Don't look back in anger, I heard her say

another mind, another soul, another body to grow old. it's not complicated. Otem wears her bravery well, despite the nearly constant pulling on her mane and tail. She tries to mask the way her face winces when they grab pieces that are too small - the kind that really hurt and feel more like a pinch than a pull. Sometimes it works, but other times it does not, and Otem is almost certain that when she fails to mask just how much the constant pulling is effecting her, she can hear the laughter swell around her. "How about this way." Otem sneers under her breath, though she does so clearly hoping that the spirits will not hear. Her insides feel like jelly, and although she is bolding striding through, almost every part of her wants to turn back. "Didn't anyone tell you it's rude to pull a girl's hair?!" She adds, flicking her tail and offering a small half-hearted buck towards where she last felt a spirit's presence behind her. Following the opening left by the spirits, Otem grit her teeth, wondering how long it would take before she had answered the spirits. Would the Rift let her know? Would it make them stop?

_{art by Chloe!}