the secret of our world is written in the stars

He had told Solace where she could always find him - beneath the willow that overlooks the giant, never-ending lake - but if she is to search for him there on this day, he would not be there. He had started his journey that morning, however, beneath his willow - for his nights were mostly kept beneath its shade, with the stars peeking out from above its branches. Some nights he was not alone, which he prefered. Solace has kept him company recently, and on the nights where she is gone, Corvus would find his way there and the two would keep each other company, staring up at the starlight. 

The salt on the wind carries him to the east, the taste of it on his tongue familiar and comforting. He hopes that perhaps the winged stallion would be somewhere along his journey and would join him in the ocean, but Svedka’s trip seems to be one he would enjoy alone. The wind picks up as he nears the ocean and he thinks of Tephra’s briny and harsh shoreline, black from smoke and ash. Here, however, the water is welcoming and the sand is bright. In the distance he sees a figure (perhaps he would not be alone today!), and curiously he moves forward at a quickening trot, his head held high as the wind pulls at the milky and navy strands of his mane and tail.

It had been a long while since he had seen his childhood friend - the boy he grew up with - and when he sees the pale gold and the stark white of bone protruding from his skin, Svedka cannot help the whinny that leaves the ivory of his parted lips. 

“Smoak!” he shouts over the sound of crashing waves and the sea wind, leaping into a gallop along the sparkling shore. 

He collides with the other stallion - whom he had not seen since they were just yearlings - wrapping his neck around his friend. He steps back from him after a few moments of embracing Smoak, his sapphire eyes roving his friend, inspecting him. Smoak had grown just as he had - filling in the slender parts of his body with muscle and standing tall, a handsome figure so unlike the child he used to know. 

“You’re here!”

Svedka

the secret of our world is written in the stars

The childhood nickname that leaves the ivory lips of his friend brings laughter from Svedka’s chest, and the young stallion throws his head backwards as if in shock. The name hadn’t been said aloud in so long, the sound of it on Smoak’s tongue brought him back to the smoke and ash of Tephra - beneath their parents ever-watchful eyes. He’s happy to see his bone-armored friend, part of him also glad because that meant that Solace had Smoak too. The stallion had always shown a passion and loyalty for his sister, and it makes him smile to know that she would be happy to have them all here, together.

“It was wonderful,” Svedka answers swiftly, his sapphire eyes glistening with memory - the fire dances, the moonlit romps in the grass, the secluded moments with the wild women (and men) of the free fol. “I met many,” he says truthfully, “some that will not easily be forgotten.” His voice is whimsical (and suggestive) and he playfully shoves his pale golden shoulder into Smoak’s alabaster and bone chest, winking childishly. He keeps the details of his manhood a secret, slightly concerned that his adventuring would give Smoak ideas to try out, though he tries to convince himself that thinking that was absurd and he tosses his head to rid himself of it. “You should go! You’d come back with all sorts of charm and confidence that will make you simply irresistable.”

Svedka laughs deeply, the vibrations rumbling in his chest. Once he settles, his cunning blue eyes fixate on his friend. “Tell me; any adventures while I was away?” He pauses, grinning micheviously. “Or are you still playing the game from when we were little? Taking care of the queen?” Eyebrows rise curiously and he presses his lips together accusingly, awaiting the shove or swift kick that would most likely come from Smoak.

Svedka