The cabin was quiet at dawn, its wooden walls painted gold by the rising sun. Iris stood by the small window, staring out at the forest she had come to think of as both sanctuary and prison.
Behind her, Luna moved silently, packing their few belongings: extra clothes, dry food, Iris's sketchbook, and weapons that glinted ominously in the morning light.
Iris pressed her palm against the cool glass. "It feels wrong to leave," she whispered. "This place… it became ours."
Luna looked up, pausing. For a moment, the hardened warrior in her softened, revealing a woman who had laughed here, kissed here, slept peacefully for the first time in years.
"I know," she said gently. "But walls don't keep us safe anymore. You keep me safe, Iris. Wherever you are, that's home."
The words tightened Iris's chest. She turned, walked over, and slid her arms around Luna from behind, pressing her face into her back.
"Then promise me," Iris murmured. "Promise me you'll let me fight beside you, not just hide behind you."
Luna set her hand over Iris's. "I promise to protect you with everything I am. But…" She turned, cupping Iris's cheek, gaze intense. "I won't let the world make you bleed for me."
Iris leaned into her touch. "Maybe it's not just your fight anymore."
They kissed softly, a fragile thread binding them before the storm.
By midmorning, the cabin stood empty, the hearth cold.
Luna carried their pack while Iris trailed slightly behind, eyes roaming the forest with both awe and fear. The path ahead was narrow, roots twisting like veins across the earth.
Every snap of a twig made her heart jolt. Luna's hand never strayed far from the hilt of her knife.
"Where are we going?" Iris asked, stepping over a fallen log.
"There's a village two days south," Luna said. "If we keep to the river's edge, we'll avoid the main roads. We can get supplies there, maybe hear word of… them."
Iris bit her lip. "And after that?"
"We keep moving. Until I know you're beyond their reach."
The certainty in her voice steadied Iris, though fear still pricked at her.
By afternoon, they stopped near the river to rest. Iris crouched by the water, dipping her fingers into the current, watching it ripple away.
"It feels strange," she admitted. "I was starting to believe the world was just us. The cabin. The trees. Like nothing else existed."
Luna sat beside her, pulling off her gloves. "I almost wanted to believe that too." She skimmed her fingers across the surface. "But the world doesn't forget. And shadows don't forgive."
Iris turned to study her—how the light caught in her pale hair, how her expression remained caught between longing and steel. She reached for Luna's hand, twining their fingers together.
"Then we'll remind the world that love can outlast shadows," Iris said softly.
Luna smiled faintly. "You say it like a challenge."
"It is." Iris leaned in, kissing her briefly, letting the river witness their vow.
They walked until dusk painted the sky in bruised purples.
By the time they made camp beneath a canopy of pines, Iris's legs ached. Luna started a small fire, careful to keep the smoke low. They shared dried meat and bread, the silence between them more comfortable than oppressive.
Later, curled beneath a shared blanket, Iris rested her head on Luna's shoulder. "Do you ever dream of something different? Not running, not hiding. Just… living?"
Luna's arm tightened around her. "Every night."
"What does it look like?"
Luna hesitated. "A garden. A house with sunlight. You painting in the mornings. Me… learning how to smile without fear."
Iris closed her eyes, picturing it. "I want that too. Someday."
For a moment, they allowed themselves to believe it.
The peace shattered with a twig's sharp crack.
Luna sat up instantly, blade in hand. Iris's breath caught, her pulse racing.
Another rustle. Voices, low and harsh, carried through the trees.
"They're close," Luna whispered, eyes narrowing.
Iris clutched her arm. "What do we do?"
"We move. Now."
They doused the fire with dirt, packed swiftly, and slipped into the darkness. Luna led the way, every movement precise, silent. Iris followed, her heart pounding so loud she feared the shadows would hear it.
It wasn't long before the voices grew louder, closer. Torches flickered faintly in the distance.
"They've tracked us," Luna muttered.
Panic clawed at Iris's chest. "How—?"
"They always do." Luna's hand gripped hers, strong, steady. "Run when I tell you."
"No," Iris whispered fiercely. "I won't leave you."
Luna didn't answer. She just squeezed her hand and pulled her faster through the trees.
Branches whipped against their faces, roots threatened to trip them, but adrenaline kept them moving. Behind them, shouts erupted—the shadows had seen them.
"Go!" Luna hissed.
Iris shook her head. "I said no!"
Suddenly, the ground dropped into a slope. Luna pulled her close, and together they tumbled down, rolling through brush and leaves until they landed hard near the riverbank.
Iris coughed, dazed. Luna helped her up, already scanning for escape.
"They'll be on us in minutes."
The first shadow emerged from the trees—a man cloaked in dark garb, eyes glinting with malice. Then another. And another.
Iris's blood ran cold.
Luna stepped in front of her, knife gleaming. "Stay behind me."
"No," Iris whispered, picking up a fallen branch, gripping it tight.
The shadows advanced. Luna moved like lightning, striking one down, spinning to parry another's blade. Iris swung wildly when one came too close, the branch connecting with a sickening thud.
Adrenaline roared through her veins—fear and defiance tangled as one.
"Luna!" she cried as another attacker lunged.
Luna turned, striking hard, the river spraying as bodies fell. But there were too many.
"We can't win here!" she shouted. She grabbed Iris's hand, pulling her toward the rushing water.
Iris's eyes widened. "The river—?"
"It's our only way!"
Together, they plunged into the icy current, the shouts of the shadows fading as the water swallowed them.
The river carried them violently, tumbling over rocks, dragging them beneath the surface before spitting them out again. Iris clung to Luna's arm, lungs burning, terrified she'd be torn away.
Finally, they were thrown onto a muddy bank, gasping, coughing water.
Iris collapsed, trembling. Luna crawled to her side, pulling her into an embrace despite her own wounds.
"You're safe," Luna whispered, pressing her lips to Iris's wet hair.
"We almost—" Iris's voice broke. She buried her face against Luna's chest. "I thought I'd lose you."
"You won't." Luna held her tighter, shivering from both cold and fear. "Not while I'm breathing."
They stayed like that, drenched, exhausted, but alive.
By dawn, they stumbled into a small cave hidden by moss and stone. Luna made a small fire, their soaked clothes steaming as they warmed.
Iris curled against her, still shaken.
"We can't keep running like this," Iris whispered.
"I know." Luna stroked her hair. "We'll find somewhere stronger to stand. Somewhere they can't reach us."
Iris looked up at her, eyes fierce despite her exhaustion. "Then we fight not just to survive, Luna. We fight to live. For that house. For that garden. For us."
Luna's throat tightened. She kissed her hard, tasting both salt and smoke.
"For us," she echoed.
Outside, the forest still hunted them. But within the cave, their love burned bright—fragile, fierce, unyielding.