The belle questioned her apology, she began to tremble as she denied its necessity. Oh, but it was necessary, it was needed, it was justified and it did little to alleviate the guilt she felt for bringing this terror upon her family. What other choice did she have? Mirage was not a warmonger, she would not lead an army to invade lands they did not need, she would not risk her kin on unknown grounds to fight in the name of loved ones lost.. But was this any better? Few had missed the foals those of rank had been kidnapping, and while she had no intention of holding them for longer than necessary, the DragonHeart hated that it had come to that. She could justify it millions of times over and still she came to the same conclusion - it was not as if she did this without thought, but that did not lessen the fact that it impacted some of her own far more heavily than she cared to admit.

The shadow mare didn't respond to Res' words of denial, she merely held the girl in the curve of her nape, clinging to the trembling girl, wishing the shock of the battle to be cleansed from her. Let Mirage absorb it, let her take the weight of all her worries and concerns and obliterate them into the abyss. How long had Mirage fought with her own demons? All her life, she had been taught to hide her emotions, and yet all they did was continue to build up, to become more intense - it was dangerous for her to reveal anything aside from that which she controlled and chose to show. The sheer intensity, the force of her feelings was overwhelming for those outside her own family tree, and so the armour she wore was impenetrable and strong. It had been a shock for her, when others began to follow her, to take her personal strength as something to be admired, to be worshipped. It had all fallen into stride for her, to lead them, to successfully provide them with a home, and then to help them defend that home when it was threatened.

"Hush, now." Her voice was soothing and soft, as Res continued to try and insist she should be working. Akaith would tell them if they were needed immediately, there was no need to shift their position right now. There was healing to be done here too, for both of them had suffered similar wounds internally, both needed the other possibly more than each of them realised.

"Forgive me," she said as the mare spoke of the Qian, of not knowing about the group Mirage had bestowed the name upon, the group who followed her originally, the group who supported her cause and still do, to this day. "The Qian is the name given to us before we took the Edge.. It is what I call the herd still. The Qian began as a group of us believing in the same ideals, in peace and equality, in protecting those who need protection… You embody these ideals even without knowing it." The mare finished with a shadow of a smile touching her lips, as she met the girl's teary gaze, happily returning the gentle caresses she offered, leaning into her slightly, just as Res shyly leaned into her own dark frame.

"Is bravery not facing a trial even when you think the outcome is hopeless?" The DragonHeart questioned the mare lightly, curious to know her answer. "Plenty in this world bothers me, Res. But if I let it affect me for too long, I cannot hope to lead those I love in the manner they deserve."

@[Resplendence]