[private] You flee my dream come morning [Levi]

[Levi]

The meeting was over, and Levi had turned to walk down by the lake and find solitude. He had been left alone for most his life and he had grown accustomed to the silence. Now, he often preferred it. Amet had played the part of gracious host well, yet the interaction had still left him feeling... tired.

So he had bowed out, leaving Kolera to talk with the king or explore alone as she would. 

And something else had commanded his attention and made him feel a need to leave the company of the two. 

The crest of his neck and tail inched with an infuriating intensity. With heavy strides, the massive stallion presses his bulk through the brush. He finds a secluded place, where there is a tree that looks more sturdy than the rest, and begins to scratch the top of his neck along the rough bark.  Bark falls in pieces around him yet still the itch only seems to intensify until it becomes a burning. 

With a grunt of frustration, the mahogany beast reaches for the flames in his belly. The fire materializes in a spinning blade as wide a river-rock yet thin as ice. The flame strikes his neck where the sensation is the worst and the itch is gone. With a start, Levi realizes his short-cropped mane is replaced with a crown of living flame. Before long, some of the fire spreads and his dark tail is also replaced with flame. 

For a moment he hesitates, fearing he will be accused of attempting to burn down Hyaline for a second time, before curiosity wins out (as it always does) and he walks to the lake to see his reflection in the glassy lake.

Oh

She says it, and he thinks it. A dark mare turns to face him with red puffy eyes. He had been too distracted by the changes he was undergoing to continue to look for strangers. She says something about a view but his mind is elsewhere, and he takes several long strides into the lake. The icy water is above his hocks when he turns back to face the shore, and he glances up to where the scarred mare had been while he waits for the ripples to disperse. "I'm not here for the view."

Levi

so scream you, out from behind the bitter ache.