Hotaru
nothing's fair in love and war
Close? No. She may wish it, but she is merely another face in the sea of Frey’s supporters. Here, in Caido, where being ascended for demigodhood is the pinnacle of…everything, really, is it any surprise that they would all desire it? Or perhaps it is only her own desire to be loved, to belong, to be more than another number. It’s not so different to how she feels - felt - about Nate and Sunjata. But she is adept at hiding her hurt, especially when he cannot feel her side of the bond when she is in her human form, and this moment deserves to be celebratory instead of…whatever mix of emotions she’s feeling. Admittedly she’s stunned that Frey was not only able to burn Safrin’s shackles from Jata, but that they had. She’s unaware of the relationships between the different heralds but it seems like quite a bold move against a fellow deity. Frankly, Hotaru loves that Frey was shameless enough to say ‘fuck you’ to Safrin so boldly. It’s just as interesting an idea as the passage of time he suggests, and her eyes drop to his beard, taking in the impossible increased length given how she’d seen him mere days ago. “Fire cleanses,” she murmurs, understanding deep in her tone. “It may have lasted an age, but it wasn’t forever. You made it through, and now you’re free.” Free of Safrin’s possessive tendencies, of her shackles and strings, the various manipulations and promises she’d wrung out of the man.
His relief makes her smile back in return, eyes soft with understanding. Though she’s a bit taken aback as he seeks some sort of validation from her. “I can’t say how Nate will feel, or how this will impact Kamaria,” a far more terrifying notion to her, “but I think it was the best choice you could have made. The only way out that gave you more than you would have otherwise lost.” Because she believes without a doubt that he would’ve lost so very much if he’d chosen to Demi for Safrin. “Frey is…amazing. One of the best to be a demigod for, biased as I may be. Promises aside, it’s a far better outcome.”
