[As much as Dan Heng wants to explain himself, the words simply won't form. He feels too much, and he knows he'll say the wrong thing or explain it in a way that won't make sense because of it. That Blade tells him it's okay and strokes his hair brings him comfort. It makes him relax his grip marginally.

At least Blade understands that this is something he hasn't forgiven himself for and is hard to talk about. Dan Heng's past still has him bound in chains. Though he struggles against them, even he has to yield to the ones that are too strong for him at the moment. If it's even possible to break them.

The High Elder is silent as he listens. He tilts his head slightly into the kiss planted in his hair, but he remains quiet for a few heartbeats longer.]

I... can't trust myself to be selfish yet. Too many had been hurt.

[Too many hurt, and all of them let the blame fall onto Dan Heng's shoulders for Dan Feng's crimes. Even Blade. Even Jingliu. Perhaps even Jing Yuan. No matter who he is or the different person he's become in the next life, that blame follows him as an unwanted shadow. Dan Heng can't dismiss it out of hand entirely... but he also doesn't want to fall into those same pitfalls the previous Dan Heng did.]

But I know you can break free from that cycle. I know you will.

[Never has that been in any doubt. Blade will someday reclaim what he's lost and make his own future.]

I have much to overcome myself. [Dan Heng takes a deep breath and then looks up at Blade's face.] But I will show you that I'm still one of the Nameless at heart. I can still blaze a trail for myself.

[He'll prove that he's just as much a Trailblazer as he is Imbibitor Lunae.]