you can't hide from who you are; Wolfbane

[Wolfbane]

ALL THE DOUBT YOU'RE STANDING IN BETWEEN

The life he leads involving Heartfire has always felt like a second life to Wolfbane. It was as if his conscious had come to life and existed, physically, somewhere outside of his reach. She was breathing and going about her life in whatever fashion she chose, using her ability to keep tabs on him. Keep tabs on anyone. And so having Heartfire in your life was like knowing that at any second she could be peering over your shoulder. Watching. Waiting.

Except for once he’d been waiting for her in return.

Yes. Bane had been expecting nothing less than a summons. How could he not? This territory was one under the great eye of Nerine, in fact all lands were under the great eye of Nerine. It was just that this one was subject to her whims and rulers. Maybe he’d just expected repercussions earlier on. But they hadn’t come. When Lepis flicked the rock, that early morning after when Heartfire saved him and allowed his rebirth, even the night following that day when he and his wife had come here and demanded immediate ascension… he’d expected her then.

The roan mare’s absence, to him at least, seemed like lackadaisical approval in a way. What could she lose by him coming here and taking rightful leadership? If she believed in their strengthened ties with one another like Wolfbane did, then nothing could be better for them both.

Her presence touches his mind; a soft contact of magic that leaves him shivering and sends his heart into a mad, thunderous sort of pace. Bane realizes he’s got to explain and he would. He’s not afraid of her - the opposite. He’s glad she’s here.

The reverse image of the woodlands he’s living in fades away. Wolfbane, clad in his usual yellow coat with those distinct blue stripes, lifts his head and flicks his hazel eyes towards Eyas. The eyes in the back of her head see him just fine. She doesn’t turn to look directly at her father, though she nods when he urges her to come along with him on the brief journey North.

Together, the two pegasi weave among the ancient trees without exchanging many words. Eyas blinks and tells him who’s nearby (she’s getting stronger every day, more focused) and Wolfbane smells the impossible variety of everything from the chemical compound of the soil to the exact humidity in the air that makes a thick fog. They come across Heartfire like eerie sentries; one smiling and clearly longing to touch her, the other stoic and sharply regarding her ancestor as a new artist feels humbled in the presence of a master.

Unexpectedly, the sensation of cheerfulness invades the midday gloom. A faint emotion, easily ignored if unwanted. Wolfbane turns to look at the culprit, Eyas, who shrugs her slim shoulders and mutters, “Sorry.”

Bane sighs, “Heartfire, meet Eyas. Eyas meet Heartfire. You don’t mind her being here?” He asks the blue-eyed Queen, focusing on the infinitely lovely rise of her proud cheekbones.

WITH WOUNDS THAT NO ONE ELSE HAS SEEN

WOLFBANE

@[Heartfire]