"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
She had only vague memories in her head today, my red wytch. Winter has come, so the mushrooms, weeds, and various berries she enjoys for their psychedelic effects are gone for now. Mostly her memories are good. Not all of them, but most of them. This morning she remembers the pink-black patchwork youngling who was almost felt like a daughter to her. Cast out from her herd and wandering the plains, the barely two-year old had come to my marrow-red mare in a daze. She couldn't believe her own blood had thrown her from their ranks, but nothing surprised Jah-Lilah. She had seen the cruelty of others on many occasions, and even shared in some herself. It had disgusted her. Jah had took the filly under her wing, but she was a warrior. She didn't need Jah for anything, but she had to learn that. The only time Jah ever longed for siblings or stability instead of the horizon was when she thought of that baby. Perhaps that was why Jah was here seeking something yet again.
The red mare found herself alone in the meadow again. Her coat was long and fluffy, a result of the steadily dropping temperatures in Beqanna. Tiny flakes settled comfortably on the tips of her mane and tail, and every so often Jah-Lilah shakes herself slightly to get rid of them. She pushes her muzzle through the top layer of ice, greedily seeking out the emerald shoots of grass underneath. She nears a favorite spot of hers, and fortunately the small hill shields her from the wind today. She huddles down, turning her big curvy rump to the outside, and faces the trees at the bottom of her knoll. She thought she had seen a glimpse of the pied precog, a small buckskin girl who reminded her of herself, and the adopted daughter from so long ago. Her eyes slowly closed, but she keeps her ears on a swivel, keeping track of movements in the area.
...And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.
For the first time in her life, her mind feels more like a prison than an escape. She had more to process than she had energy to deal with, and she had never been at a loss for energy. Her thoughts are locked in a repeating cycle – Amet, Hyaline, Warrick, the terrible night, strange dreams, motherhood. They are all intertwined, but they contradict one another. Before, her life had felt like an artistically woven tapestry – the colors and textures flowing together to create something beautiful. But now, her life feels segmented. Do her budding feelings for Amet and her new responsibilities in Hyaline directly contradict her love of Warrick? And what will happen to her once her children are born?
And her dreams, if they can be called dreams, excite and scare her. After spending a year steeped in the magic of Beqanna she began to have dreams which hinted at her future and the futures of those her story was intertwined with. But she can barely thing about one topic long enough before another takes its place.
One thing she knows, is that she is changing.
Motherhood. Her first time, her only time. They had danced the long dance until it’s end in a temple of ancient oaks. They had made promises and together they had created life.
But Tang was more much of a girl than she would admit to the world. And for the first time in her life, she is lost. Always being able to find her way had become a part of her identity - this feeling of uncertainty just adds to her unrest.
Then, like a beacon in the snow Tang spots what she has been looking for. Relief floods her and she nickers as she approaches.
Tangerine had dreamed of her twins before her body had admitted their existence to her, and she had dreamed of the Red Mare. Winter’s chill sinks into her bones like it had never done before - her blood did not seem to run as hot this winter. But here she is, Tang’s dreams had indeed whispered truth in her sleep.
“Fair One, Red Mare.” The words she has been waiting to speak bring her comfort, and already her worries feel lessened.
@[Jah-Lilah] you are catching her at a low moment! She is normally very positive, but everyone gets down now and then & and she has a few things to work threw
Jah-Lilah had an insatiable thirst for knowledge. Not the type of knowledge that comes prepackaged and neatly organized in a book, mind you, no, that was too structured for my wanderer. She needed a kind of understanding. She just needed to know. To experience. She loved the haphazardness of making it up as she went along. She loved figuring things out by doing them, screwing them up, then doing them again. The nomad lifestyle allowed her to grasp so many different cultures and lifestyles, her observations kept her entertained for hours. Beqanna had no shortage of interesting and peculiar characters, and the little crimson mare had been watching them all. She had developed an uncanny ability to blend in, hiding unintentionally in plain sight. For two seasons now Jah-Lilah had been watching more interactions than she'd been participating in, and it was in this way that she had accidentally came upon the goldblackwhite girl.
Jah-Lilah knew her. If she had been blind she'd have known her. The first time she saw her, she'd been so sure, even though her memory can be cloudy and temperamental. The girl had gained some new talents since she'd been here, the magick seeping from her pores like sweat. The red wytch could smell it, and it was empowering. Many years ago, Jah-Lilah saw this patchwork filly alongside her dam. They had danced a few songs one warm summer night out on the plains, shared stories and bodies, then parted ways. She would come across that close-knit group several times over the years, then one time Tangerine was no longer with them. How curious and coincidental that they should happen upon each again, here in Beqanna.
She's snapped back to reality by a pleasant nicker reverberating through the meadow. There is both anxiety and relief in the cry, and Jah-Lilah answers with a gentle call of her own. She swings her body around, hooves crunching the ivory snow beneath them. Her ears perk towards the mosaic made mare, instantly enthused to see her. She bobs her head encouragingly at the girl's greeting, reaching out her nose to sniff her. "Hale, Spotted-Seer, so you've found me, hmm?" The cardinal mare's jade eyes dance knowingly, a crafty smile tugging at the corners of her mouth as she inhales the girl's scent, a mix of cherry blossoms and...smoke? This girl has been dancing with dragons?! This is thrilling to Jah-Lilah, and she emits a squeal, pushing her nose close to the girl for another taste of her unique new odor.
...There'll be no value in the strength of walls that I have grown.
OOC: No I don't mind at all! I want Jah to be all in everyone's mix, good and bad. We could have fun with this!
Beqanna was a strange world made stranger when set in contrast to Alma’s Heart. Tangerine had a supple soul and an adaptable mind, but even so, the rampant lust for power over fellow creatures she saw saddened and exhausted her. The burn on her leg was a constant reminder of the demon which haunted this land unseen- taking shelter in the hearts of so many of Beqanna’s best. Sometimes, it made her feel a stranger.
Sometimes it made her want to run hard and not stop until she found the land of Alm’harat again.
But the Red Mare greets her with recognition in her eyes and Tang is home. The scent of the red singer is wild and different from any she has known is this last year, yet wholly familiar. It is the scent of love shared, wild herbs and magic - it transports Tang to a summer night so long ago. A night of dancing and stories when she was just a lanky filly inventing her own heartbreaks and whishing on stars, like many from her childhood, but one her own children would never know.
Jah-Lilah eyes her with a look of knowing and approval and the painted dreamer suppresses the shyness she suddenly feels under the gaze of her mother’s friend. She is aware that she only resembles the filly she had left behind on the plains, and she hoped the changes her travels had made on her were for the better. Luckily the self-consciousness passes quickly and Tang’s bright amber eyes quickly find Jah’s green.
“Hail, lay-singer. You always were the traveler.” She meets Jah’s muzzle with her own. “I dreamed you were here, I had to find you after that.” She views the other woman with something akin to reverence, marveling at the fact that once again her dreams had whispered truth to her.
In the heart of the night in the cool southern rain...
She shrugs nonchalantly, "I go where the Earth-Mother takes me." Looking at her, the girl is everything Jah-Lilah remembers her to be. She has a new, recently healed scar on her leg, another burn? Jah-Lilah frowns, many equine here have these strange burns, the result of an overzealous tyrant from many seasons ago. It bothers her, but no matter. Now is not a time for sadness, but a time for rejoice. Every movement, every smile, every toss of Tangerine's head betrays her. She couldn't hide who she was if she wanted to. She resembled her mother so much it nearly pained Jah-Lilah to watch her. Nearly. Her heart swelled, she was so proud of the lady Tang had become. "I knew you would find me in your own time. I've been watching you, but you had to make your own way to me. You know how the Earth-Mother is," she rolled her eyes in playful mock-irritation. "everything in her time, not ours."
She tugged the girl's two-toned hair gently, wuffling. Jah-Lilah inhaled her scent again, catching something different. She runs her muzzle down the girl's shoulder to her belly, pressing up against her firmly. "My girl! You're growing flowers of your very own, aren't you?" She grins widely, dancing in place out of excitement. My redbone always loved the celebration of love, the creation of life. Love and birth were her favorite wheels on the circle of life, she had been an excellent midwife for many seasons in many places. She was over-the-moon for the young oracle. "So, new visions and new love, Spotted-Seer?" Jah-Lilah turns and begins moving out of the cold into a more protected thicket, beckoning the young mare to follow her. "Come then, child, tell me everything." She offers the weary mare solace and a friendly ear to listen.
...There's a full moon in sight shining down on your face again.
07-15-2017, 09:04 AM (This post was last modified: 07-15-2017, 09:05 AM by Tangerine.)
tangerine
face to the sun
Jah-lilah’s presence is like an elixir of healing, reminding Tang of who she is and where her soul if from. Despite the chill in the air she feels warmth in her limbs and her renewed vitality shines through in all of her movements. “Aye, it is the truth” She agrees when the wytch speaks of the mother all.
Jah's glance to the pink flesh of her nearly healed burn does not go unnoticed, but the golden mare is grateful when she does not mention it. Tang has a lightness in her heart that she doesn’t want to let go. Instead, Jah-lilah mentions her blooming pregnancy, causing Tang to turn with a prancing step to better show off her swelling sides.
“Twins, like their father.” Speaking the words out loud gives her a thrill and as The Red Mare prompts her for more she gladly continues. “They and the dreaming began at about the same time. The first dream I had, which I knew was different in some way, was of them,” she can help but looking back at her belly now, her eyes turning gentle and soft. “Briefly, I thought about returning home when I found out... but their father, Warrick, is so happy and I am not ready to quit my wanderings.” It was true, she still had much to see of Beqanna and its inhabitants but she had found that her heart had kept her anchored more than her wanderlust.
“I never intended to grow roots, that day I set off running from the plains.” Her gaze finds the intense green of her friends eyes. “But sometimes love and adventure are hard things to balance it seems.” She thinks then of Amet and his Kingdom, how he could only leave for diplomatic visits or short periods of time. Warrick too is never far from her thought, and she is reminded of his strong ties to the volcanic island - ties which she can not see but she could feel in his absence.
The red mare is sidled up to the girl, nibbling playfully at her mane as she speaks. She is a sight for sore eyes. She had spent many nights wondering what happened to her, and now he she was, pregnant with twins, and developing a seer's third eye not unlike the one Jah-Lilah had at one point in time. She had been thinking a lot lately about venturing to the Beqanna fairies, and asking them may she practice her wytch craft and mid-wivery here. Perhaps this little reminder of who she is is the push my little boho girl needs. The spotted girl dances around sideways to give Jah a good look at that bulging belly. Tang wasn't showing too much yet, but with two in there she was definitely swollen.
Jah listened attentively, nodding encouragingly as Tang explained about her dreams. "It is a blessing and a curse, to dream. You have to remember that you cannot stop things from happening. There were times I felt powerless, held hostage by my own gift, unable to help those that appeared to me in my sleep..." Jah's eyes still were on Tang, but her mind was somewhere far off, reminiscing. A rare tone of sadness played in her voice as she let her train of thought drift off. Suddenly, she snapped out of it, plastering a genuine grin on her face. "Don't tell people of your dreams too much either, you will be wrong sometimes. You can always see things clearly, but more often that not you will interpret them incorrectly. At least when you see others."
Jah quickly changed the subject to something more light-hearted. "So who is their father, the Pegasus or the dragon? You smell both of sky and smoke, spill." She was so glad that the little mare decided to put down roots here, for she may never have seen her again. She so badly wanted to ask after her mother, but was afraid of the answer. Jah-Lilah had loved the mare only briefly, but it was intense, a whirlwind. They had been so close, the best of friends for a moment. She was glad the spotted girl had found a good balance, Jah was still struggling with that her own self.
...She's so full of surprises, she reminds me of you.
. The note of sadness in the singer's voice causes Tang to mark the words which follow with utmost importance. Nearly every dream she had dreamed had been shared with those who they affected before she had time to consider if she should or shouldn't. Tang would have to think on this, the power of knowledge. What was to be kept and what was to be shared. She tucks the wisdom away like precious gift which she would explore and examine when she was alone.
But Jah-lilah is on to other things and Tang happily follows her lead. The next question makes her heart beat a little faster and a coy smile pulls at the corners of her mouth. “The pegasus, Warrick,” she says quickly. The word pegasus tastes strange on her tongue, he had only so recently been given his wings that she forgot to remember him that way most of the time. “I am returning to Tephra now, his home, where we will stay together for a little while.” She doesn’t yet allow herself to think about what comes after a little while.
But the Red Mare is looking inward now. Tang eyes the other with a touch of mischief in her amber orbs before gently speaking low. “You know… my mother always told stories about your travels and your magic-making.” She reaches into her memories, her young voice growing husky as she channels her dam.“The wild mare journeys far and wide, but the world is round and she always returns to Alma’s Back.” she smiles. “That's how she would end those stories, the stories of the wild mare.”
![[Image: tzang]](https://78.media.tumblr.com/fdbcab3d10b72c9635e7d3477a153da9/tumblr_p7i6dcppkv1xplguoo1_100.gif)