Hearts once cold
Beat anew
With hunger and passion
For a world
That once was a shadow
*
Meals regain taste
Warmth of sun on the skin
No longer cold
The pair indulge in sensations
That once were memories
*
The past they share
Revived in quips and chats
Triggered by events
The strengthening of a bond
That once was frayed
*
One step is all they need
A catalyst to spark their lives
And roil desires
Belonging to a love
That once was dead

(I was going to make a long post, but this poem came to mind.  Honestly, I think it’s obvious where things are going since War of Nytefall: Loyalty.  That means the real story is how they handle it this time and what dynamic will appear between two very powerful personalities.)

The actual gnome tree. About 9′ around.

A Haibun/tanka for Colleen’s #Tanka Tuesday challenge. We had to use synonyms for Spring (newborn) and Song (squawk). Okay, maybe a stretch, but here goes:

The Return of the Gnome King

(A True Story)

The Dragon Wood awakens with the returning light. Our meadow greens beneath winter’s withered grass, and spears of horsetail stand at attention, stalwart sentinels lining our path. They await the guardian snails whose slimy pilgrimage to the gnome tree is a slow one. Deer twitch their ears, alert for the gnome king’s return.

We fear not the witch in her uprooted stump. Rusty barbed wire holds her captive, and her mosquito hordes still slumber. Instead, we pause in awe to listen to newborn dragons skritch and squawk from the hollow stumps of ancient firs, this year’s fledglings still too young to fly. We’ll seek…