Time didn't rush them.
Days unfolded gently at the sanctuary, each one softer than the last. The world beyond the mountains continued as it always had, but here, balance held — quiet and sure.
Asher learned the rhythm of the place. Morning light spilling over stone. Evenings wrapped in cool wind and distant stars. And Lucian — always near, no longer watching from shadows, no longer standing apart.
One night, the moon rose full and luminous, bathing the sanctuary in silver.
Asher stood at the familiar balcony, fingers resting on the stone railing. The locket lay warm against his chest — not reacting, not warning — simply present.
Lucian approached behind him. "You're thinking again."
Asher smiled. "About how strange it is… that peace feels real now."
Lucian joined him, close enough that their arms brushed. "Peace is never loud. That's why people miss it."
Asher turned toward him. "Do you ever regret staying?"
Lucian didn't need to think. "No."
The answer was immediate. Certain.
He lifted a hand, brushing his fingers lightly against Asher's wrist — a question asked without words.
Asher answered by stepping closer.
Lucian's touch was careful, reverent, as if he still feared breaking something fragile. His thumb traced a slow line along Asher's knuckles, grounding and warm.
"I spent centuries believing eternity meant loneliness," Lucian said quietly. "Watching the world change without ever belonging to it."
Asher's voice was soft. "And now?"
Lucian met his gaze, crimson eyes gentle in the moonlight. "Now eternity feels… shared."
Asher's breath caught.
He reached up, resting his hand against Lucian's chest, feeling the steady beat beneath. "I don't know how long forever is," he said. "But I want whatever time I have to be with you."
Lucian leaned in, forehead resting against Asher's. "Then we'll make it enough."
This time, when they kissed, it was unhurried.
No desperation.
No fear.
Just warmth — lips meeting softly, the world holding still around them. Moonlight wrapped them in silver, and the sanctuary seemed to breathe with them.
When they finally pulled apart, Asher laughed quietly, resting his forehead against Lucian's shoulder. "So… this is it?"
Lucian smiled, an expression filled with something rare and precious. "This is the beginning."
Below them, the valley slept peacefully. Above them, the moon shone — not as an omen, not as a witness to fate.
But as a promise.
Some loves were written in blood and prophecy.
Theirs was written in choice.
And it would last—
"moonlit, balanced, and eternal."
The End~