**In the aftermath of their battle**
The silver-haired Queen is breathless when finally she backs away from Shenzi. Whatever anger and fury that fueled their battle has long since been doused in nothing short of defeat. Between the mental strain of Natyre’s continued absence and her recent battles with Lucifer, Nyimara is utterly drained.
Pain echoes in each hitching step as the lithe, mahogany woman releases a relinquishing sigh. Finely chiseled maw dips in acknowledgement as she once more closes the distance between herself and the scarred shield maiden.It is hard not to feel the sting of hurt in her heart as she forces her near-black ooids to raise to the judgmental eyes of her companion. For so long, the silvery minx has battled against wounds visible and hidden to bring back the fire of life that had extinguished in the desert-bred mare before her. Shenzi had been a mere shell when Nyimara first found her again, prone amid the dry cacti. Shenzi had opened the door to death, had been ready to accept defeat for wounds she carried far deeper than Nyimara could ever hope to uncover. It had taken a long time for the Shenzi she once knew to resurface…. But not once did she share what had left her in such a state. Not once did she open her heart to the waiting embrace of Nyimara’s open claws. Whatever passion and kindred spirit that had once bound them together was gone, the ends of their bond a tattered remnant left to unravel with each passing breeze. Like the shifting sands that made the Dunes appear alive, the separation between them has grown until the Arabian mare is forced to admit it to herself.
”Why…...” she murmurs from behind clenched jaws. Accusation glistens amid the depthless void of her gaze as she attempts to blink away the swelling emotions of loss that threaten to bring her to her knees. First Bjorn… And now Shenzi. Her first and her savior.
”Why not just talk to me? Have we grown that far apart these days?” She asks, her voice hardening as the chocolate Queen shifts the weight of her frame, trying to lessen the painful throbbing of her wounded shoulder. The battle against Lucifer had bruised it considerably, an advantage that Shenzi used to her benefit. (Not that Nyi blamed her. She would have done the same.) Regardless, that still didn’t answer the questions that have long since tormented her thoughts…. Why. Pale lashes blink slowly over veiled eyes as Nyimara glances at the horizon, not trusting herself in that moment to keep the heartache from her voice. The painful lump in her throat swells and the minx forces herself to swallow past it. This…. She could not… would not let this defeat her. She had already faced more losses than this. She could overcome it. She WOULD overcome it.With an audible snort, the exotic woman tosses her dished facade, resettling the mask of indifference onto her face. Dark eyes harden.
”You have always had your freedom, the only difference is that it also came with my protection….. But I would hate for that to feel like a chain for you…” she finishes, the tattered ends of her silvery-white tail flicking audibly against the dull welts along her sides.