"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
Already the weather had begun to turn toward warmer times. Snow had not fallen in several days, and the flaxen mare was certain she sensed warmer weather to come. The pony had spent the winter in the common lands, indecisive about her next steps. She was not known for making snap decisions - though she was known for speaking the first thing that came to her mind. She was trying to fix that. There was a noticeable difference in temperature here, it was warmer. Spice was pleased to see the dark colour of the soil, it was rich, that was good for plant life. Just as Pumpkin Spice had expected.
The pony pricked her ears, aware that she was wandering into a strange land; at least she thought she was, she had pointed herself at the volcano and began walking. She had decided on this place as her home, and hoped she would like the other who lived here as much as she liked the friends she had made elsewhere. That worried her - that she had made the wrong decision, though making a decision was better than continuously deliberating about what to do; she had spent a portion of the winter doing that. The small mare stopped, deciding she had probably come far enough, she wasn't even sure she as on the right side of the mountain! She should speak with someone before she wandered farther than she meant to go and got lost!
"Hello?" She nickered, hoping someone would hear her. Already she could feel the nervousness setting in - maybe she shouldn't have come. The mare chided herself; she hadn't even met anyone yet!
Since his youth, Magnus had been making treks to the field. Who had been recruiting for had changed, and the politics had changed, but his willingness to do what others viewed as an unglamorous job had not. He had talked to hundreds, if not thousands, of souls there; he had been outright rejected, flirted with, threatened, and successful in leading new souls home. He had thought that he had seen the gamut of possible outcomes to recruiting, but even he had been surprised by the turn of events the last time.
It had been such a mild encounter, but Celeana had been clearly on edge around him. He had never elicited such a strong reaction in a stranger and, to be honest, he had not been sure how to react. Magnus did not mind being at odds with others (goodness knows he had made his fair share of enemies throughout the years), but to be so utterly disliked without ever talking? That had been a first for him.
So imagine his surprise when he caught Spice’s scent on the air.
His expression instantly warmed when he lifted his head and saw her, his gold-flecked eyes sparking with joy. He had been hoping that she would take him on the offer to see Tephra for herself, but he had not been holding his breath. Thankfully, he was close enough that he was able to close the gap between them quickly—fast enough that he heard her tentative greeting. “Hello, Spice!” he called in his whiskey-voice, his handsome face split with the warm grin. “I am so glad to see you.” As he came to a stop, he motioned around them to where the land unfolded, lush and beautiful in the spring light. “Welcome to Tephra.”
The small mare was glad to see Magnus, she had not so secretly been worried that she was somehow lost. For a time Pumpkin Spice had lived alone in the common lands, she had not come across many souls, and she had begun to forget what a difference in height there was between her and the locals.
"Hello Magnus! It's good to see you again, too." She said happily, deciding not to mention that it has been almost a full season since she had last seen him. She was slowly getting better at not letting whatever words came into her head fall out of her mouth. The small mare thought she could smell other equine in the area, though there was another strange smell in the air that she had not encountered before - probably something from the volcano.
Magus gestured around, the land sloped gently downward into a sort of valley, and Spice could see a water source cutting through it, there was no ice at all in the sparkling water - the water must be warmer just as the air was. The plant life here was already very well established and green, unlike some other places she had chosen to shelter over the winter. Maybe she should have actually come here sooner.
"This place is so peaceful - and green. I am sorry it took me so long to come here, the seasons just seem to slip by so quickly." Spice spoke, she wondered if she was permitted to explore, but thought that perhaps Magnus would need to explain the laws of the land or introduce her to important herd members first so she did not express her interest.
It was interesting to look at Tephra through the eyes of a newcomer. From the beginning, he had viewed it as a tool: to keep those he loved safe. He had only recently begun to view it for its natural beauty, to appreciate the rich vegetation that crawled over the land and the brilliance of the hues of flowers tucked away in its curves. The volcano was dangerous and imposing but grand, cutting a distinctive line against the horizon, the smoke creeping down every so often, fog curling around its base. They were an island, although perhaps not as distinctively one as Ischia, and the air carried a unique blend of sulfur and salt.
Standing next to her, he was silent as he looked around them, appreciating Tephra for what it was, before he shook his head lightly and glanced back down at the slight mare by his side. “Indeed, it is rather beautiful, is it not?” He nudged her neck lightly at her apology and laughed, the sound warm in his throat. “You don’t need to apologize, at all. It is easy to lose track of time. I am just glad to have you here.”
In truth, he had not been sure that she would arrive at all. The meeting in the field had been tense, and he had been uncertain where he had stood when he had finally left. It could have easily been that she had chosen to follow Celeana alone, and he would not have faulted her the choice. There was a certain allure to the life of the once-Amazonians. “Would you like to explore the land a little?” His eyes sparked playfully as he stepped away and further down the path. “I would be happy to show you around a little.”
There was enough time to explain the formalities of Tephra, of which there was little.
It was better to simply soak in the beauty and see if she could envision herself living here.
![[Image: gqYjsHr.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/KjqNDKxc/gqYjsHr.png)
