"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
They were by the lake, the four of them, the day is sunny and windy. But she isn’t there, she is Amet yet different. A strange boy with scales and his smoky black and white coat is coming towards them, he wants something.
Iset is drawn to the newcomer, walking straight to him and leaning into his side. And the other boy too, she had often seen by the lake during the summer, but she doesn’t know his name. His coat was very like the scaled boy who was not Amet and he had great dragon’s wing on his back. In her sleep, she shudders she remembers the night she was burned, and the way the fire had reflected off his inky wings as he landed beside Amet. Tang, or Amet, is invisible as she tries to convince them to stay, not to leave with this stranger. But they do not heed her. She grows frustrated, screaming at the top of her lungs at Iset and the other boy with the name she does not know. But her voice comes out in a thin bird’s song, and they ignore her.
And then Tang or Amet, (they are fluid), is sinking in the now red lake, trying to swim but her legs won’t move, the red water is reaching down her gullet.
Tang wakes gasping for air. The dream as clear as if she had just lived it, it felt different from her other dreams. “Amet” she whispers in the dark, her breathing ragged. “I think something bad is happening again.” She buries her head against the scales of his neck, letting his mane cover her, like she has done so many times before. “It was a strange boy, and he took Iset and the tobiano colt with the wings, the colt who flew to you on the… the night of the fire.” She alludes the attack which had burnt nearly half of Hyaline and she suddenly feels guilty for bothering him. He already had so much to worry about, he didn’t need to add comforting her after scary dreams to his list of duties.
“Sorry…. It’s probably nothing.” She says, her breathing is steadier but she still feels disoriented and adrift. She aligns her body with his, drawing warmth from his side. She can still feel the red water enclosing around her, but his touch drives away the sensation. “I shouldn’t have woken you.”
@[Amet] so this is Tangs first encounter with her new precognition, it’s a little rough but trying to throw this up before work
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
He wakes to Tang's panicked voice, the sleepy cobwebs in his mind disappearing much faster now than they would have pre-attack. The painted mare presses against him in the darkness and Amet is thankful for her warmth as he leans back into her, his ears pricked and attentive as she explains her dream. But, was it really a dream? Discomfort rises in the dragon king's belly and he gently presses his soft muzzle to her, inhaling slowly, before pulling away from Tang and moving through the darkness. "I will check," he whispers, "be back soon, mahal."
--
He returns nearly an hour later, lips pulled into a taut line as he nestles again next to Tang. It's still dark, but the moon shines softly on the ravaged foliage around them. He closes his amber eyes and leans his leather-plated face into the painted mare's neck. "Castile is gone," he says quietly, but un-rushed, "It smells of Sylva near where he usually sleeps." Amet is unsure whether the dragon-winged son of Nayl had been stolen from Hyaline in the night, or if he had simply gone for a stroll in the moonlight, but Tang's dream had left an inkling of discomfort within him. It was too much of a coincidence.
"I will go to see Djinni tomorrow," he whispers into the darkness. He will not leave Tang alone in the middle of the night, not after the Lost Boys' attack, even though he knows she can fend for herself. He would not forgive himself a second time, should anything happen to her.
"And I haven't seen Iset since the fire," (he is afraid to call it the attack out loud, just as she is). There's a finality in his voice when it comes to Iset. He will deal with her when, and if, she decides to return to Hyaline.
"Did you have a dream?" he inquires quietly, "How did you know?"
He is quick to awaken. Amet seems to still be on high alert and she doesn’t blame him. His gold eyes are specks of light in the darkness and his words clear. In stark contrast to his attentive demeanor, Tangerine mumbles her disjointed thoughts to him; the dream still clings to the fringes of her mind. The akhal-teke stallion presses his muzzle to her, all strength and warmth, then he is off - placing unquestioning faith in her instincts. Involuntarily, her body gives a small shudder as the dark and the breeze (which wipers of winter) fills the empty space he leaves behind. Tang remains where he left her, eyes and ears assessing the disheveled landscape. Despite her best intentions to relax she remains very aware of the way her pale coat contrasts the grey world around her. She notices the night sounds are different… less crickets. No frogs. And then he is back, his coat of armor faintly iridescent under the glow of the stars. The cream and gold mare can’t help but express her relief with a sigh as he makes himself comfortable by her side. Amet speaks to her quietly, she appreciates his non- urgency, and she nods at his plans for the morning. “That sounds like a good idea, I can stay and keep an eye on things around here.” Tang knows Iset’s absence and possible involvement weighs heavily on him and she wants to make things easier on him if she can. “How did you know?” He murmurs next to her, his voice carrying genuine curiosity. She thinks for a moment, searching his face as if she could find her answer there. She was no stranger to dreaming, but this dream had just felt different.“Yes, it was a dream.” She thinks for a moment before continuing. “But, it was more like a memory than a dream… but a memory that hadn’t happened yet.” It’s the only way she can think to describe what made this dream different from other dreams. “I don’t know if that makes any sense…” she says honestly. Tang still wasn't sure exactly if it actually was anything different... maybe it was just the new anxiety she has been feeling making her dreams feel strange. Either way, she didn't really want to talk about it anymore.
She leans her head on his shoulder then and closes her eyes. She has something else she needs to tell him.
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
Tang tucks herself back into him and Amet sighs comfortably, his nostrils flaring appreciatively at the scent of the painted buckskin mare. She offers to keep watch over Hyaline when he ventures to Sylva the following day and the gilded king smiles sleepily at her, his soft muzzle finding the spot just behind her ears. "I don't know what I'd do without you," the dragon-stallion admits quietly, and while there is a hint of laughter at his words, he knows that she will rightly consider them genuine.
Despite the recent trauma, Amet is comfortable and happy at Tang's side. There is a distinct comfort to feeling her warmth in the middle of the night, one that quells his worries. She answers his question, his curiosity, readily, but even Tang is unsure of why she is having these dreams. "It doesn't have to make sense," he offers in response. Rarely did anything in Beqanna make sense to the stallion who'd once been an ordinary foal in an ordinary land. Amet does not believe that magic exists anywhere outside of Beqanna. He is always on his toes.
They fall into a comfortable silence, but Amet does not close his eyes. He's not as tired now as he had been minutes before, "Are you sleeping?" he questions gently, to the mare who has leaned her head against his shoulder.
His words stir confusion in her chest, but she lets the moment linger. Tang isn't ready to fully explore what that means, or how he sees what they together are becoming. When it comes to Amet she doesn’t know her own heart.
It doesn't have to make sense.
He comforts her, says what she needs to hear. Tonight she is grateful that they both were born someplace else. They share a unique perspective as foreigners- those born in Beqanna could not see the land and the magic in the same light as those who only came to know of such things after growing up somewhere without the blessing (or curse?) of magic.
So Tangerine sighs in agreement and acceptance of the strangeness of this world, and the methodical rhythm of his heartbeat lulls her towards the luxury of sleep. She would talk to him in the morning, tell him what she had been intending to say much sooner after she rested. But the gentle sound of his young voice bring her back to the world of Hyaline and she lifts her head to see his face.
There is curiosity in her eyes as her amber gaze flickers to life, fully awake. He is alert without any sleep clinging to him and she finds that she no longer wants the rest, she wants to know what is on his mind.
“I am now.” She says playfully, without any hint of malice. Reaching out her pale muzzle she tenderly moves his forelock aside with her lips. “What is keeping you awake, Dragon King?”
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
Amet's amber eyes flutter closed as Tang reaches towards his head, lipping at his forelock gently. He can't help the smile that spreads across his lips, nor the way it widens as she calls him Dragon King. He gently nudges her back, his fluttering nostrils blowing warm breaths against her neck and his voice soft despite their newfound late-night alertness, "Would you like to go for a walk with me? It might be easier to see the stars without those pesky leaves getting in the way," his first small joke about the night of the fire, a step in the right direction.
He moves away from the charred wisteria tree and towards the forest on the opposite side of the lake, where he knows a small clearing is hidden at the base of one of Hyaline's small bordering mountains. His gait is unhurried and leisurely as he turns his amber gaze towards the clear sky, taking in the plethora of stars.
The gilded stallion remains silent for some time, but then finally offers quietly, "My mother, Shalla, brought me to the Dunes when I was a yearling. She was pregnant with Iset and Sakir at the time." He had told Tang months ago that he would tell her about his past when he was closer with his siblings. But now they were even further away from him, and Amet is starting to feel the effects of their absence.
He needs someone to know him. He needs it to be Tang.
"The King of the Dunes made Shalla his Queen in exchange for her children. When she gave birth to my siblings, He had already been using me as his punching bag for three months. Iset and Sakir were excluded from any physical punishment until they were half a year, and then..." his lips twitch into a deeper frown as they pause in the middle of the clearing, having made it through the small copse of trees, "Iset always had it the worst. She had no fear. We fought a lot, because I wanted to protect her but she wouldn't let me. She was too headstrong."
The golden stallion leans his shoulder on Tang, his eyes still roaming the open sky overhead.
"Sakir was the one who held us together. They were always inseparable."
07-17-2017, 04:36 PM (This post was last modified: 07-17-2017, 04:37 PM by Tangerine.)
tangerine
face to the sun
She like the way his eyes flutter closed as she touches him, the way she can make his smile broaden. He suggests a midnight walk and Tang finds her curiosity growing. “Lead the way.” She says with one brow lifting and her attention focused on him.
He is beautiful like this, relaxed and at peace, with a light heartedness in his voice.
She follows him through the shadows, her head close to his hip, her gold shoulder occasionally brushing his haunches and flak. As they walk she remembers the way they had found each other the first time, the tension in their touches, the lump in her throat. Was that really last winter, a year ago? Their encounter had been brief, but it had help shape her future. Serendipity. Her mother would call it.
She is lost in thought as they enter the clearing but as he halt she returns to the present. She takes her place beside him, her gaze lifting to the stars. Warrick, his name sprawls across her thoughts unbidden. Rarely can she look to the stars and not think of the auburn and navy stallion.
But Amet’s voice ends her reflection, the timber has changed - his words are low and fragile. She closes her eyes as she listens to the words which break her heart. He tells her a story, three children suffering under a cruel man, but in the end they are triumphant. Somehow, that little victory doesn't lessen the disgust she feels.
She can picture the scars along Iset’s slight body, and they seem to glow brighter in hindsight. Tang had only meet @[Iset] briefly, but she could easily see her ferocity and independence, she had an intensity that Tang would never know. She had power in her presence, she would make a good queen- even if she was not quite ready. Amet needed her. Iset.
There is a long pause as he leans his shoulder into her and Tangerine holds his weight; his scales press into the softness of her winter pelt. She tries to comfort him with her touch instead of words in the weighted silence, in case he had more to say. Her lips press to the crest of his neck, her mouth wandering softly until she finds her way to the divot behind his ear.
“I don't know how to fix this.” Tang inhales.
“Everyone makes mistakes.” She murmurs into his skin, letting out her breath as she thinks on her next words. Iset may be wild, in a different way than Tang was wild, but she was not evil. “And I think Iset knows what she did was a mistake, her absence speaks of guilt.” Tang ignores the tingling in her own scar. “She will be wiser because of this mistake."
He is beautiful like this, somber and pensive, trying to do the best by those who depend on him.
"Banishing Iset will fix nothing, you three need each other." She didn't know how to make everything better, she knew nothing of kingdoms and politics. But she knew about family, and she knew about forgiveness. "You have come too far, together, to let something like this divide you now."
07-21-2017, 07:35 PM (This post was last modified: 07-21-2017, 07:36 PM by Amet.)
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
He relaxes into Tang's gentle touch, his bright eyes fluttering closed though his head remains facing skyward. He feels... different, now that he has shared his past with the painted mare. He worries that his admission will change her vision of him, but the young Akhal-Teke also feels lighter now that his secret is not his own. Amet wants to tell her the rest, needs to tell her the rest, but for a moment, he hesitates.
And so Tang breaks the silence before he can do so, reminding the young King that everybody makes mistakes. He frowns involuntarily. Leaning his plated frame again into her touch, Amet forces his eyes to open, to blink away the tears that threaten to spill from his amber gaze. "I left her and Sakir in the Dunes," his voice is rushed and shaky, guilt gnawing at the edge of his words, "When I came to Beqanna. I just left them there." He expels a frustrated sigh and kicks a front hoof against the ground, thankful that it is dark enough to keep his tears a secret from his friend. His first friend. His best friend.
"Do you think she did this to get back at me?" His inquiry is rushed and overflowing with worry, as if he can't get them out fast enough. "I don't think she ever forgave me." He can't blame his sister, and never has. He had been a boy, scared and hurt, when he had snuck from the Dunes in the middle of the night. Amet's victory had been bittersweet, his reunion with the twins the same. "I don't want to not know where she is. She belongs in Hyaline. But I.." he groans and lowers his dragon-like head towards the ground, "I told her not to come back until she was ready to be Queen. I wanted to punish her, but I think I was too harsh."
"I don't know how to figure out what's right, Tang. I just want to do what's right."
Amet
@[Tangerine] - sorry this is a lil short, i wanted to get it to you like... 3 days ago lmao ♥
Tang sighs under the weight of his confession. His words reach her hot and shaking, suppressed too long. A hoof strikes the ground, emphasizing the guilt he carries. She thinks, trying to place herself in that small neglected boy's place. “You were a child.”
She pulls him into the golden warmth of her chest, the boy who has never known love. She realizes with a pang of guilt that the broken colt still hides, curled up and small, inside the lithe desert warrior's body - she had been blind to not see him until now.
He wants to be a protector, he wants to be worthy of his kingdom, but the scared colt who ran had carried no crown. "You can't hold that terrified child to the same standards you hold yourself to now." Of course, he would do it differently now; the years had built him into a man. “You have to forgive that boy.”
Then he is speaking again, the frustration in his voice making her feel helpless. His body seems to crumple in defeat as his head drops towards the ground.
Iset.
Tangerine was so different from the fierce Queen she could hardly assume to know her intentions, but she did know Iset was just as confused and broken as Amet. Iset burned hot and wild and Hyaline had burned with her.
Hopefully, that night had been the consequence of a chain of bad decisions, not a calculated plan of revenge on her brother. "That's a conversation you will have when she returns," Tang says, aware that they are not the most helpful words, wishing she could give him better answers. He deserved a true counselor, a knowledgeable advisor, but it seemed she was what he had. So, she did what she was in the habit of doing - she looked to the future and adventures to come.
"It's almost spring, Amet," she smiles softly, lowering her head so her muzzle can trace the line of his cheek. "We just need to think about what Hyaline needs now."
The fire was behind them, the land was healing, it was time they did too.
if there's a light at the end, it's just the sun in your eyes
She pulls him closer, his leather-plated frame melding into her painted one. Tears still threaten to spill from Amet's amber eyes, but he keeps them clenched tightly closed as Tang whispers into his ear. You have to forgive that boy. He exhales slowly and shakily, realizing the truth in her words almost instantaneously. The young King nods hesitantly against her but remains silent for a few moments, letting the surrounding sounds of Hyaline's nighttime partake in the conversation.
When he admits to Tang what he had said to Iset during their last conversation, the Akhal-Teke stallion is briefly worried that she will be disappointed in him, or in his actions. Instead, she offers him more guidance, and Amet wonders if he will ever learn that disappointment is not an emotion that is familiar to Tang. She is a good soul, a kind soul, and he knows he is lucky to have her friendship. "You are so special to me," he admits a few long seconds after she reminds him that it is nearly spring, "Thank you, Tang. For everything."
His guilt has subsided for the time being, Amet more emotionally fatigued than he had ever felt. He leans into the mare's touch as her soft muzzle plays at his cheek and he nickers warmly to her. "Hyaline needs new allies, I think," the dragon King muses quietly as he lips back at the painted lady, "and I'd like to start with Tephra. I was impressed with Offspring, but mostly I want more reason to cross paths with Warrick." The golden stallion's lips twitch into a small smile. Where he had expected jealousy, he finds none. Instead, there is only warmth. "I understand your fondness of him."
