[mature] Sidewalk scenes and black limousines (Any)

[Set]

" ... but always keep them on a leash."

He nearly misses her response, quiet as it is. Dipping his head, it twists in a way that is not equine but looks natural for him nonetheless. He cannot remember the last time he was himself. Though the magic followed him from creature to creature, it always seemed dampened. Now, though, now it floods every cell of his immortal body. Were he a lesser being, he might wince at the sudden onslaught, but he no more than flicks an ear. Muscle and bone have not yet forgotten lessons well learned (in pounds of flesh and pints of blood) in the mountains of the Chamber. Shifting his weight, he lips absently at the water’s surface. When she breathes his name, he wears an expression much accustomed to schooling itself in such a way that it does not give away the thoughts that lie beneath. She had caught a glimpse from the inside, a feat accomplished by few, fewer still once he had won the Alliance. Even in another animal’s skin, he was still him, and it is nothing to keep those less powerful than he (of which there are few) out of his mind.

If not a mindreader, than what? Not a goddess, not a mage .. His brow furrows in contemplation.

As he looks on, she slumps, exhaustion once again lining the gaunt hollows of her young frame. He laughs then, a throaty chuckle that is not meant to mock. The sodden mess of a world-weary mare holds just enough intrigue and fire that he does not turn and disappeared back into the forest behind him - he does not wipe the memory of the particularly handsome otter she had met when she’d washed ashore. “You’re right not to trust me, darling,” he replies as he wades back toward her, golden eyes dancing. Ignoring her voiced and obvious misgivings, he nudges her hindquarters, “... but idling on a cold riverbank - or on Icicle Isle - feeling sorry for yourself and hoping for a death that will never come is … boring,” he continues, minimizing the adversity she’d faced with his typical dismissiveness. It’s a gentle push meant to encourage her to stand, but his impatience is legendary, and it is only a breath later that he reaches down to bite her, a move not intended to hurt (badly), only to drive her to her feet. “Come now, let’s find something to eat, shall we?” It’s poised as a question, and his tone does not change from its boyish levity, but he leaves little room for disagreement.

SET

alliance champion, once king, mage

@[Eyas]