James had been pressed up against Tahi-shei's chrysalis when it had suddenly exploded, sending him into a blind flee only to trip, fall, and faceplant gracefully. He quickly got to his feet and whirled around, spotting Tahi-shei staggered about, blind eyes rolling, panic clear on his body.

Without the crown, he couldn't see.

He dug at the upturned soil a little ways away from the chrysalis to reveal the leaves he'd wrapped Tahi's crown in. He'd leave that for when Tahi-shei was calm, but he had to make sure it was accessible. He ran back to Tahi and dodged whirling limbs, trying and failing to touch him.

He watched helplessly as he collapsed, kicking at the edges of the chrysalis so he could lay down with him, scooching forward once he was mostly still, offering comfort.

"Tahi-shei Deimos," he said, "It is the afternoon, we are in Cetus, and there is no danger. What do you need me to do?"

James didn't move after he lay down, exaggerating his breathing against Tahi's back, "Breathe with me, dear. In, out. In, out."

He'd mention the crown once Tahi-shei wasn't neck deep in a panic attack.

James hated that Tahi-shei had to rely on the very thing that took his sight. He looked over towards it, ears pinned, and sighed. Wisps of magic warped around him as he lifted the crown up, brows furrowing as he moved it to Tahi's head, pushing a knee under his neck to prop it up so he could fit the crown between his antlers.

But he was too scrambled at the moment and he needed to focus on one thing at a time.

"Breathe," he insisted, "Just breathe, in and out, in and out."

He continued to exaggerate his breathing behind Tahi, his chest rising and falling against the other's back, "Breathe, the crown is here, just focus on breathing."

If Tahi-shei passed out, that wouldn't do anyone any good.

James tugged on his ear, "Hey! Not so fast-"

He pushed himself to his feet and pressed into the other's side should he need support, worried about him still, "I talked to Vargas. I actually talked to Aethereal first, and she and I headed to Draco to speak with him. As far as I can tell, she's on neither side at the moment. She's... confused, and under my protection for now. But she won't be fighting in the war, I can tell you that."

He nuzzled Tahi and wrapped a wing around him, "I told Vargas about the 'in-between' I've found. I was... angry, because both sides seem to think they're better than the other and are trying to destroy each other, but we need both Order and Chaos to achieve true balance, right? So I told him that and he called me naive."

James rolled his eyes and shuddered a bit, remembering those toxic eyes on him, staring at him with pity. It wasn't him who needed pity, but still, he was more than ten times bigger, older than almost all of the gembound in the caves, and could have killed him with a swipe of his paw.

James huffed, "They're not that sharp, are they?"

He went quiet, suspiciously quiet, and looked away, not meeting the other's eyes (despite him not being able to see him anyway).

"... He threatened to kill me," he said, "If Aethereal goes back to Mother, then he'll kill me."

He shuddered and flicked his tail, "Personally I say we get as far away from Draco as we can, but you're the one who just woke up, so..."

James pressed their head to Tahi's neck and shivered gently, ears down, "I'm sorry you had such bad dreams. Hopefully wherever we go can help distract you from them."

He stared off across Cepheus, ears down, hoping that as they spoke, Aethereal wasn't dooming him. If she went back to mother... Vargas would hunt him down or have him killed by one of his creations. It was a terrifying thought.

James nodded and bumped his head against Tahi, "If you can't that'd be great, but if you can't... then it is what it is. Maybe he'll forget or it won't matter once Mother's dealt with."

He looked off towards Ursa and sighed, "Let's go to... hm. Pisces? That's not too far. We'd only have to go through Ursa and Polaris and I can carry you if the terrain get's unsteady."

He looked over at Tahi and blinked, "... I meant because I have wings to flap if I fall, not that um... you being blind makes you less steady."

He pursed his lips and shook his head, "I'm... going to stop talking. To Pisces!"