"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
all that we have amassed sits before us, shattered into ash
You should return, her subconscious tells her, and she thinks longingly of the pine forests she was promised. She can nearly feel the pine needles under her hooves and it makes her tremble just to think about it. She had promised them that she would come, that she would be honored to see what promised to be a beautiful home. She had fallen in love with the idea of the Taiga, though she never brought herself to go there. Why? Possibly something like guilt. She had made a promise, but it is so hard to keep when your heart just isn't into it.
Is her heart into it now? Maybe—hopefully. Perhaps she wasn't ready to commit herself to a new home then, but she is now. The Taiga calls her name, as daunting as that is. She has never been one to back away from a challenge, though; if she can find a new home she loves as much as the Valley, it will be a blessing. She must try, at least, for the sake of her own sanity. She needs to put the past where it belongs—behind her. Nothing—no one—from the past is coming back, and she desperately needs to move on.
The towering redwoods come quickly into view, and she pulls in a long breath. The smell of pine coming from years of crushed needles is almost overwhelming, but at the same time it feels like home. It is early morning still, with a light fog sweeping over the terrain, and she relaxes slightly as she comes to the border. It is absolutely nothing like the Valley, but at the same time she feels like she's home. Finally.
Fire attracts fire. Back in the field she hadn’t been sure, not able to notice the gift that the fairy had temporary taken. Not yet was it back, it didn’t feel alive, but it was very much part of their souls. It lures her to the border.
She comes forward and stands in front of Cress, not longer the girl that she once was, but with a round stomach full of life. Still young, that much was obvious, but Jinju had grown in so many ways too. She had been disappointed at first, that Cress hadn’t followed them home. But perhaps she had been to blame too, unexperienced and quite rude in her notice of the lack of ears.
”Cress” she greets the older mare with a light drop of her head. Then the corners of her dark lips curl up and she steps out from within the trees. ”Welcome home?” she offers, suddenly a tad bit insecure again.
Jinju liked the thought very much, of having Cress consider Taiga home. She loved her home, loved every inch of it, and she was more than willing to share that joy with another. The earless golden mare had shown a bit of her love for pine trees during the time in the field, had mentioned her old home too, and Jinju hoped that the slight resemblance would make her feel just as much at home. She had been young, very young, when the Reckoning had happened. She had called the Jungle home, loved it very much too, but it had been so easy for her to love the Taiga just as much, perhaps even more.
Her ruby gaze holds Cress’ as she steps aside, silently inviting the mare in. The Taiga’s redwood forest was just as much Cress’ home as Jinju’s, if the golden mare chose it to be. ”Would you like me to show you around?”
OOC: Really wanted to get this up to you even though muse is low and I'm supposed to take a break
all that we have amassed sits before us, shattered into ash
She remembers the pair who had greeted her in the field so long ago, the young black mare and her father, and she hopes that she is not too late to show them that she has, indeed, chosen Taiga as her home. She knows how quickly rulers and loyalties can change, and she dreads that she has missed them in her reluctance to fulfill her promise. She can taste flames at the back of her tongue once more, and perhaps her fire will draw in the young mare. It is what had drawn them together in the first place, after all. Flames attract flames.
She is not disappointed when Jinju enters her sight—as a matter of fact, she is quite the opposite. Her brown eyes light up and she smiles as she takes a step forward, relief all over her face. She is still here; does that mean that Ruan is, too? "Jinju!" She says enthusiastically, nodding at the young woman's words. Her smile turns sheepish, though, as she responds. "I am sorry that it has taken me so long to come find this wonderful place. I do admit that I was frightened of giving my heart to another kingdom."
Is it a kingdom? She isn't sure how the new lands of Beqanna work, and she's well aware that many of them are not being run like kingdoms at all.
Cress smiles once more as Jinju offers to show her the inside of the Taiga, and she accepts the mare's invitation whole-heartedly as she crosses into the redwood forest. Her hooves sink into the pine needles and she sighs contentedly, feeling the aching of her joints start to go away as she channels her healing up through the ground. The soft footing is something she remembers fondly from the Valley, and it is as familiar to her as the fire in her chest.
"I would be honored if you could show me around," she tells Jinju, eyes dark with contentment. She glances at Jinju's rounded stomach and nods. "Congratulations, by the way. Who is the father, if you do not mind me asking?"
Her hesitance and held back posture are soon forgotten. Cress calls out to her in a rather excited way, and it’s impossible for Jinju to not let it brighten her up. Not only did they share the fire that nestled deep within them, but also a certain love for pine trees. Not quite the same pine trees, Jinju’s stood in Taiga and Cress’ somewhere in old Beqanna, but the fire wielder hoped that one day Cress would love the Taiga just as much as she did, and would feel truly at home.
That Cress was willing to give the Taiga a chance, was more than Jinju had hoped for. Now that the golden mare seemed happy to see her, Jinju steps forward, leaving the treeline behind her. No way of hiding her swollen barrel now. ”You’re still very much welcome” she tells the other woman with a smile.
Jinju waits until Cress passes her by, only turning around then, to follow the golden mare back into the pine tree forest. She cannot stop her lips from twitching, quite familiar with the content feeling of coming home. ”I’d be happy too” she replies softly, moving up to Cress’ side without invading her personal space. She doesn’t reply to the congratulation on her pregnancy right away, instead she starts walking and guides them a little the right.
That way they would go right towards the river, that formed the border between the forest and the Taiga. It was one of their main sources of water, and the broad river was quite a sight too. ”Thank you.” It was quite strange to get congratulated for such thing, but that was the whole pregnancy to be honest. ”His name is Terran, met him in the meadow and well, things hit off from there.”
She cannot stop herself from grinning, her stomach fluttering from remembering the night only. And the days that passed, actually, or Terran in total. Her youth shines through in it, from the sheepish grin to the girlish way she flusters. It puts a sway to her step, the sound of the river already audible through the tall redwood trees all around them. ”This river is the border between the Taiga and the forest, fresh water from the mountain and it ends up flowing into sea. There are some other small streams, but this is the biggest” she tells Cress, pausing a little to let her ruby eyes look at the golden mare, before she steps out into the daylight again.
The trees are much farther apart here, allowing the sunlight to actually pass through. Jinju likes the feeling of the sun on her back. She would never have enough warmth in her life.
