| A little breeze goes a long way |
The days are slowly warming; spring is not too far away now. Birds have returned, snow is no longer falling although the air may still be cold. She’s loosing her winter fur now, and she knows it won’t be to lo long.
Her belly heavy, Ilma is not one to move away far from home at this point - but she is prone to wander, even if her wings cannot carry two at the moment. Instead she discovers all there is to know in the territory; the lake as a centerpiece is great, but it has several streams (now rivers with the melting mountain snow feeding them), and she has followed them each. For fear of her and the child’s safety she does not go too far, staying within borders and within calling distance - she does not want to be a mountain lion’s easy meal.
The white mare slowly works her way through Hyaline this; grazing, slowly, and meeting others on her way sometimes too. Today she follows the only river out of the lake; the one that will end in the riverland to the north-east, the place where Hyaline and Nerine meet on common ground. She sometimes wonders what Nerine is like; she is told it is full of other women, where Hyaline is small. But Nerine is a warrior kingdom, not a sanctuary like this one. Ilma could never truly belong.
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Any fool knows men and women think differently at times, but the biggest difference is this: men forget, but never forgive; women forgive, but never forget.
Robert Jordan, Wheel of Time
Obviously, the mare is not completely in tune with the land of Beqanna yet, only having been here for the change of one season, At least she has enough knowledge to know that Nerine is a peninsula and the only way for her to leave is to head south. And so today she follows the same path she did when she first sought out Scorch, albeit in reverse. This time the sea is to her left, although it is not in her immediate view she can still hear the roar of waves and smell the salted gusts of air just beyond the crest of dunes and beach grasses.
Her travels bring her to the expected mouth of a river where her movement pauses. Internally she debates whether to cross now where she had before or carry on a bit further south. Curiosity rears its head again and she decides to venture further south, now following the river with the sea at her back. The sounds of the ocean slowly fade to ambient noise as her progression furthers.
For quite some time, there is nothing of much significance to keep her attention focused and so she finds her mind lapsing into daytime reverie. Just as her thoughts begin to reflect over the previous conversation with Scorch, her attention is brought back to the present. A shift of the winds brings an unfamiliar scent with it. With a newfound infatuation with the inhabitants of the land, she decides to follow the trail closer towards the stranger.
It is not long before she finds her target, a pretty white mare with wings. The woman didn’t seem to notice Breckin immediately. The spotted mare shifts her weight slightly with uncertainty, unsure of how to handle the interaction from here. After all, she had been the one to be approached lately, not the one to do the approaching. Within a minute, she decides to settle on the simplest tactic and offers the stranger a simple greeting, ”Hello.”
| A little breeze goes a long way |
Ilma realizes she has strayed too far from the centre of the land when a voice enters her ears. She has been on the lookout for predators, sure, but the mare she hears and - as she looks up quickly - sees now, has come from a downwind position. She blinks, but perks her ears, for it is only a mare just like she, even if she possesses no visible magic traits. To be honest, Ilma is more comfortable with the visible things, like a horn or wings, than the invisible magic, but maybe that's because she is still not fully used to the magical side of Beqanna.
She smiles at the stranger however. She has received a normal, neutral greeting after all, so she does not think she has disturbed the other mare. Ilma sniffs the air and confirms to herself mentally that she is still in Hyaline, although perhaps it would have been wiser for her to stay closer to the lake. "Good day to you as well." she offers. The speckled mare does smell differently than most others in the land, Ilma realizes as she steps closer to greet her; more salty, the mare has probably been somewhere along the coastline. "Are you visiting?"
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Any fool knows men and women think differently at times, but the biggest difference is this: men forget, but never forgive; women forgive, but never forget.
Robert Jordan, Wheel of Time
03-25-2018, 09:14 AM
(This post was last modified: 03-25-2018, 09:23 AM by Breckin.)
"I suppose in a manner of speaking I am."
Breckin regards the other woman carefully; she may have been brave enough to be the one to initiate conversation yet she remains cautious. She may be curious about the inhabitants of Beqanna but she is not dim witted. The magics in these lands are still strange to her and so she remains reserved with new acquaintances until she can say without a doubt that they are without ill intentions. And so she remains several paces away from the other mare for now; watching her steadily, but not unkindly.
Internally she wonders if she may have crossed a boundary at some point in her endeavor to seek out the white woman. Subconsciously her weight shifts slightly to rest a back hoof on the toe as her head drops slightly lower to the ground. If she had crossed into another territory unwelcomed she may as well not look so rigid and anxious--they may interpret that the wrong way. Although Breckin could only scent the girl near her, who was to say there wasn't someone else camoflouged nearby?
When a moment passes and she is satisfied that no one is going to rush her, she returns the other woman's smile with a small one of her own.
"I am Breckin. Am I no longer in Nerine?"
@[Ilma]
OOC: I'm sorry, it's not my best. I attempted this on my phone sitting in the car.
| A little breeze goes a long way |
The spotted mare seems a bit insecure - not something Ilma expects of a Nerinian warrior woman, but perhaps she is one of the diplomats in that kingdom who is not so aggressive as the rest. Or maybe she's still learning. The white pegasus mare awaits the answer patiently, then understands what this is about when she asks about Nerine indeed. She must have been visiting there.
"Oh! No, this is Hyaline. We're neigbours. But you're welcome to visit and explore, of course!" she invites Breckin easily.
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@[Breckin] Shortness is fine (:
Any fool knows men and women think differently at times, but the biggest difference is this: men forget, but never forgive; women forgive, but never forget.
Robert Jordan, Wheel of Time
”Hyaline?”
Breckin feels the inquisitive tilt of her head as she considers the white mare’s words. She finds some satisfaction in finding that her suspicions about crossing a border have been confirmed. Yet, it does not do much to push the edginess she feels completely away—at least not yet. The other woman is pleasant enough and for the fact alone she is appreciative. In fact, she even seems welcoming of the spotted mares intrusion. Perhaps Hyaline is just as nice of a place as Nerine had already proven to be. The smile Breckin offers does not falter as she musters what little courage she can to take a couple more steps towards the Pegasus and further into Hyaline.
Eager to learn as ever, she will not allow herself to be persuaded by the lingering small bit of hesitancy and finally decides to push the emotion to the side. Now she has a chance to learn more about this territory and she will not pass the opportunity by due to petty reservations. Besides, if someone had in fact warranted the motion to cause her any harm, surely they would have done so by now.
”What’s your name?,” she asks finally asks the other mare, “Do you have any magic?”
@[Ilma]
| A little breeze goes a long way |
The white mare smiles a bit when she listens to the spotted female taste the word. "I suspect that the name refers to the lake." she says, trying to be helpful. Then she remembers that, coming from Nerine, Breckin has only seen one of the rivers yet. "Ah, I'll show you. If you want? It is a rather beautiful lake." she explains. Smiling, she almost turns already to guide the newly found visitor, when suddenly the Knabstrüber asks for her name. And magic?
The winged mare smiles apologetically. "Oh, I forgot. Silly me. My name is Ilma. And please, no magic. Just these useless feathers." she rustles the wings. She's not using them because of the budding in her belly; it makes her heavier and she doesn't want to risk flight if it would tire her more than usually. A crash would certainly harm the child growing inside of her. "I hope you can forgive my rudeness. Pregnancy seems to make me forgetful more than anything." she explains.
She nods towards the south. "You ready to see the rest of the kingdom? I'm not sure if we'll meet anyone else on our way, there's not too many of us around right now I think." She hopes that the sanctuary will harbour more horses next year, but so far, she has not recruited many others for this goal. Just passerby's like Breckin, it seemed. But to Ilma, being a welcoming face to friendly visitors was just as important.
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@[Breckin]
Any fool knows men and women think differently at times, but the biggest difference is this: men forget, but never forgive; women forgive, but never forget.
Robert Jordan, Wheel of Time
Breckin regards the white mare curiously as her lobes rotate rapidly to catch spoken words. Finally she offers her name and the spotted mare acknowledges Ilma’s smile of apology with a crooked one of her own. As Ilma rustles her downy feathers, she is slightly disappointed to learn that aside from the wings, the mare has no other abilities for Breckin to learn about. But the disappointment is quickly replaced with surprise as the mare lifts her wings enough to show off her distended barrel. It must have been from the viewpoint where Breckin was standing, she hadn’t been able to notice the quite obvious protrusion. Before the question can even formulate in her head, Ilma is already giving her confirmation that she is in fact pregnant.
To be honest, she cannot even remember a time where she has ever been in the company of an expectant mother. Nor has she ever even been in love, let alone physical relations with someone else. The resulting thoughts have her facial features scrunching inward with awkward contemplation. Did she want to fall in love at some point? Would she always be a virgin? And what could her and Ilma possibly have in common to carry on a conversation? A flurry of questions carry on in her head, but ultimately she decides to shove away these thoughts. It would do her no good in the pleasant company of someone else to keep worrying about unimportant things for the moment. And as for the concern of not having anything in common with the white mare, well she would just have to start being polite and try to get to know her simply put.
Visibly, Breckin shakes herself to clear her rambling thoughts and her gaze realigns with Ilma’s, as a brighter smile spreads her dark lips. ”I will forgive you, if you find that you can forgive me in return. My thoughts seemed to have distracted me momentarily and I apologize if I came off as being rude.” She nod s her pale head in the direction of Ilma, “Congratulations on your little one. Are you due soon?”
In a few steps she closes the gap between herself and the winged mare, and takes a few more steps further to the south. Turning back towards Ilma again she smiles, ”I’d love to see the lake or whatever else this kingdom has to offer. Lead the way.
@[Ilma]
| A little breeze goes a long way |
The winged female has to wait a bit for the spotted mare to react. She seems to be overthinking things, and so, Ilma patiently waits. It is only after a while that Breckin visibly shakes herself and asks forgiveness in return, that she outs a soft laugh. "That's fine! As long as you mean no harm to Hyaline, you're always welcome to visit. Whether you know it or accidentally cross the border." she offers.
When Breckin starts walking, the spotted mare congratulates her. Ilma grins sheepishly. "Ah, thanks. Though come to think of it, it is rather easy to get pregnant, so I don't know if I earn any congratulations yet until I've birthed them. But yes, spring has arrived, so it won't be long now. They're kicking enough to let me know that." she shakes her head with an amused gleam in her eyes. Then, she nods to the south and turns fully, to do exactly as asked.
"So, what's Nerine like?" she asks the spotted mare. As a visitor to the northernmost kingdom, Ilma thinks that perhaps Breckin has a better, if not fresher, view on what the warrior women are like. Herself, she does not think she would belong there, but she knows that Ashhal is a warrior, or at least acts like one, so she doesn't think it impossible for her baby to grow up wanting to meet with their neighbours. Best be prepared. Also, from a diplomatic point of view she would like to know what Hyaline is up against. But she doesn't expect Breckin to give in-depth answers; she may not know all about Nerine or not want to tell, either which would be fine.
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@[Breckin]
Any fool knows men and women think differently at times, but the biggest difference is this: men forget, but never forgive; women forgive, but never forget.
Robert Jordan, Wheel of Time
Breckin waits nearby patiently as Ilma responds to her question. She’s never really considered the difficulty of getting pregnant before, so when she receives the information that doing the deed is rather easy she snorts with amusement. Having never been close to that situation before, or even wanting to for that matter, she decides she will just have to trust in Ilma’s words and experiences for now. Until someday when that fancy strikes her, if ever. Making a child is one thing—birthing and raising it is another matter entirely. The spotted mare wasn’t terribly convinced that she would be a good mother herself.
“I know we’ve only just met, but I am sure that you will be an excellent mother. You seem to be the embodiment of kindness.” Not that Ilma needed Breckin’s words of encouragement of course, but her words were spoken with utmost sincerity. “Will this be your first?”
The white pegasus begins to lead the way further into Hyaline, and in the direction that Breckin can only assume is the lake that the other woman had spoken so highly of. Her movements are light with anticipation, eager to see the body of water for herself. A recent memory finds its way into her nearest thoughts of the lovely waterfall Brennen had shown her in Ishia, and the coast she had explored in Nerine after visiting with Scorch. A lopsided smile parts her lips as she relishes the memories with her first friends in Beqanna.
Speaking of Nerine, Ilma’s question settles into Breckin’s mind and she gathers what little knowledge she has of the coastal paradise “I’m afraid I do not know terribly much of Nerine at the moment. I’ve only just come across Beqanna. Scorch and Brennen found me and offered to show me their homes of Nerine and Ischia respectively. Actually, aside from you they are the only ones I have interacted with thus far. The coast is lovely, I can say that for certain. But as far as the workings of the kingdom are concerned, I cannot offer much knowledge.” Her thoughts brush against the kingdom meeting she happened to encounter while she was within Nerine. “Though Queen Hestia seems fair and just in her reign from what little I have witnessed, and the comraderie amongst the many people is evident.”
Breckin’s brown eyes find Ilma’s and she smiles softly almost in apology, “I hope that gives you a bit of an idea of Nerine. Is Hyaline similar? Is it a kingdom with a ruler as well?”
@[Ilma]
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