you'll be dancing with the leaves, LILITHA

[Kudu]

It's dusk when Kudu returns to the meadow. The air has a bite to it already, a mere taste of the winter weather that lies ahead - he's noticed it in his travels, these past weeks. Every night feels a little colder. That winter is just around the corner isn't necessarily an unwelcome notion - it's safer, in a way. Makes for less tinder.

Now, though, the meadow's long grass is tall, and bone-dry, no less. The blue stallion stands belly-deep in a patch crisscrossed by the paths of others' travels. It used to make him feel smug, doing this, back when he was a colt - newly pushy, free of his mother's fretting and his brother's restless energy. It had been satisfying, the idea that the briefest touch of flame might ignite a broad swath of the field, leaving him unscathed in the centre - something he could use to intimidate for once. 

It had been one of those things that had proven to be better in theory than in practice.

Now here he stands - grown, lonesome, in the same place that had spelled the end of his childhood in Beqanna. He wonders if his brother and father still haunt the place; Zojja had wasted no time in fairly dragging him out of the lands. He's not even sure she'd given Lupei a proper goodbye, let alone an explanation. Ashamed, he supposes; he hasn't seen her in over a year now. Disappearing seems to be a talent of hers. He wonders if she passed it along to Wyrm, too.

To his right, some twenty yards away, there is a flash of fire, and a sick, sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He didn't do that - he knows he didn't, he is still here in one piece and... and there is a filly, dark and long-legged, with unnaturally large sparks illuminating her upturned face. Kudu wanders closer, taking in the scarlet of her mane and tail - she certainly doesn't resemble anyone in the immediate area. This is rather distressing, given that she appears to be the source of the flames flitting around her face. 

He could just walk away, he reasons - a traited child making mistakes isn't necessarily his problem. But if he closes his eyes, he finds that he can still hear the echoes of the roan's screams. It is just enough. Whuffing, the blue-green sidles closer, meaning to place himself between the girl and the expanse of irresistibly dry grass stretching away behind him.

"You should be careful, you know." Kudu surveys her from under his forelock, sizing her up. "You look a little young to be torching the Meadow."

[Lilitha]

i pretend to close my eyes;
i pretend i'm burning bright.

Oh, today has been lovely! I wandered away from the cold of the Tundra to have a bit of fun in the warmer parts of Beqanna, places where winter is just beginning to creep in instead of the full out ice and cold of the Tundra at this time of year. And while I don’t so much mind the cold, because I’m quite good at keeping myself warm, well it’s nice to not have to, you know?

I’ve gotten a full day of frolicking and gamboling in, running around and exploring, and now that the sunset is slowly fading from the sky I know I should probably make my way home. Even if I don’t quite want to head back just yet. It’s more fun out and about, and there’s always a chance I’ll run into someone new and make a friend. The fire’s nice and all, but no matter how playful it can be...well, it doesn’t talk back, see? And Romek, my dad, is kind of busy, so it’s gotten a little bit lonely tucked away in the frozen north.

Oh, just a little longer. Maybe it won’t fix the sneaky lonely feeling that’s been creeping into my chest lately, but it’ll at least be nice and warm, and it’s so pretty here! Though it was nicer when I could see better. With the thought, a few sparks flare into existence, lighting the land around me so I can explore a little bit more easily.

The light draws attention, though, and before very long, a stranger approaches. Oh, he looks fascinating too, the bluest blue I’ve ever seen blending into a lovely minty green shade on his legs and belly. I don’t know many people who’re such bright colors, or any really. Romek has some glowy spots, though, and I’ve got my red mane and tail which are pretty cool. And he said his Mari is pretty colors, or can be at least. I guess she can change her colors, which seems like a neat trick anyhow.

“Oh hi there,” I say, grinning at the stranger and bouncing a step closer. Ohhh and then his words sink in and I get a little distracted, my smile fading to something a little bit dreamy. “A big fire? Ohhh...oh that sounds like fun. But not ‘til I’m better at reining the little ones in, because it would be really bad if the fire got so big I couldn’t stop it.” That would be dangerous.

Still, I get just a tiny bit lost in imagining, all the pretty flames dancing around like mad, flickers and roars and all that lovely heat, oh, it sounds perfect! I get a little bit too excited though, and sparks dance across my skin instead of reaching out to light the world up. Except I feel a few of them get a little bit too rowdy, and I shake my head just in time to see them flare up and make a break for it. “Hey!” I stomp on them, squishing them and putting them out before they can catch fire in the grass, and snort my indignation at the tiny little charred spots left behind when I step back.

Aaaand then I remember I’m not alone, which is kind of an unusual occurrence lately. I glance back over at the colorful stallion and grin sheepishly. “Sorry about that. Um. My name’s Lilitha. Though you can call me Lil, or Lily, or Litha, or Lilith, or...well, I’ve got lots of nicknames and I’ll answer to most anything if I know you’re talking to me. Who’re you?”

[Kudu]

Bringing up a blaze in the Meadow doesn't startle her like it should - at least, as Kudu has come to think that it should - and instead, her expression grows faraway and thoughtful. A big fire, she says, and although the blue-green stallion's brow creases - his best possible approximation of his mother's disapproving frowns, of which there had been few, back when - Kudu really can't blame her. He used to look that way, back when he first found out what he could do. (This is, no doubt, the reason Lupei attempted to move their small herd to Volcanic Village - no better place to learn control - but then, of course, things had happened.) His mouth quirks into a faint smile in spite of himself. 

"It does sound like fun," he admits (he can't quite help himself - it's hard to hate something that lurks so close beneath the surface, something that burns always in the marrow of his bones), and he isn't even sure if the starry-eyed filly has heard him or not, because she's still woolgathering. "If you could control it, that is," Kudu continues, catching himself, and as if on cue, sparks kindle on the dark expanse of her coat. At first, he simply watches her daydream. It's only when he reaches to snatch a mouthful of bland fall grass that he notices something has gone awry - his ears prick as a stray spark drifts past his nose, and before he can even look up, tiny hooves are already stamping the would-be blaze out in the grass a bare few inches away. Kudu ruminates on this as he finishes his snack, watching as she delivers a wrathful snort to the smoldering turf. 

"Close call," he remarks at last, mildly. It's not too late to wander off before something does go up in smoke, he supposes... but she seems to have a handle on it, for the most part, so perhaps he'll stick around a little longer. She distracts herself, anyway, remembering that introductions are in order, and Kudu ambles closer. Lilitha, huh? "You do have lots of nicknames. I only have one." The blue stallion reaches out to brush his nose against hers. "I'm Kudu." 

One last glance at the tall grass, and then he sets off, picking an unhurried path toward a nearby creek. After he's moved what he deems a safe distance, he pauses, giving himself a mighty shake, and his mane and tail erupt into flame. Showmanship, buddy. Kudu grins before he can quite stop himself, and glances around to notice Lilitha sort of lingering a few yards back. "Lily. Are you coming?" he calls, giving his fire-tail a casual flick. "I'm not going far."