[Folkmore IC Inbox][un: forestwatcher]

[forestwatcher]

forestwatcher

You've reached Tighnari. I'm not able to answer right now, so just leave a message and I'll get back to you when I can.

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[cashewlater]

[ oh, that makes cyno smile. ]

.. I'd heard about that, a little bit, yes.

[ and he'd certainly thought about it, about what it would be like to form that bond with tighnari, but he hadn't wanted to push, had preferred that tighnari decide whether he wanted to offer it on his own. with a soft, pleased chuff, he nuzzles the ear against his face. ]

Have you been thinking about it?

[forestwatcher]

Mm, I've been thinking about it.

[And much like Cyno he had been hesitant to offer it, not wanting the other man to feel like it was some kind of obligation if he did, but in this matter it would seem that Cyno's patience is the one that won out.

Tighnari doesn't really mind, though.]

I can't think of anyone else I'd be comfortable with being able to see so much of me.

[cashewlater]

[ something warm and giddy builds in cyno's chest, a fuzzy, happy sort of excitement, as if he were a young schoolboy whose crush had just said yes to a first date. no matter how long he has known tighnari, no matter how long they have been together, this sort of thing always pleases him. the idea of being even closer to him.. he could never turn it down.

cyno smiles, his expression warm and soft, and he weaves his fingers through tighnari's. ]

Let's do it.

[forestwatcher]

Yeah?

[As easy as that, huh? Though Tighnari hadn't expected it to be a difficult conversation, it is a kind of commitment that they wouldn't have had in Sumeru. Far and beyond simply being in a relationship.

Tighnari straightens up and looks at Cyno seriously, his head slightly cocked to one side.]

You're sure? You know what it entails, don't you?

[cashewlater]

[ that easy, indeed. he's already accepted the fact that tighnari mates for life, that this is it for them, so what more is a further bond? even if it will make them closer than they have ever been. ]

Well, it's a psychic bond, yes? So I will feel you, and you will feel me, even if we are apart from one another.

[ this sounds honestly ideal to cyno.. he's always worrying about tighnari. ]

[forestwatcher]

... That's right.

[And he knows where Cyno's mind is going. He worries, and something like this..? It would mean he didn't have to, potentially... or it could make it worse. Not that Tighnari goes out of his way to get himself into trouble.

He smiles, leaning in to kiss his partner gently.]

I hear it's easy enough to do...

[So they could just do it whenever they wanted to, right?]

[cashewlater]

[ yeah.. yeah it could definitely make it worse, if tighnari gets himself into trouble somehow, but even then, cyno would rather know than not. if something happens to either of them, the other would be the first to know. he likes the sound of that.

an exhale puffs against tighnari's lips, and they kiss, warm and gentle, cyno's arms loose around his partner. he touches their brows together. ]

So.. now, then?

[ now, please. ]

Or do you want some fancy ceremony?

[ he doubts it. tighnari has never been one for bells and whistles. ]

[forestwatcher]

[He lets out a little snort.]

No, nothing like that.

[Naturally, Cyno was right. Some kind of fancy ceremony is the last thing he'd want - all that matters to him is the bond itself, and making sure that Cyno really wants it too.]

... I want to be yours, in as many ways as you'll have me, for as long as you'll have me.

[cashewlater]

[ his guess was correct, though that's no surprise, given how well they know one another. honestly, he's sure that tighnari knows him better than he knows himself, sometimes.

but those words.. they stir something in his breast, a gentle warmth that spreads along his limbs. he's always been a bit of a romantic, and developing this relationship with tighnari has only invigorated it further. both hands lift, cradling tighnari's face between them, his thumbs smoothing over soft skin. ]

Always. I'll have you always.


[ he murmurs, touching their brows together. ]

And I'll be by your side. You mean more to me than words could ever express, Tighnari.

[ and cyno isn't always good with words, so instead he tips his chin forward, and presses their lips together. ]

[forestwatcher]

Then it's settled.

[And so easily. Not that he had expected anything else. Tighnari exhales softly and smiles after the soft kiss Cyno presses to his lips, and then he opens his eyes and brings his hands up to touch the ones cupping his face.

To so many, the General Mahamatra is an intimidating, fear-inspiring person. For Tighnari..? He's an awkward TCG nerd who tells terrible jokes and LARPs when he's excited. How two such different worlds can exist in the same person could be said to be a mystery, and yet there they are.]

I more than agree to be your Familiar, and only yours.

[He looks into Cyno's eyes as he says it, sealing his side of the bond.]

[cashewlater]

[ the way tighnari looks at him.. it's intense, and heavy, the way that a warm, weighted blanket might feel when enveloping you thoroughly. cyno allows himself to sink into the comfort of it with a soft sigh, his eyelids flickering momentarily shut.

and so it is done. he feels it - a sensation not unlike the movement of elemental energy in his body, but a different texture. there's a distinct warmth that settles into his bones, something soft burrowing into his heart and nestling there, making a home for itself. it's a feeling of companionship, of abject loyalty and the erasure of loneliness, as if all the dark corners of his mind are being lit up.

an exhale shivers out of him, and he touches their brows together, silent for a moment as he allows himself to grow accustomed to the feeling. ]

[forestwatcher]

[As it's done, Tighnari's entire body gives a little twitch. He holds his breath for a moment without realising and then lets it out in a rush as his mind lurches and then re-settles, the addition of something new but not at all unwelcome folding around the corners of his thoughts. Something that is not entirely him but feels like it fits against him with such ease that it might as well have always been there.]

Cyno--...

[It's him. That sensation of protection and loyalty and warm, unending love. It's Cyno. Tighnari's heart leaps and then rushes along, beating hard in his ears as emotion wells up in him and tightens in his throat.]

Gods, it's...

[It's so much.]

[cashewlater]

[ it is so much, and like as not the only reason that cyno is taking it in stride is due to the fact that he's kind of used to having a passenger alongside his own spirit; hermanubis has been with him so long now that cyno hardly knows what it feels like to be entirely alone.

but this is still different, this is tighnari nestling into his heart, tighnari in all of his strength and sharpness, his compassion and love. ]

I know.

[ his voice is a low murmur, his eyes still closed as he gathers tighnari up into his strong arms, his pulse racing. he can feel the intensity of tighnari's emotions, how much this is affecting him. ]

It's strange, but you'll get used to it.

[forestwatcher]

[He doesn't have any regrets at all, but nothing could have quite prepared him for what this would really feel like. Every bond is different and there was no way to really predict how theirs would manifest, but sharing one another's feelings seems... appropriate. No, he wouldn't have this any other way, and even as he shivers and struggles against his spiked emotions he feels utterly safe in Cyno's arms.

A few minutes pass in silence. Tighnari keeps his forehead pressed to Cyno's shoulder and his eyes closed, his ears pinned back and tails flicking slowly from side to side as he sinks into his new mental reality.]

I'm all right.

[And he is. Truly. He sits up a little to press a kiss to Cyno's lips.]

I'm not sure what I expected.

[cashewlater]

[ cyno holds him while tighnari adjusts, one hand smoothing down his back and up again, rubbing in slow, gentle circles, his calluses catching on the back of tighnari's shirt. his free hand, meanwhile, sinks into those soft tails, stroking impossibly soft fur, feeling their warmth.

then comes a soft kiss, and cyno's mouth curves into a smile. ]

It feels strange, I know. Though I've had Hermanubis with me for so long now that I forget what it was like to be alone in my own mind.

[ both a blessing and a curse, really. ]

[forestwatcher]

[Tighnari smiles again, calmer and more settled, wiggling forwards slightly towards his partner as Cyno's fingers dig into his tail. It's hard not to feel at ease around him, comfortable, and he can't think of anyone more suited to share this kind of experience with him.]

I suppose it's just as well that I can't sense your spirit too.

[He shakes his head.]

One of you is more than enough.

[And while he's joking about it, he does realise he really should have considered the possibility that Hermanubis would make this a very complicated threesome. Thank Celestia for small mercies.]

[cashewlater]

Heh, should I take that as an insult?

[ he isn't, but it's fun to tease. cyno might not be a big, loud personality like someone like kaveh, but he knows that he's intense, despite how quiet he is. hauling tighnari close, cyno rumbles affectionately as he nuzzles along tighnari's jaw, dropping a soft line of kisses there. ]

You ready for bed? Or did that wake you up too much?

[forestwatcher]

[He doesn't answer the first question. It's not an insult, after all, and Cyno knows that very well. Now the initial shock is over and he's settled more into the new sensations it feels... easier. Better.

Tighnari breathes out a slow sigh, then shakes his head.]

No, I think going to bed sounds like a good idea.

[If only to settle down and have a cuddle, which is definitely not an ulterior motive of Tighnari's...]

[cashewlater]

[ cyno is always game for a cuddle, so tighnari's ulterior motives will surely bear fruit..

with a soft smile, cyno brushes his lips across tighnari's brow, closing his eyes and enjoying his nearness, before he pulls back to allow them to settle into bed. thankfully cyno is already dressed down for the evening, so he doesn't need to change his clothes, he can simply lie comfortably back and wait for his partner.

resting his head back against the headboard, cyno watches tighnari with hooded eyes. ]

I'm so incredibly fond of you, do you know that?

[forestwatcher]

I had an inkling of it, yes.

[Tighnari does have to move away to get himself ready and comfortable but he isn't gone long, returning to his partner within a few minutes and flopping down against his side as if all the energy had been pulled out of him. He hums, stretching himself entirely against Cyno's side and sticking his nose against the other man's jawline.]

I might just be a little fond of you as well.

[Just a little.]