There was that hesitation again.

For a moment, Gale just stared at your hand, claws reaching out for him but promising friendship. Or at least solidarity.

Admittedly, his options were spread thinner and thinner with each passing day. Time was something he had been bargaining with for years. Every breath was a minute of his time wasted, every day one less to find a solution to his problem. He hardly had any other option.

Your gaze travelled over his face. You could understand some of the sparkle in the man's brown eyes. Every day was a race against time for you too.

Sometimes, when you woke up from your long sleep, you could feel it. Bones became heavier. Joints stiffened. Your body turned to stone and you couldn't defend yourself.

Eyes wandered over your face. He was looking for a reason, help. You smiled.

"I mean you no harm.", you said. "We are both in a bad position. But we can help each other."

He frowned.

"And if it doesn't help?", those doubts again.

Much about him was brimming with self-confidence, he was obviously convinced of himself and his own abilities. As Mystra's chosen one, he had to have a lot of it otherwise his place would have been quickly taken away from him.

The goddess of magic was demanding. Average wasn't enough for her.

"Then at least we tried.", you said back. "But the ifs and maybes don't matter for now. You are weak. I can help."

Again you approached him with an outstretched hand, an offer of peace.

Doubts. So many doubts. What had his goddess done to him that he could no longer trust?

Admittedly, you were a strangely disconcerting phenomenon. Your race was unknown to most others. With ignorance came danger.

But despite everything, you really didn't harbour any bad thoughts. You just didn't tell him that your advantage in this deal could be much greater than his own.

A sigh slipped from Gale's lips.

"Well...", he finally lifted his hand to take yours.

Human skin had a different feel to yours. There were no scales, it seemed soft and easy to tear. For a moment you wondered if it might shred like paper when you dragged your claws across his back.

Much about him seemed weak, fragile compared to the males of your race. They were designed to hunt, to be robust in order to withstand the aggressive females.

Gale would probably have broken under these conditions. But he was by no means weak.

As your fingers touched, a tiny spark of magic travelled from his body to yours. It was little more than the feeling of a crackle, but it was enough to give you an idea of the power that actually lay dormant in this body.

Appearances were often deceptive. Gale was no exception.

"Close your eyes.", you said in a gentle voice. "Breathe in."

This time he did what you told him without thinking about it, without hesitation. As soon as his eyes were closed, you breathed in. Magic awoke in your innermost being.

The flames in the fireplace answered the call. You snapped your fingers. The tower around you bent. Reality and the weave blurred together for a brief moment.

The carpet and armchair disappeared. The chimney flickered once more, then the structure disappeared. Instead, you both found yourselves in a cave.

The vault was so huge that an echo was emitted from the walls with every breath. Stalagmites the size of whole people hung from the ceiling, with beads of crystal-clear water forming at their tips.

The dripping created a rhythm like a melody. The tips of your ears twitched every time a drop smashed into a thousand pieces on the floor. An aura of power vibrated in the air.

Gale's eyes flickered open.

"What is this place?", he looked around.

When his hand slipped out of yours, a strange feeling of emptiness remained. Unlike your body, his warmth radiated so much that you could feel it.

The cave you were now in was so big that it could have held a whole castle. Or a creature of that size. A dragon, for example.

Old stone rose above your heads. But it wasn't the nature of this place that made Gale hold his breath. Small sparks of violet light illuminated the darkness.

There were no torches in this place, no light that you had created. Instead, there was a huge pile, almost a mountain of artefacts in the middle. The concentrated magic they exuded filled the air with a kind of power that made even your hair stand on end.

All Gale could do at the sight was stare. There it was, a pile of weave pieces that could save his life.

"Take what you need.", you gestured to the artefacts.

Gold and jewellery clinked under his feet as he approached these sweet promises.

"What... but...", he looked back over his shoulder at you with a furrowed brow. "Why?"

A hint of tiredness came over you. You didn't feel like explaining yourself. Not in front of a stranger. Still, it felt right to at least give him something to cling to.

"Just as an excess amount of weave magic will destroy you, it could make me ascend.", you gestured to the mountain. "But this is not enough... It's just a drop in an ocean."

He looked at the mountain at his feet and then back at you.

"How... how long did it take to collect all this?"

"I'm not sure. A few hundred years."

"A hundred years?!", brown eyes wandered over your body, your face. "I mean... Apologies."

You smirked.

"I take that as a compliment.", with a tilt of your head you indicated that he should take what he needed.

And there it was again. That hesitation.

Lost in thought, he bent down to choose something, but instead of absorbing it immediately, he let his fingers wander over the surface.

Weave magic responded to his touch. Sparks of violet light rose up, seeping into his skin and kissing the hunger that raged in his chest.

For many years, Gale had done nothing but chase after this feeling of relief. Now that chase seemed to be coming to an end.