At least he got her to laugh, even if it was just for a moment before they both weren’t able to maintain it. “I’m sorry Ros, I didn’t mean to just disappear.” He had intended - wanted - to come back, sure, but his intentions didn’t really matter much at this point. It wouldn’t be any good to tell her that he had often thought about returning but there had been too much conflict in him. He was finally getting that time with his birth mother, finally getting to establish a connection that he had been craving ever since he had been dropped off as a wobbly-legged colt for his father to care for.

That had been the intention, anyway, he was sure. But the Basin hadn’t been the place for Mesec to grow up and he had found somewhere else. Maybe that was why he felt guilty about his answer to Ros’s question? Her awkwardness was mirrored in him, probably making them quite the painful pair to observe. “My… mother.” The word felt heavy and came out quietly. It was odd, referring to someone else as his mother – someone Roskuld hadn’t come from, someone that she didn’t know. He averted his eyes when he spoke those two syllables, looking away from her. He didn’t feel ashamed of his heritage but he liked the world where he was the bro of this (usually) chipper, loud, little filly and the son of the kind and beautiful Ophelia. Actually addressing the fact that they didn’t have the same mom, at least not by blood, put another weight on his heart instead of taking anything away.

This new world was uncomfortable, this one where they weren't really siblings and their friends and family were scattered - the Foothills gone or changed or whatever had happened. Growing up seemed to mean growing sadder, and Mesec wondered if there was any way to make it stop. “I spent some time with her…” There didn’t seem to be anything else that he could say about it, really.

While they were swapping awkwardly asked questions, he had one for her – thinking of the god that Ros had gone to talk to back on the island. “So, uh, you met your dad then? What’s he like?” No point in pretending he wasn’t interested. Maybe if they could talk about all of this, things would stop being so damn awkward.