My heart saw the things my eyes couldn't see; Diplomats, any

[Circinae]

oh, my love, don't forsake me. take what the water gave me ..

If Fox was terrible at being a diplomat, Circinae would never have guessed it. Even his roguish admission only draws a lackluster smile, the tilt of her viridian head, and the slant of a look that says, “You’re only fooling yourself.” Fox was fantastic, a quaint sort of creature with a light heart and emotions worn on a sleeve. Circinae liked him for all the vitality and brightness he’d brought to this place, rather than negativity and double-edged inquiries. As her muted footfalls come to a stop, she peers between the two males who share a look of childlike excitement and says, “How could I possibly say no?”

Ander hadn’t even waited for her to finish. She agrees with his eagerness though, so much so that when she moves ahead again it’s at a brisk trot. It’d been awhile since she’d felt the sand beneath her, shifting and soaked with briny seawater. The last time had been in the dregs of summer, when Corvus had come to test the coils of wind underneath his growing feathers. As the stocky pony mare breaks through the sparse outcroppings of resilient pines and floats over grassy dunes she can almost picture him there - standing proudly square with his bold wings outstretched, the water licking eagerly at his hooves while his green hair had whipped like a flag behind him.

A sigh escapes her and she halts. “Ta-da!” She exclaims breathlessly, blue eyes scanning the distant horizon as ice is pushed to short and left to harden. “The Northeastern limits of Taiga. Now, you’ve seen just about as much as you could hope to see here.” The envoy tells Fox with the hiccup of a laugh. Large as her kingdom might be, it was rather repetitive in appearance. “Please stay as long as you like, Fox. @[Ruan] may be tempted to make an appearance. Or, if you need him, it’s always an adventure to sniff him out.” She teases lightly, a twinkle settling into the corners of her gaze.

Circinae kicks her heels up. In a rolling canter she shifts, shrinking down until her likeness becomes the little brown wolf they’ve all become accustomed to. She’ll play with Ander this way - it’s safer, she’s more nimble and less of an obstacle as she comes alongside the black colt with a yip. She stops only to glance back at Fox, ears stock-straight atop her fuzzy head. “Whenever you’d like to leave just let me know. Your journey home shouldn’t take as long, I know a secret path.” The wolf grins, mouth shaping itself to form words before snapping back into a canine snout.

Any questions, if he had them, she’d eagerly answer. For the moment though she’s content to turn her attentions back to Ander, sharp teeth snapping at the air around his heels in a safe sort of chase.

Circinae