"But the dream, the echo, slips from him as quickly as he had found it and as consciousness comes to him (a slap and not the gentle waves of oceanic tides), it dissolves entirely. His muscles relax as the cold claims him again, as the numbness sets in, and when his grey eyes open, there’s nothing but the faint after burn of a dream often trod and never remembered." --Brigade, written by Laura
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
Most of Smoak longs for adventure. For exploration. For new experiences. But there is a small piece of him that keeps him anchored to Tephra still, even on the brink of adulthood. The champagne boy loves his family ─ he'd missed enough time with them when they'd been captured by Carnage. And when Dad and Scyla were fighting. He finally has them all back now and he aches to leave his volcanic island home, but there is one face that Smoak has not had the pleasure of seeing in quite some time.
The bone-armored colt had not traveled as far as Hyaline until today. Instantly, though, he understands why Svedka and Solace's mother had often returned to the western territory. The mountaintop air is warm in the early summertime and his mane and tail whip in the occasional gust of wind. He doesn't linger here long (his excitement to see Solaces overshadows his desire to stop and smell the roses), instead picking up his pace as he descends into the valley-like sanctum, its translucent lake glimmering at its center.
The tree boughs bloom lavender and crimson, vibrant under the noontime sun, though perhaps not as vibrant as they would have been in the spring. The branches intertwine in some places, offering loosely-knit canopies for the lanky creature to lope beneath. His weight carries him faster down the slope and by the time he rockets from the treeline and towards the crystalline lake, the young Smoak is galloping carefree and excited.
He throws his head skyward and lets a call ring out for Solace, her pleasant scent finding his fluttering nostrils for the first time in what seems like ages.
12-02-2017, 09:46 PM (This post was last modified: 12-02-2017, 09:50 PM by Solace.)
Solace
When Rou had come to see her the scent of Tephra had reached her before the sight of the stallion had - and she had thought of Smoak, not her father, and now she feels a pang of guilt at the memory. The young mare had known of her fathers return to Beqanna for the turn of a season, yet she had not made the return journey to her birthplace to see him. She tells herself it's justified, she had been exceptionally busy.
But fate or love has brought her another man of Tephran, and as she hears his voice on the wind - clear and strong, older but distinctly Smoak - she can't help but echo it with her own full-body whinny.
In maturity, her father's Mustang blood gave the young Caretaker the rounded figure of his Spanish ancestors, yet hint's of her mother's Morgan influence appeared in the high set of her neck and the refined shape of her skull. Much of the girlishness she had left Tephra carrying had waned, but as she approaches her childhood friend, she feels like the filly she has always been in his presence - even if she has of spent much of her time pretending to be Queen back then.
"Smoak!" The heavy spice of orchids and thunderstorms was hard to miss in the crisp mountain atmosphere, that paired with his call means it takes her only moments to find him. "I'm so happy to see you here!" She presses her muzzle to his cheek, all too aware of the goodbye she never properly gave him before Amet spirited her away.
you are my sunshine
Sorry @[Sii] - this one is going right back on your list :|
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
Smoak's thundering gallop comes to an immediate halt as Solace's distant whinny draws him into its honeytrap. His lanky appendages, perhaps his only remaining coltish feature, dig into the sediment that rings Hyaline's crystalline lake as he slides his golden frame to a halt. The son of Dahmer and Ellyse spins on his hooves, now damp and sinking into the soft loam, and raises his bone-armored head high in anticipation for the blue-tinted girl's arrival.
It doesn't take her long to find him and a crooked smile lights his face up as Solace peels away from the treeline. The backdrop is lost on him as she approaches, the prettiest, loveliest feature of Hyaline ─ why had he waited an entire season to come find her? She removes the space between the two of them quickly, the excitement in her voice drawing his own to the surface and reminding him that he should probably greet her in return. "Solace," he says warmly into her ear just as her soft muzzle caresses his cheek. The young stallion takes a step back from her and tilts his head to the side, those mischievous hazel eyes finding her with guile.
"Careful, I'd hate for Svedka to see us touching," he whispers playfully to Solace, accenting his jest with a wink as he moves his head further to tug at her mane with his blunt teeth. "So, I guess playing Queen just wasn't cutting it anymore, huh?" he inquires with the same warmth as he finally pulls away, savoring this new scent of Hyaline that clings to the young mare. His hazel eyes move from her, sliding over the crystal lake and to the lone wisteria tree that sits near the eastern edge. He regards it for a brief moment before peaking at Solace again, this time from the corner of his bright hazel eye.
"I bet they love you already, Lace. Like father, like daughter." He pauses only briefly before nudging Hyaline's caretaker on the neck. "Care to show me around and tell me how you've been? I promise not to be too much of a handful."
12-05-2017, 08:33 AM (This post was last modified: 12-05-2017, 08:34 AM by Solace.)
Solace
He may look a little different, a little taller, a little stonger, but everything that made him Smoak was stll the same. The wild eyed colt with a heart of gold - too much like her her reckless brother but perfect all the same.
She doesn't shy away from his touches and fond greeting, he was safe, she had known him forever.
"Svedka?" She shakes her head with something close to embarrassment coming over her. Svedka had gone among her mothers beloved free-folk a nearly a year she had her suspicions that he may have become friendly with some of those free-loving women, but she had had the nerve to ask. Her electrically charged meeting with Castile along the river comes to mind, but she pushes it away quickly - she could hardly compare that to what Svedka had probably been doing. For a week or two after her encounter with Castile, she had diligently taken her morning walks along Hyaline southern border hoping to catch a glance of the charming stranger, but now months had passed and she hadn't seen his heavy black wings or mismatched eyes in just as long.
The place where Smoak's muzzle had lightly brushed her ear is still tingling and she had never been shy around Smoak for long. "I think he would be the last to care," and reaches up to lips around the pice of hard armor on his cheek, noticing the way the smooth wite bone has become more prevalent in their time apart. "Does it hurt? Growing that?" She wonders why she had never asked before, but he had always just been that way. Maybe their time apart had given her a new perspective.
Solace leans into his nudge as he teases her. A playful smile never leaving her lips, only widening as he uses her old nickname. She still didn't feel like a Queen most of the time, she still felt like she was just playing the part. "So I guess you heard," and then another part of his sentence strikes her and she grows suddenly serious. "Wait, what was that you said about my father?"
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
Solace's short-lived embarrassment draws that crooked grin back to Smoak's lips. She is a girl again, if only for a second, cheeks hot with excitement in the raging storm and he's the boy that wants to see that fire in her eyes again and again. He's drawn to the new scent of crisp air and wisteria that clings to her and he waits, perhaps, just a beat too long to pull away. Solace's comment turns his mirth to faux skepticism and the bone-armored stallion cocks his champagne head to the side. "I'd like to avoid the 'Why are you touching my sister, Smoak?' conversation a little bit longer, I think," he adds playfully before the painted lady reaches for the plating on his cheek.
With a small shrug, Smoak leans his head forward, forelock falling across a hazel eye, so that Hyaline's new Caretaker can better inspect his ivory armor. "Most of the time, no. But it can make me ache sometimes," the young stallion admits, and then wonders why he did. He never would have admitted to feeling any pain (too proud, this one) even just a year ago, before either of them had ever considered a world outside of Tephra.
"Of course I heard," he chuckles as Solace leans into his nudge, his own gold-flecked eyes shining, "Why else do you think I traveled all the way to Hyaline? For the scenery?" Smoak doesn't her to acknowledge the jest, though, as her pretty face suddenly growing serious and intrigued. The champagne stallion nods his head at her, eyes widening at the sudden realization that she did not yet know of Warrick's coronation.
"Your daddy is the new Overseer of Tephra, Lace," he says, weight shifting back and forth on his lanky limbs in excitement, curious of what her reaction will be.
Solace can only laugh at her friend's rebuttal and crooked grin, she wasn't about to argue.
Why else do you think I traveled all the way to Hyaline? For the scenery?
Outwardly, she smiles, but she can't help but wonder exactly why he had chosen to come to Hyaline, and what his mother thought of it. She want's to neatly categorize him as a friend, a trusted companion and nothing more, but the truth was as each day passed her emotions became more and more muddied.
Luckily, his report on Tephra wipes her mind clear of any conflicting emotions. Warrick's daughter shouldn't be surprised by the news (there had been hints) but regardless, it leaves her speechless. Blue eyes widen in confusion, but quickly the shock turns to joy. "Oh, that's wonderful! He will be wonderful!"
In one smooth movement, she rises onto her haunches, her for-limbs momentarily dancing in the air. Her chest swells with pride at the thought of her father as Tephra's Overseer, she feels giddier at the thought of him ruling than herself.With a jolt she lands and turns her golden back to the lake, taking off at a gallop. For a short while, it is nice to forget that the fate of a kingdom rests on her slim shoulders.
"Come one, the lake looks even more beautiful from the top of the mountains! I'll race ya!"
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
Solace's excitement over her father's coronation is contagious and Smoak laughs in tune with her, his own hooves prancing excitedly on the soft loam of Hyaline's lakeshore. The champagne stallion tosses his head, the muscles beneath his sleek coat rippling, effectively removing the wavy forelock from his hazel gaze. A second bout of laughter erupts from the bone-armored stallion's maw as the blue-tressed mare rises onto her hindquarters, the excitement permeating from her in the same way that it used to when they were young, energetic children.
"Of course he will be wonderful. Everyone already loves him, and Mom wouldn't have chosen him if he wasn't perfect for Tephra." He had heard that Warrick's promotion had initially been Offspring's idea, that Solace's dad's promotion had been years in the making, and the champagne stallion is pleased that the plan has finally unfolded, that his Mom and Dad are finally able to spend time together that is not interrupted by politics, torture, or polar bear shifters.
Solace lands on her forelegs powerfully before pivoting and taking off in a swift gallop, her lilting voice carrying back to him over her shoulder. Smoak laughs again, digging his own hooves into the dirt and taking off after her with long, bounding strides. "How am I supposed to win when you're the only one who knows where we are going?!" he yells to her as they run, the wind pushing his mane and tail back to billow behind his lanky frame.
The champagne stallion follows closely behind Solace as they run, a grin turning the corners of his mouth upward as he watches her, pleased that she is the same ol' Solace that he remembers, despite the new weight of the golden crown atop her blue-tressed head.
Over the wind, Smoak's voice reaches her in fragments, but she only smiles. The ivory an gold Queen continues to gallop through the colorful summer foliage with an abandon she has rarely felt. Her father wore the crown he deserved, and her oldest friend was close by her side. Her world was a fairy tale, and she didn't take it for granted.
When the thundering pair have reached one of Solace's favorite meadows she slows abruptly, looking back to him with an open mouth smile and her breath coming in ragged. Her small hoves sink into the plush bed of clover as she leaves the trees behind, the sky opening up above her. The lake is nestled far below them. Solace halts when she is near the center of the little meadow and can see the turquoise waters clearly - but the lake only holds her gaze for a moment.
"You can't win," the painted mare shrugs, looking back to the young stallion with unabashed mischief, "'cause I just did." Her heart is singing as she observes his pale form set in beautiful contrast against the veridian clover. He was here, with her.
He left Tephra to come see her.
She closes whatever space there may be between them, wrapping her body around his, incapable of being separated any longer. Along her spine, she can feel the tingling which lets her know that light has begun to faintly seep out from her topline, but she doesn't try to hide it. She had always been careful to keep her magic a secret from all outside of her family, except for Smoak.
"I want you to stay." She says before she allows herself time to think about what she will do if he says no. "I need you here with me"
Keep a little fire burning; however small, however hidden.
His heart soars as he gallops behind her, the pair streaking swiftly beneath the bright sunlight, their tails billowing out behind them. Smoak makes sure to stay close, his muzzle snaking out occasionally to push at Solace's flank and threaten playfully to run by her, but they both know that he would be lost in this place without her, and he wouldn't want to leave her in his dust, anyway. The verdant meadow is beautiful, but it's the blue-tinted mare that holds his attention and when she tosses her head over her shoulder to grin happily at him, the bone-armored colt returns the favor without question.
"Yeah, yeah," he responds with gentle laughter, "you know you always win."
He winks at Solace, his grin remaining and his heartbeat racing as she suddenly moves to close the distance between them, her painted neck wrapping itself around his and Smoak leans his champagne frame back into her, tucking his head around her neck and pulling her closely to him. His hazel eyes are drawn to her spine and the glowing dorsal stripe that appears in moments of unfettered emotion. He smiles to himself, heart full with the thought that it could be entirely because of him, though it thinks it likely that the news of her father and her own Queenship may have something to do with it.
Her request catches him off guard and for a moment, the champagne stallion is silent, though he does not let her pull away from him, should she try. Finally, he whispers incredulously to her, "There's no way I was staying in Tephra without you, Lace," the confession full of truth and softened with a hint of amusement. "You're stuck with me."
He pulls her close in the way father pulled mother close. He pulls her close the way she had seen young lovers in Tephra hold each other before she had looked away... but maybe she is reading into things.
Then, there is her question followed by painful, heart-wrenching silence. It is probably only seconds, only a single breath, but her pulse thrums relentlessly in her ears during that pause. Had she said too much? Would it scare him away if he found out she felt more for him than she should feel for a friend? Did she even want him to know that? This is why she never allowed herself to get caught up in the moment.
You're stuck with me
Her exhale explodes from her lungs as relief washes over her, warm and tangible. His voice is low and close, heating her skin wherever his breath touches. She could nearly kiss him.
"Are you sure?" she replies, bridling the excitement she feels to match his low tone. "I thought you were going to make me beg you."
What was meant to be a playful nip on his chest lingers for a moment too long before she again leans into him, staying close and enjoying the feeling his neck draped over her is creating. She had imagined their reunion several times, but the young mare hadn't imagined it to go quite like this. Even though it is different, she is not disappointed. In the back of her mind something tells her to slow down, to turn the conversation to his family or tell him about all that has happened in Hyaline, but she pushes that away for now. What she had been afraid to experiment with by the river with Castile, she tastes with hesitation with Smoak. But as soon as she decides that what she is feeling is ok the words suddenly are harder to find. "Do you want to go to the very top of the mountain... or should we stay here? Oh, you haven't told me about your journey!"
You're stuck with me.
His words repeat in her mind, and she hopes he means it.
