world that your mind had created. He only hoped that he could snap the girl out of it, so that she wouldn't be forced to focus on the visions any longer. — OF THE MAN WHO WAS BORN AND DIED A KING.

It was true at the current moment she was not home. Having left Dazir and Ares together. She hoped that Ares didn't still harbor fear of the other but only time would tell. She had taken to walking on her own and trying to think through the thick haze that was laying like an infernal blanket across her mind. Her brother. She desperately wanted to talk to him. Ask him about what was going on and she hoped that he had answers. But when had not found him she had decided to come back home and think about it another day. Another time. It was here that she had come across the scene of her door being open. A semblance of fear lodging itself into her stomach. The children! Were they okay? The woman's hackles raised as she pushed herself onto the porch and inside.

Though movements stopped when she noticed Aurum there. Her eyes were blurry for a second. Reaching shadows stalking the grounds like scorching fire before she shook her head and approached cautiously. Her tail was hald down low and the king cheetah advanced closer only to smell the scent of fear and see Ares. She had woken up and it was clear that something was bothering her greatly. Slipping her way around she lowered her muzzle and aimed to nuzzle the girl, aiming to gently rasp her tongue over her head. "Elsweyr is here. She is okay. She is in Tanglewood and she is safe. She is protected."

code by Reggan

NOTHING BESIDE REMAINS — As Elsweyr stepped inside, Aurum looked up and shot her an apologetic look. It was clear he was sorry for barging in and worrying her, although he had just come inside to make sure that Ares was alright. Thankfully, it didn't seem as though the cheetah was angry at him, her attention quickly turning to Ares and the situation that the child was in. Aurum turned his one eyed gaze towards her as well, listening as she began to explain in a disjointed manner what she had seen. He felt a frown come to his muzzle, able to relate to what she was feeling. That echo of what you had just seen, unable to fully differentiate between what had just been a dream, and what was the real world you had woken up into. He wished that there was some way for him to reassure her, and have her know for sure that where they were was real.

Taking a deep breath, the angel waited for Elsweyr to be finished before he spoke up, offering Ares a comforting smile, "I know how you feel, Ares. I've had a lot of nightmares like that. Ones where it gets hard to tell what is really going on, and what's here. I used to have them a lot, although I don't so much anymore... Elswyer is right. There's no fire, or smoke, and you're not going to be hurt. Your new family here... isn't going to be hurt. I swear it." He then rose one of his large paws, crossing it over his chest, right over where his heart was. He hoped that would be enough to convince Ares, but he knew that sometimes it wasn't that easy. There had plenty of times in his life, both in his cubhood and in his adulthood, where it had taken hours for him to truly shake off a nightmare. He could only hope that wouldn't happen to young Ares, since he didn't want the girl to suffer through such a thing. — OF THE MAN WHO WAS BORN AND DIED A KING.