I stand at the edge of the kingdom, my expression as unreadable as my dark eyes look over the valley that spreads below me. It has been years since I had last been to the Dale, and despite that it still feels like home. There is no replacing childhood, I think as I see the little pond where Kratos and I had chased frogs, and the wild-flower filled meadow where we had spent hours playing ‘the warrior and the diplomat’. In the distance I see the outline of my grandmother’s mausoleum; its sharp angles are a bold contrast to the gently rolling hills of the Dale.

Though it seems as though I could step across the border and be returned to my childhood, I stay at the edge, waiting to be invited in. I am no longer the little spotted prince with a broken mouth; I am a king in my own right, with loyalties to a land not so different from the Dale. I have heard that the war is over, but I had waited several more weeks to travel, knowing that sometimes rumors are false, and not wishing to risk leaving my kingdom when it might need me the most.

I know that my kingdom has nearly always been allied with the Dale, but I am also aware that the last agreement had been between Tiberios and Ramiel. I am not Tiberios’ successor, but rather Tiberios’ co-ruler’s successor’s successor, along with Ygritte. Who knows what might have changed between that agreed alliance and our current one? I am here to answer that question, to ascertain where our kingdoms are in relation to each other, and to reestablish the alliance if the current ruler of the Dale is so inclined.

I let out a low call, my tenor voice pitched higher than usual. I’ve only just begun to grapple with the kingdom’s gift to me; sometimes my voice emerges with a wildcat yowl, and other times it is only the call of a stallion. Today seems to be a good day, and to confirm that I shift my hooves to paws. Yes, I say to myself as my front claws rake the soil in front of me, today is a day with magic. I’m content to wait until someone finds me, and in the meantime settle down in a sunny clearing of the forest to browse at the grasses that grow in plenty.

i’m screaming the name of a foreigner’s god

“ Hello Ramiel, ” I say as the grey stallion approaches, swallowing the last of my brief meal. “ I'm Kreios, from the Falls. ” He might know this, of course, having been to my kingdom before (I recognize his name). I spare a quick glance to the gold streaks in his mane, and remember Texas' tales of the black and gold Tiberios. Had the two of them been related, I wonder? My step-mother marks her descendants with a bit of gold, I recall, but both Tiberios and Ramiel are too old to be Yael's children. No relation of mine, then, I decide, but the two stallions might have been more to each other than the monarch's of allies kingdoms. Perhaps my great-grandmother's habits have not died out entirely in Beqanna.

None of this matters, of course, but it flits through my mind as the smaller stallion comes through the brush to greet me and I wait until he's near enough to converse to reply. I;’m about to speak when an unexpected breeze whips through the air, smelling of ice and winter. That does not belong, I think, but not before the whirl of snow begins to solidify into a solid shape before my very eyes. I watch, intrigued, and when the shape is finally recognizable as a horse – and a living horse! – I do not hold back the amused chuckle that rises, unbidden.

“Now that’s a fancy trick,” I tell the stallion (and perhaps also the gigantic tortoise that’s appeared beside him; I’ve no wish to offend).

“It’s welcome back, really.” I tell him, and by default grey Ramiel. “I was born and raised here, back when my mother was Queen.” I do not name her (not because I am narcissistic enough to expect to be recognized immediately, but because saying her name is still painful these many years later). Still, there was only one large spotted queen in recent memory and given her romance with the equally large king of the Desert, there’s little doubt who I might be: one of Lyric’s sons. “Though I’m here on business, now, and not to stay.” There’s little pause between my previous statement and this one, just enough for me to put the words together in my mind.

“I’m here to discuss the possibility of renewing the Alliance that the Falls has with the Dale. To my understanding it still stands, but enough time has passed that I felt a reconfirmation was appropriate, especially given recent…events.” We had stayed out of the war, a decision made mostly out of self preservation. Still, we had (and do) intend to aid the injured as well as we could with the magic of our kingdom. Fortunately (or perhaps not?) no one has yet sought us out.

i’m screaming the name of a foreigner’s god

I don’t miss the snowy stallion’s inspection of my feet, and if I casually stretch out one forefoot and extended the claws to press firmly into the soil, creating four indents in the loamy earth, it’s surely just coincidence. “It’s nice to meet you,” I reply, nodding my head with a smile to both the stallion and to the tortoise. For all I know, Darwin is a horse as well, currently shifted into a reptile. I have certainly seen stranger things.

When Ramiel speaks again, I meet his gaze with my dark eyes, and smile. “Both have their appeal,” I tell him, knowing that it was the Falls temperate similarity to my birthland that immediately drew me to it. I hear the sound of rustling branches with sharp ears, and turn to see a familiar brown and pink horse emerging from the woods. With an eager smile, I greet Ygritte with a nudge to the shoulder and a gentle tug at her mane, but turn back to Ramiel before the attention that I pay to her borders on disrespectful to my current company. I wait until she’s greeted them both, and Weir has replied, and then respond to the grey king’s concerns.

“Ygritte and I are the new monarchs,” I tell him, gesturing to the salmon pointed mare beside me. “We’ve no intention of requiring anyone to live outside their chosen kingdom to uphold an alliance.” That was something that Texas had abolished – though as far as I know the old man had never actually bothered to let the other kingdoms know of his decision. “Friendly steals and challenges, support in times of need, and perhaps the opportunity for our army to mock with your soldiers. It gets tiring sparring with the same companions every month.” I smile at that, knowing that at times it’s frustrating to have no outlet for excess energy, and also that I’m past due for a challenge of my own to refresh my skills.

Once I’ve spoken, I turn to Ygritte, knowing that she’ll likely have something to add.

i’m screaming the name of a foreigner’s god