Something within his gaze causes her pause. The familiar glisten within his gaze as he first looks upon her and then Kiwi as she danced around excitedly. Her demeanor slowly softened as he commented on his visit thus far. It did not surprise Nymf that Volcan would challenge the stallion to a fight. She was feisty mare in the best of times and she could hardly waste an opportunity to show off her prowess when it came to male visitors. Though she had been the first Nerine dweller she’d met, the two mares couldn’t have been more different. She was taken aback to hear that he was not the average brute she’d come to expect. He had no interest in fighting and, instead, wanted his time among them to be peaceful.
Slowly she began to relax.
Not that she trusted him but, rather, because she trusted his vow. His smiled moved towards Kiwi and Nymf felt her muscles grow taut once more. She couldn’t help but feel protective over the filly’s innocence. She was young and incapable of protecting herself against the commonly violent ways of the world. Though the strange man had promised to be peaceful, Nymf would memorize his face just in case they ever stumbled upon him outside of Nerine’s protection.
As he turned to leave she saw the defeat written all across his features and sudden guilt washed over her.
”Thank you,” she said as he prepared to leave. She glanced at Kiwi at her side. ”I adopted her after the loss of my son.”
She wasn’t sure what had urged her to say the last bit. Normally, she protected that information as if her life depended on it. She swallowed hard and stepped towards the dark haired man.
”Like me, she was alone,” again words tumbled out of her mouth, unbidden. ”I felt drawn to her, as if I knew that we both needed each other to survive this world.”
Thus far, Beqanna had given her the two greatest gifts only to rip them mercilessly away from her. Every night, she watched Kiwi as she slept at her feet terrified that one day she would see the beautifully vibrant child stolen away from her just as heartlessly. Kiwi was the only she had to wake every morning – to face the light of day. Without her, she truly believed that she would have found herself at the cliff’s edge once again.
She needed more light in her life. Tiny rays to break through the shrouds of darkness that clouded her mind and spirit. There was hope again in her life and she would not let small moments of happiness pass her by. They were too precious and too few.
@[Eros]