He couldn't see Rance's smile, but he could feel the warmth of his arm, and the puff of laughter that stirred his wet hair. A hiccup of a laugh escaped at the derogatory name calling, but the murmured assurance a moment later silenced his humor. Alina had been just as elitist as the Hidden purebloods, and he'd run into more than his share of sneers at 'Outlanders' among the native Torchliners. Even Jiao had warned him that his magic would mark him as Abandoned by the gods here...
Rance might miss the elitist attitudes of their homeworld, but Kel had yet to escape them. They had only changed shape and terms, not the disdain, the othering at their core.
But Rance, as far as he knew, had only ever heard of such things second-hand from his own experiences. A true fae, he had always lived in a different world from the halfbreed. A dear friend, but as far out of Kel's reach as his mother so often was.
Hell, he'd seen them about as often once they'd grown up and apart.
None of that mattered now, though. Rance was here and Kel's heart was full to bursting with relief and a growing joy as the fear receded. He burrowed into the brief tightening of the hug, his fingers, flexing against his friend's back as he finally drew a full, deep breath and raised his head enough to rest his temple against Rance's as they spoke. "Thought your breath didn't smell as bad as usual," he tried to tease half-heartedly, not knowing if the wetness against his cheek was from Rance's tears, or his own, or the sea. "How long... how long have you been here?" How long had Kel walked the beach or the ocean or the streets of the Port and only just missed seeing a familiar red head and confident smirk? How often had they almost met, but for the shift of a crowd or the passing of moments?
Rance might miss the elitist attitudes of their homeworld, but Kel had yet to escape them. They had only changed shape and terms, not the disdain, the othering at their core.
But Rance, as far as he knew, had only ever heard of such things second-hand from his own experiences. A true fae, he had always lived in a different world from the halfbreed. A dear friend, but as far out of Kel's reach as his mother so often was.
Hell, he'd seen them about as often once they'd grown up and apart.
None of that mattered now, though. Rance was here and Kel's heart was full to bursting with relief and a growing joy as the fear receded. He burrowed into the brief tightening of the hug, his fingers, flexing against his friend's back as he finally drew a full, deep breath and raised his head enough to rest his temple against Rance's as they spoke. "Thought your breath didn't smell as bad as usual," he tried to tease half-heartedly, not knowing if the wetness against his cheek was from Rance's tears, or his own, or the sea. "How long... how long have you been here?" How long had Kel walked the beach or the ocean or the streets of the Port and only just missed seeing a familiar red head and confident smirk? How often had they almost met, but for the shift of a crowd or the passing of moments?
