The early morning rays of light reflected brightly off the surface of the lake that the silver-painted girl had grown so fond of in recent times. The shore of the lake had become a place where she could find solitude, despite the occassional company, and she had never been the same as she had been before her accident. The Dreamer princess had once been adventurous and rambunctious, always happy. It seemed like that was an entire lifetime away now.
Shifting was not something she did often nowadays. It had been her two-legged form that had fallen from the roof that day and it had been that form that had been laying in a bed motionless for so long. Artemis still had yet to do anything about the weakness of her muscles, the frail look to her body. She still did not eat much, and though she knew her muscles had become weakened from a lack of use, she had not been able to bring herself to work them enough to regain the complete use of them. Artemis had stopped shrinking, but she was as small and as weak as she had been for weeks now.
Thin fingers tugged gently at the long blades of grass in front of her, her face resting in her other hand, elbow propped up on her knee. The young Marino sighed to herself, closing her eyes. Nothing was right in the world for her anymore, and she had grown tired of feeling so angry. She didn't know anything anymore.
There was a smile on his face, broader then it had ever been in his life. He sat atop the black and white horse like a king, but he only held the happiness of one on a throne not the pompous pride that a crowned beast might have. Hawthorn carried him from the lands of AniWaya with no problem at all, his back broad, his legs thick as tree trunks and his neck twice as muscular. He had been one of the largest and Alder had chosen him for his size as well as the connection that they had made in the tribe's lands. Alder took it easy, pacing him and giving him breaks even though he did not seem like he needed it.
The new pair walked through the Crimson Dream's lands with no fear, Alder knew that he would always be a welcomed guest here. The male wanted to show his mother, his newest pride and joy. The horse, named after the flowering tree, spoke to him in his low tongue often. He had many questions and was curious about where they were going and what his ties were to these lands, since he smelt so strongly of another. Alder told him, it was his mother's home and he wished to introduce them. The ride was so comfortable and enjoyable that the wolf took the horse north towards the large lake, scenic in his intent.
A wafting scent traveled towards them, the white blaze of the stallion rising to meet it. Another He said, with his ears and a shake of his head. Alder eased him into a trot, and as they came along the lake's edge the blue eyed male saw a figure in the distance. When he neared Alder left Hawthorn's back and called out to the female, Hello Artemis. He spoke, a smile on his maw. But as he came closer, he could see that she wore no content face. The black stallion followed close behind him, though there was no line or halter to connect rider and horse. Alder stopped, unsure if he was intruding or not. The long face reached over his shoulder, snorting and watching the light wolfess.
>_>; I'm back into the swing of posting... I hope. Thank you for grabbing this ♥
The silver-painted girl bristled slightly at the sound of another's approach, a response that had become so natural to her when it truly should not have. Artemis did not know who would even be interested in speaking with her now, for she had certainly distanced herself from most of her pack mates and even her family, at this point. The scent on the air was different, though; it was not Crimson Dreams, though it was familiar.
She turned as he greeted her, a listless smile forming on her muzzle. It could not be helped, of course, for she did like Alder and his brothers. She had even been there when they were born. The Marino princess only wished she could give him a genuine smile now, but she could not muster much more than she did. "Hello, Alder," she returned the greeting, looking to the large black and white horse. "Your horse is pretty... And big."
Alder waited patiently for the girl to notice him. He was eager to introduce her to the horse, but he did not jabber with haste and bowl over her response with words of his own. It was obvious that there was something troubling her, at the very least she did not seem to be herself. Alder had always known her to be a bright fey, even if it was observing from afar. But the male was a polite one, and he spoke with a genuine tone. Thank you. His name is Hawthorn. I just traded with a woman from AniWaya for him. He paused, a wave of his tail a subconscious hope that she would cheer up a bit. How have you been? Alder had heard of her fall, as well as her celebrated awakening. But, all her other ailments were a mystery to him.
Apparently not but I'm trying, thank you for being patient <3
The silver-painted dreaming princess did not remember many specifics from before her fall, only the way that she had been and good memories. She had been very young when Alder and his brothers had been born and though she did not remember much of it, she knew she had been there, and she knew she had changed drastically since then. Was there anything left to the girl she had once been? Would she ever feel whole again? She feared for the answers to these questions that plagued her brain so.
"I... Don't know," she answered feebly, soft baby blue eyes brimming. She blinked harshly, unsure of what prompted the sudden onslaught of emotion. "Is it scary to ride him? Are you happy in the kingdom?" She had met a man from the kingdom once who had a horse. What had his name been? What had the horse's name been? These were things she did not remember immediately, but she wondered if Alder knew of him.
The boy was not confident around anyone, but there was something that brimmed inside that made him hope he would win over Artemis. He wanted to make her feel a little better, and though he knew it was impossible for him to fix the cause of her unhappiness (no matter what it might be) Alder hoped that he could possible bring a smile to her face. He had help, so maybe it was possible.
The girl didn't know what it was that bothered her, nor even how she felt at all. It was not a good day if Alder couldn't even figure out how he was felt. Those were even worse then the days where he was purely sad and unhappy. He was lost at those times. Thankfully they were infrequent for the masked wolf.
Alder shook his head, glad that she had changed the subject and talked about the new horse. A little. He admitted, glancing back at the horse. He had been frightened, at first. But once he got used to the seat and the gait and speed he had fallen in love even deeper. There was nothing like it. But he's a good horse. You can pet him if you want. The male said with a smile, hoping that she would come to know the horse's friendly nature too.
I like the court a lot, it was hard being gone at first. But my brother is there, and the others are nice too. Maybe you could visit, if you haven't been there already. Some pack wolves traveled all over to seek out the other packs and adventure, maybe she was braver then he was and explored.
It seemed as if she had done nothing for so long but sit and mull over what had happened in her life. Now, Artemis was glad to have someone to distract her, pull her away from those thoughts. She had not been around Alder during the period of anger; she had not lashed out at him in grief and anguish to hurt him, as she had done with others, even his brother. She rose, brushing away a bit of dirt from the back of her thighs, crossing the distance between herself and the horse and his rider. Timidly, the silver-painted princess reached out to tough the horse's shoulder, unsure of how she was meant to pet something so much larger than she. "Like this?"
Once, the girl Marino had been one to adventure anywhere she possibly could, but she had not left the pack lands in such a long time that the idea of visiting the court was very nerve-wracking, frightening, even. "I would like to visit, if it's okay with you, and the rest of your pack," she added, since she knew very little of the way the kingdom worked. Artemis didn't want to bother anyone if she ever managed to gather up the courage to leave Crimson Dreams again.
Alder smiled, so wide that it almost hurt, as the girl rose to meet Hawthorn. Then for a moment he frowned, worried that the horse would suddenly react badly just as any parent might worry that their child would misbehave at a moment's turn. But the light hued lady came to the midnight horse and touched his shoulder lightly, and the horse stood as still as Alder could ever ask. He let a breath go, and his smile returned. Just like that. He gave with an encouraging tone. 'Torn flicked his ears, a swish of his tail and only moved his nostrils to take in her new smell. Alder touched his nose, scratching it and gave him a gracious comment in the horse's native tongue of low-speech. It can out as a short yet odd snort, the boy was still getting the hang of the language.
The male could understand how it was to be frightened about encroaching on another pack's land so the girls comment was nothing out of the ordinary. He had always made sure that his entering into pack lands was prearranged. If you call for me, I will meet you at the borders. Alder was happy to help those that needed a companion to do most things, for he felt the same way. I think that there's is a good relationship between the Court and Crimson Dreams. Alder added, assuring her that there were many friends between the two families. Blood ties stretched over the borders as well. You might like the coast, the cliffs are pretty. He extended the comment not thinking much about her fall from the roof, getting a bit ahead of himself as he tried to think of reasons for her to come and see his new pack.
One sleek silver hand ran over the horse's shoulder at his encouragement, though the Dreamer princess still found it strange to be petting the horse. She had not touched the horse the last time she had greeted someone from the kingdom. Artemis thought hard for a moment, trying to remember the man or the horse's name. It took a moment of her brow furrowing before she could recall. "Oh! Did you ever know someone named Heath from the kingdom who had a horse named Lumiere? He came here once when I was really young and his was the first horse that I met," she added.
It was reassuring that he would be willing to meet her to show her around, and she had also thought the relationship between their packs to be a good one. However, her eyes fell to the ground at his next statement. "I don't think I should want to see the cliffs," she said slowly, speaking softly. "Is there coast away from the cliffs?" She did not like heights.
The horse reacted to the affection, slightly and yet Alder could still see the change. No, it was not the purr of a kitten but he could see the ease on the stallion eyes. It told the boy that he had chosen the right horse out of the group. It wasn't just his large size but his demeanor that fit the wolf best. Artemis spoke, and he looked to her with bright cerulean eyes.
Heath? Alder felt his smile soften at the good memory. The coy-wolf had been a good friend of his, or so Alder thought. The male had been there when Alder first shifted, and he had told him about horses and how life could be different in their company. I knew him. He no longer lives in the Court, but Lumiere does. She had a colt recently. Alder explained, saddened slightly about the fact that he no longer knew Heath. He and his older brother had been close friends too. I only met him once, he taught me a few things about horses. He was very nice. She was lucky to know the roan mare too, Alder believed fully. The mare was a wise beast, calm and yet confident in her existence. She was also a good mother.
Alder realized his folly when the girl looked to the ground. Anu had told him, as a warning and as a tragic tale. She had fallen from a great height and how could he ever think she would like to stand on the edge of a cliff?! Alder took a step closer, We wouldn't have to go there. No. He paused, then added quickly. I'm sorry. The tall male's ear had fallen from their erect stance and he was so sorry he had even brought that up. There are many beaches without a rock higher then your ankle. And other things to see too. He said with the hopes that he hadn't deterred her completely.
The silver-painted princess was content to stroke the horse's shoulder and it seemed he was not going to protest. After being close to the large animal for a few minutes, he did not seem nearly as frightening as he had when the pair had first approached her at her lakeside perch on the grassy shore. Small, dark ears turned at the information Alder gave her, and it saddened her to think that Heath was gone. She had promised to visit him one day, but it seemed like that would not be happening. "Why did he leave Lumiere? What happened with her, besides the colt?" Artemis could only assume that was a baby horse, right?
She felt badly that she had reacted poorly to his suggestion, but it was not something she could help. Artemis had become very frightened of high places, even going so far as to move from her room on the second floor of the mansion to one of the unoccupied rooms on the ground floor. "Don't be," she said with a quick, curt shake of the head. The young Marino did not want him to feel badly. "I think I'd like to see your beaches, though," she added with an encouraging smile.
Alder could not answer her question. The disappearance of the past Marshal had been a mystery to many. Even his big brother hadn't known the details, only a short story involving the past king and Heath's mate. Haven had been sad when he asked about Heath, they had been such good friends. The idea that he had left his mare behind was an even greater unknown, for Alder was certain that they had loved each other. But all Alder could do was shake his head, a frown on his face. I don't know why he left her. Maybe because she was pregnant. He suggested, eyes looking sorrowful at the thought of good friends being separated. She is a good horse... But I think things were complicated when Heath left. He added, still so unsure how he could even express the ties between the hybrid and those who remained in the Court, plus those that Lumiere had made herself. It was not easy to untangle the past and find a straight answer.
His smile returned, even though her reply did not cause all the bad feelings to leave him. He knew what fear was, and how insecurity was an everyday, sometimes feeling like an every moment, sort of challenge. If she didn't want to go somewhere, the blue eyed male couldn't bare to force someone. As she spoke his smile grew stronger. He took a moment before he replied. I hope you can make the trip someday.
