maybe redemption has stories to tell; elio

[Svedka]

let my shadows prove the sunshine

The mid-afternoon sun is unforgiving in Tephra; even in spring the atmosphere is sweltering, the air hanging heavily across the landscape with humidity. The moisture is something Svedka is rather used to, having grown up here, but even for him it is still uncomfortable as it swathes him, keeping the flaxen and sky blue of his mane and forelock plastered against the golden champagne of his neck. He snorts softly as he trudges quite slowly through the thick canopy of the jungle that just skirts the edge of Tephra’s beaches - ones that were dark with volcano’s ash, unlike the pristine white sands of Ischia and her bordering isles. Tephra was a beautiful tropical escape, however the smell of smoke and the deep navy colored seas were not as welcoming as other places may appear to be.

Without hesitation, the palomino overo uses his head to push the broad, fat leaves of the jungle away from his face, finding some kind of satisfaction in the way the moisture flicks onto his skin as he does so. He’s moving slowly but purposefully, his cerulean gaze set towards the ocean in the near distance, the salt of the sea spray on the wind. Just as the damp floor of the jungle begins to give way to thin, trickling sand and the thick of the canopy begins to deplete, Svedka comes to a halt, halfway beneath the shade of the trees while his shoulders and face meet the brightness of the sun.

He stands here for a moment, suspended and frozen in time, with his eyes closed and his chin towards the sky. The sun and the salt and the wind all combine and wash over him, a mixture that seems to scrub him clean. He inhales deeply with a shuddering breath, searching the depths of himself for the familiar pang of the lion, and finding nothing. Perhaps the beast had become dormant, like he had hoped, and he finally had some control over his life. With this revelation in mind, Svedka propels forward and settles into an easy lope, headed straight for the sea.

Only the surprisingly cool water touches the white of his legs he slows to a lazy trot. The burnt orange plumerias in his mane have fallen away, his braid nearly undone as the sea wind whips at him hungrily. Only a single bud remains in the white and skyblue of his tangled mane, clinging to him for dear life as he splashes into the sea, runs up into the sand again, then back down into the knee-deep surf. The water is a bit too rough at high tide for him to swim any further than shoulder-depth, and he idly passes the time by thinking about how much more delightful this would be with a companion beside him.

svedka

@[elio]

[elio]

elio

Tephra is so unlike the cool environment of Taiga that simply existing in it has dampened Elio's neck with sweat. His chest rises and falls heavily, though that is more due to irritation than an actual exertion. Beneath the dark red of his wings, heat traps and stirs, streaking the stallion's golden hair with an even brigther gleam. When he stretches the feathered appendages in the hopes it will cool him, little rivulets drip rapidly down his stomach.

"How does Pteron do this?" Lio grumbles to himself, casting a clear (if antagonized) gray gaze up at the bright blue sky. It's a marvelous day for a swim, and Elio had promised himself he would see a tropical beach while he was over here. He knows Tephra's beaches to be the calm counterparts to the North's cliffs, but he has yet to experience them for himself.

Now, nearly soured by the noonday sun, Elio thinks he will be terribly unimpressed.

The cool, verdant leaves part reluctantly as the golden stallion presses closer to the sound of crashing waves. He grows eager, both with the idea of getting this over with and seeing something new. The thick jungle foliage begins to loosen, the ground softens, the canopy opens up. Ahead, Elio can see streaks of blue and white between brown trunks and green leaves. Excited, Lio kicks into a lazy canter, neck arched handsomely, scarred face, chest and legs glittering silver and gold beneath bright dapples of sunlight.

When the beach is open and the sand nips at his heels, Elio sees Svedka so comfortable amongst the waves. A knot twists painfully in his stomach.

Another wild and free being for him to envy.


Falling back into a prance, Lio draws his chin close to his neck and dances closer to the lipping water.

"Hello, stranger!" he calls, the beginnings of a grin lifting his lips. "Mind if I join you?" Elio doesn't wait for an answer. Instead, he plunges chest first into the water, allowing the salt and sea to engulf him. He forgets Svedka is there, only for a moment, closing his eyes as his legs kick into deeper water. The flare of his crimson mane and tail surrounds him, floating on the surface.

i don't think i could stand to be
where you don't see me

@[Svedka]

[Svedka]

let my shadows prove the sunshine

Sometimes he wonders if he is truly lucky or if he has some sort of ability that draws others to him. Either way he is ecstatic at the sound of another beside him, throwing his head up in a mixture of surprise and elation, a short whinny leaving his pink lips as his cerulean gaze finds the other. 

Svedka’s galavant in the sea stops mid prance, a single white and gold foreleg curled, unabashedly allowing his gaze to take in the stranger, his expression of laughter being overtaken with a quiet awe, his brows rising with it. He is gold - but not like the light champagne of his own two-toned body, and not even gold like the sun. He is gold like the lava running down Tephra’s volcano, like the beautiful yet dangerous magma that simmers beneath the earth. 

Svedka does not care that he is taking his time allowing his eyes to sweep the man, a breathless smile on his face as he finally meets the steel-grey of the winged stallion’s eyes. The stranger hadn’t stopped even though Svedka had and without much reservation, the other joined him in the cool, strong tide. He finally laughs, the push of the waves giving him a bit of extra speed as he takes two or three leaps towards the bronzed stallion, eager to close the distance between them. “Bold of you to assume I wouldn’t say no,” he tells the stallion, his voice warm like the sun cascading overhead, a delicious smile on his face to let the stranger know that, of course, he didn’t mind. “My name is Svedka.”

“What brings you to the coast?” Svedka asks curiously over the sound of the rhythmic waves as the current pulls and pushes at their legs, shifting his weight every so often to keep his balance. He is smirking, curious and interested in this golden stranger that has suddenly joined him. The blue and white of his mane stick haphazardly to his neck, his forelock plastered against the bold white of his face.
 

svedka

@[elio]

[elio]

elio

Alone, Elio thinks with a sudden releasing of air. He finds he is alone and looking into a handsome's man open face, alone and frustrated by his own tangled emotions--but mostly alone and unsure of the twisting feeling Svedka's gaze places in his gut.

He's handsome, but not just in an observable way, no--Elio's hooves stumble along the ocean floor as the stranger's wild face forces him to a stop. The golden stallion lifts his nose to the air, away from the lapping water, never straying from the other's friendly gaze. He stops, now, locking the muscles in his legs to ensure the water won't wash him away.

"Svedka," Elio rasps, throat already muddied by the saltwater. "My name is Elio," he adds after a pause, taking one unconscious step closer.

"My brother is here," is Lio's simple answer. He doesn't think to elaborate on who his brother is or the two perfect children he got to meet. No, he is enraptured by his first encounter with attraction, such an alien, consuming feeling.

"Why didn't you say no?" he murmurs just loud enough to be heard over the water. Lio dares two steps closer. He can't help himself.

i don't think i could stand to be
where you don't see me

@[Svedka]

[Svedka]

let my shadows prove the sunshine

Svedka thoroughly enjoys the way that this golden man says his name, his small smirk now melting into something a bit more charming. “Elio,” he repeats his name, his cerulean gaze unwavering from Elio’s own eyes even as the tide gently pulls and pushes both of their bodies. The winged stallion takes thoughtful, precise steps towards him and Svedka mimics him, beginning to close the distance between them. Svedka tosses his head, a gentle chuckle leaving his lips.

“Maybe I am too trusting,” he confesses with a smile, lowering his head slightly so that he is glancing at Elio from beneath his white and blue forelock. “Is there a reason I should have said no?” His eyes glimmer with mischief, a sudden stirring of adrenaline coursing through his veins. The distance between them is only a few steps, but it may as well have been miles. Curious about this bronze stranger, yet reserved by his unfamiliarity, Svedka can only hope that their meeting will not be one just of happenstance - never to be seen again.

The current is becoming rougher as high tide hits its peak, strong enough to even begin to rock the bodies of the two muscular stallions that stand in its depths. “Come on,” Svedka says suddenly, turning towards the shore and pulling himself heavily onto the dark sand of the beach. Water runs in clear rivulets down his shoulders and haunches, dripping and pooling into puddles at his hooves. He glances over his back at his companion, curiously tilting his head at the winged stallion before gesturing him to follow with a gentle toss of his head. “I know a better place for conversation than the open ocean.”

An oasis of sorts, specifically.

svedka

@[elio]