(not proofread)
i. always there
He knew he wasn't enough. Similar to the other dorm leaders, the terrorizing consequences of his Overblot come to gnaw at his heart and pride in the dead of night. It wasn't necessarily the Overblot events themselves, but the way his mind transformed what were nightmares into reminders. He isn't one to dream, he hates the meaning of his dreams because he knew they were everything opposing pleasantness. It was at these crucial times where dreamless sleep evaded him, when he needed it the most.
Leona found himself in his consciousness. The image before him was that of an overgrown dead garden that covered even the night sky. A few flowers that bloomed just recently contrasted the majority of the withered and dried plants. He could sense that this dream would be unorganized, he knows that it isn't reality but he falls into the temptation of exploring.
He gazed at the flowers, they were illuminated by an odd and dusty glow. He follows the traces of their pretty paths that lead him through the thorny walkway. He trods along, never minding the scratches and cuts that begin to form on his arms caused by the thorns pricking and reaching out to him.
That's when the colorful dust from the flowers stops and he is met with a figure at the end. The garden engulfed most of his vision but he can clearly see the light at the end of it. It was dim before but it burned brighter now. He could have kept going, he could still move his legs. He was aware that you were at the end of this infinite abyss that he loathed. He knew he could reach out to you. However, the unbearable weight of uselessness that was a mere feather before had overcome him yet again. So he stopped. How could he drag that light to dull with him? He would be equivalent to that of a villain. Though with the overblot incident and the constant reminders of his family, he was already one.
But you still weren't out of sight in the overwhelming darkness. In his mind, you looked over at Leona, waiting for him. His eye twitched and his mouth creased into a deepening frown. Leona knew that he should never indulge in the bright blue sky with you; he was made for this withered abyss which is why he stopped putting in effort. He had potential, had the intelligence, the charms but the world never wanted to see it. He could never compare to the sun's shine nor did he want to shine along with it anymore.
But now, you became his sun, but in turn that made him the moon. The sun and moon can never fully be together in the sky; the only times they can ever see each other are when they do not need each other.
And yet..and yet. Your shine burned away the dead plants, burned away the thorns that pricked and bullied his mind and heart. So much so that he didn't mind being burned along with them. And so you continue to haunt him in his dreams; he unknowingly hoped and reached for your touch even while you were away.
Not only to burn away the never ending darkness, but to also try to stay in the blue sky with you.
His mind is in disarray when he awakes with a start. He was too late at reaching the light and even with his body and mind awake now, it still felt like the dark appendages were closing in again. He laid still despite the thumping of his heart and the stiffness of his tail that signal him to run. He curses himself, the one time he attends class and it triggers something he has sworn to have gotten over with.
His eyes snapped to the side when he felt a brush against his arm. You weren't the deepest sleeper so you seemed to have sensed a disturbance in the air. Not even opening your eyes, your hand moves on it's own to lay on his clenched bicep. The feeling of your skin on his reminded him that he was not in that state anymore. The warmth seemed to guide him away from the bundle of emotions.
He dreads his mind and his heartstrings for making him so weak at that moment. His eyes blur but he scrunches his face enough to keep them at bay. It was a corny and edgy dream, so why does he feel this way? In his heart he knew he could never be enough for himself, but he can't deny that you made him want to be enough. So, he dwelled on the languishing hope a little longer.
Then, he made the mistake of turning his head up to gaze into your endless eyes once he felt you shift closer. It was a losing battle, even on a normal basis. The tsunami of epiphany rushes through his body. It allows him to fall limp, along with his eyelids. Even though you both were on the bed, you still reached out to catch him from falling back, tightly wrapping your arms around his shoulders as he leans on his own arms to support the both of you.
One, two, four, drops escape from the clutches of his eyelashes and fall from his eyes.
You cradle his head while your night shirt sticks onto you as it soaks up his misery. It would have been worse if it weren't for your presence engulfing him in a reassuring embrace, Leona notes. He grits his teeth, he was at one of his lowest moments, and here he was loathing them for not leaving him.
Yet that so-called loath evaporated quickly as his usual exhaustion caught up again. The small burst of emotion was enough to make his mind wander and disappear, as if it wasn't there anymore.
He felt weightless yet at the same time he had heavy shoulders. Not wanting to pretend any longer, he allows himself to lean on you. It was your turn to carry the weight as he goes slack, attempting to merge with you.
Your hand rests on the back of his head, pushing him further into your shoulder. Your eyes roam the room, ghosts of past memories dancing around it to preoccupy your mind, knowing that words won't do much in this situation. He shifts his weight onto you even more so you decide to lay down. You go to pull up the blankets that are settled at your intertwined legs. At the same time, Leona allows movement in his tail again to wrap around your left leg, trapping you for the rest of the night. His arms go below your arms and grip the back of your shoulders.
The thick pillows surround you two, acting as a second barrier from the darkness. Finally settled in, you press your nose next to his soft ear, humming and mumbling honeyed reassurances and stories.
At that moment, Leona wonders if you are truly magicless as he had a hard time believing the spell you cast him under.
That magic that managed to outshine the gleaming moon and made him want to stay awake a little longer to avoid his mind.
ii. with open arms
When their eyes landed on the other, they knew they could never feel full without the other. It was the gravitational pull between the two that let them merge into each other. He suffers in your absence; he regrets not doing more, and still you managed to pull out those words he needed to get out.
Leona gazes off into the orange scenery. A small breeze accompanied by dry grass passes by. The sun begins to dip to allow the moon to shine. The final Spelldrive training ended about ten minutes ago. That herbivore was supposed to be back with those snacks they promised.
Leona probably was a psychic with the way you appeared just at the thought of the snacks. You left behind an orange dust trail as you ran across the field towards him.
"You really ran all the way here? Did you think I was gonna leave or somethin'?" Leona tilted his head back to look up at you. You gave the straightest face you could while regaining some air in your lungs. He looked at your empty hands, "Did you not bring the snacks? I'm hungry." Though he was a very observant man, he didn't seem to see the straps of your backpack that carry the expensive ass snacks the school provided. You scoffed, placing a hand to your chest and resting the other on your hip, "I am here to present myself as the snack."
His emerald eyes gave you a weak look up and down before the corner of his lip twitched upwards, "You're more like the leftovers."
Your eyebrow twitched and you got closer to Leona, cupping his neck with your hands, your thumbs rested on his jaw. You glue your forehead to his, staring him down. "You take that back," you grumbled.
His lack of a reaction had you deflated. You pouted because you knew if the roles were switched, you would've folded like a chair. To express your hurt, you lean back, mouth and eyes wide open and eyebrows comically skewed. Proceeding with your act, you dramatically slapped your hands on your face, hunching over and began hiccuping and wheezing. Leona didn't shift from his sitting position and only stared at you, unamused. Rolling his eyes, he started patting your shaking back, "There, there, is there any way to make up for my very, very grotesque words?" You straighten up and peek through the windows of your fingers, your voice muffling out, "A kiss might do."
Leona snorts, in amusement for your boldness and he rises from his seat on the bench.
Feeling so merciful to not make fun of your comment, the prince uses one hand to bring your hands down from your face along with your body and uses the other to squish your cheeks together. He leans forwards and presses his lips to yours for a couple seconds before pulling back. You freeze at the movement because he seemed so casual about it that it made you believe for a second that you guys were already together.
Your eyes search his for a bit and he can hear the gears turning in your head. The hamster was running at full speed when you processed what happened and you lean in in order to seek out another kiss. He reciprocates the action, his other hand glides along the side of your head and to the back of your neck. Your lips unite in a slow dance, the two of you lost in the small moment. Your own hands go to grip the belt hooks of his jeans to bring him physically closer. Leona inhales through his nose and he continues to take your top lip into his mouth. His mind surprisingly doesn't spiral, instead he indulges in the soft and gentle movements. He did, however, have the sudden impulse to mumble out, "love you", against your lips. You leave his lips for a small bit to chuckle out a confession back before chasing his plump lips once more. Your hands move up to hold his sides as you both turn into putty in each other's. Your lips never increase or decrease in their speed, it was as if you guys were slowly merging into each other.
Noticing your breath coming out short, he leans back to provide you the air you yearned for. He doesn't move back far from your face, proceeding to press pecks on the corners of your mouth before landing a final one on your slightly agape lips. Then, you two fully separate, leaving your hands where they belong.
You cup his face, your thumb gently wipe at his cheekbone. That damned smile and you holding him like he was some fragile vase was going to be the death of him, Leona swore.
Leona licks his lips to prepare to lean in for another kiss but pauses; he furrows his eyebrows when he processes a certain taste that lingered.
"...Did you eat some of my snacks?"
"...No."
"(Name)."
"You said it yourself in the past- running can leave you hungry! And you have good taste in food..."