the Rift


[PRIVATE] Fortunate Fool

Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#1
-

After ensuring that Ampere and Zero were both alright, Mesec had travelled back with them to the Throat… or near them at any rate. He separated when they arrived - a hasty goodbye made before he took off. He had every intention of finding Zero later, complimenting him on his bravery and showing him the healed wings which.. Wincing as he stretched out his wings to leave, Mesec remembered that he had not yet healed the burns. But he didn’t want to just stand there near them and heal himself with shadows so he pushed through the pain - taking off and regretting the whole business of thinking he could involve himself in the family affair. Certainly he could have stuck around, providing the colt with some moral support for the verbal lashing he was likely going to get but he was just such an outsider in that group. He was used to not feeling as though he belonged but that was different - that was private. What did he even have to add? It wasn’t his place to support or argue with Ampere on the raising of her son. Her son. He had suspected it, of course, but the weight of the confirmation rested heavily on him.

As did the presence of Gaucho but, well, easier to avoid the entire situation than continue worrying about something that had nothing to do with him, right?

He was looking for a distraction, someone to talk to that could help get his mind and heart off of the turmoil that Ampere often sent it into. He soared over the Throat, Lucius joining him and the sun glinted off of their matching dark feathers. Really, anyone would be better company than himself at the moment.

The sharp eyes of his companion spotted her first and he called out to her - his crisp, clear voice breaking through Mesec’s thoughts. It took a couple more moments for his own silver eyse to pick out the familiar form of Najya in the Throat landscape. Lucius had already started descending, circling above her and even swooping closer to tug at her mane with affection that he showed few others. He was too large to perch on her now without his talons poking at her skin   so he satisfied himself with circling around her twice and trilling happily. The same care was not given toward his own bonded, though. As Mesec landed and trotted over, Lucius found his usual perch on the fold of Mesec’s wings - causing a wince to interrupt the smile as talons accidentally found the raw burns that he still had yet to heal. “Najya! How are you?” They hadn’t really talked since the day she arrived, what with all of the god battles that had occurred afterwards - at which he hadn’t missed her presence.

and that's me, that's me, the boy with the broken halo
that's me, that's me ________________ the devil won't let me be

artwork by the fabulous tamme


@Najya
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Najya Posts: 90
Dragon's Throat Alchemist atk: 7 | def: 10 | dam: 4
Mare :: Equine :: 15.1 :: 7 (Tallsun) HP: 67.5 | Buff: NOVICE
A'mal :: Plain White Dragon :: Shock Breath Kiki
#2

She hadn’t realized just how much she’d missed the feel of soft, shifting sand under her hooves.  She hadn’t recognized how her heart had ached for the brilliant desert sun beating down against her back.  Of course the Throat was different than the desert she was familiar with – she had never seen anything like the sea. The little flaxen mare was captivated by the waves that seemed to go on forever. She stood on a sandy knoll overlooking the sea undulating softly as far as she could see.
 
Najya had spent the past few weeks in the Throat familiarizing herself not only with the desert and its culture, but allowing herself the opportunity to heal.  She had sustained little in the way of physical injuries from the battles, but getting over the mental and emotional toll of the battles…and all that she had on her plate before the battles.  She had been utterly exhausted by the time she set foot in the desert.  It seemed her life had become an unfortunate pattern of war and blood and flight.  However, it seemed that the cycle had been broken.  She’d finally found the home that she’d been seeking since coming to Helovia.  Thankfully it was exactly as Mesec promised – a sanctuary.  Just what she needed to recover from her past.
 
Relaxation was a concept foreign to Najya.  She’d gone from curious historian, to queen consort, to refugee twice over, to warrior, to…well…whatever she was now.  Unfortunately, now the little mare found she had far too much time on her hands and tended to spend the days thinking which was more counterproductive than anything.  She knew it was long past time she get more involved in herd life, she just couldn’t seem to draw herself out of her own head.
 
She was drawn from her thoughts by a familiar face.  Lucius!  The little zephyr wasn’t so little anymore and Najya smiled as he circled around her throwing shadows across the sand. "Why hello there, stranger!” she cooed at the dark bird, before craning her head around and looking for his bonded who she knew wouldn’t be far behind.
 
She wasn’t disappointed.
 
“Mesec!” she offered with a smile and a polite little dip of her head.  “I’m well. I feel rested for the first time in what feels like years, and I suppose I have you to thank for that.”   Najya shifted her gaze out over the Throat – her eyes flicking over the now familiar sights before she looked back to Mesec.
 
“I trust you are well?” she added, sincerely hoping that all was well with perhaps her closest friend here in Helovia. That train of thought did lead her to think of another.  She let the silence linger for a moment before she looked back to him again, knowing that of the two of them she was the conversationalist.
 
“Ampere was very kind to allow me to stay.  I take it from our meeting that the two of you are close…” her voice tapered off, but the question was evident. Najya didn’t want to presume that the two were a mated pair, but that had been her assumption as her eyesight had begun to fail on the seashore not so long ago.  



Najya
& Mesec

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@Mesec

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Force & magic are permitted, but please check before inflicting serious injury.
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Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#3
-

It was good, wonderful even, to see a smile on the mare’s face when she greeted Mesec. She looked healthy and relaxed, an incredible change from the fright and uncertainty she had been riddled with on their first meeting. He was glad that his promises of a safe home had come true - it was never a guarantee, after all, in Helovia. She had learned that lesson the hard way with the invasion of the Falls, and the battles they had fought together on their journey to the Throat.

“I’m so glad to hear that!” And he was, it felt great that he had been able to help her out, give her somewhere to rest. He knew she had spent a lot of time running and he hoped that the Throat could become a home to her, somewhere to start growing roots. He’d be sad to see her leave if it came to that, if she wanted to go back where she had come from. She had quickly become a friend.

When the question was turned around for him he offered her a small smile and a bit of a shrug - careful not to disrupt Lucius too much with the action. “Yeah, I’m doing alright.” He didn’t elaborate, didn’t even know how he might elaborate, but it didn’t matter. A couple minutes later she was bringing up something that completely distracted him.

Mesec felt his cheeks burn in a blush when Najya brought up Ampere, the way her voice trailed off, the implications that were in the silence. He was already shaking his head, denial coming quick. It was easy to get lost in the thoughts on his own but he had never discussed this with anyone else before. “Oh Ampere she’s my…” Friend. She was always Mesec’s friend. He had no right to even stumble over the word, as much as he hoped that there was more. He had fragments of moments that he held on to, that gave him hope, but in the end it was simple. “We’re friends.” He confirmed, putting weight behind the word - more for himself than for Najya. More words tumbled out afterward - “We haven’t even been that close lately, that was the first time she had talked to me in a while. I think she’s still mad at me for bonding to Lucius.” Every feather on Lucius’s body rose in anger at the memory, for the moment resembling the angry little puffball that he had been when he was only a hatchling. The Zephyr resented the blue lightning mare for the anger she had shown to Mesec, his grudge willing to hold out so long as hers did.

Rolling his shoulder to shift his wings and interrupt the torrent of angry thoughts coming from his companion, Mesec finished with a shrug. “I wish I knew how to fix things between us.”

and that's me, that's me, the boy with the broken halo
that's me, that's me ________________ the devil won't let me be

artwork by the fabulous tamme
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Najya Posts: 90
Dragon's Throat Alchemist atk: 7 | def: 10 | dam: 4
Mare :: Equine :: 15.1 :: 7 (Tallsun) HP: 67.5 | Buff: NOVICE
A'mal :: Plain White Dragon :: Shock Breath Kiki
#4

She was pleased to see that Mesec seemed well, even though his words weren’t particularly convincing. She knew that the battles had been trying on the moon-child from a sense far beyond the physical.  The emotional toll that the battles must have cost Mesec was something that Najya was unable to fathom, and she wouldn’t do him the disservice of assuming she knew what was going on in his head.  Perhaps that’s why it was so easy for her to steer the conversation away – to a topic she presumed would be happier.  However, she again found herself surprised and she was sure that the emotion was ill-concealed on her features.
 
“Friends,”the mare echoed, with the skepticism plainly evident in her voice.  She watched his reaction carefully – deducing what her winged friend either would not say aloud or would not admit to himself.  It was endearing in a way, but it also sent a lance of pain through her heart.  This was not to be mistaken for jealousy.  No.  The little mare was very happy for her friend, she would never wish for it to be taken from him.
 
Because she knew what that felt like - what it felt like to lose the one you loved. She wouldn’t wish that upon anyone, even those who had inflected such anguish upon her. She forced the feelings away.  Now wasn’t the time.  This was about Mesec.  His life.  His happiness. Not about her losses.  That was a dam she did not yet want to breach.
 
“Mesec, my eyesight was failing on the beach when we all met and even I could tell that you weren’t just friends,” she looked at him, knowingly.  She hadn’t needed her vision to see perfectly well what had unfolded on the soft sands of the beach that night.  She let out a soft sigh at his defeated expression, taking a half step forward and offering him a reassuring smile.
 
“You talk to her about it.  You tell her how you feel. She’s a mare Mesec, not a monster. And it was evident that her magic manifests in ways other than reading minds. You can’t expect her just to know these things and problems don’t just fix themselves.” It sounded rational enough to her ears, but she knew that it was a difficult premise.  She should know better than anyone. 



Najya
& Mesec

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@Mesec

Please tag NAJYA in all replies. 
Force & magic are permitted, but please check before inflicting serious injury.
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Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#5

Mesec rolled his silver eyes good-naturedly as Najya lectured him on how he needed to go talk to Ampere before realizing that she wasn’t just teasing him, she was being serious. He started to open his mouth to argue with her - blame the fact that she was losing her sight on anything that she might have thought she had seen. But they had all just been through battles with Gods, Mesec’s sister had died, and he had attacked wolf and horse alike - seeing her safe and unharmed had been enough for him to forget to tiptoe around her so he could avoid being the subject of her fury once more.

Still filled with denial and doubt, Mesec didn’t pause to worry about just why he had been so concerned about her - and surely her concern towards him had been nothing more than friendly? There hadn’t been doubt in the moment (he had been too busy enjoying their proximity and feeling worry) but enough time had passed for him to grow uncertain again.

Even with Najya’s reassuring smile, the demigod shifted uncomfortably - shuffling his dark hooves against some loose sand beneath them. He could have sworn that just as he did so, Lucius let loose an audibly sigh of exasperation.

In the few moments that he had before he responded, he tried to think of a smooth way to change the subject entirely - but they were too far along.

The idea of walking up to Ampere and telling her that he loved her was enough to petrify him - he’d rather go back to the bamboo forest and face the wolf god all on his own, or spend some quality time with his mother. He’d rather be a colt again and have Roskuld embarrass him in front of his first crush.

If he couldn’t change the subject then at least he could be quick to come up with a list of reasons to rationalize to Najya just why he would not be doing that. “But we’ve never talked about anything like that - I mean, she has a son so what if she has a mate that I don’t know about? And then I walk up and tell her that I… I… I’m in love with her and what, what happens then?” It was easier to confess that big, frightening, four-letter word to Najya than it would be to the one that it was aimed at - there were no consequences if he said it now.

Mesec’s face relaxed into a sad smile, wondering if everyone went through this when they cared for another. What was it like, to live without being riddled with doubt? “I want her in my life, Najya, and if it means we’re just friends then I’ll take it. She doesn't need to know how I feel.”

and that's me, that's me, the boy with the broken halo
that's me, that's me ________________ the devil won't let me be

artwork by the fabulous tamme
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

Najya Posts: 90
Dragon's Throat Alchemist atk: 7 | def: 10 | dam: 4
Mare :: Equine :: 15.1 :: 7 (Tallsun) HP: 67.5 | Buff: NOVICE
A'mal :: Plain White Dragon :: Shock Breath Kiki
#6

His reaction was basically what she had expected.  She couldn’t imagine that she would have reacted much differently if she had been given similar advice when in his position.  She likely would have been just as stubborn.  But Najya knew the consequences of silence.  She knew exactly what the emotions were like that slowly ate away at your insides.  Love was a powerful emotion.  It was one always used to reflect such positivity, yet she knew how destructive it could be.  It had been a part of the undoing of her whole world, even though to admit that aloud sounded very dramatic.
 
The tension in his stance was evident and his voice made it crystal clear. However, she was pleased that he respected her enough not to simply tell her to keep her nose out of his business and leave her alone on the sands.   They both knew that she could not follow him into the skies.  He had a sanctuary if he needed one. It seemed that Mesec wasn’t in the business of running away.  Maybe, deep down, there was part of him that actually wanted to have this conversation, as difficult as it was.
 
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Mesec. But I can’t read minds either.  And I can’t tell the future. Unless you’ve been keeping secrets – neither can you. You aren’t going to know until you tell her. But you’re also only considering the negative things that could happen, not any of the other possibilities!” she did her best at keeping the frustration in her voice controlled, and letting the encouragement flow freely. Najya wasn’t stupid.  She knew what she had seen on the beach.  She didn’t know if Ampere loved Mesec, and she wasn’t stupid enough to make such a promise to Mesec.  However, it was clear from the lightning-mare’s actions that she felt something beyond friendship for the moonborn stallion.
 
She knew how easy this would to be brush off, and felt like she had to say something to convince him of how important it was to tell Ampere what was in his heart.  So she spoke again.  This time, her voice was softer.  This time there was a whole plethora of new emotions in her voice.  Regret.  Remorse. Pain. “I can tell you with absolute certainty that you’ll regret not saying anything. I live with that regret, Mesec. I live with it every single day.  I don’t wish that pain upon you,” she said, with little fanfare, and paused for only a brief moment before continuing again.
 
”If she’s your friend she still will be after you tell her, Mesec, regardless if she shares your feelings or not,” she finished, with the encouragement back in her voice, though the pain still resonated there, echoing in the empty hallways of a past long gone. 



Najya
& Mesec

image credits


@Mesec

Please tag NAJYA in all replies. 
Force & magic are permitted, but please check before inflicting serious injury.
Thank you!
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Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#7
-

No, Mesec couldn’t read minds and though his ears twitched in annoyance at Najya’s lecture it was mostly because she made sense and he wasn’t willing to admit it - outloud or to himself. He knew he was dwelling on the negative but he didn’t want to entertain the positive outcomes out of fear of getting his hopes up. Wasn’t it better to just expect the worst and be pleasantly surprised if something better did happen?

In a somewhat desperate and not exactly kind effort to avoid talking about himself any longer, Mesec grasped at the chance to turn the conversation around. “Who was it?” He asked the question softly, curious but aware of the guilt that settled on him as he said it and his silver gaze moved from her and to his front hoof that continued to shuffle against the sand.

“Sorry. Please, you don’t have to answer that - it’s not fair of me to ask.” Not the best deflection technique he could have used and she would likely have seen through it in an instant. He just didn’t have an argument set up for what she had said and sought something, anything, to buy him time to further mull over what she said. It made sense, annoyingly so, but while it sounded easy it didn’t feel that easy. Was it just a matter of being on the outside of the situation to make things seem clear? Surely he might have given similar advice to a friend but without personal experience to pull on. He wasn’t thinking quite that clearly at the moment, however, but he clearly enough to quickly follow up his question with an apology.

He sighed, resigned to the fact that he wasn’t going to escape talking about it - he couldn’t escape how much sense Najya was making unless he actually physically ran away from her… and that wasn’t an option. It would only make things worse. “Even if I was going to go say something to her -” And he looked over to her then, a small tug of a smile on the corner of his mouth as he added: “And I’m not saying I will. But if I did. What do I even say? How do you start that conversation? Or do I just wait for it to happen to come up one day?”


and that's me, that's me, the boy with the broken halo
that's me, that's me ________________ the devil won't let me be

artwork by the fabulous tamme


@Najya
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times

smitty the swift Posts: 22
Administrator
Mare :: Other :: 1 :: 1
#8
unarchived per request

Najya Posts: 90
Dragon's Throat Alchemist atk: 7 | def: 10 | dam: 4
Mare :: Equine :: 15.1 :: 7 (Tallsun) HP: 67.5 | Buff: NOVICE
A'mal :: Plain White Dragon :: Shock Breath Kiki
#9

It seemed that her past was determined not to stay there, but perhaps she owed an explanation to Mesec. He had earned her trust, after all.  She didn’t think he would take the information she was about to give him and manipulate it in some way.  She knew him better than that.  She only hoped that maybe her story could be helpful to him – maybe he could avoid such a fate. “No. It’s okay.  You’re allowed to ask.  I think you’re entitled to know something about my past,” she offered Mesec a sad looking smile.  She could see the war of emotions clearly in his eyes, though she didn’t know which emotion was winning.
 
“I came from a desert land far away from here – you know that much.  It was a peaceful place, with many herds ruled by one leader – Shahan.  He was respected by the people, but in his youth he was feared.  He couldn’t keep a consort for more than a night or two – and most of them disappeared soon after the crowning ceremony.  Rumors spread that he made a habit of executing the queens that displeased him.  Eventually, Shahan began having to travel to more distant herds in order to find a suitable consort. Herds began to fear his visits – fearing their daughters would be taken. And one day he came to my herd, and so did the whispers.  Instead of waiting for someone to be plucked from the crowd, I volunteered to stand as his consort.  Not because I wanted a crown, not because I wanted to flee my family, but because I was curious if the stories were true.  I wanted to know what his story was. 
 
In the end, he only wanted to know my story, and the stories I told. He was not a brutal soul, nor was he a butcher of those who displeased him.  Those who had been presented to him were either the most vapid, shallow of creatures seeking only a crown or spies sent from other regions.  None met their end at his hooves – but were exiled to the dunelands depending on the accusations.   The rumors had done their work. But the Shahan I was presented to was bitter and resentful due to his treatment – he had no trust left.  So every night I’d tell him a story, but never told him the ending before the end of the night.  ’Until tomorrow,’ I’d tell him.  He’d receive the ending in the morning, and then I’d leave him until the evening when he’d receive a new story for the day.  This is how we lived for a time – eventually slipping into telling our own personal stories.  It was not an arrangement born of love, but eventually we grew very close to each other.  He involved me into politics, he introduced me to diplomats, and the rumors of the butcher king all but disappeared.  He was my closest friend, my confident  - and I was his.”
Her face began to change as her voice drifted off.  Her features became stony, her eyes were drawn to the ground.
 
Her story had been happy until this point.  But there was no more happiness to be drained from her memories.  She let out a soft, defeated sigh and continued, never lifting her eyes from the ground.  “And then the invasion came.”
 
As if unable to stand it, Najya squeezes her eyes shut, and continues her story. “They came at night – the mountain clans.  The guards were largely caught unaware, for the attack was well planned.”  As Najya began speaking, something strange began to happen.  Figures made of light slowly began to form, playing out the story she was telling in real time.  “We didn’t hear them until it was too late – too many had fallen already to mount an attack and there were not enough guards left to protect us.”  Her breath stuttered, but the shapes only solidified further – one shape was undeniably Najya and the other was a taller figure with the same curved ears.  “Shahan barred the entrance and revealed a secret way out.  He begged me – pleaded with me to go – to run as far away from this place as I could.  He said that he’d block the way – he’d hold them off to give me a chance.  He said it was his last gift to me – and implored me to take it.  He needed me to live.  Because he loved me.”  Tears slipped between her eyelids that were still pressed tightly closed, almost as if she knew she had conjured Shahan’s image and seeing him again would be too painful.
 
“He wouldn’t come with me.  He pushed me through the opening - he made me promise to go - and then he was gone.  And I did what I promised him.  I ran.  I ran until I couldn’t and then I ran some more.  Eventually I found Helovia.”  The figures melted away and her eyes slowly slid open, though her vision was clouded and her breath was still uneven.
 
“I never got to tell him, Mesec.  I never got the chance to tell him I loved him.  Because I was scared.  Because I was stupid enough to think that circumstances would never change and I’d have time.  But I didn’t have time.  And now he’s gone.  And I have to live with the fact that he died never knowing that I loved him too.”  She was panting by the time she finished, and tears streamed down her face.  She felt ready to fall to her knees and lighter than she had been in months all at once.  It was a strange catharsis – telling someone all that’s been weighing on her.  But she hadn’t told him this for it to weigh on him.  She just wants him to know that there are consequences. She took a deep breath, calming her ragged breathing, and finally dragged her eyes up to meet Mesec’s gaze.
 
“There’s never a right moment.  There’s never a right way to have the conversation.  Just…don’t wait because fate may never give you the chance to say something. That regret weighs heavier than any heartbreak.”



Najya
& Mesec

image credits


@Mesec

I think we broke her.

Please tag NAJYA in all replies. 
Force & magic are permitted, but please check before inflicting serious injury.
Thank you!
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Mesec the Nightwind Posts: 476
World's Edge Glazier atk: 5.5 | def: 9 | dam: 5
Stallion :: Tribrid :: 16.3hh :: 7 years old HP: 76 | Buff: NOVICE
Lucius :: Royal Zephyr :: Roc & Lyra :: Common Kitsune :: Dreams Sarah
#10
-

The demigod and zephyr pair stayed quiet as Najya began her story, both pairs of silver eyes not leaving her face once as she began. From how she had been running when they first met, how she had been troubled by the invasion in the Falls, Mesec had suspected some of what she had said but there was no preparation for the entirety of it. Small smiles tugged at his mouth at the beginning, the happy part, but the story soon turn a turn for the worse.

Mesec was moving his foreleg to take a step toward her, to do what he could to comfort her as she confronted her pain because of a careless question from him, but he was stopped and his silver eyes widened in surprised. As Najya spoke, her story became visible.  Light began to dance around her but quickly took form, small figures - although they were made of nothing but light he figured out who was Najya and who must have been Shanan. Lucius emitted a low, quiet call of pain - leaving Mesec’s wings to go land on the sand beneath Najya’s legs. He did not like to be on the ground but he was large enough now that he was aware his talons could accidentally cause harm to the mare if he were to land on her back. So he leaned into her leg instead, offering what support he could as his silver and violet eyes were bright with the light of her stories.

Mesec stood where he was for now, not wanting any more movement to distract or interrupt her now.

There was nothing he could say to make this any better for her, nothing he could do to take away that pain, but he moved closer toward her and reached out to nudge her muzzle softly with his. “I’m so sorry, Najya.” Quiet words - his silver eyes sad. No, he could not do much for her beyond comfort - and a promise that he would do his best to learn from her story. He appreciated that she trusted him enough to tell him her story and he wasn’t going to let that be in vain. “I’ll tell her. The next time I see her, I’ll find a way.”

He smiled at her then, small and warm as he took a step backward to get out of her space once more - his eyes showing his admiration for the mare before him, this friend he had made by such chance. “I just need to find some strength, if you could just let me some of yours.”

and that's me, that's me, the boy with the broken halo
that's me, that's me ________________ the devil won't let me be

artwork by the fabulous tamme


-duct tapes Naj back together again-

@Najya
please tag Mesec in replies
non-life threatening force is allowed at all times


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