"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
As the spring slowly takes hold of Sylva, Djinni realizes that she’s been in Sylva an entire year. It is harder to measure seasons here than it is elsewhere - the fiery canopy keeps the worst of the winter’s snow and the summer’s heat away from the forest dwellers, but flowers have been blossoming in the rare sunny clearing for several weeks now.
She’s slimmer today than Raene was, though a destrier still. The subterfuge had been brief; she had not wished to seem entirely disingenuous, though she must admit that Marlyn’s disappearance had made everything easier. She remains spotted, but they are flaming red and yellow spots on a sandy background, complete with autumn-orange mane and tail. She wears her rings and bracelets today (as she most often does), enjoying the familiar tinkling as she moves through the woods.
The kingdom of Sylva is smaller than she had ever anticipated, and while she does know that they’ll – someday – need to build relations with the other kingdoms, she’s content to leave them as they are for now. There’s no need to worry about a danger that has not yet formed. In the meantime, she wanders through the kingdom, pausing now and again to listen for anyone nearby that might be willing to talk for a bit.
current appearance: heavy build sandy brown with red and yellow spots orange mane and tail
She is small. Not abnormally small, but definitely of reduced size. Hope was born to a loving family. Her mother was attentive, but at times too attentive. Hope don’t touch that stick”, ”Hope don’t crawl under that log”, Hope don’t jump off that cliff” and so on. She seemed a bit over protective to Hope. The young filly wasn’t about to run into danger. She didn’t wish for death, but rather she embraced life. Everything Hope encountered had some sort of beauty or intrigue. She was curious and utterly optimistic to a fault.
Hope lived in Tephra because that is where her parents were. It wasn’t a choice, but rather a fact set from birth. Although Hope loved her home she dreamed of what lied beyond the boundaries of the volcanic village. When Hope awoke from her pleasant dreams she sprung to an awakened state as if gallons of caffeine had been injected into her mouth. Hope began to hum as she attempted to quietly leave her mothers grip. The humming didn’t help with the “quiet” part- but Hope couldn’t help the humming for it enhanced the silence with wonderful tunes.
After what seemed like miles of skipping Hope eventually saw a curious horse. She was brilliantly colored and dawned glittery jewelry that sparkled in the sunlight. ”Gee Wiz!” Hope exclaimed. The young filly scurried over to the towering horse and sported a giant smile. ”You are ah-mazing! I mean look at those..” She lowered her head and stared at the gold bracelets with doey eyes. A moment passed and she looked back up at the mare. ”My name is Hope, and my mom and dad are Eira and Wier. I am from Tephra, but I’ve always wanted to visit other lands. Is this another land? I mean…this place is pretty, you’re pretty…” She paused merely to take a breath amidst her excitement.
At first she thinks the patter of footsteps might be a fawn strayed too far from its mother’s side. They are light and quick, but lack the inherent hesitance that she’d think a deer would have, so when she raises her head to see a foal instead of a fawn, she is not entirely surprised.
Still, this is not a foal she has seen before, and she cannot quite picture Arrya letting one of her offspring wander so far from her side. Sylva is a safe place though, so Djinni doesn’t eliminate the possibility until the filly herself solves the mystery with a flood of words.
Though she’s never been especially fond of children that are not directly related to her, this one doesn’t seem to be the whining sort and the spotted mare smiles at the girl’s enthusiasm. “This is Sylva,” she tells the breathless filly, “You’ve made it quite far from Tephra; you must be very brave.” She smiles, rather impressed that the filly had made it this far on her own. She does hope that she had permission to wander off; it wouldn’t do for Sylva to get a reputation as a kidnapper’s den.
“My name is Djinni,” she tells the roan filly. “Would you like me to show you Sylva?”
current appearance: heavy build sandy brown with red and yellow spots orange mane and tail
If by some miracle Hope’s mind were to burst forth and screen like a movie before her there would be flashing pictures of running hamsters within wheels and jumping rainbows. Hope was filled with endless wanderlust and optimism, and in the current moment it felt like everything within her was working at top speed. The mare before her was like heroin to her mind. Hope hadn’t encountered many horses beyond her family, and no one in her family was as spectacularly colored as the mare. Hope could have gone on for hours before allowing the mare to speak, but thankfully her lungs required a break.
While oxygen was consumed the mare spoke, and it was like liquid gold to Hope. She stared with even more admiration. Hope had managed to travel to Sylva. It was a foreign word, but with contextual clues she figured it was a place.
Brave the mare called Hope. Her chest puffed. Dijinni the mare was named, and Hope was more enamored. Such an exotic name it was.
”Why Yes!” Hope exclaimed. ”I’d love to be shown around Sylva. That would surely make my day, Miss Dijinni.” She said with enthusiasm. ”I must say you are so beautiful….are you like a goddess or fairy? I imagine the faeries look as enchanting as you.”
The girl’s smile is infectious, and Djinni finds herself chuckling aloud at Hope’s enthusiasm. When the roan filly asks Djinni if she is a fairy or goddess, the spotted mare shakes her head with a smile.
“No, nothing like that.” She says. With an exaggerated look in either direction, she whispers conspiratorially that: “I do have a few tricks up my sleeve though.” And then she pulls away as though she’s said nothing, though the wink she gives Hope says otherwise.
She takes a step away, pausing for Hope to follow. She’d said she’d show the filly around Sylva, and she does intend to. Gesturing overhead at the canopy of red leaves, she tells Hope that: “These stay red and yellow year round. We don’t get much snow in the winter or heat in the summer, thanks to the canopy.”
“What is Tephra like?” She asks as they walk, “Is there really a volcano there?”
current appearance: heavy build sandy brown with red and yellow spots orange mane and tail
