You’re dripping like a saturated sunrise, anyone

[Kagerus]

kagerus

and in my dreams I've kissed your lips a thousand times

The oncoming sunset holds much promise I decide as I gaze upon it serenely. I'm near the border of Hyaline, having come fresh from the river, the smell of dreams on my coat (though I sport no additions to myself this day). A minute passes as I stare at the clouds that are just beginning to turn golden, wishing for the colours to burst forth immediately - but if we could have beauty at our fingertips, our hands would reach elsewhere, wouldn't they?

The breeze causes the flower I have dangling carefully between my lips, and this movement reminds me of what my purpose is here and now - it's not sunset watching, though I wish it could be. Tearing my nutmeg eyes away from the gorgeous sky, I head inland, following the curves of Hyaline's surface with a well practiced ease. I scan the area for any sign of the man I seek, hoping that the flower I hold won't wilt before I get to him.

As I reach the top of a particular hill, my eyes catch on a black figure - not Svedka, but someone else of equal interest. A smile splits my lips and I have to fumble to keep the flower in my mouth, but as I regain my composure, I canter down my hill and then back up the one that Briseis has momentarily claimed as her own.

Just as I'm coming up the crest, I notice that someone has beat me to the chase - the exact someone I'd been seeking! Whinnying (though it sounds quite ridiculous around the obstruction), I trot to close the distance between us. I toss my head eagerly, shaking the little orange bulb as if to say look! When the stallion has seen it, I step forward and nestle it into his mane, lower than the cornflower that I'd brought him a few days prior. "For the apple this morning," I explain, eyeing him pointedly; though there'd been no trace of him this morning when I awoke, there was no other explanation for the golden apple resting picture-perfect at my hooves. "It's a panther lily," I finish, hoping that he'll like it.

"But there is a prettier flower still among us today," I gush, and then immediately cringe - that is probably the cheesiest thing I've ever said. I blame Svedka's presence. He's far too cheery for people like me, it's character-ruining! The cringe seems to relay this dead-inside-for-being-corny emotion well enough, so I move on. Stepping forward, I pivot to stand next to the black mustang, smiling from her to the Heart of Hyaline. "Svedka, this is Briseis. I met her in the field earlier this week."

Introductions aside, I focus my attention on the pretty, if plain, little mare. "How were your travels? I hope the peaks of Hyaline were not too elusive for you."