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Genji walked toward the nearly-disappeared sun, the glow from his chest stretching forward just enough to light the ground a couple of steps ahead. His sides heaved with exertion as he climbed up the steep path, a handful of fairly fresh wounds slowly oozing, his head hanging low and his balance unsteady. He’d won that last fight but it hadn’t been easy, and he was very obviously in bad shape. Some part of him hoped he wouldn’t come across anything or anyone hostile, but he was in completely new territory. The rest of him just didn’t care…his heart hurt more than any injury could. He didn’t know how long exactly he had been roaming around recklessly picking fights he wasn’t sure he could win, but he figured it was probably the better part of a year at this point. Long enough that he was starting to consider the idea of actually dealing with his feelings instead of running from them, but so far nothing had given him enough of a push. Not that he was doing much in the way of looking for one, but after his lifemates died he just figured the universe was toying with him and there wasn’t much point in trying to do much of anything purposeful. As far as Genji was concerned, he might as well just wait for whatever was supposed to be next to happen to him in its own time.
Unexpectedly, in the fading light, out of the corner of his eye he thought he saw not one, not two, but THREE moons low in the sky. He closed his eyes and shook his lowered head, trying to clear the fatigue, and bumped into something large and warm and solid. His eyes snapped open only to see enormous clawed paws next to his hooves, and in a panic he scrambled a few paces backwards, getting ready to defend himself. He knew this was NOT the time to have to fight a pawed anything but he was clearly already in some sort of a pickle. With a gulp, Genji raised his head, and… stared straight into a gorgeous pair of softly golden eyes. His mouth fell open slightly in surprise, and before he could think of what he actually might want to say in a resigned, weary tone he muttered, “please don’t make me have to fight you.”
(395 words)