"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
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
The volcano is a curious thing.
Smoak is drawn to it. The mountain is not always pleasant - some days it smells more like eggs than others, and sometimes it's too uncomfortably hot to explore during the daytime (plus... Mom and Dad haven't been too keen on him exploring around it yet, so stealth is a necessity), but the slow rolling lava always coaxes him back to the base of the volcano where the larger streams sit before they give birth to the small rivulets that venture further out.
The champagne colt has ditched his parents for the day (Dad had wanted to go to the River again, and Mom had Head of War things to take care of), so while they are elsewhere and distracted, Smoak is nearing the volcanic mountain to inspect the orange streams. He slips between the occasional tree, though not many of them grow here where the lava collects more than foliage, and lets his hazel eyes follow the course of the magma.
Moving leisurely, the lanky colt meanders closer to the base of the volcano, where the earth begins to ascend. His hooves find purchase on the loose, dark earth and he begins to move upward, though not before his ears twitch in respond to an approaching noise. Crap, his mind complains as he swings his head around to see who'd caught him.
Not Mom. Or Dad.
Score.
"Hello," he says confidently to Mom's one-eyed friend. "If you could, uh, not tell Mom that you saw me up here... that would, uh, well that would be great." Smoak smiles wide, the sheepish expression overtaking his young face.
Bound for trouble from the start I've been walking through this old world in the dark
He is grazing inland, not too far from the ocean but well out of reach of the volcano. Pushing aside the little snow that has fallen across the wisps of grass, tearing with blunt teeth as he considers where life had taken him lately. His conversation with Dahmer lingers, still unsure of how he felt about the whole thing. The winged stallion had basically confessed he felt something for the champagne mare. They shared a child together, it was hard to compete with that. While he was certain of his love for Ellyse (and that she felt the same), it was hard to push aside his fear that something would tear them apart.
His thoughts are broken as he spots a silvery colt prancing in the direction of the volcano. He raises his head, the good eye focused on the retreating figure as he chews slowly. Smoak had grown since he had last seen him. But he was sure it was Ellyse’s son all the same. He turns his head, not seeing either his lover or the sperm donor. For a moment, a wicked moment, he thinks of letting the colt go. It wasn’t his responsibility.
Instantly he is overwrought with such an idea, even the bear inside of him seems repulsed. No, that wasn’t him. That wasn’t fair. With a sigh he quietly follows after the boy, headed towards the volcano. He had never been to the base of the mountain, had never wanted to explore it’s heat. The bear growls inside, uncomfortable with the growing warmth. Small rivets of molten lava begin to appear, bubbling and simmering within the earth. The dirt turns to charcoal, clinging to his hooves.
The lanky colt is beginning to find footing in the shaky earth. A soft whistle escapes him, alarmed. That wasn’t safe at all. The boy turns to look at him sheepishly, admitting that he had slipped away from his mother. The one eyed stallion can’t help but offer him a small smile. ”It can be our secret, but only if you come down from there. It’s too dangerous.”
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
Smoak's curiosity has grown and grown with each season that passes. Come spring he will be a year old, and he hopes that his birthday will gift him with a bit more freedom. His parents do not hover, nor are they generally overwhelming, but the young boy longs to see with world beyond Tephra's borders, or even the top of the volcano if he can't be trusted to venture outside of their home just yet. Dad has told him time and time again that the rules they impose are strictly for Smoak's own safety, but the bone-plated boy can't help but feel that they don't trust him to take care of himself.
Which, of course, is correct given the current circumstances.
He smiles sheepishly at Ledger, though doesn't move from the crumbly, heated footing he had just secured for himself. The one-eyed stallion gives him a grin and for a fleeting moment, Smoak thinks that he's in the clear, but then he's given an ultimatum and the champagne colt's smile dissolves into an exaggerated frown. "What if you go up with me, though? That would be okay," the son of Ellyse gazes at Ledger with eyes identical to his mother's, his most convincing pout finding its way onto the colt's muzzle. "Maybe you know a better spot to go up, where there's less lava and it's easier to climb?" he inquires hopefully of the one-eyed stallion before adjusting his weight on the soft earth where his hooves have begun to sink and his legs have begun to warm.
"It will be fun, I promise. Plus Mom and Dad said that I can trust you, so that means they won't get mad if I climb the volcano with you," the colt adds in hopes that it will further his chances to see something new for the day.
Bound for trouble from the start I've been walking through this old world in the dark
The boy is restless, wanting more freedom. Little does he know that one day he may long for an easier time. Easy days lacking responsibility. Of course the colt is disappointed, a pout pulling the corner of his mouth down as he pleads for Ledger to come with. Hesitation in the depths of gold, or is it fear? The bear threatens to come out if he dares, his heart palpating weirdly in his chest. Already the heat making him break into a fine sheen of sweet that slicks over his scarred coat.
”Not today buddy.” He replies firmly, moving closer to the colt that is already sinking into the charcoal earth. Reaching over to grasp a hold of the back of his neck and pull him slightly up. Ellyse would never forgive him if he let her son be swallowed by lava. There’s a pang within him as the boy mentions that both parents had thought him trustworthy. He’s not sure if he quite believes that, the encounter with Dahmer still fresh in his mind.
A sigh as he looks down at him, leveling the boy. ”Unfortunately I've never been to the top of the volcano. My…. condition does not allow it.” There is an idea forming in the back of his mind, a consolation prize. ”How about I talk with your parents and if they agree, you accompany me on my next Diplomatic visit?” Looking into the colt’s face, to see if this may be agreeable enough to get him off the sweltering slope. ”I promise the kingdoms are more exciting then a silly old volcano.”
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
His hazel eyes search Ledger for any hint of a cracked resolve, but the one-eyed stallion sides with his parents in the end and Smoak gives him an exasperated sigh, though a playful and understanding grin has worked its way back onto his face, a silent admission of his youthful intentions. "It was worth a shot," he says with laughter as Ledger assists his descent from the tar-like earth, his small hooves now caked in black.
He inspects the flaxen chestnut stallion blatantly, from the sheen of sweat on his bright coat to the pit where a second eye should be. Smoak inches closer unapologetically, his head tilted to the side with intrigue. "Your condition?" he inquires with a furrowed brow, before: "Oh! Yeah!" After his exclamation, the son of Ellyse and Dahmer lowers his voice and whispers to Ledger with a grin. "You mean the bear thing?" He hadn't actually seen Ledger as a bear, but the young boy had done enough eavesdropping around Tephra to know that he was more than just a one-eyed stallion.
Smoak's hazel eyes move to Ledger's mouth where he hopes to see sharp teeth when he talks, but instead they are blunt just like his own and, while he's slightly disappointed about this, the flaxen chestnut successfully distracts the bone-armored boy with the suggestion of a diplomatic visit. Smoak throws his head skyward, excitement alight in his face once more.
"Yeah! You would do that? You wouldn't mind? Which territory should we go see?!"
Bound for trouble from the start I've been walking through this old world in the dark
Relief floods through him when finally Smoak gives up his volcano adventure. At least there was one argument with Ellyse he could avoid. In his head he scolds Dahmer’s bad parenting, letting the boy run around on his own. He had been lucky the one eyed stallion was here. The nerve of the man to even question hurting the child.... The anger rises in the back of his throat, bubbling like the magma that curdles beneath them. Forcing it back though as Smoak tilts his head at him with curiosity.
Noticing the boy’s blackened hooves, he realizes they would both need a quick rinse. With a soft nudge on a bony shoulder in the direction of the ocean, he begins to trek towards it. When the boy mentions the bear with a conspirator’s whisper, he can’t help but chuckle lowly. ”Yes, the bear thing.” He wonders who had shared that tidbit of information with him, preferring it was Ellyse.
At least his compromise is met with enthusiasm and it’s hard to suppress the smile that reaches to his one eye. ”I don’t see why not. I doubt your dad will be able to take you being busy with the Guard now.” Hiding his contempt for the man, he would not put his feelings on the son. ”Whichever one is chosen for me, but if you have one in mind perhaps I can suggest it.”
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
They venture towards the ocean as Smoak gives his abandoned conquest one last glance over his armored shoulder, vowing silently to conquer the volcano on another day. Their trek is a short one and Smoak remains contemplative for the majority of it, mulling over Ledger's ability to shift into a bear and wondering if he would discover the ability to shift into a different creature in the future. His hazel eyes find the constellation pattern at the stallion's hip and regards it briefly, but otherwise refrains from mentioning the mark.
Smoak plunges into the salty sea water when they finally arrive at the shoreline, his pensive expression making way for excitement once more. "Yeah, Dad asked if I wanted to join the Guard when I'm older but I haven't decided yet. I think I want to try a little bit of everything," he admits as he splashes his hooves in the water, any contempt that Ledger may feel for Dad last on him, "I'll even have Mom teach me how to fight."
His ears twitch instinctively, considering the one-eyed stallion's offer silently. He'd heard bits and pieces about each Beqanna territory - how the dark forest had reached its downfall, how the distant lake is full of friends (and sometimes even Solace and Svedka's mother), but he'd never really considered which one he'd like to visit most, only that he would like to visit them.
"What about the island one? Where that whole big purple family lives," he says as he turns his hazel eyes back to Ledger expectantly. After a moment, his grin widens and the bone-armored colt inches closer to the shifter. "So... can I see? The bear thing, I mean."
