fragile minds

They'd settled on the ground, she was right there, in front of him. It was surreal; he wondered what Inala might think of the face from the past. He'd have to write her; and hope the winds carried his message to wherever she might be these days.

I'm proud of you, Shae. He reached to slip an arm around her, as she sagged against his side. Her eyes were closed, like she might expect an assault, or perhaps he'd throw her in the ocean mist and leave her here alone. You survived.

She talked about the stars, and he chuckled, letting his gaze lift to the sky. The stars were truly beautiful, when there was no unnatural light to dim their glory.

And her confession is met with silence. His grip on her loosened slightly, We've all killed people, Shae. It's part of surviving. The bit about being a shard caused him to exhale softly, That is troublesome. But it isn't the end of the world. Even though someone possessed by a shard had tried to kill him and had almost succeeded.

He squeezed her in a half-hug, face tilted to the stars. We'll get rid of your shard... when you're ready. He stated, that had been his issue with Carasson. The shard had had too harsh a hold on him, and he had offended the spirit when he'd tried to rid his boyfriend of it.

He wasn't stupid enough to make that mistake twice.

But tonight, we'll sit here and watch the stars.