everlasting; any

[Everlee]

Spring draws birds to their homes, young in nests with loud cries to be fed. The squirrels yawn sleepily as they’re scatter through grasses and over pebbles to find food. Mother deer gather their spotted young with thin, wobbling legs to carefully pick their way through the field to teach them the survival skills they need before bedding down soon after dawn’s break.

Everlee watches it all quietly, unsure with ears flitting in the thickness of her creamy mane. The scent of honeysuckle and rain drift on the chilled early morning breeze. The freshness was invigorating and encouraged her to move further into the openness. A few others were awake as they nibbled at young shoots of grass, the dew sweet to the tongue. The small mare follows suit to savor the treat as the length of her hair came tumbling down around her pale blue and caramel brown eyes to curtain her in a moment’s darkness.

It felt right to be here.

This land is yet unknown to her but the atmosphere buzzed with a sense of life. The smells and marks of others left are all that give way that she is not alone other than the few clutches of equines that stood together in morning conversation. Everlee lifts her own head now, chewing thoughtfully, to toss her hair back and absentmindedly smile at the hope that presented itself to her and the boundless opportunity that rest just on the horizon.

[lilliana]

Lilliana doesn't care for winter.

She has generations of tropical-dwelling horses in her bloodline, a patriarchal lineage that spans a century or two (at the very least). And blood, they say, will always out. The bite from the winter air is no longer present, frost no longer comes uninvited across the ferns and large shrubs that dwell beneath Taiga's canopy. Warmth, life is back in Beqanna again and Lilliana greets it eagerly. She has wanted nothing more than to feel the sun's warmth on her back, to smell the floral scents that dance on sweet breezes.

The chatter above her head tells her that spring is in full swing. The abundance of new life around them is proof enough - everything from the birds to the horses of Beqanna have brought about another generation. But summer will be upon them soon enough with all its sweltering heat and lovely mornings like these will become shorter, if they even come at all. The day promises to be a pleasant one, Lilli thinks as she walks along the well-worn trails that have been traveled by so many before. 

The sun climbs higher, illuminating the field as everything wakes. The morning light reveals multiple horses, some grouped and some standing alone. Lilli's brow furrows and she wonders how she is supposed to do this whole recruiting thing. What does she say? How does that whole conversation even go about? She knows enough of Beqanna to know that the Field is where the whole search starts, that those who come here are looking for a home. Winds help me, she prays as she steps past the treeline and emerges into the open Field.

She doesn't like the openness of this place and she wonders if the world can see her uncertainty. (Would they be disappointed in her? Valerio and Aletta, they who had fought wars and lead kingdoms, what would they think?) You have faced much worse, she tells herself and steels herself to keep walking. But still, something about the Field makes her feel vulnerable, laid bare, and Lilli is ready to turn back, to turn around and forget that she had even thought of inviting somebody back to Taiga when she sees Everlee.

There is something sweet about, something soft and kind that draws Lilli away from her insecurities and towards her instead. A small smile graces her features and the crimson girl dips her head in greeting, "Good morning." She doesn't come too close out of respect and stops a few feet in front of her. A dimple forms, "You've picked a beautiful spot to start the day. The light here is lovely." The chestnut turns her head to admire the horizon, towards the mountains she can only assume, is Hyaline.

Her attention soon returns back to Everlee, smiling brightly and her blue eyes keen on her newfound companion. "I'm Lilli. Who might you be?" 

LILLIANA

i left home on account of snow
(buried all the things i know)

@[Everlee]

[Everlee]

Sweet air draws the depth of rain soaked sod, it's earthiness is a taste for the knowing and Everlee draws the freshness in greedily. It felt good to have the earth so alive and wanting. Her pale blue eyes trace over the field with a shy eagerness but they are hooded with a touch of fear. Fear for a new home, new faces, foreign tongues.

She is lightly build, ringlets of hair flowing down in a pale stream to touch the ground behind her hind hooves. The delicate pink nose twitches slightly as she scents others milling about but there is no threat on the horizon. Everlee takes a step and then another as she drops her head once again to sate the cry of an empty stomach. The grass is clean and thick with dew droplets and the taste was nearly magical. When had her last meal been? Everlee can not recall for she had carried on till she happened upon the fields.

The sounds of light hooves draw her head up quickly, tossing the length of her hair from her features, finding that of a copper penny mare with a soft smile and gentle eyes. Everlee's instinct is to trust another of her likeness, a sister among the wicked, but natural hesitation takes hold. Both ears flicker forward in the nest of her hair as Everlee listens intently. "Lilli." The name is a honeyed on her tongue as it develops into a gentle whisper, the tap of her tongue as she finished the name on her teeth. Everleee lifts her eyes to the other mare, the shadow of a creeping smile growing. "Everlee." The name is offered to the kind eyed woman. Everlee touches her chest with her mouth as though offering a punctuation.

The declaration of a beautiful sunny morning is not disregarded and so Everlee takes ehr eyes from the other momentarily to look over the field but her face returns with the reflection of the sunniness and so a smile has blossomed upon the fawn patterned mare. "Do you live here?" The question is an honest one as Everlee is a new face amongst the tall grasses There is hope in her heart as she asks, a nearly sing-song tone in it as it lifts into the inquiry.

Everlee the innocent, the sweet, the sacred is attempting the best she knows to understand and grow in this new world.

@[lilliana]

[lilliana]

She tries to be soft in her approach to Everlee. Maybe its because Lilliana herself feels at unease here and projects that on to the younger mare. But then she thinks that most, at least those with the scents and memories of places unknown still clinging to them, might be somewhat nervous upon arriving in Beqanna. New starts, new horizons, new stories to be told... the first chapter can sometimes feel the most daunting, the first steps the hardest.

Sometimes all someone needs is a little help and a little hope.

The cremello mare raises her head quickly and when Lilli meets her eyes, the chestnut offers a small smile. She doesn't come any closer. The hesitation in the way that the other mare regards her is enough to still her. Lilli's expression warms, her blue eyes shining in the morning light as it dances across her red-gold coat. Upon hearing her name coming from Everlee's lips, the dimple on Lilliana's cheek deepens as her smile broadens. The mare finally meets her gaze and Lilli takes a slow step forward, an attempt to broach the space between them. "That's a very pretty name," comes her chiming reply.

At a closer glance, Lilli can see the other mare is young. At least a year or two younger than herself. About Aislynn's age, she realizes with a start.

Lilliana thinks of her younger sister as the pair admire the view of a lovely summer morning. She wonders about Everlee - was she someone's younger sister? What brought her to Beqanna? A fleeting glance over to the fawn-spotted mare reveals a smile forming and the thoughtful expression changes to a sincere one, an honest reply for Everlee's honest question. "I live in Taiga." She motions with her head past the mountains and towards the River. "It's a forest with some of the biggest trees in Beqanna."

Lilliana pauses for a moment, tilting her head as she thinks something over. There is another glance to tender Everlee and then Lilli smiles again, "I could show it to you, if you'd like?" 

LILLIANA

i left home on account of snow
(buried all the things i know)

@[Everlee]

[Everlee]

Hesitation, it was something to keep the boogeymen away, Everlee wears it like silk around around her existence. She likes the way Lilli smiles, warm and inviting, but the fawn spotted mare waits a heartbeat to see if her expression cracked so it may give insight to any other motivations...it does not.

The young mare believes the fiery chestnut means nothing more than her offer. A place filled with trees and the idea of misty mornings are all too tempting. One white leg lifts and falls as Everlee offers her own more meek version of a shy smile. "I think I'd love that." It's a near heartbreak that she must think she would enjoy it for she is not quite certain as to what she does and does not enjoy. The world is full of wicked monsters with poison tongues and sharp teeth and the mare has known their bites. She gives an eager slicker of a bigger grin as she takes Lilli's side to show her willingness.

((Woo! Sorry this is quick but I'm excited to get Everlee started. Let me know if you want me to post first or if you feel like doing a start <3 ))