Ashen did not slow until they were back in their chambers. He set Lumina gently on the edge of the bed and knelt before her, holding her face in both hands.
"Lumina." His voice was so low that you could hardly hear it but it held urgency, his eyes searching her pale face. "Tell me what happened."
She could not answer, her throat closed up, her chest heaving with shallow breaths.
She only shook her head, reaching for him blindly until her fingers found his face.
"I… I..," she whispered, her voice breaking. "Just stay… Do not leave me tonight."
Ashen's heart twisted painfully. He had never seen her like this not even on the day she had been brought here from the Celestial Realm. She was trembling, her fingers clutching at him as if he might vanish.
He climbed onto the bed beside her and pulled her into his arms. "I am here, I am not leaving." he spoke softly, pressing his forehead to hers.
