Out with the golden we sew // Lokii

[Kagerus]

During the time of Elite's reign of terror, I'd been but a mote of stardust: unborn, that is. But the tales of her tyranny befell my ears at a young age; her mass murderings, her racism, her spite. Kavi hated that pink woman with a ferocity I've never seen at any other time - but the fact that her war, in the Valley, had been the downfall of his mother and my grandmother left no other emotion for him to express. And indeed, I learned to hate the hateful at a young age due to these stories; if I could read minds and know that the stallion who approaches me is one of her own goddamn number all these decades later... There would be bloodshed.

He extends his powers deep into her mind, sending a shiver down her spine; she stops, he laughs, the shadows bleed. Her heart pounds to the rhythm of his magic, unknowingly seating herself directly into the palms of his tricksterish hands. A coolness washes over her - the shadows - they -

They aren't like Khaedrik's; they do not greet me with the glee of any family member. They come, suckling with a dark neediness against the leaf-strewn earth, extending from a body that my eyes cannot make out through the obscurity. Powerless in the face of his illusion, I stand in rapture as my breath fails to come, seeing not only blackness from his shadow but also from lack of oxygen.

The shadows jolt back to their master as if tugged by their leash; her lungs reinflate and she remains conscious. Across the distance, a figure emerges with the sultry finesse of any practiced evil-doer; the dark bruises of his eyes are completely unreadable.

His gaze travels my body with the same familiarity that his word choice portrays, the gestures insinuating ownership, lust. A stiff swallow helps to bring me back to my senses, and I slowly pin my ears back against my skull. Solace is waiting for me at home - she trusts me not to put myself in danger. The need to protect my family forces my hooves to subtly realign me towards the easiest exit, though my eyes never leave the stranger. His voice only sends more shiver's down my spine; what the hell does he want?

"I am traveling home," I mutter, tilting my head slightly; the sharp prongs of my antlers gleam threateningly with the movement. "Am," I emphasize, taking a step forward as if to continue - but of course, it will never be that simple. The darkness obliges our union as happily as perhaps ever it has, though in this moment the darkness is more his than mine.

(Don't be so quick to count me out... I'm always here, don't you know that? I've just been allowing you a reprieve from my presence - I got you so close to death last time, and, well, I'm not done having my fun yet. I need my prey well rested so that the chase is more enjoyable - so keep believing that I'm not watching your every step, gathering information that I can use against you when the perfect time comes. You are not your own, oh light-hearted one, but instead, you are entirely mine.)