05-25-2021, 06:58 PM
What could he do but nod in agreement? Wonderful days, she told him. Wonderful times to be alive, young, and free. Were it not for his gift, Yanhua might’ve said something along the lines of: “I could hardly imagine it, Lilli as a young grasshopper.” But he knows better, thinks that this mare probably understands that too, so instead he says nothing and tips his head up and down.
She called herself Ori. Yanhua repeated the name three times back to himself: Ori, Ori, Ori, trying not to forget it later on, and smiled at her assurance that he wasn’t entirely slipping out of his duties. “Well that’s good, then.” He thought, noticing how the newcomer paused to correct herself when referring to his dam so casually. Yan wouldn’t have been bothered. He wondered if Lilliana would’ve, though. “She always had a habit of being exactly where she was needed most.” Yan conspired with his mother’s friend, edging closer a few strides through the ferns so that they could see each other properly in the dim light of the forest.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Ori.” Yan flicked his ears rid of a few hovering pests and readjusted the wings hanging useless over his back. Not much room for flight when the canopy was mostly shrouded from the clouds above, or when the fog got thick enough you could breathe it in, but they came in handy when the nights were especially dark - as they had been, before the sun’s return. “I hope you’re finding Taiga more hospitable since the Eclipse ended.” He sighed, tilting a hairy chin. “Terrible business it was. Overwhelming for us all, I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for you, coming into the situation.”
Even the long-time inhabitants of Beqanna hadn’t seen the likes of something as horrible as the Eclipse. They’d lived through a reckoning, losing all their powers, had survived a plague that crippled half the nation and saw it reborn anew, only to witness the depths of depravity and darkness that came from a hell unlike any known to horsekind. Crops withered in the dark, animals died en mass, shadow creatures known as monsters crept up from the blackness and stole lives as well as a sense of safety. Terrible was a rough understatement for the truth of the matter.
But things were better now, or approaching a sense of normalcy so as to be called “better” once more. Thanks to the efforts of the Taigan clans and the unity of the northern territories, they were able to see the return of the light and live as freely as they had before nightmares came to life. Yanhua could see that Ori was in one piece, and so he assumed the best on her behalf.
“Is there anything I could help you with?” He wondered. “Now that you’ve been here and seen the sights. Any questions or problems?”
YANHUA
@[Ori] You're fine!! I'm never in a rush
