god make me pay like the devil i am; any

[Ivar]

i'll use you as a makeshift gauge
of how much to give and how much to take

Though he is to return home by nightfall, neither of Ivar’s parents have ever given him an hour too early to leave Sylva.

They likely think that he is sleeping (if they are thinking anything at all, and not lost in their own pre-dawn dreams), but instead the yearling colt is weaving his way through the shadowy woods of Sylva, heading north to the river. Overhead, the trees look nearly dull and grey, nothing like the autumnal blaze that will appear once the sun reaches them. As he walks, the forest around him grows lighter, and by the time he reaches the bank of the river the sun is sparkling off the free-flowing water.

His attention is drawn to the brightest sparkle, and it takes him a moment to place the odd shape. There is a horse in the water – or the water was a horse. The tobiano colt stands very still, his head halfway lowered to take a drink. He is about to attribute the vision to his imagination when he hears a voice call out to ‘Do it again’. The voice did not come from the water, but rather from further down the riverbank.

Ivar raises his head, repositioning his pale legs that had been splayed to drink, and looks more closely at the water and riverbank. He can see nothing, but the wind smells of a young female not far off. He hesitates to call out, but remains watchful in case either the female or the water horse decide to appear.

IVAR