Here We Are Again [Private/Ask To Join Only]

At her response, Henrex simply left the pile there, his Tulpa dissipating as quickly as it had formed, with Henrex taking one last glance at the pile of age-old rust and scrap before he stepped into Ci Lan Tsu's tent, quietly kneeling on the floor out of habit. Shortly after he was beckoned inside and he had... "seated", himself, Ci Lan handed him a small bottle.

Taking a small peek inside, and the scent immediately being registered from his heightened senses, he genuinely couldn't see anything different about it. It was normal -- a sense of normal that just...made him uneasy. Blinking twice as if that would do anything, he took a glance at Ci Lan as she rested on her bed, explaining the effects of the substance, which only made him more confused.

There wasn't any sense of anxiety that he could feel in himself -- just the confusion about what this was, and why she was giving it to him. However, not long after that, Ci Lan -- breaking her rather calm and collected demeanor with a brief sharp and vulgar quip, stripped herself, leaving the half-breed in front of her...rather speechless, as well as red-faced.

A heavy blush spread across his cheeks faster than a new version of anything by Microsoft needing to be patched. The young man's jaw hung ajar as he processed everything in front of him. The first thing that he could think of was that...well, Ulv wasn't kidding about Ci Lan wanting his children. But, at the same time, there was also the thought of Taichou.

The woman had been away for quite some time, and it was something that hurt him, just thinking about it -- yet, there was still a stubborn ember of hope that burned inside him. This caused his gaze to falter, turning to the ground and his mouth to close. A hand slowly rose from his side, resting at his chest as he rose to his feet, swallowing hard as his eyes became hidden through his hair.

"...I can't. There's someone important to me, that I love. I don't want to do this, her to come back, and risk breaking her heart. It would hurt too much. I don't want either of us to go through any more pain."

Despite saying this, he remained frozen, unable to bring himself to move. A conflict also burned in his heart as his hand dropped to his side, a fist clenched tighter than steel as he stood there -- unsure of why he even still standing there. He missed the woman he loved, yet there was still this desire to be accepted and loved that he wanted, someone that would be present in his evermore chaotic life.

But, he wanted to keep his loyalty and hope towards her. Ironically, it was a constant vicious cycle -- just like the one he wanted to be broken in the world around him.