"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 lingers above the water, her lips parted, as the moon glow grows around her. This makes it so much easier to see the moment when they come out. They being the stars that come back into their blinking existence with the progression of twilight into full dark. The stars that remind her of her place once among them (of the demon’s, too, as she would lie back on a carpet of constellations and invite Zosma in). Her own damning light casts a red-glow to the reflection, making it all the more true to her memories of her time beyond this world. How far away she is now from them, from her. She spends minutes, hours, watching the stars below her.
Never do they pull her back up.
This night is hardly different at first. She’s perched over the calm shallows like a hellish vulture. Her mind is millions of light-years away while her body is stuck fast in its current reality. Perhaps she is foolish to maintain her post after so long. Probably her once-lover has moved on to another stranded survivor on her island of nightmares (even now: stroking and strangling and teaching and torturing, all with abandon). It is impossible to let go of the brilliance she once clung to so effortlessly. But come dawn, she does so again and again.
Tonight she breaks the cycle.
Zosma forcibly peels herself away from the muck of the shoreline while the stars are still spinning above her. She trudges through the silt until the ground becomes firmer, earthier. Then it gives way to spongy forest floor as the demon spirits through to the other side. Next, she feels the breathy tickle of tall grasses against her leathery wings. She pauses here in the meadow, in the midst of full summer under a clear night, smelling the sweet grasses as the wind combs its’ fingers through them. It smells of life. It smells of all the things she is running towards, all the things she has ignored in favor of a past long dead.
Finally, as the sun breaks free of its bonds on the second night and crawls wearily into the sky, Zosma’s feet land somewhere new. Great mountains poke into the sky, puncturing the clouds so that they spill all the colors of the sunrise down their facades. Immediately before her is an alien forest full of strange trees. Discovery is too tantalizing an offer to refuse, so the dark creature moves forward into the land, boundaries be damned. Her forked tail twitches to and fro as she anticipates being caught. But oh, isn’t this why she’s left the river behind? Already, the stars are millions of miles from her mind.
As soon as the sun rises, Tähti is out to test her wings again. She climbs the mountain’s least steep sides by hoof, stretches them, and glides down, then repeats. It is almost summer now, so her body is almost 6 months old and she is determined to fly before fall.
After all, to her that must have been the worst consequence of dying last winter.
A little star, what her mother called her, but against the grey mountains and yellowish grass she is a speck of darkness instead of light. It doesn’t matter; she will be light grey again to compliment her name once more. So far, she is eager to prove that she is just as useful in the body of a small child than as she would be, had she been able to grow to her true age - 2,5 by now. And so, she repeats her cycle once more, to strenghten her wing muscle. Because she had learned in Nerine how to use those better than anywhere else; for battle, to take advantage of height, but also to trust in her sisters-in-arms. Currentl that came down to Kagerus mostly.
After a while she catches a scent she does not recognize. Excited, she trots in the direction of the approaching horse. Borders have meaning, meaning it is someone’s home they enter, and it’s not appropriate not to call out when one comes across the border. Unless they live here; Solace and mother would have recruited more horses for Hyaline while she was away, she assumes. So perhaps it is someone who belongs to her kingdom without having met them.
All the more reason to go.
She whinnies; the sound echos, but it is clear that it belongs to someone young. Ugh. Well, she’s just got to make do with what she has right now. Nothing to do about it right away. Let’s just hope the new someone likes a good story.
the light you are searching has always been within
and in my dreams, i kissed your lips a thousand times
Sanctuaries do not often sanctify demons; but, I suppose, there are first for everything.
It is little Rhaegor who alerts me of her arrival, his head bobbing up with perked ears and shining eyes. From where I'd been standing with Sviko and Warlight, I watch as some kind of unearthly recognition crosses those volumous eyes, a sort of conscious astral planing that I cannot begin to fathom. I have my own magics, and he has his; it's a balance; it's life. But when I tread carefully over to my little buckskin boy, he catches me by surprise by turning opening his mouth to speak. Rhae's words are few and far between; and so I bend down to catch his whispers.
The river demon is coming.
Shaken slightly but such an ominous statement, I hide my expression by nuzzle my son's forelock, wondering at what he could possibly mean; but I come to the same conclusion as him before long, and the worry leaves my face. Pressing a kiss to his sooty head, I turn and quietly find Solace, asking her to watch the dreamlets for an hour or so while I go to meet an old friend at the border. Her eyes find me rather knowingly; but the trust between us is undeniable. She kisses me goodbye. The children watch as I go.
And, true to the words of my son, she appears: her disregard for the border is no surprise, but it is also no crime. Hyaline, as I said, is a sanctuary: any may enter, as long as they are willing to be greeted by one of the council members. And of course, she must know that I am coming to greet her; my scent is on every blade of grass, in every drop of dew.
I come up to her wordlessly, perhaps influenced by my mute son. From the opposite direction, the body of Hyaline's local reincarnate approaches, as black as night and sweaty from flight training. I've been watching her progress, admiring really. Upon recognizing her, Panthera raises herself from the grass not far off and stalks calmly closer, purring loudly; I hadn't even known the leopard had been around, but of course, she always seems more interested in those around me than of myself. Figures.
At long last, we all converge almost at once: demon, queen, reborn child, and leopard. A strange mixture of occult and mystery. There's a smile on my lips; I almost purr, as my cat does.
"Hello," I allow. "Welcome to the Sanctuary, Zosma."
This forest is so unlike the one she has become accustomed to that it steals all of her attention at first. She forgets that she is a stranger in a strange land, for a time, and revels in the new space she has invaded. The trees run the gamut of red colors from the maples to the flamboyant. At first, she had thought of blood. Her mind started to recreate an entirely different forest on an island far, far away. She starts to wander down that path in her mind (starts to remember the fleshy trunks and the meat that swung from the branches, spraying crimson blood on and around her) before stopping herself with a sharp breath. This is a different time and a different place. She will never go back, can never return.
And isn’t that for the best?
Zosma follows the sound of water babbling happily through the woods. She parts curtains of hanging purple wisteria with her curving horns and lets the enormity of the forest swallow her. The air grows cooler the deeper she goes. It is a refreshing cool compared to the summer heat of the rest of their world. She is grateful for the reprieve after climbing the steady incline into this mountainous land. After a while, the winding creek grows into a tributary and the thick cluster of trees spreads thin. She’s able to loosen her wings from their tight position at her sides as she steps out into a clearing. Just as the demoness is stretching the kinks out of her taut frame, she hears a sound.
The high-pitched whinny comes from somewhere just ahead. Without thought, Zosma picks up the pace to intercept whatever child it is originating from. Because it would be all too easy to become lost in a forest like this, and even if she doesn’t know her own way, they could at least stumble around together. She finds the girl quickly. Her bat wings are already raised instinctively around her, prepared for fight or flight. She looks almost threatening as she towers above the filly, casting her red aura onto the other and staring with opal eyes. She’s about to ask the girl if she is lost when the hair at the nape of her neck raises.
Someone is behind her.
The demon spins around with bared teeth and flared wings. She doesn’t call on her shadows – not yet – but she is prepared to defend this unknown child with lethal action. But as quickly as she inflates, she rapidly deflates when her eyes find her would-be assailant. “Kagerus,” she says, bringing herself up from the crouched position she had been in. Her gaze softens slightly, appreciatively, as she regards her once-companion. There is no moonlight to set her aglow like the last time, but she’s tempting in the full light all the same.
She doesn’t say anything for a time, her eyes flicking from Kagerus to the leopard at her side to the girl behind her that she makes space for. Sanctuary. The word rolls around unspoken on her tongue as she tastes the offer of it – not that she has been offered anything yet. It’s not the reason she’s come. But that reason could have an entire life built here, the way she’s standing and owning this place. Hell, this little girl could belong to her and she could have read her all wrong the last time they met (when they woke in another plane). Her eyes land on the painted mare’s again and linger there. “I went to sleep one night some time ago. I was wondering if any part of it was real, or if it was all a dream.”
The new scent is nearing her quickly, like any full-grown adult making just a tad of haste. For the black, raven-winged girl it was the equal speed of a trot, of course.
The form of the woman is slightly threatening, but Tähti is a bright and brave girl. Something she definitely got from her father, at least the brave part. The mare has horns, half-opened wings (well she's got those too, no biggie) and a red-glowing aura that uneases the girl, but, she's not one to give in to fear. And just as one of them is about to say something, the scent of predator and queen drift their way. The black girl grins as she sees the demon mare spin around frantically, but lets the two get acquainted. Instead she darts towards the panther lady to give her a nudge, before turning back to the two full-grown mares. "I'm Tähti." she offers, then settles the ebony feathers on her back. "Zosma, are you a guest of Auntie Kag's? Auntie Kag, did you dream her?" she pries.
If nothing, she still carries the endless curiosity of a child, after all.
the light you are searching has always been within
and in my dreams, i kissed your lips a thousand times
“Well, well, well,” comes my low, sultry voice as Zosma nearly busts a cap in reaction to my arrival. “That’s not how you greeted me last time.”
And just how did she greet you, hmm?
Smirking - a svelte expression that suits the curves of my small, powerful figure - I don’t move an inch from where I’ve settled as my demonic once-companion straightens herself, unruffling her feathers in an all too enticing way. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that my eyes went quickly over her onyx figure as those wings so excellently exposed it; but as her soft, appreciative gaze meets mine, I attempt to put our past encounter aside.
Tahti’s presence helps me accomplish that.
Growling pleasantly under her breath, Panthera stalks after the little wayward star and firmly wraps herself around her once she settles. I almost roll my eyes at the sight of such affection coming from the creature that only ever seems to apparate when I am in need of life-saving; but if you roll your eyes, comes the feline’s voice inside my skull, I will no longer save you. So you cannot. Hah.
Rolling my eyes - for my familiar and I are tethered beyond such gutless threats - I perk my ears and sink into a shoulder (as if leaning into the palm of my hand, elbow on table, eyes half-closed in a lazy, kittenish kind of interest), considering that which Zosma next says. I was wondering if any part of it was real, or if it was all a dream.
“I don’t need to really need to answer that for you, do I Zo?” I’m being too flirtatious and I know it, but I just can’t help myself. She’s come from her river dwelling into my land, into my game, into my home - and soon, she will meet my wife. Ivar had fancied the idea of Solace and I being… Intimate. I’d be intrigued to see Zosma’s reaction to the same thing.
(If only you could bring two people to the dream world at once… But Solace would never go for that anyway. Or would she? That little sex pot is always surprising you…)
For once, I almost don’t want to tell you to shut up. But shut up.
Before answering, I incline my head towards Tahti, considering the youth’s innocent seeming question. Despite being the size of a yearling, I know that mentally, she is far past - something that must frustrate the girl, though she has been handling it well. Straightening, I shift my weight to upright, and then over into my other shoulder. My mane ruffles breathily in the wind, the upturn of my lip still smooth and luxurious.
“We went into a dream together, like when you first arrived back to Hyaline.” My explanation comes in a voice far less full of suggestion as I am forced out of the heady fog of sex that floats between the demon and I. “And though I’d not been expecting her, she is of course my guest - anyone who means no harm is welcome in Hyaline.” My eyes flash, glint, sparkle. “And Zo here couldn’t hurt someone if she tried.”
My smirk splits, revealing a grin; let the glowing-red, bat-winged, horned woman try to argue.
“But answer this question for us, my lady; why have you come?”
Lav, if you’re reading this, Kag and Zosma may or may not have banged in the dreamscape pre-solace. :|
![[Image: kag]](https://78.media.tumblr.com/2e8039018ce4dff6112c167ec23e886a/tumblr_p72zjit7wC1s5a0qvo1_100.png)