Felih refuses to give up, and it's not long until he's draped his arms over the Exarch's shoulders and pulled him close, clutching tightly at him while a hand tangles into the long white mane, and he wonders what happened to the beautiful crimson it had once been. His features frozen in time by crystal, young as he remembered, but the eyes so weary and pained and terrified.

"You don't get to decide that," Felih whispers against his neck, on the side of Raha's good ear. "I decide who and what I care about. And you- you... you've no idea how I've longed to see you again..."

There's tears pouring down his cheeks as he nuzzles at cold crystal, heart breaking into pieces as he realizes how the man's body has truly been ravaged by time and the Tower, nearly unrecognizable.