"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
The winter weather made the swim to the isle a bit harder on the stallion. But, he made a promise and he was going to keep it. The swim though had been a few days ago and now he was all dry and exploring as he liked. He had a plan though he needed to touch base with Nalia. The white stag wanted to keep up with her making sure she was fine after their first breeding. His pink nostrils flared some taking up the scents on the air hoping to catch the winged mares somewhere.
The isle was not large but still there were plenty of places to hide. Not, that Nalia would be hiding just yet. Spring was around the corner though and maybe the need to find a place to nest was with in her already. Ard swung his ears around some and then looked around as he moved through a small cropping of trees nickering only when he had spotted the winged mare.
“ Nalia..” He offered his voice to her moving closer to the mare takin in the sight of her and the smell. He grew stiff at her smell and shook his head calming himself once more and offered her a light touch of his muzzle to her back.
Out under the sky...
@[Nalia]
You’ve mistaken the stars reflected on the surface of the lake at night for the heavens.
When the entire mess with the Plague started and Nalia found out about the Isle, she didn't know how she really felt because Nerine had already been spreading itself thin. In between residents that were sick, trying to keep out those who were severely infected, and trying to find a new refuge to try and escape the sickness, life had been very crazy.
Add in that once the Isle was discovered, many horses left the mainland to try and claim it for their own. Nalia had gone there herself, mostly out of curiosity, but also to check in with the other Nerinians who had gone there. At one point, she'd even followed a quest to the Isle to try and help find a cure for the plague. Unfortunately, to this day, the defeat still stung, and left a reminder in the form of the ice crystals in her mane and tail.
Not that she minded them anymore. It wasn't the appearance of the crystals themselves that bothered her, it was just the fact they were there. It was a painful reminder of her failure. The filly had tried to put it behind her, knowing that dwelling on the past would not do her future any good when it came to pulling her weight in Nerine and on the Isle, but she still had a lot to learn about forgive and forget, even when it came to herself.
But her current condition had given the filly a lot of time for self-thought these days. She swore it was already the pregnancy getting to her; she'd been thinking more deeply about things she hadn't recalled in years, reassesing current situations troubling Nerine to see if she could help remedy things. She didn't know why this whole thing seemed to be making her... mature wasn't necessarily the word. That came with age and experience, so she didn't really have a description right now.
Not knowing that her stallion was journeying her to the Isle to see her, the filly, not sensing any danger, made her way out to one of the meadows among the mountains stretching toward the sky. Even though it was still winter, the snow was already starting to melt, exposing the ground underneath. Not all of it was covered in grass, but what she could find by pawing away the snow, she was eager to snatch it up, her body reminding her she wasn't just eating for herself anymore.
The filly had just finished moving aside another patch of snow and ripping up some more grass when she heard her stallion's voice. Lifting her sculpted head, her tapered muzzle twitching a few more times as she swallowed the grass she'd been chewing, she watched as Ardashir moved through the trees to meet her, speaking in a quiet voice.
Nalia watched as Ardashir's posture changed, making her think he was troubled by something. The stallion shook his head before moving closer to her, resting his furry muzzle on her back. Nalia's spine had started to dip in slightly due to the increasing weight of the little one, not that it was extremely noticeable given how young and fit she was.
The filly, without moving her body, turned her head and stretched out her neck, brushing her muzzle against the stallion's shoulder, "Hello Ardashir. Don't worry, the little one is fine," she told him, briefly glancing down at her growing belly, hidden beneath her wings, before back up at the stallion.
"Is everything all right love? You seem to have something important on your mind."
The stallion would make a long content sigh as he touched the painted grulla mare taking in her scent a moment. Ardashir relaxed as the two stood in the meadow the slight breeze ruffling his thick winter hair. The stag was not particularly stressed out by anything at the moment and had simply wanted to be with his mare. Nalia offered up a greeting and told him that the little one was doing fine. Ard chuckled deeply and smiled at her touch.
The world of winter on the isle was an almost silent one. The snow muffled a lot of sounds that spring and summer liked to express at full volume. The creaking of the trees were a calming sound as they slowly swayed back and forth with their bare arms grasping at the sky almost begging for some leaves. The pines though kept up their greenery under the coating of snow they gathered in storms. Everything seemed so distant in the winter. But, as the two horses stood together at least a few things came together in the cold and shared precious time.
“ Everything is alright I just wanted to see you. And, make sure that the isle was not putting undo stress on you in finding food.” He lifted his head from her back feeling the muscles under his chin to be strained probably due to the hanging of her belly. “ As for anything else going on in this big head of mine...hmmm..” He took a moment to think it all over wiggling his nose some and closing his eyes. “ Leilan wanted to speak to me. Sounds like he wanted to ask me something important. I am thinking he might want me to stay close on the isle incase of trouble.” He paused and swung his tail a couple times, “ And maybe a silly little question. I never asked when we first met. But..” He paused and sighed deeply, “ What does it feel like to fly?” He asked the mare and tried to keep that mature stallion facade as his eyes clearly looked like those of a starry eyed foal.
Out under the sky...
@[Nalia]
You’ve mistaken the stars reflected on the surface of the lake at night for the heavens.
"So far the island has been treating me fairly. It has been difficult to find food at times, especially when the snow had built up, but I managed through it. With spring approaching as well, the grass will soon reappear and provide for those here who need it more than I do."
Nalia missed the warmth of the stallion's muzzle when he lifted it off her back, but said nothing as he pondered his thoughts before telling Nalia one of the reasons, besides seeing her, that he came to the Isle. She was touched that he would say that first, something that motivated her to run her muzzle along the thick muscles of his neck. What Ardashir said Leilan wished to speak of troubled her, but the stallion had already moved on before Nalia could say anything.
What he asked her... surprised her, to say the least. All this time they'd known each other and he hadn't ever asked that... the filly couldn't help but chuckle a little before she got herself under control long enough to offer her experiences.
"Well, it took some getting used to, especially since I didn't have a teacher growing up," she began. "But, when I grew, and could take to the sky for the first time... that was an all-new experience in itself... I remember looking down at the ground, it scared me... I didn't know how I would get down... but then, when I got higher, and saw a few birds next to me...
"For whatever reason, being able to fly that high, it gave me hope for my life... I felt different from my herd, but when I was in the sky, I didn't have to worry about what they thought of me... I found a place I could call my own... even when I returned, and was made fun of by the others, I always knew I could return to the sky, because it would welcome me."
Nalia turned to look at the starry-eyed stallion, "But to others, it's much like how the dolphins play in the water. It makes you feel free, feeling the wind in your mane, it's breathtaking."
When she was done, her gaze turned serious, "But now it's my turn to ask a question. Is there trouble? Has something been stirring in the Isle that warranted Leilan to request you stay close by?"
Nodded his head some as she spoke of how the winter was treating her and the unborn foal within that large belly she was sporting. He knew the struggles of keeping something nurushing with in reach of your maw. Spring and summer were better seasons for getting the weight back on and fall rolled into that mix as well. It was the cycle of life that all the horses of all the lands followed. Mares though had the extra effort in fall when breeding started and you had to start putting on for two rather than one.
If horses could purr the large stallion would have when Nalia ran her muzzle along his neck some. Instead the stall made a cuffing like noise down deep in his throat and pressed his own nose against the mares neck. Moving his lips a little against her darker colored fur attempting to tickle her a bit. Nalia chuckled at his question and Ard had his own small chuckle. It might be something silly to ask but, when that nip of curiosity starts on the back of your mind you have to jump at it.
He listened to her speak of how flying made her feel free, like she had some secret place she could run to when she needed. The sky seemed a place of relaxation for her. That made the stallion smile broadly as she described it all to her. The stag locked eyes with the grulla doe and extended his muzzle to her touching along her forehead a moment. “ I think you described that in a lovely way. I do not think they make wings large enough to lift this hefty frame of mine into the air.”
His ears swung forward as Nalia took on a more serious gaze and tone of voice as it was her turn to ask him something. Ardashir listened. The white stallion took on his own air of seriousness thinking of how to answer her honestly. The later of which was not hard. “ There is no trouble coming to the land.” He reached out to touch Nalia’s forehead once more. “ The only thing that the Ice prince was wondering about was something about a council. If there is trouble on the wind then my nose is dull to it.” He offered her a smile. “ Nothing is wrong, there is no shadow on the horizon looming.”
Out under the sky...
You’ve mistaken the stars reflected on the surface of the lake at night for the heavens.
