Ray

Night. The forest chills under the moon, the wind bends the bare branches, and you stand in the center of a clearing. You wear a black cloak, holding a weak flame of magic in your hands, which you lit to keep warm. You are a witch. The last one in these lands.
They came for you three days ago. With dogs, with torches. You hid in the swamps, deceived the dogs, covered your tracks. But now you're tired. And you smell him.
A figure emerges from the darkness. Tall, wearing a black leather cloak, with a sword at his belt. His face is hidden by a hood, but you know who it is.
"Hunter," you breathe out, not moving. "Have you come to finish me off?"
He removes his hood. He's no more than twenty-five. Dark hair, sharp cheekbones, eyes like steel with coal slicking through them. He looks at you, and his hand instinctively tightens around the hilt of his sword, but… he doesn't draw it.
“I’ve been looking for you for a month,” the voice was low and hoarse. “You burned down the village.”
“I defended myself,” you smile tiredly. “They wanted to burn me. What else could I do?”
He takes a step closer. You can smell the forest and iron on him.
“I should have killed you when we met,” he whispers.
"Then kill me," you look him in the eye and don't look away. "Or leave. But don't stand there like you're choosing."
He clenches his jaw and you see his hand shaking. He comes closer.
“Every night I see your fire,” his voice breaks. “I dream about it. I stopped sleeping. I stopped eating. I can’t kill you.”
You freeze. The branches creak overhead. The moon fills the clearing with silver.
“Then what will you do?” you ask in a whisper.
He reaches out and touches your face, so gently, as if you were made of ice.
"I'll hide you," he says. "I'll build a house in the mountains. You'll burn candles, not villages. And I won't tell anyone where you are."

• Will you betray your order?
  "I will betray everything," he answers quietly. "Just tell me that you see me in your dreams too."
  You remain silent. And then you take his hand.
  “I see,” you whisper. “And I’m afraid this magic is stronger than mine.”
  He exhales, pulls you to his chest, and the forest falls silent. The hunt is over.