What had Lilliana wanted as a filly?
Those days seem so far away now and she finds it harder and harder to revisit them (though she will always hold those memories close). The River in Beqanna never seems to bubble with laughter the right way and there is no waterfall here that could ever compare to the magnificence of the beacon that had been in Paraiso. Even Hyaline - so similar to the ancient valley that it had achingly tugged at the heartstrings of the two Legacy girls that came to the land of the Sunrise - never manifested as the place that Lilli wanted.
Still, what had she wanted?
There had been days playing as a damsel who was rescued by knights that came in the forms of her noble brothers. There had been days of leaving flowers where Alvaro might find them and know Lilli had found another one of his “secret” places. Days of listening to Jay carve out stories from the cosmos about their creation and pulling legends from the depths of the deepest seas about what dwelled underneath the waves. There had been days with Malachi and Brielle and Aislynn. There had been days with her parents and Orani and Elena.
Days with them.
A narrowed vision, she knows - especially given the wide scope that Beqanna gives her residents in the power they might achieve - for a politician.
Days with them, that was what Lilliana had wanted. In the end, she had (and has) only ever wanted them.
Her ears prick forward and the copper mare smiles good-naturedly at her sun-kissed companion. There is an admission in her words that if @[Shezira] had been given any nickname in her youth, it perhaps hadn’t been kind and that does cause her expression to hesitate. Lilliana can’t picture any reason why the beautiful woman wouldn’t have been given anything but praise. From their albeit brief interaction, there is nothing unkind that she can perceive and the mare is lovely in the wild way that many of the inhabitants here are. There is more to Shezi’s story - like most horses, she reminds herself - and Lilli makes the quiet decision that if the citrine mare ever decides to reveal more, she would like to know it.
Despite her inner thoughts, Lilli smiles rather impishly. "Perhaps you’d like a nickname then?” Her head tilts and the smile turns to a grin, "You could be the Dawn. Or perhaps an Aurora?”
When Shezira shrugs her golden shoulders and speaks of being anywhere home, it ripples through the soul of the chestnut with a fierce ache. "Home,” the copper mare exhales softly. For Lilli, what did it mean? Was it Nerine or was it Taiga? Could it be both? A stubborn part of her still remains true to what she once said - that things shouldn’t have to be this or that. Why couldn’t she belong to two places?
But the answer the wanderer gives is so like the one Lilliana gave once upon a time to a man who dropped from the sky. She had wanted to be anywhere but Beyond that had become filled with the voids of everyone she had loved. "I’m sorry for whatever made you leave,” the Taigan mare offers. She doesn’t mean for it to drop so heavy from her lilting voice and so she tries to uplift the conversation, "But I’m glad to have met you today.” Her features warm with genuine gratitude towards the other mare.
Lilli looks to the shadows that cast longer as the day has gone on and regards them, briefly turning her attention away from the Fjord-like mare. Her words of following the sun is something that the chestnut understands, resonates with her even. When Lilliana turns her head to smile at Shezira again, it is with a look full of appreciation. The mare is looking at the sun but Lilli looks at the mare, not even attempting to hide her admiration.
"I know that,” catching Shezira’s warmth and letting it flood her voice. "My father used to say to listen to the Wind. There was much you could learn from its whisperings.” Her blue eyes lift to the sky then, observing the haloed clouds from the daylight that Shezira seemed to be descended from. "Learning to listen can be hard," she admits before dropping her gaze and looking to her companion again, "But it seems you and the Sun have an understanding."
Those days seem so far away now and she finds it harder and harder to revisit them (though she will always hold those memories close). The River in Beqanna never seems to bubble with laughter the right way and there is no waterfall here that could ever compare to the magnificence of the beacon that had been in Paraiso. Even Hyaline - so similar to the ancient valley that it had achingly tugged at the heartstrings of the two Legacy girls that came to the land of the Sunrise - never manifested as the place that Lilli wanted.
Still, what had she wanted?
There had been days playing as a damsel who was rescued by knights that came in the forms of her noble brothers. There had been days of leaving flowers where Alvaro might find them and know Lilli had found another one of his “secret” places. Days of listening to Jay carve out stories from the cosmos about their creation and pulling legends from the depths of the deepest seas about what dwelled underneath the waves. There had been days with Malachi and Brielle and Aislynn. There had been days with her parents and Orani and Elena.
Days with them.
A narrowed vision, she knows - especially given the wide scope that Beqanna gives her residents in the power they might achieve - for a politician.
Days with them, that was what Lilliana had wanted. In the end, she had (and has) only ever wanted them.
Her ears prick forward and the copper mare smiles good-naturedly at her sun-kissed companion. There is an admission in her words that if @[Shezira] had been given any nickname in her youth, it perhaps hadn’t been kind and that does cause her expression to hesitate. Lilliana can’t picture any reason why the beautiful woman wouldn’t have been given anything but praise. From their albeit brief interaction, there is nothing unkind that she can perceive and the mare is lovely in the wild way that many of the inhabitants here are. There is more to Shezi’s story - like most horses, she reminds herself - and Lilli makes the quiet decision that if the citrine mare ever decides to reveal more, she would like to know it.
Despite her inner thoughts, Lilli smiles rather impishly. "Perhaps you’d like a nickname then?” Her head tilts and the smile turns to a grin, "You could be the Dawn. Or perhaps an Aurora?”
When Shezira shrugs her golden shoulders and speaks of being anywhere home, it ripples through the soul of the chestnut with a fierce ache. "Home,” the copper mare exhales softly. For Lilli, what did it mean? Was it Nerine or was it Taiga? Could it be both? A stubborn part of her still remains true to what she once said - that things shouldn’t have to be this or that. Why couldn’t she belong to two places?
But the answer the wanderer gives is so like the one Lilliana gave once upon a time to a man who dropped from the sky. She had wanted to be anywhere but Beyond that had become filled with the voids of everyone she had loved. "I’m sorry for whatever made you leave,” the Taigan mare offers. She doesn’t mean for it to drop so heavy from her lilting voice and so she tries to uplift the conversation, "But I’m glad to have met you today.” Her features warm with genuine gratitude towards the other mare.
Lilli looks to the shadows that cast longer as the day has gone on and regards them, briefly turning her attention away from the Fjord-like mare. Her words of following the sun is something that the chestnut understands, resonates with her even. When Lilliana turns her head to smile at Shezira again, it is with a look full of appreciation. The mare is looking at the sun but Lilli looks at the mare, not even attempting to hide her admiration.
"I know that,” catching Shezira’s warmth and letting it flood her voice. "My father used to say to listen to the Wind. There was much you could learn from its whisperings.” Her blue eyes lift to the sky then, observing the haloed clouds from the daylight that Shezira seemed to be descended from. "Learning to listen can be hard," she admits before dropping her gaze and looking to her companion again, "But it seems you and the Sun have an understanding."
LILLIANA
all that i'm after is a life full of laughter
(as long as i'm laughing with you)
me: i will not write lix a novel
also me: this post.
but it's all in the past, love
it's all gone with the wind