AuroraElis

Their path was winding as they traveled north.  Bending and twisting with the landscape as it changed under foot.  She hardly noticed the differences anymore in the terrain beneath her.  Jacks curiosity though causes her to smile kindly as she moves forward at a steady pace.  The length of her emerald gown brushes against the earth with each step.  Gently sashaying with the rise and fall of her hips.

Dark navy eyes keep watch over the space they occupy.  Their world was full of wild things and one could never be too careful.

Her caramel ears turn to listen as he speaks.  She too can smell the fresh waters now and she nods in agreement.  

A couple more paces down their path and she again listens to his words.  Her golden flecked eyes glance at him as she replies, "What would you like to know?"  She had no secrets to keep under lock and key, but she wasn't about to bore another with her life history as it has become quite long...

Not all that glitters is gold

AuroraElis

Within a few more strides she considers just where to begin.  Every story has a beginning and hers wasn't as bright as it would seem, given her demeanor.  Somehow, she always found a silver lining in life, even with the most recent transgressions.

"Well let's see.  I was born into a very male dominant hierarchy.  Being non-compliment to that way of life I soon suffered severe consequences.  One day I finally escaped finding fairies in the woods that led me here," her gentle eyes look to Jack as they walk.  "The fairies gifted me this gown to hide my scares and a magic to heal all mortal wounds," her gaze then shifts to the path ahead.  "Every day since I have tried to repay their generosity by helping others," she smiles kindly before looking to Jack again.

The gentle breeze wraps around her and tousles her ivory locks.  Her ears flicker to his words of friendship as she takes another step.  She whickers softly as he snorts and prances about.  Her own neck arches elegantly and her dished face tucks to her chest.  Ivory dipped limbs gather beneath her as she lunges forward at a three-beat pace.  The gown of feathers trail behind her slightly but continue to conceal her tattered past that rests beneath them...

Not all that glitters is gold

AuroraElis

Fun

It wasn't a concept she has thought of in a very long time.  She wonders if there was ever a time, she has experienced it.  Even as a young filly she doesn't remember fun.  It wasn't allowed then and since escaping she is unsure if her time here could be considered as such.  She was many things; kind, polite, loving, but fun has seemed to evade her.  In her musings she has found herself coming quickly to the riverbed and with a determined smile she decides for once in her life to have fun.

The bedrock beneath her hooves shifts slightly as she crosses from path to riverbed.  The cool waters splash skyward as she breaks through the still surface.  The liquid coats her caramel coat, blanketing it with dark specks.  Beads of water trickle down her feathers before returning to their river home, and the dust of the land's melt away to the waters, leaving her tall ivory stockings bleach white.  She laughs as she tosses her head, arching her neck and curling around to face the shoreline where they had entered. 

She looks to Jack before saying, "I think having friends is fun!"  She motions for him to join her in the river for some fun as she has noticed his demeanor change some.  Perhaps they both needed to experience some fun for a change.

Not all that glitters is gold

AuroraElis

The sun began to lower its position in the sky as they played in the river.  She laughed as Jack darted this way and that.  It had been some time since she laughed.  She guessed that maybe it had been a while for him too.  He seemed to be enjoying this being wild more than he had before.  This brings a smile to her face.

The smile soon fades as a sharp burn courses through her body.  At first it is subtle and she simply winces, unalerting to any who were not staring directly at her.  But soon the pain is crippling and she finds her knees buckeling underneath her.  Her front half lowers to the water, as if she were about to roll, and you might not know anything was wrong at that moment.  That is until the scream she had been holding back releases into a piercing cry.  Her ears pin to her crest, her nostrils barely above the waters suface.  Any lower and she may just drown out her screams, quite literally.

The agony happens in an instant, but it feels much much longer.  If Jack had rushed to her side, she wouldn't have known as all she can see is darkness.  Her mind races through all the different scenarios and explanation.  Had she injured herself playing?  No, this pain felt more centered in her body.  Was she in labor?  No, she had several children, and none came like this.  Her breathing deepens and she tries to push through the pain, slowly rising up from bended knees.  The feathers on her back shift to rebalance her and her vision returns as she breathes out the burn within her chest.

"Jack?" She calls out as she remembers she is not alone here.  "Can... Can you help me back to shore?"  She simply needed someone to lean on and lead her onto solid land so she could reassess the issue...

Not all that glitters is gold

AuroraElis

She feels him press into her, helping her up and stabilizing her shaky body.  They walk slowly, each hoof carefully placed beneath her.  She wasn't one to relieve her own suffering with her magic, but she thinks about the life that could be stirring within her.

Her memories go to that of her previous offspring.  How their pregnancies felt and how they came into the world.  It is funny childbirth.  In the moment there is so much pain, so much chaos, but the memories of anything other than seeing your child for the first time all but disappear.  

As they climb onto the grassy shores she considers unraveling her magic.  If nothing more than to find the source of her agony that begins to dull.  The healing gift she possesses flows through her much like her own blood.  It twists and turns around every bone, tendon, muscle and organ.  Traveling from her mind it stretches, mending the effects of the years on her body and searching for her current pain.

It isn't long before the source is located.  She remains leaning against Jack as her mind sifts.  The whole process is draining her strength even as she heals.  But she finds it, them.  Her eyes widen briefly before she gasps, "twins."  Her body then crumbles in exhaustion.  The day was giving way to night now and so she allows herself to slip away into the darkness...

Not all that glitters is gold