we are aching bones and wasted years; cinzia, any

[magnus]

you and I both know that the house is haunted
and you and I both know that the ghost is me

As she mentions the jaguars, all he does it smile. He would protect her against them, but he hopes that it won’t come to that. After all, in his last trip, they had recognized him—or the jungle’s spirit had at least. While the feral cats may not know him by name, they normally at least recognized his comfort in their kingdom and left him alone. He had raced alongside the giant predators, but he had never fought one.

“Lucky for us both, my day is wide open.” He grins at her, looking toward the border of the meadow and gesturing toward it. “Shall we?” And, like that, he begins to lead her south past the land of quests and the land of challenges and skirting the border of the desert. It is not a short walk, but he finds that he does not mind it—and he minds the company least of all. She is bright and glossy and the conversation flows on easily between the two of them, ebbing and flowing as the companions made their way to the jungle.

When the buckskin stallion begins to feel the heat set in, he breathes in deeply, muscles warming gently. It felt like home. Finally, when they reach the border, he comes to a cordial stop, giving her a slight smile before calling out to whichever of the sisterhood was near. He knew it was unorthodox for a member of another kingdom to stop by for a visit, let alone with a guest, but his ties to the kingdom were not orthodox. He could only hope that the current residents were as gracious about him visiting his mother’s home (and the home of his heart) from time to time as they were during his first life.

MAGNUS

once general. once lord. once king.