The air inside PP's private garden was thick with the scent of night herbs and damp earth.
Soft light drifted through the glass ceiling, painting everything in silver and green. The faint hum of enchantments stirred the leaves — protection spells, wards, and whispers woven into the soil.
Sky stood in the middle of it all, motionless. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, his palms open at his sides, as though trying to anchor himself to the stillness. His eyes were distant, tracing the moonlight on the dew-covered leaves.
He didn't turn when Felix walked in.
"You know," Felix said casually, kicking a pebble out of his way, "if you stand here any longer, PP's going to start charging rent."
Sky gave a faint huff — almost a laugh, but not quite.
"Maybe I should. Seems safer here."
Felix stopped beside him, looking up at the faint stars through the glass roof. "Safer, sure. But not smart. You're glowing again, by the way. You'll turn the basil into sunflowers at this rate."
"Funny," Sky muttered, still not looking at him. "Did you come here to make jokes or to talk me into leaving?"
Felix smiled, but his tone softened. "Bit of both."
He leaned on the stone ledge of the herb bed, picking a leaf between his fingers. "You're stubborn as hell, Sky. And yeah, you've got the power of a divine flamethrower, but right now? Half the supernatural world wants a piece of you. The vampires, the witches, the creatures — even the demon cultists. You're basically the most wanted blood donor in history."
Sky frowned. "I don't care. They can come."
Felix turned to him, eyes sharp. "But Nani does. He's already burned for you — twice. You stay, and he'll do it again without thinking. And next time, I'm not sure even PP's miracle potions can stitch him back together."
The words hit hard, quiet but brutal.
Sky's throat worked. "So what — I just run?"
Felix sighed. "You don't run. You live. You train. You heal. You get stronger. Then you come back — on your own terms."
He smirked, half-heartedly. "Preferably before the world ends, yeah?"
Sky glanced at him then — the ghost of a smile passing between them. "You really think I can just... leave him?"
Felix shrugged. "I think if you stay, you'll both destroy each other. And trust me, I like my Supreme mildly terrifying — not emotionally suicidal."
That earned him a soft laugh from Sky, faint but real. Felix smiled, satisfied, and gave Sky a light tap on the shoulder. "Try not to break anything while I'm gone, alright? Especially yourself."
Before Sky could answer, a presence filled the doorway — ancient, heavy, quiet.
Felix's expression shifted. He bowed his head slightly. "Guess that's my cue."
And with that, he slipped out, leaving Sky and Nani alone among the glowing herbs.
Silence settled between them like fog. The night breeze stirred faintly through the enchanted vines.
Nani took a slow step closer. His robes whispered against the floor, the faint scent of his aura — old blood and dark roses — filling the air. His voice, when it came, was low and careful.
"You hate this plan."
Sky's gaze fell to the ground. "I hate leaving you."
Nani's expression softened. He closed the distance between them, his hand brushing Sky's cheek. "You must go, Sky. You know it."
"I know."
Sky's voice trembled. "But if I leave... will I ever see you again?"
For a moment, the Supreme said nothing.
Then he reached out, drew Sky into his arms, and held him close — tight enough that Sky could feel the steady beat of the cursed heart beneath his ribs. The faint hum of the sigil glowed between them, gold against pale skin.
Nani leaned down, pressing his lips gently to Sky's forehead.
The touch was soft, reverent, full of a thousand unsaid words.
"I promise," he whispered. "As soon as this ends — as soon as I finish with the Council — I will find you."
Sky's breath caught, the tears he'd been holding breaking loose in silence. His fingers clutched at Nani's robe, unwilling to let go.
"I'll hold you to that," he murmured.
Nani's smile was faint, sorrowful. "You always do."
Outside, the moonlight shifted — a quiet omen, a promise that love could still burn even on the edge of war.
----
The garden had gone still again after Felix's departure. Only the soft hum of magic lingered, the faint glimmer of wards flickering along the glass ceiling like stars trapped behind walls.
Sky hadn't moved.
He stood close enough to feel the warmth of Nani's body, close enough to sense the calm pulse of ancient power that wrapped around him like a heartbeat. His hands trembled slightly against Nani's chest, not from fear — but from the ache of knowing what would come next.
"You shouldn't hold me like this," Sky whispered finally, his voice low, half-broken. "It'll be harder to let go."
Nani smiled faintly, though sorrow shadowed his eyes.
"I know," he murmured. "But I'll still hold you."
He tilted his head, studying Sky's face as though memorizing every detail — the faint scar above his brow, the way his lashes caught the light, the uneven breath that trembled between them.
"You've grown," he said softly. "More than you realize."
Sky looked up at him, meeting his gaze with quiet defiance. "Because of you."
Nani shook his head. "No. You've always had that strength. I only reminded you of it."
The words were gentle, but Sky felt them cut deep — a warmth and ache in equal measure. He wanted to stay like this, buried in that calm presence that made everything outside fade to nothing. But even now, the scent of coming war tainted the air — iron and storm, creeping closer with every breath.
"I hate this," Sky muttered, voice muffled against Nani's chest. "Leaving you. Not knowing if—"
"Don't," Nani interrupted softly. "Don't speak like that."
His fingers brushed through Sky's hair, slow and tender, like he was soothing a restless creature.
"You will return. You will survive. That's the only truth I'll allow."
Sky swallowed hard. "You sound so sure."
"I have to be," Nani said simply. "Because if I start doubting, I'll never let you go."
For a long moment, silence held them again — heavy and fragile. Sky closed his eyes, letting the rhythm of Nani's heartbeat steady him. It was strange, this connection between them — not just love or devotion, but something older, deeper.
Like two halves of a soul that had found each other again after lifetimes of searching.
He could feel it — the pull beneath his skin, magnetic, undeniable.
A connection that defied reason or blood or fate.
It terrified him as much as it soothed him.
"I don't know what this is," Sky whispered. "But when I'm near you, I... feel whole. Like I've always been meant to be here."
Nani's hand paused for a heartbeat before continuing its slow path through Sky's hair.
"I know," he said softly. "That's what makes it so dangerous."
Before Sky could answer, a soft knock broke the quiet — measured, respectful, yet heavy with the weight of duty.
"My Lord," came William's voice from beyond the door. "Alpha Kazen and Alpha Juno are ready. The escort has gathered."
Nani didn't look away from Sky. "Thank you, William. I'll be there shortly."
Footsteps receded down the hall, leaving only the sound of rustling leaves.
Sky exhaled shakily, stepping back though his fingers lingered against Nani's sleeve. "So this is it."
"For now," Nani said, his expression calm but his eyes betraying something fierce beneath the stillness. "Only a small group will go — Kazen, Juno, Felix, PP, and Billkin. The rest will stay here under William's command. Smaller numbers are easier to hide."
Sky nodded, though his throat tightened. "You planned it all already."
Nani's smile was faint, bittersweet. "You forget who you're speaking to."
"I never could," Sky whispered.
Nani reached up, brushing a stray lock of hair from Sky's face. "Go before I change my mind," he said softly. "Before I decide to keep you here and damn the world."
Sky's lips parted — a thousand things he wanted to say, but none would come. So instead, he leaned forward, pressing his forehead to Nani's for a heartbeat — their breaths mingling, their auras brushing together like flame and wind.
"I'll come back," Sky said.
"I'll be waiting," Nani replied.
And then, before the moment could shatter them both, Sky turned and walked away — his steps heavy, his shadow swallowed by the dim light of dawn creeping through the glass ceiling.
Nani stood alone in the garden for a long while after he was gone, his gaze lifted toward the fading moon.
"Stay alive, my wolf," he murmured into the silence.
"Don't let this world take you from me again."