[The small snort that could almost be laughter probably says well enough that Nie Mingjue agrees whole-heartedly. Fate did fuck up with that snake. But boy does he have some gossip on that.] I think he's turning into a snake now. He has the slitted yellow eyes of one. [He hasn't gotten close enough to see the tail he hides, or he'd be crowing about that too.] At least this place has put its own brand on him.

[It's put a brand on Nie Mingjue as well, but the tiger stripes creeping up the sides of his neck from under his collar are easier to stomach. If he has to be a beast, at least he is the king of beasts. ...Part king of beasts. The crocodile skin patches are lower, easier to hide.] If I return I only die again. It's the same for him. [Neither of them have anything to go back to. It doesn't quite seem fair but that's the stark reality of their situation.]

Yes, something like that. Normally we come through mirrors in a cottage on the Coven's grounds. At least, that is how the rest of us arrived.