Gently and persistently his muzzle traces the damped lines of Rowena’s face, reaching to kiss her tears away, again and again, with unrelenting tenderness. It hurts him to see her so full of sorrow, and by the time she starts trembling, laughter mingling with her sobs in a symphony that is bittersweet to Dances’ ears, the bay and white stallion is quaking too, with bleakness that transforms into relief. Her words, so genuine and moving, ignite a cleansing fire in his soul that burns along every invisible scar that mars his tremulous heart, remnants of days gone by. These unseen disfigurements run deep and all of them are old and new. They are all Dances With Wolves has left of those he’s lost, and he cuts himself open every time he remembers, bleeding love for those he never wants to forget.

But now, as Rowena pitches towards him and surrounds him with her love, it's as though every weeping wound within him is sealed over with gold. The aching of his heart suddenly becomes so much less, and it is he who sobs now, burying his muzzle into her thick, inky mane that brushes away the fresh tears that stream down his face. The gentle, radiant heat that emanates within him now, put there by Rowena, rises over his long-damaged spirit like one perfect sunrise. This resplendent adoration catches all the damaged fragments whose edges were now gilded together by Rowena’s devotion, making strong all within him that was weak and turning every broken thing within him beautiful.

And thus Dances With Wolves was set on a path that he’d long ago given up hope of ever journeying. It was just one small step, but in time Rowena’s unfathomable love for him would lead the sensitive stallion to a place he could never reach on his own. And there, he would begin to heal, understand that it was okay to let go, and finally learn to love himself, flaws and all, and forgive himself for that which he could not change.

“I have nothing to forgive,” he murmurs after his sobbing subsides, the words husky, their intent to soothe Rowena’s soul the way her acceptance of his apology had soothed him. The past was behind them, and their future was blindingly bright and full of potential. Whatever mistakes the both of them had made, whatever regrets they had and wherever they had placed blame, all this weight fell from them. Together, they shed these burdens that no longer served them purpose, and scattered them to the wind like the red-gold leaves drifting free of trees in the autumn. “You never left me, Rowena,” Dances whispers in her dark ear as he straightens and draws back, his shining blue eyes full of emotion as his gaze settles upon her countenance, one so beloved by him. “And you never will.”

Tenderly, he presses his muzzle to hers, so that just as their hearts beat in unison and their souls intertwine anew, they breathe as one. “I will die for you.” And the darkness of his words contrast sharply, stark against the soft light that burns within him. This vow that he makes her holds more weight to it than any words Dances With Wolves has ever spoken, but despite the tragedy of it, this oath he offers Rowena blazes with hope, and is illuminated by a silver lining that will never tarnish. “But I will live for you first.” This promise would prove to be the magnum opus of Dances With Wolves, the greatest thing he will ever accomplish. For one who has - in his darkest moments - dreamed of the peaceful embrace of everlasting darkness if it meant having to never wander among the ruins of his love again, to dream instead of a future in which he’d be freed by love… Why, it was nothing short of victory epitomized, and nothing could come close to this magnitude of selflessness. For this brief moment, Dances With Wolves was without feebleness, and stood before Rowena as courage and valour manifest in flesh.

Wrapped in Rowena’s embrace, Dances With Wolves preoccupies himself brushing his muzzle across every inch of her neck, her withers, her shoulders, back and flanks, every line of her achingly beautiful face. Her presence draws him like gravity, the warmth she gives off magnetic. Distantly, something else pulls at his focus, but for now, his drinks in her aroma like it is quenching water, and subconsciously seeks to rub his own scent into her skin, replacing the foreign masculine odour that lingers there. It is not a demonstration of any possessiveness he feels, nor is it jealousy that guides his actions. Rather, this is something born of innocence and instinct, and his intent is to blanket Rowena with his undying affection and loyal love. If they are to part ways this day, while never again for so long nor so far from one another, Dances wants her to walk in peace, and hopes that in this way, even if she finds herself alone after he leaves, she will never again suffer the weight of that deep loneliness he suspects she’s been carrying a long time.

As if the empathy he feels for her guides him back to something important that he’d cast aside while reuniting with the soulmate that had returned to him, the bay tobiano gently extricates himself from that warm and tender encirclement Rowena had freely given and he had eagerly returned. A sombreness settles upon him, and pain sparks in his eyes. “It is not safe here,” he begins softly, his voice low and hushed. “Echo… I have to get her away from here.” As the name of their daughter leaves his lips, his voice breaks, deepens with sorrow and regret. Dances With Wolves feels the breath hitch in his throat, and he swallows hard, trying his best to be strong as fresh waves of remorse wash over him, the mournful howl of the sea of emotion within him trying to remind him of his unworthiness of everything good he has. It is a dirge he no longer wants to listen to. He’d take Rowena’s bittersweet melody of the unknown future over the heartbreaking symphony that told painted the course of his troubled life in exquisite detail without hesitation.

And he does so with the very next beat of his heart.

“I will explain later, but I have to leave, now. I’ll take her to the Forest – I believe she’ll be protected there.” Blue eyes search Rowena’s face, gentle and understanding. Dances does not know what has brought her to the Ridge beyond this reunion foreordained by fate. “I do not wish to leave you here, but winter is almost upon us, and the swim will already take a great toll on Echo. It cannot wait, I’m afraid.” If he were not so grateful, nor so desperate to help their blind daughter, he’d feel resentful that he and Rowena had reached a forked path so soon after finding one another again. “I would beg you come with us, however, I’d understand if you cannot leave right now, for whatever reason.” With a sad sigh, Dances caresses Rowena one last time, nuzzling at the line of her jaw. “Fear not, my beloved. I can make this journey alone, if I must. But know that if you have to stay, I leave my heart with you.” A small smile finds a home upon his lips, and his ocean eyes glimmer with the light of their love. “I will never lose sight again, and I promise you… I promise I will always come back for you Rowena.”

Behind him, a figure appears in the mouth of the sea-cave, dishevelled and brought low by the trials of life, but still standing, no matter how fiercely her torments rattle her bones. With small but steady steps, Echo approaches, and just as her mother had earlier, from the young mare’s mouth a poignant song of sorrow and joy fills the silence. “Home,” she sobbed, her bruised and aching body trembling as she cries tears of joy. “Finally, we’re home.” For Echo, unlike others who lived among these islands who felt connected to a place, her sense of belonging was drawn from those she loved. For so long Dances With Wolves hadn’t been entirely present, but now that Rowena was home, he was whole again, and this… This warm embrace, this blanket of love; this was Home.