Magnus was still getting used to the offshoots of families and relations of those who lived within Tephra. It was not a formal kingdom, and he had not done any sort of official roll call, so there were many who lived within its borders that he had not met—many who had kept to themselves and avoided the more tedious meetings (although the last had been more exciting than many had anticipated). He did not mind these families; he was just glad to know that they felt safe within Tephra’s borders to call it home.
Still, it made his job more difficult, trying to keep track of a nebulous group he did not fully understand.
He had seen the bay mare and her child from afar, but her movements, and the roundness of her belly, had spoken of a need for privacy and so he had not intruded. She had been familiar enough with the land, and smelled of nowhere but the sulfurous land, that no alarm bells had rung in his head. Only an instinctual need to protect her during what was perhaps the most vulnerable and challenging time of her life.
He kept his distance and gaze from the small group, instead standing watch over them, his inky tail flicking behind him as his gold-flecked gaze washed over the land. He did not expect any trouble would befall them (Tephra was largely devoid of predators and, as of yet, no darker rumblings had started around Beqanna), but it still soothed his nerves to stand guard. If something were to happen, he would be there.
When enough time had passed—the last thing he wanted to do was intrude upon the gathering—he glanced over. At the sight of the mare with the newborn, and the older child by his side, he could not help but small and, after taking a minute to ascertain that all was well, he made his way over. He swung wide around the group to give them time to spot him and then stopped several feet away, hoping to give them enough space. “Hello, there.” He dipped his head in greeting. “I see that congratulations are in order.”
magnus
![[Image: gqYjsHr.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/KjqNDKxc/gqYjsHr.png)