"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
Arthas found himself out in the meadow today, it has been a long year since Arthas joined the Chambers, and so much has happened since. He has not done much with his caste which he finds harder than he anticipated. He has only left the Chambers lands briefly when he and Kimber met another equine in the Field. But he has been breathing in enough soot and decided to go out to the Meadow.
It was the summer and the sun was high set in the sky, and a beautiful day, no clouds just a crystal blue sky with a gentle breeze offering relief from the suns harsh heat. He lowered his head to grab a mouthful of grass before lifting it up, he smelled another Chamber member which was odd since he never really saw them outside the kingdom, unless it was for there own personal antics. The scent grew closer and he almost thought it was Dacia, he didn't think it could be her though, she recently had twins, they had to be a couple of months old now and he didn't think shed leave them this early(of course they could be with her).
{Girls who run with wolves are not meant for boys to love}
It was rather beautiful here, wasn’t it? Strange, that someone who found themselves inexplicably tangled with the Chamber spent most of their time outside of it. It was hard to stay in one place though when the world outside seemed so large and unexplored. Yes - Dacia had left the Chamber for a few hours, if only to make sense of what her life had become. She’d fed the boys an early breakfast and sent them off to play, knowing that the safest place for either of them was certainly in the sheltered embrace of the pine mountains. With creatures like her nephew Wyrm lurking around there, she has little concern for the boys welfare. Besides, her own dam had been adamant about a hands-off sort of rearing when it came to Lupei and Dacia had been foolish enough to ignore her mother’s advice once already.
Look where that had gotten her.
So yes, she’d come by herself today to spend some time in the meadow and gather her thoughts. She’s not exactly looking for companionship, so the mother of twins has settled near the curved lip of the lake to try and cool off when the sun seemed to beat down so mercilessly. Her skin has taken on a rather normal hue today: perlino, a pale golden color with a contrasting rosy pink mane and tail. She’s soft-looking, tender and seemingly breakable out here alone with her troubles. That’s why, when she happens to glance at the horses gathered away from her, she's surprised to see Arthas. The smoky grey stallion had recently become a very close acquaintance of hers, so the smile that brightens her rather somber features when he approaches is a genuine one.
“Arthas!” She calls out, stepping away from her area to meet him halfway. “It’s me, Dacia. I’ve changed my coat.” She explains with a quiet laugh. Her skin flashes - the perlino switching quickly to her trademark olive color before fading back to the pale cream and blush pink. She’s not sure if he knows she’s traited, but he’d seen her at her most vulnerable and he was a member of the Chamber, after all. She figures, if anything, she can trust him. “Glad to see a friendly face out here.” She comments, tail swinging lazily behind her. “What brings you to the meadow?”
His nares did not lie to him, the scent was in fact Dacia. He was confused as the perlino mare approached him, she smelled and sounded like Dacia but looked nothing like her. She called out to him which cause his lips to curl in a smile, she explained that she had changed her coat. what the hell does that mean he thought to himself, and right before him she changed back to the olive pelt he remembered before changing right back to perlino. His eyes grew wide with shock and amazement, he knew that Beqanna held magic but he learned something new every day. He was aware the mare didn't hold a traditional color but he certainly didn't think she could change her coat at her desire.
He shook all the crazy thoughts from his mind focusing on the conversation she spiked up. Ahh isn't that fascinating he spoke referring to her changing colors you look just as lovely perlino as you do green he laughed at his own humor. The two barely knew each other but he was there for the birthing of her twins, and through the process they grew close. It was sad to admit out loud but Dacia was probably the closest friend he had in the Chambers. Ahh well sometimes I like to remember what green grass is like, the Chamber is dusty and all his voice had humor in it, poking at the kingdom that was sooty and dusty and had little spots with grass. And what brings you to the meadow? interested in her reasoning to adventure out.
{Girls who run with wolves are not meant for boys to love}
It’s wondrous to her that Arthas can marvel at her gift. All her life she’s considered herself something of a regular beauty, singular in her ability to attract the wrong attention. For once, the grey’s eyes upon her don’t seem so … terrible. They’re kind in their intentions, neither wanting nor insidious. Without her knowledge, her heart rouses from its shadowy chambers to thud mercilessly at his gentle laugh. She follows it with a light one of her own, chin tilting upwards to look at him, really look at the man she’d passed by unknowingly all this time in her stay within the kingdom. “Thank you, truly.” She murmurs, clearing her mind as he moves ahead into easier conversation.
This had been exactly what she needed without her even knowing it. The way he lightly jests and seems to at ease outside of their shared home has her mind pulled from its murky depths and for a moment, she’s free of the pain. “I agree.” She muses, head turning so that she can view the expanse of the meadow once more. “Sometimes, I’m as green as the Chamber gets.” She jokes, lulling herself into something of a happy state. But it’s not to last - Arthas’ question strikes a sword through her chest and the air from her lungs escapes in a pained sigh. Her eyes flutter shut, lips pulling into an uneasy frown before she inhales raggedly to regain her composure and focus once more on the brute.
What has she left to lose? “I think that my time in the kingdom has come to an end, sadly.” She relates, a broken smile tilting her cheeks upwards. How could he even begin to understand? Where could she find the time to tell him of her sorrows, more importantly, why would he even care? It’s not for Arthas to hold her up in her hour of darkness, even though he’s done it before when she begged it of him. Maybe, out of every creature in the whole of Beqanna, he had come here to the meadow for a reason - maybe fate had brought him back around to the olive mare for reasons she couldn’t begin to comprehend.
But she won’t drag him into her sorrow without cause. It was bad enough already that she should carry this weight. Arthas only knew what he had seen and Dacia wasn’t even sure if she could make heads or tails of her situation anyways. The world seemed so unsteady these days.
The stallions eyes trailed, gazing over the mare as she spoke, she truly did look just as lovely in the light pink shade as she did her olive green. It was fascinating that she was able to change colors at her desire, he has met horses of odd colors but never one that can change colors. His face remained humble and happy as she thanked him for his compliment.
Dacia did not look as happy as she did when he first met her, something was clearly bothering her. The question he faced was does he pry or leave it alone? It would be easier to leave it alone, but if he wanted to be a good friend he should probably ask her, perhaps he could help shed some light. He couldn't help but chuckle at the mares comment on how she was the most green the Chambers got. It was certainly not a lie, a comical statement she made.
He watched as her face went from relieved and joyous, to serious and his face was quick to follow. The mare made the statement that she was leaving the Chambers. He could not believe his ears, she was leaving? She was the closest friend he has made and he certainly did not want her to leave. Why was she leaving? It just didn't make sense, she had the foals of the king she surely holds a high position in the kingdom. He had so many questions running through his head, he did not know what to say. He stood there for a moment in silence, before taking in a deep breath and exhaling. What do you mean you are leaving? Where will you go? The stallion stepped closer to the mare, hopeful that he could provide relief from the thoughts that caused her pain.
{Girls who run with wolves are not meant for boys to love}
If only all things in life could be as simple as this moment were. Arthas’ eyes are clouded with the millions of unanswered questions she’s sure he must be thinking of, countless possibilities of what could’ve changed in such a short time that someone who gave birth to twin sons of the king could now be consorting with ideas of abandonment or disloyalty to the very kingdom she’d been born in. It seems like such an unbelievable thing, but Dacia has had the message so clearly spelled out before her. Things (for her at least) had never been so plain. The one man she’d devoted her life to had callously brought another mare into the fray, for good, without even mentioning it to Dacia beforehand. Killdare had played her like a fool and she’d deluded herself into thinking he’d been her one friend this entire time.
“Let’s just say that I’m not the only mare who’s given birth to Killdare’s children this season.” Dacia comments in a low voice, following it with a harsh laugh. Stupid, ignorant girls got what they deserved. She shakes her pale head, exhaling once more before turning her body towards him, feeding off the casual step he’d made in her direction. It would feel nice, for once, to lean against someone for no particular reason besides comfort. To feel the strength of muscle beneath the skin without the fear of burning. But she and the grey are not yet that close …
Instead, she lets her eyes dart away from where they’d been lingering - upon his shoulder - back to his worried face, a brief smile trying to cover up her bitter mood swing. “I’m not sure where I’ll go.” She tells him, thoughtful haze surrounding her. “I suppose I’ll make myself at home in Lupei’s herdland, Volcanic Village.” She decides. “It’s not too far from the Chamber, so the boys can grow a bit and still be close to the Kingdom without me having to actually be inside of it.” She explains, rosy tail batting at her sides. Her head tilts, forelock drifting down the center of her elegant face before she pipes up once more. “You’ll have to come and visit me. I’ll be terribly bored.” She tells him, eyes brightening for a moment as she looks up to where he waits.
He quietly gazed over the mare who seemed to be reliving the pain that brought her to leave the chambers. It was almost as if she had to carefully choose her words, how to say it to Arthas. After a few moments of silence she finally spoke saying that her foals with the King were not the only ones he had that season. His eyes grew wide for a moment before he relaxed again, he saw another foal that looked similar to Dacia's twins but it was none of his business so he never pressed. Her voice was low and she followed it with a forced laugh, as if to try and comfort herself.
He really did not know what to say, he has never been in a situation, nor did he know there situation. Lots of stallions have foals with multiple mares, but perhaps the king promised her a different life. He took a few moments himself before speaking I'm sorry to here that Dacia is all he could mutter out. He wanted to comfort her, but should he touch her? Maybe she did not want to be comforted, maybe she just needed time to consider all her options. He found her looking around before she took in a deep breath to speak again.
This time his question was answered, she would go to her brother Lupeis herd lands. He has never personally met Lupei but he certainly saw the mint horse (how could you miss that) at a meeting. It made sense that he had his own herd since he had never seen him in the kingdom aside from the army meeting. His eyes reflected sorrow, for he did not want her to feel pain, and he did not want her to leave the chambers. His ears flicked forward and his eyes reflected joy as she stated she wanted him to visit her. Oh of course! I will come to visit his heart felt momentarily ripped but repaired by her statement. She was growing to be his best friend from the Chambers and he did not want to see her go. This way he can remain apart of the kingdom while still being her friend. When will you leave? he asked so he knew when to start looking for her.
{Girls who run with wolves are not meant for boys to love}
His brief apology doesn’t surprise her. She’d expected it, really. Who would understand why Killdare had ripped out her heart and spit on it? It was normal for stallions to take up with multiple mares - quite the usual thing. But how could she make Arthas see? How could she possibly explain that of all the men in Beqanna, she thought Killdare would be different? It was a hopeless endeavor. So his words are met with only a nod, the pale mare deciding to brush off the confusion rather than take it personally. Sometimes, Dacia wished she could fade into nothingness. But perhaps what she doesn’t understand quite yet, what Arthas nor Killdare seem to understand either, is that by choosing to leave the Chamber she eventually will fade into nothing. No one will remember her name. Her children will be nothing, from nowhere. Only given recognition because of their father. What difference does it make who bore them? Who gave them life?
This world was built for men and men alone.
It’s a frustrating thought, but something she’s come to accept over the past few days. Arthas likes her idea of visiting and for her, that’s really more than enough. “I think now.” She tells him, head tilting thoughtfully. “No better time than the present.” She says, smiling softly. The boys will be of age soon and then she won’t have any reason to step foot inside the kingdom ever again. Her past, and all of those that waited within it, would be free of her. Curse Killdare, curse the Chamber, and curse love. She looks back to the grey with that same smile, nose extending to brush against his dappled shoulder before she moves past him. “Don’t keep me waiting.” She tells him, tail swinging as she picks up a trot and heads for her new home.
