Whatever reply she plans to make regarding her journey is blown away on the wind that pushes her forelock off of her face as Adria turns to face the darkening sky beside her. She has seen storms before but the rapid approach of the tropical squall surprises the young mare and she moves after Adria without thinking about it. The lightning flashes against the dark wet leaves around them as they pass into the jungle. Water pours from the sky and spills off of broad dark leaves to splash down on the northern born girl. There is little time to be anxious about the dark jungle or the boom of thunder as they move swiftly and finally break into a gap in the trees so that the dark sky can loom over them. The rain is trying to drag the clouds mistily to the earth but the wind resist and whips them back skyward.
Adria’s voice just makes it to the dappled mare’s ears and she drags her eyes from her surroundings and picks up her pace. The exhilaration on the face of the other woman calms Seale’s nerves and she smiles as she hurries toward the verdant mountain. Storms are dangerous but she has never seen someone so happy in the midst of one! Why not though? The rain and the light, the drumbeat of thunder, the race against nature did set her heart racing. Why not enjoy it?
The curtain of vines envelopes Adria and Seale looks at the tangle quickly before stepping in after her. At first there is only darkness but after blinking rapidly there is enough diffuse light to show she the outline of the passage and a shadowed Adria waiting for her. “Yes, please, I have never seen anything like that.” The girl whispers in return, while Adria’s accented words are still rebounding. She will follow wide eyed when Adria leads deeper in but for now she willingly begins talking softly of leaving her birthplace. “I grew up in Icicle Isle because I was born during the plague and my mother was afraid that I would not survive in Nerine. My mother has a very nervous disposition and the Isle is so barren...” She cannot help but think how different Ischia is and how much Agnieszka would hate it! “It was easier for her to stay there as the years went on. I wanted more than snow and ice, and she needed to have a life beyond me and my missing father. So here I am, and I am happy to answer any other questions you have.” She is more eager to learn about Ischia from the vermillion mare who speaks a foreign tongue and trusts her daughter to go to safety on her own in the face of a storm.
she told me she was shallow; her rivers run so deep
if I could only be the boat that leads her to the sea
@[Adria]